Dangan Ronpa Part #52 - Super High-school Level Update #46

Part 52: Super High-school Level Update #46

So, a new floor. We have a lot to cover, so let's get right to it. As usual, I'll start with the classrooms.

Luckily, they're right there next to the stairs.

Blackboard: I'm bored...

This classroom is empty. But really, who is drawing those blackboard graffiti? On to the second classroom.

Blackboard: Monobear's Despair Squad

Let's pan a little so we can see the blackboard better, and so it doesn't look like Monobear's ears are on poor Sakura.

As expected, the windows here are also barred with metal plates.

It sure is difficult to escape this place...

Nevertheless, I will go and check all the other plates in this floor...

That's it for the classrooms. Next, the little room that is also close to the stairwell.

Um... This room is...

It’s a recreation room... It seems to be a place for students to take a rest...

It’s... pretty amazing a school has this kind of a room.

It’s unthinkable for a regular high school, isn’t it? There are Othello and Shogi boards, and even a dartboard and a pool table...

Othello (also known as Reversi), is a simple board game where each player tries to capture their opponent's pieces by surrounding them. Shogi is the Japanese version of chess, both descended from the same original Chinese board game.

And then, look over there...

That rack is full of all kinds of magazines.

It’s the perfect thing to avoid boredom.

Piropirorin! We have a fantastic supply here!

Fashion, Motorcycles, Wrestling, Video games, Baseball, Soccer, Computers... we have magazines of every kind, but...

You won’t find anything erotic. This is a school, after all. You’ll have to make do with those photos of lightly-dressed women in the photography magazines!

...Are you going to put new issues of the magazines here, when they are published?

That’s impossible.

I mean, I want to, but magazines...

Eh...?

...Oops!

It’s nothing! You’ll just have to live with what’s already here. Bye bye!!

............

What Monobear just said...

...It’s worrying, isn’t it?

How disappointing. If we could get new issues, life here would have gotten much easier.

I... I see...

This room is full of things we can look at. Here we go.

There are many genres of magazines on this rack...
There’s even manga... but if we can’t read the next issue, it’s really irritating...

That’s an Othello board... But I’m not really good at the game.

It’s a pretty spacious table...
Quite different from the desks in the classrooms.

It’s a leather-covered sturdy sofa...
It looks pretty comfortable.

We even have a dartboard. Is that something Monobear put here? Or was it here from the beginning?

These look like bottles... but why are they here?
I have no idea... I guess they're just for decoration...

There’s a ragged locker here...
It doesn’t look like it’s important. I guess there’s no reason to check what’s inside...

A pool table... That’s not something you usually find in a school. Did Monobear put it here? Was it here from the beginning?

So many things that can either be incredibly important foreshadowing or complete red herrings. Oh well. It's time to continue exploring the rest of the floor.

We bump into Kirigiri in the corridor next to the recreation room.

So this time the 3rd floor opened up...

I only took a quick glance, but it seems we have a physics lab and an art room here.

The large machine in the physics labs is especially interesting. I wonder what that thing is...?

I was thinking of going through the rooms as I pass them, but if Kirigiri is interested in the physics lab, we probably want to go check that out first. It's at the far end of the floor, which features much twistier corridors than the first and the second. Enjoy the sights on the way.

So this is the physics lab...

But, it doesn’t really look like a classroom. It’s more like a laboratory at a real research institute.

That machine does look interesting, but my first concern is Ishimaru.

Ishimaru-kun... This place really looks like a real laboratory, doesn’t it.

............

...It’s useless. He’s not responding.

No improvement. Okay, let's see what's up with this machine.

W...what’s up with this humongous machine...?

Danger!!

W...what do you want...?

You wouldn't want to accidentally leap through time, would you!?

...Huh?

This is a time machine! Isn’t it amazing? It was developed by a student here at Hope’s Peak Academy!

There was a Super High-school Level Physicist, you see... Well, I’m talking about the “original” Hope’s Peak Academy, before its despair-inducing demise.

A time machine......?

Can we really... return to the... past...?

If we can... please let me use it...

If I go back... If I can do that...

I’m sure I can stop him...!!

That’s impossible. This time machine can only go back one minute in time.

It’s invaluable if you left your instant ramen for one minute too long, though!

Just one minute......?

Oh, do you find that disappointing?

But anyway, that was all a fib. There is no such thing as time machines.

Eh......?

This is actually an air purifying machine.

An air purifying machine...?

It’s a very useful device that can produce oxygen in any environment. If you have it, you can even live on Mars.

Though I guess you’d face some heat and gravity problems, so you probably can’t actually live there after all, can you...?

Anyway, the reason you bastards have such sweet air in this place is all thanks to this machine...

Try not to play with the buttons and break it!!

Such a gigantic machine... just to purify the air...?

But, more importantly...

...........

He’s really doing everything he can to drive people who are hurting into a corner...

...Shit!

There are a few more things to check out in this lab.

I know this is some kind of a machine, but...
For someone who has no clue about physics like me, it’s impossible to understand what it does...

Are those things used in experiments...?
Other than written material, there are pulleys and plates, compasses and tools I’ve never seen before...

If we pan the screen all the way to the right, we find something new.

Oh, that's...

It has a weird anime design, but it’s a digital camera, isn’t it.
It’s a little dirty, but there are batteries inside.

We may be able to use it. I’ll show it to everyone later.

Nothing left here, so let's go into the little side-room attached to this lab.

This is... the physics lab's anteroom...

It’s messy... and there’s a strange smell of medicine...

Haaaa~, this place sure is relaxing! It's so wonderful!

I can’t get enough of this scent of formalin...

...It’s stimulating!!

Ahh, I want to soak in it...!

............

If Genocider likes it... this must be the worst place.

Oh, come on, Naegi. I'm sure she'll win you over soon. Let's see what foreshadowing/red herrings we can find here.

These seem like... the results of past experiments and research notes. The file cabinets here are full of them.

Pendulums and wheels and rails... all kinds of experimental tools are in disarray here.

They’re all covered with dust... It looks like they haven’t been used in a long time...

These are... tarpaulin sheets.
There doesn’t seem to be anything strange about them.

That's it. We have one last room to explore on this floor.

This... looks like an art room...

But... there are several things that feel wrong here...

I dunno. Yamada looks pleased.

Ah... this is indeed a fine establishment. My art bone is tickling!

There aren’t only regular art supplies here, we even have sculpting tools!!

sculpting tools

Are you... also interested in sculpting, Yamada-kun?

My interest is ordinarilly limited to 2D, but figures are a different story. They are 2D by association.

I’m not sure he knows what “by association” means...

I especially admire the works of Charanbo-san, Pumpkin Head-san and Roppongi Mitsuro-san...

Research fail. I spent 30 minutes looking for who those names are parodying, and came up with nothing. They are probably well-known doujin figure makers, so if anyone here is familiar with that scene, I'd be happy to find out.

Charanbo-san’s sculpting of muscles is beautiful, and his Cat Mama series is an exemplary example of this.

Pumpkin Head-san is this century’s foremost scholar on the sculpting of fairies...

Roppongi Mitsuru-san is an expert on movable joints, and even went on an expedition abroad to preach about Mecha girls.

Together, they are the four great kings of the figure world!

I think you have one name missing...

That heavenly kingdom is not yet complete!

And the empty seat that remains in it is... unquestionably made for me!

Heh heh heh, and so it begins... My epic legendary journey...

I see... Well, good luck...

The art room is also full of clickable objects.

This is... a Monobear sculpture... Who’d make such a thing...?
It’s really well made, though...

This is... a sculpture of Venus... Yeah, this feels more like it belongs in a real art room...

Paintings are taped all over the wall...
They look like shoddy crayon work. Is this... also art?

It’s a locker...
But it doesn’t look like there’s anything inside...

This is a Nio statue...
I’ve never heard of a Nio used as a sketching aid, though...

Nio are buddhist guardian demons, and anyone who has been to a big buddhist temple in Japan has seen their huge statues standing on both sides of the entrance.

Much like the physics lab, the art room also has a smaller room attached to it.

This is an adjunct to the art room... An art supplies room...

...but there's no one here. Oh well, let's just look around.

There are wooden hammers on the wall... I think they’re used for sculpting...

It’s a trolley... It’s probably used to carry sculptures around...

Nothing on this side... Fine, let's just look at that thing on the floor.

There’s something on the floor...

It looks like... a photo...

But the moment I reached to pick up that photo...

My hand suddenly came to a halt.

Huh...?

The people photographed...
Were our dead friends, Fujisaki-kun, Kuwata-kun and Oowada-kun. Furthermore, they were...

...all smiling.

What’s up... with this photo...?

All kinds of questions came rushing into my head.

Why those three people?
Why are they together?
Why are they smiling?

When was it taken? By whom? What camera did they use? Where was it taken?

And then, the windows in the classroom in the photo......

There aren’t any metal plates...!?

Does that mean... this photo...

Was taken outside of Hope’s Peak Academy?

But, before those questions could even settle in my head...

The photo was suddenly taken away from me by force...