(3rd Person's POV)
"Eeek!" Toko shrieked as the girls entered the Chairman's Office only to find the ground covered with puddles of pink blood. "It's blood! BLOOOD!" She yelled as she quickly calmed down and groaned. "Ugh, I was so shocked I really drew out that last word..."
"...Hey, Toko, Aki..." Komaru walked to the front desk to see a dead body, who she was sure was Haiji's father.
"Did you find it?" Akira asked.
"I did, but... What should I do...? It's laying on the floor... It's looking at me." Komaru grimaced, scared tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.
"Y-You don't have to give me the details!" Toko grasped her head, doing her best to look away from all the blood. "I-If you don't think it'll work..."
"But if we give up now... We won't be able to get through... And then all the people of the town might end up like this..." Komaru muttered before taking a deep breath and nodding. "I'll do it... Yeah, I'll do it."
A few minutes later, Komaru approached them, holding a large paper bag. "It's...done..."
"What's that paper bag?" Toko inquired before shaking her head. "No, wait, never mind... I don't wanna know."
"Yeah... Probably better if you don't." Komaru sighed. "Okay, let's head back to the retinal scanning place..."
"Y-Yeah..."
---
Back at the elevator...
"..." Komaru grimaced, her eyes turning dull as she stared at the paper bag. "Okay, I'm taking it out of the bag..."
"Y-Yeah, you do it... Hurry up and do it already..." Toko urged.
"Don't rush me..." Komaru grumbled as she proceeded to do so and use the severed head's eye on the retinal scanner. "Uuuuuuuugh..." She groaned.
DING!
"..." Komaru continued to stare at the body.
"I...think it's open." Akira said.
"...We don't need it anymore, right? Just... Just throw it." Toko suggested.
"N-No, I can't! I'll get divine punishment!" Komaru's face paled.
Toko let out an annoyed groan. "Divine punishment, sensing ghosts... That's enough of your occult stories! Divine punishment is a fiction the living created. The dead have no power."
"That...might be true, but..." Komaru tried to argue.
"...Miss..."
Komaru froze. "...Huh? Toko? Aki? Did you say something?"
"No...?" Akira tilted her head.
"We didn't say anything..." Toko said.
"Th-That's strange, for some reason... I thought I heard a voice..." Komaru mumbled.
"I was just telling you to stop with that stuff!" Toko made an irritated glare at her.
"Miss... Miss..."
"See! I hear it aga--" Komaru turned her head around to see a white sprit-like entity. "Kyaaaaaaah!" She shrieked as she dropped to the floor, landing on her butt while dropping the paper bag with the severed head in it. "Ah... Awawa...wawawa..."
"Eh...?" Akira folded her arms in a confused manner.
"What...? What happened? What are you shouting about all of a sudden?" Toko asked.
"G-G-G-Ghost! The ghost of a severed head!" Komaru stammered in fear, pointing in between Toko and Aki.
Toko glanced to see that nothing was there before narrowing her eyes at Komaru. "I told you, now's not the time for fooling around!"
"I'm serious!" Komaru responded before her eyes suddenly rolled to the back of her head.
"Miss... You're horrible... Throwing my head away like that..." Komaru spoke once again, but her voice was echoing with a male voice.
Komaru's face went back to its scared expression. " I-I-I-I'm sorry! I was surprised, I dropped it on accident! I didn't mean to!"
"...Huh?" Toko cocked her head to the side as Akira looked confused with her ahoge bobbing up and down.
"I-I'm really sorry! I apologize, please! Don't curse me!" Komaru begged.
Her expression then switched as her eyes rolled back again. "Curse you...? There's no way I'd do something so lowly. I just...want you to listen."
"L-Listen...?"
"Komaru, get a hold of yourself! You're hallucinating!" Toko called out, but she didn't seem to be listening.
"My name is Tokuichi Towa... I was the chairman of Towa Group in the past..." The eye-rolling expression introduced.
"I-I know... You're Mister Haiji's father, right?" Komaru guessed.
"I see... You know Haiji. Then, do you know his little sister, Monaca?" Tokuichi said.
Komaru blinked, processing what he just said. "Little sister...? Monaca!?"
---
"Monaca is a Mage. And when I attended elementary school, I was called the Li'l Ultimate Homeroom."
---
Komaru gasped. "Then...that kid and Mister Haiji are siblings!?"
"Hm, so you do know about Monaca. In that case, I can get right to the point." Tokuichi started. "I beg you, no matter what, using any means necessary...stop Monaca from going out of control! If you let her do this, the name of Towa will be finished!"
Toko lightly bit her thumb. "...This is bad, Komaru's chatting up an illusion! I gotta bring her back to her senses..."
"The ungrateful child, she forgets she is in my debt for taking her in, and revolts against me!?" Tokuichi snarled.
"Taking her in...?" Komaru sounded confused.
"...That whelp's mother was my mistress. But that bitch abandoned her responsibility and forced Monaca on me when she was a baby."
"But isn't a father expected to raise his own child?"
"If her mother wasn't going to raise her, I wouldn't have tolerated the pregnancy at all!"
"Th-That's horrible..."
"I even let her stay in our home and raised her. I could have easily left her in an orphanage... But that child made me end up like this... She killed her own father! It's all that woman's fault! She's the one who made Monaca insane... I knew something was wrong the moment I noticed Monaca growing more rebellious..."
"Wait, "that woman"?"
"Even thinking about her horrifies me... Hm?" Tokuichi turned his, or Komaru's head, to see Toko making a religious hand sign and thrusting it towards Komaru.
"The power of Christ compels you! The power of Christ compels you!" She chanted as a white aura surrounded her as a gust of invisible energy struck Komaru's body.
"Gyaaaah!" Tokuichi screeched as he felt his spirit being exorcised out of Komaru.
"The power of Christ compels you!"
"I-I beg you..." Tokuichi begged. "Please stop Monaca... Avenge...me!" He yelled as his spirit disappeared, leaving the realm of the living.
"What...what the hell just happened...!?" Akira mumbled.
Komaru quickly got up. "Toko, what are you doing!? I was just about to hear something important!"
"Phew, looks like you're back to your senses... There's no way that stupid chant would work on a real ghost! You were dreaming it!" Toko assumed.
"Dreaming...? But he told me a lot of things! About the Towa family..."
"Argh, it was all just a delusion!"
"...Really...? A delusion...?"
"Look, you're tired. Dream about stuff when you're in bed after this is all over."
"I-I still don't get it, but...okay." She nodded as the girls headed into the elevator.
---
On the 5th floor...
"Kyaaa! Stop! Don't come near me!"
"That girl... What is she doing!?" Komaru wondered as they saw Kotoko hanging from the ceiling.
"Ah! You three! Please, help me! These perverted bear robots are gonna gang up on me!" Kotoko screamed.
Toko rolled her eyes. "...Ignore her."
"There's no way I can do that!" Komaru looked at her.
"Y-You're too trusting! She's that perverted girl who took away your virginity!" Toko exaggerating.
"What!? No she didn't!" Komaru blushed.
"And even if she tried to, she obviously can't." Akira pointed out.
"A Monokuma Kid is somewhere in this room, controlling them! Find that kid and friggin' kill 'em!" Kotoko said.
"...You heard her." Toko said.
"I'm not going to kill them!"
---
Eventually, the girls found the Monokuma Kid and destroyed all the Monokuma robots. Kotoko let out a relieved sigh as she jumped down.
"Ah, I'm glad... Even the worthy Homer sometimes nods..." Kotoko giggled. "...Did I use that proverb right? I almost never say stuff like that, so I'm not sure. But just because you're not used to it doesn't mean you should give up. Like those tentacles..."
Komaru grimaced at the memory before asking. "Hey, why were you getting attacked?"
"It is highly unfortunate, but it appears I too have been betrayed!" Kotoko grinned, contrasting her words.
"For being so "unfortunate," you sure seem nonchalant about it." Toko pointed out.
"Well, this is an act, too. If I stop acting, it would be bad. I would lose my cool like some miserable wretch... To put this much effort into betraying me... I'm boiling with anger!" Kotoko made a fake smile.
"You're talking about Monaca, right?" Komaru guessed.
Kotoko nodded. "Yes, she said it herself. She doesn't care about Paradise, and never has. She was tricking us with all her talk about succeeding the will of Big Sis Junko. She even took advantage of the hope Big Sis Junko gave us... And she made everyone in the Warriors of Hope fight... No, more than that. Remember, after I lost to you three, I got ambushed by Monokuma Kids? I think that was her doing. Masaru and Jataro probably ended up the same way." Her fake smile disappeared as she scowled. "She didn't just betray the Warriors of Hope... She wanted to kill us. She didn't believe in friendship or effort or victory... The Children's Paradise we dreamed of... It was never gonna happen, from the very beginning..."
"If that's true, then what is she really after?" Toko inquired.
"I'm not sure... But she said something about The Successor to Junko Enoshima or something..." Kotoko recalled.
Toko looked intrigued and concerned. "A successor?"
"She's twisting this whole situation to make a kingdom for herself, not a paradise for all. And as queen of her little kingdom, she probably wants to be the pampered Successor." Kotoko puffed her cheeks out in anger. "She's seriously the worst! She should just... choke on a bowl of poo and die!"
"Hey Toko... What do you think?" Komaru looked at her.
"Well, first off, I still don't think we can trust her..." Toko lightly scoffed, glancing at Kotoko. "Saying things like "I was betrayed"... She probably just wants us to let our guard down."
Kotoko chuckled, shaking her head. "Never! I'm completely unarmed! See?" She lifted her skirt up.
"H-Hey, stop!" Komaru took a step back while Akira simply looked away.
Kotoko did so as she looked at them. "If you still don't trust me... I'll let you in on a little secret. ...The whereabouts of that big fat liar, Monaca. She should be inside The Excalibur, anchored at the rooftop helicopter port.
"The Excalibur?" Komaru parroted, looking confused.
"It's that big airship thingy you so courageously jumped out of. It's on top of Towa Hills." Kotoko informed.
"If you know where she is, why don't you go find her yourself?" Toko narrowed her eyes.
"Well, I was planning to do just that! But that's when I got jumped by these Monokumas." Kotoko explained.
"The device that controls the Monokumas... Is that in this Excalibur thing, too?" Komaru asked.
"I'm guessing that liar poophead Monaca is holding on to it. She's controlling the Monokumas." Kotoko revealed before frowning and clenching her fists. "Jeez, her stupid "magic"... Getting all carried away with that controller..." She quickly calmed down, replacing her previous expression with a playful smirk. "You should snatch it from her. Then, you can give it to me for safekeeping."
"S-Safekeeping!? You're just as bad as Monaca!" Toko exclaimed before widening her eyes. "And more importantly, where's the hostage from Future Foundation? This is crucial!"
"You mean that blond guy who looks like he has really pretty nipples?" Kotoko guessed.
"...Yeah, th-that's him! No doubt about it, Master has to have beautiful nipples!" Toko frantically nodded.
"The "Master" you're talking about is In the storage room on the top floor of Towa Hills. Buuut... The key to that room is in that liar poophead bitch Monaca's pocket."
"Then all I gotta do is strip that brat down and snag that key!"
"Yeah, and after she's stripped down, bury her legs and let starving dogs come eat her!"
Komaru sweatdropped. "You don't have to go that far... All we have to do is make her give us the key."
"Ufufu, you're so kind, miss. But remember, the device that controls the Monokumas... Just leave it to me, you can trust me with it!" Kotoko giggled before her face went blank. "After all... I don't hate adults anymore. They're not Demons to me, not one bit!" She made a graceful bow. "Now then... Good day." She said as she walked off.
"Good day?" Komaru tilted her head. "Where is she going?"
"She doesn't hate the adults anymore, huh?" Toko scoffed. "Don't make me laugh, you aren't that good at acting... Maybe we shouldn't have saved someone like her..."
"Right now, we know where we need to go, so let's get to the roof already!" Komaru narrowed her eyes. "Before there are more victims... We have to stop the kids and adults from fighting!"
"...Komaru, your eyes are scary..." Toko said in a concerned tone.
"...Huh?"
"I told you before, Master comes first. But if we can save the city while we're at it..."
"B-But..."
"Got it?"
"...Got it."
---
"Well, that's a pretty creepy door..." Komaru remarked as they stared at a metal door covered in dried blood. "What should we do?"
"...Not open it?" Akira responded.
"Yeah, are you actually planning to open this obviously creepy-looking door?" Toko agreed.
"I mean, there might be something important or useful in here..." Komaru tried to argue.
Toko made an annoyed groan, but relented. "I-I'm not gonna help you out if a head starts rolling on the floor like last time!"
"Don't say that, it's scary..." Komaru said as they went inside, but she widened her eyes. "Wh-What is this!?" She shrieked as she saw multiple torture devices along with red dried up blood on the walls.
"Th-That's why we warned you!" Toko shut her eyes, turning around. "Argh, jeez, let's get outside!"
"Wait... This is..." Komaru went down to her knees and saw letters written in blood. "What is this? It's written in blood... They're letters, right? Hey, Toko, can you take a look at th--"
Komaru turned around to see Haiji standing there with a pissed off expression. "Kyaaaah!"
"Gyaaaah!" Toko screeched.
"...How'd you get here?" Akira was the only one of the girls to stay calm, only tilting her head.
"..." Haiji stayed silent.
"D-Don't scare me like that! If you were gonna tag along with us, make your presence known! Jeez!" Toko complained.
Haiji looked around. "...So...it was here..."
"Um, Mister Haiji...?" Komaru spoke up.
Haiji turned to them. "You have no idea what this room is, huh? Well I'll tell you... This is a torture room. Those kids were torturing our loved ones in here."
"Torture!?" Komaru repeated, her face paling.
"You guys saw that broadcast too, right?"
---
"S-Someone, help! That's my wife!"
---
"To try to flush us out from the base, those brats made us watch out loved ones get chopped up." Haiji explained. "It actually had the opposite effect, though. We were all too afraid to come out..."
"Wh-What?" Komaru placed her hands over her mouth.
"Such a despair-inducing idea... Someone with experience must have planned it..." Toko mused.
"You understand now, right? This room... It represents all the despair we were forced to feel. ...All the adults back at the secret base... Their loved ones were killed right here." Haiji said.
"...All of them?"
"It's not an exaggeration. Every single one of us had loved ones killed in this room."
"Then...those kids somehow discovered all your identities and found your relatives...?"
"Yeah... So?" Komaru tilted her head.
"...Isn't that a little strange?" Akira twirled her finger around a lock of her hair. "Something that complex...are the kids really capable of that?"
"Well, "capable" or not, that's what happened! And that's why we can't show any mercy, not anymore! I'll never forgive those bastards, never!" Haiji grit his teeth as he turned towards a wooden door with scratches on it. "This must be where they put the bodies... They threw them away like...broken toys." He turned towards the girls with a demented look in his eyes. "...You want to see it? When you do... I'm sure you'll no longer want to take their side."
"W-We're not "taking their side"... It just... It seems like something's off to me..." Toko muttered.
Haiji sighed, shaking his head. "...You go on ahead... I want to stay here a little longer. I have to... I have to tell the others about this place. I want to be able to describe it."
"Mister Haiji, I understand how you feel, but... Those kids didn't do it of their own free will..." Komaru said, but Haiji didn't seem to hear her.
"...Let's just go." Toko grabbed her arm.
"Ah, but..." Komaru trailed off as the three left the room, leaving Haiji there. "Toko... Shouldn't we explain the brainwashing to Haiji?"
"He won't even listen to us. It would probably make him even more upset." Toko pointed out.
"But...I wanted to ask him about his little sister, too..." Komaru mumbled.
"You heard about that from your hallucinations, right? You shouldn't take that as fact..." Toko rolled her eyes. "And not just that, but... A lot of things seem off."
"Off...?"
"The victims are all relatives of the people at the secret base... Doesn't that seem strange? No matter how smart those brats might be, how could they possibly learn who they all were? Jeez... Things are starting to get fishy..."
"But we've come this far... No way we can head back now."
"..."
"I'm sure it will be alright. All three of us... We can do this."
"..." Toko slowly nodded. "Y-You're right...no choice. We have to press forward."
---
On the next level...
"This place..." Toko muttered before gasping. "He's here! Master Byakuya is nearby!"
"Huh? How do you know?" Komaru tilted her head.
"I can smell him... His aromatic, sweet fragrance is getting stronger..." Toko perversely smirked.
"...You mean his B.O. is getting stronger?" Komaru raised an eyebrow.
"Don't say it like that! It makes it sound like he smells bad!" Toko scolded.
"Well, he has been in some sort of cell for at least a day. Or two." Akira pointed out.
"Maybe so, but a smelly Master is good too... That itself is a reward for us..." Toko said.
"Us...? You're including us in this?" Komaru commented.
"Anyway, there's no mistaking it. He's close."
"But first, we have to get the key."
"I-I know! That brat called Monaca has it, right? But before we go, let me nourish myself..." Toko requested as she breathed in the air, a lustful blush as her face as she started drooling. "Ahhh.... Hahhh... Ahhh... Hahhh..."
"Oy vey..." Akira shook her head.
---
"For some reason...this room creeps me out." Komaru said as they were in the throne room where the Warriors of Hope had their meetings.
"I guess they used this room as a war room." Toko assumed. "Probably made it creepy for ambience... Pretty blunt if you ask me. But I guess you can't expect much from kids..."
Komaru laughed. "Wow, you're mean. I'm glad you're on my side!"
"That's a backhanded compliment..." Toko sweatdropped.
---
After blowing a hole in a wall thanks to a Bomber Monokuma, the girls walked up to what looked like a hidden passage.
"Do you think Byakuya could be in there? This is exactly the kind of room where he'd be hidden!" Komaru assumed.
"Gch!" Toko ran off into the passage.
"...Wow, she really loves him that much, huh...?" Akira dryly remarked.
"Ah, Toko! Wait up!" Komaru said as she and Akira followed.
---
"This ladder... It's pretty suspicious." Komaru said.
"Realy? I think it'd be more sinister if it was a vent instead." Akira commented.
"But Master is inside a storage room... What kind of storage room would be up a ladder?" Toko wondered.
"Well, let's just check it out for now." Komaru climbed up the ladder with Akira and Toko following. They entered the room to see...
A room full of pictures of a familiar strawberry blonde friend of ours.
"These are all...photos of Junko Enoshima!" Toko realized.
"Huh? This person is Junko Enoshima?" Komaru tilted her head. "She's different than how I pictured her. She looks like your typical, trendy teenage girl..."
"Wh-What are you saying? Do you know how many people have died because of her?" Toko made a slight scowl.
"Sorry... You're right."
"And more importantly, this creepy room... It's like a cult headquarters." Toko commented before she saw Komaru walk towards a wall as she and Akira followed. "What happened?"
"Take a look at this..." Komaru said as they looked at one of the pictures.
"The girl in this photo with Junko... It's Monaca." Komaru said.
"I see... No wonder. She has a wicked face..." Toko grimaced.
"You think so? It looks pretty normal to me..." Akira said.
"That just makes it creepier. Posing with Junko Enoshima and smiling like this..." Toko responded as she looked around the room before concluding. "The way this photo was placed here, I'd guess this is Monaca's room. Hmph, no wonder she wants to be The Successor. She worships Junko from the bottom of her heart."
"...But...don't you think it's a little strange?" Komaru asked, placing a finger on her chin.
"Wh-What do you mean? Don't tell me you're still on about that ghost or whatever... If you're curious, you can question her yourself." Toko suggested before making a disappointed sigh. "I thought Master would be here, since this is a hidden room and all. But I guess not..."
"..." Komaru made a small grimace, but nodded as they left the room.
Chapter 22: End
To be continued...?