Chapter 45. The former Ultimate Maid. ...

Well, it was quite sudden.

A young woman with orange hair appeared out of nowhere, her hair tied in an impressive single ponytail. The maid apron she wore over her blue dress was particularly eye-catching; not many people dressed like that at school.

She wore a friendly smile that was very easy to like, and her green eyes looked at me gently.

Although she had asked, "You're Ohma-kun, right?" it was clear that she was quite certain the purple-haired boy in front of her was Ohma Shokichi. Indeed... if someone had done their research beforehand, it would be difficult to miss Ohma Shokichi, whose appearance and clothing were equally striking.

Sitting to the side, Tsukino and Chiya couldn't help but wonder who this woman, who had clearly come prepared specifically to find Ohma Kokichi, was.

They were currently in the central plaza of Hope's Peak. Although there was a rule prohibiting entry between 10 PM and 7 AM, unlike the East and South campuses which were designated as undergraduate areas and off-campus for preparatory students, this was a place open to everyone… and therefore, it was impossible to determine the woman's identity at this time.

However, the orange-haired woman quickly and energetically introduced herself.

"I am Yukizome Chisa, and from today onwards I will be your teacher, Ohma-kun. Nice to meet you!" Yukizome Chisa looked at Chiya, who was also sitting on the bench. "Hello, fellow student of the preparatory course!"

Snow-dyed Thousand Veils? That name sounds familiar, it's like...

Wearing their easily recognizable preparatory school uniforms, Tsukino and Chiya politely greeted him with "Good afternoon." However, upon hearing the self-address of "teacher," Ohma Kokichi looked hesitant: "Eh...? Teacher? Really? Why is the teacher suddenly looking for me? How scary... I'm not going to get my parents called in..."

This hesitant posture, this timid tone, this pitiful appearance made Qianye slowly type "...".

You are not Wangma Xiaoji, then who are you?

Faced with the pitiful look on the purple-haired boy's face, Yukizome Chisa, having probably learned about the student's personality beforehand, remained unfazed: "Teacher is here to bring you back to class! Youth only comes once, and once it's gone, it's gone forever! So, Class 1-B is currently holding an event to help students rediscover their youth and reunite in class. Say goodbye to your friends and come with me, Ohma-kun?"

"Whew—I see, what a relief!"

Upon hearing what Yukizome Chisa said, the gloom that had been lingering on Ohma Kokichi's face vanished instantly. He let out an exaggerated sigh of relief and patted his chest gently in a reassuring manner.

"I was so scared. I was just thinking about what I should do if the teacher wanted to talk to my parents. After all, I killed my family members during my power grab. It's great that I don't have to find a parent to deal with the teacher."

Yukizome Chisa took out a handkerchief and gently wiped her eyes. "What a regrettable family situation. But it's okay! Teacher, I will try my best to make the class a warm and welcoming family!"

"Wow... commendable courage. As expected of a new teacher, such is the case with only a three-minute attention span."

"I think Wang Ma underestimated me. But teacher, I came prepared! I'll do my best to prove him right!"

“Yuki-zome Chisa… I remember now.” As the two began their conversation, Tsukino and Chiya listened and pondered where that sense of familiarity came from. “If I’m not mistaken, teacher, you were the former Ultimate Maid, right?”

"So the teacher is a senior. But I'm not really interested in playing house with my classmates, and I don't plan to get along with them, so I guess I'll pass?"

"Wang Ma... don't say things like that so easily! If you waste your youth like this, you'll eventually turn into a rotten mandarin orange! Besides, all the other classmates have already been gathered in the classroom, and now you're the only one left! I, who bear an important mission, won't let you leave so easily. Alright, don't keep everyone waiting any longer. So—"

Yuki-ran Chisa clearly didn't intend to spend too much time standing still chatting.

The orange-haired teacher, who looked exceptionally kind, still wore a sweet smile, but suddenly pulled out two knives from who-knows-where: "If Wang Ma doesn't cooperate, I'll have to treat this as an emergency and take some special measures."

Tsukino and Chiya: "..." Are all undergraduate professors this eccentric?

"Oh no! Looks like I've accidentally messed with someone really dangerous! I have to run away!"

Wang Ma Xiaoji was saying something that sounded like he was terrified, but his tone and expression made him seem like he was completely enjoying it.

"The real fun of skipping class is being chased by the teacher! It's been so long since I've experienced something this exciting!"

Is being chased by a teacher more exciting than encountering something supernatural?

Tsukino and Chiya were inwardly grumbling, thinking that they, as preparatory course students, probably wouldn't have much to do next. But just as he was about to take his leave, he suddenly felt an unexpected, icy touch on his wrist.

Before Yukizome Chisa could make a move, Ouma Kokichi, who was sitting on the chair, stood up. With incredible agility, he pulled Chiya up while avoiding the hand that the newly acquainted teacher reached out to grab him, and successfully escaped from the bench.

Tsukino and Qianye: "...?"

The black-haired boy's gaze involuntarily fell on the hand that had grabbed his wrist.

His first reaction was that it felt very cold to the touch. Sure enough, Wang Ma's body wasn't in very good shape.

His second reaction was, "Wait, why should I run too?"

Tsukino and Chiya could feel that the cold hand wasn't using much force.

While it wasn't exactly a loose grip, it was something he could easily do if he wanted to shake off.

But just like how he instinctively got up with that force at the beginning, he had no intention of shaking off that hand now, and instead matched Wang Ma's speed.

Although the orange-haired teacher initially failed to "arrest" Ohma, she was clearly prepared for his escape. Yukizome Chisa's smile grew even more amiable, and she too caught up at an astonishing speed.

Watching Wang Ma Xiaoji, without turning back, precisely toss the crumpled plastic sheet in his other hand into the trash can as he passed a fork in the road, Tsukino and Chiya couldn't help but feel a little curious—

Who will prevail in this chase game: the former Ultimate Maid, who has lived on campus for three years and is extremely familiar with the place, and the Ultimate Leader, who has only been in Hope's Peak for less than a month but is also very likely to have figured out the layout of the place?

The thought had barely crossed his mind when Tsukino and Chiya suddenly felt a chill approaching from behind. He jerked to the left and noticed something fly past him.

Tsukino and Qianye: "..."

Did that teacher just throw something really powerful? Even though upon closer inspection, it seems like we would have just brushed past it even if we hadn't dodged, is that really okay?

The new undergraduate professor... is truly terrifying. Are all the professors at your "Ultimate High School" level like this?

*******

After performing the Qin King circling the pillar for a while in the school building, Wang Ma Xiaoji still followed Xue Ran Qian Sha back to the classroom.

The purple-haired boy, who had been successfully caught, showed no resentment. He just muttered, "It would be a shame not to go and see all those weirdos in the class together." He politely declined Xue Ran's offer to carry him back to the classroom and left with her.

Although, judging from Tsukino and Chiya's feelings, Ohma Kokichi clearly didn't use his full strength in his hide-and-seek skills, and even in the end... in other words, he might also be a little interested in the developments brought about by Yukizome-sensei?

Of course, this is just Qianye's personal speculation.

But no matter what, it's not a bad thing that Wang Ma Xiaoji's class 1-B suddenly has such a teacher.

After Wangma Xiaoji left, Tsukino and Chiya, who were now alone, looked up at the sky. It was still early before his usual dinner time, and he wasn't particularly hungry... Should they go back to the dormitory first?

It's a good opportunity to investigate the "Sarayashiki" matter that Ouma Kokichi didn't have time to finish talking about earlier.

Tsukino and Chiya had heard of the most widely circulated story about Sarayashiki in Japan.

Legend has it that there was a maid named Akiku who one day accidentally broke one of her master's family's heirloom set of ten precious plates. Upon learning this, the master flew into a rage, chopped off one of Akiku's fingers, and locked her in the woodshed. Unable to bear the humiliation any longer, Akiku threw herself into a well in the dead of night.

Since then, at night people could always hear a sad sound coming from the bottom of the well, counting plates in a mournful voice, "one, two..." Every time the count reached the ninth plate, the sound would turn into a shrill scream or cry, and then the count would start again from the beginning, repeating in this endless cycle.

That's roughly the gag story. Although there are some versions with slightly different details, such as Kiku not accidentally breaking the plate but being framed by her master... the general idea is that a maid throws herself into a well and counts numbers in the well every night, screaming and crying after reaching a certain number before starting to count again.

However, the Sarayashiki that Ouma Kokichi was referring to was clearly not this one.

The strange incidents they're currently looking for are all recent tales; the Sarayashiki, a ghost story from the Edo period, clearly doesn't fit the bill. However, Tsukino and Chiya know that Ohma Shokichi wouldn't bring up a story from so far away for no reason, so…

Has a strange incident similar to Sarayashiki occurred recently?

Back in their dorm room, Tsukino and Chiya sat on their beds and used their phones to post on a forum created by paranormal enthusiasts, asking if anyone knew anything about the matter. After some time, they actually received a reply from someone who knew the truth.

[Ah, I've heard of it. Is it that... the recent paranormal incident at an abandoned house in the suburbs? Not many people know about this ghost story, it's surprising that someone would post about it.]

[There's been strange noise coming from the well there lately, just like in the story of Sarayashiki, right?]

Are you curious? As far as I know, here's what happened—

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Author's Note: The timeline in Danganronpa is a bit messy. For example, based on the forum conversations in the game, the first generation's enrollment should have been in late August or September. However, in the Despair Arc, Yukizome circles the second generation's attendance record for July. Also, it seems Japanese schools have summer, winter, and spring breaks? Spring break is usually from February to April, but Yukizome returned in March after spending half a year in preparatory courses. Considering Hope's Peak starts later than other schools… well, I've been working myself to the bone trying to figure this out, so I've decided to stick to my own interpretations. Please don't think too much about the timeline stuff; if you really can't handle it, just consider it a result of being influenced by Detective Conan timelines (lol).

P.S.: I couldn't resist buying the "White Cut Chicken" cartridge. Once it arrives, I'm going to see what Xiao Gao is up to this time [covering face and peeking]