The Cat vs. Dog Debate
— Plan change. Keep the Ultimate Counselor, Kei, under maximum pressure and obstruction. Additionally, investigate the cooperative relationship formed between Kirigiri and Kei.
The papers Monokuma had handed over contained Enoshima's latest instructions. Reading them over, Mukuro Ikusaba thought to herself.
The Ultimate Counselor, Kei… He's dangerous, just as I thought…
He had gotten close to the others, managed their mental states, and stood night watch so no murders could happen after dark — slashing the odds of a killing almost to nothing.
On top of that, he had nearly talked the kids out of the first motive her little sister had prepared, rendering it all but useless, and yesterday he had even neutralized Maizono's attempt at murder.
Worse still, he seemed to have recently formed an alliance with another high-risk individual: the Ultimate Detective, Kyoko Kirigiri.
Honestly, they should have wiped Kei's talent from memory along with Kirigiri's. Kyoko Kirigiri's abilities were certainly a threat to the killing game's stability — but back in the Kibougamine days, the one who had charged out ahead of everyone else to smash her sister's plans to pieces had been none other than him.
Her sister, though, had insisted it would be no fun that way. She wanted to watch Kei fall into despair and break while still fully intact.
Mukuro had wanted to obey her beloved little sister. But a strange unease — the kind she usually only felt on the battlefield — kept gnawing at her, so she had asked just once whether they might reconsider. Enoshima had suddenly burst out laughing.
"Wow, you really don't remember a thing, do you?"
Mukuro had tilted her head in confusion, and Enoshima, seeing her face, had howled with laughter all over again before telling her not to worry — she had it all planned out. Of course my sister has everything under control, Mukuro had decided, packing that odd anxiety away and choosing to trust her.
Still, a question lingered in a corner of her mind. Why did thinking about him always bring on that strange unease? She had felt something similar on the battlefield countless times, but back then it had always come paired with an unpleasant tension.
When she thought of him, though, that unpleasant edge was missing. Instead came a shortness of breath, a roughening of her breathing, a tightness in her chest.
In any case, the way her instincts were still reacting made one thing clear: even without his memories, the Ultimate Counselor Kei remained a dangerous presence.
Forcing down the anxiety rising in her again, Mukuro Ikusaba called Enoshima's instructions to mind and began to consider how best to keep the Ultimate Counselor in check.
Back in my room, I started figuring out how to spend the next twenty-four hours. I still needed an excuse ready for the secret, of course — but Owada was the one really weighing on my mind.
Things had already diverged quite a bit from the original story I knew, but the motives were the same. Leaving Owada alone just felt wrong, so I decided to go talk to him.
"Yo… Kei? What's up…?"
"Ah, well… I've got nothing to do, so… I figured we could talk a bit…"
"Huh? There's a bunch of other kids around. Why me?"
"Well… everyone left on the first floor besides you is a girl, so striking up a conversation just because I'm bored felt kind of… yeah…?"
"That's your whole reason for coming to me? Man. What a wimp… Not that I'm exactly in the mood for a chat right now…"
"Ah… yeah? Guess it can't be helped, then… I even brought cup ramen to share while we talked…"
Among the gifts, Owada had always been crazy about this particular "Ultra-Fast Cup Ramen." Sure enough, the second he saw it, his eyes went wide.
"Huh…? Isn't that Ultra-Fast Cup Ramen…? I used to split these with my big bro all the time when we were kids…"
"Your brother?"
"Yeah… Every time he ate one, I'd stick to his side and eat with him, and he never once complained. Always just handed it over. Even though those little cups barely had anything in them…"
Owada trailed off mid-story and sank into thought. The secret from earlier must still be tearing him up. So that was why he liked Ultra-Fast Cup Ramen so much.
"Well… a little while won't kill me."
And so we sat down with the cup ramen and started talking.
Owada opened with motorcycles, asking what I rode. When I told him I was such a hopeless driver I couldn't even handle a bicycle, he let out a long sigh and declared that the second we got out of here, he was going to teach me the thrill of a bike. For a very brief moment, I no longer wanted to leave.
After that he grumbled that there was nobody around worth fighting, so I suggested he try sparring with Ogami — and got a faceful of the noodles he sprayed in shock. I also spent some time comforting him after he gloomily confessed that his habit of suddenly yelling had made him fail at confessing his feelings a full ten times. Before I knew it, Owada and I had gotten pretty close.
"Hey, Kei… There's something I've been wanting to ask you…"
"Y-yeah…? What is it…?"
Owada's face suddenly turned serious, and he spoke in a heavy tone. Perfect — he was finally going to open up about his brother. Now, what should I say to him…
"You a dog person or a cat person?"
"H-huh…?"
What kind of question was that? He had built the atmosphere up like it was life or death, and the big reveal was do you like dogs or cats?
I had been sitting there tensed up, racking my brain for the right advice, and now all the wind had gone out of me.
"Cats, obviously. How dare dogs even try to compare—"
"What did you just say, you little—!? You bastard, what the hell did you just say!?"
"Whoa… why are you getting so mad…? It's just a fact that cats are superior to dogs…"
"Obviously dogs are better, you idiot!!!"
Huh? He was actually pissed? Was this butter-haired meathead seriously dismissing cats right now? I could put up with a lot of things, but not this.
"Hey! Be honest — what do dogs have on cats? Dogs bark their heads off every single day and bounce around like maniacs. They're exhausting!"
"You little shit!!! Cats don't have a single cute bone in their bodies — they're just sneaky little creeps!!! Dogs are obviously cuter than those things!!!"
And so the Great Cat vs. Dog Debate began. It went on for quite a while, but since we only ever threw opposing claims at each other, we never reached a conclusion.
"Fine…! If that's how it is, then it's a contest…! I can't exactly settle this with fists against a scrawny guy like you, so whoever lasts longer in the bathhouse sauna wins — and their side is right!"
"You're on! Let's go right now! Loser kneels in front of the winner and admits their animal is superior — deal!?"
"This bastard gets an inch and takes a mile…! Fine, you're on! Like I can't beat one pathetic weakling like you!"
Poor Owada. Challenging a sauna contest against someone from Korea — the land of ondol floors and jjimjilbang bathhouses. I may not look like much, but back in the day I put in serious hours at those places. No matter how tough Owada was, I was confident I could take him. All right. I was going to burn the superiority of cats into Owada's soul once and for all.
Still… I had the nagging feeling I was forgetting something important. What was it? Eh. Whatever.
"Huuuuuhhh…"
"Ha. What's wrong? All that big talk, and you're already wiped?"
I had forgotten. Japan had just as many saunas as Korea. And I had never imagined this body wouldn't even be able to handle the heat. Just how frail had I become?
"Hah… hah… I-I'm… still… fine… you know…?"
"That so? Then keep at it. I'm gonna catch a nap."
I was barely hanging on, while Owada — who had even put his clothes back on as a handicap — looked completely unfazed. I was starting to think about surrendering and walking out, but the sight of him looking so damn relaxed lit a stubborn fire in me. I clenched my teeth and held on.
Owada watched me in silence for a while, then casually tossed out a line.
"…Don't you want to give up?"
"Honestly… it's rough, but… I can still… hold on… you know…?"
"…."
Owada's expression turned strange. Was he finally starting to feel it too? If so, I still had a shot. All right. Let's see this through to the end.
"Uhehh… I c'n shhtill… hol' onnn…"
"…."
Owada's consciousness was flickering, but his eyes stayed locked on the scrawny boy in front of him — sweat beading on his skin, still stubbornly hanging on.
What an impossible-to-read guy. He had walked right up to someone who looked as rough as Owada and struck up a conversation just to kill time. He had flinched at Owada's words one second, then dug in and fought back the moment cats came up. He had cheerfully accepted a sauna contest and then, even when anyone could see he was at his limit, refused to quit…
"Hey. It's only been thirty minutes. You gonna keep flopping around like that?"
"Th… thirty minutes…?"
At the words only thirty minutes, the boy's eyes wavered hard — then settled right back into that same look of pure will. It was pretty funny, honestly. And yet, somewhere deep in Owada's chest, an uncomfortable feeling stirred.
"Not giving up? If you quit now, I'll let you skip the kneeling."
"For… get it…"
"You've got a cut on your face, you know. That thing'll get infected if you're not careful."
"Must be… nice… being so manly… or whatever…"
No matter what Owada said, the boy's expression never changed. Looking at him, Owada finally asked the question he had buried deep inside — not to the boy, but to himself.
"How do you manage to have a heart that tough?"
"…?"
"You're scrawny, you look gloomy as hell, and most of the time you're a total coward — so how the hell do you get a heart that strong…!?"
He had shouted it. But it wasn't aimed at the boy. It was aimed at himself — at the weak heart dressed up in empty swagger, a heart even more pathetic than the frail-looking kid in front of him.
"…Because I got tired."
"What?"
"I got tired of living half-dead… tired of giving up on everything and just existing as a wreck. That's why."
The words that spilled from the boy's mouth were hard to understand. Tired? He was saying he had gotten a heart like that just from getting tired of living that way?
"What the hell does that even—!"
"You don't have to rush it either… People get tired eventually…"
"W-what?"
"If you can't leap over your own weakness right away… just live without leaping over it… If there's a truth you want to look away from… just keep looking away…"
"…"
"Do that long enough, and you get tired of living like that… and before you know it… you end up with a strong heart… naturally…"
"…..!"
"For the record… that's from experience…"
With that, the boy finally hit his limit. His consciousness gave out, and he collapsed.
"Damn it. Pushing yourself that hard and still preaching like you're hot shit…"
He grumbled — but the anger and frustration from a moment ago were already gone. Technically, Owada had probably won the bet. At this point, though, he found he didn't care about that at all.
Carefully, Owada hoisted the boy onto his back and muttered under his breath.
"Call it a draw."
Feeling the clean, open relief of a man who had finally found the answer to a problem that wouldn't unknot, Owada carried the boy out of the sauna.