CHAPTER 3 · 1 · Grounded

The bears continued to refuse to bring us the little boy, and eventually forced us to go in the elevator.
It went up in complete silence.
No one spoke a word, or if they did, I didn’t hear it.
My thoughts were going all over the place, to the point that I couldn’t single one of them out convincingly enough to remember it.
When the doors finally opened, no one moved at first.
…
It made me feel uncomfortable.
It’s not that I didn’t understand. Deep down, I knew that we weren’t ready to leave Andi behind yet. It was different from the first trial. No matter how painful it was to suddenly learn that Noah was going to have to go… Nothing could beat the horror behind Andi’s unfair death.
Yes… Unfair.
Despite that, the silence made me uncomfortable. For that reason, I was the first one to move.
I don’t know why I did it… But I walked up to Keith, who was standing in the middle of the elevator.
He was so pale it felt like I could see through him.
It was ironic that I felt so uncomfortable being silent when I hadn’t pronounced a single word since Andi’s death, not even when faced with the possibility that a child could die on his own…
“Keith…”
He turned to look at me. I was surprised that he was even able to react. I had felt like he was going to freeze completely, that he couldn’t live anymore. It must have been how he felt, but he moved.
I don’t know what exactly went through my head.
“You have no choice but to live now…”
I can’t even tell what my voice sounded like. Maybe I was the one trying not to freeze.
He flinched, and stared at me in silence for a moment, before he finally spoke up… slowly:
“Why does a heart break?”
His eyes were blank, but his voice was filled with hurt. Broken—no, his voice wasn’t. He was.
“Why does… What?”
His eyes vaguely turned to stare at nothing.
“It only hurts to say “goodbye” because you said “hello” at first.”
…
I didn’t know what to say. It felt random, but at the same time, not.
His speech got faster, but his tone emptier.
“The clock stops ticking, but…”
Finally, someone else moved.
It was Jan. I couldn’t read his expression. He walked up to Keith, and he seemed to hesitate for a split second, but he chose to place his hand on Keith’s shoulder.
It felt random, but at the same time…
Keith turned rather abruptly to look at him.
“You…”
He stared at him for a few seconds, but eventually…
Keith sniffled and hugged him.
Jan looked surprised at first, but he let him.
Keith didn’t let go. He sniffled from time to time, but didn’t appear to have the strength to cry.
Jan patiently hugged him back.
“Sometimes...
I wonder if I really am the protagonist.”
At that point, someone grabbed me by the arm. I turned to look, expecting Ciel, but it wasn’t them. In fact, it was Lois.
“Maybe I am.”
“Come with me.”
“What..?”
She tugged on my arm, gesturing towards the door with her head.
“Come on.”
“B-but…”
Now that I had thought about Ciel, I scoured the elevator with my eyes to search for them. My head felt heavy… So even though there were only 12 of us left, I had to look for a while.
I could feel Lois getting impatient.
When I finally found them, leaning against one of the elevators’ walls on their own, I noticed that they were already looking at me.
I opened my mouth slightly, when they nodded.
“Ah…”
I think it meant I could go. Lois took it this way, at least, and forced me to walk out with her.
We were the first people to leave the elevator. Once I started walking, I couldn’t find the strength to look behind.
They all looked weak… Too weak.
I forgot to wonder where Lois was bringing me. She led me to the dormitory, opened the door to her room, and pushed me in.
I looked around without thinking. Her room didn’t look too different from mine. The bed looked like it had already been slept in, but for the most part, it didn’t feel… inhabited.
“I’m going to show you the secret passage, like I promised.”
“Ah..?”
It took me by surprise. I cleared my throat, and suddenly found enough strength to try and reorganise my thoughts.
I recalled that during the trial, she’d randomly mentioned she would show me it.
“Look.”
She climbed on top of her bedframe, then the head of the bed, and reached upwards. I noticed that she was holding some sort of tool… It looked like a crowbar. She touched the ceiling with it, and opened up some sort of trap door.
“Wow, what?”
One of the tiles fell towards her, one side of it staying attached to the ceiling. The underside had what looked like a handle, or at least could be used as one, and without hesitating, she grabbed it and climbed up.
“Oof—follow me.”
I hesitated for a bit, but… She wasn’t going to give me the choice, was she? So I climbed up the bedframe and grabbed the handle. The tile hung on solidly, and I was able to follow her.
We found ourselves inside a dark, large room with a rather low ceiling – but not low enough to force me to crouch. The only light source was the opened trap door leading to Lois’ bedroom.
The room was large in one way, but actually not larger than our bedrooms in the other. Like a thin rectangle. Lois walked towards one of the walls and grabbed something from the floor… A Tupperware. She sniffed it, but looked unsatisfied.
“What is this?”
“The Tupperware, or the secret passage?”
…
“For your information… The Tupperware doesn’t smell like almonds or anything. It must only be a side effect on the body.”
“Huh…”
Her voice was perfectly calm, with regular strength.
“As for this…”
She turned, gesturing at the rest of the room.
“It leads to every single one of our bedrooms. No locks or anything. It’s pretty well hidden, but each bedroom has one of these openings. I’m guessing you never noticed the one in yours…”
She was right. The worst part is… I should have thought about it… Since Benjamin found his way into my room, and I didn’t know how.
… Argh… My heart hurt, and I didn’t even know what to with it.
Lois walked up to the opposite wall, and kneeled.
“I don’t think anyone can hear us from inside the rooms, but ssshh…”
She opened another small gap at the bottom of the wall, gesturing for me to come closer. I obliged, and… I looked, and saw the inside of the dormitory.
I frowned and crouched, trying to get a better look. I saw Chloe and Chris walk through the dormitory in silence and walk into their respective rooms.
Lois closed the small opening.
“This is what we’ve been using to check the dormitory at night. We’d leave it open, stay silent and check for any noise.”
“…Wow.”
I didn’t know what else to say.
That was it. I was inside Lois’ hiding place. This had been it all along.
She walked back towards the other wall, and sat against it.
“There. Since anyone can access any room from here… I didn’t know what better to do than to guard it, this way, if anyone tried to enter someone else’s room without their permission… They’d have to go through me first.”
I joined her and sat next to her without thinking.
“I found it right away on my own… And then Benjamin found it, so he found me.”
She marked a pause.
“We agreed that it was better to keep it a secret, since there was a chance most people wouldn’t find it.”
Then, she stopped talking.
I didn’t say anything either.
We sat in silence. I was still trying to reorganise my thoughts.
I tried to focus on what she’d said, but… she mentioned Benjamin.
My thoughts had been all over the place since the trial. I’d lost concentration midway through it, once Ben’s actions had been explained. I forgot what I was looking for.
Suddenly, it had become Ben.
I don’t know why I asked the question I asked.
“What are your feelings towards Ben, now?”
She didn’t reply immediately.
“They were weird.”
“Your feelings were?”
“No, they were.”
“…Who are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about Benjamin. Who are you talking about?”
“Uuuuh…”
She confused me. So much so that I was able to focus on our conversation, rather than the trial.
“Well, Ben, but, uuh… Why are you calling him “they”? He was…”
“Pff.”
I was taken aback.
She answered neutrally as always.
…I say that, but she can get pretty angry. I’d know that.
“Benjamin used both “he” and “they”. I’ve been using those interchangeably to refer to them.”
She turned to look at nothing.
“Since I used “he” during the trial, I figured I should change now.”
My head felt hot.
“That… That’s bullshit… He never said that…”
She turned back to me without hesitating.
“And? Did you ask them about it?”
“N-no? But…”
“Benjamin didn’t really talk about personal matters unprompted, did they? Besides…”
She put more insistence on the rest of her question.
“You’d asked Ciel about their pronouns, didn’t you?”
…
I didn’t know what to answer.
“Yes, you did. It was the first thing you asked them.”
She turned to look at nothing again.
“But you didn’t ask me about my pronouns. And you didn’t ask Ben about theirs either.”
I was embarrassed.
“It’s a bit hypocritical, isn’t it? Because you simply assumed. You probably thought you were incredibly inclusive for having asked Ciel, who “looked” gender non-conforming, about their pronouns, didn’t you?”
…
I didn’t answer anything, and I took to staring at nothing as well.
We sat in silence for a little while.
Eventually, I inhaled…
“What pronouns do you use, Lois?”
“She and her are just fine.”

Lying on my bed, I stare at the ceiling. I can’t help but think about the fact that Lois is, for sure, sitting alone in the room right above me.
I wonder if she’d been looking to call me out on this for a while. I wonder if Ben was the one to complain about it.
… I wonder if… Maybe… It’s just a theory… But I wonder if she told me about this to ground me somewhat. To remind me that Ben was just human.
If that’s so, then it worked. It successfully made me think about Ben like he was a normal person again. Well, he… or they, I guess. I guess that since he used both, remembering him as “he” should be fine, but I’m also… glad, somewhat, that at least a person remembers him differently. In a way more accurate to how he felt.
I tear up a little. This truly helped me think about him in a regular way. This helped me realise that there were things that I didn’t know… and there still are things that I don’t know. The thing is, on my own, I might have just turned him into this amazing but evil concept in my mind, a memory of lies and murder…
But the thing is… Ben lied to me. As a matter of fact, Ben was flawed as a person. He may not have been mean, but he annoyed me a lot of the time. Do I really have to always see everything in black in white? In my head, he was either my friend, or my enemy. When he called me his friend, I suddenly idolised him, somehow.
And then Andi died because of him. She did. It’s entirely his fault. There’s no way around that… I can’t say I’ve fully grasped that yet, but at least I’m managing to think about it. He used her… Poor Andi…
But then again… It’s impressive how much genius there was in his plan. Unless… It was all just talent. His talent as the Ultimate Fortune Teller allowed him to come up with this complicated plan… And that’s what's weird. He also managed to save Andi from being seen with the weapon. If I understood well, he told her exactly where to go and when to avoid everybody, and it worked perfectly.
Thinking of, I remember Andi saying that… He told her that she had to win no matter what.
No. There’s no way I can wrap my head around that. Not yet. But I can tell… That something is up with that.
…
I close my eyes, and sigh.
Then there’s Andi. I can’t not think about her, and whenever I do, I start to cry. It wasn’t even her fault… It’s so unfair..! And she died, she died forever, that’s what death means…
Like a martyr. Like someone you can think of in black and white. She even died… Protecting a child…
A child who, for some reason, called her “mommy”.
Around that, I can’t wrap my head either.
Actually, I feel like I’ve been thinking for too long. My head hurts. I don’t feel ready for any of this. I don’t feel ready to think too much. I don’t feel ready to be on my own. I woke up with Monokuma’s announcement… Hm.
Well, I woke up then and I’ve been thinking the same things over and over since. I don’t know what I want to do, but “going insane” isn’t on the list. I finally get up, and immediately spot something on the floor, not far from the door.
It’s a note.
My head feels cold again.
I snatch it from the floor and read it.

“Good morning, Neo. I hope you’re feeling okay. Me, well, probably not so much. I can tell this is going to be a rough day. That’s why I’d like to stay on my own to process this. I’m sorry, but I need to be alone today. Please respect that, I promise I’ll be okay, I need this. I also promise that I’ll make an effort to see you this evening no matter what, just leave me alone for the day, please.
Let’s stay strong, okay? Ciel”

Oh… Ciel… For some reason, I tear up again.
I nod to myself.
“I’m looking forward to this evening, then!”
…I realise that I don’t know whether Lois can hear me or not.
Oh well, does it matter by this point? I feel a lot of love towards Ciel… They’re a good friend. That matters a lot to me… So I need to behave my best as well.
With that in mind, I head inside the bathroom and get ready.
Looking in the mirror, I notice that I’ve started to grow the smallest of stubbles. I don’t grow a beard too easily… But I should still take care of that at some point. I wonder if there are any razors anywhere in this school.
When that is all done, feeling a little bit dizzy, I walk out of my room.

I feel lonely, but I’ll only start to worry if I stay lonely inside a certain room… I immediately make my way to it – the dining room.
When I open the door, I’m welcomed with the pleasant smell of breakfast food.
“Phew…”
Akiro, Alice and Jan are sitting at the main table, all looking like they’re done with their breakfasts already. I don’t know what time it is exactly, and I don’t want to know.
“Hello you guys.”
“Hi Neo! It’s good to see you. There’s breakfast in the kitchen… As always.”
Alice smiles shyly.
“Okay, thank you...”
But first, I walk up to the table to take a look at how they’re doing.
They look gloomy, of course. Alice and Akiro look sad, and Jan… sitting in between them, he looks completely desperate. At least, that’s the closest word I can find to describe it. Picture a good pupper… And you made him sad. That’s Jan.
Maybe that’s just how I feel, though.
“You guys don’t look too good…” I comment without thinking.
“Y-yeah…”
I look at Akiro, who looks back at me like there’s something I should know how to do.
“Have you seen how sad Jan looks? This is like… the worst day of my life.”
He doesn’t even look like he’s joking.
This strikes me more so as the way we’d usually treat Akiro, but maybe they just treat each other this way.
“You don’t look happy either…”
“Well, I can’t…”
“Obviously.”
“But… But… I can’t let you feel like that…”
Akiro looks seriously bothered, and Jan’s expression doesn’t change. It’s probably not that he’s not trying…
“It’s okay, Akiro, you know? Sometimes you just have to let yourself feel those things.”
Alice forces herself to smile, but her eyes look sad.
I sigh discretely. I never paid attention that closely, but… I now realise that Andi and Alice had been friends. It’s not just her, Akiro and Jan. Jan too, had interacted with her…
“I-I know, but..! If I looked like that, Jan wou-would definitely find a way to cheer me up, so I need to…”
“So, what’s your plan?”
“I…”
He moans, continuing to stare at Jan.
“I don’t know…”
“Pff…”
Jan turns his head to stare back. Honestly, if Akiro is this pent up over how he looks, this can only be worse. They stare at each other, Akiro looking at a loss, and Jan’s expression unchanging, until…
Jan stares at Akiro’s face, until his lips curl a little bit into the slightest smile.
Akiro gasps, and blushes.
“Hehe…”
Jan’s eyes may still look sad, but his small smile looks sincere nonetheless.
I roll my eyes. Honestly, I… Honestly, I’m jealous. If that’s how it’s going to be, I’m just going to grab my breakfast. Goodbye!

…With my breakfast in hand, I come back to sit at the table with them. It looks like Jan’s expression has become a lot less extreme… Alice even chuckles. Akiro looks a little satisfied, blush still lingering on his cheeks.
“I can’t believe you guys…”
“Hey, that’s my line!”
“Pff, you’re just the same…”
I shake my head.
…I think I feel a little lighter, too. I mean, Akiro is adorable, and Jan looking better makes me feel better, and Alice being anywhere near me always makes me feel better…
“Well, what about you, then?!”
She puts on an exaggerated tone, obviously being funny.
I shake my head again, and try to eat.
Alice sighs.
“Seeing that you’re doing okay contributes too, you know, Neo.”
“Stop it…”
Suddenly (it’s always sudden), I hear the door behind me open, and someone walking in. I turn in my chair without thinking and see Keith.
“Oh, hello.”
Alice sounds… put off.
“…Hi…”
His voice is weak.
He looks just as pale as yesterday. Like no time passed since I last saw him in the elevator.
He walks towards us, slowly, and I just look at him…
“I knew you’d be here…”
He hesitates, walking a little closer.
“You can ignore me, but I…”
He stares at the floor, and shakes his head slightly.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t handle being alone, right now…”
Huh…
“Oh, I see. Well, that’s no problem!”
Alice quickly found her cool again. It sounds like she thinks this is normal.
I mean, not that this is abnormal… But it’s coming from Keith.
I don’t know what to think anymore.
“I totally understand. Take a seat.”
… Without a word, Keith takes a seat, not next to me, but the chair next to it, facing Alice.
“We don’t even have to ignore you,” Jan says in a low voice.
“Hmpf…”
Keith turns his head to Akiro and for some reason, smiles faintly.
“You don’t agree with that?”
I look at the Ultimate Writer too. He looks… bothered.
“N-no, it’s just… No, it’s… No, I’m sorry. Sorry.”
He looks away, but Keith insists.
“It’s okay, you can lay it on me.”
He sighs. He sounds… oddly calm. Weak, but calm.
“Anything.”
Akiro hesitates. I wouldn’t know what to do either. Pretend that nothing’s wrong? Is that really the right thing to? Ultimately, he decides that it’s not.
“It’s just... Y-You’re mean.”
…
Akiro can express himself much better than that. He’s far from simple-minded, I know that. For that reason… I realise that he says it with immense sincerity.
There’s nothing more, or less.
And Keith chuckles.
“You’re right.”
Akiro looks a little confused…
“I guess...”
Keith turns to Jan.
“I’m incredibly sorry. It’s true.”
“Hmm…”
The Ultimate Pianist hesitates, looking taken aback.
“I didn’t mean what I said during the trial. I really didn’t. I might not even have said it, if I didn’t basically feel the opposite.”
Jan opens his mouth to say something, then closes it. Then he opens it again.
“Feel, huh…”
It’s weird to see Jan hesitate so much, but if I recalled—Keith actually hurt his feelings, near the end of the trial.
… It’s weird to even think about Keith.
Still, Jan invited him to our table.
“I admire you, is what I mean.”
“Huh.”
He’s genuinely surprised.
So am I…
But this isn’t about me, is it? I just try to follow the conversation.
Keith quickly turns his head to Alice.
“By the way, I’m sorry for calling you… those words.”
She tilts her head, like she didn’t expect this at all. (I mean, neither did I.)
“All I can say is that it’s a really bad habit. I need to work on not talking like that anymore.”
“Wow…”
Keith sighs. This must be draining him.
“Also…”
He turns to Jan and Akiro once more.
“Thank you for your hard work… Calling me out on my bullshit…”
Jan nods. Keith lets his eyes fall towards the table.
“And… I somewhat recall grabbing you at some point… So thanks for letting me hug you.”
Jan turns his head to Akiro.
“So? What do you think?”
The latter sighs.
“Come on, don’t ask me…”
The pianist chuckles, but looks serious when he turns back to Keith.
“I fully appreciate your efforts.”
“Really?”
Keith makes another effort to look at him.
He looks unwell. I sympathise with him…
But I’m so lost—I don’t know if I should, or why I shouldn’t. I’m just lost.
“Is that enough for you to forgive me..?”
“Hmm…”
He looks at the ceiling for a second.
“Sure. It’s only human to mess up. As long as you take accountability…”
“I don’t know…”
Everyone turns to Akiro. He blushes, as always.
“Uuuuhm… Fuck… I mean… I think there are people you shouldn’t forgive…”
He glances at Jan, then stares at the table.
“But, uh, Keith isn’t one of them. Obviously.”
“I see…”
Keith chuckles once more. It sounds insincere.
“Thank you…”
“Well, that’s enough about that, isn’t it?”
“Yeah…”
I don’t know why I intervened.
“I just have one more question, though…”
“R-really?”
“Yeah, Keith… Why did you hug Jan, exactly? That’s my kind of privilege, you know.”
Alice crosses her arms… obviously putting on a smile.
So she’s trying to make the conversation more light-hearted…
“Is it?”
“Eurgh…”
Keith looks uncomfortable.
“I guess… I must have needed it… And…”
He glances at Jan.
“For some reason… It felt like you were… Okay with it…”
The pianist nods.
“I figured you did.”
“Huh, so you actually invited him? That doesn’t really sound like you, Jan.”
“Hmm…”
He looks at the ceiling again.
“I just… Tried to show that it was okay, from my body language…”
He nods to himself, and lets his chin fall back to face ahead.
“Would you guys like me to tell you a fun anecdote?”
“Huuuh?”
“Suuure? Oh…”
Akiro looks like he realised something, but he stops himself and rolls his eyes. He doesn’t look upset, though. Not anymore.
I guess I should state that I’m okay with it too? I mean. Yes…
“Sure.”
“…Well, my best friend is an Ultimate too.”

“Whaaaat ? I thought we were your best friends!”
“W-well w-what about it? You’re also an Ultimate…”
“Obviously not the issue here!”
Jan smiles calmly.
“My best friend on the outside…”
“Well, what about when we’re out of here?”
“Aliiice…”
…I want to hear the story!
“I know, I know, I’m just kidding.”
“May I?”
“Yes, yes!”
“So, she’s an Ultimate… She’s the Ultimate Hugger.”
“Huh?”
“… Hugger.”
“Yep!”
Jan leans back into his chair. He looks pretty proud.
“She wasn’t recognised too long ago, but I always knew she had this talent.”
“But what does she… How does it work?”
It looks like he was expecting this kind of reaction. I can’t just… not ask. After all, my own talent is a lot easier to pin down. Then again, Alice’s talent is… literally… walking.
Actually, I wonder if I should even have asked this question at all. Maybe I should know better by now.
“Well, it works on multiple levels. The more interesting part, I’d say, is that it taps into psychology…”
He looks at Keith specifically.
“Like your talent, I assume.”
Keith looks haggard, but he nods.
“…Yes.”
“I can’t pretend to understand how it works from her point of view, but she has a special sense for when someone needs a hug, or not, and what kind of hug they need.”
“So what? You’re saying your friend would have sensed I needed a hug?”
Jan nods in turn.
“She would give you just as many hugs as you need.”
We’re talking about hugs. Giving hugs. It should sound a lot sillier than it does, right now.
“Hmm...”
Keith tries really hard to put himself together—I don’t need a special sense to be able to tell that.
“But who’s to say I’d enjoy hugging her? Especially if she’s a stranger.”
“If you needed a hug but from someone else than her, she’d be able to identify it as well.”
The Ultimate Sexologist looks somewhat curious.
“That being said, she’s obviously good at what she does… It’d be hard to pinpoint how exactly…”
The pianist shrugs.
“…I’m not necessarily keen on… touching other people… myself. But she showed me how important a hug can be to someone. Anyway, it also boils down to “giving good hugs”.”
“So like, she knows exactly how long to squeeze you, how hard or something?”
“Yes.”
He closes his eyes, looking a little hesitant.
“But it’s also interesting to look into the physical elements of her Ultimate… Like having soft skin…”
“And do you get jealous?”
“Jealous?”
He opens his eyes again, genuinely confused by her question.
I have a feeling I know what she means. She’s smiling widely.
“When she hugs other people.”
He tilts his head.
“What does that have to do with me?”
“Oh, come on!”
“Ah!”
…He got it. He shakes his head.
“I don’t know what I expected. Everybody always assumes that.”
“… So she’s not your girlfriend.”
Okay, I was thinking it too… But that’s on him—I’m still all about my ot3, no matter how sad I get, I refuse to let it go. For me to consider he was in a relationship with someone else really shows with how much love he spoke about her.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“You…”
Jan tries his best not to look annoyed. I chuckle a little bit… Somehow, I manage to. I’m a little bit nervous, though. If this is something he constantly gets asked about, then I feel bad that we’re bringing it up yet again.
“We’re happy being friends, but it’s actually very annoying…”
He shakes his head once more, and sighs, easily finding his composure again.
“Her family would really like for us to be together. But oh, well.”
“Wait, what?”
…It’s a little weird that he only reacted now.
Jan scratches his neck nervously.
“I guess people think we’re a good match… I don’t really mind, but sometimes I feel like…”
He hesitates, before frowning.
“Why are we even talking about that?”
“What? You can’t leave it there now, it’s too late!”
“Yeah… What do you feel like?”
Akiro is having a lot less fun with this than Alice is. The pianist rolls his eyes, but he smiles a little bit, as he always does, and it reassures me… it always does.
“Like maybe I don’t have a choice… Eventually, we’re going to have to get together.”
“Huh?!”
Jan chuckles nervously and waves his arms in front of him, turned to Akiro.
“But I’ve changed my mind…”
“Changed your mind?!”
…Huh? It took a few seconds to hit me. Is he saying that he’s feeling forced to be in a relationship with someone? Is that it? Then Akiro is right to be upset…
“Yeah, yeah, since I don’t want to, I won’t…”
He scratches his temple.
“I was always upset about it, because I thought Adele deserved better, but now I realise I can… make my own choice.”
“…Obviously you can.”
He then mutters:
“Idiot.”
“I know, right?”
Jan looks seriously embarrassed by this situation.
“Adele, hm?”
Keith spoke up again. His tone, a lot less enthusiastic than Alice’s, Akiro’s, or Jan’s, stands out.
“Ah, yes. That’s her name.”
Quickly calming down, he smiles as always.
“Even with such a special talent, she’ll be famous someday, so don’t forget it.”
…He totally loves her.
“What’s your deal with people whose first name starts with the letter A?”
… … Alice’s question goes unanswered.
“This is probably not a fun position for her to be in either.”
Jan nods right away.
“You’re definitely right about that. At the end of the day, I’m just overthinking it, but she’s the one who has to deal with it.”
“Yeah... I see.”
Keith looks away.
I guess he’s done.
“Hmm, but people saying you’re a good match with Jan sounds like a compliment, doesn’t it?”
“Uh, yeah…”
… I guess it does. Actually, no, it certainly does. Alice knows what’s up.
“Uhm, thank you..?”
“Hm-hm. Anyway, can I get an appointment with her or something? Like, her trainee is totally not giving me enough hugs. I need some more!”
“Hey, now.”
I, uh…
“You can just ask me for a hug…”
Alice gasps.
“I can?!”
She immediately gets up and goes over to Akiro’s chair to hug him from behind.
“Aaah, now that’s good.”
Akiro blushes, obviously.
… I’m a little flushed too. Maybe I wanted to hug Alice. Maybe. Definitely.
Jan looks pretty satisfied with what’s happening, for whatever reason.
Alice squeezes Akiro for a little bit—and obviously, we all feel it. She actually needed a hug. The mood changes again to something… a little more appropriate, maybe.
When finally she lets go of him, she shakes her head, forcing herself to smile.
“Pretty good hug. Cheeks too warm from blushing all the time.”
“Sh-shut up…”
Unlike usual, Akiro pouts on purpose this time. She walks back to her chair, stretching.
Maybe because of the sudden change in mood, no one says anything for a little while. I already finished eating my breakfast, but I stay in place. I can’t say I really feel like doing anything. I just want to be surrounded.

…Eventually, I hear a sniffle coming from next to me. I turn to look, and see Keith smile bitterly.
“Tch…”
The others look as well, but I don’t think anyone knows what to say.
“Don’t… pay attention to me…”
“Well...”
Alice hesitates, and Keith hides his face behind his palms, letting out a pained sob.
I grimace. I’m not surprised, I can’t pretend that I am. He’s seriously going through it…
He starts to mutter to himself.
That’s when my talent as the Ultimate Voice Actor comes in.
… I can tell when people mean to say something, or when it slips up. I can hear that kind of stuff. In Keith’s case… I can tell that what he says is coming out of his mouth whether he wants it or not.
The truth is, I don’t always pay attention, but I think it’s always been the case with a lot of what he says.
… It’s just… Why should I be responsible for caring about someone like that..? I’d thought it without saying it. And one person disagreed with me, and we both knew it, even though neither of us said anything about it.
That person…
“I can’t believe she’s dead…”
“Urgh…”
He fails to repress one more sob.
“It’s all my fault…”
“Your fault?”
“Yes…”
Surprisingly, he replied back, his voice weaker and weaker.
“How could it be your fault?”
My grimace becomes even more intense than it already was, and I don’t know why. I might just be confused. After all… Keith confuses me, in every possible way, and he continues to now.
It’s true, it’s not his fault.
“I… If I…”
He sniffles, and moves his hands away from his face, though he continues to mostly hide it.
“If I didn’t ask her to leave me alone… She would… She would have stayed with me and… And then… And then she couldn’t have…”
“Oh, come on..!”
Alice visibly tries to find something to say, and…
Ugh!
It’s frustrating. I don’t like him, because he frustrates me. I can’t let him..!
“Hey…”
I, too, search for something. And I’m not as good as Alice is at coming up with motivational speeches, but… There has to be something I can do, right?
I can’t come up with something good on my own, but… I have something… I have a good echoic memory. And for that reason…
Scouring my memories, I can hear many things, and among them…

“I don’t claim to have this authority on him!”

I let out some sort of weird, violent sob, even though I’m not crying. It hurts to think about her, now that she’s…
But I have to focus on the present. I look at Keith.
“You weren’t responsible for her.”
“Wh-what?”
I don’t know what shocks him the most between what I said, and the fact that I was the one to say it.
“And she wasn’t responsible for you either! Don’t you remember… When the motive was announced?”
“Guh…”
“She… Even though you cared about each other… She clearly believed that she didn’t have to be responsible for what you did.”
I swallow my spit.
“And it goes both ways.”
“But… But…”
…The door opens.
“Oh hey, Chris! Come in, come in! Hahaha!”
While Alice fake-laughs in the back, I turn to look at Chris, who’s already started to walk back out.
“Uuuh… Okay…”
“Ugh!”
Keith hits the table in frustration and completely hides his face behind his arms. Glancing at him, Chris comes closer.
“Good morning…”
“How are you doing, Chris?”
Jan looks sorry. Akiro, next to him, would hide behind him if he could.
“Fine, I guess…”
I glance up at the gymnast. She sighs, crossing her arms.
“Fine as it gets.”
“Yeah…”
“It’s, uh, special. Anyway… I’m gonna eat first, but… Did you guys take a look at the new rooms yet?”
“Oooh…”
Akiro’s the first to take out his handbook.
…
I’m uh, overwhelmed. Oh, well, let’s do the same thing.
I grab mine and look for a new map.

Spoiler:

“I’m guessing that’s a no.”
I don’t know what to think at first, but thankfully, the others react immediately.
“Hey, that must b-be…”
He doesn’t finish that sentence.
“Why is one of the rooms a… bedroom?”
“And uh, there are ju-just more classrooms… Uhm…”
He taps Jan’s arm without taking his eyes away from the screen.
“Maybe there’ll be some training equipment in there.”
I think he’s talking about the room represented by a dumbbell.
“Yeah, maybe. That’d be pretty neat, I guess.”
I would have assumed this would be something that interests Chris more so than Akiro… or Jan. Maybe Oscar would be interested… Hmm…
…
“We should go look!”
Yeah, actually, I would like to.
“Sure.”
Alice stands up again.
“Are you coming with us, Neo?”
“Yes…”
I wasn’t able to put enthusiasm in my voice. I’m all over the place…
“You’re coming with us, Akiro.”
“Oh, so I d-don’t get a choice?”
“Hm? Well, you were gonna come with anyway, weren’t you?”
His cheeks redden, as always.
“Well yeah, but if th-that’s how it-it is…”
“T-t-t.”
Jan stands up too, grabbing Akiro’s arm.
“Wh-what…”
“Shut up.”

(＾∇＾  )
(*ﾟ∀ﾟ*)

(I don’t even need to put it into words anymore…)
“And, uuh… Uhm…”
Her enthusiasm dying down, Alice looks at Keith, who hasn’t moved.
…
He doesn’t say anything.
Eventually, Chris sighs.
“Okay, okay, I get it, I’ll stay with the guy.”
“Really? Is that okay… with the two of you?”
Keith sniffles.
“Knock yourself out.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
She points at Keith, even though he’s looking at his own palms.
“I just want to eat my breakfast in peace, okay? But that’s probably fine with you anyway.”
“…Yes.”
… So we agreed that Chris would stay with Keith, and Akiro, Alice, Jan and myself quickly put our dishes back and left.
“Isn’t… C-ciel gonna join you?” Akiro asks on our way out.
“Oh, uh, no. They’re… taking the day for themselves. They left me a note.”
“Oooh, okay.”
He nods.
“I understand.”
This felt like a very sincere sentiment. I smile, and we go on our way.

We walked up to the 4th floor.
I’m a little out of breath…
I try to look at the others for affirmation that we did climb a lot of stairs and I’m not just being weak about it—but Alice and Jan are doing perfectly fine…
Well, that was to be expected from “my Ultimate is walking” girl, but Jan?!
“Pff… Pff… Wh-what’s the rush, seriously…”
“Ah! I know, right?!”
Okay, so it was just the two of them!
“You didn’t have to match my speed…”
“Ah?”
“”Ah?” he asks, perfectly fine…”
The pianist shrugs, turning to me with an understanding smile.
“Don’t worry, according to my observations, the fourth floor is usually the one where people feel like it’s starting to be too much.”
I don’t know what to answer, so I don’t say anything… I do think about it, however… And I feel like he’s right. I’ve already observed something similar…
“So, we’re going in there first, right?”
Alice points to a room that perfectly faces the stairs.
I noticed it as well… It’s a room that’s represented by music notes.
“Hmm…”
…Could he be hesitating?
Well, Alice doesn’t wait for his opinion, and she walks right in.

It’s… a little cramped. It’s filled with all sorts of instruments. I wouldn’t know how a quarter of them are called.
It smells nice… Like wood. To a musician, this must be… Like heaven, right?
“…Do you think it’s some sort of sick joke?”
“What?”
I spin on my feet to look at Jan again. He looks… uncomfortable.
“Huh?”
His gaze travels towards the back of the room.
“To reveal a music room… Now that she’s gone.”
…
It hits me.
At the back of the room, there are multiple guitars, hanging on the wall.
But that’s not exactly what hits me… Of course there’d be guitars.
It’s that he’s right.
This has to be a sick joke.
“But… What about you, Jan?”
Alice always tries to cheer us up—and I figure herself as well. But since this morning, she’s been regularly going back to looking serious. Even though she’s doing her best… There’s no helping it, in our situation…
“I don’t… care…”
He starts looking at the floor, his smile completely gone.
“Well, I do.”
Speaking in a soft voice, Akiro walks up to him and pushes him lightly in the arm.
“You said you’d let me listen to you play.”
He looks towards the right of the door.
There’s a piano. I don’t know much about musical instruments, but I can tell that it is a Grand piano. Black and shiny, I feel like if I got any closer, I could see my reflection in it.
“Oh, Akiro…”
“Oh, are the two of you done already?!”
…
I uh, got distracted, I guess…
Jan sighed, and walked to the piano.
“It looks expensive.”
Alice has taken on a cheery tone again.
“Oh yes, definitely.”
“What an expensive hobby to have, huh…”
The Ultimate Pianist chuckles.
“I know, I’m so lucky.”
I glance at Alice just in time to see her shrug with a smile on her face. She notices me, and simply keeps smiling.
I can’t help but smile too.
While Jan and Akiro look at the piano, Alice goes farther into the room. Without thinking about it, I follow her.
“Do you play any instruments, Neo?”
“Me? Uh, no.”
I can’t recall ever doing anything else than voice acting.
“I’ve had friends show me how to play the guitar a little bit.”
She stops under that one wall, looking at all the guitars.
“I feel like everyone kinda knows how to play it.”
“Well, not me, I guess.”
She shrugs.
“One day, maybe.”
She looks at me again, looking very calm… In the sense that I can feel that I look like a mess, that I’ve been looking like one all morning, and I’ll never be anywhere near as strong as she is.
“Do you think we’ll find anything useful in this kind of room? I mean, something to get us out of here…”
I frown a little bit. It’s crazy to me, how Alice continues to believe that we’ll find a way.
That was my initial idea as well, but…
“I’m not...”
But suddenly… Well, I don’t know how else to describe it. I lost my train of thought.
I can’t tell exactly how long it lasted.
It felt like I was transported… somewhere else. I started from the ground, and flied towards the sky… I was floating steadily, aiming upwards, not worrying as to why.
I kept looking around me, but there was nothing. I can’t describe how exactly I pictured it, it was… nothing.
And yet, it felt like I knew it perfectly. I felt at ease, at home… At peace.
I kept flying, but at the same time, I was staying in place. Alone with nothing to fear. I had no memories, no knowledge, nothing, but I could feel that I was here. That I was me, whoever that was.
It felt like every second that passed, I was more peaceful.
Calmer… And calmer… And calmer…
It continued, it felt like it could never stop. I was fine with existing in this way. Floating in nothing, with only peace to guide me.
Going upwards infinitely. I felt hope towards whatever was up above, even though it felt like it was nothing at all.
Eventually, I even… lost sight of it all. I may have become nothing myself.
…
…
… … …
And then I was back.

…What was that?
I’m back inside the music room, inside the school. In fact I… I never left, did I?
Confused, I find myself turning to the piano, for some reason, and that’s when I realise…
Jan finished playing.
“What… was this one called?”
At some point, Jan had taken a seat in front of the piano, and Akiro had brought up a folding chair to sit next to him.
Was this…
His talent as the Ultimate Pianist?!
I don’t understand what I just felt, but the sentiment of peace lingers with me somehow…
“Nuvole Bianche by Ludovico Einaudi…”
He marks a short pause, then continues:
“It’s a fairly simple piece, but beautiful in its efficiency. Its simplicity leaves room for you to place your own emotions on it… You end up exploring the depths of your mind, almost like a dream that reveals to you what occupies your subconscious.”
I can’t see his face from where I stand, but I can tell that he’s smiling, satisfied with what he’s talking about.
He turns his head to look at Akiro.
“So, what did it make you think about?”
“Whaaat? Uuuh…”
From the side, I can see him blushing.
Oh-oh.
“Well, you were playing for me, so I was thinking about you…”
Jan chuckles.
“That’s an option too. You can travel with the musician themselves in your mind.”
“Hmm… What were you thinking about then?”
“…I was playing for you, so I was thinking about you.”
…
………………………………………………
Suddenly, I hear her sob next to me.
“What?”
I finally turn to Alice to see her slap her hand onto her mouth, trying not to let out another one. Tears are forming inside her eyes.
“A-Alice? Are you okay?”
“Gh…”
She inhales with difficulty.
“I just… I just need a second to myself!”
She runs out of the room without another word, passing in front of the piano without looking at her friends.
“Ah..!”
Surprised, the both of them turn to watch her leave…
“Wait, I…”
I don’t know, but…
“I can’t allow that..!”
I run after her.

“Hey, Neo…”
…I heard him, but it was too late. I was already out of the room.
Barging out after her, I see her sit on the floor against a wall, a few steps away. I walk up to her.
“Well… Gotta give it to you… You did give me… one second.”
She’s still trying not to cry.
I don’t know what to say… or do… I just feel bad…
…And I just look at her in silence at first. She’s holding her forehead, it almost looks like… she’s trying to hold her thoughts together.
I realise that I can’t just follow her and be useless.
I sit next to her—and I still don’t know what to say.
…She ends up saying something before I can.
“Talk about the power of music… Right?”
She sniffles. I think she’s putting herself together incredibly fast.
“…Did you know this piece from somewhere?”
I let myself ask a dumb question because I wanted to say something, anything. She shakes her head.
“No…”
She sniffles again.
“Do you think it’s what he said? The piece itself does that to you? Or did his Ultimate do that?”
“I, uh… I guess I assumed that his talent enhanced it.”
She nods. Her face is red… It hurts to see her like that. Somehow, though, she’s calming down.
She speaks in a soft voice.
“Maybe he doesn’t realise that it’s just his talent…”
“Hmm…”
I scratch the back of my head.
“That’s not a really cool talent, if that’s how it makes you feel…”
She chuckles, but it sounds sad.
“No, you’ve got it wrong.”
“I… do?”
“Do you guys never listen?”
…I don’t know what to answer.
“I keep repeating it…”
She closes her eyes.
“There are things that you need to let yourself feel.”
“Ah…”
I let my mouth hang open for a few seconds, thinking it over. I’m pretty sure she’s said something to that extent before… Yes, she definitely has. Maybe I didn’t give it as much meaning as I should have..?
“I’m not very good at that myself.”
“Ah?”
She makes me feel like an idiot, but it’s not her fault. I always feel like she has everything worked out.
Alice’s the exact person I want to be. I’m pretty sure she is, at least. I tried so hard to be like that at first, but it’s natural to her…
She smiles. She may be downhearted… But she still looks sweet.
“Yeah. I like the fact that I can find the strength to always push forward, but it’s hard to know when to stop.”
She nods to herself.
“…So if music can let me know when I need to let my feelings in, it’s a beautiful tool, I think.”
Once again, I… don’t know what to say.
I think I understand what she’s saying… But…
Maybe I’m just too much of an idiot, so what can I do?
“Well, it still hurts to see you like that…”
She laughs.
“It’s sweet of you to care.”
She finally opens her eyes again, and looks at me. They’re still red, but her breathing has calmed down, and she’s not crying anymore.
“What kind of thing did you think of? It was probably not too hurtful, like mine was.”
“Ah, uh, yeah… It was something peaceful.”
It didn’t even cross my mind that someone else could have felt sad. It wasn’t necessarily that the music itself was happy, or sad, but… like Jan described it, it made it so you could apply your own feelings to it. He mentioned the “subconscious”… Did he mean something like our deepest feelings? If that’s so, then… If someone’s deepest feelings are sad, then…
I frown.
“I’m glad that you feel this way.”
“But, Alice… I…”
I hesitate, but it’s not because I don’t want to say it. It’s that I’m struggling to comprehend it.
“It’s just… I thought… I didn’t see you as the sad type.”
“Huh?”
She laughs again, with more sincerity than before.
“Well, sure. Aside from being kidnapped and thrown into a Killing Game and all… My life’s pretty neat. I’m an Ultimate, after all.”
“Oh…”
She makes her voice softer.
“That last motive was really dumb…”
“Yes, uuh…”
“Start a new life… What’s the use? It won’t change what has already happened.”
…
She lets out a long sigh.
“Oh well!”
One second she’s sitting, and the next she’s standing, looking at me, still on the floor.
“Anyway, you’re cute. Let’s go back in there… You shouldn’t leave kids alone for that long.”
“Kids..?”
She massages her face one last time and, smiling, walks around me and back into the music room.
“Hey..!”
I don’t know why I even said anything. I just have to follow her, right?
Sighing, I get up as well. Why are these girls so good at making me feel dumb..? Back inside the music room it is.
“A-are you o-okay?”
Akiro walks from the back to the room to Alice. It looks like both guys went away from the piano to look at other stuff.
“Well, now that I’m seeing your pretty face, yes, I am!”
“Uuuuhm, sure…”
“Just kidding, I’m having the best day of my life anyway… Hey, Jan!”
Jan’s looking from the back.
“Can’t you play me something a little happier? Would you that for your good friend? I want to enjoy myself too, you know…”
“Oh…”
But what he played wasn’t sad at all…
“Do you really want me to?”
“Yeah! That’d put everyone in a better mood, I’m sure.”
“I-I won’t say no…”
“Yeah, sure!”
Since Akiro agreed, I thought maybe I should too.
“That’s no issue with me at all.”
He looked a little worried at first, but quickly flashed his signature smile again. He walks by us and towards the piano, where he sits down.
Alice looks at him the whole way.
“Do you know what you’re gonna play?”
“Well, it’s a classic…”
I feel like you could say that about a lot of classical music. Or, uh, even…
“Mozart’s Turkish March, what do you say?”
“Oh! Yeah, I see!”
“Hm-hm.”
Jan starts to play. I recognise this melody… It’s very famous, I’m pretty sure. I listen for a short while, thinking that I understand why he chose this one for something a little more positive. I then tell myself that I’m going to look around the room some more, but…
…Once the music stops, I realise that it’s too difficult to concentrate on anything but what Jan plays.
“You’re so good!”
Akiro sounds giddy. Is the music that powerful that it made us happy this time.. ? No, actually, I think he’s just very interested in his music.
“… Thank you.”
“Pff, obviously you are. We probably don’t have to say it.”
“Well, it’s not a requirement.”
Either way, Jan will probably look satisfied.
“Thanks for playing something for me, though! I’m lucky, huh?”
She takes a few steps inside the room. She and Akiro didn’t move at all for the time that he was playing either.
“Did you guys look around while we were out? Did you find anything?”
“Uh, no… W-well yes, w-w-we did look around, but no… Uhm…”
“Nothing interesting, then?”
“Aside from musical instruments, not really. There are a bunch of folding chairs available if we ever need them…”
What could we need those for… Oh, I know.
“I guess with those, you could organise a private concert for all of us.”
“Oh? What if I get nervous?”
He responds light-heartedly.
“That’d be a little awkward, for the Ultimate Pianist.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
“B-but we’re not exactly in a normal situation…”
“Hm-hm. That’s what I was thinking about.”
Oh, I see. He smiled as he said it, but I guess he wasn’t fully kidding.
“Now that I think about it, maybe that’s something for once we’re out of here.”
“Yeah! Good thinking, Neo!”
Jan nods.
“I like that idea.”
That’s flattering…
…
Well, Alice and I could glance around as much as we wanted, but we didn’t find any reason to believe the music room had anything else interesting for us to look at, so we ended up leaving.
We went into the 4th floor’s hall.
“So, Akiro made it sound like Jan wanted to go to that exercising room.”
“Ah, uuh…”
“I just mentioned that it would be cool to have more options to try and stay in shape.”
I feel like going up and down the stairs regularly is enough for me…
“The gym was lacking in equipment, aside from things related to team sports… So I wonder if that’s why this new one exists?”
No, I don’t care, I’m not thinking about the fact that I have scrawny little arms and that Jan looks perfect in every possible way. I’m not thinking about the fact that it may have something to do with our different amounts of interest in sport equipment. Alice said I was cute, so I’m just fine.
“It’s still a pretty weird room for a school to have…”
“Yeah, the gym made sense, but it’s just getting weirder and weirder as time goes.”
She shrugs.
“Maybe that explains why this school was chosen to capture us or something. Anyway, let’s go in there.”
As always, Alice leads the way, walking into the room. With no reason to object, the three of us follow her.
It’s a classic sports room… or something. I don’t think I’ve ever been to one, but it looks pretty regular. There’s a couple treadmills… An exercise bike… A few machines I don’t know the name of…
“Uuuh, a weight machine?” Akiro whispers.
What?! Did he read my thoughts?! Also, traitor! Total traitor! You’re skinny too, aren’t you? You’ve never been inside a gym, like us normal people, right?!
…I’m fine. I don’t know why this kind of thing bothers me.
Oh yeah and uh, Mina and Oscar are there too by the way. Or something.
“Good morning.”
Oscar is getting heavy dumbbells out of a large box.
“Oh, hello, you. I guess you beat us to this one, right?”
“Yeah, well, I’m the investigator and he’s the strong guy… Hey, are you alright?”
“Hmm? Who? Me?”
“Yes.”
“Yeah! I’m surrounded with cute guys, after all.”
…
Mina glances at us. We haven’t really moved yet.
“...Looks like you brought your fanclub indeed.”
“F-fancl-club..?”
“That sounds a little creepy…”
“Y-yeah, I guess…”
“Hm? No, I deserve a fanclub, is all.”
“In that case…”
I shake my head, getting a little closer to Alice to take a quick look at her. Her face isn’t red anymore, it’s pretty hard to tell she just cried… But Mina picked up on it immediately.
The Ultimate Detective doesn’t look like she’s doing too hot. As in… She’s calmer than usual.
Seeing some movement, I glance up and notice that Akiro is walking up to Oscar.
“I, I think I know the name of thi-this machine but I’m not sure and I, I can’t stop thinking about it.”
He points to the… weight machine, I guess? Oh, so he was really wondering about it.
“Uhm… The w- the weight machine, is that it?”
“I think you can call it that.”
Oscar’s eyes followed the direction Akiro pointed to. He delicately puts down the dumbbells, like they’re… nothing…
“It’s multifunction. I think most people see the pec deck function.”
He walks up to the machine, and Akiro follows him. He points to the “arms” of the machine, and then the “legs”.
“Or maybe the leg curl.”
“And it, it has even more f-functions?”
“Are you really interested?”
The Ultimate Writer blushes.
“Ah uh, I was m-mostly fixating on the vocabulary…”
Oscar nods.
It’s hard to know what he’s thinking. He’s truly… expressionless. Still, I assume he’s not too bothered.
“There are a lot. I think maybe you could read a whole book about them.”
Akiro scratches the back of his head.
“Oh… That’s kind of a, a good idea…”
What an adorable exchange…
In the meantime, Mina, Jan and Alice have been snooping around.
“So, Mina, are you ready to get buff?”
“No thanks. I’m perfectly happy with the balance of my body as it is.”
“Hmmm…”
I try to look around a little bit, but there’s so much equipment I don’t recognise… in an actually pretty small room, now that I think about it.
Are the others really interested in using it? I guess I could easily imagine Oscar, or Chris, needing to stay in shape for their professions.
“Are you gonna come here to exercise, Oscar?”
“Maybe. If I have the time.”
“D-don’t you think you can bring some… some of this stuff to your own room? It would be easier t-to access…”
“Ah, that’s a good idea. I think I will do that.”
I have to imagine that he’s satisfied about this suggestion, but… I can’t see, or hear it.
“Be-besides, there’s enough for a lot of people… Right, Jan?”
I didn’t expect him to be brought in the conversation. Jan’s standing not too far away, holding what looks to me like nothing more than a big rubber band.
“Hm, yes. Why did you ask me?”
“Uhm, I just wanted to talk to you.”
“Wow, that’s honest.”
I think Jan’s smile becomes a little sharper.
“Ah, that’s okay any time.”
“That is nice...”
Not even Oscar is immune to Akiro and Jan’s wholesomeness.
“Well, with the two of you looking here already, I don’t think we’re really needed, are we?” Alice announces loudly.
“I would assume that’s the case…”
“S-so you’re saying we’re leaving…”
“Basically! We’ll look at every room, right? Not that we’re as good as Mina, of course…”
The detective shakes her head.
“Please do. Not exploring just because I’m here would be ill-advised.”
“Yeah, I thought so. Okay boys, are you coming?”
“You’re… you’re having fun with this…”
I don’t even feel used. She’s just being fun.
“Well, I am.”
“Damn, best boy identified. Anyway, let’s go! See you, Mina and Oscar!”
“Goodbye.”
…
Alice leaves the room, humming a song.
…Best boy? Me?
Wait, isn’t that the first piece Jan played?
Uh, anyway, the others boys and I follow her out.

“Alright, back to work…”
Without asking this time, Alice walks into the next room. If I’m not mistaken, this one was represented by a bed on the map…
When I get inside… I immediately start to feel uncomfortable.
No one’s inside of this one.
“Huh…”
“This looks like… A hospital?”  
I guess a hospital room would be more accurate. There are multiple beds in a row, surrounded in medical equipment. The room has no window, and is lit by an old yellow light.
“This is more like… a horror game hospital!”
“Yeah… This doesn’t look like any hospital I know…”
Frowning, she touches one of the beds.
“I mean, it’s clean… But what is this room doing inside a school?”
“It is a little too weird…”
I don’t know, it feels weird…
Weirdly accurate… Somehow… But why would I think that? Akiro’s comparison to a horror game is just right.
There’s even a rusty grey locker behind a rudimentary desk. Since I noticed it, I walk up to it and open it.
There’s a box inside. I’m a little uncomfortable still, but I grab it and open it.
…
“It’s full of syringes…”
“Ew!”
I put it back inside the locker, without the lid so the contents stay visible. Alice comes behind me to look.
“Oh, phew. They’re new.”
“Is there, is there anything to use the syringes for..?”
“It doesn’t look like it…”
“Why would you want that?!”
“I don’t, I don’t know, why are there s-syringes in there?!”
“To creep us out, probably!”
“Or m-maybe…”
He marks a pause, looking away.
“Uhm, no, nevermind, forget it.”
“Anyway… There’s a hand-written note here.”
“Ah?”
“But the signature…”
The three of us get closer to look. He grabbed the paper off the desk.
It’s a very beautifully written note. The typography is gorgeous, and easy to read. I almost want to keep staring at it.

I’m too tired. Don’t wake me up. I left something for you to read. I want to see you tomorrow, okay? I’ve been exhausted all day. I’m pissed, but usually after a day like that, I feel a little better, so I’m sure tomorrow will be fine.
See you then,
Emily

A shiver crawls down my spine.
“Uuuh…”
“Why..?”
“…It could be anyone, couldn’t it?”
“What?”
“…“Emily” is a pretty common name. The bears could just be using different women named Emily just to piss us off.”
“Do you really think that’s it..?”
“W-well, even if it were the Emily we know… What would it mean? W-what would it… change..?”
This seems to click with Alice.
“Yeah, you’re right. There’s no indication of who it was addressed to? Anything like that?”
…
“There’s nothing else on the desk.”
“Yeah… Then it’s useless… Pff…”
Shaking her head, Alice quickly goes to another corner of the room to look around.
…
…
…
“Hey, uh… I’m uncomfortable.”
I finally managed to put a thought together, and that was it. I feel nauseous.
I don’t know…
“In that case, maybe we should leave.”
Maybe it’s too much…
“Yeah, honestly, I’m uncomfortable too.”
Benjamin died… Andi died… Keith cries, Alice cries… Caring about other people is so overwhelming…
Someone pushes my arm lightly. I turn and see that it’s Akiro.
“Hey, they-they’re already going…”
“Oh!”
He brings me back down to Earth. I couldn’t feel it, but I was out for long enough that Alice and Jan had started to leave, like they’d announced.
“Right, let’s go!”
Just knowing that we’re leaving this room makes me feel a little better.

“All that’s left’s those classrooms, right?”
It’s an odd feeling. I’m still sad, and I know I’ll stay sad for a long time, but I feel much lighter just being outside this weird room.
“I guess we should be thorough and go through them all…”
“Since there’s four of us, we could just split and look at each one at the same time.”
“…Ah? No, let’s stick together.”
“Hm?”
Alice tilts her head slightly to the right.
“I wasn’t serious anyway, but that’s rare. You saying no to something.”
Jan chuckles nervously.
“Is it really? I don’t realise.”
“Yeah, tha-that’s my job…”
“Right! The perfect balance!”
…I feel left out of that balance, though.
“…Just kidding, I’m very pleasant, obviously…” Akiro vaguely mutters.
“Duh.”
“So, uhm…”
“Yeah, let’s search those rooms, right?”
We walked into them one by one. They were all the same rooms as we’d already seen on the second floor…
…When I walked into the first one, I remembered that sword. I’m sure the bears have removed it since.
…It aches to think about it, but… They probably cleaned up the church as well…
Argh…
Anyway… There was nothing interesting, literally nothing new, up until the last one.
Akiro was the one to find it.
“Aaaaah!”
It made a loud thud.
“Akiro!”
Jan and Alice ran towards him. I followed, just a little late.
“I’m fine, don’t worry!”
“What did you do?”
The blackboard fell over, revealing an entrance the size of a regular door.
“I-I found this…”
He pushes the board out of the way. It looks a little heavy, but he simply slides it across the floor.
“Wow!”
I’m a little shocked. I didn’t expect there to be… an actual secret door in there.
Lois… Or Ben… Would be interested, wouldn’t they?
“We should tell the others about this, shouldn’t we..?”
“We should probably take a look first.”
“Do you think so? Where could this lead..?”
“Only one way to know!”
Alice makes her way through the new entrance. It leads down a pathway to the left… I’m a little too confused to do anything right away. How could we have not seen this from outside the building? Where does it lead, exactly?
“You shouldn’t… Don’t just go on your own, Alice!”
Shaking his head, Jan follows her. Without commenting, Akiro does the same, so I end up closing the march.
We don’t walk for too long before we end up inside a very large room…
“One of these trompes-l’oeil again?”
“Huh…”
She’s probably right. It looks like we’re outside, but… I’m pretty sure that we’re not. The floor is a regular beige tile, but the walls make it look like we’re surrounded in greenery and the very high ceiling looks like a beautiful summer sky.
Most importantly…
“Is that s-some kind of labyrinth..?”
In front of us, there are two different entrances to a labyrinth made from grey walls.

“Woo! Time to go on an adventure!”
“Yaaaay…”
Akiro’s tone is obviously sarcastic. The four of us take a few more steps inside this new… “room”, I guess.
“We’re gonna have to explore this, though, aren’t we?”
“Uhm…”
I don’t even know what to think. This school makes no sense, and it’s frying my brain. A labyrinth? This is way too out of place. I can’t make sense out of it. I don’t even understand where we are.
“I guess… I don’t think there’s actually a risk of us getting lost.”
“Huh? How?”
“Those walls aren’t too incredibly high.”
Jan walks up to one of the walls, rather than the actual entrances to the maze.
“I think we can realistically climb up and find our way out.”
He jumps and grabs the top of the wall, pulling himself up with just his arms. He sits on top of it.
“See?”
…
“Uuuh… I don’t think I can do that, Jan.”
Worst part is, he doesn’t even look proud of himself, or something like that. I don’t think he realises… You know what, the labyrinth isn’t so weird after all. That guy’s the weirdo here. It’s decided.
“Ah…”
He seems to believe Akiro, though. I guess he didn’t think it through at first.
…I try my best not to facepalm. I just realised… Jan’s fit, but he’s not that strong. Thinking about how much strength Chris and Oscar must have in their arms, I feel like I’m gonna faint. Yeah, it’s that bad! Dammit!
“Well, do you want to check if I can do it while carrying you?”
… … …
“…Yes and no?”
“Can we check with me?”
“How about you two do that later? You’re just wasting my time.”
Despite telling them to stop, Alice giggles.
“This means that if they really must, escaping through there is attainable to Akiro and Neo. And we already know I can do it.”
“Oh, so everybody knows this includes me as well, huh.”
“I wasn’t… I wasn’t gonna t-take that hit alone.”
From the side of my field of view, I can see Jan jump down the wall and land smoothly.
“You two are even the same height, aren’t you?”
“Oh uh, I guess that’s true.”
I take a look at Akiro. I think we’re the exact same height.
…He looks uncomfortable. Just because I looked at him?
“I’m taller.”
The pianist made his way towards us. He looks in a pretty good mood, at least as good as it gets in our situation.
“You’re the same height.”
He gets right next to Akiro and places his hand above both of their heads in turn.
“I’m taller.”
“You’re 1cm taller.”
“That’s taller.”
Alice lets out a loud sigh.
“That’s not gonna play a role in whether or not the two of them can reach the top of the wall.”
“W-well, what about you? Can you do it?”
…Akiro pushes Jan’s hand away from his head.
“Uhm!”
“Uh oh.”
She places her hands on her hips.
“I should have nothing to prove to the likes of a measly writer...”
“Uh-huh…”
Akiro chuckles. I don’t know if he actually meant to make fun of her or not, but she’s annoyed for sure – not in a really dramatic way, obviously.
After all, Alice is smaller than us, but that makes sense… I wouldn’t say she’s small for a woman…
Either way, she walks up to the same wall Jan climbed a couple minutes before, and jumps. She almost reaches the top in one jump, and just has to kick the wall once to sit herself on top.
“Waaaaw.”
Jan says it in an exaggerated tone, but I don’t think he’s being fully sarcastic. I thought the exact same thing at the same time.
“D-damn.”
“Little bastard. Going out of his way to doubt me.”
She shakes her head, putting on a pout.
I chuckle, but… What are we doing, right now? The three of them make me want to ignore everything else, bicker and have fun… but I can’t help but remember that we’re supposed to be doing something.
“Anyway… Are we going to explore this maze?”
“Oh, yeah.”
She jumps down as swiftly as Jan did just before her.
“Since it doesn’t look too dangerous, it’s probably worth it, right?”
“Sure.”
I don’t think I really need to say anything. I’m ready to explore with them… … explore the school with them anyway. Akiro doesn’t say anything either, and I assume it’s because he’s fine with it too.
“I really think we should split this time, though.”
She walks closer to the two entrances.
“It looks really big. We could make two teams… and join each other later if we really need to.”
“I guess that’s fine…”
Oh, so Jan agrees this time around. I guess I shouldn’t stay too passive myself.
“It makes sense, yeah.”
There’s no reason to waste our time going all together.
“Okay then!”
She turns to us again.
“What are the teams?”
…

And that’s when I regret agreeing.
Right then, I realise my biggest mistake so far. It immediately fills me with dread.
Seconds pass slower than ever before. I’m in the worst position someone could possibly be in. It kicked in just as soon as Alice asked that dreaded question.
I don’t remember ever being in that position before, but I can feel it like it’s familiar.
It’s that feeling when you’re one of the two last people to get picked by a team in P.E.
The other kids are evaluating who’s the worst choice.
Either way, I’m coming in-between them. Who will sacrifice themselves and have me in their team? Akiro? Alice? Jan? This is the worst. I like all three of them, really. It only makes it sadder. One of them is going to have to sigh and say “okay, I’ll go with Neo…” and the others will look sad to be separated from their good friend. They’ll still have a nice time, while the third person and I will walk next to each other, both grimacing…

“I’ll go with Neo, you can go with Akiro.”
Wait, what?
My thoughts spiralled extremely fast—Jan took his decision in only a few seconds.
“Huh? W-wait, why?”
Yeah, why?
I look at Jan, and I feel a little awkward, because I start blushing. I’m very flattered… but I don’t even know why he said that.
“What do you mean “why”? Don’t you want to come with me?”
“N-no, that’s not it… It’s just that, uh…”
…Somehow, Akiro looks even more confused than I am. Which confuses me even more.
“What? I don’t think I’ve had the chance to hang out with Neo yet. I was looking forward to it…”
“Ah…”
“H-huh?”
“You can look after Alice, right? She can be nice, you just have to be patient with her…”
“Motherfucker!”
“Hmm…”
I think Akiro tries to come up with a joke, but he doesn’t manage, and ends up saying nothing. I look at Jan instead.
“That’s fine with you, right?”
“Oh yes, of course!”
I’m actually very happy… and relieved… that he actually wanted to go with me. I didn’t expect it at all.
“We’ll see who ends up looking after the other…”
She sticks her tongue out, and Akiro puts on a pout once more.
“Yeah, r-right…”
“So it’s settled, then?”
“Yessir!”
Alice quickly changes her attitude and grabs Akiro by the hand.
“Let’s go!”
She leads him to the right entrance.
“O-okay…”
We watch them walk inside the labyrinth…
“Let’s go too.”
After a few seconds, Jan glances at me before pointing at the other entrance with his chin. I nod, and we both go in.

We can hear Akiro and Alice chatting at first, but we eventually go far enough that even I can’t hear them at all anymore. If I didn’t make it clear already, this maze is ridiculously large.
I was paying attention to the two others at first, but I guess it’s just me and Jan, now. We’re walking pretty fast, surrounded in endless sets of the exact same grey walls.
“Why’d you want to go with me, Jan?”
His name is pretty fun to say. “Jan”. Jan, Jan, Jan. You kinda want to repeat it multiple times. Somehow, I can exactly picture him when I hear it.
“It’s just what I said. I don’t think we ever hung out together before. I mean, without Alice or Akiro.”
“That’s… possible, yes.”
They’re always together. Even in the very beginning… Alice and Jan were already together. It’s rare to see one of them on their own. I washed the dishes with Akiro once… that’s when I realised just how shy he actually is. He could barely talk. Seeing him have fun with his friends, even though he’s still obviously shy to an extent, I tend to forget how bad it is.
“Besides… I wanted the two of them to hang out together as well.”
“Huh? Why?”
Still walking, he tilts his head slightly to the right.
“…I just think it’s healthy, don’t you think? I’ve heard of friendships of three being sorta infamous. I think it’s important to see that you’re still friends, even when it’s not all of you… Something like that.”
“But why did you choose to separate yourself specifically?”
“I’ve already been alone with Alice, and alone with Akiro.”
“Oh… so now it’s their turn.”
“Exactly.”
“So that’s what this was about…”
We’re walking through the maze, picking our way at random. It doesn’t feel too difficult, or stressful… When we go the wrong way, we simply end up facing a dead end, and all we have to do is walk back and remember which way we were going. Neither of us even mentions it.
“Hm? What I said is still true, though.”
He passes his hand through his hair, carefully placing some strands over one another.
“To be fully honest... There’s something I need to talk to you about.”
“Huh?”
He glances at me, and starts walking a little slower, to match exactly with me.
Something… What? That’s too sudden. It doesn’t register immediately.
“There’s a question I’d like to ask you… If that’s okay with you, of course.”
“Oh? Uh, yeah, anything you want!”
He looked at me again, so I reacted without taking the time to think. I wasn’t lying when I said that there’s something weird about him. He’s like the friendliest person on Earth, and yet something makes him intimidating. I can’t put my finger on what it is. Is he just too perfect? Is that even possible? Maybe it’s just his pretty boy privilege.
He marks a pause. I probably looked flustered, and confused him.
“I’m a little embarrassed, because it’s a silly… or weird question by itself.”
He looks in front of him again.
“That’s okay…”
I’d rather he gets on with it right away. He nods.
“I’ve asked it to everyone but you. You’re the last person…  So better carry it through to the end now, right? Just to see how it goes…”
“Ah?”
Everyone? Who does he mean exactly? Everyone… Who was ever with us? Or is this something new?
“It’ll sound dumb, but just answer sincerely, please.”
He turns his head to me again.
“Are you behind this Killing Game? In other words… are you the mastermind?”
…
… … …
“No.”
“I see.”
He looks in front of him once more, but I keep looking at him. This took me by surprise.
“Thanks.”
“I’m guessing… everyone else said the same thing.”
He nods.
“Of course.”
“So... What then?”
“Hmm…”
He shrugs, and smiles at me.
“At least that’s out of the way. Time to find a step two.”
I look at him a little while longer, considering it.
“At least… I guess this could have put pressure on the real mastermind. To be asked this kind of question…”
“Maybe. Assuming that they’re one of us…”
“Hm.”
I shiver. Last I thought of the mastermind…
I thought Benjamin had died to lead me to them.
I didn’t voice it fully in my head, but that’s the belief I put on his death.
That’s probably why I assumed the mastermind was to be found during the trial. I couldn’t have guessed… That he was actually behind his own murder.
Once that was made clear… He hadn’t died at the hands of someone who feared him anymore.
At least not in that sense…
I don’t want to think about it anymore.
“Well, if you have other questions to ask me, don’t hesitate.”
“Ah, great. Thanks.”
A dead end. We walk back. We’ve been walking for a little while, now.
“What would you have done anyway? If someone had replied “yes”?”
He chuckles.
“I would have told them to stop messing with me. That it wasn’t funny.”
“I see…”
I don’t fully understand his motivations, but somehow, I trust that there’s something at the back of his mind.
I think back to his weird idea of swallowing a key. I was too focused on the act itself to really think about the whole thing, but he explained his complex idea and… if I understood it well, the gist of it was that if we knew about it, and we knew that the others knew about it, then we could use it somehow. I guess he was actually thinking about the possibility that someone would use a knife to kill again… and wanted to eliminate the possibility of using the kitchen somehow.
I think I get it, but at the same time, I don’t. It might be the same with him asking this question to everybody.
When I think about it, if he’d really trusted the reply everyone gave, he wouldn’t have had to ask the last person. He would have assumed I was the mastermind by process of elimination. Obviously, that wasn’t what he was going for.
“Hey, look.”
He must have noticed that I was lost in thought. He urges me to look forward, and I do, noticing something new at the end of the corridor… Or maybe the end of the maze, even.
“Wow, finally!”
I can’t pretend that being stuck within the same grey walls over and over again, not being able to hear Alice and Akiro, wasn’t overwhelming.
We walk a little faster, and quickly reach a sign, above a box… of soil?
The sign says:

“CONGRATULATIONS! ARE YOU THE ULTIMATE LUCKY STUDENT OR SOMETHING? YOU PICKED THE RIGHT WAY! UNLESS THIS IS YOUR SECOND RUN, IN WHICH CASE YOU SUCK. ANYWAY, DIG FOR TREASURE.”

Underneath the text is a very ugly drawing of Monokuma. Not that he ever looks any good.
“The Ultimate Lucky Student?” Now where did I hear this before..?
“What sort of surprise?”
“I guess there’s no way to know…”
… I half expected Monokuma to show up behind us, but he didn’t.
“There’s one way, I guess…”
We both kneel on either side of the “box”. I don’t think it’s really a box… Just some soil surrounded in a small fence.
“Yeah.”
I inhale deeply… and then sigh. Okay… I was letting the grey of the walls around us influence my thoughts, but having something new to do again, I immediately feel lighter.
“Just gotta dig, right? I guess there are no tools here…”
“Yeah…”
I take a look around, but there’s literally nothing but the sign and soil.
Jan reaches for the soil, but as soon as his hand touches it, he jerks it away.
“Uuuh…”
“Is there something wrong with it?”
I look at him—he looks plain uncomfortable. He glances at his hand, then the soil, then me.
“No, no, it’s just… It doesn’t feel very good, I guess?”
“What?”
Curious, I put my hand on it, but… it’s just fine. It’s slightly moist, which makes it a little fresh to the touch.
“Yeah… sorry.”
He looks a little bummed. I’m confused, but I shake my head right away.
“Hey, it’s okay if you’re not comfortable doing it. I can dig just fine.”
Maybe he’s just someone who doesn’t like getting his hands dirty. That kind of person who doesn’t prefer eating with their fingers. It being a little moist makes some of it stick to the hands, so maybe that’s it.
“Thanks. If it’s too much work, I can suck it up, though.”
Maybe that’s it. A pianist should care about their hands after all, shouldn’t they? Well, it literally doesn’t matter.
“Don’t worry about it!”
I’m glad to be able to make myself useful. Without thinking about it, I pull back my sleeves and start digging with my fingers.
I push the soil towards me, digging right at the centre. I figure if something was buried in this small area, that must be where, right?
“What do you think it’s going to be..? If Monokuma buried it…”
I don’t really trust it, but I don’t want to ignore it.
“… Either way, we’ll be surprised, won’t we?”
I guess that’s true.
I end up having to dig pretty deep, before I touch what feels like a box.
“Ah!”
I dig even faster than I did before and manage to take it out. It’s a pink box with darker stripes and, inside the larger, lighter stripes, yellow stars with light blue borders. It’s oddly… festive.
“Finally!”
I slap my hands together, a little to the side, to remove some of the soil. All of it comes off easily. I guess we… or I made the wrong assumption about it staying on my fingers.
“Hey, Neo…”
Jan hesitates. He looks cautious.
I actually appreciate that he is. On my own, I might just get too excited about new discoveries and go in without being careful.
“We should open it, right?”
“Yes…”
I definitely want to, now that I went through all that effort to find it…
… Honestly…
“Honestly, even if it’s something bad, I’d rather have it over with right away.”
This looks to reassure him. He nods… Before flashing his signature smile again.
…When it’s just the two of us? I mean, it’s distracting…
“If we always expect the worst out of this dumb bear, then he can’t surprise us.”
Ahem. I nod. Yeah, I definitely get what he means.
Let’s get to it, then… I place my hands on either side of the box. It opens easily, revealing…
…Me?
“Uhm.”
…Me and Jan.
I sigh.
There’s a mirror at the bottom of the box.
“Hey, at least you found something better than we expected in there.”
“Thanks… … …”
I guess no amount of self-loathing could match what I imagined could be in a box left by Monokuma.
“Aw, isn’t that nice?”
“Aaaaah!”
I jump.
“Ugh!”
Of course he’d show up now!
I glance at Jan, who stares at the bear with a wary look. Then I look at him…
“You guys just can’t stop snooping around, can ya? Honestly, whaddaya think you’ll find? An exit? Do you think I’m dumb like that?”
“What do you want?”
“Hm? Oh, right, I forgot.”
Monokuma yawns, and pretends to stretch, before speaking up again in a lazier voice.
“I was just here to congratulate you bastards…”
“Congratulate?! Why?!”
“You know. For finding the treasure and all.”
“That treasure?!”
He yawns again.
“Aaaahh… Don’t you get it? The treasure was yourselves all along. You are the treasure.”
…
… … …
“I’m gonna kick his ass.”
“You can’t…”
Jan sounds tempted nonetheless.
“Of course you can’t!”
The bear forgets to act lazy.
“At least Mr. Lyons here has some self-control! Right, Jan? Jan Lyons, pro of self-control?”
He doesn’t answer.
“Himself! In action!”
“Shut up, damn it!”
“What? Who? Me? Shut up? Why?”
“Because..!”
“Well, do you have anything else to say?”
“Ah, you’re right, I don’t. Sorry to bother ya!”
… And he runs off.
“Seriously?”
Jan stands up.
“Let’s find the other-”
“HEEEEEEEEEEEYYYY!”
“Wow!”
An extremely loud scream echoes through the entire room.
“GUUUUUYS! WE’RE OUT! MEET US IN THE ENTRANCE, OKAAAY?”
I only realise afterwards that I covered my ears.
“…That was a little loud, wasn’t it?”
Jan smiles a sorry smile.
“Y-yeah…”
“You said you have pretty sensitive ears, don’t you? She probably thought we were farther away than we actually are.”
… He does seem to be doing a little better than I am. Her voice echoed through my ears pretty badly, but it must have been fine for him. He might not even have found it that loud, and he’s just being considerate.
“It’s fine though, it happens…”
I smile at him back. Hey, he deserves it…
“Just let me answer her.”
He nods, and I put my hands around my mouth.
“WE’RE COMING!”
I tried to regulate my voice the perfect way, so that she can hear me just fine from the distance I assume she must be.
“It sounds like they’re both alright.”
I turn to him again.
“Were you worried?”
He scratches his neck.
“Not about the maze… I’m just not comfortable with the idea that Monokuma can show up while they’re on their own.”
I can’t help but sigh.
“He really makes everything worse…”
I turn around to look at the maze again. We’ve been facing a dead end…
“I guess we shouldn’t waste any time, then…”
“Hm-hm… Uh, is it okay if I take a look around here first?”
“Huh? Uh, yeah, sure, if you want?”
It surprises me, since it sounded like he was eager to meet up with Alice and Akiro again, but he heads towards the dead end. He feels the wall and stops in the corner.
“Phew… There’s actually a way out here.”
“What, really?”
I get closer, and Jan pushes what looks like a small grey brick, revealing a door handle.
“Wow, how did you know?”
“I didn’t know, I just hoped.”
Really..?
He pushes the handle and half of the wall moves like a very heavy door. The both of us immediately take a step through it, and find ourselves in a long hallway passing directly next to the labyrinth.
“Oh, at least that’s good!”
This won’t take us long to traverse. Only now do I realise I hadn’t been looking forward to walking all the way back again…
I immediately start walking, and quickly hear the steps of Jan following me. Just like I’d guessed, it only takes us a little more than a minute to walk all the way through it, when walking through the maze had taken us much, much longer…

There’s a door at the end of it. I can even hear Alice and Akiro chatting from behind it!
“So, what’s the word for “useless”?”
“Uh… In the way y-you mean it… I’d say “muda”.”
“But you can say it in even more languages, right?”
I reach for the handle, but surprisingly, Jan stops me.
He presses my arm delicately.
“Huh?”
He slides his hand a little lower, hovering his finger over my forearm.
“Oh!”
I’m surprised, but remember to whisper. After all, I already realised that I can hear them.
Flustered, I put my sleeves back in their normal position.
“Thank you…”
“I figured…”
He whispers too, and shows me an understanding smile.
“Don’t you think that it wouldn’t have been okay, though.”
I nod.
“Thanks… I just prefer it that way.”
I’m glad he was careful. I’m always a complete idiot.
I don’t want him to worry about it any more, so I push the handle and finally walk out.

“Aaahh, finally!”
Alice and Akiro turn to look at us as soon as we walk out.
“W- There was a door there?”
I look behind me, wondering what he means. …As it turns out, the door was completely hidden. There’s no handle on this side, and seeing it close on its own behind me, I see that it merges perfectly with the rest of the wall.
How does it work so well? Is this also part of the trompe-l’oeil? I consider taking a closer look, but I’m distracted by Alice walking up to the two of us.
“This is my first time going so long without seeing Jan. And being awake, I mean. I’m sad, now…”
She doesn’t look sad, though…
“I missed you too…”
Jan smiles calmly. He’s probably relieved to be reunited with his friends.
“Alice and I are best friends now. We decided we don’t want you in our team anymore!”
Akiro looks a little less stressed-out than he was before we got inside the maze. He places his hand next to his cheek, like he’s speaking very loud, but he really isn’t.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I guess I neglected to tell you that.”
She chuckles.
I look at Jan, curious how he’ll react. He simply continues to smile.
“Damn. And I was even going to bake your favourite dessert today.”
“What!”
Alice gets even closer and grabs him by the wrists.
“What what what! What’s my favourite dessert? You don’t even know!”
“I was going to ask you, but… I guess since we aren’t friends anymore…”
“Pff!”
She spins around, crossing her arms.
“Mama warned me about guys like you.”
“Can we… Can we have mine instead?”
“Hm? I thought you weren’t my friend anymore either.”
“MY mom didn’t warn me about guys like you, so I’m changing my mind.”
I end up laughing a little louder than I expected. I notice Alice glancing at me.
“You’re making fun of us, huh?”
How does she stay in such a good mood? Especially when she accidentally ended up revealing that she had things to worry about, just before this…
“No… I’m jealous.”
“Jealous?”
I chuckle nervously. It’s not always easy to be honest, is it?
“Yeah, I… I think you guys are really strong.”
“What? Ev-even me?”
Akiro got closer. His smile is a little shier, because of course.
“Pff, yeah.”
I nod and try to put my thoughts together. Akiro… Of course, I can observe that he’s shy, easily flustered, that he stutters as many times as I talk to him, but it’s also very clear, though I don’t know how, that there’s more to him than that. I guess one thing I can’t ignore is that he’s a very passionate person… I think, right?
“Just because you’re more discrete doesn’t mean I don’t see it.”
“Oh.”
This looks to actually surprise him. I hope I didn’t say something too awkward…
“Akiro’s the strongest here.”
Jan’s the one to take a turn to speak, with a very calm tone.
“Second strongest.”
“Second to whom?”
“To me. Duh.”
“Oh, sorry…”
He chuckles as well.
“I gu-guess I have no choice but to vote Jan… Or actually, y-you know what? Neo. I vote Neo. He… He gets the “strongest” crown. Here.”
“Hey, don’t use me like that…”
He blushes.
“It’s a compliment, though...”
“Yeah! Before Akiro panics and runs away… Basically, we’re all being super strong.”
She nods to herself.
“I mean it! Look at us, surviving, continuing to believe in what we do. I think every single one of us here is being strong.”
I inhale—
But I don’t know what to say.
“Y-yes. I totally agree.”
Alice smiles, holding her fists up.
“Everyone, in our own way! See, I’ll hold strong by making Jan keep his word and make my favourite dessert.”
“You go, girl.”
I laugh again.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
We stay silent for a few seconds, before Alice decides to change the subject.
“Okay, let’s stop wasting time like that! Did you guys find anything? We just found a sign that said “you lost”. Akiro even said “I lost” out loud, that’s how bad we lost.”
I don’t know why, but I’m feeling compelled to say “I lost” too…
“Th-then we walked all the way back.”
She nods.
“Then we walked all the way back.”
“That was probably alright for you…”
I’m looking at Alice. Because… you know… walking…
She shakes her head.
“Sure, I can walk all the way to the moon and back. But just because I could walk through this piece of crap maze doesn’t mean it wasn’t boring.”
“Boring, huh…”
“The scenery!”
She gets closer to Akiro and hugs him, still looking at Jan and myself.
“I made up for it by bullying Akiro!”
“Y-you didn’t even bully me. Liar.”
“Okay, that’s true… I’ll admit it, you’re interesting enough on your own.”
Smiling, she lets go of him.
“…Th-thanks, I guess.”
“So… We didn’t really find anything either.”
…Oh yeah, that’s right. I don’t know why I was still under the impression that we did, but we didn’t.
“There was a box, but it was bait. There was a mirror at the bottom of it, Monokuma made a bad joke about it, and left… That’s all.”
“M-Monokuma showed up?”
“You guys didn’t see him?”
He shakes his head.
“That’s reassuring at least…”
“I feel like there are no words to describe just how insufferable this bear is.”
“Damn… Damn right…”
“Well, if there’s nothing here… It’s about time we leave this room, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
…And that we did.

We went back through the small pathway and ended up in the classroom again, which we left without a word to go back inside the new floor’s main hall.
Now that I think about it, I would have expected to run into Mina again, but she isn’t here right now.
“We should probably head to the kitchen now…”
“Oh, yeah. We’re done here, aren’t we?”
“I, I think so.”
Alice turns to me.
“It’s time for the legendary coo- I mean pianist to work on giving us a little treat… You sticking with us?”
““Cool guy”, I bet.”
“Pff!”
“Hmm…”
I take a few seconds to think about it.
I’ll probably feel more comfortable if I stay with these guys all day… But I feel like going back to the dorm, for a short time at least.
Yeah… No harm in that, right?
“Sorry, I think I’ll go back to my room for a bit, but I’ll be there to eat with you guys!”
“Fine by me! Just don’t get lost, okay?”
“S-sure?”
“D-don’t waste too much time on your way there…”
…Yeah, I get it. I nod.
“Yeah… Anyway…”
I take a step forward to go off on my own, but I suddenly remember something random.
“Oh, uh, by the way.”
I guess it doesn’t hurt to ask someone.
“Would you guys happen to know if there are any razors lying around?”
“Razors?”
Jan reacts quicker than I would have expected him to.
“Why?”
“Uhm…”
…Oh, oops. I realise how dumb it was of me to ask that right now.
Why do I always speak before I think? Actually, my thinking might just be no good at all.
“I might just need to shave soon.”
I lift my chin slightly to point at the slight stubble I’ve been growing. It sure is no urgent matter, but I’d still like to eventually take care of it…
“Huh…”
“Do you know? Do you shave sometimes?”
He pats his chin with his index finger.
“Yes, I have to.”
“Really? How often?”
He hesitates before answering.
“Everyday…”
“Whaaaat? Really?”
“Huh…”
With his always clean-shaven face, I didn’t expect that Jan could grow a beard at all.
“Do you seriously have to do it every day, though? You could just let it grow, right?”
He shrugs, and finds his usual smile again.
“In a few years, maybe.”
Alice looks at Akiro.
“What about you?”
“D-do you want to take a guess?”
“Hmm…”
She pretends to ponder on it.
“No beard for you, huh?”
“Don’t s-say it like it’s some sort of punishment, I d- I don’t want one.”
“Anyway…”
“I’m sure you could rock a beard, Neo.”
“Maybe in a few years!”
And not for the same reason as him!
“What’s your deal? Did you lock all the razors up in another big black box or something?”
“Should I?”
“I’d like to see you try pulling that stunt again.”
…That’s worryingly threatening.
“…Damn.”
“Well, that’s a bad idea…”
I try to get Jan’s attention again.
“Shaving this is the only reason I need one, I swear. I can even show you later…”
“Ah. No, don’t worry about it.”
He looks convinced, for some reason. I mean, I’m saying the truth…
“Again… What’s the deal anyway?”
“Eh, it’s nothing. Who said there was a big deal? You’re making it a big deal.”
Since he’s smiling, I’m guessing he doesn’t mind this.
“Hmm…”
“On the shelf at the right of the door, in the storage room, you’ll find some bathroom accessories, tools etc. It should be intact…”
“Okay, thanks!”
I force myself to smile.
“I’ll see you in a bit, then!”
I feel uncomfortable having started this awkward conversation, so I’m glad to be able to turn around and leave.
Since I went out of my way to bother Jan with this, I make sure to take a detour to the storage room…
…It’s intact. The entire room, I mean. It looks like it was cleaned up…
It was fine anyway, I tell myself. I quickly find the razors and, taking a couple with me, I walk to the dorms.

Walking into my room, I let out a looooong sigh.
It was super messy of me to make Jan worry like this. I feel like even more of an idiot than when one of the girls here talks to me.
I go to the bathroom to place the razors I just grabbed next to the sink.
I can’t help but catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror…
Yeah, that’s me. That sure is me, standing in front of this mirror…
And as for this…
I pull back my sleeves.

Spoiler:

This is also part of me.
…

I feel compelled to go check on her.
Being careful to put my sleeves back this time, I leave the bathroom and climb up my bed to grab the trap door inside my room.
I couldn’t really have knocked, could I have..? I still don’t even know if she could hear me.
It’s not very easy to climb up there, but I do it anyway.
She’s sitting against one of the walls, in the dark. Once again, the only light is coming from the trap door I opened.
“Hi, Neo.”
“Hey…”
I ended up leaving, last night, when she insisted that I could. I told her that I wouldn’t leave her alone in there. That not only I’d check on her every now and again, but I’d also search for a solution to allow her to stop guarding this passage…
It’s just that nothing is coming to my mind.
“What brings you here?”
“I was, uhm… I just came back to chill in my room when I thought about you.”
“On your own?”
“Uh, yeah.”
I make my way towards her, to sit next to her.
“What about Ciel? Wouldn’t you usually hang out with him?”
“Uuh, they’re taking a break today. I hung out with Jan, Alice and Akiro…”
“Oh. Then why aren’t with them?”
“I don’t know, maybe I didn’t want to intrude all the time?”
I don’t know why this was my answer. I shrug.
“I’ll eat lunch with them anyway.”
“Okay.”
I can’t really tell if she’s completely disinterested, or just in a bad mood.
…Wait, now that I think about it…
“What about you? Didn’t you eat anything since yesterday?”
She shakes her head. It’s dark, but I can still see it.
“Aaahh…”
Damn, that’s super not okay. On so many levels. Now that Ben’s gone… Okay, whatever, I’ll help her!
“It’s, it’s okay, I’ll ask Jan to give me something for you and I’ll bring it to you as soon as we’re done!”
But she shakes her head again.
“What..?”
“Jan’s not an idiot. He won’t agree to that risk again.”
“Ah...”
I reacted first, and am thinking second. What she’s saying is… Right, I remember now. Actually, I should have thought about it immediately. This method was used to drug Lois.
…I hope I didn’t hurt her by suggesting this. Ugh…
“It’s okay. I can be hungry. I’m the one who decided to take that role, so…”
“W-w-wait, being hungry is one thing, but you’re gonna need to eat something eventually!”
She drives me all over the place!
“You need to have some food somehow… I’ll…”
What am I gonna do? I could make something myself, but people are even more likely to think I’m trying to poison her then… What can I do?
… Suddenly, I know.
“Oh, it’s easy, actually.”
“Hm?”
“We can just go in turns, can’t we? I’ll keep guard and you’ll eat. When you’re done, I’ll go grab something.”
I think she turns to me, but I doubt she can see me.
“In that case, you could still go first, and leave something for me.”
“Well, I was just thinking… Since I usually eat with everyone, they’ll remember to keep something for me, right? If it’s you, maybe it’ll be a little more complicated to explain.”
“If you say so.”
…Is that a deal, then?
She leans forward. I think she might be resting her head on her knees.
I wait for an actual answer. For a little while…
“Promise you’ll stay here the whole time, though.”