Part 93: Chapter 4 Daily Life, Part 9
*Ding dong, bing bong*
: Good morning, everyone! It is now 7 a.m. and nighttime is officially over! Time to rise and shine! Get ready to greet another beee-yutiful day!
I'm worried about Sakura... I need to hurry up and get to the dining hall.
: Kyoko's the only one out in the halls this morning.
: Kyoko...good morning...
: ... *leaves*Still ignoring me... Is she really that mad at me? But actually, it's not just Kyoko... Ever since Monokuma summoned us last night, the atmosphere around here has gotten really heavy... I can almost feel it looming over us, weighing us down...
: *Sigh*Well if nothing else, I need to patch things up with Kyoko as soon as possible.
: Ah, Makoto! Are you okay?: Huh? What do you mean...?
: You were late, s-so...we were worried a-about you...
: What a dullard...: Toko? Byakuya? What are you doing here?
: They're "taking refuge" here.: Refuge...?
: Don't make that stupid face. We have to protect ourselves against the mastermind's tool.
: The mastermind's...? Are you talking about Sakura!?: ...That's when I finally noticed. The only one that wasn't in the dining hall...was Sakura.
: Huh...? Where *is* Sakura?
: All I know is, if she were here, I wouldn't be. The only reason I went out of my way to join the rest of you was as a safeguard against that threat.: Th-Threat...!?: Why...? Why do you hate her so much?
: Isn't it obvious? Because this makes things unfair.: Unfair...?
: The game should be fair to all players. The existence of a spy for the mastermind upsets that balance.: That's a stupid reason!
: Stupid? This is a life-or-death game, is it not?
: It IS stupid! You're a stupid idiot!
: Before you get too far into your argument, maybe you should stop and think things through. Why did the mastermind reveal that Sakura was the spy to us?: They were getting revenge on her, right? Like Monokuma said, "An eye for an eye.": That may be part of it, but it's not the whole picture. Revealing that fact also meant to serve as the next motive the mastermind wanted to give us. The chaos and confusion born from suspicion. The hatred...: In other words, this right here--the fighting, the bickering--is the trap the mastermind laid for us. Knowing that, will you still stand there and argue like children?: Th-That's not what I'm trying to do. It's just...
: I mean...how can I get you guys to believe in Sakura again?
: If she really can beat the mastermind like she said, that'd go a long way in my mind...: Idiot! You'd really ask her to do something so dangerous? What if something terrible happens to her!?
: It wouldn't matter.
: ...What?: If Sakura were to die, that's one less person for the mastermind to control. I have no problem with that.: H-Hold on! Byakuya--!: In fact, if she did die, that would settle this entire issue, wouldn't it?: It would put the whole problem to rest!*SLAP* ♪ Music cuts out. ♪
: What the hell...?
: You disgust me! You're...you're a monster! To say something like that... It should've been you. You should've been the one to die!
: I should've died...?: Interesting. Then are you planning to take care of that yourself? Go ahead. Try it, if you dare. That's how it works here, after all.: You think I can't do it?: H-Hina! Calm down!: This is exactly what the mastermind wants. And it's exactly what Sakura *doesn't* want.: ...: What's wrong? Lost your nerve?: ... I'm leaving... I'll be in my room. *leaves*Trembling with anger, Hina ran off.
: That s-stupid cow...! How dare she...? She should d-die a thousand deaths. No, a million...!: So she was just another hysterical little girl. Hardly worth my attention...
: It's what other people call having "feelings," Byakuya. And all you can do is mock them for it.: What's wrong with that?
: A friendly word of warning--someday that attitude is going to come back and bite you. Hard.: And I will happily elude its attempts.
: S-So um, ya know... : How about we, uh...eat? Er...maybe now's not a good time...: Heh...heh-heh...
Without a word, each of us left the dining hall. We headed back to our rooms, one by one...
: Whew...So, what should I do today?
