Monokuma’s Whims and Locked Pathways

“Kamimura Anko, please wait a moment!”

Turning back, I saw Takagi Masahiko rushing towards me.

“What do you want, following me? Are you perhaps planning to… in a deserted place? Oh my, oh my~ Could Takagi actually be a long-hidden scoundrel?” I feigned extreme surprise.

“No! That’s not it at all! I just want to help you…” Takagi quickly explained, holding his palms out towards me.

“Help me? How would you do that?”

“Uh… right, with my luck! Perhaps my luck could bring you an unexpected surprise!”

****

“Alright, alright. I made that up to trick you, Kamimura Anko, I’m sorry. But I truly want to help you; it’s absolutely not for any other purpose. Please believe me!” His sincere tone and resolute gaze conveyed an earnestness that no conspirator would possess.

“Alright then.”

“R-really?! You’re agreeing so quickly?!”

“However, if you cause me any trouble, I won’t hesitate to distance myself from you.”

“I swear, I absolutely won’t cause you any trouble.”

‘Men’s words are the devil’s lies, aren’t they? Wait, why did I even think of that phrase?’

“Let’s go.”

****

At the far left of the boys’ rooms, a door marked with a trash can symbol caught my eye. Pushing it open, I discovered a small, makeshift incinerator nestled deep inside. In the furthest left corner, another door stood, yet a formidable iron fence separated everything, blocking access. To proceed, one would need to unlock the iron gate on the right side of the fence, secured by two U-shaped locks, one at the top and one at the bottom.

“No, it won’t open at all…” Takagi attempted to force the iron gate open.

“Never mind. Since we can’t get in, let’s investigate elsewhere.”

Stepping out of the dormitory exit, my attention was immediately drawn to the elevator door on the front right. Strange… why weren’t the lights around it illuminated? Had it malfunctioned?

“It’s so dark… why aren’t the lights on here?” Takagi grumbled.

“Could it be… Takagi-kun is afraid of the dark?” I teased him playfully.

“Kamimura Anko, how could I possibly be afrai—Waaahhh!!!” Takagi stumbled back several steps in fright, unable to finish his sentence.

“What’s wrong? Is there something there?”

“There’s… there’s something cold there…” He pointed a trembling finger towards the corner of the wall to the right of the elevator door.

Just as I activated my electronic student ID to identify the object, Takagi suddenly seized my left wrist. I turned my head, illuminating him with the screen’s light.

“What is it, Takagi-kun?”

“Aren’t you… aren’t you afraid of danger?” He looked at me with a worried expression.

“So concerned about me? I appreciate your sentiment, but fear won’t solve anything, you know.” Upon hearing my words, he released my wrist.

“Hmm… it’s just a Monokuma head pillar.”

“Oh, I see. It seems I was startled over nothing…”

“Yes, I know Takagi-kun is afraid of the dark now.”

“No, it’s not like that! I’ve never been this scared of the dark before.”

After a moment of observation, I noticed the up and down buttons to the left of the elevator door. I tried pressing the down arrow, yet after a considerable wait, the elevator door remained stubbornly closed.

“Kamimura Anko, are you listening to me?”

“Yes, I am.” A voice suddenly chimed in from behind—Monokuma’s.

“That’s good… Haaahhh!!!”

Takagi, startled by Monokuma’s sudden appearance behind us, pressed himself against me. A faint sandalwood scent emanated from him, reaching my senses. To be honest, it was the first time I’d realized a boy could have such a pleasant natural fragrance.

“Calm down…”

“I know… S-sorry! Ugh! …Ow, ow, ow…” Takagi quickly distanced himself again, only to hit his back against the pillar behind him.

I pressed a hand to my forehead, wondering if it might have been better not to bring him along at all.

“Oh my, oh my, what are you two, a lone boy and a lone girl, doing here? If I catch you doing anything inappropriate, I’ll have to implement a content rating system!!!”

“Monokuma, is this elevator door malfunctioning?”

“Ugh! How dare you change the subject! Well, fine, this elevator door *does* have a bit of a problem.”

“Are the lights around the elevator door broken as well?”

“Indeed they are! The light tubes have been broken for ages, and they’re such a hassle to fix, so I simply decided not to bother.”

“Could I trouble you to fix the elevator door?”

“Oh my, oh my, it’s been ages since a student asked me for a favor. You’re simply incorrigible~ Though, I admit, I was planning to fix it anyway.”

“However, in such a dark place, even if you get up to some mischief, I won’t pursue it~ After all, you are high school students in the throes of adolescence.”

With a sudden whoosh, it vanished. What a truly terrifying creature…

I shone my light on Takagi, who was still standing in the corner. “Are you alright?”

“Ah… mm, mm…” He turned his head away, stammering his reply.

Directly opposite the elevator door was a medical office, but its main entrance was locked tight, completely impassable. To test my hypothesis, I slammed my elbow forcefully into the center of the door.

“Kamimura Anko, what are you doi—”

“Hey! Stop that! Kamimura Anko, what do you think you’re doing?!”

Monokuma furiously stopped me, preventing me from deliberately damaging the door.

“Why, I’m obviously trying to break the door open. Have I violated a school rule? The school rules don’t state that students can’t damage door locks, do they?”

“Ugh?! You brat! It seems you’ve given me a new idea! …Take another look at the school rules now?”

Takagi immediately opened his student ID to check the updated school rules. [8. It is forbidden to damage doors and door locks. Violators will bear full responsibility for the consequences.]

“Good grief… I barely left, and you’re already causing trouble again! Now I can finally go rest.” Monokuma departed even more swiftly than before this time.

‘Now there’s truly no way to investigate the locked areas…’

Adjacent to the medical office’s right was the staircase leading to the second floor, similarly blocked by a locked retractable gate.

I continued forward, arriving at our initial gathering point—the gymnasium. To the right of the gymnasium was a swimming pool, though it contained nothing particularly noteworthy.

To the front right, just outside the gymnasium’s main doors, stood two classrooms: 1-A and 1-B. On the blackboard, crude drawings depicted Monokuma’s teachings to the students, alongside graffiti of some students fallen to the ground. What kind of twisted humor was this?

“Does Monokuma really want us to kill each other this badly?” A flicker of anger, unfamiliar to me, crossed his face.

“Let’s go.” Unable to find the right words, I could only resort to action.

To the right of Classroom 1-B’s back door was… a small convenience store? Curiosity piqued, I stepped inside to take a look. It was stocked with a plethora of snacks, all packaged in ways I’d never seen before, along with a beverage vending machine, and even small recreational toys like kites, kendama, and Ludo. Truth be told, I was quite keen to try the kendama; I’d only ever seen it in anime and never had the chance to play, but now…

“Kamimura Anko, do you like playing kendama?”

“No, I’m just rather interested.”

“Hmm… haven’t you played this before, Kamimura Anko?”

“I haven’t. Do you?”

“I quite enjoyed playing it in middle school. I even participated in a competition and won third prize, you know.”

“Oh really? When will I get a chance to see your performance?”

“It’s a definite!”

“It’s a shame we can’t just take things from here…” Takagi remarked regretfully, his gaze fixed on the warning sign at the counter: [Anyone without Monokuma Coins is forbidden from taking items from the convenience store. Violators will bear full responsibility for the consequences!]

“You’re… right about that.”

After browsing the convenience store, I discovered a small room inside. Upon opening the door, I found it filled with miscellaneous items: pliers, axles, thumbtacks, pushpins, and other small tools. This place, too, seemed to hold nothing particularly noteworthy.

After leaving the convenience store, I checked the time on my student ID; it was already nine o’clock. It was time to return to my room and rest…

“Let’s head back. It’s getting late.”

“Mm.”

Just as we were about to part ways and return to our rooms, Takagi called out to me, “Goodnight, Kamimura Anko.”

I merely nodded, offering no verbal reply, and returned to my room.

****

Today had been a somewhat tiring day. After showering, I collapsed onto my bed.

I suddenly recalled the moment I accidentally brushed against Kamimura Anko’s body. I had caught the lovely scent of lavender—soft, fragrant… If only I could have stayed close to her a little longer then…

‘No… stop thinking about it! Too many thoughts will keep me from sleeping! It’s better to fall asleep soon.’ I closed my heavy eyes, gradually drifting into slumber…