"I'll prove my innocence to you guys!"

"I have an alibi."

"I'm not even a little bit suspicious."

"How could you all start to suspect me?!"

"I would never punch a foe from behind!"

"'Cause Atua is always watching me."

"What about the guy who wanted us all in the basement?"

"Do you really think that I would have time to kill?"

"A true Aikido master would never do something so dishonorable!"

"Atua...? Who that person?"

"What!? Are you talking about me!?"

"Suspect someone else, who's more able to commit murder..."

"Punching is permitted in Aikido!?"

"Atua is not a person. Atua is God."

"We were having a strategy meeting together, remember?"

"I was with two others for most of the time leading up to Rantaro's death...! C'mon, speak up and help clear my alibi!"

"Yes! Neo-Aikido even uses wooden swords!"

"Not person... Robot? Like Kiibo?

"Rantaro's the only person who left in the middle of it..."

"Wait... Kaito! Shut up!!"

"H-Huh!? Why!? I'm just tryin' to prove my innocence...and catch the culprit at the same time!"

"Kaito, you've spoken a fair share of bullsh*t, and this is just the first trial." You returned to your calm state, brushing some loose hair out of your face so you could see better. "I just now remembered what Maki had told me during investigation... Rantaro wasn't the only one to leave the meeting."

"That idiot already forgot," Maki put in. "Gonta also left during the strategy meeting."

"Yeah, he locked himself up in the A/V Room and—Hey, wait a sec! 'Idiot'!?"

"Is that right, Gonta?" Ryoma asked.

"Y-Yes, Gonta watch bug movie. To fill Gonta with fight, so Gonta can fight Monokuma," the entomologist replied.

"Gonta..." you said slowly, "...you know that you're now the most suspicious one out of us, right? Not to mention your lack of a steady alibi... Defend yourself, or we'll all vote on you—and if we vote wrong, we'll all die."

"Gonta swear all he did was watch bug movie!" he responded, growing panicked. Everyone gave him a look that lasted for a second. You knew what this meant, and started checking your truth bullets.
***

"See? This proves that no one could have hid in the library after killing Rantaro," Kaede explained to Ryoma, a satisfied smile on her face. She had just finished reminding everyone of the library photos.

"I see...but then, what about this other picture?"

"Huh?" The male she was speaking to looked at the picture you were dreading to be brought up.

"You see, this picture... It only has (Y/N) in it." He turned to you. "Care to explain?"

You flinched and tried to swallow a lump in your throat that you didn't noticed had formed. Everyone was looking straight at you. "Well... I went downstairs when Kaito's group ran down there to check what was going on. I stood next to the door to the room I thought they were in, and then I heard a noise coming from the library. I made my way there as fast as I could and...saw Rantaro..."

"Are you sure that's all that happened?" The tennis player's face darkened as he continued to stare at you.

"Y...Yes..." You knew that you didn't do it. It's just that you didn't know how to defend yourself—and with your visible growing nervousness, it only made you look all the more suspicious.

"Ooh~! Someone sounds suspicious...!!" called a voice to your right. Your eyes darted to the sound's direction, landing on Kokichi.

"Oh yeah!!" Miu shouted. "We're finally getting somewhere in findin' the culprit! Look who's in the hot seat now!"

"Hey...! I saved your a** from the hot seat earlier!" you retaliated.

"G-Guys, hold on." You looked over at Kaede who was starting to speak up. "We can't be accusatory already without any evidence. (Y/N), do you have anything to defend yourself?"

You sighed as you calmed down to your cold exterior and began giving your shaky testimony. "My story starts where I helped Kaede and Shuichi set up the cameras in the library—"

"And what were you doing before that?" Ryoma questioned.

"I was just waiting for them in the library, since I knew that they were planning something in order to stop the killing game," you answered truthfully. "I would have had no need to go behind the hidden door, and it'd be impossible since there were no signs of it being moved whenever Kaede and Shuichi got there. Also because I found during investigation that the card reader dust was still there, and it hadn't been reapplied since when I was waiting.

"The three of us, after setting everything up in the library, went upstairs and into the lookout classroom. I, however, soon left because um...I felt awkward. I only hid next to the staircase leading to the basement. That's when the weird background music started playing. I saw Kaito's group run downstairs and I followed them shortly after." You had to keep your voice from trembling; the part of your testimony that was the most shaky and suspicious was here.

"I saw that they had went into the game room, and then Shuichi came down asking about the group. He left, and with a few more moments...I heard something in the library. I ran over and found Rantaro's dead body... And that's it."

"Are you sure 'that's it'?" Kokichi asked at your side. "Are you sure that you weren't bashing in Rantaro's head with a shot put ball while you were in the library and there were no witnesses around?"

"...Positive."

"I sense no lie here!" He rested his hands on the back of his neck and gave you a cheeky grin. You were a bit taken back. It was just because you didn't suspect him to let you off so easily and quickly. Why would he even do that? you contemplated. Mmph... I mean, he is a liar... I want to find out...but it'll have to be later. Still, though, you couldn't help but to feel a small bit touched.

"How are we supposed to trust you? Lying, degenerate male!" Tenko shouted at him.

"...(Y/N), are you the mastermind?" Shuichi suddenly asked you.

"H-...Huh?"

"Remember that one time where I ran into you while you were coming out of the library? When I was supposed to give you the thing?" You slowly but unsurely nodded your head. "I...went back over there to check the card reader, and the dust had been moved." Your face paled as you remembered that moment in clear detail.

"I'm not sure. He kind of just shoved this in my hands and told me to give it to you, a-and then just ran away... Ahh, where did you just come from...?" The detective looked nervous as he bit on his inner lip.

"From the library." Shuichi all of a sudden grew darker. You couldn't quite tell what was going on through his head, but you did feel that he was doubting your statement. "Why, do you not believe me?" The blue-haired teen just muttered out a few noises. "Why don't you look for yourself," you said sternly; your finger was pointed toward one of your eyes at that point, which had by then turned into their miraculous, vibrant light blue.

Shuichi slowly nodded and gulped. "I see..."

You simply just blinked for a second. So that's what he must have been acting weird about. You looked around at everyone. Some had were glaring at you suspiciously, some were lost in thought, some were wondering about what you were thinking. However, you noticed that Tsumugi had an unsual glint to her eyes. Your eyes lingered on her a bit longer; you sensed deceit and lies, somehow. It just gave you a bad vibe.

"...Shuichi, you're the Ultimate Detective. Why the hell would I say if I'm the mastermind if I was?" The male just covered his mouth with his hand, staying silent. "Besides...th-that shouldn't be enough 'evidence' to show if I was the mastermind or not. We need to focus on Rantaro's killer."

"I say that you would easily have been able to kill him once Shuichi was gone," Korekiyo said.

"But, I only went to the library because I heard the door opening...! By the time it was all the way open, Rantaro was most likely dead already."

"Perhaps you were hiding in the hidden door before Rantaro even went to move the bookcase."

"No," you retorted. "In order for the card reader dust to still be in place while the investigation took place, Shuichi must have reset it after he found it in a different position. So that means that I couldn't have gone in there... And may I have you all look at the hidden camera photos?" You went to the singular picture of you taken from the camera positioned at the library's rear entrance. "Now, do any of you see a shot put ball in my hands?" The others shook their heads. "There you have it. I plead not guilty."

You quickly panned the room. Your eyes finally landed on the person to your right, Kokichi. You saw his mouth moving to form a word, but you didn't hear what he could have said. But, if you saw it right, you could have sworn he said... 'Pretty'? No no no no, that just doesn't... You remembered about your eyes changing color. F*ck. You looked back down at the ground, long enough for them to change back.

"You could have used magic to summon a shot put ball and clean your clothes..." Himiko offered bluntly.

"Magic doesn't work that way," you responded, annoyed.

"But that doesn't really answer the part about you being the..." the detective trailed off.

"Shuichi, look at me in the eye. I'm not the mastermind, understand?" You slowly felt the color rise back up to your irises. He noticeably flinched before nodding.

"Yeah... (Y/N) is completely innocent."

"Oh, okay! If Shuichi say so, he gotta be right! Shuichi is Ultimate Detective after all!" Gonta smiled cheerfully.

"How can we just trust their word like that!?" Miu shouted angrily.

"G-Guys!" Kaede shouted over the other female. "We already have evidence that (Y/N) isn't a possible culprit, which is who we should be finding right now! I...do want to find the mastermind... But we have to prioritize!! We'll all die if we don't vote correctly!" Everyone nodded—but only after giving you either a suspicious or hate-filled glare that seemed to last for an eternity with its eery silence. You could feel a little sweat on the back of your neck.

You just stayed silent while the others started speaking again. You were just left speechless. A question had arose, asking how the culprit could have killed Rantaro whenever everyone appeared in the library photos. Obviously, they managed to kill him without ever actually stepping into the room to do the deed, you thought. But you didn't say it out loud. No, the trial would be perfectly fine without you. That was your reasoning.

The other students were debating nonstop when Kokichi suddenly turned to you. "(Y/N), you gonna contribute to this or what?" he snickered.

"..." You folded your arms together defensively. "The others don't need me... Simple as that. Besides, who'd believe anything I say at this point?" You tried to sound as calm as ever, but you couldn't help that your voice trembled a bit at the end. The purple-haired male only pouted and tilted his head to the side, looking at you strangely as if your skin had changed color.

Kokichi opened up his mouth as if he were about to say something, but he paused and shut his mouth closed. Strange, you wondered.
***

"This is quite troublesome... It seems our opinions are on opposite ends," Kirumi stated.

"How we supposed to decide? We're split right down middle..." Gonta added.

"HOLD ON!" Everyone turned in surprise to look at Monokuma. "...Split!? Did you just say split!? You did! I heard it! I heard it with my belly button microphone!"

"So wait, your ears don't do anything!?" Tenko questioned, disturbed.

"The Ultimate Academy is proud to present its very own morphenomenal trial grounds!"

"...Morphenomenal trial grounds?" Maki repeated.

"The trial grounds are gonna morph!? Seriously!? I tooootally wanna see that!!!" Kokichi exclaimed, obvious excited just judging by the sparkles in his eyes.

You could see Monokuma smile proudly as he pulled out a key from nowhere. Shoving it into its correct place and turning it, the podiums that everyone was standing on started to lift. You gripped onto your podium, fearful that you might fall and possibly die... Would that even be possible? With as high as you all were going, you figured it would be possible. You started imagining what would happen if you were to die right there, in the middle of the class trial, when your podium began moving away from the others', who were in two perfect lines.

"Huh??" You stopped right next to Monokuma. "What is this all about?!" you hissed up to the bear. A few of your peers were giving you confused glances, but most of them were too caught up in the moment.

"Sorry kid, but you're gonna have to sit out for this first debate," he replied. He leaned over from his spot on his chair to pat you on the head like a naive little child. You could only stand there and watch as the others began speaking.

"You hid what you knew about the camera intervals, Shuichi."

"But Miu silent about intervals too..."

"Unlike Shuichi, I actually have an airtight alibi!"

"Kaede backed up Shuichi's alibi, didn't she?"

"Shuichi and Kaede weren't together the whole time, were they?"

"Both of them were together when the receiver went off."

"If Shuichi had the receiver, it could've been disguised."

"Kaede is the one who actually had the receiver!"

"But that's Kaede's lie, isn't it?"

"We'll know whether or not it's a lie when we talk this through! This is our answer!" The podiums started moving again, this time going down back to the floor. And that settles the debate, you thought. Hmph...I've already figured out the culprit, even though some of the lines are fuzzy... Kaede, you think you did it, don't you?
***
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Knew it, you thought as the Ultimate Detective finished explaining how Kaede could have killed Rantaro. It's still...so hard to believe that the shot would have been perfectly aimed right above his head, and timed perfectly enough to hit him in such a way that would cause death...

"But if all of that is true, then that's pretty unfortunate..." Kokichi spoke. "I mean...it's Kaede, y'know? She kept on preaching about working together...and then she goes and kills in cold blood!"

"No, something still doesn't fit," Shuichi said.

"Hm? What doesn't fit?"

"Kaede...wouldn't do something like that."

"Huh?" Kaede seemed shocked.

"You mean she's not the type? But you were the one who said she did it, right?" Tsumugi responded.

"Yes, I did say that. But murder in cold blood is just not in her character... I truly believe that! I believe in her!"

"But...why?" Kaede questioned slowly. Her mixed emotions were visible. "Why do you still believe in me, Shuichi? Why? Tell me why!! Why are you doing this!? Are you still looking away from the truth!?"

"Not at all. My belief in you...is gonna lead me to the truth! I'll show you what's behind all of this! I'll show you your truth!" The pianist only let out a low growl in response. Everyone watched as she started getting defensive—even you looked up from the ground; the atmosphere quickly grew tense.

"You still believe in me?" Kaede asked, moving on without even letting Shuichi say anything back. "I'm definitely the culprit. Do you think I wouldn't do it? I'm the one who killed Rantaro! That's the truth of this case! And that's all there is to it!" The detective she was talking to kept a straight face. "Please stop... Just stop..." the blonde begged, speaking faster as her argument got more heated. "Remember what I told you? You have to fight for the truth... Shuichi, I know you can do this... If you say you believe in me, then... Don't look away from the truth! Please stop... Just stop...! Remember...?"

Then, it seemed like the entire world just went silent. Like any other surrounding sounds had been submerged deep underwater. "Do you know what I was trying to do?" Kaede asked, voice low and her speaking pace back to normal.

"...You weren't persuaded by Monokuma... And you weren't trying to save yourself. What you were trying to do...was kill the mastermind!" The final blow. Everyone in the courtroom was hit by an enormous wave of shock, and it took them a while to start speaking again. You tuned out of most of what they were saying, though; you just knew that the trial was soon coming to an end.

"Can you...end all of this?" you finally heard Kaede speak to Shuichi.

"...What?" The detective's face was dark, but the forming tears in his eyes shone brightly as if they themselves were luminescent.

"I want you to reveal everything that happened and convince everyone... And then...I want you to end this. That's...my final wish."

"...I understand. I'll end all of this. I'll reveal everything! The truth and the lies!" Shuichi took a moment to process everything, everyone else waiting patiently for him. He took in a breath before starting.

"It all began two days prior, when Monokuma gave us the additional motive. The time limit added to this killing game triggered the crime. After the announcement, some of us decided to form groups to plan our next move. I had my own plan to find the mastermind, and someone offered to help me... At the time, I never would have imagined they would become the culprit.

"To expose the mastermind, the culprit and I set up hidden cameras in the library. There was a hidden door in the library that showed signs of use. We deduced that the mastermind would return there, to let Monokuma out. The next day, we asked Miu if she could modify some cameras for our trap. We then went to the warehouse to gather the necessary materials. All we needed were disposable cameras and a security sensor. But the culprit found something else there—the murder weapon. That's right. The shot put ball. They put the cameras as well as the shot in their backpack.

"Then, on the day the time limit would expire, the day of the murder...the culprit and I collected the modified cameras from Miu and visited the library. Once there, we found (Y/N) waiting for us. They offered to help, so we searched the room for ideal locations to set place the cameras. But even then, the culprit was preparing the murder. They began by moving the vent grate, and laid it inside the air duct. Then, they moved the pile of books on top of the bookcase, pretending to organize them. After that, they placed open encyclopedias on the final bookcase. It appeared innocuous enough, but it was actually a path for the murder weapon!

"The culprit also tampered with the hidden camera linked to the security sensor. (Y/N) was setting up the other two cameras while I was responsible for setting up the actual sensor, but that particular camera... I didn't even notice their trick. They used duct tape to keep the flash function on.

"Once the cameras were set, the three of us climbed the stairs to the first floor classroom. We kept a lookout for the others, and waited for the security sensor to go off. And at this time, (Y/N) left me and the culprit alone in the room. During the stakeout, we saw Kaito and six others go down to the basement. Rantaro was with them... The first victim. After getting notified that the group had entered the Game Room, I returned to the classroom.

"With about one hour remaining, the security receiver I was holding went off. I assumed it was the mastermind, so I ran out of the classroom to the library. I was in such a hurry, I left the culprit behind. Looking back on it now...that was the last chance I had to stop the murder. After I had left, the culprit took the shot put ball out of their backpack and rolled it into the classroom vent. This set the murder in motion...! Rantaro had moved the bookcase, triggering the receiver. Unbeknownst to him, the trap had been sprung.

"First, the modified camera took a picture of Rantaro with the flash on. Rantaro noticed the flash and approached the bookcase to inspect the camera. The camera flash lured Rantaro directly into the murder weapon's path! The shot the culprit tossed into the vent rolled through the air duct, came out of the library's vent, and kept rolling atop the bookcase. Opening the vent grate and organizing the books was all to create a path. Under normal circumstances, the victim would have been alerted by the noise...but the promotional video was masking the sound of the shot rolling. The shot kept rolling, then fell on Rantaro's head, killing him instantly.

"By the time we had entered the room, the murder was complete. I imagine...seeing Rantaro's body, the culprit probably thought... 'The mastermind is dead, the game is over, now we can all go home...'. But their wish didn't come true...because Rantaro wasn't the mastermind! It was murder...in an attempt to save all of our lives. That...is the truth. That's the truth behind your lies... Kaede Akamatsu, the Ultimate Pianist...!

"And that concludes...the events of this case," Shuichi finished. Your peers started to mourn over Kaede before Monokuma interrupted them.

"Stop, stop, stop! At least save it for the end of the trial! Sheesh!"

"Looks like the debate's finished, so that means it's Voting Time!" Monotaro announced cheerfully.

"Alright, you b*stards! Press the button in front of you to cast your vote!" Monophanie explained.

"And make sure y'all vote, 'cause refusin' to vote is grounds for termination," Monosuke added matter of factly.

"At last! The heart racing excitement as the blackened and the spotless finally face off... IT'S VOTING TIME!" all of the bears said at once.

Everyone looked down at their podium, which had a little touch screen to vote with. You glanced up to see all of them clicking a button with a grim look on their face. You hesitated, though, and shut your eyes tightly. No...something still seems wrong... Something is most definitely very wrong. My gut hasn't failed me up to this point, so I'll continue to trust it...but what exactly is out of place...? Either way, I can't say anything out loud right now, it's just pointless. You sighed and opened your eyes again, but instead of clicking on Kaede's picture, you clicked on...someone else.

"Puhuhu... It seems the voting has finished. Now then, let's see the result." A giant screen lowered itself. It turned on, revealing all of the students' pictures with the amount of votes beside them. Kaede had everyone's vote except for one. That other vote was for Tsumugi. Sneaking a glance at the cosplayer, you noticed that her face paled as soon as she saw someone had voted for her.

"Who'll be chosen as the blackened!? Will you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one!? Well, at this point it goes without saying, but you all voted correctly! Except for that one person. Hmm, how strange."

"Y-Yeah, quite strange..." Tsumugi stammered.

"But anyway! The blackened who killed Rantaro Amami is the Ultimate Pianist, Kaede Akamatsu! And since only one of you didn't vote for her so it's the majority, only she will be punished as the blackened!" Monokuma laughed evilly.

The other teens had stepped off their podiums and clustered around the dead girl walking. You walked closer to the others in time to hear Kaede explaining why she tried to kill the mastermind rather than just capture them. "If it hadn't been for the time limit, I probably would've done that... But the time limit meant that capturing the mastermind was less likely to happen, y'know? 'Cause the mastermind could have just played dumb to run out the clock and kill us all. I...was worried about that happening."

"So you sought to kill the mastermind, instead?" Korekiyo asked.

"I had made my mind up just before we set up the cameras in the library," she answered with guilt laced in her tone. "I thought it was my last chance to save everyone... I couldn't let that chance pass me by. I had to save everyone, no matter what."

"Even if you had to kill someone?" Kokichi questioned her with a finger up to his lips.

". . . That's right . . . I thought that killing the mastermind was our best shot at escaping this place together." The girl started crying. "I...really believed it, too..."

"Oh, Kaede...it never dawned on you? As soon as that thought entered your head, Monokuma had you right where he wanted. Because what mattered most to Monokuma is that the killing game started." He took his hands back down from his head and looked away. "Regardless of your reasons, the moment you felt the urge to kill, you had already lost. You agreed to be part of this killing game when you allowed murder to fill your heart."

"W-Wait. To put it like that..." Tsumugi trailed off.

"But he's not wrong," Miu spoke up. "She's the reason the killing game finally started."

"But...if Kaede hadn't done anything, we'd all be dead by now..." Tenko tried to defend her.

"Kaede save everyone... We no can blame her," Gonta added.

"I know! You don't need to remind me!" You turned back to Kokichi, frightened when you saw water starting to gather up in his eyes. "That's why I'm so...p*ssed off! P*ssed off at myself for being so...so useless!" Something inside of you began to hurt. I wonder if I should do anything... Wait, what the hell? You tried to smother the thought.

"Kokichi...that's enough. I can see through your act," Shuichi said after letting out a short sigh.

". . . Whoops. That obvious, huh?" The purple-haired male was quick to wipe away his tears and put his hands up behind his head, giving a mischievous smile. You frowned a little. Lies, lies, lies. Cut the sh*t, you little sh*t. You tried to wrap your head around everything that was going on at once, so much so that you accidentally tuned out of what everyone else was saying...until you heard Monokuma announced something.

"But we can't let this boring display grind the action to a halt, so...time to make things interesting."

"Make things...interesting?" Shuichi repeated, slowly getting anxious.

"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for! Punishment Time!" the bear cackled.

"P-Punishment...? You mean...Kaede's execution!?" Tenko shouted.

"N-No friggin' way! There's no way we'll let you do that!" Kaito retorted.

"Exisals Assemble!" the Monokubs shouted out. They all got into the Exisals and surrounded everyone. You heard someone scream.

"Punishment Time is a sacred segment. You're not allowed to interfere," Monotaro said protectively.

"And if ya even try to interfere, we'll just crush youse wit' these here Exisals!" Monosuke added.

"I-It's cruel, but...it's probably better if one person dies instead of everyone..."

"Like hell am I just gonna sit here and do what you say!" the Ultimate Astronaut countered. He was in a defensive posture, with his arms up and knees bent ready for a fight. "Kaede fought with her life on the line! And so will I!"

"Gonta will face you all! Times like this are why Gonta became strong! Gentlemen never back down, and neither will Gonta!"

"Th-This is the perfect chance to test out my Neo-Aikido skills on machines!"

"Y-Yeah!" Shuichi followed. "I'll help! I can—"

"Everyone, stop!!!" All eyes turned to who just shouted, Kaede. "Please...just stop. Enough you guys... I've...already prepared myself." Tears slowly rolled down her face, but a sad and guilty smile stayed came with it.

"You're...giving up?" Shuichi slowly asked. "But why...? You said...you'd never give up... That we'd get out of here together. That's what you said, Kaede... So why are you giving up now!? Did you mean what you said!? I know we can do something! Don't give up until the end!" You could only watch as tears started to form in the detective's eyes as well. It was just a whole crying festival.

"...I'm not giving up. Because I have you. Even after I'm gone...my wish will still be here. So I'm counting on you all! I'm entrusting my wish to every one of you! I believe in you! I believe that you all will make it through this, somehow!" The female started screaming. "You guys better live! Don't go dying on me now! End this ridiculous killing game, survive, and get the hell out of here! And then...be friends after you escape, okay? I think you'll all be the best of friends." Everyone agreed, most with tears in their eyes.

"Now then...let's get this started," Monokuma said oh-so casually. Like he'd done it fifty two more times already. "I have a special punishment for the Ultimate Pianist, Kaede Akamatsu!"

"W-Wait, wait a second!" Shuichi cried out in utter despair. "Kaede, please, don't..."

"Shuichi, you better not lose. You can't lose to this killing game! I know you can beat it!"

"Let's give it everything we've got! It's... PUNISHMENT TIIME!"

The pianist turned to everyone, a mix of emotions stronger than ever visible on her expression and the way she spoke. "I believe in you guys! So please, believe in yourself! ...Okay? It's a promise."

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

Word Count: 5053
~~~

First trial done...hngggg, for the other chapters I take only a few hours to complete but the trial chapters together probably took me like two weeks to finish. I hope you all can accept the way I have written these last two chapters, and can forgive me for writing this so terribly. And also...as of the time I'm writing this little end note, I have 11k views...! So, thank you all so SO much!! You all are...probably tired of hearing that, but I just don't think I can ever thank you all enough! Really, I don't deserve you all! ^-^