Part 28: One of Us Is the Killer

I forgot to mention earlier, but the main menu for a specific save file changes the further you get in the game. That swingset wasn't there before we finished the prologue. I'll be sure to keep an eye on it from now on.

NEW MUSIC: Our Class Trial



No one wanted to believe it was real, but Rantaro was killed just before the time limit. Now, Kaede and Shuichi must take on the Class Trial.

It scrolls if you wait long enough.



This is the Skills menu. Using the Friendship Fragments we collected from character introductions and Free Time events, we can buy skills that make class trials a little easier. Each skill is marked with which type of minigame it's useful in, with the Debate Type skills having the most general utility.



For now, I'm going to keep it simple and start us off with these three skills:

Attentive Influence (Debate Type, 4 slots)
Increases maximum influence a little. Effective during all parts of the class trial. Can't be combined with Envious Influence.

Extraordinary Focus (Debate Type, 4 slots)
Increases maximum focus a little. Effective during all parts of the class trial. Can't be combined with Menacing Focus.

Cool and Composed (Debate Type, 8 slots)
Makes the reticle shake less. Effective during Nonstop and Mass Panic Debates. Can't be combined with Tranquility.

Influence is this game's health meter equivalent. It goes down when you get a wrong answer, and if it empties, the other characters won't listen to you anymore, though you can just choose to retry and pick up with a score penalty and no lost progress. Focus affects how long you can concentrate; it drains when you do so and regenerates when you don't.

Even if I had remembered the free skill I got from clearing the demo, I'm just shy of having a high enough level to fit all four in. Maybe if I swapped out the Influence skill; that's of little use to someone like me who already knows all the right answers. Oh well.



This option lets you check your handbook, so you can scroll through all the Truth Bullets you got during investigation. You can do this at any time during the trial by pressing [SQUARE], though during minigames you can only see the Truth Bullet menu. You might not remember what clue you need, exactly, in the heat of the moment, so it's nice to keep this in mind.

Let's review what we know:

















































Our difficulty is fine the way it is, so...

VIDEO: Class Trial #1, Opening Statements

The trials are fully voiced, so I advise watching all the videos in the trial updates. Because you can hear the music changes, too, I won't be noting every single track change in trials, mostly just the appearance of new ones.



NEW MUSIC: Class Trial: Dawn Edition Vol. 3















Ah-haha, oh man, I haven't been in a trial in, like, forever!

Oh, so you have experience with trials...?

Yeah, since I'm a leader of evil and stuff. I've done a looooot of bad things.



Gonta never done trial before... Not sure where to begin...

First, let's breathe in! And breathe out! We need to remember our "No, No, No's"!



But communication is the foundation of any discussion!



Each of us will be serving as a potential culprit, lawyer, prosecutor, and jury member.

Let us proceed with that in mind, shall we?



Don't fuckin' get ahead of us! Ya tryin' to start some shit!?

C-Calm down... How about we listen first?

Atua has spoken... He says it is vital that we hear everyone's testimony.

I'm a good listener cuz my ears are clean. Once, I cleaned them so hard they bled.



Why, I wonder, didn't the culprit take advantage of the First Blood Perk?

I thought that was strange, too!

I bet they just wanted to do a class trial real bad.

Then Monokuma's the culprit! Duh-doy! Cuz this whole class trial was his idea!





Of course not. I would *never* do anything to you guys directly.

Even if *you* can't, it's a different story for the person controlling you, right?

...Hm?





I-I dunno any mastermind...

N-Never heard of 'em...



The mastermind, huh? Odds are, it's one of us...

It's Kee-boy over here! Everyone else thinks so too!

D-Does everyone really think that...!?

We'll get to the bottom of this...

Puhu... Puhuhuhu...



Then...we could start by determining the sequence of events? Let's take a closer look at the circumstances of Rantaro's death.

Gonta agrees with Shuichi! After all, Shuichi is Ultimate Detective!

Then let us start by reviewing the incident.





MUSIC: Our Class Trial

This is the music for all tutorial segments.





During Nonstop Debates, characters will speak one after another, without pause.
It's up to you to unearth any lies or contradictions in their statements.
You'll have to use the Truth Bullets you gathered to refute what they say.
Any relevant Truth Bullets you've found during the investigation...
...will be loaded into the Truth Cylinder.
Use the [LEFT STICK] to aim the reticle and fire with [TRIANGLE].
Aim for the gold words displayed in their statements. Those are the weak spots!
There's a chance that the lies or contradictions are hiding within those weak spots...
But remember, you might not be able to refute them all, and you have to use the right Truth Bullet.
Compare everyone's statements to the Truth Bullets you have...
And shoot your Truth Bullet at the proper weak spot.
Note that if you run out of time, you will automatically fail, so please be careful!
...Oh! I almost forgot! The new element!
During the trial, you can concentrate to make time slow down.
This will also reveal a small red dot within weak Spots called the V Point.
If you hit that with the correct Truth Bullet, you'll get an awesome V Counter! Bullseye!
V Counters really improve your score and the number of MonoCoins you earn, so try that out.



Give them a look!

NEW MUSIC: V3 Argument -BREAK-

VIDEO: Class Trial #1, Nonstop Debate #1







Rantaro's body was found...

just before the time limit, right!?

He was killed in the library.

Rantaro was alone in the library.



What was he even doin' in the library anyway?



Cuz he knew about the hidden door!





If I present the right evidence, I can blow away that contradiction...



There's no reason to doubt Kiyo's statement, so we'll just fast-forward past it by holding [CIRCLE].



That just leave's Kaito's statement, which seems doubtful given what we didn't find on Rantaro. You can see the V Point here...





...but my aim was just a little bit off. It won't be the last time I slip up during this trial, either.





Huh!? Why!?

Because, Rantaro didn't have the card key to open the hidden door. You'd think the mastermind would have that card key on him, right?



But none of the pictures show Rantaro holding the card key.

So I don't really think he had the key at all.

Also, if the mastermind had died there, this killing game would've already ended.

You are correct... The possibility of him being the mastermind is quite low.



Maybe he stumbled across it in the library? Y'know, like how Shuichi did?

Or maybe the mastermind told him about it.

Whaaaat? Why would the mastermind tell him that?





Hmm... That does seem plausible.



The mastermind knew about our trap this whole time?

This case may have become the perfect crime, thanks to your hidden cameras.

The mastermind knew about your trap and exploited it to commit their crime.

So after the mastermind lured Rantaro and murdered his ass...



Did they really take advantage of our trap though?

Is this really...the perfect crime? Are we in an unsolvable mystery?

I guess this is a dead end...



We gotta work together to find the mastermind! Then we can end this killing game!

You yap about teamwork and all that, but you still think one of us is the mastermind...

Yes, and I know that's a horrible thought...







Kaede...

Nee-heehee... Wow, looks like you're determined to face even a cold, hard truth.

NEW MUSIC: Class Trial: Space Edition



Huh?

I already figured out who killed Rantaro.



Why are you surprised?

Cuz if he's right, that would make this the fastest class trial to date!



Real fast, lemme tell ya.

He was like...a leaf on the wind.

Oh yeah... I guess now he's one with the wind.

Yeah, I think about him this time of year, too.

The way he soared through the enemy fleet all badass, just to die like a li'l punk!



Kokichi! Are you serious about knowing who the culprit is?

Yup! Soooo...we all agree that the culprit knew about Kaede and Shuichi's trap, right?

No shit! That's why they're not in any of the pictures! So who is it!?

So whoever knew about the hidden cameras is the culprit.

So who the hell is it!?





You made the cameras used for the trap! Riiight?

Obviously, whoever made the cameras knew about the blind spots.

Before breakfast was the only time someone would be able to sneak by.



I...I just designed the cameras... I didn't know they'd get set up in the library...

If someone asked me to make cameras, I'd totally ask what they were for.

How come you never asked what the cameras were for? Huh? Huhhhh?

I...I...I pulled an all-nighter makin' them... and afterward, just sorta...passed out...

You're getting awfully worked up. Look at you, you're sweating.



For someone so aggressive, you're kind of a wimp, huh, Miu?



Your pathetic excuses are consistent with those of a common male criminal!



...is that really okay?



If we call the weak spots you've seen up until now Argue Points...
Then these blue-colored weak spots will be called Agree Points.
When shooting Agree Points with Truth Bullets, you need to flip your way of thinking.
Instead of arguing that the other person's testimony contains lies or mistakes...
Please fire the Truth Bullets that prove the other person's testimony is correct.
When your Truth Bullets merge with their statement...
They will complement each other, resulting in a Consent!
From now on, you must infer whether it's best to "argue" or "agree" based on what's being debated.
You can also V Consent, so if you're confident, give that a shot.



VIDEO: Class Trial #1, Nonstop Debate #2

MUSIC: V3 Argument -BREAK-





Why don't you just admit it already?





So you knew nothing about the trap in the library?

I'm tellin' ya, I had no idea!

Not like it matters...

cuz I never went to the library, okay!?

The person who made the cameras...

would've known their blind spots, too.





I need to take her side. Rushing to judgment will only make things worse...



One statement is obviously wrong, and the other one assumes you remember who can back up Miu's alibi. Simple enough, except for the part where the stretching statement makes me waste my Focus and throws off my aim again.





I reluctantly consent with Miu, but fail to obtain her V card.



Of course she didn't. Miu was in the dining hall during the murder. I saw her there while dining on what I thought would be my last supper.



Don't feel bad for her... She got to eat her tasty grandkid on his birthday!

That's too sad to make sense!

That's Pops for ya!





Good job, Kaede! Guess I shouldn't have judged you by your lackluster rack!

What Gilgamesh-level condescension! But which Grail War are you from?

I can barely grasp the edge of this joke.

Wow... Another reference we don't get. Heh, you must be a hardcore loser.

...Oh, sorry. Sometimes my hobbies just sort of slip in...





Wha—!? Th-That was really uncalled for... I only said that to find the culprit!



...'Kay. I feel a lot better now.

Cool your jets, kid.

Tsumugi and Kirumi were both in the dining hall as well.

We can dismiss those four as potential culprits if they were together the entire time.



Oh...so you brought that up after all...

It's true. I went to the restroom closest to the dining hall.

...Oh? Did I hear that right? The restroom, you say?





Did you take a firm dump!? Or was it a soft one!?

...Why're you assumin' she was droppin' a deuce in there?



Also, I don't think I was there long enough to be suspicious, right?

You're the Ultimate Cosplayer, though. You could've just disguised yourself as someone else while you were out.



I don't think that's possible. And I know the reason why.



The thread couldn't have forgotten this one yet.



Tsumugi can only cosplay as fictional characters!



Lately, some people prefer to cosplay as non- fictional characters, which is unforgivable...

It's so unforgivable that I break out in cospox if I even attempt it...

Yeah...the cospox was pretty gross...



Sorry about that, Tsumugi. I just thought it was something to check.

Oh, no, it's fine. I'm not bothered by it at all.

Awww, Tsumugi is so nice! She's waaay better than Miu!

Well, fuck you too!



So we know that Kirumi, Tsumugi, Miu, and Kiyo can't be the culprit.

Congratulations to the four of you! You can all leave now.

Huh? Can they?



Which of us went to the basement...?

Well, when Shuichi and I were on lookout, we saw...



KEEBO: So the culprit is among those seven?



Why are you laughing!? That includes you, too!

Excluding Rantaro, one of the six people who headed to the basement...



The person who's making us endure all these terrible things?

Why not torture the truth out of them? It would be the quickest method...

W-Wait, please! No torture! My tolerance for pain is actually really, really low!



Please just tell us what happened.

If the culprit is among that group, then wouldn't Maki be the most suspicious?

Just look at her—she could definitely kill someone.

Stop being so stupid. The culprit could easily be anyone...like Kaito.



Who's the culprit!? Who!?!?

Gonta is gentleman! Gentlemen not hurt people!

I-It's not me either... Murder sounds like way too much work.

I have an alibi!







You can do this, right?

Listen to everyone's statements?

That's right... I can pick out everyone's voices as they talk over each other!

God, I envy her. That would make parties so much easier.





Don't thrust the blame onto me! You degenerate males and your...thrusting! Ugh!

I'm not a bad girl, really... If you don't believe me, ask my mommy.

Really, I have an alibi!



Next time, we'll find out how the game handles situations like this.