Part 83: Super High-school Level Update #73

When we entered the locker room, we found...



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

Fukawa-san was kneeling the traditional Japanese way in front of a bench with the laptop on it...

...Did you come here to listen to what Alter Ego has to say as well, Fukawa-san?
I...I've already heard it... Together with Byakuya-sama...



...Together with Byakuya-sama!



Yeah, we get it. You don't have to repeat yourself. So, why are you still here?



S...shut up... you're bothering me...



You're the bothersome one, 'right? We have business with Alter Ego, so move.



I...I can't do that... I promised Byakuya-sama...



Promised?



H...he told me sit here and wait...



What are you, his dog...?!



I'll do anything if Byakuya-sama asks me to...



I see. You're the M in this relationship...



S...so I'm not going to move even if you want me to...



A-choo!





What have we here!?



Um... we want you to move...



Sure!! All you have to do is kneel before me and beg!!



The M turned into an S!



Let's see if any of the others can help us calm her down.



It is not I who should do it.
I am not confident she will listen to me at all.



No help from her. It's a long shot, but maybe Asahina can do something?



I'm not gonna beg to someone like her!



You do it, Naegi!!
W...why me...?
It's fine! It's not degrading or anything!
So why don't you do it...?
For me it is degrading!!

It's like she's in kindergarten...



I don't think Kirigiri is going to listen, but it's worth a try.



Kirigiri-san, about that photo earlier...
............

She's completely ignoring me again...



One last person to ask.



We have no choice! Let's punch her! It will leave a mark on her face so we can aim for the stomach!
B...but, she's a girl...



That has nothing to do with it! I have enough lawsuits against me already, so I have nothing to fear!



Hey, Shaggy! Don't even think about doing anything weird!!
It's not like you turn me on or anything, so I wouldn't mind cutting you non-fatally!



I...I'm strong with girls, but kinda weak with strong girls....

He's really the worst, isn't he...



Fine. I guess we have to handle the situation ourselves. As usual.



Um, Fukawa-san... Can you please let us use that laptop?



Oh? Oh oh oh oh oh?
Didn't you hear me before!? Kneel down before me and ask again!!



Naegi-chi! It's now or never! Let's see your kneel-and-beg combo at work!!
Don't tell me what to do as if it has nothing to do with you...



Out of despair, I kneeled down in front of Fukawa-san and looked up at her.

Can you please let us use that laptop...?



Gaahaahaaheehaahaa!!



Oh, what an ultra miracle perfect feeling! It's almost enough to clear my resentment of Byakuya-sama's oppression!



So she is aware he's oppressing her...



...Is that enough? Let's hear what Alter Ego has to say.



Go ahead!!





With her out of the way, we can finally get to business.



You all came!
I already told Togami-kun...
I finally managed to decrypt the school's files on this laptop!
I'm sorry it took so long!!



So that's what it was...



The time... has finally arrived...



M...my nerves are killing me...



I was also nervous. My hands shook as they approached the keyboard...



Move away.

She spoke as if she was throwing me away. I retreated, dejectedly.



Let's begin.

Kirigiri-san's fingers moved fast across the keys.

"Can you tell us what you found?"





Well, let me summarize the information I extracted from the decrypted files.
From what I can tell, a "certain plan" was in progress at this school.
"Lock down the students inside Hope's Peak Academy, and have them live a communal lifestyle"...
...That was the plan.
Furthermore, it wasn't just a normal communal lifestyle...
The locked-down students, depending on the circumstances, were to spend their entire lives at the school...
T...that plan...!



It is the same... as our current predicament!



It's an unbelievable plan, isn't it?
And the authority that established that plan...
...was none other than Hope's Peak Academy's own head office.



Eh...? Wait a second! So, the people who locked us here...
...they aren't a criminal group or a crooked organization...?



It was Hope's Peak Academy itself...?



...That's just silly! Why would they do that!?



...Alter Ego is not done talking.
Let's hear the rest.



Also, the reason that plan was made was a "certain incident" that happened a year ago.
Here's what the files have to say about this incident...
They say it was "The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind"...



"The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind"...?



W...what's up with the pompous naming...?!



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



It seems that The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind was something pretty tragic.
And one of its consequences...



Was that Hope's Peak Academy ceased its work as an educational facility and was forced to close down.



I see... It's all connected...
To summarize, one year ago The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind took place...
And as a result Hope's Peak Academy was forced into closing.
Then, a plan was made, with this school as its center...



...A plan to lock down the students for life.



But... why would Hope's Peak Academy's head office need to lock us down here?



And what in heavens is that Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind...?

Kirigiri-san quickly typed in those questions.

The answer soon came...



I'm sorry... I don't know anything else... There's nothing in these files about it...
I'm sorry I can't be of any more help...

...That was Alter Ego's answer.



So... that's is...? That's so incomplete...!



That's how it seems. It's unfortunate.



Ah, wait!
I found one more thing that's important...
Very important...
It's probably... about the mastermind...
The mastermind...!?

Kirigiri-san's fingers moved even faster than before.

"Do you know who the mastermind is?"

...No. I don't know that yet. But I found something that can help us find out.
The person in charge of Hope's Peak Academy's head office, the office that locked us down...
...That was Hope's Peak Academy's headmaster.
It's highly likely that the mastermind is that same headmaster, the man behind the plan.
By the way, that headmaster is a man in his late thirties...
...and there's a high chance he's currently somewhere inside this very school.



The headmaster... is here...!?



That settles it! That guy's the mastermind!! Monobear even calls himself "the headmaster"!



If that is true... that headmaster's office is even more suspicious.



But... he'll kill us if we break down the door, 'right? There's nothing we can do...



I will... find him...



Eh...?



Don't worry. I will... definitely find him.
Definitely...



W...what's wrong... Kirigiri-chan...?



............
I... must find him... That's how I feel...



That's how she feels...?

Kirigiri-san...? What just happened to her...?
I've never seen her react to anything as strongly as she did to that word, "headmaster"...



...Let's hear if Alter Ego has anything else to tell us...

Kirigiri-san managed to regain her composure and typed some more words on the keyboard.

"Do you have anything else to report?"



I'm sorry... That's everything...
Other than what I told you, there are just some old files on this laptop...
I'm really sorry...



So this time it's really over...
...Wait. I think it's about to say something else.





U...um...
I'm done with my report, but I have something I want to ask.
Um... I haven't seen Celes-san or Yamada-kun or Ishimaru-kun since yesterday...

The room suddenly became silent...

The only sound was Kirigiri-san's fingers, tapping on the keyboard.

"Those three are dead."



...Eh!?



I see... I thought that was the case...
So it really did happen, did it...



............
I...I'm sorry...
...I can't help but thinking even about the depressing possibilities...



...Anyway, I guess we're done now.

"We're done now"... Does she mean...?

The next words Kirigiri-san typed told us exactly what she thought.

"Your role is now over. Thanks for your work."



My role is over...
I guess... that's true...



I suppose... I'll just rest for a while now...
I got a little tired...
So, everyone...
Goodbye...



The laptop put itself into sleep mode.



So that is it for Alter Ego...



There's no need to check on it frequently anymore.



But... I feel kinda sad for him...



"Sad for him"... It's just a program, you know.
I guess... But, he worked so hard for us, didn't he?



That's just natural, 'right? That's what programs are for, after all.
Do you tell your computer "thanks for a job well done" every time you shut it down?



I don't, but...
But, when we talk to Alter Ego, he doesn't feel like a regular machine...
I think I know how you feel...



Hey, it's just a program, 'right? Don't confuse a program with a human friend!!
...but, what's the real difference between us and a program like Alter Ego?



Eh...?
How should I put it... when I think about how we draw the line between humans and programs...
It's clear Alter Ego isn't human -- that it's just a program running on a computer. But nevertheless...
What about the "friend" part? Is he really that different in that regard from any of us?



He isn't! He really is our friend!



I see, I think I get what you're trying to say now...
I guess I can call him a friend too! You can never have too many!



Hear my words: Friends are life's treasure. Your troubles become easier just by having friends!



Oh, give me a break...



Give you a break?! Those were my words of wisdom!



...It doesn't matter how you put it. Alter Ego can do nothing for us anymore.
Its job is over. That's all there is to it.
That's probably right, but...



Furthermore, I doubt the wisdom of using the word "friend" as lightly as you do lately.

She... doubts the wisdom...





We have digressed. Let us return to what Alter Ego reported.



Yeah.... What is Hope's Peak Academy's head office scheming...?



Why are they making us kill each other!?



It all seems to have begun with the incident one year ago.



"The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind"... was it?
Judging by its name, it must have been a huge deal...
But, did anything like that happen a year ago?



I can't think of anything. Anyone?



I don't really watch the news...



I am sorry, but I cannot recall anything.



That incident was the reason Hope's Peak Academy closed down, so...
...at the very least, the incident had something to do with this school.



Maybe... all the students at the school suddenly died or something!?



If such a thing happened, there would have been an uproar all over the news. It would be impossible for all of us to be ignorant of it.



Maybe they covered it up!
And that same conspiracy is also the reason we didn't know the school was closed!



Covering up such an incident... it is unlikely but not impossible.



What the heck is our government doing?! I pay all those taxes and this is what I get in return?!



In any case, there is just one thing we can all do right now...
Find Hope's Peak Academy's headmaster.
We'll find him... and make him tell us everything...



I'm sure... if we just find him...

She's doing it again...



This is not a problem we can solve quickly, though.



Yeah, I guess...



Let's leave the public bath for now. We've done everything we could here.



S...sure...



Right. Well, I'll be...



A-choo A-choo!





Huh...?



Are you allergic to something? I mean, you keep doing that...



I...I can't leave... If I don't wait here...



If I don't wait, I'll make Byakuya-sama sad...



I think it's best if we don't get involved.



Right...



But, just as we left the public bath, someone was waiting for us...





My heart is thumping... thump thump...



I'm angry! My heart is thumping angrily!



I...is this still about that thing with the headmaster's office...?



It has nothing to do with it...
I'm a little jealous of your obscene shared bath time, but that's also not why I'm mad...



Well, well...



I'm so angry my head is "well"ing up!!



D...don't be mad... I'll introduce you to some popular power spots if you calm down...



Carve this into your heads. I'm a bear who pays back in full.



Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.







Ayforanay...? Toosforatoos...?



Look out, everyone! That was a powerful chant of destruction!



He was just quoting the bible. "Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth".



Oh, so that's what that was.
But, what does it mean?



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

*ding-dong-ding-dong*







Eh... this is a school announcement. It is now 10pm.
“Night Time” begins now.
The cafeteria’s doors will be locked shortly. You are forbidden to enter it.



It's Night Time already...
What should we do? Celes-san, who came up with our rule, isn't here anymore...



I think we should keep staying inside our rooms at night... I feel safer that way...



I agree...



Fine, we'll keep the rule.
Well, then, goodnight...



We split up and went back to our rooms...
Monobear's last words still gnawing in the back of our heads...



As soon as I was alone in the room, I started thinking...

I turned what Alter Ego had told us again and again inside my head.
Hope's Peak Academy's head office, who planned the whole thing...
"The Worst, Most Despair-inducing Incident in the History of Mankind" that happened a year ago and started everything...

And, the person who could be the mastermind, the school's headmaster.

...nothing but riddles to make my head hurt.
But... we must take this one step at a time...

It's a long road, but we have no choice...



MONOBEAR THEATER



Let me tell you a story about the time before I became a bear.
At first... I didn't know what to do.
I had no clue what I should become.
I asked the lady at the support center, and she recommended I become a prawn.
She said it was the best idea she had heard in all her years at the company, and that the offer they made was one I couldn't get anywhere else.
But when I asked for more details...
I found out it wasn't really a prawn, but a spotted shrimp!!
It's really small!! They wanted me to be the world's smallest mascot!
I don't mind eating them, but becoming a shrimp is too much! Someone might step on me and it would all be over!
When I told her, the lady at the support center told me this as she laughed through her nose:
"We're very sorry, but in our estimation it's impossible for you to become a prawn".
That's why I ultimately chose a bear.
...And that was the birth of Monobear.