Truth and Lies, Intertwined

The next morning, I headed to the Monoku-Machine and swiped my E-Handbook twice. I got a pale blue arrowhead that seemed to shimmer in the light, and a book called "Maiq, the Ultimate Liar". Part of me still wondered why I continued to get stuff from this thing, but then again, others seem to be happy with the stuff I find, so maybe it DOES help...somewhat...maybe?

Oh well, what's done is done, and there was still more work to do today. I had to figure out why Kokichi seemed so fascinated with the fountain, and what he was obviously up to. I had a gut feeling that Nagito was involved too, but I didn't want to approach him unless I had solid proof.

I went to the Dining Hall and had breakfast. Mixed berry pancakes with blueberry syrup, and a glass of orange juice. As usual, Kirumi's breakfast was always really good, and I put my plate away in the kitchen, where Ibuki volunteered herself to do dishes. Peko decided to join her in dish duty, concerned that leaving Ibuki alone would be a bad idea. I still felt bad for Ibuki, who was still worried about who voted her as the culprit, but I didn't feel this was a proper time to address this.

Instead, I headed out to the courtyard, and sure enough, Kokichi showed up a few minutes later. I decided it would be better if I got this over with, quickly.

"Kokichi, you got a moment?" I gestured towards the big round table, then walked over and sat down, my back to the corner.

Kokichi, seemingly carefree, put both hands behind his head and grinned widely. "Nee-heehee! It's a little strange that you would want to talk to me, Shuri. Why, we haven't talked since yesterday morning!"

I shut my eyes and shook my head. "Ummm, we never spoke yesterday morning. What do you-" Kokichi cut me off. "Kidding! Nee-heehee! That was a lie."

I took a deep breath to steady my nerves. Questioning him, without losing my cool, was gonna be harder than I thought. "Anyway, have you noticed anything...out of place lately?"

Kokichi looked at me, an amused grin spreading across his face. "Out of place? Why, this whole place is out of place, wouldn't you say? Especially that fountain..." Kokichi began staring at the fountain again.

"Yeah, I've seen you staring at that fountain a few times. Do you think it serves some other purpose? Maybe a hint to the true mastermind?"

"Oh, I've already figured out the mastermind. The one behind the bear." Kokichi suddenly looked disinterested, but something flickered behind his eyes.

I suspended my disbelief. "Oh, really now?" I asked, dripping as much "I don't believe you" into the 3 words as I could muster. "And who may that just happen to be?"

Kokichi started grinning, and I already had a feeling his next words would be completely bogus.

"Why, it's a medusa man! I saw him disappear under the fountain after the Trial was over!"

I blinked a few times, knowing he was lying, but for some reason finding myself processing his words. "A...medusa...man. Really. That was the best you could come up with, Kokichi?"

Kokichi shrugged. "Well, I am a liar. Maybe it's the medusa man, maybe it's me. After all, I am the Ultimate Supreme Leader! Maybe I trapped everyone here with you all, and am living amongst you as the evil human Monokuma! Nee-heehee!"

Ok, so NOW he was saying he, HIMSELF, could be the mastermind, instead of this medusa man. I knew he was just messing with me at this point, and that I would likely not get much else useful out of him for a while, so I decided now would be a good time to take my leave.

I looked away from Kokichi, staring off into the distance while keeping him within my line of sight. "I...think I've had enough of this conversation for now. But before I go, I found this, and it IMMEDIATELY made me think of you!" I handed him the book "Maiq, the Ultimate Liar".

Kokichi looked at the cover and smiled. "Woooow! This is niiiice! Are you starting to get me now, Shurinku?" Kokichi started flipping through the pages. "By the way, that's not a lie, ok? I'm actually happy you have such good taste." He started reading the book, and I took this opportunity to take my leave.

So Kokichi claims to have seen a "medusa man" going down the stairs under the fountain. Nobody came to mind, but if anyone knew anything, I knew just the person who would: Byakuya Togami. Figuring he would be in the library this time of day, I made my way back inside, up a flight of stairs, and across the second floor to the library.

As expected, Byakuya was sitting in the library, reading a large book. This one had a dark green cover, with a long-haired face on the cover. However, I was unable to identify the person, and I figured Byakuya wouldn't be interested in sharing this info.

Byakuya placed a bookmark in his book, then set it down and looked at me. I couldn't tell if it was annoyance or boredom on his face, but he clearly didn't feel like having his time wasted with nonsense. I figured I'd better get to the point quickly with him.

"I normally wouldn't give this much thought, but Kokichi has been paying an unusual amount of attention to the fountain lately. Have you noticed anything, that's not painfully obvious, about it yourself?"

Byakuya's face dropped in disbelief. "Are you seriously asking me about that oversized monstrosity in the courtyard? It's the entrance to the Trial Room, and the fountain and stairs are connected by a mechanism, likely controlled remotely. The water is pumped through the inside of the fountain from the bottom, so it endlessly sprays water from its mouth."

Byakuya straightened up and crossed his arms in front of him. "Now, have I answered your blatantly stupid question?"

"To an extent. Again, I know this is a dubious source, but Kokichi claims to have seen someone go down those stairs after the last Class Trial, and the description he gave doesn't fit any of us."

Byakuya blinked a few times and tilted his head slightly, in a clear "What's your point?" posture.

"The point, if I may..." I trailed off, staring directly into Byakuya's eyes for several moments, "is that, even if Kokichi described this person as a "Medusa man", this could mean there's another person, outside of the students, in this building."

"A Medusa man..." Byakuya dropped his head and chuckled. "You're bothering me over a mythical creature that a chronic liar CLAIMS to have seen?"

"Not just that, no. Kokichi also has me on edge. After I asked him about the Medusa man, Kokichi joked and said maybe they were the mastermind, or maybe Kokichi himself was. He's obviously got something planned, and as much as Nagito hangs out with him, I'm concerned he may be involved as well."

Byakuya shrugged dismissively. "I pay no attention to Nagito at all. All he does is drone on and on about hope. Also, about how he's willing to be killed, if it means everyone can find their brightest hope, whatever that nonsensical drivel means."

My eyes went wide. "Wait...so Kokichi told me...ok, probably lied to me about being the mastermind, and Nagito's willing to die to help everyone find hope? I don't like this combination. Not...one...bit."

Byakuya studied my face, but surprisingly said nothing right away. After several more moments of silence, he finally spoke.

"Do you know why I suffer your presence, unlike I do the others?"

I thought for a moment. "I have a few ideas, but I'd rather hear it from you."

Byakuya smirked, ever so slightly. "Because I find you useful, for now. My only concern here is outlasting everyone and winning this game. And yes, this is a game. Survival of the fittest. I will survive this game, I will find whoever is responsible, and I will bring them down. Nothing else concerns me."

I nodded. "Yeah, I know. We've had this discussion already, as I recall. And no, I'm not under the impression that you consider me as a friend. We just share common goals, am I right?"

Byakuya smirked again, a little wider this time. "Why, yes, this is also true. I'm glad you understand me then. Now, if you don't mind, I'm researching something, and no, I don't feel like sharing it with you. Farewell."

Before I left, though, I put the pale blue arrowhead on the table, on top of his book. "For you. Do with it what you will, but consider it a gift for your assistance thus far." I wasn't stupid enough to use the word "payment" here.

Byakuya picked up the arrowhead and noticed its translucency. He nodded, then tucked it into his jacket pocket. "If you insist, I suppose I can accept it. I hope you appreciate this."

Nodding silently, I turned my back to Byakuya and left him, shutting the Library door behind me.

I thought dealing with those two would be a handful, but I had no idea who was in store for me the very next day, or how crazy the whole situation would be.