The next few days, a few flares of tension aside, passed without any major events. The group's search for a telephone booth did not bear fruit, the only bearing that was done was by Monokuma, and he was rather overbearing. With that hope dashed, Daimyon had had the freedom to make his own schedule for most of the days and needless to say he busied himself well. Above all, he socialised a lot, getting to know the newest Infinites and strengthening bonds with the others. When no one was available or he did not feel like it, he withdrew to his room and read Untethered to relax. It was a reading ritual of his to always start a book from the beginning, no matter where he had left it off previously. Though he never progressed much like this, the experience was deeper and much more enjoyable as he could immerse himself in the author's world from the first word. The structure of Untethered was, and he had never ceased to marvel in that, was delightfully experimental and inspired the poet to write similar material.

Come to think of it, he had no shortage of inspiration since he got to Axis Mundi. He wrote about his fellow Infinites, he wrote about their situation, heck, he even wrote about Monokuma. That was the silver lining he stuck to...and so far, it worked out well for him.

————

Behind closed doors, in Mary's room, the Infinite Streamer was getting worked up, her face blushing as she had to keep her voice down from the excitement.

"Oooh...Oh, nice...That's the good stuff, Daimy-doo, keep it going, yes~"

On this particular evening, Damyon was with Mary in her room, which was the one just next to his. The streamer sat on the bed with pen and paper in hand, while Daimyon paced back and forth around in the room his head tilted slightly up—his usual thinking posture.
“Your sight has butterflies in my stomach,
My heart flies with butterflies by the dozen
To the great blue sky, reddened by my fiery love for you!”

"Yes, yes, yes! Daimy-doo, you're amazing! Ooh, my maiden's heart can't take it!"

He thought up and spoke out the lines one after the other, dictating them to Mary who wrote them down in neat letters to the perfumed paper. They were composing a very special letter: that which confessed the woman's undying affection towards Caora. They were making good progress together and Daimyon almost chuckled just thinking about the reactions the small boy would have. Could he even read? Shaun would read it for him, if nothing else... The poet had not seen the pair too much in these last few days, they mostly stayed back from the tension surrounding Krista and the motive.
The violinist became somewhat of an unwilling VIP, always having the company of at least two people. Daimyon spent some time with her as per the schedule set up by Max Visser, the Infinite Police Officer—one of the new people he had recently got to know—and reassured the girl that she had nothing to fear from any of them. They had a pleasant time talking about music, puns and other relevancies.

Just when the poet decided he would seek out her company soon again, the screen on the wall came alive with an unmistakable voice.
“A body has been discovered. The patients have a limited time to collect evidence before being called into the court of carnage. Do your best everyone!”

The silence that returned after was a deeper silence than the one before. Even Daimyon's singing thoughts quietened as he struggled to place the sudden announcement. He looked at Mary and she looked at him, but neither found any semblance of calm in the other's eyes. The streamer's face turned pale, and her mouth was stuck in a grimace of apprehension.

Minutes passed in this frozen silence, and any attempt to break it was stifled as neither of them could form coherent sentences that were not panicky. Finally, Daimyon heard hurried steps echoing through the hallway outside and sprung to open the door. He saw Noel, who stopped for a moment upon seeing the poet.

“Why are you—” The reporter looked past him to ascertain that there was neither any room switching nor murder involved here. “—nevermind. You must have heard the announcement. I'm not one for tiptoeing around the truth: Mondatta died. We found his body in Aladdin's Palace. You go there, I have to notify the others.”

And with that, she was off, presumably towards the break room. Daimyon, muttering incoherently to himself in deep denial, looked back at Mary who was already upright and hurried out of the room.

"Mo-Mo-Mon...Mondatta?" Mary stuttered, holding the unfinished love letter with shaky hands. She dropped it in her room before she ran after Daimyon, panic overcoming her as she desperately tried to keep up with the taller man's stride. She didn't believe it, and how could she?
Mondatta was a monster straight out of a science fiction movie, how could he be killed? Mary then shook his head, groaning at the thought.
That's wrong... He was a gentle, kind monster that supported me when I was alone and didn't know anybody else. I need to see him, I want him to tell me he's just joking around!

They rushed through the resort gate, then into the long cave from the fountain. They did not need to go far before they found people: Marianne and a few others were already gathered around Davis who was kneeling in front of an illuminated stalagmite.
“Krista! But Noel said...”

Davis nodded towards the side. Daimyon's head turned and he spotted it: the light reflecting brightly from the unmistakable suit of armour.
“No...”
He started forward, but realised there was little reason. He could not check the robotic monk's vitals even if he tried and there were no injuries on him otherwise. He looked like he was merely...sleeping, in an unorthodox place. Maybe that was the case. He looked around: the Infinites just kept arriving, gathering around the scene like a funeral procession. Maybe, in the next moment, Mondatta would rise up, apologise for the scare and go meditate. Alas, vain hopes.

"Ah...Aah....AAAAAAHHHH!" Mary screamed her lungs out at the nightmarish sight, shaking her head and crying her eyes out. "It can't be, no! Noo!" The streamer ran right to Mondatta's corpse, and slammed her fists against his metallic chest. "Wake up, you jerk! Wake uuupp! WAKE UUUUUPP!"
She soon stopped banging, and her feet failed her as she slid against him, until she covered her face with her hands, sobbing silently. She now had to face a cruel truth: The Infinite Monk, a spiritual leader to them, was now dead.

As Daimyon watched Mary break down at the sight of her dead friend, he too had to realise...

...that some silver linings were simply too far to grasp.

Noel dashed out of the cave like a storm. She was no infinite free-runner, but her speed and movements were rather impressive still. Noel was proud that her military training had managed to stick. Before her confinement it had merely been useful to tail celebs, but in the game it had gotten her out of some sticky situations with carnage sisters several times. She passed the mono stand giving it nary a second glance. She went down the stairs three steps at a time and raced through the patient quarters and ran into Daimyon and Mary along the way. After quickly informing them, she quickly continued to the break room.

With a loud thud the door was kicked open by Noel’s mighty foot. She didn’t spare herself the time to see who was or wasn’t in the break room. People were there, that was enough for now. Everybody already was in a state of disarray, the body discovery announcement had clearly reached them. “Guys, it’s horrible.” She said and took a breather. “We found Mondatta, he’s dead in Alladin’s palace!” She continued, her tone was grave and demanding. “Krista is injured, too. I want everybody to go and investigate right this instant.” She mentally prepared herself for any questions thrown her way, but most of all she just wanted to return quickly.

---

Cyrus had kept himself busy during the uneventful days, though he had watched his back every moment of it. Some of his fellows were convinced nobody would murder for a phone, but Cyrus wasn’t so sure. Their group had been growing steadily, and with that the chance for a single loony to ruin it for the rest increased dramatically. He suspected nobody in particular, but everybody had their secrets. Only one person needed to have the wrong kind of secrets, that was how this game worked.

He had taken to exploring the unexplored. He visited the rooms in the hospital that nobody had bothered exploring yet. The only thing of note he had found so far was a password-locked computer. He had been trying to force himself in there, as surely there had to be something on there, but he hadn’t managed to just yet. He had been thinking of getting someone more… proficient in obtaining information to help him out.

But the day after he was going to be investigating something else.

His morning started in the break room with a nice cup of coffee… and ended with a body discovery announcement. Cyrus shot out of his chair as the announcement finished. ”What in the-“ He stammered. Who had been murdered? Where?

Luckily, before anyone had been able to mobilize the door was abruptly kicked in. It seems Noel was the bringer of bad news, how suitable for a reporter. Cyrus gritted his teeth at the news. Mondatta was a kind soul, but murdering that armoured monk could’ve been no small feat. He gave Noel a quick nod and ran off in the direction of the cave complex.

Cyrus arrived shortly after the Steamer and Poet. The Politian cursed under his breath. For a god damn telephone, what even. As Mary ran up and started hitting the monk’s suit, Cyrus grabbed her by the collar and pulled her backwards with full force. ”Hold it! I know this is bad. But we must preserve the scene at all costs! He said, staring at her with an expression of mixed sadness and anger. ”It’s okay to cry. But the greatest disservice we can do Mondatta is not catching his killer, alright?”

_BGM
Max and Felix were discussing their futile findings of the day in the break room. The tension these last few days was straining for Felix, trying to maintain your happy-go-lucky attitude while struggling to cope with Shona’s death and the constant threat that the motive presents really isn’t good for one’s health. Max had it a lot easier, considering he had witnessed plenty deaths already in his line of work, his experience allowed him to stay calm and focused on the task at hand, even though that task was the toughest one yet.

And then the announcement echoed through the room. Felix’s chair fell to the ground as he jumped out of it, a shocked and confused look entering his face. Max merely put a hand on his forehead.

“Wha-what!”

“Shit, already?”

“Stop screwing around Teddy!” Max grabbed Felix by his arm with considerable force before interrupting Felix.

“Calm down Felix, you knew it was only a matter of time. You’re no use to anyone in that state of mind.”

At that moment, Noel stormed in destroying any doubts and naming the victim.

“The monk?”

“Mondatta, his name is Tekhartha Mondatta.” Said Felix with a calmed but sad voice.

“Shit.” The monk was one of the more competent people here, strong, smart, compassionate, and unbreakable; yet the killer still got to him. Whoever did it must have been resourceful.

Felix had already run of towards the palace and Max followed his tail after finishing his thoughts and nodding towards Noel. The first thing Felix noticed was the crowd that surrounded Mondatta. He expected a mutilated corpse much like Shona’s but not a single injury could be found. It almost looked as if the robot monk was still alive, but the announcement made it more than clear.

“Goddamnit! Who the hell kills for a stupid phone call that could be fake anyway! Some fucking Idiot here actually thought that it was worth killing Mondatta just for that! Who did it! Who did it huh? You’re not gonna get away with thi…”

Felix was interrupted by a crazy move from Max that brought him straight to the ground.

“I told you you’re no use to anyone, including yourself, if you let these emotions control you.” Max said, shaking the pain out of his hand. Felix looked at Max with tears in his eyes; he struggled to get on his feet and ran away at top speed.

_BGM
Max now faced Mondatta and walked towards him with no apparent emotions except intensity. He tried to observe the monk from every angle but Mary was in his way. Looking at her crying on the ground, he couldn’t bring himself to ask her to move, so instead turned his attention to Krista.

He took a knee next to her and less intensely asked her,

“Can you talk?” after which he continued, “Do you still have your e-handbook and the ticket?”

Watching Felix lose his mind in front of the body didn't help Krista. She winced when Felix was pushed to the ground - that had to be painful. The officer checked Mondatta's dead body before he approached her, likely to ask her some questions as well. Krista nodded at his first question, before patting her side to look for the device, only to find it on the ground instead of her pocket. "It's here." She showed it to him. "It... might've fallen out of my pocket when I fell..."

“Could you check if the ticket is still on it, just to be sure?”

Krista nodded again, before showing him the ticket. "Still here."

That revelation confused Max a bit, the ticket had not been stolen, yet someone was still murdered. was there an ulterior motive that was hidden somewhere? or did the killer just do it without any cause? unlikely. removing the phone ticket out of the equation would be unwise though, it could still play a role, and Krista was undoubtedly part of it. Max looked her in the eyes again and tried to ask as comfortably as possible,

“Do you remember why you were here?”

Remember why? Krista shook her head. "I can't... I just remember being hit but... that's it." She raised her hand to her head, as if to scratch it sheepishly out of habit, only to pause in mid-air as she remembered the injury. "I'm sorry... I want to be useful but..." her voice trailed off, sounding disappointed.

Max was already trying to put the puzzle together, but so many pieces were missing. if Krista didn’t remember how she got here, it could either mean that her concussion is worse than he thought, or she got knocked out somewhere else, the latter being more likely. but the blood on her head would mean that she would’ve left a trail behind, or at least something.

“I’ve got one more question before I go to find the killer,” he said, but now his words were filled with determination. “What is the last thing you remember? a place, a person, a prop, anything at all.”

She paused for a moment, clearly trying to think. Her eyebrows were furrowed, but her usually smiling lips were now pulled down into a frown. "Nothing... I'm sorry I'm not of any use but... I can't remember anything before I was hit. I just remember seeing Davis and Noel when I first woke up... but that's it..."

Maybe the concussion was bad after all, Krista was obviously suffering and she gave Max a lot of clues, she deserved rest. he stood up and faced the crowd.

“Please get Krista out of here, and get her some medical attention for crying out loud. We’re in a hospital so there are enough tools here to provide.” Now to follow that trail.

_BGM
Felix didn’t knew where he was running, all he could think about was how it happened again. and it dawned on him that nobody was safe, absolutely no one. maybe that outbreak earlier was because he was scared of the killer, or angry, or confused, maybe all of it. And even though this time, he wasn’t responsible for the death, he still felt like it was somehow his fault. for some reason he remembered a stupid quote from a man he admired, ‘the brightest and happiest of men, will be the most harmful and dangerous when they break. that must be what everyone around him must be thinking now too.

When he finally bothered to look around him, he noticed the sign saying ‘Mono-Shoppe’; he really didn’t run all that far.

“Felix.” he was startled by his own name, yet more startled by the voice that said it.

“Sorry for earlier, I wasn’t trying to be hostile.”

“I know, it was my own fault.”

“Alright,” Max nodded before starting to observe the store, “well let’s leave that behind and focus on finding out who did it.”

“Yeah, You found me pretty fast though.”

“I wasn’t looking for you.” he said rummaging through some tools.

“oh, yeah, of course. The case comes first.” Felix’s tone was unmistakable disappointed.

Max glanced at Felix before continuing to check the counter, this place wasn’t exactly stocked but there were some interesting items on display. except one was missing.

A dusty shelf with a rectangular shape carved into it. curious, but not very promising. could’ve been a iron Style, a hammer, maybe a table weight.

‘Clue acquired!’

“A body has been discovered. The patients have a limited time to collect evidence before being called into the court of carnage. Do your best everyone!”

Sharp inhalation.

The next sounds that could be heard, left behind in the empty room, were the thud of a heavy item falling and racing footsteps, leaving the room silent once more.

---

It had been a couple of days, and like everybody else, the Infinite Herbalist had taken to exploring the area. She was one day down as compared to the rest of the infinites who had already had the chance to survey the premises, but she would not let that hinder her usefulness to the group. After all, with the motive's introduction, everyone had to be on high alert. As high alert as physically possible, because anybody at all could be a target. Krista especially was at high-risk, but thanks to the quick thinking of the policeman, she was under constant surveillance and care.

Still, somehow, Marianne had a feeling in her gut that someone would no longer be able to take the waiting game anymore, and the most likely target would be taken out. Even if nobody else voiced their concern out loud to the group in an effort to preserve morale, it was a common thought (thought Marianne) that Krista would be in the most danger.

When the sound of footsteps, in a half-run-half-walk pace (as fast as possible for the young woman, really) skidded to a halt in front of Aladdin's Palace, it was a result of Marianne witnessing one Noel Hawthorne, like a speeding bullet, exiting the premises. Something looked eerily suspicious. ...why would someone look so anxious, unless...?
Hiding behind a rocky outcrop on the outside of Aladdin's Palace, Marianne waited for the reporter to be out of sight, before choosing to enter the premises herself to assess the situation. It was much darker than she had expected within, and she tentatively trudged through the faux cave until a sight stopped her dead in her tracks.

She immediately saw the injured blonde and her suspicions were confirmed. In the room were also Davis,
the infinite conquest, and a limited amount of others. On the ground, and the centre of attention though, was Krista, wounded and leaving a trail of red dripping behind her as she was carefully moved and examined by the rest in the group.

It could not have been Noel. To murder, and be witnessed by another person. ...they aren't working together, it appears. Davis appears to be tending to Krista. Improbable, unless the murder was set up in advance.

The gears ground very, very slowly in Marianne's head as she took step after step to the crowd. Her head was fuzzy, and noticing Krista sent another rush of thoughts through her.

If the announcement stated a body had just been discovered...
A murder could have occurred at any time, and the body hidden here. This would throw off the time of the crime by a large amount.
Thus, not those immediately present must be suspected.
Anyone, anyone at all, could be responsible.

Marianne's entrance went hardly noticed, as the rest of the group were preoccupied with the injured woman, and she had meant to inform them that the first course of action would be to not panic - Krista looked very much alive! Maybe the announcement was a farce?



It was then she noticed the unmoving, glittering metal in the eerie artificial light and otherwise darkness. A familiar facial structure stared back at the infinite herbalist, eye sockets dull and emitting little to no light. It almost looked like the hunk of junk was soulless, like that.

"Everyone. ...a body has been discovered. Krista seems to be alive. I...I-is...?" her words trailed off, and the woman almost answered her own question, wobbling over to the monk's body against the spike. He looked so peaceful, so you really couldn't have told that anything was off from the outset. He looked like he was tranquil, and sleeping.
Maybe that was the default for his suit.

She had meant to ask if everybody was alright, but the eerie silence from the husk replied.
The unconscious blonde came to, and Marianne breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she was alright. However, someone else in the room clearly wasn't. It took a while for the thought to register to the infinite herbalist. Someone was actually dead. And not just someone, but the Infinite Monk himself. He who seemed absolutely indestructible was taken down, now looking like a doll the way he sat with his head limp against the stalagmite.

Fortunately, the shock of noticing Krista unconscious never hit Marianne (at witnessing her wake up before her very eyes) and in an attempt to console herself, she couldn't help but move to Mondatta's body. Even if it was a crime scene, the thought slipped the herbalist's mind. In an almost-trance, she laid hands on the metal suit. It was cold, and not even warm air escaped the gaps where it should have, from what she had felt in her time spent with the man-machine. She appraised the suit up close, careful to not move its position any more than she should.

It was very difficult for her to believe Tekartha Mondatta was dead.

"I'm afraid so, Krista. I'm afraid Mondatta is...exhibiting no signs of life, as far as I can see. I think he...um. He inside the suit, that is, may have already begun to..." her voice trailed off. Where were the words when she needed them? No, it wasn't the words. It was almost like her brain stopped, mid-thought. A minor hiccup.
Marianne stepped away from the body solemnly, trying to hide the fact that her knees seemed to be trembling. Squeezing her eyes shut, she turned to Davis and Krista, going to kneel down beside the injured woman as well. "At least you're safe. ...do you remember anything at all?"

It wasn't long before the rest of the crowd poured in, one by one by one, all except for Noel, who Marianne would later learn ran out to alert everyone else of the murder and where it occurred.

The Herbalist found herself fretting over the wounded violinist. She was hesitant at first, but with shaky legs, carried herself over to where Davis was. She said very few words to the man, instead seemingly fixated on Krista's wellbeing.
"It will be bad if you lose too much blood."

Did the French in her accent just thicken, for a second?

She knelt carefully beside the woman, gritting her teeth against the stretch-feeling in her lower abdomen, and dared to move her from being propped up against the cold stalagmite to...having her head resting in Marianne's lap. Did she not care for her clothes at all? The white cotton dress caught the blood. And it stained, and it stained, and it stained a bright, sickly red colour. Still, the herbalist stroked the violinist's hair, and tended to her with care. Should she have been in a better state of mind, she would bark orders to fetch bandages and water, anything at all to ease the survivor of the assault, but it seemed she didn't have to.

When the others had arrived, Max Visser had already taken to commanding the crew around. But, from where Marianne was, she refused to move. The lukewarm blood played at her fingertips as she carefully, curiously felt around for the source of the wound. Her dark skin took a sickly maroon shade where the blood stained it.
Her other hand fiddled with the pendant of her cord necklace. It was a situation in which it would be useless.

"...this is a hospital. We need a qualified doctor." cursed Marianne under her breath. Though it seemed in the building crowd, it would be unlikely that she would be heard.

Bliss was having an afternoon snack when Noel showed up. The nanny nearly snorted her tea up her nose when she heard the news. “W-what?!” But Noel didn't stop to repeat herself. She went off to tell everyone else about the murder. Soon, everyone would have left the room to see what was going on. But blis remined seated. She held her tea cup with a trembling hand. “No, not him...” Bliss's eyes started to get wet. “Why would anyone kill Mondatta? He was so gentle...and...” Bliss lifted her head. “For a damn phone call!?” the infinite nanny reached across the table and seized Alice by the shirt. They had been enjoying the silence up until Monokuma appeared on a monitor. Bliss leaned in close and pulled the recon in to close the distance. “Are you going to stand for this?” She pulled Alice in even closer. She could feel Bliss's breath on her face. “You didn't do this did you? I'll be super disappointed if you did!”

Alice was surprised at the action and tried to reassure Bliss, whist being shocked by the news herself. "What?! I wouldn't do such treason!" She said, "Murder of an innocent civilian is against my moral code, my principals, and even my promise when I joined the military!" She struggled in the infinite nanny's grasp, trying to release herself. Surprisingly, Bliss had a good grip on Alice's shirt. "Honestly, if i'd do such a terrible thing, I would have stooped very low in my mentality." She added, finally releasing herself. "But for now, we need to join up with the others." She went ahead to open the door for the both of them to leave . But she couldn't understand why someone would commit a killing, just for a call. Seemed absurd if you asked her. It was bound to happen though, so it wasn't all that surprising. Just how early the time came was shocking.

Anger soon gave way to sadness, and the nanny lowered her head. “Mondatta, I barely knew him, but he seemed like a cool guy.” Bliss sniffled and drew her hand back. “I give a lot of credit to people like him. He was a real role model.” The nanny pulled a hanker chief out of her pocket and dried her eyes. “Alright, alright, I'm ready.” She picked up her seat and backed out before standing up. Her legs were weak, but they carried her over to the door. “Would you.” Bliss sighed. “Would you mind holding my hand?”

---

        By the time Bliss and Alice arrived, most of the other infinites were present. They were all examining different parts of the crime scene. 

        “This is so much worse than I thought it would be.” She turned to look at Davis, who was starring wide-eyed into his E-handbook. “Davis? Are you alright?” No answer.

As for the recon, she observed for any sign of damage on the infinite monk, sadly Mondatta's corpse seemed clean. "Odd, the killer must have used something to kill him inside his body."  Alice started to explain, "So there has to be some piece of equipment around here somewhere." Picking up a flashlight she shined it all over the cave as she searched for evidence. The light caught a shinning object peeking out of one of the crystals. Curious as the Cheshire cat, Alice lightly sprinted up to it. "I found something!" She yelled back to the others.

Bliss looked up from Davis and came running to Alice's side. “What did you find?”

"A handle" Alice picked the item up and turned to Bliss,  a bit happy to find some evidence. "Must have been some tool, It's broken now." She shrugged.
 
“Huh?” Bliss examined the handle. She wondered if the tool's head would turn up if they looked around enough. But her focus was broken when Davis started laughing. “Davis?” But he didn't stop. It wasn't a particularly happy laugh either. It was a sick laugh, one from a man on the brink of insanity.

        “Oh you thought you were a clever mother fucker didn't you?” Davis continued to eye his E-handbook. “But there's always that one mistake, that one FUCKING mistake. And now I've got you.” Davis's smile swiftly changed into a scowl “I GOT YOU!” His voice practically shook the caves.

        Bliss approached Davis. “Um, Davis? I'm glad you're finding evidence, but you might want to try and control your emotions a bit. When a kid gets worked up, I give them a relaxing activity to do. Something like counting stones or talking about their frustrations with me.”

        “But there's no time for that.” Davis started to smile again. “We don't have much time before the court starts. If we all started counting stones or talking about our feelings, where would the evidence be that we so desperately need to survive?”

        Bliss remained silent.

Alice showed Davis the handle she found, "Here's a start." She answered his question, trying not to set him off into hysteria again. "And next time you act like a bloody psycho again, mr. Davis, expect a slap across the face." She threatened, no expression on her face.
    
Davis examined the handle. “You know, I knew a girl. Her name was Alice too. Only when she made a threat...”

        “Oh no you don't!” Bliss put herself between Alice and Davis. “Nobody's going to get hurt on my watch. Not with the nanny on the clock.”

        Davis waved his hand at Bliss while walking away. “Tell that to Mondatta.” Perfection dropped the handle on the ground and walked out of the cave. 

For the past days, Shaun had stayed in his room. Caora frequented to check on him, as well as to chat, but besides that the Trap had busied himself by going around and talking to the others; he would talk, comfort, entertain, whatever. It was all fun, in any case, and so he was more than happy to. He didn't really have an answer when people asked where exactly Shaun was, since he didn't exit his room, but he did always accept people in, quelling questions for the most part.

A knock at the door roused the Infinite Nerd from his bed. He placed his book to the side, the same book he had read over and over for the past days. He had started writing his own complex code strings in the blank spaces to bide the time, and then ran a simulation of it in his head. Completely forgetting about the writing on the wall, he pushed down the handle, and invited in whomever was there.

Standing at the entrance to his room was a boy he had seen a good deal of the past couple days; his friend Caora, no doubt back from talking to some of the other Infinites. He entered gaily, and skipped along to sit on the bed. Once sat, he scanned the room, still smiling, but then frowned as his eyes settled on the black board marker that covered the back of the now closed door?

"Shaaaaauuuuun, whats that?" he chirruped, leaping to his feet so he could run up closer to it. He crouched down, sticking out his bum, and started reading.
"E-eh? O-oh, that?" Shaun said, sounding somewhat surprised; he clearly had forgotten to erase it, "I-its, um... N-nothing, really..." his eyes drifted downwards, face slightly flushed.

Caora's gaze drifted along the door, taking in each word individually. By his confused expression, it was clear he hadn't read the right part first. Eventually, he reached the center of the web of words, and a smile of understanding crossed his lips.
"Ideas for a Gift to Give to Krista." he read aloud, eliciting a squeak from Shaun, who rushed up to him to stop him reading any further.

"D-d-don't say it aloud! P-people might h-hear!" the web developer cried, before sinking his shoulders in defeat, "F-fine, I'll tell you... Krista is, p-probably, y-y'know... Worried, a-and everything, so I th-thought... I-I'd make her something, t-to... C-calm her nerves..." embarrassment flashed across his face, and upon seeing Caora's expression, he let out another cry, "Th-th-thats the only r-reason, I swear!"

Before Caora could respond, the screen on the wall erupted into life. A couple seconds of static preluded the chilling message from Dr Monokuma Killgood.
“A body has been discovered. The patients have a limited time to collect evidence before being called into the court of carnage. Do your best everyone!”

The two stood in stunned silence. Caora didn't seem to quite understand - you could hear the gears turning in his little head in the quiet - but at least some kind of recognition was betrayed. Shaun stood, shaking a little, the few hairs on his now exposed arms stood slightly upright, and cast his gaze from the TV to his friend. Bliss had given him the confidence to take off his jumper, but the chill that had set in made him regret it. The sound of Noel shouting barely reached him, but it was enough for him to make out the place everything had happened.

"Stay here." he said, coldly, much to the surprise of Caora, although he agreed. He opened the door, and headed into the hallway, where other Infinites had already begun to filter into from their respective rooms. Immediately, Shaun turned to the right, and started making his way to the Resort.

It wasn't a long walk until he made it to the outside of Aladin's Palace. There was already a crowd congrating around something, presumably the body. He hadn't heard who had been killed; he just knew that someone was dead. People were shouting, especially Mary, who found herself retrained by Cyrus. He pushed his way through the crowd, spotting Krista, injured, but alive, and much to his relief. He had been so sure it was her that would have been killed...

Then his gaze settled onto Mondatta. Even in the cold steel, dead already, he could tell no life came from the suit. Shaun had never even talked to him. There were... So many people he hadn't even said a word to. And now one of them was dead. Despite them all being strangers, their confinement made them like family. And it made Shaun sick. There was no way he could stick around. Instead, he stumbled out of the crowd, face pale, and made his way to the entrance to catch his breath.

Some of the Infinites had already sprung to work, questioning the poor almost-victim or going around looking for something that could help them understand the incident better. Daimyon, however, was still by Mary's side, standing besides her with a comforting arm around her shoulder. Though he did not agree with Cyrus' forceful approach, the politician did have a point: any impulsive behaviour now was hindering the group's chances at finding out what had exactly happened. But what was reason to the torrent of emotions? That is why Daimyon sought to soothe the streamer, and help her make the first step forward.
“Tragic loss, heartbreak; like a nightmare, awake,” he spoke. His imagination was often attuned to his mood, thus it was difficult to come up with something that could have shone a ray of positivity on the bleak situation. “But darkness must not win. Only by making peace with what we have can we face it and find the light to lead us out of this.” He held his notebook in his other hand and allowed himself a small smile. “...those were his words, actually. Slightly paraphrased. I copied them from a book of his that I found in the study. He was truly...an inspiring man.”

Mary's sobbing turned quiet as she shivered from Daimyon's touch. and she slowly turned her head to look at him. "That's beautiful...Ughh, I can't stay crying like this." She stood back up with shaky legs, and dusted off her clothes. "And to think we were all having such a fun time just moments ago...Why did this have to happen? Why would anyone want to kill Robo-Miyagi?"

The poet gave her question a hard thought—even though it was only between them, he could not fathom accusing anyone just like this.
“Do you know what they say about the hydra? That if you cut off one of its heads, it'll grow two more? Alas, we are not like a hydra, but more like a dragon. We may have more than one heads, but they...don't grow back once cut down,” His face darkened in an uncharacteristic show of seriousness. “...someone is trying to cut off this group's heads. The leaders. To make it...harder for us to get out. And there is only one I can think of that would want this...the bear.”

"The leaders? Maybe...Monokuma has a traitor working under them. If that is true, thern...their next target is...Cyrus!" She put her hands to her mouth, stifling a scream.
"We have to catch them, Daimy-doo! There must be clues, there always are in mystery games..." With that said, Mary began searching Mondatta's body, looking for hints.

“A traitor? I don't think so...still, we must find a way to prove that it was Monokuma and no one else!”
With that newfound determination, the two also began their, ah...well-intentioned detective work. He spun around and took another look through the cave, although his untrained eye did not make out anything suspicious at first. With not much to look at but the desire to look at something, he examined the one thing that was in abundance in the cave: rock formations. Stalagmites and stalactites, sometimes bunched together and sometimes standing by their lonesome, decorated the place, each a slightly different length and shade of brown. With no archaeological knowledge to aid him on his search—he was less qualified for this than he thought—, he took a look at the nearest one. It protruded out of the ground lengthily, but aside from its many creases, there was absolutely nothing that made it special. He looked at a second one, standing in bunch with the first. Again, nothing. He examined three more, but aside from the gutter that his mind was rapidly falling into at the sight of the many long and pointy sticks, there was nothing notable.

He turned around and walked back towards Mondatta's body—and as a last-ditch hope from the optimistic poet, looked at the lone stalagmite that stood on the side and between the monk's and Krista's.

Again, nothing...or wait.

He crouched down to better see. There was a visible cut at its base, a light line in the dark brown stone. He ran a finger over it and sure enough, it felt different too. He found nothing of the sort on the other formations and he considered six rocks to be an adequate sample size. He noted the small but—he really hoped—important difference in his little book, then headed back to Mary.

“Was there...anything on him?”

[color=pink][/color]
Mary thoroughly examined the metallic armor formerly belonging to Mondatta, and her eyes opened. Surprisingly, the suit showsed no signs of being hit or damaged, save a few scrapes around the neck and torso. "He was ambushed?" The Infinite Streamer mumbled to herself. She pulled on the handle on the indentation in the back of Mondatta's head, and her cheeks blushed from the exertion. "HNNNNGHHH; OPEN, DAMMIT! Pppft, it's no use! It's stuck. Looks like he didn't struggle much; there's something on his neck and chest, but nothing else. But yeah, no blade could penetrate something this hard!"

“I see...” Daimyon replied, holding a hand to his chin and thinking. He could not make anything out of so little, of course, but he tried regardless. “But then how was he killed? Not by blade, but with...a hammer? That would have certainly left a dent, though...ah, what a conundrum!”
He looked around in the cave again—there were fewer people, it seemed, most had gone off to investigate. Krista was, surprisingly, still sitting there at her own stalagmite. She looked to have been...forgotten, almost, in all the chaos.
“Someone should really get her some attention...” he muttered before speaking up with an idea. “Mary, could you help carrying Krista to somewhere...better?”

"Mmm, sorry...." Mary said softly once she was done inspecting the corpse, and took a couple of steps back. "I...Need a moment. To...sort my feelings, so I can have a clear head for when it starts..."

“Ah, yes, yes, certainly!” The poet nodded vehemently. “May you find your peace, Mary.”
He turned away from her and towards the violinist.
“I guess I'll just have to carry her by—”

“...Daimyon, wait!”

Before he could get to it, however, he heard a different voice calling to him. He looked towards the entrance of the cave, and sure enough, Marianne was approaching.

Noel hastily lead everyone to the scene. She was somewhat happy they didn’t take long to move. They had no time to waste if they wanted to gather enough evidence. The clock was ticking and the court of carnage was drawing ever closer. There wasn’t a second to spare.

The reactions of everyone were heart-breaking. Noel remembered the first time she saw this happen. She stood there paralyzed for a short moment in remembrance, then continued her own investigation. She decided to focus more on the pictures she had taken; there was only that much room for people to look around the scene themselves.

Noel wasn’t certain, but something on the scene didn’t match up to the pictures. What had changed?

---

The most Marianne took from the ruckus around her was that an item had been found, possibly hinting more strongly at how Mondatta had died. She heard the voices of Bliss, the newcomer Alice, and an almost estranged Davis, and the herbalist shuddered inwardly as the man left a biting remark into the already tense air before he made his exit from the cave.

A moment of silence was left to linger.
"...um." the woman on the ground croaked, her voice only loud enough to be heard by those immediately by her. Luckily, the pair, Bliss and Alice, were in her target range. "...is there any blood on the handle, by any chance? Maybe...we could discover what the handle's head was, that way..."

She shook her head. The idea sounded a lot dumber once it had escaped her lips. Still, she felt the need to remark to the room, being the one on the ground with a recovering Krista:
"The blood is warm, and still wet." she lifted one of her hands that had been stroking the infinite violinist's hair, and brought it to her face. The liquidy, blotchy stains it left left nothing to the question. The blood was fresh. "...we discovered the body now, but it would appear that this happened not too long ago. That is, if we believe...the two acts, Krista's attacking and the m-murder..." she stuttered here noticeably, as if reluctant to believe it really had happened, "took place at the exact same time."

Cyrus's reaction against Mary had been forceful, but that was probably the only way he could've prevented any irreversible damage to the scene. Afterwards, he gladly let Daimyon take care of soothing her with his golden tongue. The politician had a way with words himself, but he was more proficient at tugging different emotions. Not to mention, right now his focus was aimed more at solving the murder of a great man. Why did it have to be Mondatta of all people? The monk had demonstrated himself to be such a great addition to this group. Cyrus wasn't a man of faith, but that didn't mean he couldn't respect the monk's approach to this situation. He hoped his spiritual guidance would continue to guide those of the group that had come to appreciate it in the last few days.

Hearing Marianne, he turned to her in response, pondering the same issue. "It is very likely. Mondatta was in charge of guarding Krista. It is unlikely the two weren't together at the moment of the crime." He knew there was a chance the violinist and monk had been separated, but that would mean the murderer would have to have taken Krista out here later. They'd have to hear Krista's report on that once she felt better. Without a doubt this would play a large role in the court."Other options aren't impossible, just very unlikely without further evidence."

"...I agree-"
Marianne had hardly finished her statement before she felt a beeping in her lap, under where Krista's head lay.
'Clue acquired!'
She gently placed the blonde's head onto the floor and gave her a quick, reassuring smile, before picking up the source of the sound - the herbalist's own e-handbook. It had updated with an entry under the Truth Bullets section that read:

The blood on the back of Krista's head is still wet. It takes blood about a half-hour to an hour for blood to dry at room temperature.

"Fascinating." the herbalist sat, her bloodstained dress hardly posing as a problem as she touched the surface of the e-handbook with her red tipped fingers. This piece of machinery was incredible - and the source behind it even moreso.
She carefully took a deep breath, tightening her whole body as she rose to her feet. The stretch at her hips as always made her wince, but the moving was doing much better for her mobility - else she'd really freeze stiff that way. When she faced him, her words were directed half to Cyrus, and half to the group that stood around them:

"The handbooks we have been issued have updated with the most recent findings! Please look at them."
She caught her speaking to be disjointed, and repeated her sentence in more conversational English, "I think if we find clues, they will...um. Load? Is that the word? Log? They will be registered on our handbooks."
She appeared satisfied with herself. There were many more clues that needed to be found. And, with Davis' words ringing in her head, there wasn't much time.

"Cyrus," her tone was a mixture of serious and fluttery, her closing the distance between the two of them and looking up into the man's steely grey eyes. This was how the herbalist always felt when looking the politician dead in the eye, like her heart would take off.
...did it not matter that there was a dead body literally feet away? And if not that, the fact that Marianne was almost covered in blood, the front of her white dress housing a kaleidoscopic series of red stains, and her fingers sporting the same. She almost existed as homage to the newly registered clue.
"...will you accompany me, please?"
She paused before adding decidedly, almost in a whisper, "...there is something I need to ask you. Show you, rather. And anyone here could be the murderer. ...it's not safe to go alone."

Cyrus took a short moment to check his own handbook, confirming what the herbalist said. He didn't pay it much more mind. It would be a great reminder, but finding new clues had priority right now.
He continued making observations, though there really wasn't much to find. Much like what the monokuma file said, the suit made it very difficult to discern anything what happened to the body of the monk. His concentration was suddenly broken when he was spoken to by the Herbalist. The blood made her look somewhat grizzly, but he knew how it happened.

He gave a solemn nod as he got up and followed her. Cyrus wasn't having much succes here, so maybe whatever she had to show could lead to further insight? He wondered what it was that she couldn't just show everyone else. "Where are we going?"

"Nowhere in particular." the herbalist added when they were a reasonable distance away. Should the person playing at her mind show up, hopefully they would not overhear their discussion. "...I need to attend to Krista. I...Bliss is there, but I hope I am not the only one a little bit...suspicious." her words came out croaked.
"I don't have much time. I don't know if this will help, if at all-" her speaking pace increased, the French accent creeping in again, "but please, take this. Read it. It will find more help with you than with me. Please, come find me at the sick bay. I will be with Krista so long as the bear allows."

Without another word, the herbalist actually reached (nonchalantly!) into her bra (for her dress had a lack of pockets) and fished out a rolled up newspaper clipping. She handled it gingerly before placing it almost hurriedly into the Politician's hands.
"This seemed to be of interest to the late Miss Moffett. It was on her desk, among other things. She may have been looking into it. ...since I now occupy her room, I...found it some days ago when I was settling in. Mondatta was with me at the time, I-I only wish..." she trailed off, shook her head and bit her bottom lip. Regrets would not help anyone at this point especially.
"I don't know if it will help at all. ...please, hold onto it. There's someone who would murder for a phone call among us. I don't know if I want to take my chances with...them."

Cyrus took the article from her hands with a nod, wondering how a newspaper clipping could possibly connect to the case. He unfirmed it and started to read it attentively.



Before he could ask her any more questions, the herbalist disappeared again beyond the rocky croppings of the faux cave, back to where Krista lay, and where she intended on helping the blonde to a more stable medical environment as soon as possible.

Cyrus looked at the article in confusion. He had heard of the infinite vigilante before, but he had never seen the picture. Still, he assumed this was unrelated to the case. Marianne had found this several days ago in the room of Shona? Cyrus also noted that the infinite vigilante used bladed weapons and guns, which didn't fit the crime scene. Nevertheless, only one person could know more...

Cyrus would have to pay a visit to Calvin, the infinite metalsmith.

Shaun glanced over at the two as they exited the cave, and gave a weak smile back at them. Some colour had returned to his face, but he still seemed shaken by the whole ordeal; chances were it'd be a little while before he came more thoroughly to terms with the fact. Even still, it as clear he was still alright enough and willing to lend assistance were it was requested.

"I-I... Y-yeah, sure, I-i'll see what I can do..." he said, somewhat shakily, and almost nervously, "I'm n-not that strong, s-so..." he took her arm and hoisted it around his neck, turning his head slightly to stop her seeing the light blush that spread across his face; being a shut in meant he never really got close to girls. From there, he let Lucas lead the way, and followed on beside him.



Caora had, in the mean time, been sat on the bed of his friend, reading the ideas on the door and processing the information he had been given. The TV said that a body had been found... But that couldn't be true. People didn't die! Shona probably wasn't dead either. It was all just... Some kind of joke. It wasn't a very nice joke, if that was the case... And, since some of the others had been rotated out, like the bear said, maybe it was like some kind of TV show! Like... Big Brother or something.

To that end, he decided to go and find some of the others to see what they thought. He opened the door and skipped out, bent on getting to the bottom of the Doctor's lies. He turned to the left, and started making his way towards the break room, where some of the other Infinites had probably congregated in light of the announcement.

At least, that was his intent. As he went to turn the final corner that would take him to his destination, he spotted something odd to the left of him. Someones door was open... He reached into his skirt pocket and pulled out his E-handbook, which he had finally remembered to bring along with him after throwing it away in the wake of Shona's... Dramatic final episode.

It took him a couple minutes to figure out what buttons did what, talking to it and shouting at it at the flip of a switch, but finally he brought up the map. It said it was... Krista's room. Room F? There was no one in it. It would be rude to enter without permission.

"What do you think, Fang?" he whispered to the Sheep, raising it to his ear, "That's a good idea! Lets close the door. We don't want anyone intruding on her privacy, now do we?" he skipped up to it, and went to pull closed the handle when his eyes drifted to something located underneath her bed.

Confused, he took a step inside, then another, and crouched in front of it. Then he laid down, completely ignoring the fact that anyone could walk up behind him and look up his skirt, and peered into the darkness. Reaching into it cautiously, in case there was anything scary underneath, he grabbed something and quickly retracted his hand, holding a long, light and rectangular box.

"Can cut tomatoes and vegetables without dulling, meat too!" he quoted reading off the back of the box, before turning it over to see what it had originally contained, "Why's there a knife box underneath her bed? That's odd..." he whispered to Fang, standing up to sit on her bed, "Maybe it's a clue!" he gasped, clear evident in his voice completely inappropriate for the situation at hand. Quickly, he skipped out of the room, beginning to make his way to wherever Shaun and the others were.

Noel looked at her pictures with bewilderment. She sifted from one to the other, back and forth only to then look at the actual scene before going back to the pictures. She strained her eyes, reassuring herself at every moment. She was barely listening to the others as she was completely lost in thought.

She was certain that something was off about these pictures.

It was impossible to make out on the crime scene currently, as everyone had shuffled around, but her pictures showed one thing everyone had missed in the dim lighting. The ground here had left some very easily distinguishable footprints. Of course, these footprints had long faded as people shuffled around. But that was exactly why she took pictures in the first place. Only she now had access to the crime scene as it was found, completely untouched.

But it still didn’t add up.

No matter how well she looked, she could only see two pairs of footprints. But how could that be? The murderer definitely couldn’t have erased their own footprints without affecting the other pair, so did that mean only two people had been here? That wasn’t impossible, but that would have very grim implications for a certain musician…

One glance at a picture from Krista, who had long gone to lie down, showed one of these pairs indeed belonged to her. Krista’s shoes were rather unique, and not easily confused with anyone else’s. Noel looked at the other pair, certain to find that the pair would perfectly match Mondatta’s feet.

… But they didn’t?

It was impossible. Even from this picture, Noel could easily tell that the other pair of footprints could possibly belong to Mondatta. The footprints in the picture were significantly smaller than Mondatta’s feet. Did Mondatta’s suit have an option to adjust foot size? The reporter honestly doubted it. But that meant these footprints could only belong to one person! Noel had the scoop in her hands! She could now unveil the murderer in one fell swoop.

”NEWSFLASH!” The reporter exclaimed with pride and joy. ”Listen everyone! I know how to find the murderer, we just have to-“

Before she could finish that sentence, she was rudely interrupted by a very poorly timed announcement.

Monokuma made another appearance on every monitor in the hospital. “Okay, I think that was enough time.” The bear sighed and hung his head. “I'm so sorry about the Monokuma file. Usually I'll do all the forensic stuff for you guys but there just wasn't anything to find. There's no body, no blood. I'm honestly wondering if you guys will be able to pull this off.” Killgood lifted his head up. “I'm just glad I'm not in your shoes!” The monitors all displayed the the gates to the court of carnage. “Head on over here, pronto. Don't force the nurse staff to drag you out. It could be... unsightly.”

“Never fear! Your queen is here!” Alexandria rode in on horseback, trampling all over the crime scene. She nearly hit Mondata's body with her lance. “Alright, time to get your disheveled lot into the court of carnage. Don't dawdle, I haven't seen any blood yet, and I'm looking for an excuse to change that.” No one had any objections, at least not ones that would be headed. Everyone would be escorted outside in front of the gate.

---

No one could hide from the carnage sisters. Nariko had found Krista and was carrying her over to the gate. The vertigo had mostly gone away, and the bleeding had stopped entirely. Of course the samurai took it upon herself to bandage the violinist up. She used way too many bandages, and even taped over one of her eyelids. Though Krista looked damn near impervious to head injuries now. Even Aleecia, Isaiah, and Calvin couldn't hide in their rooms forever. Eventually Geina ousted them and got them ready.

“But we weren't involved with it!” Aleecia was holding onto Isaiah's arm. “We didn't even hunt for clues, we wouldn't be any help in the court.”

“I don't give a fuck about any of that! Look at your E-handbook!” Geina was as gruff as ever. “Not participating is not an option. Just because you didn't want to help with the investigation doesn't mean shit. Buckle up buttercup, you're all goin' for a ride.”

“This is horrible, I can't even see...”

Isaiah and Calvin were quiet. Perhaps they knew there was no way to argue their way out of it. Though Calvin did pipe up to say one thing. “Let's just get this shit over with.”

And so the gates to the court of carnage swung open, and everyone walked inside.

---

No doubt all of the infinites had heard about the wild roller coaster ride called tower of carnage. Allegedly it was the “fourth” tower that made up Axis Mundi. It was between the other three towers, and even taller than the rest of the hospital. Originally it was going to be a slower educational ride, but there were difficulties building the hospital in such a way that the ride would have access to all of the noteworthy facilities. So they decided to build an enclosed roller coaster with a lot of extreme dives and climbs. There were debates about the name being too scary and too difficult to say for children. But the wild ride the tower of carnage provided wasn't intended for the young anyway. They even barred people who weren't physically fit from riding the tower of carnage. But the bear didn't seem to think much of the regulations.

The roller coaster had clearly been modified, as evident by the black and white paint job. All of the lights were off, save for the dock lights around the roller coaster train. It was clearly an intense ride, if the large overhead restraints were anything to go by. The track itself couldn't be seen, as it was completely cloaked in shadow. Even the walls were obscured by darkness. The bear was already seated in the front most train.

“Admission is free everyone! Just make sure you've got your restraints on.” The bear giggled. “ Of course your fellow nurses will be hear to ease you into your seats. So just make sure you keep all paws and tails inside the train at all times.”

The infinites were escorted and assisted into the train in this order behind Dr. kill good: Davis, Isaiah, Krista, Felix, Aleecia, Cyrus, Daimyon, Shaun, Mary, Caora, Calvin, Bliss, Lucas, Noel, Marianne, Alice. The infinites could hear the auto-locking systems click as the restraints were lowered into place. Krista's bandaged head almost didn't clear the restraints.

“Alright, court is in session! Try not to lose your lunch!”

That was all the warning anyone got before the roller coaster kicked off at full speed. There was nothing to see. The only thing the infinites could do is brace as the roller coaster took unexpected twists and dives. There were even a few corkscrews tossed in for added vertigo. As intense as it was, the ride was slowing down rather quickly. All of the carts rotated ninety degrees to face inward. The infinites could see that they were in a circle now. The lights kicked on, and the carts appeared to be in a large room. The walls were covered with velvet drapes, and the floor had the bear's favorite black and white checker pattern on it. Everyone's restraints released at the same time, allowing them to stand. Before everyone was a wooden podium, where they could rest their arms or place their E-handbooks. For obvious reasons, everyone was a little shaken. Their lives depended on this court case, and they had just gone on a rough roller coaster ride to get here. Krista had to touch the back of her head to make sure it wasn't bleeding again. (it wasn't) But not Davis. While everyone was dazed and confused like a flock of sheep, Davis was the lion looking for his prey.

“Um, Davis?” Bliss inquired. “What's with the carry look.”

Davis opened his hands and placed them on the podium before him. “You little shit.” He said in a mocking tone. “You stupid little shit...”

Bliss continued to eye Davis, unsure of who he was talking to. “Excuse me?”

Davis stood upright. “I'm not even going to question your motive. I don't really give a shit what you'd want a fuckin' phone call for.” He scoffed and smiled. “Hell, freedom is a good enough reason to get out of here right? All you have to do is kill someone. But why Mondatta?” Davis smile quickly turned into a sneer. “Why kill someone who had faith in you? In everyone? I'll tell you who you should have killed...” Davis slammed his hands down on the podium so hard, everyone could feel the vibration. “You should have killed me! I'm the reason everyone is here! Everyone who dies here is a direct result of something I did. And even if you don't care about justice, you know what my talent is, right?” Davis laughed like a hyaena. His head tipped further to the side as his deranged laugh carried on. “That was a mistake, a BIG fucking mistake I'll add at that! Now you're going to have freedom snatched right out from under your nose...” Davis's voice was getting louder. It was becoming more like a yell. “My talent is infinite conquest. My gift is literally winning. And you've made the serious mistake of stepping into an arena with me.” He threw his hands out to his sides. “You probably see this place as just a court room huh? But it is an arena. This round room is a Colosseum to me. It is only a court room in the sense that I will judge and execute you here.” Davis reached into his cart and drew out the golden gladius Felix made the mistake of giving him several days ago. “It's just you and me now!”

---

---

---

---

Monokuma cleared his throat. "Alright, let's... go over the basics one more time. If the blackened is exposed during the trial, they alone be punished. But if they aren't exposed, everyone besides the blackened will be punished." The bear laughed devilishly. "So without further ado..." Before the bear could say another word, Davis pulled a lever at his station. "Excuse me, what are you doing."

"I just voted for the blackened." Davis was still holding the gladius in one hand. "That's how this game works right? If everyone votes for the blackened."

"Y-yea but..." Monokuma looked a little worried. "Don't you at least want to hear what everyone found first? Maybe you missed an important detail."

"You've been underestimating my talent since Shona died. Maybe now you'll start taking me more seriously."

"You're just fishing for hints!" Monokuma folded his arms and looked away. "And that's cheating! Also, I'm going to disable everyone else's levers until you've all come to an agreement."

Bliss was the one to talk to Davis again. "Do you really know who did it?"

"Of course." Davis spun his sword in his hand. "Without a shadow of doubt."

"Well, who do you think did it?"

Davis didn't answer right away. He just looked around the room at everyone. "Well, there's a lot of evidence that implicates Krista, isn't there?"

Bliss folded her arms. "Really? You think Krista did it?"

"I'm just saying, she was the only one present at the crime scene." Davis grinned to himself. "Surely I'm not the only one who sees the evidence."

Cyrus was certain a vein popped. ”Davis, if you truly selected Krista on these grounds without any further look at the evidence, I am seriously questioning whether you have any talent at all.” It was clear that Davis had already begun to piss off the infinite politician. ”Is Mondatta’s memory worth so little to you that you immediately resort to rash decisions and showboating? Do us all a favor and take this goddamn seriously.”

Noel decided to jump in a little between the two here. ”Unless you believe you can prove, with an actual presentation of evidence, that a girl we found wounded and unconscious at the scene beyond a shadow of a doubt committed this murder.”

Cyrus scowled ”As if any of us would make such an oversight.”

This was daft! And Mr Perfection was being the daftest!

"Yeah! Why would Krista hurt herself? And how would she hurt him with a knife? It says on the packet, it cuts meat and vegetables, not people! And stabby things make holes, so where's the hole? And..."

He paused for a minute, talking to Fang. It didnt make sense for the musician to be responsible. It didnt! How could she break his big suit? And why was she all beat up? It was super hard to beat yourself up!

"Like, we dont have any proof that Krista did it. If it was her she would have to, you know, get through the suit, hurt herself, and clean the knife. AFTER she hurt herself, which means she would have dripped blood everywhere! So, like, how?"

"I don't think Davis is gonna give you much of an answer, he's clearly grasping at straws as it is." Said Felix nonchalantly.

"No matter how unhinged or sociopathic a person is, their words always have some merit, even if it seems completely ridiculous. I want to hear what Davis has to say as well." Max's eyes were observing everyone, looking for abnormal behaviour, though he didn't find any yet.

Alice facepalmed at Davis' sudden accusation. Most of the other's had denied Krista killing the monk. Max spoke up that it might be relevant, giving her some idea as to explain why Krista wouldnt be the blackened.

"Everyone is correct, Mr. Davis. Ms. Krista wouldn't try to atleast harm Mondatta. She seems too pure-hearted to kill even a kitten. She said, crossing her arms in thought.

"Yet I wonder why someone as...ill-minded as you would say such mockery. Unless you have any idea as to what happened, DO YOU?" she raised her voice at the end of the sentence, glaring at Perfection.

The court of carnage was a peculiar sight to behold. It all looked like a setting for a play, and Daimyon felt compelled to hold a skull in front of him and proclaim something extremely memorable. He did not, though, partly because of the distinct lack of skulls and partly because the rollercoaster ride they had to embark on getting here was stomach-churning enough. Exhilarating, but stomach-churning. If nothing else, it did a hell of a job getting the crews' heartbeats up to speed for the upcoming trial.

Because they would have a trial indeed. A true trial, with the Infinites as judge, jury...and a certain black-and-white bear as executioner. Such a scenario avoided even the poet's wildest dreams and thus he really had no idea how to start things off. Fortunately, someone graciously took that task on themselves: Davis spoke up first, and quite valiantly at that, accusing none other than Krista as the foul murderer. And now Daimyon had no idea how to proceed. As people engaged themselves in the issue and took their first sides in the opening argument, however, he felt particularly inspired to contribute.

This would be a long, but no doubt interesting, time.

“All right!” he spoke up for himself at last, with enthusiasm. “I have a notebook, a pen and a pair of very keen ears at the ready—Davis, my friend, if you speak up and explain yourself I shall be sure to record everything important!”

The rollercoaster ride left the Infinite Herbalist incapacitated for the better half of five minutes. She stay in the carriage with her head still spinning, and dizzyingly finally dragged herself up to the wooden podium. She seemed a bit sickly, but the flash of gold from Davis' faux blade and the cackle to match shook her out of her frenzy. She hugged her arms, shivering and letting the nausea linger away, her teal eyes settling on everyone in the circle one by one.

She took in everyone's individual pieces of dialogue before breathing in carefully. What came out of her mouth seemed blunt, completely ignoring what the Infinite Conquest was going on about. Marianne Roche had a different agenda.

"Krista, are you feeling alright?" the woman's head cocked to the side as she gave the bandaged woman a gentle smile across from where she was, three people over. It was easy for the herbalist to see the bandage work done on the violinist. She was glad she was taken care of. She found it necessary to declare something to the crowd, though in a typical European fashion, remained as impartial as possible.

"Ladies and gentlemen, messieurs et mesdames, when I examined Krista earlier, the blood was still wet." she stated flatly, shooting up her hands to show the crowd the lingering stains (if those on her white dress weren't enough.) "...when I read my, err, e-handbook, it said that blood stayed wet up from half an hour to an hour after being shed. Please, look at yours! There is a lot of information there on this case, if you have not already seen it! It is absolutely fascinating."

She paused before continuing, looking at Davis with slightly narrowed eyes now, "Mister Gallo, with this we can deduce the crime occurred literally at any point up to an hour until you found Krista's body as when I arrived, you were the first on the scene."

Shooting a suddenly sheepish look at the infinite Politician, she continued, "Cyrus and I were speaking earlier. It is unlikely these two crimes occurred separately. If they occurred together, Mondatta's murder and Krista's wound, what do you claim passed?"

...wait, that was important! Did she just make a deduction?

"Daimyon! Please, note this information down!"

If she gave the pendant of her cord-necklace any harder of a squeeze as she tried to calm her nerves and gather her thoughts, it would almost certainly pop the cap.

"Okay, now hold on just a minute!" Mary suddenly screamed, jumping up from her podium. "I know it's easy to start pointing fingers and stuff, but this is Mondatta we're talking about! He always told us about how we shouldn't be fighting among ourselves, that we should stick together and believe! And before this trial is over I won't give up until I found out what actually happened to him!" She puffed her cheeks, and took a deep breath. "First of all, I don't understand what happened to Krissie. How was she injured? Do you still have the ticket? And why was Mondatta suspended like that?" She had a look of genuine concern, and now regretted her outburst. But, she was always a woman who said what was on her mind.