Day 3
3:14 AM
One minute.
As in my past attempts, the corpse of the girl whose drink I poisoned will be discovered by her roommate. All it takes is for her scream of shock to echo through the dormitories on this floor, drawing everyone's attention.
This is the most efficient way I've found to act without raising suspicion. Since Manabu and Shou stick to my orbit under normal circumstances, I have no choice but to use a little chaos to create an opening, and from then on, chaos will feed itself more and more.
A slight disturbance is more than enough to destabilize everything.
As planned, I hear a terrified scream.
Like my classmates, I stand up abruptly.
"What a scare! What was that?!"
"Where did that scream come from?!"
"Let's see what happened!" one of them says, heading toward the hallway.
Naturally, Takashi will oppose this unexpected reaction, after all, Mikoto's orders are absolute and cannot be contradicted.
"Hey, hold on! You weren't authorized to leave. I'll check what happened," he tries to block the exit.
Don't be arrogant; your position as vice president means nothing. You wield no absolute authority over others. If it were Mikoto herself, the story would be different. She represents a natural aristocracy, while you're just a fraud.
The pressure from my classmates forces Takashi out of the room, and everyone heads toward the girls' dormitory, where the incident occurred.
"Manabu, Johann, let's see what happened!" Shou exclaims, running out of the room.
"Wait, Shoucchi!"
I still have some time before they notice my absence. The classroom empties quickly until only one classmate remains, finishing getting ready.
Being late is definitely problematic, which is why I value punctuality so much. This case is, without a doubt, an excellent example of how bad being late can be.
I walk toward him while drawing the blade hidden in my pants.
Reaching him, I pull his head back by the hair and quickly slit his throat. His body falls to the ground, unable to cry out.
Then, I clean the blade on my victim's own clothes and leave the dormitory as quickly as possible.
I run toward the girls' dormitory and blend into the crowd.
...
As they confirm what happened, the crowd begins to disperse, and it's only a matter of time before they discover the bloodied body in our dormitory. Amidst this confusion, no one should have noticed that I was the last to leave.
"Well, we've seen that Miyucchi is okay. Let's head back? There's nothing we can do here," says Manabu.
If my estimates are correct, within fifteen seconds, I'll have a new window of opportunity to act.
I turn my gaze to Mikoto, who is talking with Keiko, Takashi, Haruki, and other students under the student council's command.
This time... will I finally be able to finish this game once and for all? After hundreds of attempts, I still keep returning to the starting point. But I have no choice but to try again, and again, and again.
Ailiss and Mikoto must become allies, and I must be killed. This is an end that cannot be altered, something I can never give up on or abandon under any pretext.
A terrified student bursts onto the scene and exclaims,
"Hiro! Hiro was murdered!"
The council and the crowd's attention shifts to the boy, and the atmosphere grows even more tense. Once again, I take advantage of the situation to leave without raising suspicion.
This death, far more impactful than mere poisoning, is more than enough to start awakening everyone's fear of having a killer on the block, as well as to create mistrust among them.
I descend the stairs and head to the circuit breaker to continue my show. I've already made all the preparations; now all that's left is to cut the electricity permanently.
I damage the breaker to ensure it can't be turned back on, plunging everyone into darkness.
I can hear the terrified screams of the girls.
With this, I've generated chaos within Mikoto's reign. The next step is to lure Ailiss into the block. From my past experiences, I've learned there's only one way to draw her in without direct contact: stealing one of her belongings.
I go to a janitor's room and retrieve the machine gun I stole earlier in the afternoon. I fire two shots into the ceiling and leave.
...
The darkness gives me the advantage of killing without being seen, but it's also a problem for me. In this sense, I stash the machine gun in a new location and return to blending in with the increasingly unmanageable crowd.
"The killer could still be in the block, so I ask that you avoid walking the halls alone without a council escort, especially at night," Mikoto declares in front of the windows, taking advantage of the faint external light. "We will look into possibly relocating the dormitories to another block with electricity."
The students use their phones as flashlights, frequently pointing the beams down the long, dark corridors.
Soon, Ailiss takes the same measure as I do, integrating herself into the crowd. I notice her unease as she searches for whoever stole her weapon.
My priority now is to eliminate the troublesome vice president.
...
I approach the spot where Mikoto is giving orders and overhear her talking with Takashi and Haruki.
"Hasegawa-kun, with a secondary block selected for relocating the dormitories, take some reinforcements and maintain constant vigilance so the killer does not repeat the same actions. Meanwhile, Tanaka-kun, could you inspect what exactly happened? Perhaps we will find evidence of the culprit's whereabouts."
"Understood. I'll carry out your orders as quickly as possible," Takashi replies.
Without another distraction, I won't be able to follow him without quickly arousing suspicion. Someone will surely notice if I leave alone. In this sense, the curse of the three orbiting me came in handy.
"Hey, Shou, do you realize your opportunity here?" I whisper in his ear.
"Opportunity? I don't see any opportunity with a killer on the loose."
Oh, so you have a minimum level of common sense.
"Girls like brave guys, don't they?"
He thinks for a few seconds and replies.
"In a way, yes, but if I don't come back alive, there's no point in being brave."
"We could explore the floor a bit and say we went down to the ground floor. No one will be there to know how much we risked, and we can bring Manabu along."
"Good idea!" He lowers his voice. "But why do you want to do this? Is there a girl you want to impress?"
"You could say that."
But the impression I plan to leave on these girls isn't exactly what you're imagining...
...
"Shoucchi, do you really think this is a good idea?" Manabu asks, trembling.
"Of course! Someone has to do the dirty work and ensure everyone's safety!"
"If you say so..."
"Guys, I still think this is too dangerous," Miyu says.
"Don't worry, Miyu-chan, I'll be by their side. The killer would never dare face someone like me!"
Some nearby students look at Shou disapprovingly. Excellent, no one will suspect a group of fools.
We walk down the corridors, and the light diminishes as we move away from the crowd. We turn left and proceed in silence.
"Has it been enough, Jocchi?"
"If you want to look cool, we'll need to linger a bit longer."
"Can't we just wait here?" Shou asks.
"Yes, that'll work just as well."
I leave them distracted for a while as I ponder the events of these hundreds of repetitions I've been trapped in.
Is there any meaning in systematically forcing my ideals onto this reality? Isn't this game a direct denial of my wishes and my very being? Well, my will is not my choice. I'm not even free to choose whether or not to save them. Saving Ailiss and Mikoto simultaneously is a fact I will fulfill as long as I'm alive and aware of my will.
...
It's time to get rid of the two.
"Hey, did you hear that?"
"Hear what?! Don't scare me, Johann!"
"I heard something in the next corridor. Let's check it out."
"This won't end well..." Manabu mutters.
We reach the intersection with the other corridor and stop to observe my false alert.
"So? Who's going to take a peek?" Shou asks, sweating nervously.
"Let me. I'll do it," I take two steps and turn on my phone's flashlight.
I look to the left first, then to the right. At that moment, I force a surprised expression on my face while gesturing for Shou and Manabu to stay put.
"W-what is it, Jocchi?" Manabu stammers.
"I saw something move over there. Let's check it out."
"I think that's enough for today, don't you think, Manabu?" Shou nervously laughs as he pulls Manabu back.
"Really..." Manabu turns to retreat.
Now, to throw more fuel on the fire.
I quietly approach their backs and grab them while letting out a loud roar.
Both scream and run off in fright.
"Help!
"The killer is after us!"
No one will take the clowns seriously. Now I need to find that wretch's whereabouts and kill him again.
...
Checking the breaker? It's a rational decision, but it's beyond repair. My instinct to kill has become much sharper compared to our first confrontation. I'm still a complete amateur compared to Ailiss, but I can handle a worm-like Takashi without any problem. It's what I've been doing for hundreds of repetitions.
I approach him with slow, noiseless steps. I quietly draw the knife hidden in my pocket and grip it firmly with my fingers.
I move closer, controlling my breathing to conceal my presence in this dark corridor completely. The only thing I can't control is my heart rate, as the anxiety of eliminating him is something that never ceases in my mind.
At least I can channel my frustration from repeating all these events onto this unfortunate soul.
I repeat the usual procedure, slitting his throat so he can't scream. However, unlike the others, Takashi is a target that requires me to go a bit further.
He collapses to the ground and begins choking on his own blood.
Taking care to avoid getting any blood on my uniform, I proceed to stab his body repeatedly to vent all the negativity stuck in my mind.
I stab.
I stab.
I stab.
In silence, I observe his disfigured body for a few seconds before leaving the scene.
With Takashi's death, I'll be able to heighten the paranoia even further. Ailiss and Mikoto were in the same place; I know that subconsciously, they may suspect each other, and with a murder happening this way, I can exonerate them.
From their perspective, there will be another enemy. It's nothing much different from what I've done so far. After performing this type of action so many times, it's become quite intuitive for me.
Moreover, I need to ensure their alliance. Ensure they build bonds with each other. Ensure they don't harm one another after my death.
However, will I finally be able to meet these unknown requirements for the demons this time?
Day 7
6:47 PM
"Congratulations to both of you. I didn't think you could defeat me this way. I suppose I have no choice but to..."
Before their wide eyes, I raise my hand to my head and pull the revolver's trigger.