The Hamster’s Fate and a Darker Truth

“Dong, dong… dong, dong.”

“Good morning, everyone! It’s seven o’clock, time to rise and shine!”

“Now, give it your all today, too!”

The familiar wake-up chime rang out, its monotonous regularity a constant. As was my custom, I made my way to the dining room for the eight o’clock gathering.

“There’s a mouse in the kitchen?!” Akino Atsushi shrieked, her face paling with alarm.

“Indeed. This morning, upon entering the kitchen, I’d faintly perceived a stir near the ingredients. The distinct squeaking sound left no doubt; it was a mouse.”

“A m-mouse?! Oh, please don’t bite me, don’t bite me…!” Osakabe Nanase, hearing the dreaded word, instantly recoiled behind me, shivering uncontrollably.

“Wh-what?! A mouse?! Where is it?! I’ll exterminate it at once! If it remains even for a day, my meals will be plagued by endless problems!” Arisumi Momoko, without a moment’s hesitation, snatched up a broom, rolled up her sleeves, and squared her shoulders, ready for battle.

“That seems like too much effort. Wouldn’t rat poison be a quicker solution?” Amemiya Wakaba offered, her voice practical.

“But there’s nothing like that readily available around here, is there…?” Katagiri Mimi mused, a puzzled frown creasing her brow.

I, for one, was wholeheartedly in favor of eradicating such a mischievous pest, one that furtively gnawed on everything in its path. A surge of indignation flared within me as I recalled the time a wretched mouse chewed through the insulation, and even the internal wiring, of my home computer, causing circuit damage and a string of boot-up failures. The incident remained vividly etched in my memory.

“Hmm… judging by its appearance, it didn’t seem like an ordinary mouse; to be precise, it was a hamster,” Chisaka Erin recounted, recalling the sight.

“A-a hamster…? How could a domesticated animal like a hamster possibly be in a place like this…?” Kitajima Kazumitsu interjected, highlighting the absurdity.

“Could it be someone’s lost pet…?” Habara Kazuhiro wondered aloud, a note of confusion in his voice.

A silence fell over the group, no one offering a reply. It seemed clear, then, that none of them were its owners.

“Could it be… Monokuma’s pet, deliberately set free to frighten us?” Takagi Masahiko ventured, a speculative gleam in his eye.

“That bastard? Hmm… if that’s the case, everything suddenly makes perfect sense,” Akahira Yuusuke remarked, his tone blunt.

“Hmph!!! Who exactly are you calling a bastard?!” Monokuma, sputtering with indignation, suddenly materialized, his face contorted in a furious glare as he confronted Akahira Yuusuke.

“Oh… speak of the devil. Anyway, Monokuma… was it you who put the hamster in the kitchen?” Akahira Yuusuke asked, cutting straight to the chase.

“Hmph?! You insult me, then calmly pivot to another topic as if nothing happened!”

“Ah… my apologies, I truly didn’t mean to insult you. So, tell me, was it you who put the hamster there?”

“Well now… as the esteemed headmaster, I do appreciate a certain flair for life, you see~ And yes~ The hamster in the kitchen is, without a doubt, my very own pet.”

“Honestly, if it’s your pet, you should take proper care of it…” Akino Atsushi grumbled, a clear note of displeasure in his voice.

“Care for it? Oh no, no~ This hamster is now under *your* care, you see~”

“Eh? What exactly do you mean by that?”

“It means I’m gifting it to you~! I’ve grown rather tired of caring for it, so from now on, the life and death of this little hamster are entirely in your hands~”

“Hey! We’re not your nannies! Why are you arbitrarily dumping such bothersome tasks onto us?!” Akahira Yuusuke’s temper skyrocketed the moment he witnessed Monokuma’s nonchalant, self-satisfied demeanor.

“Come to think of it, you’re incredibly irresponsible, just abandoning a pet halfway through raising it…” Amemiya Wakaba remarked, her assessment of Monokuma’s behavior unsparing.

“Hmm…? It’s not as if you’ve only just met me. Is such behavior truly so unexpected from yours truly?”

“So then… where is this hamster now? If we’re to care for it, you must at least provide a small cage, mustn’t you?” Ishii Yoshimi demanded, her patience worn thin by Monokuma’s absurd demands.

“Ta-da~! It’s all right here~!” In the blink of an eye, Monokuma dramatically produced a small blue cage, within which a tiny hamster, its fur a soft beige, lay placidly.

“Wow!! This little hamster is absolutely adorable, isn’t it?!” Katagiri Mimi exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with delight as she eagerly approached to take the cage, gazing at the tiny creature as if it were a precious gem.

“Its cheeks puff out so adorably when it chews its food; it just makes you want to gently pinch them,” Takahashi Aki commented, drawn irresistibly closer to observe the hamster.

“Ohhhohoh! It’s truly so, so cute~~ To think such adorable creatures exist in the world~”

It was a well-known fact that most girls found themselves utterly powerless against the charm of cute and docile small animals, particularly those like bunnies or hamsters. Osakabe Nanase proved to be no exception to this universal truth.

One moment, she had recoiled from a mouse with utter disdain; the next, she was doting on a hamster, unable to tear her gaze away.

I couldn’t help but click my tongue, a silent, wry thought forming in my mind: ‘Tsk! Women…’

“Oh my, oh my~? It seems you’re all quite fond of these little creatures, aren’t you~? Well then, you’d best make sure to protect its precious little life~! Although… if anyone were to, say, enjoy abusing small animals, I’d simply stand by and observe, without intervening, of course~?”

“Tch! Who would be so utterly depraved as to abuse an animal?” Akahira Yuusuke shot back, his voice thick with indignation.

“Hahahaha… that reminds me of a rather fascinating incident. An online news outlet once reported on a student who had abused their own kitten to death, simply because it had stolen food. While some criticized the student’s morally reprehensible actions, what proved truly unexpected was that the critic themselves became the target of widespread condemnation. People hurled incredibly foolish arguments, such as ‘don’t humans slaughter pigs and cattle every day?’ The inevitable conclusion was tragic: unable to withstand the relentless online bullying, the individual ultimately deleted their comments and vanished.” Suzuki Minoru recounted, a chilling, sinister smile playing on his lips as he met Akahira Yuusuke’s gaze.

“How could that be…” Osakabe Nanase’s face instantly blanched, her complexion turning ashen at the tale.

“Ultimately, this is still an unpredictable online society, fraught with hidden intentions. That person must have felt an unparalleled despair facing such a situation, wouldn’t they…?” Kitajima Kazumitsu sighed heavily, his voice laden with gravity.

“Hah… regardless of the outcome, if it were me, I would never delete my comments. On the contrary! I would retort to each and every one of them, forcing them to confront their own warped logic!”

“I concur with Akahira Yuusuke’s sentiment. This isn’t merely about killing animals; it’s about the act of abuse itself, which is an utterly heinous and condemnable behavior. Whether directed at humans or animals, the torment of the innocent is an abomination against all natural order, isn’t it? It simply goes to show that in a vast world, there will always be remnants of scum who deliberately incite conflict and target others.” Kamimura Anko declared, her voice firm as she articulated her deepest convictions.

“Well said! Truly, a beautiful person possesses a beautiful heart!” Akahira Yuusuke exclaimed, flashing me a radiant smile as he gave a hearty thumbs-up.

“Indeed… Kamimura Anko has articulated my very own thoughts,” Takagi Masahiko remarked, a look of profound relief washing over his face.

“Everyone here possesses such pure and kind hearts,” Chisaka Erin murmured, her gaze brimming with tender affection.

“Hey, Suzuki Minoru! Are you deliberately stirring up trouble again for no reason…?” Akino Atsushi snapped, his voice sharp with irritation as he reprimanded him.

“Who knows?” I couldn’t be sure if it was merely a trick of my perception, but within his usually sinister smile, I thought I detected a fleeting glimmer of satisfaction.

“Oh, yes, yes… I almost forgot! I also came here to impart some truly important news to you all~” Monokuma announced, abruptly interjecting himself into their conversation.

“If you have something to say, then just spit it out already! Don’t waste any more of our time!”

“I have another brand new [Motive] video for you all to behold, you see…? Puhuhuhuhu…” It was a familiar scene, indeed. Monokuma’s unsettling, malicious cackle echoed through the room once more.