#korisu kakitsubata

[shockersalvage]

Salvage Showcase - Korisu Kakitsubata

It's the horror season, and what better way to celebrate than by doing a Showcase on the main 'villain' of Danganronpa Kirigiri Volume 3, and Culprit of the Takeda Haunted Mansion Duel Noir: Korisu Kakitsubata!!!

(Korisu is the left silhouette behind Licorne)

Summary

Korisu was a detective registered in the Detective Library under the DSC of 488, specializing in animal welfare. Like all Victims, Korisu has a traumatic past that influenced her to take up the Duel Noir. Eight year prior to the Duel Noir, Korisu was with her family up on a mountain railway. However, a fire broke out and during Korisu's attempt to escape, she got seperated from her family. Her family, unfortunately, ended up being trapped behind closed emergency exit doors - doors that were shut by Suntetsu Shirasu. Shirasu closed the doors to prevent the smoke from killing more people, but as a result, 28 people (including Korisu's family) who were trapped behind the door, died in the blaze. Suntetsu was never identified or arrested for the incident, and Korisu was left traumatized to the point she heard voices of the victims in her head.

Korisu would be confronted by the Victims Catharsis Committee, and would take up their offer of competing in a Duel Noir. In her case, Korisu planned out the Takeda Haunted Mansion murder. The idea behind it was to lure in Shirasu with three other detectives: Sachi Mizuiyama (her scapegoat), Salvador Fukuro Yadorigi and Hajiki Yaki. Under the guise of the deceased Saiun Takeda, she lured them in with various tip-offs of crime at the manor. Once all five met, Korisu would eventually drug Shirasu to enact her scheme. Hoisting him between two armored warriors, she would set up her locked room case to have a bunch of rubber bands use a katana as a makeshift slingshot to kill her Target. The deed was done as Yui and Kyoko had arrived, with them being only moments away from saving Suntetsu before the blade plunged itself into his back.

During this exchange, Korisu tried to pose as just a vapid, party-gal, woman who didn't have a care in the world. Initially, she seen to have gotten away with her murder as Sachi was initially fingered as the culprit. But, to her downfall, this was a trap set up by Kyoko - catching Korisu back at the crime scene with the intent to destroy any remaining evidence of her misdeeds. Despite Korisu's attempts at trying to refute Kyoko's claims, not only did Kyoko figure out how Korisu's trick worked - she even had proof it was only Korisu that could have done it. The main piece being the fact that, during the murder, Korisu had used the armor sandals to walk outside since Salvador was too busy admiring art out in the hallway for her to safely get her stilleto's back. Unfortunately, given the size of the shoes was too big for the boys and too small for someone as short as Sachi, it was only her that could have used them, and when its clear they were used in the crime, Korisu was stuck as the sole candidate.

Korisu gives up, and admits to doing the Duel Noir to put the voices at rest. However, while initially coolheaded at her defeat, she panics once they saw she's in danger of being executed due to inability to pay the VCC back their earnings. Ultimately, she takes Kyoko's advice to go with the cops to be arrested, though the last shot of her from Yui's POV shows her to clearly still be struggling with the 'voices' returning. In the next volume, while she doesn't appear, she is mentioned by Salvador to be safe since Gekka has paid off her debt, but she'll still be tried for her crimes.

While Korisu acts like an airheaded, flashy, yet bubbly party girl - this is merely a facade. In truth, Korisu is pretty intelligent, lucid, and crafty to the point that she needed to be lured into a trap to expose her since her current set-up lacked real hard hitting evidence to expose her without it. Due to her trauma, Korisu hear the voices of those who perished in the fire's blaze, and was desperate enough to appease them by taking up a VCC. While not being a sore loser, she is terrified of being murdered herself and begs for the girls to save her as she realizes she's doomed to be executed.

Rundown

Being both a Detective and a Victim, Korisu has a few things going for her in regard to the DRK's theme - which I have already pinned as being about Justice & Corruption.

In this case, Korisu is on the side of Corruption, in this case Appeasement of her trauma and another aspect of criticizing the 'greater good' theme in Volume 3 on a whole. On the Greater Good theme first, while like the other Victims, she's motivated by vengeance - it's less hatred based and more so just trying to find some form of peace in her life. As stated before, Korisu had been severely traumatized from her family being roasted to death despite her protests because someone sacrificed them for their perceived 'greater good'. In turn, for the sake of finding closure for the voices, she's willing to not only slay Suntetsu, but also sacrificing someone else's peace for her own safety. In doing so, this puts her about as bad as Suntetsu himself. It also smacks into the Greater Good message that Gekka and Lico usually use to justify their own violent acts, since it shows such a line of thinking is both detrimental towards bystanders and those involved alike, but also winds up leaving new collateral to suffer down a path like Korisu's as well. Ergo sustaining the cycle further.

In terms of the Corruption theme (and her own Drive as a detective), namely Appeasement, Korisu's case is used to show why giving in to vengeance and bloody murder as means of clearing up mental issues, just doesn't work like how Gekka or the VCC think it works. She got her paybck on Suntetsu, yes, but in turn it didn't solve her problem with the voices in her head yelling at her and it certainly wasn't helped by her actual arrest. Even if she won, she was only confused, not satisfied with doing the deed - meaning that in spite of promising relief to the Victims they lure in, at best they only piled on new worries to give them. At worse, if they don't kill them outright, the Victims are left with new trauma and anguish on top of their old wounds. There's is no truly satisfaction to be gained by playing in a Duel Noir and looking for justice. Just tragedy.

In terms of character comparison and contrasts, the immediate one you would think of is Sachi, another Victim and Detective of the 12 Duel Noir Challenge. Both were willing to kill, and even harm innocents, not for their own sakes, but for the sakes of those who, really, couldn't have enjoyed such endeavors or approved of them, even if they really wanted to. Both Korisu's family and Gekka were dead by the time their Duel Noirs started. As such, their actions proved only to harm themselves in the long run with no real benefits. In terms of demeanor, they're kind of the polar opposite of each other in, even if their end goals are roughly the same. Korisu acts immature to hide the fact she's smarter than she appears, while Sachi portrays herself as a composed detective, to hide how much of a zealot she was for Gekka. In terms of scale, Korisu was hard focus on her own personal trauma, whilst Sachi's love for Gekka had her disregard even her own Catharsis for the sake of seeing him thrive in the VCC.

Of course, I'd also be remiss to not add in how much Korisu reflects on Junko Enoshima. Both being fashionista types that people would never suspect of masterminding intricate murders. Although the biggest difference between the two is that Korisu is ultimately doing her misdeeds as a form of closure, while Junko is working towards a goal of constant open despair.

Personal Thoughts

Korisu makes for a fine, 'final boss' of volume 3. Give the chaotic nature of the book in setting up the 12 Duel Noir Challenge, the battle at Meyura Station, Lico, one would think the actual Duel Noir Victim just wouldn't hit as well as Tadashi or Sae, but she's proved me wrong.

She's extremely entertaining play up the bratty fashion dive and love that the antagonist for this time around tried for the Junko Enoshima manner of villainess. It also helps her motivation is extremely compelling and makes her quite sympathetic as to why she'd work with the VCC. This is a high praise, especially when you consider how Vol. 4 and 5 treated the remainder of the Zodiac Victims.

Of course, beyond that, it also makes me sad volume 3 would be her only real appearance, but I was at least glad that she fulfilled her role properly. Beyond that, I loved the Takeda Haunted Mansion she set up and how it filled well with the ideas of her being haunted by her own past, and using it to take vengeance on Suntetsu (even if trying to wrap my head around the murder method was a real killer X_X)

Ultimately, for what it's worth, Korisu was a nice stopping point to end Vol 3 out on (besides Yui visiting Kyoko's home of course) and remains a favored of mine among the DRK cast!

-

With this out of the way, up next is DR Togami!! Be a while until then so if you have anyone you'd like to see talked about before it gets posted, feel free to recommend!

[danganfixationronpa]

All canon Danganronpa birthdays (including DR: Kirigiri characters.)

NOTE: There are more birthdays in Kirigiri, but only for characters we never get to know. Yes I've included some obscure characters from the series as well, but only ones that have at least have one or two lines.

January

♑ ♒

Hajime Hinata - January 1st

Leon Kuwata - January 3rd

Tenko Chabashira - January 9th

Sato - January 14th

Kazuo Tengan - January 17th

Gonta Gokuhara - January 23rd

February

♒ ♓

Maki Harukawa - February 2nd

Makoto Naegi - February 5th

Sonosuke Izayoi - February 20th

Nekomaru Nidai - February 22nd

Jataro Kemuri - February 29th

March

♓ ♈

Toko Fukawa - March 3rd

Hiyoko Saionji - March 9th

Chihiro Fujisaki | Chiaki Nanami - March 14th

Kaede Akamatsu - March 26th

Natsumi Kuzuryu - March 27th

April

♈ ♉

Monaca Towa - April 1st

Daisaku Bandai - April 10th

Kaito Momota - April 12th

Juzo Sakakura - April 14th

Angie Yonaga - April 18th

Aoi Asahina | Mahiru Koizumi - April 24th

Nagito Komaeda - April 28th

May

♉ ♊

Chisa Yukizome - May 3rd

Byakuya Togami | Tōru Uchida - May 5th

Masaru Daimon - May 7th

Great Gozu - May 8th

Kirumi Tojo - May 10th

Mikan Tsumiki - May 12th

Komaru Naegi - May 31st

June

♊ ♋

Seiko Kimura - June 8th

Mondo Owada - June 9th

Tōya Tsutsumi - June 12th

Kotoko Utsugi - June 13th

Kokichi Oma - June 21st

Kazuichi Soda - June 29th

Peko Pekoyama | Jin Kirigiri - June 30th

July

♋ ♌

Ryoma Hoshi - July 1st

Hiroko Hagakure - July 5th

Sayaka Maizono - July 7th

Akane Owari - July 15th

Yasuhiro Hagakure - July 25th

Tsukiyo Nada - July 30th

Korekiyo Shinguji - July 31st

August

♌ ♍

Haiji Towa - August 9th

Tsumugi Shirogane - August 15th

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu - August 16th

Nazuna Tōakitsu - August 21st

Kyosuke Munakata - August 22nd

Ryota Mitarai | Kariyasu Karasuba - August 30th

Kiyotaka Ishimaru | Yui Samidare - August 31st

September

♍ ♎

Teruteru Hanamura - September 2nd

Yuta Asahina - September 4th

Shuichi Saihara - September 7th

Sakura Ogami - September 13th

Sachi Mizuiyama | Koichi Kizakura | Ryō Ōba - September 29th

October

♎ ♏

Rantaro Amami - October 3rd

Kyoko Kirigiri - October 6th

Sonia Nevermind - October 13th

Nagisa Shingetsu - October 23rd

Keebo - October 29th

November

♏ ♐

Gunzō Arai - November 1st

Taichi Fujisaki - November 8th

Miu Iruma - November 16th

Ruruka Ando - November 20th

Celestia Ludenberg - November 23rd

Ibuki Mioda - November 27th

December

♐ ♑

Himiko Yumeno - December 3rd

Korisu Kakitsubata - December 8th

Gundham Tanaka - December 14th

Mukuro Ikusaba | Junko Enoshima - December 24th

Hifumi Yamada - December 31st

P.S: Do you share any of the characters' birthday? My birthday is in between Gonta and Maki's.

[danganronpabirthdays]

-December 8th-

Happy birthday to:

Yukio Sato (Brave Danganronpa: Coward's Paradise)

Yuzuki Tokiwa (Danganronpa: Despair Season)

Reita Nekoyashiki (Danganronpa SIM)

Sumii Arami (Danganronpa 10MINS)

Kai Sakurakoji (Danganronpa: Again)

Kaneda Atsushi (DR_Deficient〜絶望学園へもう一度〜)

Korisu Kakitsubata (Danganronpa Kirigiri)

[edogawatranslations]

Danganronpa Kirigiri (3) - Chapter 4, Part 6

Table of Contents | Previous: Chapter 4, Part 5

3:00 AM.

The lifeless Takeda Haunted Mansion finally faded into the darkness, transforming into a gathering place for spirits. With no warm bodies to halt its advance, the brisk air creeped into the hallways and swallowed up the building.

At that moment, one person was approaching the mansion. The night didn’t reject them, for their heart had long embraced the darkness.

Veiled by the shadows, the figure steered clear of the mansion doors, crossed the fence towards the cliff, and walked through the bamboo thicket. They were likely hoping to avoid leaving footprints, or perhaps, to avoid detection on the chance that officers were patrolling the area.

Before long, the figure reached the backyard. Their destination was in sight. They carefully inched their way to the water wheel, pulled out a crowbar, and raised it above their head—

“Stop right there.”

The moment the girl’s voice broke the silence, floodlights hidden in the bamboo lit up the scene.

The veil of darkness shrouding the figure was cast away. Standing exposed in the light was none other than Korisu Kakitsubata.

Blinded, she stared blankly towards the floodlights. Shielding her eyes with her hand, she slowly made out the figure of the girl standing in the light with her arms on her hips.

It was Kyoko Kirigiri.

“Wh-What’s the meaning of this?”

“I asked the police to assist me.” Kyoko gestured towards the officers lurking in the bamboo. “I knew you would return to destroy the lingering evidence of your crime.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Kakitsubata replied, playing dumb.

“Then enlighten me. What are you doing back here at this hour?”

“I lost one of my earrings. It cost me a pretty penny, so I came back to look for it. Is there a problem with that?”

Her swift answer made me wonder if she had prepared excuses in advance or if she thought of it on the spot. Either way, her airheaded demeanor from before had vanished; she sounded much more alert and clever.

“What’s that in your hand?”

“You know how an earring can fall somewhere unreachable? I brought this with me just in case.”

“It looks to me like a tool to destroy something,” Kyoko continued, with her hands still on her hips. “There’s no point in hiding it. I’m well aware of everything you did.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You killed Suntetsu Shirasu.”

“Is that what you think?” Kakitsubata shook her head in disbelief. “So that’s why the police are standing there looking all grumpy. I’m shocked they’re convinced of a child’s silly little theory. The killer was that Mizuiyama woman. Wasn’t she the only one who fit through that door?”

“Yes, at least according to the true culprit’s plan. I imagine the killer invited detectives they found in the Detective Library archives, intentionally including a person small enough to escape from the locked room who could be framed for the crime. But choosing Mizuiyama was a fatal mistake. On paper, she could fit through that door, but in reality, it was impossible.”

“Impossible?” I subconsciously blurted out. I was standing behind the floodlights with the officers in the bushes.

“Her clothing. She wore a kimono that severely restricted her movements, making it impossible for her to squeeze through a space that narrow. Her obi would get caught.” Kyoko turned back to Kakitsubata. “The information you read in her file made her a perfect candidate for your scapegoat, but I doubt you imagined she would arrive in a kimono.”

“Th-That’s assuming the rubber bands were stretched to their limit earlier!” she countered. “Her kimono is irrelevant; she could have used the jack to widen the gap even more.”

“By that logic, anyone could have escaped from that room, as long as the gap was made large enough.”

“The gap couldn’t be forced open for anyone else; the rubber bands would snap!”

“We can’t confirm that without experimenting. This reasoning won’t lead to a definite answer; perhaps anybody could have fit, or perhaps nobody could.”

“The same applies to me; the gap could’ve been too small for me. Can you really call me guilty because of that?”

“There’s other incriminating evidence pointing to you.”

“There’s no way any of that can be real.”

“Then let me ask you, what were you doing here in the backyard yesterday after three?”

“B-Backyard? Why do you think I was here? Don’t spout nonsense.”

“It isn’t nonsense. I know for a fact you wore the armor’s sandals into the backyard.”

The revelation rendered Kakitsubata speechless.

“So the sandals were dirty because she wore them outside?” I asked.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Kakitsubata finally retorted. “What’s this about sandals?”

“Creating the locked room involved a substantial amount of setting up,” Kyoko explained. “Completing the trick required you to enter the backyard, but you didn’t have your shoes with you. Because you had a reason to finish your preparations as quickly as possible, you had no choice but to wear the sandals outside.”

“What’s this reason?”

“The snow. As long as the snow continued to fall, any footprints left outside would eventually be covered up. You needed to finish setting everything up before the snow stopped, or else the illusion of the locked room would be incomplete.”

The murder occurred around 11 PM, and we confirmed there were no footprints in the snow at that time. Any setup in the backyard would have to be completed several hours before the murder, in order to allow enough time for the light snowfall yesterday to cover up footprints and other markings.

“After luring Shirasu into the dojo and putting him to sleep, you realized you didn’t have any shoes. You could have made a detour to the entryway to grab your shoes before returning to the dojo, or you could have headed directly to the entryway and left through there. Unfortunately for you, neither of those options was possible, since Yadorigi was in the entryway most of the afternoon.”

Yadorigi did mention he was investigating the paintings hanging in the entryway.

Kyoko continued. “If you had nothing to hide, you could simply walk past him to grab your shoes, but that wasn’t possible. Naturally, he’d wonder where you were headed with your shoes, thereby ruining your murder plot. You couldn’t wait for him to leave either, since you feared that the snow could stop any second.”

Kakitsubata had been ready to parry Kyoko’s statements, but she was quiet now.

“You had no shoes, but you needed to go outside. What, then, could you do?”

“Walk barefoot,” I answered.

“Of course, that would be the alternative. But I imagine it would be painful walking on the snow on such a cold day.”

“Couldn’t she just grin and bear it? It’s not like she’d need to be outside for hours, so if she hurried a little...”

“Of course, that would be possible, but there was an overwhelming psychological reason preventing her from doing so.”

“A psychological reason?”

“What if the snow didn’t end up covering her footprints? She wouldn’t be able to explain why her footprints were in the backyard. To avoid that predicament, she knew she needed to wear some kind of footwear outside. Any objections?”

Nobody said a word.

Kyoko turned to Kakitsubata. “And that brings me back to my original point—you noticed the armor’s sandals and wore them yourself.”

“Wait, why are you accusing me of that?” Kakitsubata cut in with careful timing. “Nothing in your logic proves it was me who used the sandals.”

“I checked everyone’s shoe sizes. The armor’s sandals were 10.5 inches long, but waraji sandals aren’t normally associated with a size. People typically wear waraji smaller than their feet, with their toes sticking out from the front.”

“Huh, I didn’t know that!” I exclaimed. “Why do you know so much about waraji?”

“I’ve always been interested in traditional Japanese culture,” she said while staring off into the distance. “Anyways, Yaki and Yadorigi were the only ones whose feet were larger than the sandals.”

“Th-Then one of those two wore them!” Kakitsubata protested.

“No, that’s unlikely. If either of them was the killer, they would have ruled out wearing them to avoid leaving toeprints in the snow—as I mentioned earlier, the culprit was psychologically hampered by the fear of leaving behind evidence. That means whoever wore the sandals had smaller feet.”

“So it was that Mizuiyama woman!”

“Her shoes were 8.5 inches. That brings up the opposite problem—her feet were too small for the sandals.”

I thought out loud. “Then that leaves...”

Kakitsubata and Shirasu. Since Shirasu was the victim, he could be excluded.

All of our eyes trained on Kakitsubata, who had turned pale.

After wearing the sandals outside and finishing the necessary preparations for the trick, she returned to the dojo and replaced the sandals. Unfortunately for her, the stains left on the shoes became a crucial piece of evidence.

“But what then...?” I asked. “Wasn’t the door to the hallway already sealed? She couldn’t leave through the backyard without shoes...”

“While setting up the trick, she passed through the bamboo and stopped by the parking lot. The small red car probably belongs to her. Driving in stilettos is quite difficult, so I bet she had an extra pair of shoes for driving. She could use them to return to the main building.”

...Kyoko really didn’t overlook anything. She was amazing.

“Wh-Why does any of that waraji stuff matter? Isn’t it cruel for you to accuse me of murder based on that nonsense? Besides, none of it proves anything—all this ‘psychological’ talk, the shoes being too small, can you say any of that with certainty? Beyond any reasonable doubt?”

“I cannot. That’s why I asked the police to assist me in setting a trap for you. If nobody showed up, I would have admitted defeat.”

“I told you, I came back to look for my earring...”

“That’s a lie. You came to destroy the remaining evidence of your trick.” Kyoko pointed a finger straight at Kakitsubata. “Back then, while outside the locked room, you killed Shirasu with a trick that stretched across the entire backyard. The evidence of that is in that icicle on the water wheel.”

Kakitsubata gritted her teeth.

“What was the trick?” I asked. “She was with us in the hallway. Did she control the warriors with a remote control or something?”

“Nice try!” Kakitsubata shouted with renewed vigor. “The armor was empty when we entered. There wasn’t any device like that.”

“There’s no need for a remote control,” Kyoko said. “All you needed was some string, the water wheel, and a katana.”

The water wheel? What purpose could a frozen water wheel serve?

Next: Chapter 4, Part 7

[ao3feed-danganronpa]

Proficiency Theory

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3alyHu3

by Siknakaliux

Specialty-Based Duel Noirs.

Words: 6603, Chapters: 3/11, Language: English

Series: Part 3 of Custom Duel Noir Scenarios

Fandoms: Dangan Ronpa: Kirigiri, Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: Gen

Characters: Suntetsu Shirasu, Enbi Shiita, Amino Eigo, Korisu Kakitsubata, Mizuiyama Sachi, Hajiki Yaki, Salvador Fukuro Yadorigi, Samidare Yui, Inuzuka Kou

Additional Tags: Organized Crime, One Shot Collection, Kidnapping, Attempted Kidnapping, Minor Character(s), Minor Character Death, Hacking, Scams, Scamming, Phishing, Animal Abuse, Harm to Animals, White Collar Crime, business crime, swindling, Religious Cults, Cults, Disguise, Sex Crime, runaways - Freeform, Forced Prostitution, Art Crime, Theft, Forgery, Murder, Attempted Murder, Terrorism, national crime, Genocide, Detectives

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3alyHu3

[shockersalvage]

Danganronpa Kirigiri - List of Detective Library members & their monster reps

In Danganronpa Kirigiri, the Triple Zero detectives of the Detective Library were based upon/referenced four types of monsters in fiction: ghost, werewolf, vampire and doppleganger. I always thought that was a pretty cool choice for Kitayama to go down and go to thinking what other types of monsters the other detectives would represent.

Which is basically what below is - a list of every named Detective Library member and monster would best fit them, in book order. As well as who represents the four monsters I mentioned above.

Main Duo:

Kyoko Kirigiri - Angel of Death (Now for Kyoko's monster I wanted something that best represents Kyoko's relation with Death and, ultimately her benevolent nature behind her stonefaced mask. So I chose her as the metaphorical Angel of Death - someone who brings about the end of those who have Fallen by uncovering the truth behind their misdeeds. Yet, in doing so, is also saving lives of those that were in danger because of the Fallen's actions. She also attends a religious school so it ties back well with those origins.

Yui Samidare - Powers (A type of angel in Christian theology and apart of the Middle Order of angels. Her whole thing is being a detective to protect others from evil and Powers are types of angels that hold the power to dispel or defeat evil. Also calls back to Yui being from a religious school. If I had to choose something else, I'd make Yui a guardian angel to match Kyoko being an angel of death. But, for reasons below, decided to forego it to complete another set )

DRK1:

Kou Inuzuka - Hellhound (Kou surname 'Inuzaka' contains the word for dog in Japanese, and Kou himself is an arsonist. Of the reps, I think this is one of the most fitting I've come up with)

Eigo Amino - Robot (Eigo is said to have zero presence or stands out, and he's a detective that poses as a businessman AKA a cog in a machine of office life. So I figured a robot was the best thing to compare him to)

Shiita Enbi - Zombie (Based upon the whole deal with him being dead all along, and also Tadashi's deal with having no legs, so kind of shambling about, reminds me of those types of zombies in horror games or shows)

Johnny Arp - Werewolf (From DRK Vol 6 - referred to heavily with wolfish traits or personality)

Gekka Ryuzoji - Vampire (From his design & titles; he's heavily based upon Count Dracula from the titular novel)

Rei Mikagami - Ghost (Comes from his epithet of 'Ghost in the Mirror' and his own ghostly ability to seemingly disappear from the scene with ease. Honorary mention goes to 'unicorn' given that's what his alias, Licorne, means in French).

DRK2:

Taehime Uozumi - Mermaid (Made her mermaid given her surname, Uozumi, is literally 'sleeping with the fishes'...and, okay, the pun with her fake profession was too tempting to pass up)

Suisei Nanamura - Father Time (Suisei is obsessed with time and managing it, so making him Father Time seemed pretty natural

Mikado Shinsen - Doppleganger (From his epithet, the Variationist, and skills as a master of disguise. Honorary mention goes to him being referred to as a Shinigami/Reaper by Chage and the connection he does have with the dead)

DRK 3

Hajiki Yaki - Devil (His DSC card is 666 which is considered a devilish number in Abrahamic religon, and his own thing is being a detective that goes against gambling - a type of deal with the devil?)

Salvador Yadorigi Fukuro - Gorgon (Okay, now, admittedly, this one is one of my weakest, but was inspired to call him a gorgon due to his own whole thing with his special eyes, and how he stunned Keisuke from DRK4 with the look of them. Stunning? Turning people to stone? A stretch? Kind of, but I still think it also kind of works so...)

Sachi Mizuiyama - Elf (Okay, beyond her getting an elf because she's short, was also inspried to give it to her based upon elves appearing young when they're actually older - something that's been pointed out about Sachi - and how elves/fairy-ish folk tend to have skewed moralities. Something that skewed me towards Sachi and her whole deal)

Korisu Kakitsubata - Succubus (Also one of my weakest, yet this one just feels so fitting. She dresses provocatively and acts seemingly benevolent, but that's hiding a malicious front to get away with claiming a soul. Plus, another case of her being related to fire and Succubi being from Hell - it just kind makes itself work out)

Suntetsu Shirasu - Underworld Gatekeeper (Chose this after a lot of internal debating, but decided this might be the most fitting? Like Gozu & Mezu or Cerberus, Suntetsu's actions decided who remains in the living and who has to remain in the afterlife. If there was a more fitting word for this type of monster, I'll gladly hear it out)

DRK4:

Tsukiyo Nada & Nazuna Toakitsu - Dominion & Virtue (Types of Angels in Christian theology and apart of the Middle Order set of angels with the Powers. Tsukiyo is Dominion given they govern celestial bodies & Tsukiyo's name refers to the night sky itself - ok that and her domineering personality. Naz is Virtue since one of its job is to bolster faith, and Naz is the most supportive of the duo in terms of helping out Yui to Salvador to Tsukiyo as well. Plus, they round out Yui being Power and also coming from a religious school)

DRK5:

Tatsutora Oboro - Bakaneko (Ok, the weakest one out of the lot, but also didn't really want to spend too much time on a minor guy like Oboro. As such, with part of his name, 'Tora', meaning tiger the idea that came to mind was a simple monster cat!)

DRK 6:

Motosuke Suzuyari - Yeti (He's in the icy mountains, described as being kind of wild looking. It writes itself)

Ayako Saiko - Witch (@drmedicsgamesurgery holds credit for the intiial placeholder as being a 'Mad Scientist'. However, mad scientists aren't technically monsters, I decided to swap it with the mad scientist of monster: a witch)

DRK 7:

Shiroko Yukimura - Yuki-onna (I got this based upon her part of her name 'Shiro' meaning white and the fact she appeared in a snowy setting)

Senshi Kadomi - Giant (Big guy with a knack for violence to get what he wants? Yeah, Senshi was pretty much hardlocked into being a giant from early on)

Kanji Yuhain - The 1st Horseman/Conquest/Pestilence/White Rider (I went with the 1st Horseman of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, after being inspired from Yuhain riding to Sirius on top of a white horse which symbolizes conquest or pestilence in the modern age. Both fit Yuhain as a guy who seeks to conquer the detective world as the King of Detectives and given his corrupt nature, he can very much be considered a pestilence.)

[shockersalvage]

Salvage Showcase: Sachi Mizuiyama

Welcome to the next showcase!! As promised I’ll be doing one on one of Danganronpa Kirigiri’s cast and what better one to start out the DRK portion than one of the more relevant side characters - Sachi Mizuiyama.

The Summary

Sachi Mizuiyama debuted in Danganronpa Kirigiri in its 3rd novel and is apart of the Detective Library. She is listed under technological crime and specializes in architecture, holding the current rank of 527. Sachi was called to the Takeda Haunted Mansion Duel Noir, under the pretense of her inspecting the architecture of the building. However, she and four other detectives would find their proxy to be a no-show. After one of them, Suntetsu Shirasu, disappears, the remaining four reveal their status as detectives to each other and tried to figure out what was going on. This would lead them to a locked room that they manage to get open with help from newcomers Yui Samidare and Kyoko Kirigiri. However, when they do get it open, they find Suntetsu dead, propped up by suits of armor and impaled by a katana. No culprit in sight.

As the case progresses its discovered that Sachi, seemingly, was the one to kill the guy and is arrested, despite her panicked claims otherwise. In truth, this was a plot to lure out the true culprit, Korisu Kakitsubata, and Sachi is let go.

The next day, Kyoko calls out the remaining third party detectives from the Takeda case in order to recruit them for aid in tackling the remainder cases of the 12 Duel Noir Challenge. Sachi is hesitant and holds a bit of a grudge for being framed, but nonetheless goes and joins the group in Salvador’s car. While the girls request the other three’s aid, Sachi initially doesn’t want to, but gives in after a combination of peer pressure, hearing Salvador’s tale of his lost partner and wanting to regain some pride over the framing debacle. She opts to take on the Museum of Medieval Torture Duel Noir, since she has been at the museum before.

During this time, she uses her ability to read people and decieving even the likes of the police and uni students in order to acquire information that leads her into not only discovering the culprit, Koriyasu Karisuba, but also figuring out how he killed his target: a university professor who murdered his girlfriend. She even meets one of her teammates, Licorne, who warns her not to go too far since the others wouldn’t want there to be anymore victims...

Which leads into one of the twists for the 5th volume. Sachi is one of the 12 Victims, being a Libra and the culprit of the Libra Girls Academy Duel Noir. She killed a student she had an altercation with in the past and kidnapped two others as well for her ploy. Prior to attending to her case, she used her Ally status to gain information on both the Museum and Bar cases, as well as killing Hajiki. From there, under the guise of a Black Cape, trapped Yui and the two innocents of her Duel Noir in the academy - which used the likes of a scale trick. With help from Salvador, Yui and the others escape...only for Sachi to ambush Salvador, beating him in the head with her pipe and heavily injuring him. While Yui does manage to expose Sachi as a Victim, Sachi doesn’t care and holds her up with a nail gun. She reveals herself to be a fanatic to Gekka, the Host of the 12 Duel Noir Challlenge, not wanting him to step down from his role as an Executive for the Victims Catharsis Committee. Ultimately, interference by the Mystery Research Society Sal brought with him has her knocked out and arrested. In jail, she gives out the information of the two Duel Noirs she looked into, wondering if Yui’s method is right before hanging up to face law’s judgement.

As a person, Sachi is cautious, keen and holds a fierce deception game with a knack for reading people. She can quickly get a read on the character of a person and exploits it to gain advantage in her situation, easily crafting lies on the spot to get people to drop their guard. In contrast, she is also adept at hiding her true nature up until she needs to personally get involved. While she tries to hold up a front of being a dutiful, if reluctant, prideful and easily flustered, detective that loves her culture and even a bit of a romantic (if her interaction with Salvador was genuine), behind it is a woman that holds a fierce, crazed, murderously loyal, devotion to Gekka - the person she admires the most since he embodies upholding conviction the most from what she ‘read’ from him. A trait that she herself admits she lacks, which is why she can’t be someone of justice. When it comes to this she holds no care for others lives or even her own Catharsis, valuing only the person she holds dear and only wants to give him the Catharsis that she believed he deserved.

The Rundown

In DRK one of the main themes concerning the novels concerns what drives a detective forward. For Yui Samidare its justice, for the seedier individuals it would be fame and prestige from their Library rank.In this case of Sachi her drive and theme is attachment. Though if you want to go further, its ‘toxic attachment’ or even ‘parasocial attachment’.

Now Sachi as a concept is also interesting since she serves as a foil to Yui. What do you get when you have Yui, who holds an utter passion for justice and protecting nature for those she cares about, but boil it down to just the latter trait? Well, you get Sachi - a person that can empathize with those she’s attached to and think of them worthy of being saved, but has no real concern for those who are outside that attachment. AKA pretty much everyone else that are not Gekka.

Anything for someone that, as far as the novels go, she actually doesn’t have a real bond with. Sachi is giving it her all to someone who she knows nothing of personally aside from his image and in turn he knows nothing personal of her. She’s more akin to an obsessed fangirl in that regard or thrall if you want to fit in with the Triple Zeroes having a monster/supernatural theme to them. This contrasts greatly with Yui doing her best try and save people from the Duel Noir. She doesn’t know them personally, but its her care for the lives of others that has her try to ensure their safety, instead of measuring their worth based on a personal standard. A line that separates selfishness (Sachi) and selflessness (Yui). It’s also ironic that Sachi, someone who knows little of Gekka personally, is willing to go through extreme lengths to stop someone who actually has met Gekka and know of him long enough have some sort of respectful relationship with, even if they were enemies. Heck, on thate note, Sachi even seemed jealous of Yui for it, wondering why it couldn’t have been her chosen instead.

Both Sachi and Yui even contrast design wise. Yui is a girl of moderate-reasonably taller stature that has athletic legs. One of her deign choices is that she wears shorts instead of the usual school skirt, better suited for her detective work and showcasing more of her unorthodox nature in a profession full of people either lost their way or not really doing it for justice. Frequently throughout the novel, we get to see just how caring she is and willing to help those in need, holding a virtuous heart inspite of being unconventional looking and wouldn’t want to harm anybody if she could help it. Sachi, meanwhile, is a short woman dressed in kimono, seemingly weak, and appears as traditionally elegant as one could get. Yet, by her actions, it shows that such a design is hiding her twisted emotions and how the seemingly traditional look is not as benevolent as it seems. She holds no care for those outside of Gekka, and is not above brutally attacking and killing people with blunt force if necessary.

There’s also a degree of tragedy in here given that Sachi goes through great lengths, effectively ruining her life for someone she rarely knows. She kills two people in cold blood, gravely wounds a third, kidnaps two that didn’t have anything to do with her plight beforehand and was planning on keeping Yui hostge. She did all of this, only for the audience to find out later on that Gekka died before the girls even reached his castle. She gave her all for someone that was already dead before she knew it. Effectively making her actions pointless.

Personal Thoughts

Now, what do I think about Sachi? Well, its  of a bit of Madarai situation where I can appreciate the concept surrounding her and, unlike the Madarai, I do like her personality....just not so much the execution concerning her roles in the story.

Sachi’s case is...weird. You see, when you have the summary in mind and knowledge of her role in 3 out of 7 of the novels, on-paper everything seems to click. But its when you prod at each novel case by case does things fall apart. Sachi appears in the ending case of Volume 3. While she was the framed party for the case, ultimately she, Salvador and Hajiki mostly take a backseat as the cases’s third parties, good for some more worldbuilding or alibi piecing together, but not much in the way of development yet.

Volume 4 sees a bit more of her character shown off such as her cautious nature, love of Japanese culture and even how much she values her pride in terms of being slighted. But volume 4 is not focused on her. Hajiki and her leave the novel early on in favor or Kyoko, Yui and Salvador getting spotlight with their cases and stories.

It isn’t until volume 5 where I can consider Sachi to be a fully fleshed out character since we get her background concerning her counselor life, how she handles investigations, own philosophy concerning her ‘readings’ and, naturally, her attitude as a devoted fan of Gekka and ruthless Victim. The problem with her comes when you try and stick the reveal portions of her character with her prior depictions. They don’t feel cohesive and for several reasons.

1. Sachi’s role in 3/4 is greatly lower than that of most of her teammates, only barely beating out Hajiki in terms of character relevance and scenes at this point. And this is to be expected given the others are the main characters, a Triple Zero and the partner of a dead side character. Sachi never had time to shine much until 5, but this also means that (if the twist planned in advance mind you...and personally I think otherwise) her reveal as a villain was going to be rocky from the get go.

2. The ‘foreshadowing’ of her villain status is...shaky. Now I don’t want to say, ‘oh its just Volume 5 where it hinted’, since looking at volume 4 (with the benefit of hindsight) you could probably guess she’s suspicious given that she joins the team last and maybe for not wanting to believe Gekka is a criminal. But in defense of that, it was never really was a stand-out extent and even Hajiki/Salvador didn’t quite want to believe Gekka was crooked. Vol 5 is where it's more concrete, like bringing up her school counselor status, using a pipe which is the Libra Girls’s weapon of choice or Lico’s line, but I also feel it still isn’t enough to match with how drastically she changes and her motivation reveal. Actually, that might just be the biggest ‘sin’ here...

3. The reveal set in place is too drastically different for her character to take on to really match her character. It feels tacked on, partly for the sake of an out of left field swerve and partly a reason I’ll get to later. For the former it kind of leaves a bad taste for me since it feels like the story is kicking you for being sane and agreeing with logic that itself set up. ‘Yes, DRK, I should have pieced together that one of the three guys in the 3rd novel who, according to the Duel Noir set-ups, was specifically a framed party meant to go to prison for Korisu and with logic from Kyoko herself stating that she was very likely not to be a culprit or with the enemy.... just so happened to be a culprit in the Challenge and supports the enemy!’ forgive me for expecting the author wouldn’t be the type to do this. It does a disservice to both the reader and even Kyoko since its not a twist that happened based on the cast making a logical mistake or not considering the options but the wriitng equivalent of the author going back on their word. It also makes the story feel rather contrived considering how unlucky the others were to just so happen to have the enemy just so happens to be in another active Duel Noir.

3. Too much roles at once. She’s a member of the Allied Detectives, except she’s actually a Victim...oh no wait that’s not actually important. She’s a devotee for Gekka....for some reason. She has never shown this level of insane passion beforehand. And now she’s out of the story for good. You can see the issue right? She’s slotted into too many parts, with both the Victim and Fangirl role being slotted in abruptly late in volume 5 to ever feel natural. It’s even worse for the former because not even the story gives a shit about that role, in preference for the Gekka reveal...which doesn’t work given the aformentioned lack of buildup or naturalness to it. It’s less of enhancement to Sachi’s character and more of another piece the author seemed in a hurry to shove in.

4. Now for the other partial reason why I think her villain status exists, and it kind goes back to the unused potential of the other recruits, Salvador and Hajiki. DRK is a story centered around both Yui and Kyoko. While others like Lico and the VCC Executives exist and can have their own stories told, its centered about those two first and foremost. While the Challenge required helpers to aid them since they couldn’t tackle all twelve realistically, the issue comes with utilizing the Recruits beyond it in a story mostly centered about the mentioned two. An issue that the author likely opted to resolve by just writing them out as fast as he could. Perhaps plans had to be changed and/or maybe the author didn’t quite know how to get these guys out of the stories cleanly, but I believe Sachi being a villain that takes out Hajiki and Sal was a hasty way of getting all three recruits out wihout stopping to wonder about their contributions to the story.

Dead, hospital or, in Sachi’s case, prison. It would explain why the story brushes aside her being a Victim with ‘Gekka may/may not have pulled some strings’, she herself having no care or bothering to explain her past with her Target (which stands out sorely considering every other Victim in this story is very affected by their lives being wrecked by their Targets), and the whole abrupt nature of her Gekka’s devotee reveal. It feels unnatural because its likely the author’s way of getting her out immediately nstead of a more organic method.

Something that is kind of upseting since I really love the Allies recruited for the 12 Duel Noir Challenge, Sachi included because it gave the sense of proper escalation. The girls can’t take down a crime organization by thesemselves so gaining detectives they know are clean (at least that was the plan) was a nice step towards maybe forming their own organization of stopping the Duels. Being more strategic in their planning and proactive? We can even explore more group dynamics now and see how their different specliazations clash or enhance their investigations? Nope. In about two days their new team went from six back to one so darn quick its unreal. It’s sad and reeks of so much more, but its a done deal.

Beyond her roles, I really do love Sachi’s personality. She’s a smol woman whose quick wits and improv tongue can get in her good graces or out of jams. It’s really enjoyable! What’s not to like!

Another showcase down, hopes these are enjoyable for you guys. For the next one, a look into a character from the manga of Killer Killer!

[shockersalvage]

Danganronpa Kirigiri Cast Designs - Victims of the 12 Duel Noir Challenge

For twelve of these guys, hard to believe most of them lack in the image department. So NAI was used to correct that, creating most of them base off their novel descriptions, with a few exceptions. Also did end up using the DR tag for some.

Korisu Kakitsubata

“Technically, one could count her as having art since she did appear as a sihloutte in volume 3. Buuuut, silhouette’s aren’t much compared to the full body art the other cast gets. Originally, had trouble with getting her to look suitably like a party girl, but of the variations think is the best one for it.”

--

--

Toru Uchida

“A friend called him a generic isekai protagonist. Given how he’s supposed to look pretty average...I’d say its fitting!~”

-

Hironori Hari

“One of the least intimidating Victim gets a badass generation? More likely than you think. Don’t let it fool you. Guy still pretty ‘eh’ through and through.”

-

Kaei Kuchiki

“NAI hates generating good, decent looking, old people so his was quite hassle to get through prior to figuring out I needed to add ‘Danganronpa’ to the mix. Like his out there beard and hair”

-

Otsuko Kuchiki

“Otsuko, and Seika, are notable for only having ‘is a girl’ as their description in DRK. So...had to improvise. My favorite part is how she’s wearing her jacket.”

-

Seika Kumano

“Now, my pal at @drmedicsgamesurgery​ actually gave a unique description for Seika on this one....however for the life of me, aside from the hair and shades, I can’t replicate it kin there. I’m sorry ;_;. So think of this like an alt, where I tried for a detective vibe as much as possible. Love the fedora.”

-

Tatsutora Oboro

“Definitely feels the part of a man that would get involved in wacky family antics. At his side is supposed to be his gun, but NAI can’t replicate guns for shite so...yeah.”

-

Shiro’o Shima

“No description so had to improvise. The main idea running in my head was that the guy would be badly battered after getting muffed. Thus the mummy man you see here.”

-

Gunzo Arai and Kariyasu Karasuba

“Unlike the others, these guys were finished much faster...mostly since I couldn’t really bear to give these guys more generations than what they’re worth XD. Always picuted Arai as having that kinda colored hair and like how it captured Kariyasu’s instability.

[shockersalvage]

Awkward in Prison (DRK SPOILERS)

Sachi...

Korisu:...

Sachi:...

Korisu:...Soooooooo....Miss Pipe Swinger!~

Sachi: I do not need sass from someone who thought using that many rubberbands for a katana slingshot was a good idea.

Korisu: Hey!!! Least I didn’t blow the budget making a giant ass scale!

Sachi: There. Was. A. Fucking. THEME!

[shockersalvage]

Duelists Being Unnecessarily Extra (DRK Spoilers)

Korisu: I’mma, like, need all those rubber bands!!!

Endo:...I feel like there are easier ways to plan this ou-

Korisu: Did I fuckin’ stutter!?

***

Endo: So I understand you’re planning to frame Kirigiri, obviously need to kill Inuzuka and need to murder Enbi to disguise as him.

Tadashi: Yeah, what’s wrong?

Endo: But why is Amino here?

Tadashi:...

Endo:...

Tadashi:...Because...rule of thr-listen, fuck off and send it off!

***

Karasuba: -I’ll place the iron maiden there....and with the power of the sun and glass, I’ll create a fire that’ll kill this drunken bastard!!

Endo:...Is an iron maiden n-?

Karasuba: Yes!!!!

***

Sae:....Give me this one to.

*points at Yuzen Minase*

Endo:......Why? You have your sacrificial lamb, the three targets you need, the chaai-unrelated party, and the detectives about to arrive as well. Why bring in him?

Sae: Because I want to round it to ten...and fuck it, he looks like a piece of shit, he’ll fit right in.

Endo:...Eh, good point.

[shockersalvage]

Duelists Being Unnecessarily Extra (DRK Spoilers) PT2

Shima: This Duel Noir will take place on a cruise!!! Endo:...Why do I have a feeling you just want a vacation as well.

Shima (already packing his stuff):.........N-No....

***

Endo: So how are you going to kill your target?

Sachi: Pipe to the head.

Endo:...That’s...remarkably straightforward-

Sachi: Oh, I’m gonna need my site to act like a scale, you know?

Endo (calculating the expenses of this):...Two...Three of our sponsors are going bankrupt.

***

Toru: So...with this in place, I’m basically allowing myself time to get an alibi in order so when myself and my friends head to the academy.

Endo:...That...actually makes a fair bit of sense.

Toru:...Also, I need a rockslide to happen!

Endo: Why are you people like this?

***

Toya: Okay, by choosing to title this the ‘ultimate locked room’ murder, people are bound to choose me for last, right?

Endo (knows damn well there are two genius kids participating who would eat that shite up like it was desserts):....Yeah, sure, go right ahead.

***

Korisu: Hmm...but, like, who should I pin this on?

Endo (had to deal with the pains of organizing a school with scale physics): *points at Sachi* She would be suitable...

Korisu: Ayyy, thanks!~ Endo: (grinch smiling):...It is my pleasure.

[edogawatranslations]

Danganronpa Kirigiri (3) - Chapter 4, Part 3

Table of Contents | Previous: Chapter 4, Part 2

“Now, we’d like to question you all individually,” the officer announced. “We’ll call you into a separate room one by one to hear your accounts. We ask for your kind cooperation.”

“Are you kidding me? We have to stay here?” the brunette protested. “My skin’s drying out. Are you going to do something about that?”

“You there, in the kimono. We’ll start with you,” the officer said, completely ignoring the brunette.

He led the spectacled woman into a separate room, with other officers trailing behind them. One uniformed policeman remained behind to keep watch over us.

“I didn’t expect things to turn out like this,” the man in the sunglasses said. He seemed like an easy-going person. His voice was calm and polite, and he didn’t look the slightest bit agitated. “But I’m surprised. I didn’t think the two of you were detectives too.”

“...'too'?”

“Yes. It turns out, every single one of us gathered here today is a detective.”

“R-Really? You’re also a detective?”

“Indeed.”

“Why didn’t you tell the officers?”

Was it something he wanted to hide?

“Detectives haven’t had the most cordial relationship with the police. We know from experience that flaunting our job title isn’t always well received. That’s all there is to it.”

“You Ryuuzouji grunts don’t understand,” the man in the Hawaiian shirt jumped in. “A run-of-the-mill detective like me ain’t got the same sorta standing.”

The industry sounded harsh... Once again, I realized just how inexperienced I was. I had no idea what the life of a detective was truly like.

“Well, it’ll come out during questioning, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to identify myself to you. I don’t wish to be on Mr. Ryuuzouji’s bad side.”

The man in the sunglasses pulled out a Detective Library ID from his inner suit pocket.

Salvador Yadorigi Fukurou: DSC Number [752]

“I specialize in art forgery crimes.”

He was even wearing sunglasses in his ID photo. The guidelines must not have been stringent, since it wasn’t an official document like a passport or driver’s license.

“Wow, you’re at Rank 2? I’m stuck at 8,” the brunette whined, leaning over with her legs still on the glass table.

I couldn’t picture someone like her as a detective.

She reached into her cleavage and pulled out an ID card. It was covered with sparkly stickers.

Korisu Kakitsubata: DSC Number [488]

“I handle animal cases. Or I guess more specifically, animal welfare cases?”

The stickers doubled her card’s thickness. I hadn’t heard of any detective who decorated their ID... Could that thing fit into the terminal at the Detective Library?

“My turn,” the guy in the Hawaiian shirt said, flashing his card.

Hajiki Yaki: DSC Number [666]

“Gamblin’s my forte, but I’m not the one makin’ the bets. My job’s to sniff out unlawful gamblers and make ‘em wish they’d never been born.”

“Did you share your identities with each other?”

“Yes,” Yadorigi answered while adjusting his sunglasses. “It came up in our discussion before you two arrived. We determined that identifying ourselves would be wise.”

“Someone musta planned it this way,” Yaki said, using the glass table as a mirror to fix his collar. “We all got the same birthday invitation, but we got sent different requests along with it. I was told this place was an illegal gamblin’ den. Since that’s in my line of work, the bait was meant for me.”

“I was asked to determine the authenticity of the paintings in this mansion,” Yadorigi added with overexaggerated hand gestures. “If that request was fabricated, then the person behind this must be quite familiar with detectives. The birthday invitation was suspicious, but that made us more susceptible to take the bolder lie at face value.”

“My letter said this place was the site of illegal wildlife trade," Kakitsubata added. "I didn’t want to bother coming here, but like, wouldn’t it be sad if that was true? Those poor animals...”

“So all of you took the bait and walked right into a trap.” I summarized.

“No, we didn’t,” Yaki snapped.

“No, she’s right. We should admit as much,” Yadorigi said. “We fell for the criminal’s trap and are now suspects in a murder investigation.”

This situation reminded me of the Sirius Observatory case from last month. The detectives received fake requests and were lured to the scene, and ultimately to their deaths.

But this time, there was only one victim. With the police on the scene, the likelihood of additional murders was low, but we still couldn’t rest easy.

“So? Is it true? Are the two of you really detectives?” Kakitsubata asked.

I showed her my Detective Library ID.

“You look so young, how old are you? Are you in high school? Really? Aren’t your boobs a little big for your age? Wait, you’re not even a homicide specialist, but you get to join the investigation? No fair, I want in on that!”

“Well, these are special circumstances...” It wouldn’t be appropriate to explain everything, so I changed the subject. “Oh, Kyoko over here is even younger than me; she’s in middle school. Isn’t she cute?”

“What’s your specialty?” Yadorigi asked curiously.

“Small talk won’t do us any good,” Kyoko replied curtly. “You all fell for the criminal’s trap and are being suspected of murder.”

“Hmm...” Yadorigi crossed his legs and threw out his arms. “You’re correct. We need to solve this case. It’s not just our honor at stake; we could be falsely charged.”

“Murders ain’t my cup of tea. You solve it.”

“Huh? Murders, like, creep me out!”

While Yaki and Kakitsubata started quibbling, the spectacled woman returned. She gracefully took a seat on the sofa.

“Miss Kakitsubata, the officer asked me to send you in,” she said.

“What, it’s my turn? I’m sleepy. Are the police going to do something if my skin cracks? Wait, isn’t this like getting in trouble at school and getting called to the principal’s office? This is exciting.”

Kakitsubata continued her monologue on the way to the other room.

“We were introducing ourselves to these young detectives,” Yadorigi said calmly.

“Oh, then allow me to do so as well.” The woman covered her mouth with her hand and smiled. “My name is Sara Mizuiyama. Have you been informed of the reason we came here?”

Sara Mizuiyama: DSC Number [527]

“My story is the same as the others. I received a request for advice on remodeling this mansion. My specialty is architecture.”

“Oh, I forgot to ask earlier, but do any of you know anything about the man who was killed?”

“His name was Suntetsu Shirasu, 52 years old,” Yadorigi answered. “We searched through his belongings. The only thing of note was his Detective Library ID. His DSC number was [126], which means he dealt with crimes of religion, specifically those involving oriental cults.”

“I wonder if this case has anything to do with religion,” Mizuiyama said, tilting her head.

“That’s a plausible theory,” Yadorigi replied. “Maybe he was killed because of his line of work.”

“What happened to him before we arrived?” I asked. “He seemed to be taking shelter in that room, but...”

“Taking shelter? That ain’t right.” Yaki reclined onto the sofa and waved his arm left and right. “He up and disappeared... ‘Cause of that, we started wonderin’ if he was the one who invited us here. That’s why we peeked at his things and found his ID. Then we started lookin’ for him and ran into that shut door.”

“I was able to enter the dojo earlier in the afternoon,” Yadorigi explained. “But when I returned later, the door wouldn’t open. Since the door has no keyhole, I surmised that someone was keeping the door shut from the inside. As I wondered who it could be, everyone else joined me, aside from Shirasu.”

Naturally, they concluded Shirasu was holed up inside the room. While they were struggling to open the door, Kyoko and I appeared.

Shortly afterwards, the case occurred.

The moment the victim was stabbed, Yadorigi, Kakitsubata, Yaki, and Mizuiyama were with us on the other side of the door. Logic thus dictated that none of them could be the murderer.

But the locked room presented a mystery—how did the murderer enter and exit the dojo?

“Would you mind recounting in detail everything that happened before we arrived?” Kyoko asked.

“Very well,” Yadorigi answered with exaggerated gestures. “I’ll have to explain everything to the police anyway, so a practice run wouldn’t hurt...”

They arrived at the Takeda Haunted Mansion today (or more precisely, yesterday), January 10th, at around 1 PM.

I had unsealed the Duel Noir envelope an hour earlier, at exactly noon. That meant all of the actors had gathered at the stage within an hour of the curtain rising on the Duel Noir.

It was impossible to lure everyone to the mansion in that short span of time. Did the criminal predict that I would open the envelope at noon on the 10th, and prepare everything in advance?

No, most likely the criminal had sent out the invitations in advance and was waiting for me to unseal the envelope before executing the crime. For better or for worse, that happened to be the same day everyone was to gather here, so the killer quickly set their plan into motion.

After arriving at the mansion, they quickly introduced themselves to one another. At that point, everyone was still wary of the others and hid their true identities as detectives.

They waited a full two hours together, until 3 PM. The host never showed up, causing them to grow suspicious of the situation. Everyone then decided to explore the mansion by themselves. We would need to ask for their accounts individually.

At 9 PM, they started questioning the legitimacy of their investigation request. Someone suggested they all leave. But then, Kakitsubata revealed herself to be a detective. In succession, the rest of them revealed their true reason for visiting the mansion. Except Shirasu—at that point, he had already gone missing.

The others now strongly suspected Shirasu to be the man who invited them all and began searching for him. However, they couldn’t find him.

At 10 PM, Yadorigi noticed something odd about the door leading to the dojo. It wouldn’t budge, no matter how hard he tried pulling.

In the next thirty minutes, Kakitsubata, Yaki, and Mizuiyama appeared. Another thirty minutes passed as they shared their findings.

That was when Kyoko and I showed up.

I knew what happened after that. While we were trying to open the door, a noise came from inside the dojo. We broke into the locked room, turned on the light, and discovered a man lying in the center of the room with a katana in his back.

“Was that noise we heard Shirasu being stabbed and collapsing onto the ground?” I asked.

“I believe so,” Kyoko responded. “When I rushed over to the body, blood was still seeping out from the stab wound.”

“Ain’t it weird that the killer wasn’t in the room?” Yaki asked with his arms crossed.

“The room was pitch black,” Mizuiyama added pensively. “What if the murderer used the darkness to escape through the door we opened?”

“Can’t be. My ass was still on the ground when you all went in and I didn’t see nobody come out. Nowhere for them to hide behind the door either, since it opened outward.”

“I had to feel around for the light switch, but that didn’t even take a minute,” Yadorigi explained. “If the criminal escaped under the veil of darkness, they couldn’t have gone far.”

“But there ain’t nowhere to run to.”

“Kyoko and I checked outside after that, but there weren't any footprints in the snow.”

“Then where did the killer disappear to?” Mizuiyama asked, bringing her pointer finger to her lips and tilting her head.

“Only one answer. Those warriors,” Yaki replied, furrowing his brows.

“The armor was empty. There’s no changing that,” Yadorigi refuted.

I had also inspected the armor. Nobody was hiding inside. And I didn’t find any suspicious device or tool either.

“Not that. You know what I mean...”

“What?”

“A ghost! You really gonna make a grown man like me say it?”

“You think a ghost possessed the armor and stabbed Shirasu with a katana?” Yadorigi asked sternly.

The possibility was nonsensical; it went against logic and science. A man couldn’t be killed by a ghost warrior...

Besides, this was a Duel Noir. Straying into the occult was a waste of time. The killer used some trick to carry out the murder for the sake of revenge—that much was certain.

But the question remained—how?

The room was completely sealed. When the victim was attacked, the suspects were outside. The lack of footprints around the mansion eliminated the possibility of an uninvited guest.

Everything pointed to the murder being an impossible crime.

Next: Chapter 4, Part 4