Danganronpa: String Theory (DrV3)

4.24 - Echo of a Person

"Well? Anything to add, Kirumi?" Maki demands, voice sharp as our attention falls on the silent Ultimate Maid beside her.

When I look at the woman that's been a thorn in my side since looking at her own Kubzpad motive video, I realize she's already looking at me. It's not like how she used to- this gaze is heavy and lacks any malignancy that she would normally throw my way.

Now...she just looks tired.

"I know now," she simply says.

Confused expressions cross the faces of those invested in the situation. Although we were hoping for some answers, perhaps a clue as to where Gonta or Kokichi might be, she gives us nothing like that. Her response is vague, and seemingly only directed towards me.

"'Know' what? What are you going on about now?" Tenko asks, crossing her arms.

No response to that. Kirumi just continues to stare at me.

"It's over," Kirumi continues, eventually tearing her gaze away from me to look towards Maki. "Please confine me to my room."

"As if you're in any position to be requesting anything," Maki says with a scowl, but when Kirumi falls silent again, staring back at me once more, she eventually starts directing her towards her dorm room anyways. "I'll be right back. Prairie, if you haven't checked Gonta's or Kokichi's rooms yet, deal with that first."

"Oh, right..." I hear myself say, casting one last curious glance towards the hooded figure that's mostly dissolved further behind Angie. At my lingering gaze towards the figure, Angie shoots me a pearly white grin and waves casually without comment.

Better to look for missing people than waste precious time addressing an individual in the safety of our ranks, even those that might have come back from the other side...as impossible as it would seem.

I head back up the stairs after Kaito, Shuichi, and Himiko- leaving the rest of the group downstairs to discuss Kirumi's recapture along with the mystery of events thus far. After closing my eyes for "concentration", I pop open Gonta's dorm first.

With Kaito's flashlight, we can already tell Gonta isn't in there before we've even stepped inside. A guy with his size would stick out immediately in the small dorm rooms, and unfortunately he isn't inside of his bathroom either.

"Let's check Kokichi's room next," Shuichi reassures me when I find myself staring at his room upon exit.

"How much do you wanna bet he won't be in there either? He's probably strung Gonta in another one of his stupid schemes again...I sure didn't forget the Insect Meet-and-Greet that almost happened," Kaito huffs as he closes the door behind us, directing his flashlight to the next door. "I don't even wanna know how that kid organizes his room."

Crap, doesn't he have that whiteboard with writing on it in there? I hope it's at least turned around- we don't need anyone becoming upset at the sight of it. Especially someone like Kaito...who calls him a "kid" despite being the same age...

Despite my reservations, trying to redirect their attention onto something else or changing my mind about opening his bedroom door would be futile at this point. Or at the very least, extremely suspicious and telling of my priorities. I can't afford to protect his secrets right now- him and Gonta are missing. They could be in trouble.

And if Kokichi is behind any of this, then it's for the better anyways. He might be using this time as a chance to hide because he really is guilty...just like Kaito said, he might have tricked Gonta to leave with him somewhere.

When I get Kokichi's room door open, I already know what it should look like inside. A mess of chaotic pages all over his floor, items hoarded to every corner. There's a box of movies from the AV room shoved in a corner, half emptied with sticky notes pressed over several horror flick titles.