The Unsettling Truth and the Search for an Accomplice

“Is Suzuki Minoru the true culprit?”

Four large display screens, positioned coldly according to the cardinal directions—north above, south below, west left, east right—stood sentinel in our midst. Each one blared the question in a stark, blood-red hue, as if gushing from a severed artery.

Monokuma: “Do you see the two buttons before you? Blue represents ‘agree,’ red represents ‘disagree’! Now, choose your side and let the splendid performance begin!”

‘To correct this misleading direction, I must now defend Suzuki Minoru!’

Agree: Akahira Yuusuke, Ishii Yoshimi, Katagiri Mimi, Akino Atsushi, Amagasa Gen, Takahashi Aki, Kitajima Kazumitsu, Habara Kazuhiro, Amemiya Wakaba, Arisumi Momoko

Disagree: Kamimura Anko, Takagi Masahiko, Suzuki Minoru, Osakabe Nanase, Chisaka Erin

Immediately, exhilarating tech house electronic music blared from above, reminding me of the days I used to hide in my room, headphones on, dancing alone…

The platform beneath our feet began to ascend slowly, carrying everyone spiraling upwards like a helical ascent. The four individuals on my side aligned themselves with me, forming a straight line, separated from the opposing team by a mere thread of space.

Arisumi Momoko: “Suzuki Minoru already admitted to being the true culprit, didn’t he?”

Chisaka Erin: “Someone who admits to being the true culprit isn’t necessarily the true culprit.”

Amagasa Gen: “Last night, everyone only saw Suzuki Minoru and me go to the first-floor lobby. Chisaka, you know I returned earlier than Suzuki Minoru, don’t you?”

Osakabe Nanase: “B-but… Amagasa can’t prove that someone else went to the first-floor lobby after Suzuki Minoru returned to his room!”

Takahashi Aki: “Conversely, Osakabe can’t prove that someone went to the first-floor lobby after Suzuki Minoru returned to his room, can she?”

Takagi Masahiko: “Even so! Suzuki Minoru couldn’t possibly have simultaneously used kite string to ensnare both the Monokuma flagpole and Furuhata Jun!”

Amemiya Wakaba: “Hmph! Why not?! This lady believes Suzuki Minoru threatened someone who hadn’t gotten on the elevator yet to help him set it up!”

Takagi Masahiko: “What evidence do you have to believe that? Did you see anyone go to the first-floor lobby?”

Kitajima Kazumitsu: “Indeed, we have no evidence to prove this. It’s also possible Suzuki Minoru had tampered with the Monokuma flagpole much earlier?!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Unfortunately! I didn’t go near the elevator last night! While no one can corroborate my words, the five people who gathered in the first-floor lobby this morning didn’t find me tampering with the Monokuma flagpole, did they?”

Ishii Yoshimi: “Your word alone isn’t enough to convince us!”

Akino Atsushi: “Exactly! Someone must have seen you stealthily throwing something at the Monokuma flagpole!”

Katagiri Mimi: “Yuusuke, you were inside then, weren’t you! Did you notice anything suspicious?!”

Habara Kazuhiro: “Yes, Yuusuke! Try to remember the scene clearly!”

Akahira Yuusuke: “When we entered the elevator, I was in front… I didn’t really pay attention to that Monokuma flagpole… But still! The one who pulled Furuhata Jun inside the elevator must have been Suzuki Minoru! Then he would have placed the trap over his head!”

Kamimura Anko: “Yuusuke, you’re letting your emotions get the better of you! Recall the situation carefully: Suzuki Minoru was simultaneously pushed into a corner by someone at that moment! There was a distance between them, and the surroundings were pitch black. Can you tell me how Suzuki Minoru could have overcome these two limitations to complete the final step of the murder? Is this merely your one-sided account?!”

‘Their momentum was a flickering candle in the wind! It was time to rebut this flawed argument!’

Kamimura Anko: “Argument rebutted!”

Takagi Masahiko: “Argument rebutted!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Argument rebutted~”

Osakabe Nanase: “Argument rebutted…!”

Chisaka Erin: “Argument rebutted!”

Everyone on the platform returned to their original positions, their earlier fervor scattered as if by a Siberian blizzard.

Akahira Yuusuke: “W-was I wrong…?” he muttered, head bowed in dejection.

Takahashi Aki: “That’s right, all of our arguments were rebutted…”

Ishii Yoshimi: “Could it be… that the ones who aren’t thinking clearly… are… us?”

Kitajima Kazumitsu: “At this point… we can only trust Kamimura’s judgment…”

Suzuki Minoru: “Huh… why is everyone so gloomy now~ Weren’t you all relentlessly pointing at me as the culprit just a moment ago? Weren’t you all so assertive then? What’s going on? What’s going on, what’s going on, what’s going on, what’s going on, what’s going on, what’s going on?”

For some unknown reason, the atmosphere became incredibly oppressive, and the air temperature plummeted to an extreme.

Suzuki Minoru: “I am not… the culprit.” He lifted his head proudly, gazing down at us, exuding an unshakeable aura of deterrence, like Jupiter, King of the Gods.

Suzuki Minoru: “Hahahahahahaha!!!! I’m not the culprit!!!!!” He shrieked hysterically, a terrifying, twisted grin spreading across his face, his eyes bulging dramatically, revealing even the crimson veins within them. His arms were spread wide, forearms rigid and lifeless like withered branches, held before him…

Takagi Masahiko: “Suzuki Minoru, what… what’s wrong with you…?”

Kamimura Anko: “…”

Kamimura Anko: “Let’s ignore him for now and return to the previous topic.”

Ishii Yoshimi: “If Suzuki Minoru isn’t the culprit… then who is it?”

Suzuki Minoru: “Right! Let me get straight to the point! Why don’t we all consider who the accomplice might be first? Once we find the accomplice, we can interrogate them, break through their defenses, and force them to reveal the true culprit!”

Ishii Yoshimi: “C-could there really… be… an accomplice…?” Her face gradually distorted and twisted.

Chisaka Erin: “But helping the true culprit offers no benefit whatsoever… it might even jeopardize your own life.”

Suzuki Minoru: “What if the accomplice knew absolutely nothing about it? Or perhaps… the accomplice, just like the true culprit, harbored such hatred and animosity towards Furuhata Jun that they were willing to pay any price, even their own life, to kill him?” Suzuki Minoru’s expression had remained unchanged since his earlier emotional outburst…

Katagiri Mimi: “That’s impossible?! We’ve only known each other for less than two days as classmates?! How could someone immediately hate a new classmate so intensely upon meeting them!!”

Akino Atsushi: “He must be utterly deranged to even consider helping the true culprit commit murder, right?!”

Kamimura Anko: “That’s not it!!”

‘Deranged? I thought, such a ridiculous reason had an extremely low probability…’

Kamimura Anko: “Doesn’t everyone remember? The day before Furuhata Jun’s death, Monokuma sent everyone a [motive] video!”

Kitajima Kazumitsu: “That’s right… just hearing Kamimura mention it gives me a splitting headache. After watching it, I couldn’t help but complain that it was truly a sh**ty, utterly dreadful video!”

Suzuki Minoru: “If that’s the case, then I can deduce that someone absolutely sneaked into the first-floor lobby this morning to place the trap on the Monokuma flagpole!”

Akahira Yuusuke: “You mean this morning?! So no one tampered with the flagpole last night?!!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Are you genuinely stupid or just pretending? Given that I’m not the culprit anymore, do you still think I’m the one who tampered with it?”

Akahira Yuusuke: “…Then who… went to the first-floor lobby… this morning…?”

Suzuki Minoru: “Hahahahahahaha!!!! Now everyone here is a suspect for being an accomplice!!”

‘Suzuki Minoru, you… you’re definitely the troublemaker (TL Note: Literally ‘shit-stirrer,’ implying someone who causes trouble or chaos.) in this class trial!!’