On a Knife's Edge

It sounds completely insane... but it's entirely possible.

Left alone in the changing room, Kyoko Kirigiri worked to sort through the chaos of information that had just been dumped on her. Most of what he'd told her sounded like wild, outlandish fiction. And yet, the more carefully she turned each piece over, the more it seemed to lock into place.

The claim that all seventeen students of the 78th Class had lost their memories of Hope's Peak Academy was hard to swallow. But then again, hadn't she herself forgotten her own talent until just a short while ago? It was entirely possible.

The same went for his claims about the mastermind's identity. Junko Enoshima... no — according to him, the girl was actually Mukuro Ikusaba. And that girl was definitely suspicious. For one thing, the version of her in the magazine photos looked markedly different from the one walking these halls. She'd claimed it was Photoshop. But what if it wasn't Photoshop at all? What if she was an entirely different person?

Her recent behavior had been equally suspect. The way she'd insisted everyone had to watch those DVDs during the Motive Video incident. The way she'd suggested they all sit down and share what they'd seen with students who were already coming apart at the seams.

Would anyone who'd just watched something that horrific actually want to talk about it? But if she were the mastermind — if nothing had played when it was her turn — that would explain everything. And if she really was the mastermind, then just as he'd said, the other one was most likely the "Junko Enoshima" she was impersonating.

As for the state of the outside world, she didn't want to believe it. But it was probably true. A hostage crisis of this scale, unfolding at Hope's Peak Academy right in the heart of the city, and not a single intervention from the outside? That was blatantly wrong. If the world had ended, just as he'd claimed, the silence beyond these walls suddenly made a terrible kind of sense.

Whether his information was accurate, however, was a separate question from whether Kei — the Ultimate Counselor — was someone she could actually trust. Honestly, until recently, she'd considered him a rather dangerous individual. Not the mastermind, perhaps, but dangerous all the same. She'd watched him closely over the past few days, and all she'd managed to confirm was that he was so naturally likable he could befriend anyone in a matter of minutes.

But today, watching that Motive Video, he had been visibly shaken. The children in the footage had seemed like people he'd been close to before coming to the academy. Could someone that many kids looked up to really be dangerous? And after seeing those children in peril, he had shed his usual spacey demeanor and started moving with a genuine, focused seriousness. Unless he was a master of method acting, the only explanation was that he was a genuinely good person. Of course, someone who wore his heart on his sleeve that openly couldn't possibly be that good an actor. If he were, he'd be the Ultimate Actor, not the Ultimate Counselor.

On top of all that, he had been counseling students through their troubles, volunteering for night watch, seeing through the danger of the Motive Videos and talking everyone down — he had been running himself ragged trying to prevent a murder. It wasn't just his diligence, either. Today, the moment the entire group had fallen into a panic, he had assessed the situation and taken control with remarkable speed. He was, for all intents and purposes, the center holding these kids together.

And so Kyoko decided, for the time being, to trust him. He shared her goal of ending the killing game, and he possessed a wealth of useful information. If she built a working partnership with him, they could defeat the mastermind and bring this killing game to a close.

That said, unanswered questions still remained. Most of what he'd told her just now had seemed true — but there had been a single moment when she'd felt him lie. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠When he'd said his memories of the past two years hadn't been erased, the fist he'd been clenching had loosened slightly, and a tremor had crept into his voice. He'd also looked away from her, just for a second. That statement was probably a lie.

But if it was a lie... then how did he know all of this? And how had he known that she'd forgotten what her own talent was? She had told him she wouldn't reveal her ability. She had never said a single word about having no memory of it.

Come to think of it, there was another unanswered question from when they'd first introduced themselves. Why had he looked at her with such aching, yearning eyes? That gaze had left such a deep impression that it still lingered in the back of her mind.

And the most incomprehensible question of all: ever since she'd recovered her memories as the Ultimate Detective, she found herself feeling something similar whenever she looked at him. Something that resembled that same gaze. Kyoko Kirigiri turned the question over and over in the bathtub, trying to put a name to that elusive emotion. Unfortunately, no answer came.

The moment I stepped out of the bathhouse, Monokuma was there to greet me. Great. What now...

"Hey, hey! What were you two doing in there?"

I tried to ignore the fussing bear and head for my room, but Monokuma blocked my path and launched into a monologue all his own.

"What, what?! It's a secret? That's so unfair! I demand an exclusive interview...!"

"Interview declined."

"The way you're dodging the question... don't tell me you two were getting freaky in there..."

"What the hell are you even talking about..."

"Well, you went into the changing room, then Kirigiri went in right after you, and then a little later you came out dripping with cold sweat...?"

No, I was just nervous from talking to my favorite character. What kind of misunderstanding is this?

"...I just went to take a bath to shake off the exhaustion. We ran into each other, exchanged a few words, and I let her go first. That's all."

"Huuuh... I see. Well, congratulations on losing your virginity!"

"Get the hell out of my face."

If it weren't for the school regulation forbidding violence against the headmaster, I would have kicked that shameless mug right off his shoulders. Monokuma cackled like it was the funniest thing in the world, then suddenly announced he had something to take care of and vanished.

I started walking toward my room, quietly grateful that Enoshima couldn't operate Monokuma and monitor everything at the same time — which meant she couldn't torment me for long. Then I stopped dead.

If Enoshima suddenly had something to take care of, that meant a situation had come up that required her attention... Was there anything like that happening right now? I thought it over, and a blue-haired idol suddenly flashed through my mind.

"Ah, shit. Maizono."

Sure, Maizono's mental state was probably wrecked enough that she'd attempt murder — but Naegi should be comforting her right now, so there was still time...

Wait. I sent everyone back to their rooms earlier.

Right. In the original, Maizono had panicked and bolted from the A/V room, and Naegi had chased after her to comfort her. But I'd stopped her from running out in the first place — which meant Naegi had no reason to go after her at all.

Wait. This is bad.

This was worse than I'd thought. She hadn't received any comfort from Naegi, and with Kirigiri and me on night watch, she couldn't even attempt a murder. Cornered like that, there was no telling what Maizono might do. I needed to find her and talk to her. Now.

Maizono had watched the Motive Video Monokuma played for her with a vacant, hollow expression. The footage had shown her idol group — the people who were her entire life, more precious to her than anything else in the world.

At first it had been an ordinary concert recording, nothing unusual. Then, all at once, the screen flushed red. The stage was in ruins. Every member except Maizono lay crumpled on the ground.

Seeing the members she'd laughed with, talked with, lived and died alongside — lying there, lifeless ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠— made her head spin and her breath catch in her throat.

Maizono trembled as she felt her dreams shatter to pieces through her entire body. It was as if every ounce of malice in the world was burrowing into her skin. Her mouth went bone-dry. She gagged.

With Monokuma's verdict, the last remnants of her reason vanished, and despair rushed in to fill the void. To the completely broken Maizono, the Monokuma on screen whispered sweetly.

The video ended.

Maizono muttered the words without realizing she was speaking.

As she murmured with a calm that was terrifying, someone called out in front of her.

"Everyone... I think you all probably saw something similar to what I did. Being shaken up is completely natural. So I think we should all rest and try to settle our minds for now. How does that sound?"

Watching that boy offer his opinion so calmly, so matter-of-factly, a wave of revulsion surged through her. My dreams have been denied. My entire life has been denied. And you're telling me to settle my mind? Don't talk like you understand everything. What the hell do you even know...!

She came within a breath of exploding at him — but then the other kids nodded weakly and began to disperse, and a sliver of reason trickled back.

Ah... it wasn't just me. Everyone saw something similar... What am I even...

I'm not in my right mind. She tried to pull herself together and started walking, but a wave of dizziness hit her and the world began to spin. She looked for Naegi without thinking, but he seemed to have gone back to his room already — probably just as shaken by his own video.

With no one to lean on, trapped in the worst possible situation, Maizono staggered forward. She swam through the chaos in her mind, and when she next came to her senses, she was rummaging through the kitchen.

Then she found something, and a lifeless smile spread across her face. A knife. A kitchen knife. Perfect for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stabbing someone. Perfect for cutting someone.

She slipped the knife into her clothes and returned to her dorm. Clutching the blade, she kept muttering.

What did we do wrong? What did I do wrong to deserve this insane situation? All I wanted was to live happily as an idol, to get closer to that boy... maybe even become something more. What possible sin could I have committed to be thrown into something this unfair?

She asked and asked, over and over, but of course no one answered. Before she knew it, she was staring ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at the kitchen knife clenched so tightly in her hand that her fingers had gone numb... thinking about what she would do next. And then—

"Maizono? I'd like to talk for a minute..."

Creeeak—

"What...? The door's unlocked? Maizono! Are you in there?"

He walked in.

I'd searched the classroom she should have run to in the game, back when she'd lost her mind and bolted. I'd searched everywhere else I could think of. She wasn't anywhere. Which left only one place. Her dorm.

I stood in front of her door and rang the intercom. No response. On a hunch, I tried the handle. The door opened.

I stepped inside carefully and called her name. Still nothing. Was she not here either? Then where the hell had she—

I scanned the room — and my eyes met Maizono's. She was sitting in the corner, clutching a knife.

Oh, fuck.