Chapter 81. They're still chasing me, killing each other. ...
The things that Tsukino and Chiya took out were indeed, as he said, two things that looked like boxes from the outside.
...Or was it originally a box?
The sides of both boxes are printed with people's names.
Using the light of his flashlight, Hajime Hinata could make out the names located on the sides of the two boxes—Kurosaki Taro and Hino Asuharu.
I don't recognize them. Who are these two?
Just as this thought popped into his head, Hajime Hinata heard the familiar voice of the undergraduate student whose surname was probably Komaeda: "Ah... it's them."
This is what it means to know.
So Tsukino and Chiya took the opportunity to ask, "Do you know who they are?"
“Tsukino Kazuki just said that the names here seem familiar, right? That’s normal.” Komaeda Nagito smiled gently and patiently explained, “Because they are both Hope’s Peak students, and members of the undergraduate student council. They are very talented people.”
Tsukino and Chiya thought for a few seconds: "So they really are still alive? And they're still studying at school?"
Komaeda Nagito agreed, confirming, "That's right. I ran into one of them at a bookstore in the South Ward a few days ago."
Is that really the case?
Tsukino and Chiya were not surprised by this result, after all, they had already encountered several strange beings who were still alive and well, but died after experiencing various events in the future timeline, and were now causing trouble in the present time under the influence of Aurora's power.
So, more than that, what Tsukino and Chiya cared about was...
Why did the Hope's Peak undergraduates get into trouble? The sealed-off old school buildings, weapons on the ground, a strange person seemingly obsessed with killing, and more than one name...
Unlike the cloth-striped figure that didn't originate in the preparatory courses but wandered around the preparatory course buildings under Aurora's influence, this strange occurrence might truly be related to Hope's Peak and the school's old buildings.
What exactly happened in the future?
This point should be key to resolving this incident... However, perhaps it's not necessary to fully understand it. Just like the Sarayashiki incident he recently resolved with Ohma Kokichi, even without fully knowing the specific truth of what would happen in the future, he was still able to successfully resolve the matter.
But this time...
Thinking of this, Tsukino and Chiya subconsciously looked at Ohma Kokichi.
No matter what, this involves the school that this person actively sought to get into. Everything else is secondary; it's just a matter of what happens in the future that might affect him…
...
He really does know something, doesn't he?
The purple-haired boy had been silent for some time. This might be quite normal for others, but it felt a little unusual for Ouma Kokichi.
However, his silence was not long, and it was reasonable for him not to interrupt others.
Before the others could fully suspect something was amiss, Ohma Kokichi, who had been staring at the two boxes that Tsukino and Chiya had placed on the table, seemingly lost in thought, suddenly looked up and feigned surprise.
"Is that so? I'm a little surprised."
Ouma Kokichi sat back down in his chair, propping his cheek up with one hand as he looked at Komaeda Nagito. The white-haired boy being stared at had a gentle smile on his face, allowing himself to be looked at with an open and generous air.
"I thought that if it were you, Komaeda, you would deliberately withhold some information under the pretext of 'wanting to see the hope that emerges after everyone overcomes despair in adversity.' I didn't expect you to be so open about it. It feels very suspicious~"
"How is that possible?" Hyuga Hajime thought upon hearing this. The box with names written on it that appeared on the ground after the anomaly retreated was obviously an important item, and should logically be an important clue to solving this incident. The two names on it were even more impossible to ignore.
Therefore, if they knew or understood the people represented by those two names, how could they possibly hide it...?
"Hahaha, we've been found out."
Komaeda Nagito admitted it with a smile.
"As expected of Ohma, he actually managed to guess the thoughts of a scumbag like me. I'm a little flattered... Indeed, that was my original plan. But thinking about it carefully, these two are both Ultimate Level students after all, and a little investigation later will reveal the truth, so I don't think there's any need to hide it here."
At this point, his smile widened even more: "More than that, I'm looking forward to seeing how everyone performs after getting the new clues! After being trapped in the predicament of the strange markings... how will everyone survive adversity, overcome despair, and show a dazzling hope?"
Hajime Hinata fell silent.
Isn't this thought process a bit strange? He doesn't quite understand it.
Besides, the difficulty is already high enough; there's no need to manually increase it. And now that you're here, don't act like you don't have any marks on you anymore. If something goes wrong, you won't be able to escape!
However, since they were only meeting for the first time and had only known each other for a short time, Hajime Hinata ultimately did not voice his complaints and doubts.
Tsukino and Chiya didn't say anything either... Unlike Hyuga Hajime, who was caught off guard by these incomprehensible things, he had spent some time alone with Komaeda Nagito and had realized that some of the other's views were indeed quite different from those of ordinary people.
Especially after he defeated those two strange beings in succession, Komaeda Nagito's performance became increasingly apparent...
Ouma Kokichi suddenly remembered something: "Right, this box was dropped on the ground after the anomaly disappeared, right? Komaeda, you only noticed the two names on the side just now, and you didn't check the box immediately?"
Komaeda Nagito explained, "Well... because Tsukino Kazuki put the boxes away immediately after receiving them. Tsukino Kazuki said that the most important thing was to reunite with Ohma-kun, so I can understand. After learning that Ohma-kun and Tsukino Kazuki had become separated, I was also very worried about Ohma-kun's situation."
Wang Ma Xiaoji let out a "whoosh," then touched his arm as if disgusted: "So cheesy!"
Seeing this, Komaeda Nagito seemed to reflect: "Hmm... indeed. It doesn't seem quite appropriate for me to say such things. It's really ungrateful of me, a piece of trash who overestimates himself, to try to worry about Ohma-kun, who possesses such promising talent. Someone as outstanding as Ohma-kun certainly wouldn't fall down in despair in a place like this!"
"Hehe, since Komaeda has realized that what he said was inappropriate, shouldn't he do something to apologize? Let me think... what would be a good thing for Komaeda to do?"
While listening to their conversation, Tsukino and Chiya tried to open the box on the table.
It opened instantly.
He was initially wary that he might see something strange after opening it—like a ghost suddenly appearing in his face. But in fact, nothing unusual happened.
Inside the box bearing Taro Kurosaki's name was a photograph of a toy car stained with shocking blood and a child's broken shoes also covered in blood.
The box bearing Hino Asuharu's name also contained a photograph, a striking image of a strange woman hanging herself.
"This is..."
The contents of the opened box successfully attracted the attention of the others, and everyone temporarily stopped talking about other topics to look at the two photos.
"They're getting more and more alike," Komaeda Nagito remarked.
Hajime Hinata asked, "Like what?"
“Fighting amongst themselves, huh? Ah, right, this… Hyuga-kun, right?” Komaeda Nagito explained, “I just mentioned what happened after I met Tsukino-kun. But to keep it short, I’ve omitted some parts that I’m actually quite reluctant to omit—in fact, at first, I thought there was some kind of infighting going on here at the old school building.”
"And now this whole situation... the weapons on the ground, the strange creature shouting that it wants to kill, the locked door, plus this..."
Komaeda Nagito pointed to the two photos.
"Don't you think they're like motives? Generally speaking, if someone is suddenly drawn into a situation of mutual destruction, many people might be unwilling to act, right? In such cases, you need a motive to get them to act. For example, you could threaten them with someone important to them, saying that if they participate in this mutual destruction and win, they can successfully leave and reunite with that person... or something like that."
It seems... that the analysis actually makes some sense?
"However, this form of infighting is still somewhat different from what I imagined."
Komaeda Nagito looked somewhat disappointed.
"The current situation looks like everyone is locked in a closed environment and then they start killing each other until only one person is left, which is a battle royale mode. However, the kind of infighting that truly makes people grit their teeth and keep going from despair, overcome despair, and ultimately make hope shine, can be carried out in a more sophisticated way..."
"Speaking of which..." After listening to a bunch of things that seemed to make sense but also seemed completely off, Hyuga Hajime asked the most profound question, "Why are you so skilled at this?"
"Huh?" Komaeda Nagito seemed even more surprised than the others who heard his words. He asked in astonishment, "Doesn't this Hyuga-kun ever have fantasies before entering school about suddenly starting a fight between his classmates after entering school?"
Hajime Hinata: "I have absolutely no idea..."
And it would be strange to even have such fantasies! Nanami, your classmates are all so unique...
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Author's Note: Xiao Ji: The infighting is still chasing me.
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