Part 110: Trial 4, Part 9

: Y-You...!
: You suck, man! You turned him into a mangled hunk of junk!
: Whew, that really took it outta me! Maybe I'll go grill up a plate of chicken! After all, they say for post-workout grub, chicken's where it's at! And I'm all about the grilled goodness!
: Fried? Broiled? Gimme a break! The color, the smell, the succelence... Grilled is where it's at!
: Ahh-hahahaha!





: I realize how dangerous it could be. But still...I have to do this.
: I'm scared, but...I can handle it. I...don't really understand why, but...
: When I think about everyone else, my courage starts to grow...! You might think I'm just some inhuman AI, but it's true! So...it's okay. If it's for the sake of everyone else, I won't be afraid!



Alter Ego's words raced through my heart and soul, and my disbelief gave way to raw anger. The anger turned to fury, black and muddy and boiling over... It bubbled up through my body, quickly overflowing and shooting out of my mouth...!

: How dare you...? That was my friend! How dare you kill him!?
: Huh? You were friends with a laptop? That's pretty pathetic. What's next, friends with a basketball!?
: Shut the hell up! He wasn't just a laptop. He was my friend! And you killed him!
: I know this is a serious moment but I'm so disappointed in the localization for not going with "friends with a volleyball" for the Castaway reference.



: Is this what you call animism? Where a soul dwells within all thing? Even, like...laptops?
: Well, you can call it whatever you want.
: Bottom line is, it got in my way. It was trying to find things out all sneaky sneaky.



: So...you finally noticed him.
: Finally? No no no, I knew about it from the very beginning! I knew Chihiro was doing something with the laptop. And I knew you were using it to analyze data.
: I knew exactly how it was all gonna play out from the start!
: What...?



: You knew, and you were still cocky enough to let us take the plunge...?
: Well, I mean...the data in that laptop? It was...I guess you could call it a gift, from me to you.
: Or maybe more like a reward, in honor of you being able to unlock something so difficult.
: So of course I didn't care if you got access to that.
: But sneaking into the network was just too personal! So I had to do a little, ya know, reformatting!



: I want to keep being helpful to everyone. I want to work as hard as everyone else so that we can all get out of here!

Alter Ego wanted to fight for us... He wanted to help, at the risk of his own life... And for that...he was killed.



: Puhuhu... Yeah, the punishment time has made me feel a billion times better!
: Experiencing a meaningless death is so soothing! It makes me remember that every low can get even lower!
: No...his death wasn't meaningless, either. Everybody who's died so far... The deaths of each and every one of our friends... They all make us stronger! I swear to God...someday, you WILL pay for this!



: Holy moly! You're super mad! Like, just unreasonably upset!
: Okay, time to bring things to a close! Oh, but before that--!
: I need to read the post script.



: Post script...?
: Yeah, there's still a bit more left of Sakura's note.
: Huh...?
: Puhuhu... Do I have your attention? Okay then, here we go...
: Prepare your ears for the dulcet tones of yours truly!





: ...One other thing, Hina. There's something I'd like you to tell the others. Hopefully it will act as a clue to help you unravel the mystery of this school.
: I've spoken with the mastermind off and on the whole time I've been here, and so I've learned one thing... Which is...the mastermind has done something to us. I think what they've done is--



: Oopsie daisy! That was a close one! Another word and we would've been hip deep in spoiler territory!
: Okay, I don't wanna ruin the surprise, so book club is dismissed for today!



: What!? You can't just stop at the most important bit!
: It makes your brain rumble and tumble, huh? It makes you so mad you don't even friggin' know, huh!?
: That's the whole point, STUPID! It's to get back at all of you for hardening your resolve!



: Fine, but at least... Sakura's note...
: Like I'd ever let any of you greaseballs have it!
: B-But...
: Heh-heh-heh. Sucks for you, loser!
: ...Wait, what's this?
: What is it now...?
: There's one last line in the note!



: And let me just say this to the mastermind. I'm not going to just lay down and die.
: I *will* fight you, you bastard. No matter what.



: ...And that's seriously it! Huh. Wow, what a stubborn loser, huh!?

She won't lay down and die? She'll fight you...?

: Well, whatever. Who cares what some dead musclehead has to say?
: Okay, I'm outta here!



: You guys should try to get some rest, ya know? And maybe take some time to reconsider how you approach this school life of yours... Are you sure you don't want to graduate? Can you really cut free from the regrets of the outside world?
: Puhuhu... Think about that. Think long, think hard... *leaves*





Those were his parting words to us, before disappearing... But what was that all about...? Sakura's final message, her last clue to help us solve the mystery of this school... The mastermind...did something to us? Kyoko said something like that before, didn't she? It was after Celeste's trial was over...



: What did you do? What did you do...to my body?
: ...What!?
: Answer me. What did you do to my body?





The mastermind did something...to our bodies... What are they saying the mastermind did...? What did the mastermind do to us? I mean... Did the mastermind plant a bomb in us or something? And if we try to leave the school, a sensor goes off...and the bomb explodes!? I've seen stuff like that in movies and comics and stuff. So it's not totally unheard of...

No...! I feel awful just thinking about it! I can't afford to acknowledge thoughts like that.





: So the class trial is over and Monokuma's gone...
: So...now what do we do?
: What else is there, other than to head back up?
: Oh, yeah! Okay, let's get out of here.
: B-But... I, um... ...

Hina must still feel responsible...



: Hmph. Dial back that ego a bit, girl. The kind of mystery someone like you could pose is absolutely no threat.
: I would never have lost to that kind of challenge.
: What are you talking about? Kyoko and Makoto are the ones that figured everything out.
: Shut up...



: ...Seriously...I'm sorry...
: How many times do you plan to apologize? How about you make that the last one. I haven't reached a point where I need someone apologizing to me more than once...
: O-Okay, I see what you mean... Th-Then...



: I'll...try...

♪ Music cuts out. ♪

: H...u...h...? Th-That totally wasn't normal, right!? Did she just c-capture his flag...?





: No! No no no! I cannot suffer the existence of someone who would disturb the romance between me and Master!
: Wh-What are you talking about!? That's absolutely NOT what's happening here! Why would I ever go for a sleazeball like him!
: Sleaze...ball?
: That's right! I called you a sleazeball! Cuz you are! Sleazeball!
: Apparently you still have a death wish.



: Ohh, more biting sarcasm? No wonder you don't have any friends!
: Hey! Stop fighting with Master! You're making me jealous! *I* want the abuse give-and-take! ME!



I guess it's not so easy for everyone to act like friends... Well, that's just how it is for now...



♪ No Music. ♪

And so, Sakura's class trial came to an end, and we returned to the world of Hope's Peak Academy. But the story wasn't even close to over. Time kept marching on. We all went back to our rooms, and before long, night snuck up on us...









: Mm, ahem, this is a school announcement. It is now 10 p.m. As such, it is officially nighttime. Soon the doors to the dining hall will be locked, and entry at that point is strictly prohibited. Okay then...sweet dreams, everyone! Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite...



Nighttime descended, and pulled me down along with it, down into sleep. I couldn't remember the last time I'd fallen into such a deep sleep. But the night still wasn't over for me.