The Unveiling of the Ultimate Dancer

————Takagi Masahiko’s Perspective————

Suzuki’s words had momentarily stunned everyone into silence, and the air itself seemed to grow frigid, dropping to zero degrees in the sudden stillness, making it difficult to breathe.

Takahashi Aki: “W-wait?! Why are you suddenly calling out my name… Suzuki-kun?”

Takahashi-kun flinched, her face twisting into a bitter expression as she looked at Suzuki, who wore a chilling smile.

Suzuki Minoru: “Oh, I just meant to say that you’re the culprit~” He pointed at Takahashi-kun with a mischievous grin.

Ishii Yoshimi: “Really… No way… Takahashi-kun is… the culprit…?” She trembled uncontrollably, her voice shaking with every word.

Takagi Masahiko: “Takahashi-kun, are you… truly… the culprit…?” The momentary daze I had experienced earlier made me wonder if I had imagined things.

Takahashi Aki: “Of course not! How could I possibly be the culprit?! There must be a mistake in the analysis! Everyone, please believe me!” Takahashi-kun frantically waved her hands, her brow furrowed slightly as she vehemently retorted.

Habara Kazuhiro: “Hey, Suzuki, you’re just joking, right? How could a gentle girl like Takahashi-kun be the culprit?”

Suzuki Minoru: “Ahahaha! Gentle? She wouldn’t even bat an eye while killing someone, you know~ Do you really think I’m joking?”

Takahashi Aki: “Why… why is Suzuki-kun insisting I’m the culprit…? It’s not true! It’s not like that! I never wanted to hurt anyone! C-could it be… that I’ve done something to offend everyone?” Her emotions suddenly spiraled out of control, and she burst into tears, crying out loudly.

Akahira Yuusuke: “Hey… Suzuki, are you sure she… really is the culprit?” He raised an eyebrow, questioning Suzuki.

Chisaka Erin: “Perhaps Suzuki-kun could present the key evidence that points to Takahashi-kun as the culprit?”

Suzuki Minoru: “That’s simple. Wasn’t there a white hair in that raincoat? Among the remaining suspects, it could only be her~”

Kitajima Kazumitsu: “Takagi, is what he’s saying true? Was there really a white hair in that raincoat?”

Takagi Masahiko: “Ah, ah… He’s right, I was there at the time…”

Chisaka Erin: “I was there too. That white hair was indeed left in the hood of the raincoat…”

Katagiri Mimi: “Takahashi-kun… you… shouldn’t you say something…?” She looked at Takahashi-kun, her face etched with confusion.

Takahashi Aki: “I, I… I truly am not… the culprit… Please, everyone, believe me…”

She spoke brokenly, tears streaming down her face, her eyes, swollen and red, brimming with a sense of injustice and pain.

Witnessing the scene before me, I even began to doubt whether my previous analysis had been flawed.

Osakabe Nanase: “…Takahashi-kun… are you truly not deceiving us…?”

Akino Atsushi: “How about… we discuss this again…? It feels too soon to accuse Takahashi-kun as the culprit…”

Arisumi Momoko: “That’s right, ah… If Takahashi-kun really isn’t the culprit, then what we’re doing… it would truly hurt her feelings…”

Ishii Yoshimi: “I agree… After all, an innocent girl being wrongly accused could leave her with psychological scars…”

Takahashi Aki: “Th-thank you… Your comfort really, really touches me… I’ll cherish everyone’s trust in me forever!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Oh my? Everyone is so kind, aren’t they? How come I don’t get this treatment, but the culprit does? That really makes me terribly jealous~?”

Ishii Yoshimi: “That’s why I said we should reconsider… It’s too early to conclude that she’s the culprit.”

Akahira Yuusuke: “…”

Suzuki Minoru: “Heheheh… This is hilarious! What’s there to reconsider? Everything that needed to be said has been said, everything that needed to be asked has been asked. Do you think… it’s still too early? Do you mean the culprit has to personally admit their guilt before you’ll accept the truth?” He suddenly let out a series of chilling, eerie laughs.

Suzuki Minoru: “This is the result Takagi-kun painstakingly led everyone to deduce, you know~ W-w-would you really be so heartless as to deny Takagi-kun and everyone else’s hard work~?” Suzuki pouted and shed a few ‘small pearls’ of tears, weeping like a three-year-old child.

Ishii Yoshimi: “This… I…” She was utterly speechless at that moment.

Takagi Masahiko: “Ishii-kun, Arisumi-kun, and Akino-kun, the evidence is now conclusive… No matter what, the exhibits at least won’t lie to us!”

Ishii Yoshimi: “I, I understand now…”

Akino Atsushi: “That’s right… How could evidence lie…?”

Arisumi Momoko: “I’m so sorry… Momo has caused everyone trouble…” Arisumi bowed her head in guilt, offering a sincere apology.

Takahashi Aki: “Everyone, everyone, what’s wrong?! Don’t you all believe me?”

Akahira Yuusuke: “It’s not that we don’t believe you, but the evidence is irrefutable. The exhibit clearly pointed to the culprit’s characteristics.”

Takahashi Aki: “Even you… don’t believe me… W-w-wah…” Takahashi-kun once again burst into tears, though by now, the sight stirred no emotion within me.

Akahira Yuusuke: “Enough!!! How many times do you need to play us for fools before you’re satisfied?!!”

Takahashi Aki: “Eh…?”

Akahira Yuusuke: “Honestly, tell me, when did you start faking it?”

Takahashi Aki: “I, I didn’t…”

Suzuki Minoru: “Oh-ho~? Still lying, are we? Do you think a seasoned actor like me can’t see through your little act? Stop pretending already~ I’m getting second-hand embarrassment…”

Takahashi Aki: “W-w-wahahahaha… Hahaha… Ahahaha!!!” She abruptly transitioned from sobbing to soft laughter, then to maniacal cackling.

Takahashi Aki: “You really are incredibly foolish… To so rashly accuse me of such a dirty crime based on a single white hair? Ridiculous… So ridiculous it makes one’s teeth ache!!”

The person before me was no longer the soft-spoken, smiling Takahashi-kun from before. Even her voice had undergone a distorted change in that moment; her once pleasant, melodious tone had become raspy and grating.

Osakabe Nanase: “T-Takahashi-kun… what, what’s wrong with you…? Are you… alright…?” Osakabe-kun was utterly shocked by the warped scene before her, asking with a fearful heart.

Takahashi Aki: “Me? I’m perfectly fine~ My mood was actually quite pleasant… but seeing you all confuse right and wrong and call a stag a horse (TL Note: A Chinese idiom, ‘zhǐ lù wéi mǎ,’ meaning to deliberately misrepresent or mislead, implying a blatant disregard for truth) has completely extinguished that!” She gritted her teeth, vehemently accusing all of us, her eyes radiating an aura of hatred and mania.

Suzuki Minoru: “Isn’t it clear to everyone who’s confusing right and wrong~?”

Takahashi Aki: “Then I’ll ask you, if I’m the culprit, how did I manage to safely get from the third floor to the first floor without using the elevator?”

Kitajima Kazumitsu: “Th-that…”

Chisaka Erin: “…That is a baffling question…”

Akahira Yuusuke: “Tch! You’re still trying to clear your name?!” Yuusuke yelled, glaring furiously at her.

Takahashi Aki: “Oh dear~ What’s wrong? You can’t even answer such a simple question? With your limited abilities, you still dare to accuse me of being the culprit? Heheheheh… Utterly foolish.” A smirk played on her lips as she mercilessly mocked us, trampling on our feelings.

Katagiri Mimi: “Don’t get too arrogant! I’ve already thought of the answer!”

Takahashi Aki: “Heheh… Do tell~”

Katagiri Mimi: “Hmph! There must be a hidden staircase behind a secret passage! You must have walked down to the first floor from there!”

Takahashi Aki: “Huh? Hahaha! I truly admire your rich imagination! Could you be any more naive? I can’t even bear to look at your stupidity anymore~”

Katagiri Mimi: “W-what?! Who are you calling stupid?!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Phew… I’m tired of playing with you too. So, shall I tear off your ugly mask? Hmm… Takahashi-kun?” He sighed helplessly.

Takahashi Aki: “…What do you mean?” Takahashi-kun’s arrogance was subtly diminished, her eyes concealing a flicker of rage.

Suzuki Minoru: “I mean, I already have the answer in my mind~”

Takahashi Aki: “Are you bluffing? Or just trying to save face?”

Suzuki Minoru: “The unique structure of the pipes.”

Takahashi Aki: “!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Eh? Takahashi-kun, what’s wrong? Why did you suddenly flinch? Are you feeling unwell?! Or… did I hit the nail on the head…?” Suzuki partially covered his lips with his left index finger, his eyes narrowed slightly into a cunning smile.

Takagi Masahiko: “The structure of the pipes…?”

Suzuki Minoru: “Ah… that’s right! I’ve actually been wondering… why were there severe scrapes on both the sleeves and the pant legs of that long raincoat?”

I suddenly remembered… Suzuki had previously placed that hamster into the pipes on the third floor, and the hamster had eventually fallen out of the first-floor ventilation shaft completely unharmed.

Takagi Masahiko: “The pipes… they’re slanted downwards?!”

Suzuki Minoru: “Bingo~ You got it right! These downward-sloping pipes can cushion a person’s impact against the pipe walls, from the third floor to the second, and from the second floor to the first, all in the same manner. So, from the entire exterior of this school building, it’s as if an invisible, long snake is coiled within it. As the ‘Ultimate Dancer,’ your body’s flexibility is top-notch, isn’t it? Even if you encountered a bend in the pipe, you could easily maneuver through it, couldn’t you?”

Chisaka Erin: “I see… That perfectly explains the mystery of how someone could safely climb from the third floor to the first. But why didn’t the culprit choose to simply discard the raincoat on the second floor?”

Suzuki Minoru: “Perhaps… there are no ventilation shafts in the second-floor area, right, Monokuma?”

Monokuma: “I don’t know, Monokuma doesn’t know anything~” It said blankly, staring motionlessly at us.

Akino Atsushi: “I’ll give it credit for its ability to play dumb.”

Takagi Masahiko: “Well, Takahashi-kun! Do you have anything else to refute now?!”

Takahashi Aki: “…” Her bangs, like her entire demeanor, drooped low, obscuring the terrifying gaze they had held moments before. Her expression was now indiscernible.

Takahashi Aki: “Heheheheheheheheheh… Hahahahahahaha…” She suddenly burst into maniacal laughter as if possessed, her mental state vastly different from her earlier self, like a schizophrenic patient switching to another personality.

Takahashi Aki: “What does it matter…? What does it matter if you got lucky and guessed correctly?”

Takahashi Aki: “I’m not the only one with white hair, you know?” She pointed her finger at Ishii Yoshimi.

Ishii Yoshimi: “Takahashi, you…?!

Takahashi Aki: “Didn’t you notice? Ishii’s short hair has a few white strands at the back~”

Akahira Yuusuke: “Ishii-kun, is what she’s saying… true?”

Ishii Yoshimi: “Sigh… She’s right, actually… It was from overtraining and staying up late during my middle school years. Since then, I’ve rarely stayed up late… but those few white hairs seem to still be growing…” Ishii closed her eyes in resignation, recounting her past.

Takahashi Aki: “How about that?! Now what evidence do you have to prove that the white hair in the raincoat was mine?!!” She roared at us, her hair seemingly standing on end with fury, her enraged voice piercing through the entire courtroom.

Suzuki Minoru: “As everyone knows, the minority obeys the majority… Whether from a human or an object’s perspective, this saying remains relevant today…”

Suzuki Minoru: “How can your entire head of white hair compare to her sparse few strands?”

Takahashi Aki: “How can you be so certain… that the white hair in the raincoat wasn’t hers? If you have no evidence, don’t presumptuously affirm on behalf of others~”

Suzuki fell silent, closing his eyes calmly, deep in thought.

Takahashi Aki: “Ahahaha!! You’re out of options, aren’t you?! It seems no matter what, you no longer have any evidence to accuse me of being the culprit!!”

“Who says not?”

A melodious, pleasant, and clear female voice drifted from not far away. Hearing that incredibly familiar voice, I was instantly overjoyed and turned my head to look towards its source.

Long, waterfall-like hair swayed in the wind, red eyes were clear and bright, a bandage was tied across her forehead, and faint beads of sweat slowly trickled down her pale, frost-like cheeks, her eyes filled with a gaze of determination and hope.