Sparks Of Hope (Danganronpa Ultra Despair Girls X Fem! OC)

Chapter 17: Please Leave The City

"..." Komaru silently nodded.

"...Let's go." Nagisa turned to leave.

"Nagisa!" Kotoko called as he stopped and turned his head back to her.

"...Don't follow us."

"B-But..."

"...You don't want Monaca to hate you, do you?"

"..."

With that silent response, the four left the arena, leaving Kotoko there alone.

Walking out, Nagisa was in front of the three girls. "Let's go. The secret passage is this way."

---

"This way! Follow me closely!" Nagisa was running, with the three girls close behind.

However, suddenly a group of Monokumas appeared and approached the four.

"Hold on! Why are you attacking me?" Nagisa looked flabbergasted as he fell down to his knees, clutching his head in fear. "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

As the Monokuma robots keep advancing, the Monokuma Kids controlling them looked on. Based on their body language, they seem very pleased with this devlopment.

---

Eventually, the girls defended Nagisa as the Monokuma Kids ran off.

"I thought you said the Monokumas wouldn't attack us if you were here..." Komaru mumbled.

"This is...strange... What in the world is this?" Nagisa muttered to himself.

"Hey, you weren't lying when you said you wouldn't trick us, right?" Komaru asked.

"Of course! If I wanted to deceive you, I would not have removed your wristband." Nagisa pointed out.

"Then... They must have found out you betrayed them." Toko assumed.

"B-Betrayal? Me!?" Nagisa frantically shook his head as he went on the defensive. "N-No! That's wrong! I'm no traitor! I am the leader of the Warriors of Hope! I care about making paradise more than anybody! The reason I'm letting you guys go is because I care so much!"

"It appears your allies aren't taking it that way."

"Ugh... I'm sure she'd understand if I explained it to her properly... Monaca has such high expectations..."

"Yeah, keep on saying that, Mister Genius Grade-schooler."

"..."

---

"S-So cruel... This is too cruel..." Komaru said, her face paling as the four came across a pile of bodies.

"Jeez..." Akira mumbled, gramacing.

Toko had her eyes shut. "I won't look... But even if I don't see it... I can pretty much figure out what happened..."

Komaru looked to Nagisa. "You really don't feel anything seeing this?"

"These people...are Demons. Our enemies..." Nagisa mumbled in a low tone.

"...That's not what she asked." Toko frowned.

"You said it before, right? It's because you're afraid of adults?" Komaru recalled.

"...Yeah, that's right." Nagisa nodded. "We can't help but be terrified around adults... If the adults just didn't exist, we could live peacefully... That's what I believe."

"Why are you so afraid of adults?" Komaru asked.

"..." Nagisa took a deep breath before he began. "We Warriors of Hope were classmates in the Hope's Peak Elementary program. We were in the classroom where they put all the troublemakers. But I resented being called a "troublemaker." It makes it sound as if we ourselves were the cause of the trouble. But that's not right. Our troubles were created by adults. By our parents. They say kids can't pick their parents... Well, we were the unluckiest ones of all. My parents were, without exaggeration, the worst... Like Demons." Despite how calm he looked, Nagisa clenched his fist lightly as he forced himself to remember. "My parents raised me like they were leveling me up in some game. They didn't treat me like a person. They probably even forgot I was their child. From morning till night, study, study, study... When I got sleepy, analeptics. Even if I faint, "HP" is fully restored with a handy I.V. in my arm... three to four days straight. And If I showed even the slightest resistance, they'd use "items" to neuter my spirit. And by doing so, as long as they steadily racked up "XP," I'd level up to their expectations. And it wasn't just at home. I received the same expectations at school as well. My father was a teacher at our school. He was a researcher of children's talent." He mentioned. "He used his own son to research the growth of a child's talent. He wanted to see what the growth curve would be like if he pushed a child to the breaking point." He let out a humorless chuckle. "...Isn't that funny? I was the subject of such an amusing experiment."