Danganronpa: Melancholic Mayhem

Chapter 3 Part 6- The Knowing, and The Keeping

I glanced over at a photo that set on the nightstand. A little boy with a bright smile, a black eye, and a piece of paper in hand. Next to him stood two people. A man and a woman, with their heads out of frame. Or rather, the photo had been folded so that the two peoples faces couldn't be seen. Next to the photo was a bowl of potato chips, with a bag of them on the floor next to the bed. Nearby sat a mini fridge. I reached for the mini fridge, before noticing a photo on the ground.

I paused, picking it up and staring at it. The photo was a silhouette of a person, with the words "Hano Yoshiko" underneath it. I paused, standing up, confused. What was this photo? It didn't have anyone actually in the photo. It wasn't even a real photo. And why Hano Yoshiko? I paused, looking up at the wall. My eyes widened, as I stared.

The wall had a bulletin board hanging from it, a bunch of photos pinned on it. Red string connected part of it, and four of the photos had been left as outliers with with a red X on each. Furuya, Sazama, Shishido and Morita. I looked away from those photos, noticing little bits of writing next to each. "Why can't I remember?" next to a photo of Yamazaki. "Ready to murder. Be wary." next to Tengan. "Mastermind?" which had been crossed out next to Taguchi. I scanned the photos, before stopping on one. "What happened to her?" next to a photo of me. I paused for a moment, taking a pen and writing on the note.

I placed the pen back down, running my hand over a something. I paused, looking down at what my fingers had just grazed. A... journal? I stared at it for a moment, my hand still touching the cover. I pulled back, looking away, taking a deep breath.

"You don't need to look. You can just walk away. Just... walk... a... w... a... y..." I said. I stared for another moment, before my hand reached down and pulled the book up, holding out in front of me. God... what's wrong with me?

I opened it to the first page. It read "Kawata Satoru: Killing School Life Catalog". I stared at it for a moment. I sighed, turning the page.

Day 1
I met with the other students today. I thought everything was going great, until the red panda showed up and told us to kill each other. I'm sure that nothing will happen, but we have to be wary. Especially Taguchi Masahiko, the Ultimate Hustler, who declared that he was going to kill someone. I'll be keeping a close eye on everyone. Or, as well as I can with 15 other students.

Day 2
We came together as a group to search the hotel, looking for anyway to get out of this place. I explored with Arima and Kajiwara, and the others were paired up as well. We didn't find any escape room. With perseverance, we'll find the exit. [New Note] I got a note from someone. They told me to come to the office room at 6:00 pm. Do to the suspicious nature of it, I asked the first person I'd met from school, Hirano Rei to accompany me to the room. When we arrived, no one was there, and the person never showed up. Did Hirano invite me? Also, there was a creaking sound coming from the closet. What was that about?

Suddenly, my eyes went wide. I had remembered hearing a creaking noise, but I thought it had been in my head. But if it wasn't... what made the creaking noise? I paused for a moment, before the realization suddenly hit me.

In the kitchen, under one of the counters, was a secret crawl space Sazama had used to leave the the kitchen, which connected to the office room. Maybe that creaking noise... was someone in that crawl space. Maybe the person who gave Kawata that note... planned on using that crawl space to kill him. Then... did I save Kawata... by being in the room?

I shook my head. That was absurd. No one had tried to murder before Sazama. After all, that just wouldn't make any sense. There was no evidence of an attempted murder... right? Quickly, I turned a couple of pages, trying to avoid the idea.

Day 5
Furuya has been found dead. It pains me to know that she died and I was just sitting around. I... don't even know what to feel about it anymore. I don't know why but I'm afraid. Maybe it's because it's one of my friends this time instead of a nameless stranger. And I don't know if I'm ready to send a friend away. But... if we don't do this, we all die. [New Note] Sazama was found guilty of killing Furuya by poison. I know I shouldn't feel bad, it's murder after all, but every murder has a motive, and it was sad to see her go. I could've saved Furuya. But I was to blind and arrogant to see that a friend would murder in our situation. I was so close... and I didn't know even bat an eye as Furuya was poisoned. I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight. Sazama's death was absolutely horrible to watch. I've never felt so powerless before as I watched another human being die for their crimes. This isn't any of our faults. It's the mastermind. And I'm going to figure out who that is even if it kills me.