Part 20: Update XVIII

♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

Well, looks like we need to head back underground, but what's this? There seems to be a Monokuma kid waiting for us.



♪ BGM: We Can't Change The World ♫

The kid walks over and gives us something.



♪ Jingle: Truth Bullet GET! ♫



Looks like you have obtained Knockback. As you might have guessed, Knockback can knock back Monokumas. It's short range and doesn't do damage, but its effect more than makes up for that. Like removing the shields of the Guard Monokumas... Or knocking back a Bomber Monokuma to make him self-destruct where he lands. If you use it right, this Truth Bullet can have some really powerful effects. Use it on the various Monokumas to learn more about its effects firsthand.





And then the kid just runs off.



But this gun belongs to Future Foundation, right? So why are the *kids* giving me bullets?
I-I guess, maybe... There might be some kids in the group who want to support us.
Huh? Support us?
But who cares about that right now? Let's just look for the exit.
...Y-Yeah.



And thus, it's time to head over to where we couldn't go before. But then!



Counter it with the new ammo!



Now we get to deal with four Guards, but with our new ammo...



...we can deal with them a lot easier. Like the tutorial said, Knockback doesn't deal damage, but it does knock away the shields, meaning they are now just regular Monokumas as far as dealing with them is concerned.



So then we can just shoot them, and I'm running distressingly low on ammo for Break here.



And with them dealt with, it's time to move on.



♪ BGM: We Can't Change The World ♫

Isn't it just going to get darker if we keep going? I-Is it really going to be okay?
It's probably gonna be fine.
You suck at cheering people up. Can't you choose your words more wisely? Well, I'm sure you're just laughing at me in your head, thinking I'm just some scared little girl...
I'm not laughing about it. I don't like dark places, either.
...But honestly, for some reason I feel... at ease.
Wh-Why do you feel at ease!? You enjoy taking pleasure in other people's suffering? My suffering tastes delicious and you're planning on a four-course meal, huh?
You sure have a bitchy personality. You're the type to talk trash at a wedding, aren't you?
I-I didn't mean it like that... I just mean that I'm sure you're working hard, too.
O-Of course. Even I'm at my limit. I'm scared of blood and the dark and I'm just so tired, but...th-there's no choice but to do it. I'm not some...crybaby, whiny, airheaded girl.
Whiny...crybaby?







...Wh-What? What was that!?
S-Sorry, I tried to scare you, but then your reaction scared me...
...Huh!? You really are an idiot!
I was just trying to ease the tension a little!
Yeah, well, now I'm more afraid of your stupidity than the dark.
Oh, sorry...



♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

So now we get to walk through some sort of shopping area. Komaru retorts to Toko's statement that maybe it's subtle political satire. However, she does not know that she is in the world of Danganronpa, where the word "subtle" does not exist.



We get to see a Monokuma kid filming two other kids poking a corpse with sticks. I guess you have to find your entertainment somehow when the arcades don't work anymore. Or when the arcades all only have one fucking game, judging by the amount of Monoku-Man machines we're finding. After we approach, they run away, letting us look at the corpse and get a little scene.



♪ BGM: We Can't Change The World ♫

They look the same, but... Something's definitely different about them.
J-Just like adults... Some are good, some are bad. Don't waste time thinking about it.
Then do you think the ones who help us know it's wrong to kill adults? But now that you mention it, didn't you tell me before that they seem like they're under orders?
And d-didn't I tell you it's a waste of time thinking about brats who've gone insane!? If you have the energy to think about nonsense like that, use it for picking up your pace!
Well sorry, I can't help but wonder about it...



♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

And now the kids have moved on to filming themselves hip thrusting at a corpse. Call the Academy Awards, I think we might not need voting this upcoming awards season.



A gift?



Nope, just some Monokumas. They didn't even have the courtesy to stick a single Monocoin in there. And if you are proficient in advanced mathematics...



...you might notice an issue. We're straight out of Break ammo now, and this Monokuma is pretty damn persistent in chasing us down.



So let's make him dance and hopefully we can get far enough away.



Down the hall, we find a collectible!



Hrm. Interesting ruleset, that.



Oooh, a Monomono machine! No whammies, no whammies, no whammies...



Bollocks. I don't need Knockback ammo right now!



Sadly, the Monokuma is still on our tail, but I think I've found a solution.



It involves this pit.



And it involves this Monokuma getting dropped into the pit. There we go. Won't get any Monocoins from him, but alas.



And then two more Monokumas show up. Here, you can imagine what me making a vague yet irritated noise sounds like, because that's what I did.



One down the pit. The other one annoyingly blocked by Toko standing in the way.



The other one down the pit. Damn you game and your lack of ammo, you're keeping me from the Monocoins I deserve!



A room to the side hides a collectible.









♪ BGM: DSO_Beautiful Dead ♫

Right off the bat, the introduction is pretty fishy. "Tomorrow" and "future" and "you"... I can't believe how often I used to get suckered in by books like this...
So you do read this kind of stuff, huh? I thought you were all about "pure literature."
I-I mean in the past. I perused some when I was... When I was a weaker woman than I am now.
A weaker Toko... I can't even imagine it. To me, you're always a strong person who never gets depressed.
No, I'm not really strong... Not deep down.
But if I look strong in your eyes, then I guess that means I've grown a little.
Grown, huh... I gotta do that too...
Good idea. You're pretty annoying the way you are right now.
Wow, you didn't even try to sugarcoat that...
But if you want to change, now's the perfect time for it. Or maybe it's that, at a time like this, you *have* to change.
I have to...
Imagine being locked inside a closed space with your classmates and forced to murder them... Whether you want to or not... You change.
I can't even imagine that... But our current situation is just as unbelievable, really. I guess I do really have to change.
Just be sure you don't change for the worse.
And Toko, that thing you mentioned earlier, about killing your classmates...
...Wh-What...?
...That's such an interesting concept! What a cool setting... You should be a writer!
...

Oh, right, Komaru doesn't even know that Toko is a writer.



♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

Moving on, we see a sparkly collectible, but we can't get to it!



There's a door nearby that probably leads to it, but it's locked!



Also, there's a strange pipe thing here, which will probably be involved in unlocking the door in some fashion.



Bah. Insert more grumbling noises about my lack of ammo here.



Get in the bloody pit. ...hang on, it landed on the other side! That's cheating!



And then it fell down after standing up. Works for me!



Alright, you fucking machine, you know what I want.



...I can't buy ammo with this. Bollocks.



Well, we find another one of this set of doors, which means...



♪ BGM: It's a Monokuma World ♫

...it's Monoku-Man time!



And hey, we got some Break ammo!



♪ Jingle: Monoku-Man Activate ♫





Like with a lot of the others, this is designed to make you apply a particular thing of a specific Truth Bullet, in this case, Knockback.



So the idea is to set up behind the Bomber and knock him into the middle of the six Monokumas.



This will then make the Bomber explode and take out the Monokumas all at once.



Except when Knockback is being a tempestuous mistress and decides to knock the Bomber over to the right a bit and one of them ends up not dying.



Take two ends up even worse.



Thankfully, take three ends up working out, however, as we already know, these two retries have already screwed me out of an A rank.



♪ Jingle: Monoku-Man Success ♫

But a success is a success.



♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

Moving on, after exiting the Monoku-Man room, we end up in an area where one path is blocked by a pit, one is blocked by a wall, and one leads further, so let's take that one.





In doing that, we get a cutscene of Monokumas beating on somebody covered by some sort of tarp.

Please stop! Violence is a big no-no! Bullying is so uncool!

That's... not really what I expect somebody being beaten up would say. Unless they're, like, Monomi, maybe.



The Monokuma kids looking on seem to be having a good time while I'm having issues deciphering this muffled speech. And as it turns out, you can't change the voice language on the fly for the subtitles. Hrmph. So guess what? I'm going to be lazy!

[unintelligible] protect people, instead of using them to hurt people!

It's in the video, so if you want to take a stab at it, be my guest.



Wh-what is that?
Someone's getting ambushed... we gotta go save them!



And thus the Monokumas turn their sights on us.



♪ BGM: DSO_Living to the Fullest ♫

And then immediately turn their sights back on whoever they're beating up. Note that we have to hustle here - they can only take three hits, and are basically guaranteed to take one right at the beginning.



Some Knockback will solve that problem, though.



And then some well-placed Break shots will do the rest.



♪ BGM: Silence ♫



Um... excuse me... are you alright?





Looks like a bear!



Which then proceeds to scare the shit out of Komaru.





It's... a Monokuma?



♪ BGM: DSO_Despair-Syndrome ♫

That's surprising... I never figured robots would have internal discord...





♪ BGM: Absolute Delusional Girl ♫

I-It talked!?
Ah, don't be scared! It's okay, I'm not a particularly suspicious bear!
I'm a nice bear! The kind of bear who would give my opponent the corner in Othello...
Omaru, what are you doing!? Hurry up and shoot this thing!



W-Waaait! Please, don't shoot me! I promise you'll understand if we just talk it out!
Talk? Why are you even talking in the first place!?
I-I have an AI inside me! I'm different than the other Monokumas!
AI... Artificial Intelligence? It's inside you?
That's right. I can think and reason. I won't run amok like those other bears. I'm your ally. Look, I'm all white, see?



Y'know... It's kinda cute.
D-Don't be fooled! It's more unnatural if it's all white! It's like a curry plate without the curry!
Don't say that! We can be friends. I wanna be friends with as many pretty ladies as possible.
P-Pretty...?
Hmph. He may *look* suspicious, but I can see he has a pretty good eye.
Toko gets easily fooled too, huh...
That's right! I have a good eye for judging character. For example, just by looking at your face, I can guess the time and date of your first kiss!
Huh!? What a horrifying function!
It's...horrifying?
I mean, if you can tell that about the first kiss, then you should know...other firsts, right?
If he uses that power, he can mercilessly expose frauds who claim to be virgins!
...Huh!?
Girl power is mostly from virginity. This is why so many girls try so hard to be seen as virgins.

Oh, so that's how it works? I never knew!

But if we have this one's power, we can uncover the misdeeds of those fraudulent career women!
Th-There's no mistaking it... This power can change the world!
U-Uh... I was just giving an example...
And what does this have to do with our current situation anyway?
I guess you're right... I got a little heated there...

♪ BGM: DSO_Beautiful Dead ♫

By the way...what are you guys doing in a place like this?
Fragile girls wandering around a dangerous place like this is a big no-no!
Wh-What? Are you going to lecture us now?
It's not our fault, we don't know where to go.
I see... So you're drifters, girls driven into a corner with nowhere to run...
If that's the case, leave it to me! I can take you to a safe place!
...Huh?
A safe place? That's quite suspicious. It's something a kidnapper would say.
You went through a lot up till now, so you have trouble trusting people. I understand.
But the world is also full of amazing people! You don't have to be so pessimistic!
Sorry, but words coming out of a Monokuma's mouth aren't exactly persuasive.
Hey, where is this safe place you're talking about?
Full disclosure? There's a secret base here underground, where adults are living in hiding.
S-Secret base?
Did you hear that, Toko? A secret base! With adults gathered there! We should go there too, right? Hey, what do you think? I mean, what should we do?
E-Even though it was hard enough to find an exit, you want to keep going through the underground?
Ah, but it's dangerous to use those stairs. There are tons of Monokumas lurking around the exit!
...Huh?
See? So wouldn't it be a smarter idea to find the secret base?
That doesn't mean this guy's telling the truth. He *is* a Monokuma, after all...
I just want to save you! If you come with me, you can see whether or not I'm telling the truth!
You hear that!? What do we do!? If you think we shouldn't, then I'll go with you, but logically...this is the best option, right!? This is the kind of chance that like, 100 out of 100 people would take!
J-Just be honest and say you want to go! Jeez, you're annoying.
F-Fine. You want me to go? Then I'll go.
Right! Then let's do that!
Alright! I'll lead, so follow me!
Yeah! I'll leave it to you, Shirokuma!
...



♪ BGM: Wonderful Dead 002 ♫

And thus, we now have Shirokuma following us around! Next time, we'll start making our way to the secret base!