DANGANRONPA V2: ECLIPSE

Chapter 5: Part 4

"Um... make sure no one else sees this, okay? You're not supposed to share this information. Think of it as a little bonus for you," the recording of Daiki continued. It was strange to hear him talk so much. He took his hat off and placed it on the table in front of him, using the back of his gloved hand to wipe a little sweat from his forehead. "Sorry if I'm not as enthusiastic as usual. I guess... you probably have a lot of questions, right?" he looked to his left, seeming to nod at someone before looking into the camera. "Right... well... don't worry! I'll explain. Again."

There it was. "Again." What did "again" mean? Did we all record ourselves? Did this have something to do with Project Reset? If so, then why did it seem like he was with someone else during the time of the filming?

"Um, just to clarify, this is you speaking. No actors, no tricks, it's you. You won't remember recording this, but trust me, you did. Anyway, we've had many titles," Daiki explained with a tired shrug. "First, it was the ultimate lucky student. I wouldn't have called winning luck, though. Heh..."

"First?!" Ruji asked. He stepped forward, only to nearly trip over Daiki's body. I had to reach forward to stabilize him as Kichiro made a harsh shushing noise. 

"Next round," the recording continued. "I was the ultimate detective. I guess that's a bit of an upgrade, but that also meant I no longer had an excuse for my stupidity, so that was rough... but I guess we got lucky again. We were smart enough to pull it off. And... what are we now?" 

In the video, Daiki seemed to lean to the side, listening to a voice that was too muffled to make out. His shoulders sagged slightly as he looked back to the screen. 

"Looks like this time, you're the ultimate spy. Oh, that's pretty cool, I suppose. Ultimate spy... that's what you're going to tell everyone. It's what you're going to believe."

He looked down and quietly laughed to himself, shaking his head and rubbing the back of his neck. 

"But... in reality, you're none of those things. You're the ultimate survivor."

I shook my head. What was being implied? Did Daiki know any of this? Was this why he was keeping quiet this whole time?

No, that couldn't have been it. If he knew, he wouldn't need the recording. 

"This is your third killing game," the recording continued. "The third of what they hope to be many more. They want you to keep winning, Daiki. They like watching you... they love you... they love me."

He didn't sound enthusiastic. Daiki seemed to lower his gaze in the recording. His skin was pale and damp. He looked ill. 

"It's weird... I never thought this was what love would feel like," he muttered. "I... It's tiring. I'm so tired. At first... things were different, you wanted this. I wanted this. But now... all the memories from each game, I keep them all. Each person I lose I remember, even if it's all... huh?" he looked off the screen again. "Oh, I guess I can't talk about that. Right... I forgot. Sorry."

He lowered his head, closing his eyes. He looked lost. No, that wasn't the right word. 

He looked trapped. 

"This is your survivor's perk. This video. It's something you get to give you an extra edge. You got one last game, you'll probably get one next game too. They plan on doing more with these in the future, but for now, this tape will be handed to you about halfway through the game," Daiki's recording explained slowly. "And... you have to win. It's selfish to give up when so many people love you. It's selfish to assign your fate to someone else. You may think you want to get out of this loop, but doing so would mean throwing someone else in your place and losing the only love you've ever known. If you lose, no one will remember you anymore. You have to- no, wait, let me finish!" he cried as the camera started to shake.