Part 77: Twos High

So. The Mouse route, huh. This is, unsurprisingly, one of the most complex of the routes, and if what Themis said is true, it was originally going to be roughly three times as complicated in its original state- rather than being self-contained to the Snake/Sheep double murder, the player would have to manipulate EVERY murder that the duo get to do firsthand, with a tally at the end of the route determining whether you got away with it or not. ...And then they immediately realized 'wow, this is a TON of work for arguably not a lot of payoff, why am I making myself do this' and cut it down.

Also, for those who may have found Horse going murderous at the end hard to believe, Themis does address that as well, saying that basically it's an inevitability when murders keep happening and no obvious perpetrator is able to be found (and Sheep being one of the first victims usually speeds up his breaking point). They explicitly said that if one or two more people had died on Snake's route, Horse probably would've broken on that one, too.

Mouse's route is also unique in that it's possible to miss out on 80% of it. The reason we had to look at the computer in the library and figure out its password is because seeing those files is the only way we can experience the bulk of the route- if she doesn't get the idea in her head that the other people in the Jury are nothing but criminals (and she wasn't meant to be a part of this originally) she has no desire to even consider betraying them. If you don't look at the computer, when it comes time to make the first choice the only option you'll get is to confess!

Themis has gone on record saying that they intended this route to be hard to properly get onto (in regards to knowing the exact date that Amadeus was killed) specifically because they view the majority of it (when Mouse stays quiet and commits to betraying the group) as the closest this game could get to something being 'non-canon' (as in, a possibility that almost never would happen). In their own words, '99 out of 100 times Mouse confesses', and the “main” part of the route is simply that 100th time where she doesn't. Thus, the bulk of the route that's locked behind Mouse not confessing is functionally more of a 'what-if' type scenario, for the most part, as a core part of Mouse's character IS that she's vehemently opposed to this kind of thing (as shown by the fact that it takes her almost the entire route to take any direct action that can't be looked away from).

That said, if Mouse DOES confess, we get a pretty lengthy ending path showing how that plays out...

[Confess.]

[BGM: Queen of the Jungle]


I have the Clever personality.

Mouse!

Y-You...

And I'm going to say it right now- I don't want to live. Not if...

Already, I felt tears start to well in my eyes.

Not if it means sacrificing everyone else.



You'd put us ahead of yourself?

Don't get me wrong, I'm angry as hell at Brian. What he's doing now is nothing more than murder. But I always said I'd pull the lever in the trolley problem, no matter what. Looking at it objectively, this is the right answer.

So, there you have it. You don't need to worry about who might be hiding their intentions, because I'm coming right out with it. Whoever has the dumb personality, I suggest you speak up now as well.

We all waited for a moment, but no one said a word. We just looked around, silently.

It looks like the other affected person isn't half as brave as Mouse here is.

Well, we can deal with that later.

Mouse, I just have to say, thank you. Your honesty here, it means... it means a lot.

Yes, I'm glad to have you on our side.

[BGM: Rat's Awakening]


Is she though?

Rooster?

Sure, she's admitting things herself now, but it's probably just a ploy, right? She's clearing herself from suspicion by confessing, so when things go wrong later, we won't blame her.

That's not it at all!

Mouse, you may have our backs right now, but can the same be said about later, when you're really facing death head on?

Seriously, guys?

That'll be a lot harder than it sounds, I think. It sounds impossible, actually.



So what do you suggest? We merely kill Mouse now? That she is going to die regardless, so we should put her out of her suffering now?

That would be barbaric.

Yeah!

We'll just restrain her so she can't do anything suspicious.

Yea-

We will?

Horse, would you be a doll?



Horse looked at Rooster for a moment, as if considering the proposal. Then, he made his way towards me.

Woah, hey, hold on a second. Horse, you're not seriousl-

Before I could even finish my sentence, Horse was grabbing out at me. Naturally, I tried to pull away, which only got Horse to grab me tighter. One thing led to another, and I ended up in a sleeper chokehold.

…

[BGM: Silence]


When I woke up, I found myself still in the cafeteria. However...

What the hell?!

I was tied up to a chair with what looked to be jump rope. You have to be kidding me. Rooster being an impatient jackass and Horse following orders made sense, but how did the others sign off on this? I offered myself up to them, and this is how they repaid me. Assholes.

[BGM: Dance of the Snakes]


Ah, you're awake.

I noticed Snake sitting nearby.

I was worried that you were sleeping for too long. A sleeper chokehold really shouldn't knock the target out for any longer than a few minutes. If you were asleep any longer, I would've been worried for your long-term health. ...A silly concern, thinking about it.

Snake, what's with these stupid restraints?

Ah yes, I imagine you'd take umbrage with all of this. Apologies, but after talking it out, it seemed a reasonable enough arrangement. We didn't want you sabotaging the group, you see.

How would I go about doing something like that?



If you simply hid a Minor Trinket or two, you would throw a major wrench in the plan with minimal effort.

But I helped you all out by confessing! And I'm going to spend my last hours on earth tied up like a prisoner?

That's odd. Weren't you the one talking about making choices objectively?

I agree that it's unnecessarily cruel, but when lives are on the line, people are liable to give up their civility in favor of precaution.

Well... fine. If that's how it has to be.

I'm glad you understand.



I must say, your choice fascinates me.

Fascinates you, huh?

Indeed.

Not much to think about, if I'm honest. I just did the right thing.

You did?

Didn't I?

Certainly, from society's perspective. And I am most grateful to you, of course.



But there is a question of how much you're allowed to put your own happiness above the happiness of others.

Everyone draws that line somewhere. This illustrates where you've drawn yours.

Gee, thanks.

At any rate, after this is all over, you shall be remembered as a martyr. I'll dedicate a statue in your honor. That will have to do for repayment.

…

Well, I just stayed to tell you what was happening. Now that you know, I am going to return to my search for Trinkets.

You do that.

[BGM: Silence]


And just like that, Snake walked away, leaving me all by my lonesome. All I had to do was occupy myself with thoughts of my impending death.

To regret my decision.

I really had a sneak preview of hell all to myself.

When Rooster walked in, I was relieved, despite myself.

Rooster. Thanks for this.



No, thank you Mouse! Truly, this was an inspired move.

Oh?

At first, when you were confessing, I was screaming internally. I had no idea why you were shooting yourself in the foot like that.

But then I realized, you were counting on me, your partner, to make the other half of the move. Now I just cut off these ropes for you, and you'll be able to move around freely!

Truly, this was a brilliant act! I must have you on my next film, I simply must, no matter the salary. Hold on, I'll get you out of there.

Rooster went over to the cafeteria kitchen and grabbed a knife.



Uh, I gotta say Rooster, I'm a little confused. You're my partner?

Mouse, you still haven't gotten it? I'm the one with the DUMB personality. I'm on your side to get out of here alive.

O-Oh!

Geez, slow on the uptake, this one.

Rooster approached with the knife, eyeing my restraints.

Uh, Rooster, I think you don't quite get something.

I don't get what?



That wasn't an act, I really don't want to kill the others. There's 10 of them and 2 of us. We can't prioritize our own survival like that!

…

Oh, you're serious about that? Like, for real?

Yes, for real, why is that so unbelievable to you?

It's not unbelievable at all, it's, uh, it's very noble. Very surprising.

So you need to confess too!

Uh, yeah, see, the thing about that...

[BGM: Eyes of the Dragon]


Turns out I don't really wanna die, so, I think I'll take a rain check on the whole 'confession' thing.

But damn, now I went and told you my identity even though you were really honest about trying to save everybody! Aren't I just a faulty lightbulb, huh?

Now you're going to expose me in front of everyone.

Unless...

Suddenly, Rooster started sizing me up. How I was tied up. How he already had a knife in his hand.

Okay, okay, this can still work. You can still 'escape'.

Wait, wait, Rooster, you don't want to do this!



I am sorry about this, Mouse. I really am. I'd have preferred to get out together, but it seems that we just weren't on the same wavelength.

So this is where your part in this game ends. After this, I'm gonna try my best to get out of this and become the star I was always meant to be. Wish me luck!

Rooste-

*shlick!*

With a single clean swipe to my throat, I immediately began choking to death. I tried to breathe in, but my neck was just pouring with blood. This was the end, no doubt. Me and my big mouth. If I had just played things a little smarter, I could've saved everyone else.

[BGM: Silence]


As I was fading out, I heard one last thing from Rooster.

Oh, shoot, there's probably gonna be blood all around now, huh? That makes the 'escape' story a much harder sell. Man, I didn't think this through...



[Ending – 2 of Clubs]

If she isn't given some moral justification, Mouse is not going to be able to play the 'traitor' role. Giving herself up at the start means certain death, one way or another.

If there is any potential down this route, it's only found when Mouse puts herself above the group.

The next ending that you can get is if you fail to successfully cover up the fact that Mouse and Rooster were the ones to kill Snake and Sheep. This is one of the most complex stages in the game, as it operates on a 'suspicion points' system – and the moment you get two or more points, it's game over. Most of the wrong decisions get you a single point, so you can afford to make one mistake here or there, but a couple are worth two points – they're instant failures. I'll briefly go over each step and explain why the wrong choices are, well, the wrong choices, and then show the ending you get.

[Fail to get away with Snake/Sheep's murders.]

[BGM: Lucky Foot]


The right choice here was just to roll up the pants leg. Nobody was paying THAT close attention to Mouse, let alone if the bottom of her jeans were rolled up at all, and she wouldn't have done anything to draw suspicion on her at the time.

Setting up a paintcan to fall on her leg gets you a point, as Mouse sets up an open paint can in the room to fall on her when the group goes to the art room and Snake's body is found. She does successfully get the paint on her leg and cover up the blood with it... but it's also a very visible action that the whole group sees happen, making it something they could all remember later.

Washing her leg, meanwhile, is a double point action – it's an instant game over. She uses a sink in the art room to wash her leg, with paper towels to help. The reason this is an issue is that it leaves a water stain behind; even with drying her leg as best as she can, she would have to wait until it actually dried to truly hide the evidence, and the bodies are discovered long before that would happen. Oops!



For the second part, the closet drawer is the best option because it's close to the body, while still feeling rushed/not thought out. Behind the door is a single point because it's very out of the way, and Mouse just so happening to look over there is a bit convenient – but still believable.

Trying to shove it into one of the paint cans, however, is just stupid. While yes, the paint can is big enough to hide the clothes, there's no way to explain how Mouse just happens to notice something hidden inside a paint can, and it immediately flags Ox's suspicion, causing him to begin looking at things with that suspicion in mind.



Getting a witness is a must, because it gives Rooster much more credibility- and basically takes him off the list of suspects indefinitely as a result. When compared to Mouse, normally he'd be the one people would suspect first, but enough contextual stuff eliminates her as a suspect (assuming you don't fuck up in the first two options, anyway). Not getting a witness is only a single point, since Rooster can spin a good enough story that things are plausible – interestingly enough, if you don't get a witness, then you also don't have to decide whether Mouse should make the loud noise or not, since Rooster can just lie and say he heard a crashing noise.



And, on the topic of that crashing noise, it's important to have Mouse make the noise for credibility. Not having the noise is also still only a single point, though, because Rooster's excuse for following is that he saw Snake wearing his mask and thought it odd enough to check out. (Which, if that were actually the case, would be fair!)



And as for the last one, again, it's pretty obvious which is the right answer. Both of the other answers Mouse can give are weak - body types has her think the killer is going from weakest to strongest, and locations has her think that the killer found Snake in the art room first, then found Sheep in the hallway second, if they started from the cafeteria. As Ox puts it, 'technically logically sound, but a weak argument'. Again, nothing on its own that could be suspicious – it could ultimately just be Mouse being bad at logic. Both bad answers are only worth a single point.

As for if we got too many answers wrong (or, in the case for this bonus update, we got EVERY answer wrong ), here's how it plays out...

[BGM: That Pesky Rodent]


It's all... it's all bullshit, right?

Huh?

Rooster's story, as well as this evidence. The more I look at it, this is all a load of bullshit. When you think about it, two people stand out as far more suspicious than the others.

Rooster and Mouse.

Oh?

I agree!

Rooster! Shut up! Ox, what are you talking about? What do you mean, we're suspicious?



Is it not obvious? There are a number of things I could point out.

The fact that neither of you two have any alibi, whatsoever. How you 'just happened' to get a water stain on your leg. How you managed to find Snake's clothes in a bucket of paint.

How Rooster was the only one to 'see Snake walk by'. How you knew Snake was killed before Sheep 'based on the locations'. ...But to belabor the point would be a waste of time.

The bottom line is, this whole thing seems rather 'showy' to me.

Ox, everything that you said can very easily be expla-

*shlick!*

[BGM: Metal Horse]


With everyone's attention on me, nobody noticed Rooster picking up the kitchen knife left on the table with the other evidence. With everyone's attention on me, Bunny wasn't on guard enough to realize Rooster's growing killing intent. With everyone's attention on me, Rooster was able to get a running start on everybody before they realized he had just slit Bunny's throat.

It wasn't much of a head start, though, as only moments later, everybody started chasing after him. Everybody... with one exception.



Horse stayed in the room, and locked eyes with mine. He glared.

N-Now, I don't know any thing abou-

Before I could finish my first objection, Horse grabbed my arm and pulled me closer. He put me in a sleeper hold, and there was no way I could resist. I don't know if he killed me then and there, or if I died some time after that. But I do know that after going under from Horse's grasp, I wouldn't wake up again.

[BGM: Silence]


[Ending – 2 of Diamonds]

Getting away with murder isn't as easy as it's made out to be. It's the little things that end up getting you.

Mishandle a murder, and you might find yourself going through a whole world of trouble just to tie up loose ends. If Mouse makes minor mistakes, sharp eyes will catch her soon enough.

The final ending is a very simple one, but it's actually probably not the one you would think is the branching point. It's actually when Mouse is planning Tiger's murder with Rooster! The right answer was to just do nothing, and let Mouse's trap kill her. The two options, either trying to stab her with a kitchen knife, or use a nearby charger to attempt to electrocute her, just result in Rooster getting punched out and Mouse's throat crushed.

Similar to the final ending on Horse's route, there's really no meat to the ending since, well, its Mouse making the wrong choice and IMMEDIATELY eating shit because of it. But that's fine, this bonus update is the longest to date (possibly the longest in the whole LP), so lets just get to the ending screen...



[Ending – 2 of Hearts]

Oh her quest to defeat the group, Mouse will inevitably be put into conflict with those she can't simply kill with strength alone.

If she's smart enough, she'll be able to defeat them through other methods. If she isn't, her journey will end there.

Now... NORMALLY this is where the bonus update would end, but Mouse's route is a little special – I mean, it's already special considering it's the protagonist having to become a murderer, but Themis decided to go one step further and give the “full” ending two completely different outcomes based on who gets the pistol after our duo kills Tiger. We got the ending with Rooster having it in the previous update... but what happens if Mouse keeps it for herself?

[BGM: Eyes of the Dragon]


Give me the gun.

Hey, why do you get it?

Because you can defend yourself. I can't.

Ah. True, true.

Ego stroked, Rooster gave up the gun without a second thought.

From here, they split up, like they did in last update. Mouse makes her vote, then goes down to the cafeteria to find Ox there, spectating the results. The two have their conversation about Aaron Morris, and their personal takes on the judicial system, and then the two return to the art room where Snake was murdered so Ox can investigate once more. Like last update, Ox soon discovers evidence that points at Mouse and Rooster, leading him to connect the rest of the dots on his own – which in turn results in Mouse killing him with the knife almost on reflex, just like last update. She watches the life drain from his eyes, spending his last moments in silence. However, before she can catch her breath, something else catches her attention instead...

[BGM: Silence]


But just then, I heard a noise by the door.

[BGM: Metal Horse]


Ah, there you are!

Horse! Wh-what... what the hell is on your face?

Huh? I don't have anything on my face!

Horse looked at the body.

So. You were the other little murderer. Figures. Always looked like a conniving bitch.

Well, this is the end of the line for you!

Hold on!



Trying to stall? Want your partner to come and save you? Too bad! They're already dead!

Wh-what? How could you know that?

How?

How? How? How?

Because I killed them all! Every one of them!

Wh-what?!

And now, for a full sweep!



Horse began to stomp towards me. Pure bloodlust in his eyes. If he saw me as a threat, I already would've been dead. Unfortunately for him, there was one thing he had zero chance of expecting. The pistol I had. I'd never fired a gun before, but... With pure self-preservation in mind, I pulled out the weapon and fired it twice right at Horse's chest.

*bang, bang!*

...It actually worked, and he stopped in his tracks, surprised. Then... step by step... he continued moving towards me. I had never felt as terrified before as I had in that one moment.

*bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!!!*

I fired shot after shot after shot into him. He was like one of those zombies in the movies – he just wouldn't die. But eventually, finally, I had dealt enough damage to him. He dropped to the floor. And...

...That was it?

[BGM: Silence]


If he was to be believed... I was the last one alive. The sole survivor. It was over.

I couldn't describe the emotions that overtook me. I expected relief, maybe regret. But instead, I just felt a hollowness. 'Oh, so this is how it went, huh?' I could hardly muster the motivation to celebrate. But... I couldn't shut down. I'd heed Ox's words, and live my life to the fullest. So I snapped out of it, and began searching the school. Sure enough, I found corpse after corpse. Even Rooster... My one comrade, murdered. ...Oh well. What's one more victim? I collected everyone's tablets, and operated them to move my pawn to the end of the board. And just like that, I crossed the finish line.



The finish line has been crossed. The winner is Mouse. Congratulations! Anyone who has not won has lost. Prepare for execution.

And like that, I felt the collar release off my neck. I heard it fall to the floor. And that was that. I was free. That simple. I had won. Ha, ha ha. Look at me. Who would've guessed, out of everyone here, I would be the one still alive? Well, serves them right! They shouldn't have been such shitty people that they'd get dragged into a death game! They shouldn't have been so stupid as to let some girl like me murder them all!

Brian hadn't selected me randomly. Brian had given me this role for a purpose. I was here to enact his justice on these sinners. And I had done just that.

I get it now, Brian! You were right! This game needed to happen. At first glance, it looked like you rigged this whole thing against me. But you wanted me to win, right? This is the outcome you wanted! I delivered this to you!

So, you're welcome! Come on, thank me! Thank me, your avatar of justice! Thank me for my service! For my performance! Tell me what's next for us!

I shouted out, but no one responded. Brian wouldn't say a word. He just left me with the silence. This maddening silence. This deafening, ear-blistering silence. I couldn't stand it anymore, so, just to create noise, I began to laugh. I began to laugh, and laugh, and laugh. Why not? The situation was funny. It was a funny situation. My laughter echoed and echoed through the empty halls. I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed and I laughed.

And eventually... I stopped.

...Next update, we start on a different path towards a different route.