All of the survivors stood in their respective podiums. Eleven left. Monokuma began to do his regular explanation of the trial.

"Ahem! Now then, let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial! During the trial you'll present your arguments for who the culprit is, and vote for 'whodunnit'. Vote correctly and only the blackened will be punished. But if you pick the wrong person...I'll punish everyone besides the blackened, and that person will graduate from this academy! Also, refusing to vote will result in your death, so you better vote for someone! Now, smiles everyone! It's showtime! Let's get this crazy-awesome trial underway!"

"Sorry everyone, but I don't think I'm gonna be much help this time," Kaito spoke, rubbing his head sheepishly. "Because of Monokuma's...disruptions, I couldn't do a thorough investigation."

Kokichi already looked bored as he said, "I can tell Monokuma is overcompensating to hide this self-consciousness."

"..." Kokichi's already back to his normal self. You thought back to the look on his face when you cleaned up the blood from his pale face. He seemed...a bit confused. 'Why are you doing this for me?' you remembered him asking. 'A-Are... Are you okay with this...?' you remembered him muttering into your shoulder as he clung fiercely onto your arm.

Ah, right... I'm in a class trial going over the cases of two dead people. You quietly cleared your throat. You felt your cheeks warm up slightly out of shame, and you quickly snapped back into the conversation.

"...Who did it?" Himiko suddenly grumbled. She was glaring at everyone from underneath her hat. "Who killed Angie and Tenko?"

Korekiyo was quick to respond. "Do not let your emotions hasten your judgement. There may be two killers."

"So...our other culprit...might nooot be one of us heeere..." You could tell that Tsumugi was shivering. It seemed weird. Was she exaggerating it? Faking it entirely? Or was she really that sensitive?

"Hm? What do you mean?" Gonta asked.

"The traaansfer stuuudent..." the teen continued. "Maybe our resurrected transfer student...dragged Angie and Tenko into the grave..."

"S-Stop it! Stop making stuff up!" Kaito yelled at her.

"Kaito, you're acting like such a child over something you should know is impossible," you sighed.

"Say something, Shuichi," Maki practically hissed. "It'll be a mess if this keeps going on."

"This crime was committed by the recently deceased," Tsumugi started to go on. "They came back to life and killed two of our classmates!"

"Noooo!!!" Kaito shrieked.

"So...ritual did work!?"

"I don't think Angie's ritual succeeded," Shuichi butted in. "According to the Necronomicon Monokuma showed us, you have to burn the Necronomicon in the ritual. If Angie's ritual had succeeded, the book would have been gone."

"So she must have been killed before the ritual was complete since the book is still intact," Kiibo deducted.

"Then...Gonta think Rantaro probably not culprit."

"Oh...well, I guess you're right," Tsumugi responded.

"W-Well duh. There's no way a dead person could...r-resurrect."

"Says the guy who was basically screaming in terror just a minute ago," you spoke sarcastically.

"Now hold on a second!" Monokuma hushed everyone. "I can't let that comment stand! Sure, everybody knows that you can't bring the dead back to life... But it's easy at the Ultimate Academy! As long as you use the Necronomicon! And this is the truth. I never lie about motives."

Tsumugi tilted her head. "Oooh? So resurrecting the dead was actually possible this whole time?"

"Th-There's no way it's possible!"

"There's no way that could happen, idiots," Maki grumbled, sounding disappointed in the group. "Monokuma is trying to confuse us. Let's hurry up and find out who the blackened is."

"If our 'transfer student' isn't the culprit, then blame falls to one of us," Korekiyo stated.

"Who!? Who did it!?" Himiko's grip on her hat tightened.

"Himiko... Slow down and take it easy," you tried to tell her. "We'll be able to fond the truth easier if—"

"Step aside, half-pint!" Miu shouted at her, cutting you off. "I'll handle this! I dunno about Tenko, but I'm pretty f*ckin' sure Kiyo murdered Angie!"

"What...? Why?" the anthropologist questioned, clearly startled.

"Don't play dumb with me, creepshow! I already know what happened!"

Oh? Well...this sure is an interesting turn of events. You turned over to look at the male. You could sense some anxiety coming from him, despite his calm eyes.

"The culprit used a katana to kill Angie! And it was found in Kiyo's research lab! Which makes you, Kiyo, automatically suspicious!"

"But anyone could have taken that katana, you see," he replied defensively.

"So that rusty katana was the murder weapon... You were the only one who cared about that thing, Kiyo!" Kokichi teased.

"I did not care about some katana..."

"Just admit it, ya sh*t-eating worm! You went to the classroom, broke in...—"

"Hey, wait a second." Surprisingly, Tsumugi spoke up. "Before Angie locked herself in her lab, she said she wasn't going to open up for anyone but student council members. And since Kiyo isn't a student council member..."

"Then Angie wouldn't have let him in," Shuichi finished her thought.

"I had no desire to kill her in the first place."

"So whoever killed her musta been one of the student council members, yeah?" Kaito inquired.

Miu blushed. "I...I was doin' a bit to lead you to the right answer... Can't believe you actually got it..." she stammered.

"Yeah, right," you muttered.

"So, the remaining student council members are Gonta, Kiibo, Tsumugi, and Himiko," Korekiyo announced.

"Well, it can't be Himiko," Kokichi piped up. "She was besties with Angie. I trust their friendship! You guys do too, riiiight!?"

"...Can we trust their friendship so readily?" Kiibo asked cautiously.

"Obviously! Let's believe in them!"

"..."

"That trims our list of suspects down to three—Gonta, Tsumugi, and Kiibo."

"Yep, yep! The culprit is one of those three people!" Kokichi was acting way too enthusiastic. So enthusiastic that it was suspicious. Definitely...

"Aren't these accusations just a tad too hasty?" Kiibo asked again.

"Whatevs! The culprit should confess already! Gonta, Kiiboy, or Tsumugi! Well!?"

"N-No, not Gonta! Gonta would never kill Angie!"

"Yeah! Gonta's a gentleman! You shouldn't suspect either of us!"

"Hey! Stick up for me, too!"

"Gonta definitely not hurt anyone. Torture Gonta if you don't believe."

"T-Torture might be a bit too far... But Gonta and I aren't the culprits!"

"And I'm not the culprit either! Geez!"

This again, you immediately thought. You started to run through your memories for information.
***

"So that means, the culprit used the katana to move the sliding lock, right?" Kokichi questioned. "But wait, how did they move it with a katana? And from outside Angie's lab?"

"The clue that might give us the answer is the layout area itself. It was an odd setup after all," Shuichi replied. "The katana stabbed into the effigy, the effigies hung upside down..."

"Angie didn't do that as part of the ritual?" Miu asked.

"If you can think back to the Necronomicon," you spoke, "then you will recall that there was no step saying that you had to hang the effigies."

"If it was not part of the ritual...then it must have been for a different purpose, right?" Kiibo inquired.

"The reason the culprit stuck the katana into the effigy..." Shuichi started, "...was so that it would hit the sliding lock as the effigy spun!"

Gonta sounded confused. "Effigy...spun?"

"That's right. If you spun  the effigy, the rope it was hanging from would twist. Then, if you let it go, the rope would unwind, and the effigy would spin the other way. And of course, the katana would spin with it."

Kiibo seemed to light up a bit. "I see! So the culprit used the katana's counter-spin to push the lock into place!?"

"The culprit simply needed to spin the effigy's rope and then swiftly leave," Korekiyo added. "This would cause the spinning katana to hit the sliding lock... And thus was the back door of an empty classroom locked from the inside."

"And the lock was pretty loose," you quietly spoke. "The katana would be able to move the lock if it was positioned right. Not to mention that the culprit could try this trick multiple times until it locked."

"Which is why the culprit chose to strike at nighttime, as to avoid detection."

"The culprit probably used the murder weapon for this trick. It had to have been the right length to hit the sliding lock from the effigy," Shuichi claimed.

Maki had a finger up to her chin in thought. "The culprit couldn't find a blade long enough in my lab, so they settled for the katana."

"The other effigies were only hung up so we'd think it was some kinda ceremony. That way, we wouldn't notice the lock trick."

"But...Kokichi did say earlier that he could have picked the lock closed," Shuichi spoke. "I don't want to completely ignore that possibility..."

"...But...! You're going to say that you doubt the culprit would've done all this just for a distraction, right? Right?" You were speaking a bit too eagerly, but you couldn't help yourself. "Boom! In that instance, Kokichi is innocent! So then, his earlier confession was—"

"A lie!!" Miu barked. "Seriously!? You f*ckin' lied again!?"

"Cough it up, Kokichi!" Kaito also barked.

"Aw maaaan, you guys got me..." Kokichi whined. "Okaaay, I'm not the culprit..."

"You're telling the truth this time, right?" Himiko snarled, glaring at him from under her hat.

"I wanna say I'm lying, but I'm not."

"Sometimes your lies are too much," you grumbled. "D-Do you want me to slap you...!?"

"...I know I sure would like to," Maki spoke up. "Anyway... Kokichi, why would you lie about being the culprit?"

"I...think I have an idea. Kokichi, you were...trying to lure the real culprit out, weren't you...?"

"Ding ding ding!" The boy pointed some finger guns at you. "Wow, (Y/N), you really are catching onto my thinking patterns~ So you understand that if I pretended to be the culprit, then the real culprit would agree with me as well, right?"

"And if they pressured you to confess...then they'd definitely look suspicious."

"Sheesh! Darn it! It just didn't go my way because Shuichi butted in on my plan..."

The room was silent, until...

"Tch! You and your f*ckin' lies!" Miu's shrill voice cut through the air. "I dunno when you two got so mushy and close, but you gotta admit, (Y/N), that Kokichi just keeps f*ckin' up the class trials!"

The boy just tilted his head, poking a finger into his cheek. "How about I f*ck someone up instead? Or maybe...I could get a taste of my own medicine?"

Your body instantly jolted so you could see the small leader. "What."

"G...Go sit in the corner and play with yourself!" Miu sputtered.

"O-kay! I'll start right now!"

"Alright! So, who's the a**whole who set up this locked-room mystery!?"

"Miu..." Kokichi started to whine, "I can't hold it up anymore..."

"What's the matter!? You goin' soft on me now!?"

"Who made the locked-room mystery doesn't matter, since anyone could've done it. Don't you even understand something as basic as that, you filthy cum dumpster?"

You almost choked on air from that last part.

"C-Cum dumpster...!?" The inventor started to form beads of sweat on her forehead. "Finally...! Someone...finally called me a cum dumpster!!!"

"Wh-What should we talk about now...?" Gonta cut in, as if attempting to break the uncomfortable atmosphere that was forming.

"We must focus not on the locked room, but on who entered Angie's lab," Korekiyo announced. "Only one of the student council members—or Kokichi—could have gained entry. Therefore, the culprit must be among their number."

"...Wow, Kiyo. Is it just me, or are you a lot more confident with yourself...?" You tried to sound as innocent as possible. "'Whatever do you mean?' is what you're about to ask? I was only speaking up, since it seems like you are quite eager and talkative."

"In that regard, I guess I do feel confident about this particular case."

"So... That leaves us with four suspects... Tsumugi, Gonta, Kiibo...and Kokichi," Kaito spoke.

"Don't forget Himiko," Kokichi snapped. "She's also a part of the student council. Doesn't matter if she was besties with Angie, she's still a suspect."

"That contradicts what you said earlier, which I can prove using my recording function..."

"...It's fine," Maki said, coldly. "That's just a waste of time."

"Me? A suspect?" It was then that you realized that Himiko had not once pulled her hat back to look at someone normally since the beginning of the trial. That was until she furiously balled her hands into fists. "I'd...never kill Angie!"

"So calling all suspects, what should we discuss next? I want to hear everyone's opinion," Kokichi started. "What would you say to get yourself off the suspect list?"

Maki glared at him. "Why are you trying to lead the debate? You're a suspect, too."

"Silence, outsider! Only the Suspect Rangers are allowed to speak!"

"S-Suspect Rangers!?" Tsumugi repeated.

"I agree," Korekiyo chimed in. "Those under suspicion should explain themselves thoroughly."

"We might catch 'em with their pants down!" Miu cheered.

"Depending on who the culprit is, that might be psychologically traumatizing," you stated, half-joking.

After letting out a quiet giggle to himself, Kokichi went on. "Anywaaaay, I wanna ask the Suspect Rangers... What should we talk about!? What should we say to get ourselves off the suspect list!? Well, guys!? I wanna hear what you think!"

"U-Umm... That's sort of a difficult question, y'know?"

"Gonta not smart enough to know answer to that..."

"Y-Yes... It is difficult to formulate a logical response to that question."

Kokichi pouted. "Not articulate with words, huh? Don't you guys wanna prove your innocence?"

Kaito only scratched his head. "They don't trust you one bit and I don't blame 'em. You're probably plotting—"

"Why...did Tenko have to die?"

"Huh?"

Himiko was looking down at the ground. "I wanna know what happened to Angie, too, but... Can we talk about Tenko's case now and not just Angie's—"

"Mwah-hahahahaha! I got ya exactly where I wanted, Himiko!" Kokichi spouted out loudly.

"Nyeh? What do you mean?"

"The two victims could've been killed by two separate murderers, y'know? So we need to find the first blackened responsible for the first victim... We gotta figure out who killed Angie. Until we solve Angie's case, Tenko's case is meaningless! Did you suggest that to waste our ti—"

"It's not meaningless!" For being such a small girl, she really could yell out if she wanted to. It honestly scared you a bit. "Tenko's death was meaningless? How dare you! Poor Tenko... How could you do this to her!?"

"Himiko, stop it with your crappy lies. Everything you said is total BS." The supreme leader was oddly serious. "You didn't give two sh*ts about Tenko when she was alive... But now you're like, 'Oh, no! Poor Tenko!' after she's dead. C'mon, really?"

"Kokichi! Enough!" Gonta demanded.

"No...it's okay. It's no surprise he'd think that. I know I ignored Tenko before... That's why...I'm so upset now... I should've faced Tenko...worked things out with her while she was still alive. But now...it's too late. I can't complain to her...or thank her... It's...too la—"

"Yeah, seriously!" Kaito cut in. "It's way too late to realize that now! Our only option is to face her death head-on! Himiko... I understand what you're going through. So I'm gonna help you out! Let's work together to find the truth! I'm not gonna let anyone say her death didn't matter!"

"K-Kaito...! Alright! I'll put a silencing curse on whoever calls Tenko's death meaningless! The name of the curse is...Death Curse!"

"Listen up! All you guys are gonna help me out too!" Kaito's voiced boomed loudly and confidently throughout the courtroom. "Abandoning someone who died and only thinking about your own survival... That's just as bad as a hit-and-run! I won't forgive something so messed up!"

'The culprit must be silently cursing at this conversation right now... Hah.'

Kokichi frowned at what the others were saying. "I already told you, that's sooo unnecessary. We're getting sidetracked here."

"No, even if it was a different culprit, we need to know how Tenko died. If we don't figure out who killed her, we won't be able to work together. Not now, not ever. Even if this trial isn't for her, in order to survive... We need to get to the bottom of Tenko's death! Not just to survive this trial! But so we can keep going and live on!"

"Finally, you noticed!" Kokichi purred, placing a finger up against his lips. "Geez, you're so slow..."

"Huh?" Gonta questioned. "Did Kokichi want us to notice—"

"Don't listen to his crap," Maki cut him off. "We haven't decided whether there were two culprits yet."

"Let us talk about Tenko's case, then," Korekiyo spoke. "Perhaps that will provide us a clue."

"Y-Yeah, maybe..." Shuichi mumbled.

Shuichi and I must be thinking the same thing...about the sudden topic change. Your eyes quickly shot up to Korekiyo. Do you have something to hide, hmm? Well, to be honest, it wouldn't surprise me if he killed someone...

"Let's see if we can narrow down the list of suspects," Kiibo spoke.

"Tencrotch probably got killed during the seance, so everyone there's suspicious!" Miu snapped.

"It was me, Kiyo, Himiko, and Kokichi," Shuichi mumbled.

"So those four are the culprits!"

"Oh... Himiko still culprit?" Gonta asked.

Kokichi rested his hands on the back of his head. "Well, that's probably just a coinky-dink. The most suspicious out of the four is really...Kiyo! He suggested the whole seance idea!"

Korekiyo remained calm as he replied, "True, I may have suggested it. But I explained the procedure beforehand, yes? If we all knew of it before the murder, then we are all equally suspicious. In addition, the seance wasn't entirely in my control either. I was not the one who selected the room we performed it in. It was Himiko..."

Himiko stayed silent.

"...Hey," you spoke up. "You're making yourself seem a bit suspicious—to me, at least—when you throw Himiko under the bus while trying to clear some of the blame off of you."

"I didn't hear you speak up when Kokichi threw me into the spotlight, however..." He looked at you in the eye. He seemed calm, but you could sense a small bit of warning in his gaze. "You best be careful with the words that you so carelessly let run out of your mouth, (Y/N)..."

"Can (Y/N) really be hypocrite...?" Gonta asked softly.

Your face heated up a bit. Sweat threatened to form on your forehead. You glanced over at Kokichi, instantly deciding to look at Korekiyo once again when you saw the small boy already returning your gaze. "I..." you trailed off.

"...Am the worst hypocrite ever? A big, fat liar."

You quickly clasped your hands over your mouth. You felt some of the others were giving you a confused look.

"It's okay..." Himiko mumbled.

"And besides, (Y/N)," Korekiyo continued, "you didn't even wait to hear all that I wanted to say. I was going to add on that we should not limit our suspects to only those who participated in the seance. The empty room had a point of entry from outside, you see."

Another point of entry...? I never saw that...

"...You're talking about under the floor, right?" Shuichi asked.

"Huh? Under the floor?" Kaito asked.

"There's a crawlspace under the floor that a person could move through. There was also a hole that connected it to the neighboring room."

"If the culprit used the hole, they could've entered and exited the seance room," Maki spoke.

"If we consider that possibility, then there is another suspect."

"Another suspect?" Tsumugi questioned. "Who?"

"As if someone could've entered, killed someone, and left without being noticed," you grumbled.

"Kehehe..." the anthropologist chuckled. "Oh, but it's all appearing clear before me... Oooh! I can see it very clearly!" He spread out his arms, and he was probably smiling underneath the mask. "The true identity of Tenko's killer!"
***

"Tenko wasn't sitting down inside the cage," Shuichi remarked. "She was bent over with her forehead on the marker stone, and the cage itself was about three feet tall. The sickle's blade was too short to reach Tenko while she was in the position."

So the culprit couldn't crawl through the floor, and they certainly didn't attack when the cloth was being lifted. You were trying to wrap your head around everything. Alright then.

"Then...I messed up again?" Miu whimpered. "How could this happen? I'm so embarrassed..."

"No worries, Miu!" Kokichi chirped. "Everyone already knows you're an embarrassment to the human race!"

"Yeah!" Gonta smiled. "No worries!"

"And can you please stop moaning during the class trials?" you asked the inventor.

"Heeeeeeee!" she squealed. "How...how embarrassing!"

You stared blankly off into the distance. "...I went to high school for this." You heard a quiet snicker at your side, already knowing it was Kokichi. You didn't know why, but it made you smile a bit. Just a bit.

"If Shuichi is right," Kiibo continued with the trial, "then it's impossible for Tenko to have been killed through the cage."

Kaito tilted his head a bit. "She couldn't have been killed during the seance since she was in the cage, right?"

"If she was killed then, the cloth over the cage would have been pierced," Korekiyo stated.

"Not during the seance or from below the floor... Then it's impossible, isn't it?" Tsumugi spoke.

Kokichi smiled casually. "...Yeah, for a living person." He then put a finger up to his lips, a sly glint to his eye. "Nishishi... What if Angie's spirit killed Tenko?"

"Wh-What are you talking about!?" Kaito sputtered. "Th-Th-That's not possible!"

"I can't believe that you're actually proposing the idea that a spirit could have committed murder..." You sighed quietly and rubbed your temples a bit.

"Some things are impossible for a human, but not for a spirit," Kokichi responded. "The possibility is still there."

"D-Don't say stupid stuff like that! S-S-Screw spirits!"

"..." Himiko's face darkened. "Angie's spirit...killed Tenko...? Wh-Why...? Why would Angie's spirit kill Tenko?"

"What if Tenko killed Angie, and then Angie's spirit came back for reven—"

"Like I said, that's impossible! Spirits can't be culprits!"

"Then explain to everyone how the culprit killed Tenko under these impossible circumstances."

"W-Well, uhh..."

"See? You can't explain, can you? Only a spirit could have done th—"

"W-Wait!" the astronaut suddenly sputtered. "What if the culprit was hiding inside the cage? If they were in there, they could have stabbed Tenko while the seance was going on!"

"I agree with Kaito," Maki suddenly said. "The culprit could have been inside the cage."

"Nonsense. There was no space in the cage for the culprit to hide in," Korekiyo stated.

"Maybe the culprit wouldn't need to hide in the cage. Also, the culprit could've killed her in the cage at any time."

"I...believe Maki is referring to Tenko herself," Shuichi spoke after a bit of a pause.

"Nyeh!? What did you say!?"

"...She committed suicide. If she committed suicide, it would explain a lot of things we couldn't figure out." Maki looked over at Tenko's podium. "She volunteered to be in the cage, and then stabbed herself during the seance. It wouldn't matter how dark the room was."

"But the sickle she was stabbed with was under the floor, right?" Miu snapped. "If Tenko had stabbed herself, wouldn't the sickle still be inside the cage?"

Kokichi's eyes widened, a shocked expression taking over his face. "O-Omigod! Miu actually said something smart!"

"Perhaps that would explain why the floorboard was removed," Korekiyo commented. "After stabbing herself with the sickle, she threw it underneath the floor."

"Th-This doesn't make sense to me!" Himiko suddenly yelled out.

"What reason would Tenko even have to want to give up her own life...?" you inquired. "I don't think she really had any reasons to do so...or at least, not good ones."

"Yeah! Why would she kill herself if she had no reason to do it!?"

"Maybe I wasn't too far off with the theory I had earlier... Y'know, about Tenko killing Angie?"

"Nyeh?"

"Because Tenko and Angie were fighting for your attention, right?" the boy continued. "Tenko's pent-up frustration led her to commit such an atrocity... Her consciousness couldn't handle it anymore, so she decided to take her own life."

"But...if she was going to kill herself, why do it during the seance?" Kaito asked.

"She wanted to hide the truth of her suicide. There could only be one reason to hide it in a killing game, right?" Kokichi suddenly had an ominous look on his face. The shadows from his bangs only helped to enhance the look. "It's to take us all down with her."

"Take...us...down...?" Himiko repeated in a whisper.

"She wanted us to pick the wring answer during the class trial...so that she could bring us all down! She wanted us to die with her!" He then snapped, "Okay, well, she probably just wanted Himiko to die with her. But still..."

"Wh-What are you saying? Tenko...wasn't like that. She told me... 'Keep your chin up and live life facing forward! Survive with me and everyone else!'"

"What if it was all just a lie?"

"A lie...?"

"Wait!" Gonta spoke up. "We should believe Tenko's last words!"

"I... I'm sorry, but Kokichi does have a point here," you joined in. "We can never be sure if what we hear is the truth or a lie..."

Korekiyo simply looked down at his outfit, starting to pick at a few things on it. "Yes... The true terror of class trials is that you shouldn't believe everything said."

"Himiko, you said that Tenko would never do something like that... But how can you be so sure? Did you two actually know each other? People keep all sorts of secrets." Kokichi glanced over to Maki. "Just like Maki. She hid the fact that she's a cold-blooded killer. Is it wise of us to trust other people wholeheartedly in this kind of situation?"

Kaito rubbed his head and looked down at the floor. "Geez..." he huffed, "you're such a naive dude."

"...Naive?"

"We're all just people, you know? Of course we're gonna have some secrets. What matters is whether or not they have any malice behind 'em."

"But people can lie about how malicious their hidden secrets really are," Kokichi responded with a blank face.

"Well, duh. It's impossible to know for sure what others are thinking. That's why it all comes down to whether or not you believe in yourself!" A confident look spread across the astronaut's face. "If you get betrayed, it's not their fault! It's your fault for believing in them!"

For some reason, you thought that you could see Kokichi's lips turned slightly upward. He looked...content. "Well, we come from different backgrounds. So for right now, let's agree to disagree. No one's ever called me naive before. And from Kaito? Seriously?"

"Whether or not I believe..." Himiko started, voice shaky. "My heart...can't reach Tenko anymore... But I wanna believe in her... She wouldn't commit suicide! She wouldn't try to take us all down! That's...what I want to believe!"

"Me too. Gonta no can believe Tenko commit suicide."

"But if Tenko did commit suicide, that would all of our questions," Maki reminded everyone.

"If you insist that we believe in Tenko," Korekiyo spoke, "then I suggest that you provide a reason to do so."

"Alright...I'll give you a reason," Shuichi cut in.

"...Is there a reason?" Maki asked in a flat tone.

"Yes, there is. Will you trust me, Maki? If it turns out I'm wrong, you can blame me all you like. But...for now...I need you to trust my detective work." He paused a bit, lost in thought. Maki sure wasn't responding to him with the frown on her face, so he had no distractions. "I'll make them all believe!" you heard him mutter.
***

"So what made the floorboard come loose!?"

"Judging from the sound that we are talking about, there must have been considerable force."

"Someone who participated in the seance...maybe that person tore off the floorboard?"

"That wouldn't make such a loud crashing sound!"

"Maybe the wooden statue fell over."

"But that statue was still on top of the cage!"

"Culprit hide under floor...then stood up, with such might!"

"But we already said there was no one under the floor!"

"Someone must have stomped through the floorboard!"

"Kokichi, you're exactly right," Shuichi announced. "The floorboard came loose because someone stomped on it."

"But floorboards fit perfect. Gonta make sure first time we go to empty room...!"

"When we first saw the room, yes. But when I looked again during the investigation, one of the crosspieces supporting the floorboards was cut off. After I examined the cut, I could conclude that it must have been done deliberately."

"Someone as in the culprit, right? Why would they do that?" Katio inquired.

"What would the culprit have to gain by cutting the cross piece?" Korekiyo asked the detective.

You hummed. "Hey, is it just me...or does this sound like it was used as a..." What are those things...? I've never actually been on one...

"Do you mean...a seesaw?"

"Oh, yeah... Right."

"Nyeh? A seesaw?"

"The crosspiece at one end of the floorboard had been cut off. The other two crosspieces holding up that board were close to the edge."

"So that means that if you were to apply force on the end of the floorboard without a cross piece," you started, "...the entire floorboard would basically turn into a lever."

"Yes. A lever that would be capable of lifting up Tenko's entire body."

"Her whole body...lifted up?" Maki's tone revealed that she couldn't really believe it.

"Yeah, that sounds like a seesaw, alright..." Miu commented. "But why bother lifting Tenko's body?"

"They couldn't kill Tenko like that unless they used the sickle," Kaito spoke.

"That's exactly it," Shuichi announced. "Using the seesaw trick, it was possible to kill Tenko with the sickle."

Tsumugi tilted her head to the side in a confused manner. "Huh? How?"

"In order for the culprit to kill Tenko with the seesaw trick...the placement of the sickle is the most important factor. The sickle was at the top of the iron cage, with the blade facing down. The reason we didn't see it was because of the fabric that was covering the cage. Also, the wooden statue kept the blade in place. It is true that the sickle's handle was thick, which made the statue wobble but the statue's weight kept it from falling over. Once everything was in place, if you stepped hard enough on the seesaw, Tenko's body would have shot upward and hit the blade on the top of the cage. Since she was bent over, the sickle's blade would have connected with her neck."

"The six inch blade wasn't long enough to stab Tenko in her crouched position," Maki commented. "But with the floorboard acting as a seesaw, it could compensate for the blade's length."

"Bringing the victim to the sickle, rather than bringing the sickle to the victim... That's definitely an unorthodox idea!" Kiibo exclaimed.

"Yeah," you piped up. "I don't think that anyone would have expected for someone to commit murder with a something that you would find at a children's playground area." You smirked a bit to yourself, knowing that you probably made the culprit feel just a little bit embarrassed."

"The idea is crazy," Kaito said in agreement, "but it would explain how Tenko got stabbed while she was in the cage."

"So the sound we heard was the culprit stomping on the floorboard."

"That impact make floorboard come loose."

"Looks like we got ourselves a good ol' fashioned seesaw homicide," Miu chirped. "...Wait, what the hell's a seesaw homicide!? That's f*cking crazy!"

"The craziness is what really makes the killing game fun, y'know?" Kokichi had that creepy look on his face again... "They can't get away with murder the normal way, so they gotta think outside the box. Kudos, culprit! You did a great job keeping me entertained!"

"Indeed..." Korekiyo glared from under his hat that shadowed his eyes. "Well played, Himiko."

"Nyeeeh?"

"Kehehe... It was you, wasn't it? The one behind the seesaw homicide?"

"Huh? Why her?" Gonta asked, confused.

"Because she's the only one capable of carrying out this plan..." the anthropologist replied.

"The only one? Why's that?" Tsumugi asked.

"Because this seesaw homicide required its location to be prepared beforehand."

Kiibo seemed to understand what the male was hinting at. "By cutting the crosspiece beneath the floorboard, you mean?"

"Then the culprit would need to lure their victim into the prepared room. That is why you chose that room for the seance, is it not, Himiko?"

"Oh yeah!" Miu piped. "Himiko was the one who chose the site for the seance!"

"..." The girl looked down at the floor.

"She likely found out about my plans for the seance somehow."

"You were quite vocal about the seance, Kiyo. You even had instructions for it in your lab," Kiibo noted.

Korekiyo began to explain. "Our culprit, Himiko, prepared her seesaw trap ahead of time... Then she waited for me to host the seance, and suggested the middle room. She led us all into holding the seance right where she wanted it. Then...she killed Tenko. All according to plan."

"Th-That's a lie, right?" Tsumugi nervously held onto her arm while sweating a bit. "Himiko...did such a thing?"

"..."

Kokichi bit on his nail as he began to speak. "In the end, Himiko, who Tenko cherished and loved, tragically killed her..."

Gonta started sweating. "W-Wait!" he exclaimed. "We don't know that, right!? Himiko! He's wrong, right!? Himiko would never kill Tenko, right!?"

"Kill... Tenko...? I...killed Tenko?"

"Himiko...?"

"What's wrong, Himiko?"

"..."

"Answer us, Himiko," Korekiyo demanded. "You chose the middle room to lure us into your trap, did you not? Then you used that trap to kill Tenko, yes?"

"..."

"Well, donkey-lips!?" Miu barked. "Did you kill that twat!?"

"Why would Himiko want to kill Tenko?" you asked the group. "Come on. If we're going to accuse someone then we have to do it right... I think that you all are forgetting to think about the motive that she would have." You looked over at the girl. "Himiko... Defend yourself before it's too late. Explain why or how you couldn't have done it..."

"..."

"I don't care if you gotta use your magic or whatever to do it, but just say something already," Kaito told her.

"..."

"...Are you even listening?" Maki asked with an edge to her tone.

"No. I'm not listening..." she finally responded. "I...don't care anymore... I'm too tired... Angie died... Tenko died... Why did I have to survive? And now...you're all saying that I killed them...? I just...don't care anymore..."

"Himiko..." Shuichi mumbled.

You opened your mouth to say something more, but nothing came out. Any and all things that you were planning on saying had completely disappeared.

"Do whatever... If you want to vote for me, then just...go ahead."

Kokichi grumbled. "The game gets really blah if the suspect isn't into it," he whined.

"That's not the problem!" Tsumugi scolded the boy.

"Dammit... Don't tell me you've given up!"

"Himiko, don't give up!"

"Don't you understand? My life is riding on the outcome of this trial!"

"Just...shut up. I told you, I'm too tired..." Himiko quietly let out an exhausted sigh. "It's all just...a big pain... I can't put up with it anymore..."

"Wh-What are you talking about!?" Kaito questioned. "If you give up here--"

"You needn't worry," Korekiyo cut the other male off. "Himiko is the one who chose that room. Therefore, she is unmistakably the culprit."

Kiyo...! You tilted your head to the side, looking at him through the corner of your eyes. "You out of all of us seem to be the most insistent about her being the culprit... You threw her under the bus when you were in the spotlight, and now you don't even look like you feel any sympathy for her... You are starting to make yourself look suspicious..." Everything came out as a low grumble--one that was too quiet to be heard by anyone else. But you did noticed that the male finally caught onto your harsh gaze.

"U-Unpossible! Himiko would never kill Tenko!" Gonta sputtered. "Himiko not that kinda person! Gonta can tell by Himiko's face!"

"Himiko is...a little slow," Maki admitted, "so I don't think she's capable of handling a complicated crime."

"I also think Himiko's not the culprit!" Tsumugi chirped. "Um...somehow..."

"Either way, we gotta look for more possibilities!" Kaito announced.

"Kehehe... That does seem like a rather pointless quest," Korekiyo spoke.

"No, is not. We gotta be strong. Gotta keep thinking. Then we might find new truth. So no give up, Himiko!"

"Performing the seance in that room..." the anthropologist started, "was Himiko's decision, was it not?"

"What if someone steered her into picking that room?"

"Of the three empty rooms...why did you select the middle one, Himiko? Because you laid your trap there?"

"Was trap only in that room? Other rooms mat be trapped, too!"

"Yes, Gonta!" you suddenly called out. "A-Ahem..." You cleared your throat, composing yourself. An embarrassed blush was barely visible on your face, but you decided you should ignore it. "...You're right. All of the rooms were the same, they were all trapped. Tell them, Kokichi...!"

"..." Kokichi looked like he had fallen asleep standing upright.

"Uh... Erm..." You began to sweat a bit on the back of your neck.

The boy suddenly jolted awake. "I'm being waaay too careless about this!" he rushed his words upon waking. "Eh, wait. What are you talking about? Oh, sooorry, (Y/N)!"

"Ahem... You were in the room next to the crime scene and found that loose floorboard, right?"

"Well... I didn't find it so much as I stepped through and tripped." He smiled brightly at you. "Thank goodness you helped to take care of my injury! Shuichi wasn't offering to help like the good boy he normally is, and Maki was just trying to pry information out of me before I possibly passed out..."

Some beads of cold sweat formed on the detective's forehead, while Maki just gave him a spite-filled glare.

"Whaaa--! Hold on! There was also a loose floorboard in the next room?" Tsumugi inquired.

"So the culprit prepared a trap in all three empty rooms, not just the middle one," Kiibo declared.

Maki finally looked away from Kokichi to begin speaking. "If the culprit set traps in all the rooms, then they wouldn't need to select a room themselves."

"So the real trap was for someone else to pick a room and take the blame!" Kaito exclaimed in sudden realization.

"..." Korekiyo's eyes widened before reverting back to their normal state. "I see... We were caught in the culprit's trap all along."

"Especially you!" Miu shouted.

"But...now there's no reason to suspect Himiko! Right!?"

Himiko stayed silent, still looking down at the floor where her gaze had been locked.

"Himiko..." Shuichi mumbled, "do you remember what Tenko told you? 'Live life facing forward.' She said that to you, right? If you give up on living...you'd be betraying her memory. We're...all trying to keep our promises to the dead. This trial... It's not just for our lives. It's for everyone who's died, as well. That why... That's why we can't give up! This is our responsibility! We live on!"

"...You're...right. Yeah... That's right... If I gave up here, I wouldn't be able to face Angie or Tenko..."

Gonta wore a bright, hopeful smile on his face. "That's right! So let's do our best!" he cheered.

"Nyeeeeeeh! Alright!" Himiko suddenly bounced up on her toes. She finally lifted her head back up. "I'm not gonna say it's a pain anymore! I won't give up! I'll fight alongside everyone and survive!"

"Do not say 'everyone.' After all, the blackened is still among us," Kiibo reminded her.

Kaito groaned in annoyance. "Geez. There you go killing the mood like usual. But damn! Well said, Shuichi!"

"Well anyway," Kokichi said, getting everyone back on track, "do you think the blackened this time has some sort of superpower?"

"Kokichi..." You furrowed your brows slightly at him. "What does that even have to do with anything we're talking about...?"

"Well, as a self-proclaimed expert of stepping through floorboards..."

"Kokichi..."

"Isn't it weird that no one stepped through that floorboard before the culprit used it?"

"Ah... That is a good point," Korekiyo spoke.

"It's because of the magic circle at the scene of the crime," Shuichi announced. "The floorboard in question was within the circle. That's why no one stepped on it."

"So the magic circle's purpose was to keep us away from the whole trick." Kokichi smiled at understanding it.

"That was part of the culprit's plans, too?" Kaito asked.

"There...!" you spoke up. "I've been a bit suspicious of this person for a while, but now... I'm a bit more confident in pointing the finger."

"...Oh?" Korekiyo's eyes were widened.

"I-I believe that the culprit is..." You had stuttered from the nervousness that came from accusing a fellow classmate--yet also from the thrill of it. I need to retry this. You gulped and opened your mouth.

"I believe that the culprit is...you!!" You pointed a shaky finger at Korekiyo Shinguji, the Ultimate Anthropologist.

Word Count: 7046
~~~

I finished this at nearly midnight on Friday; I have absolutely no f*cking idea how I managed to finish this chapter but I did— (Seriously, I needed 2000 more words and I ended up adding 3000)
I think it's because I started typing on my laptop. I had two screens, so I didn't have to switch between any apps, and I just type faster with a physical keyboard. And there were no other apps on my laptop that would take me away from work.