Author Note:

Last minute killer predictions, anyone?

_____

"What?..." I questioned aloud, having no idea what just happened.

"Is Pix... dead?" Hana stepped back from what she saw in horror.

"Nope," Prisha pushed her glasses up. "She's just napping during the class trial."

"We just witnessed a god damn death..." Leo muttered under his breath, ruffling his hair. "So much for getting out of here with some sanity left."

"It was a nice thought," I said, before turning to the frog. "So, what do we do?"

"You're all given thirty minutes to investigate, preferably the Island Restaurant, before the trial resumes." The frog told us. "Chromesuki and I need to confront our creator for some advice on how to judge this trial."

"How do we get back up?" Naomi questioned.

"The elevator," The frog pointed at an elevator behind his throne-like. "It's only used for emergencies, so this is best time to use it. You can go back and forth between here and the trial room to investigate until time runs out."

* * *

"I guess we should check out the body like we always do," I suggested to Prisha. "I wonder if there's a Chromesuki File?"

"Oh, there is," The cyanette showed me her ChromePhone.

Victim's Name: Pixie Wright

Victim's Talent: Fashion Designer

Victim's Age: 18

Victim's Height: 5'5

Victim's Weight: 130 lbs.

Victim's Time of Death: 1:57 pm

Victim's Cause of Death: Poisoning

Victim's Wounds: N/A

"Poison?" I looked up from Prisha's ChromePhone. "That's a new one."

"Eh. It makes sense." The cyanette shrugged. "Pix is probably dumb enough to drink poison, assuming she drank it accidentally."

"But how would that even happen in the first place?" I questioned. "Wasn't someone with her the entire investigation?"

"Murdering someone during the investigation is pretty smart on the killer's part." She wiped her glasses clean. "But it's also pretty fucking stupid."

"How so?" I asked, squatting down to looked over the fashion designer's body.

"Think about it," She adjusted her glasses. "Poison comes from the infirmary inside the Island Restaurant. Unless the killer happened to be carrying around poison, which seems unlikely since Nona's murder involved force, we could easily ask if anyone left their post during the investigation to determine who poisoned her."

"I guess that makes this case pretty easy, then?" I said aloud.

"No, it doesn't," Prisha corrected me. "The motive benefits two people. Since most people investigated in groups of two, it just makes giving someone an alibi easier."

"Oh," I sighed. "You want to go investigate the Island Restaurant before the trial starts back up?"

"Sure, why not?" She agreed.

* * *

Prisha and I entered the Island Restaurant and checked the cabinet for it's poison. As expected, there was one liquid poison bottle that had been opened.

"It says that it kills within forty to sixty minutes of consumption." I read the label.

"Pix must have been poisoned during the investigation then," She told me, no longer using the nickname she had given the victim.

"I don't think there's anything else we can collect until the trial," I looked around trying to find more evidence.

"What about an alibi from Nash?" She asked me in a whisper. "I'm not saying he did it, but it would be helpful to have an alibi for him up until Nona's death."

"I think he left after the party ended, so maybe he was just in his room with the others?" I guessed.

"We won't know until he says something," The girl told me. "Let's get back to the trial room."

* * *

"All rise again, because the Class Trial is back in session," The frog sounded unenthused. "I talked with Chromesuki and our creator during the second investigation. We can a conclusion that only the killer of Nona will be punished, and the other killer will be grouped with the spotless."

"Doesn't that contradict the motive?" Cho pointed out to the mascot.

"No, our creator decided it was fair since the second death took place during the Class Trial," The robot replied. "Had Pix died during the investigation, it would count towards the motive."

"So if the motive counts," Leo was putting the pieces together. "Then that's means we have two separate killers."

"But only one of them is the blacken," Naomi finished the thought.

"Things just got a thousand times more fuckin' confusing than they already were!" Sergey shouted, not understanding.

"Should we start by eliminating everyone who definitely can't be the killer?" Hana suggested.

"Probably," Amari replied.

"Only Prisha, Leo, Sergey and I are clear," I told everyone. "We were all cleaning after the party and no one left the kitchen so we couldn't have pushed the bookcase."

"One of you could have still killed Pix," The stone skipper pointed out. "But, I guess we should focus on who killed Nona."

"It would be perferred to know who is a murderer and who isn't a murder," The artist deduced. "But like you said, finding Nona's killer decides whether we get to dir today or not."

"Alright so, we have only five suspects for people who could have killed Nona," Naomi did the math. "This shouldn't be too hard."

"Do you know how to count, Nekowomi?" The cyannette questioned her. "We have six suspects."

"Can we really suspect Nash, though?" The purple haired streamer was hesitate to accuse him.

"You were a suspect at Alren's trial," Prisha reminded her. "So Nash is obviously a fucking suspect at Nona's trial."

"I..." Naomi was taken aback by the mention of her brother. "I'm gonna need a minute..."

"It's not like you do anything anyways," The girl with glasses smirked. "We don't need you to solve this murder."

"Hmm," I thought to myself. "Who are our possible pairs for murder?"

"I don't think anyone on the suspect list has someone they would possibly pair up with," Hana looked down hopelessly. "Nona and Pix or Nona and Nash seemed like the mostly likely duo for the motive, but, well... Two of them are dead."

I thought to myself of the pairing that seemed most suspicious. It wasn't easy, but I think I had two people in mind to accuse in order to get the trial really going.

"Esprit. Amari." I named the people who seemed most likely to pair up on the suspect list. "Did you two do it?"

"No," Amari was quick to reply. "I didn't do it. I'm not sure about him, though."

"I do not recall committing any acts of murder while in this situation," Esprit defended.

"Are you sure?" I asked them.

"Yeah," The greenette answered without a second of hesitation.

"Indeed," The pinkette replied afterwards.

"Okay, so who's next?" I looked around for another pairing to blame.

"Saoirse," Prisha face palmed. "I know we unlimited time during the trial, but just asking people if they're the killer doesn't do anything."

"I'm not sure who to accuse," I explained. "No one is suspicious."

"Really?" She pushed up her glasses in disapproval. "You can't think of a single person here who has a rather suspicious alibi, other than Nash who has no alibi."

"Wait," I suddenly remembered the first investigation. "I do know of a suspicious person."

If I think back to the investigation, I remember one person's alibi that stuck out more than all the others. I have no clue if they are the killer, but accusing a suspicious person is a great way to find the actual culprit.

"Are you going to tell us or are you going to stare into oblivion for the next half an hour while you inner monologue?"

"Right, okay," I slowly turned my head in the direction of the most suspicious person. "Cho."

"What?" The surgeon glared at me in annoyance. "Why am I being bothered by your obnoxious presence?"

"You said you were in the library from the time the party ended to Nona's death," I reminded him. "And since we already concluded that the bookcase was knocked over, you have the highest chance of being Nona's killer."

"...what?" Nash spoke for the first time this entire trial. He looked up from the ground and glanced around the trial room.

"Ah," The plastic surgeon smiled menacingly. "So I've been caught. That took longer than I expected, but I suppose the ugly disgraces of this world aren't very intellectual."

"It was that easy?" Leo's eyes widened in surprise.

"Did you actually kill Nona, Cho?" Amari questioned the accused in disbelief.

"I killed Pix, too," He answered, still smiling. "My plan was to kill only Pix, but Nona got in the way so I killed both of them."

"What about the motive?!" Hana shouted. "Who's working with you?" She demanded to know.

"No one," He replied. "All of you are too hideous to be seen with me."

"What the actual fuck..." Nash angrily muttered, not completely understanding the trial.

"Well, since we've found the killer rather easily, I guess it's time for the best part of the trial," Prisha adjusted her glasses. "Execution..."

"Wait, are we absolutely sure that Cho is the killer?" Naomi questioned. "I mean, he just admitted it the first time we pointed fingers at him. Why would he do that?"

"This hideous world doesn't deserve my beauty," He bragged, not answering the question to anyone's liking.

"You dumbass fuckin' shit!" Sergey shouted at Cho. "How could you fuckin' take the life of two women?!"

"Only the beautiful survive in this world," The black haired man chuckled.

"Everyone is beautiful!" The mystery man argued with him. "Someone's appearance should be the reason you want them dead. Pix and Nona were both people with friends and family and you just mercilessly killed them both without a second thought!"

"It's very out of character for you to give an inspiring speech," The plastic surgeon pointed out. "Though, I suppose, it doesn't matter. This will all be over soon."

"Wipe that fuckin' smile off your face!" The mom-like man complained. "You're about to die!"

"Is that supposed to scare me in some way?" The other questioned. "I could say the same about you once the trial ends."

"All this arguing and these big words is probably the reason I slept through poetry class," I said aloud, hoping the pointless back and forth fighting would end.

"You slept through poetry class, too?" The artist asked.

"Imagine sleeping during class," Prisha mocked us. "Now stop standing around and move things along, Saoirse."

"Cho is the killer!" I shouted, hoping everyone would believe me. "Now, uhh, let's kill him."

"Huh?..." Naomi gave me a nervous look. "Saoirse, shouldn't you provide some more evidence as to why Cho is the killer? Like a confession, maybe?"

"Right, of course..." I mumbled, feeling a bit lost.

"The memories hurt, don't they?" The Mastermind asked me. "Everyone went through so much..."

"Yeah," I answered in reply. "We did."

"But you deserve to go through even more!" They excitedly told me. "I want to see how much pain you can handle before you snap."

"It hurts..." I cried in reply. "I don't want to see it anymore!"

"Too bad for you!" They laughed. "We have to finish this class trial, along with all the others!"

I winched in mental pain as the trial continued.

"Cho, you are the only one who was the library and you've admitted to killing both Nona and Pix," I told him. "But how did you do it? I need to know for the case summary I'll do later."

"Well, as you said earlier, I pushed the bookcase when Pix was beneath the chandler, though Nona stepped in the way and protected her." He explained. "And then I poisoned a glass of the punch and gave it Pix. She drank it because she thought I was being generous to her in her state of distress."

"...why would you..." The rock singer mumbled from his podium. He was still unaware of what was happening in his surroundings.

"I have a question," I found a hole on his argument. "How did you know when to push the bookcase if you couldn't see or hear anyone from library?"

"Lucky guess," He replied, though I had a feeling I'd debunked his argument.

"He's lying," Amari concluded from everyone. "He's not the killer."

"He's not?!" Sergey jumped in confusion. "But he fuckin' admitted it!"

"Yeah!" The stone skipper agreed. "Are you saying that he lied?"

"Yes..." The green haired person answered, though they were ignored.

"Obviously!" The artist yelled at the two in denial. "No one would just admit to being the killer without a fight."

"I am the killer-" Cho corrected everyone.

"Nope," Prisha told him. "Our jury has overruled your claims of being the killer."

"Our jury must really suck..." Leo muttered, before turning to me. "Who else can be the killer since it can't be Cho alone... If Cho really is the killer for Nona then he would have needed a partner."

"What if it was Pix?" The purple haired streamer suggested. "That could be why he killed her; to hide that evidence."

"But Pix was the target," Hana butted in. "It wouldn't make sense if Cho's target was his partner."

"Oh, yeah," Naomi sighed. "I can't think of anyone who doesn't have an alibi and could committed the murder."

"That's why I'm the killer," Cho chimed in.

"False," The cyannette disagreed.

"Your story doesn't make sense, Cho," I told him. "So, you're not the killer. At least not for Nona."

"Then who killed Nona?" Hana questioned everyone. "There's no way she did it to herself. The math doesn't work out."

"Like you could do math," The girl with glasses teased the stone skipper. "But, yeah. Nona couldn't have killed herself."

"...what's happening?" The blue haired rock singer seemed to come back to reality. "Why is it happening?"

"We're at a class trial," Leo was hesitent on speaking again. "The trial is for Nona and Pix..."

"Oh," It took him a minute to process everything. "Wait... Nona is... D-Dead?"

"Yeah," Naomi answered. "We're trying our best to find her killer-"

"FUCKING SHIT!" Nash abruptly shouted, as he grabbed his hair from stress.

"Why would you fuck shit, Nash? That's disgusting." The cyannette interjected, but she was ignored like Amari always is.

"I... I..." He started to cry before he even started his sentence. "I-I messed everything up!"

"How?" Amari asked, a little confused. "You've done nothing this entire trial."

"Your not exactly the most vocal person either," Nash insulted them, before returning to crying. "But... I... I..."

"You what?" Hana questioned. "We're listening to you Nash. You can tell us."

"I don't get it..." He stopped to wipe his tears. "Cho, why are you protecting me?..."

"Protecting you?" Cho let out a light laugh. "I'm protecting myself and myself only!"

"That's fucking b-bullshit!" Nash croaked. "I pushed the bookcase! I was there when I did it!."

"You were merely a lookout for the crime I committed," The surgeon told him. "I pushed the bookcase down on your sister."

"No, no, no!" The singer corrected the other. "I did... You said Pix was under the chandler, but Nona stepped in the way and... and... it fell on her."

"You're so traumatized you're memory is getting foggy." The black haired man concluded. "I killed your sister."

"NO!" Nash's voice turned to a high pitched scream. "You may have killed Pix, but... but... I killed Nona..."

I need this argument to stop so I can wrap up this trial. It's been drug out a bit, but the long awaited case summary is coming soon. I can feel it.

"I am obviously the killer. I've admitted to crimes multiple times. Nash is just panicked, but I am perfectly sane. What benefit would I gain from leading everyone to their deaths? Vote for me." Cho argued his case.

"No, I'm the killer! Cho is just covering for me, I think... I came to Cho and he agreed to commit murder with me but everything went horribly wrong! It was an accident... Please, believe me, Saoirse!" Nash argued against Cho's case.

Monocroak's. Announcement. After. Investigation.

"I know who the killer is!" I shouted, and the trial room fell silent. "It's Nash."

"How did you-" The surgeon was about to argue but he was interrupted.

"Yeah..." The singer nodded a little. "You're right."

"Now, I'm going to summarize this case so we can move on," I told everyone. "Due to the motive, I think, the culprit teamed up with someone else to commit a murder. While you can team up with another person to commit a murder normally, this motive added a special benefit that has yet to be revealed. With all of that set up, the two began to plan their crime. They decided to kill Pix with the chandler, by pushing the bookcase over. One killer would push the bookcase when the other would info the other from the staircase when Pix was under the chandler. When going to push the bookcase on Pix, Nona noticed the danger and threw herself in harms way for Pix. Pix, having witnessed the murder of Nona, set off a panic with her scream. Running low on time, the killer who had stayed on the stairs rushed to commit a murder, while the killer who pushed the bookcase realized the mistake they made. The investigation started shortly, and the second killer poisoned Pix hoping she would die in time for the motive to still be effective. The second killer managed to get Pix to drink poison, but it was too late. The trial started and the motive would later be declared ineffective and only the first killer would take the execution. Pix died from the poison during the class trial and another investigation took place. Once the class trial resumed, Monocroak told us that the motive was no longer in effect and only the killer of Nona would be executed. The second killer decided to protect the first killer, but despite their best efforts, the first killer was found. Isn't that right, Nash, The Ultimate Rock Singer?"

"Yeah..." Nash agreed with me. "You're right."

"I guess it's time to vote, then?" Monocroak guessed. "I'm just going to cry over all the deaths that happened this chapter while you kids vote." The frog sniffed.

Once again, everyone pulled out their ChromePhones to vote. Along with Suki, Ocean, Arlen, Eden, pictures of Nona and Pix with 'X's over them appeared on our screen.

Confident in my answer, I voted for Nash.

Then I waited for what came next.

_____

Author Note:

This is the longest chapter so far, and I am not very okay with that. The Deadly Life is almost as long as they Daily Life.