#trial summary

[cw; Neck Trauma]

Elisabet's body had multiple stab wounds to the back. However, only one of them, the one to the base of her neck, appeared to be the mortal injury. The rest didn’t bleed as much, indicating that Elisabet was either a vampire or the injuries had been done to her post-mortem.

Nearby, a bloodied spade was found. It seemed to match most of the injuries -- except for the main one.

Nana’s body, likewise, was littered with several cuts and injuries. Given the messy state of the Conservatory, it looks like Nana had entered into a fight prior to her death.

In the Chessboard Garden, students had discovered Nana’s Bloodied Shield propped up against a black chess set’s queen piece -- the bottom half of the weapon being perfectly balanced onto the white tile.

A trail of blood was also found leading up to the shield.

Examining both of their expressions: Elisabet looked fearful while Nana had distinctly fallen into resignation. There were also drag marks from a broken plantar to where Nana’s body lies next to Elisabet.

When piecing together alibis, it was clear that Nana and Elisabet had breakfast together in Dorm 3 before walking to the Conservatory sometime after. The last person to see them alive was likely Fuyu.

That, is of course, until Meili steps up to testify that because of the Phantom Fears motive -- he was with the girls when they were attacked by a monster. He ran away after sustaining some injuries himself.

Suspicions rise as people question Meili, but then some pages from a discarded notebook are brought up. The contents mostly discuss people’s connections to each other and the capabilities of the class. No name is listed on them.

The note on Nana in particular listed her as the strongest and Elisabet as the weakest. An erased portion is speculated to be talking about her siblings (which would indicate the killer and her had a bond), but it’s uncertain.

Remembering a piece of Nana’s skirt was ripped and left towards the entrance to the Butterfly House, the class realizes that Nana likely came running to Elisabet’s defense.

The Back Door present in the Butterfly House likely was the killer’s escape route.

Meili, frustrated, reveals he has several injuries to back up his claim -- insisting that the monster that attacked them was real and someone must have come in to finish them off; framing him. They urge the class to think critically. Nana was his close friend, so clearly someone must be lying to frame him...

Meanwhile, Eleanor had already found peace with her inevitable death. Sure, she was afraid, but she had also expected this as a possibility from the very start of this killing game.

Her contentment doesn’t last very long as a pang of pain bursts through her body. She frantically pulls up her sleeve to reveal a hair tie around her wrist, with her gem attached to it. Darkness begins to cloud her soul gem. Icy black tendrils swirl around what was once ruby red.

She shuts her eyes and her breathing picks up until she is nearly hyperventilating. She can’t breathe. It’s all starting to sink in. Every memory of her failures, her inadequacies. How pathetic she was. How, from the very beginning, she had been unworthy of love. How foolish she had been to not accept this reality sooner, to lull herself into believing she was worth people’s attention.

All along, she had been nothing.

Nothing without her mother, that is.

It had always been that way. She wouldn’t exist without her mother, both as a person, and as a success. Everything about her could be tied back to that one death. She was nothing on her own, as she’d always known.

But it was fine now. She had gotten to live such a wonderful life due to her mother. Fame, financial comfort, even friends. So what if none of it was real? So what if she had never been truly satisfied? It was all more than she deserved. And now it was time to give back.

Tears pour down Eleanor’s cheeks and she whispers soft apologies to herself.

“Mother...it’s your time again. Thank you for everything…”

And just like that, there’s a blinding flash as the Soul Gem holding Eleanor explodes into searing light. --- An empty and desolate theater surrounds you. Rows upon rows of empty seats face a stage, only broken up by small walkways laid in between. But although the seats are empty of people, that does not mean they are empty entirely. As you pass through the walkways, it looks as though stage props have been haphazardly squished into wherever spaces they could fit. Wooden cutouts of shadowed figures face you as you get closer to the stage.

A woman and a girl holding hands. A child dancing. A woman driving alone. And finally, the closest to the stage, a tree with a shadowy figure strung from it. Cutouts of all of these events line the theater, until the stage, which is empty, save for the spotlights beaming down on a tall figure, with two creatures clinging to her skirt.

The Witch merely tilts its head at you, a cruel smile pressed into her face, and twirls a red, thorned baton in her hands. She cannot stare, due to the mask covering her eyes, but you know she can sense your presence anyway.

Agave, the Pageant Witch, with an unpredictable and murderous nature. A red and white pageant gown covers her body, with a sash across the chest reading her name. She basks in the spotlight pointed upon her, and lifts her hand, beckoning you to come closer.

At the very least, she was happy that she had be able to make an interesting case. And it sucked to be caught like this, she had really wanted to get away with the whole thing, escape and all that. It's why she'd tried so hard to the very end. If only she had pushed harder, if only she had framed someone better. If only her own handiwork and recklessness wasn't so damn predictable.

Eleanor smiled a watery smile, but she didn't cry. At least for now, she looked content.

"...I'm not going to stand here and play the victim. Puppers was coming to kill me, so I did what I had to do to protect myself. I don't regret that. And I don't regret trying my best to live since, y'know, life is precious and all that... I'm probably going to witch out with a whole shit ton of regrets. I wish I'd appreciated my life more, I wish I'd been happier, I wish I hadn't shut so many people out, but...what can you do? And I wish most of all I'd never made that god forsaken wish..."

Eleanor started to tear up, but she quickly wiped them away.

"Mom...mom was a bitch, and I'm glad she's dead, but even she deserved to have her case solved. But I was selfish. Cared more about myself. Still do, of course."

She took a deep breath to stabilize herself, especially after what could only be described as an uncomfortable implication.

"Anyway, I'm sure you all must be, like, super pissed at me right now. But I had to try, y'know? Puppers came to kill me and I got them first. What was I supposed to do? Come clean right away, even knowing this would happen. Like fucking hell. Those other traps I laid out must've been a real pain. I was pretty sure if I injured myself like this, no one would think I was the killer, but guess I gotta give myself props for having such a consistent character." She laughed like it was a big joke.

The center of the room begins to fill with that familiar, purple mist that has blocked your path countless times already here in Wonderland. But rather than obscuring the truth, it appears it's here to put it on display.

After a few moments, you watch as a silent scene in Room 8 takes form.

J4CK4L can be seen sitting at their bed. Judging by the light coming in from their window, the time of day seems to be transitioning into the evening. Without their helmet to cover their face, she spends time pacing and seeming to think about something. After some time, the person behind J4CK4L’s mask moves to their [Desk] to write a note. Nodding, they look back at the room before exiting.

J4CK4L disappears down the spacious hallway and dips into Room 5. Rather than following them in though, you catch sight of a strange girl, who you all learned is named Reiko, peering around the entrance to the Dormitories. You watch as she sighs before quickly making her way into Room 8. A minute later, J4CK4L reappears with a [Towel] over their shoulder.

Taking a look around, they casually turn invisible and presumably make their way out.

Following them, they seem to be making their rounds outside in search of something. It’s during that time that Meili and Atsushi can be seen in the Rose Gardens talking, stopping for a moment as they hear footsteps. Looking around, they seem to brush it off before going back to whatever discussion they were having. --- The scene shifts to a Shadowed Figure as they walk around the Fifth Story of Wonderland Tower. Faintly, the vision allows you to see J4CK4L’s outline as they stalk behind the figure, who enters the Music Room. Approaching the door, J4CK4L can be seen making confident strides before they begin to falter.

Were they really sure they wanted to do this? They could, of course, but… was it too easy?

As J4CK4L seems to back away and reevaluate, the shot closes in on the shadowed figure as they stop what they’re doing. Looking over their shoulder, they seem to notice something’s wrong. They consider it for a moment before making their way back out. This time, they head to the Workshop. Exiting, they fold their arms to theirself and head downstairs.

J4CK4L pursues from a distance.

The obscured figure veers to the East once they exit Wonderland and begin heading to the Sports Shed. Reaching the door, they slip inside and stand against the wall beside the door. The door opens as J4CK4L begins to enter and, while still invisible, misses the glint of the [Hammer]’s metal head as it crashes into [J4CK4L’s Leg]. Turning visible again, they seem to cry in pain as they stumble and fall against the wall.

The Shadowed Figure seems to feel the weight of the hammer in their hand as they approach J4CK4L, the obscured figure clutches the hammer tighter and slowly begins to stalk towards J4CK4L from their position on the floor. Cornered.

“Why the hell are you stalking me?”

"I just—w, wait— wait, I just wanted to go home, please—"

---

[cw; Head Trauma]

Then the Shadowed Figure brings the hammer down on J4CK4L’s head, and for a moment you’re glad that the sound has cut out once again. They bring it down a second, third, fifth time for good measure before backing away. The Blackened regards their work as the hammer hangs loose in their grip, blood dripping from their knuckles and the weapon itself.

The Shadowed Figure takes a moment to stare down at their dirty work. They cover their mouth with their free hand in apparent horror, before their expression hardens into one of acceptance and they straighten their back. It’s time to get to work.

Taking [J4CK4L’s Rosepad], they snap a photo of the corpse and pocket the device for themself. Instead, they turn to the window and reach up, pulling themself through! They don’t notice the [Blood Smear] they leave behind from their hands and clothes.

Next, the figure is seen at the Crystal Lake rowing halfway out into the body of water. Taking the Hammer, they drop it down and begin rowing their way back to shore. Their next stop is the Showers where they take the time to clean themself and their clothes up. With that, they head back to the Workshop and gather some materials before getting to work. During that time, you can see a groggy Masami squint out the window as The Figure runs by. --- A montage of sorts plays as The Killer sets up traps in The Kitchen, The Music Room, The Showers, and, finally, in The Sports Shed. For the last one in particular, they prop up the [Nail Gun] on the box jumps inside and seem to compare it to their own eye level. Satisfied, they use a [Jumprope] to set up the mechanism so it’s attached to the [Sports Shed Door]. After testing it a few times and perfecting the aim, the Blackened escapes through the [Small Window] for a final time.

The time is early morning when The Killer stands in Classroom 1-C. Turning to the group chat, they send the infamous photo of J4CK4L and toss their Rosepad out the [Window] before heading out. With the rest of the group, they go running to meet the others and happen to group up with Fuyu, Meili, and Katrine.

[cw; Eye Gore]

Opening the Sports Shed door, you’re spared watching the incident up close but you see blood splatter and a shadow fall back as the Nail Gun fires. Writhing in pain on the ground, Eleanor Ahn-Keating wails as she tries to cover her damaged eye.

Slowly, the vision fades…

There's the standard silence as you all watch the vision fade and look at one another, and then the Incubator.

"...Congratulations."

They pause.

[CW; Head Trauma, Eye Gore]

J4CK4L was bludgeoned to death with a Hammer, likely one found in the Workshop judging by the missing supplies uncovered. They also had a bludgeoning injury to their leg.

Not to mention that the proposed murder weapon was sitting at the bottom of the Crystal Lake.

The scene of the crime was clearly the Sports Shed, which had plenty of strange items inside (aside from the corpse of a classmate). A Towel was sat beneath the victim, as well as Blood Splatter. The blood around them was hours old.

Most curious of the evidence found around the body was the presence of Blood Smears on the Small Window and a Nail Gun Trap. Nobody over 5′5″ could reasonably fit through the opening, but the Nail Gun had fired multiple precisions shots between 5′ and 5′8″ into the door -- not including the one that blinded Eleanor.

Multiple other traps had been set up around Wonderland Tower including: Masumi tripping and almost falling onto a pile of nails, a Teapot filled with rocks falling on Masami’s foot, and Haruki’s hand being shredded by glass hidden in the Kitchen’s dirty sink -- all of which occurred during investigation.

The window in Classroom 1-C was open, as J4CK4L’s Rosepad likely had fallen out of it. This must have happened after the picture of their corpse was sent around 10:12AM.

Meili, Atsushi, and Eleanor all claimed to have heard someone walking by or after them, but saw nobody there. The only people who could turn invisible seem to be J4CK4L and Reiko.

However, the latter claims that her forbidden action was using her invisibility -- meaning she was largely trapped in J4CK4L’s dorm where she had been staying. Fuyu could vouch that she had been hiding for that reason.

Atsushi also claims that their forbidden action was coming into physical contact with anyone. He argues it would be hard to commit a murder without touching them at all.

Masumi, Nene, and Yukio have been sharing a dorm recently, giving one another alibis. Nana and Elisabet claimed to be doing the same, though it was argued they could be covering for one another. Meili and Atsushi said they heard the footsteps together around 6PM.

Masami, in Room 1, claims to have seen a figure running East past his window around 10PM. It was too dark to make out who it was.

It's pointed out that J4CK4L’s manner of death would make it hard for the killer not to have blood on their clothes, which prompted checks in and out of Magus form. Nobody in the room appeared bloodied, though.

For her, the world feels like it's about to crash in a thousand colors around her and leave her in nothing but black and white and black and white and black and white and pink.

Her emotions feel like explosions and she feels like she's on fire; a candle running out wax and running out of room and running out of time. Running out of time before she's gone, running out of time before she's just smoke in the air and then an afterthought and — was she really there to begin with?

It feels like too much, and it bubbles and bursts and, for what must be the 10th time during her trip in Wonderland, Hisa Watanabe is being pulled apart by the seams.

Mimori Hirano is dead on the ground somewhere far from here.

And Mimori Hirano is dead because of her. The thought alone is enough to whisk her away to another place; the thought alone is to make her want to disappear and just return to being a nobody. She thinks there's enough rage and anguish in her body she could just drop dead but she's not dropping dead because somewhere, somewhere, she doesn't want — doesn't want this. Doesn't want an ending like that. Doesn't want what fate had played her.

But she can't change fate, she knows, she's tried so hard before. Motionless, movementless, she stares and stares at the results until they, too, burn into her eyes and burn into her memory and burn and burn and burn and hurt. 11 votes for Mimori, 1 vote for her, and, why, why, why why why did you all —

"Why?"

The word is small, shaky, just a tiny, shaking note.

"Why? Why?"

But Hisa has never been a simple melody. She is the clanging of keys and the howl of the wind, and that wind picks up as her voice rises and rises until she's screaming at all of them at the top of her lungs.

cw: blaming oneself / self doubt

"Why? Why? Why? Why did you —" her voice catches in her throat, and she slams her fist down on the podium. The noise is too loud, too aggressive, but she is that too. "Why? Hey. Hey, you — hey, tell me. Tell me, tell me why," her voice shakes, breaks once again, falls apart faster than she is. "Why? Why did you believe me, I — I've never — Every single one of you, I've lied to! So why, why why why why would you idiots vote for — why did you believe me?!"

She cracks, but not just one tiny line; the entire mountain worth of over a decade worth of problems comes crashing down around her.

cw: blaming oneself / self doubt   

"I'm nothing!" the words are louder than she wants but quieter than she needs. "I'm nothing, I'm nothing, I'm the — I'm not the Ultimate Lucky Student, I've lied to every single one of you and told you all I am not, but I'm not, I'm not, I'm not—" her lungs grab the air it was so deprived of just a day ago, "I lie! I've lied! Everyone, everyone, I lie about my feelings and I lie about who I am and I lie about what I've done and I lie about, I lie about, I lie about everything! And someone, and someone innocent is going to die because of — because of me! I killed her! I killed her!"

She should be happy, shouldn’t she? Isn’t this what she wanted? Didn’t she want, didn’t she wish, for Ultimates to suffer and cry and be told they couldn’t because she was? So why, and that is the golden question, isn’t she jumping up and down with joy?

Harumi gets to live, an Ultimate has died — but her tears aren’t from joy, are they? Why isn’t she happy? She should be, so why isn’t she happy, why doesn’t she feel good about this and when — when did this stop being fun and games?

And when did —

when did Ultimates make her heart hurt so much? Heart ache so much?

The thought feels like she's being plunged into cold water after being thrown into hot water seconds before. The world spins to a stop and she swears the stars are going to come crashing down —

Because it always comes down to this, doesn't it?

cw: victim blaming

"You Ultimates," her voice trembles, is quiet, before it rises again to it's screaming pitch. "You Ultimates are so stupid and so fucking — so fucking, dumb and you're all — you're all — someone's going to die because you chose to believe the Ultimate Second Best—"

Her voice cracks.

She can't look at anyone. She can't fucking look at anyone anymore, and she bursts into tears and buries her face in her hands. Hot and ugly and she realizes she doesn't want to be seen by anyone here because — because, because she knows one of them is going to die and she'll have the blood of two on her hands.

Ultimate Second Best.

Out there, finally, for the entirety of Wonderland to know. Ultimate Second Best, Hisa Watanabe, who wished for a talent but not in the way she wanted. Ultimate Second Best, Hisa Watanabe, who tried to reach for the stars but fell so very short, Hisa Watanabe, who tried and tried and tried but didn’t win, never win, in the way she wanted to.

She’s been in second place her entire life, and with a sinking realization, realizes she’s even second place here.

Except this time it saved her life instead of stopping it. 11 votes for Mimori, 1 for her.

Mimori “wins.” And she “loses.”

First place is just out of her reach once again.

Deep down, Hisa Watanabe knows her insecurities have never stemmed from Ultimates alone. Deep down, Hisa Watanabe knows that underneath the layers of grime and dirt and jealousy, envy, anguish, of what she felt for Ultimates, there was something else.

Something positive.

"You Ultimates are so stupid and so —”

(Something like admiration.)

"And so — so —"

(She just wanted to cheer them on, didn’t she?)

"And so," her voice shakes, trembles, comes to a close.

"...and so nice."

Why?

The center of the room begins to fill with that familiar, purple mist that has blocked your path countless times already here in Wonderland. But rather than obscuring the truth, it appears it's here to put it on display.

After a few moments, you watch as a silent scene out in the Common Room takes form.

You see Mimori sitting across from a shadowed figure, both talking among themselves. While it takes a moment for their words to come in, both of their expressions are pained.

"... It hurts, doesn't it?" Mimori’s voice is strained from flower petals and painful memories. "... Would you be willing to kill to save them? Your loved one.” She looked the other figure in the eyes, determined yet anxious. "I would do anything for my sister, you see. And if... if you're the same..."

"... I may just have an idea."

“...You — you what?”

As you see Mimori pull out her [Notebook] the conversation fades and the time of day passes from the morning until nighttime, where the duo is somewhere in the expansive Library. Sitting on the floor, they’re hovering over the [Encyclopedia of Flowers] and thumbing through the pages as they look at their medicinal properties. Coming upon the entry for Wolfsbane, they look at one another and nod. --- The scene is now set as Mimori and the blackened walk through the Misty Thicket and look through the foliage. Carefully grabbing a hold of some Wolfsbane, they take the time to kneel in the glow of the mushrooms.

They nod at each other and part ways, only to meet back up in the early hours of the morning.

Standing opposite of one another, Mimori is dressed in her Magus garb and, presumably, the other figure is as well. Leaning on a large weapon with a blade, each side takes some moments to size up their opponent. There’s a tense silence before they nod and prepare their weapons.

“One… two…. three.”

What follows is a harrowing battle as Mimori and the shadowed figure fight ferociously. The Jell-O Artist’s arrows fly through the air and occasionally hit their mark, while others become embedded in the ground and surrounding buildings. The figure, clearly a melee fighter, charges with a fearful glint in their eye

You’re witnessing a true battle to the death. Only one could come out victorious.

Mimori stumbles backward after a particularly nasty blow to the stomach before she detransforms. Looking at the Soul Gem in her hand, it’s dark and swirling… she’s run out of energy. Her attacker offers a grim nod and detransforms as well, nursing their own wounds. Both head to the Infirmary to get [Mimori’s Bandages] before they quietly make their way off the field.

A quiet apology is mumbled — just a whisper, if you strain your ears. “Sorry,” from the figure.(edited) --- Only an hour or so before the Talent Show begins, the two meet up again, this time in the Kitchen.  The shadowed figure, the victor of their battle, takes the poisonous flower out and crushes it down into a powder. They mix it with water, which is then stored in a [Small Container] and handed to Mimori.

The rest is a scene that’s fairly familiar to you all. The Talent Show Event is swiftly set up and the festivities begin. Mimori and her attacker, dressed in their own attire, watch the performances with the rest of the group. She places her [Leather Bag] on the ground and watches her fellow performers. During this time it’s when the killer kneels down and mixes the poisoned solution into Mimori’s water bottle in the cover of darkness. They stand back up and wish her luck as she goes to take the stage, bringing her bag with her.

Mimori passes by Masami, Kosuke, and Haruki as she sneakily grabs a [Prop Dagger] and drinks the poisoned water. Feeling her face flush, this would normally be easily brushed off by a healthy Magus, but her weakened state enhances the effects. Removing her [Bloodied Bandages] and shoving them in her bag, she quickly steps on stage with the knife held behind her back.

In the final moments of her life, Mimori seems to have a realization of her impending doom. With her heart rate picking up, her uncovered wounds begin to bleed. She shakily presses the dull edge into her hand, coating the blade with her newly opened wound. Dropping the knife at her side, the Jell-O Artist shudders and finally collapses.

The curtain opens just as Mimori Hirano takes her last breath and goes still.

In the crowd, the vision focuses on the shadowed figure who looks on in horror. The Mystery Killer and Mimori Hirano’s plan has succeeded… but the hardest part has yet to come.

Slowly, the vision fades…

There's silence... Chuubey breathes deeply.

"... It seems you were incorrect.