- Change of plans. We have to keep Ultimate Counselor K in check and obstruct him as much as possible. Also, investigate the partnership between Kirigiri and K.
The file Mukuro Ikusaba received from Monokuma contained Junko Enoshima's new directives. Reading them, Mukuro reflected.
"Ultimate Counselor K… as expected, he's dangerous."
While befriending the students, he managed their mental health and took night watches so murders wouldn't happen, drastically lowering the odds of a killing.
He'd nearly nullified the first motive my sister prepared by talking the kids down, and yesterday he even foiled Maizono's murder attempt.
On top of that, he now seems to be working with the equally hazardous "Ultimate Detective," Kyoko Kirigiri.
Honestly, we should have wiped not only Kirigiri's memories of her talent but K's as well. Kirigiri's gift is certainly a threat to the Killing Game, yet back in the Hope's Peak days the one who most actively crushed my sister's plans was none other than him.
But Junko said that would be boring; she wants to watch K fall into despair with all his faculties intact.
Because it was my beloved sister's wish I wanted to obey, yet a battlefield-like unease kept prickling at me, so I asked if we couldn't rethink it once. She suddenly cackled and said,
"You seriously don't remember anything?"
I tilted my head, confused, and she burst out laughing again, telling me she had a plan, so not to worry. Convinced she'd thought of everything, I set my misgivings aside and chose to trust her.
Even so, one question lingers: why does that peculiar anxiety rise whenever I think of him? On the battlefield I always felt an unpleasant tension, but this is different.
The unease linked to him lacks that foul tension; instead my breathing quickens, my pulse races, and my chest tightens.
At any rate, judging from how my instincts are reacting, Ultimate Counselor K remains a threat even with his memories gone.
Suppressing her renewed misgivings, Mukuro recalled Junko's orders and began plotting how best to keep K in check.
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Back in my room, I mulled over how to spend the next twenty-four hours. I still needed a cover story for the secret, but what really weighed on me was Owada.
The timeline has veered far from the original, yet the motive is the same. Letting Owada stew alone felt risky, so I decided to talk to him.
"Yo… K, right? What's up?"
"Ah, well… I've got nothing else to do, so I thought I'd chat a bit…"
"Huh? There are plenty of other kids—why me?"
"Thing is… everyone left on the first floor but you is a girl, and it felt weird to bug them just 'cause I'm bored… so…?"
"You came to me for that? Seriously? Not very manly, pal… and I'm not really in the mood to talk…"
"Oh… yeah? Guess that's that… I even brought cup noodles to share while we talked…"
Owada adored the 'Ultraspeed Cup Ramen' among the gift items. Sure enough, the moment he sees the noodles, Owada's eyes go wide.
"Huh…? Is that Ultraspeed Cup Ramen? I used to split those with my bro all the time when we were kids…"
"Your brother?"
"Yeah… Every time my bro opened one, I'd butt in and he'd hand it over without a word. They're tiny cups—he hardly got any himself…"
Owada trails off, lost in thought. The secret he read earlier must have stirred him up. So that's why he likes Ultraspeed Cup Ramen.
"…Well, I guess a little while is fine."
We cracked open the noodles and started talking.
Owada opened with motorcycles, asking what I ride. When I admitted I can't even manage a bicycle, he sighed and swore he'd teach me the thrill of a bike once we got out. For a moment, I almost didn't want to leave.
When he grumbled there was no one here worth fighting, I suggested he challenge Oogami. That earned me a faceful of noodles he snorted out. We filled the time comforting him about the ten confessions ruined by his random shouting and so on. Before long, we were pretty friendly.
"Hey, K… there's something I wanna ask you…"
"Wh-what is it…?"
Owada suddenly put on a serious face and, in a grave tone, began to speak. Great—he's about to open up about his brother. Okay, what advice should I—
"Are you a dog person or a cat person?"
"Uh… what?"
Seriously? After all that dramatic build-up, all he asks is dogs or cats?
The tension I'd been feeling evaporated.
"Obviously cats. How dare you even compare dogs to cats…"
"What'd you say, punk?! Say that again!"
"Why are you yelling? Still, cats are clearly superior…"
"Like hell! Dogs are way better, you jerk!"
Oh? Now I'm mad. Did this butter-bar just diss cats? Anything but that.
"Hey! What do dogs have over cats? They bark nonstop, tear around everywhere, drive you nuts!"
"You bastard! Cats aren't even cute—they're just sly little monsters! Puppies are way cuter!"
Thus began the Cat-and-Dog Debate. It raged for quite a while, but since we stuck to opposite positions, no conclusion was reached.
"Fine! Then let's settle it! I can't exactly punch a scrawny runt like you, so whoever lasts longer in the sauna wins!"
"Deal! Right now! Loser kneels and admits the winner's animal is superior!"
"Cocky little—fine! Like I'd lose to a weakling like you!"
Poor Owada. Challenging someone from Korea—the land of ondol floors and jjimjilbangs—to a sauna match? I practically grew up in bathhouses. No matter how tough he is, I can win. I'll make him acknowledge cats' absolute supremacy.
…Though I feel like I'm forgetting something important. Oh well.
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Hnnnghhh…
"Ha, what's wrong? All that big talk and you're wiped out already?"
I forgot: Japan's got plenty of saunas too, and apparently this body can't handle the heat. How weak have I gotten?
"Haa… haa… I… I can still… hang on…?"
"Oh? Then suit yourself. I might take a nap."
I'm hanging on by a thread, while Owada—wearing clothes as a handicap—looks fine. I think about quitting, but the way he lounges there ticks me off, so I grit my teeth and endure.
Watching me quietly, Owada speaks up.
"…You sure you don't wanna give up?"
"Tough… but I can… still last…?"
"…"
Owada makes a strange face. Finally feeling the heat too? If so, I've got a chance. All right—let's go the distance.
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Uheheh… I can… still… keep… going…
"…"
Owada stares at the skinny kid—eyes wide, sweat streaming—even as his consciousness flickers.
What an unpredictable guy. First he chats me up just to kill time; then, the moment cats come up, he's at my throat; he accepts a sauna match without hesitation, and now, when anyone can see he's at his limit, he keeps going…
"Hey, it's only been thirty minutes. Gonna keep wobbling like that?"
"Th-thirty minutes…?"
His eyes shake, but soon regain that stubborn light. It's funny, yet something in my chest feels… uneasy.
"Not quitting? Give up now and I won't make you kneel."
"No… thanks…"
"You've got cuts on your face. They'll get worse in here."
"That'll just… make me look… manlier… or whatever…"
Seeing his unchanging expression, Owada asks the question he's buried deepest—not to the kid, but to himself.
"How do you have a heart that strong?"
"…?"
"Scrawny, gloomy, normally timid—so how the hell are you that strong?!"
He barked the words, but they were aimed at his own weakness.
"…I got tired."
"Huh?"
"I got tired of living helplessly… tired of giving up on everything and collapsing."
Tired? He got that strong just because he got tired of being weak?
"What are you…!"
"You don't gotta rush… Everyone gets tired sooner or later."
"Wh-what?"
"If you can't overcome your weakness right now, then just live without overcoming it. If there's a truth you don't wanna face, keep ignoring it."
"…"
"Eventually that life will wear you down, and before you know it… you'll naturally have a stronger heart."
"…!"
"For the record… that's personal experience."
With that, the boy finally blacked out and collapsed.
"Damn idiot… preaching when you could barely stand…"
He grumbled, but the anger and frustration from moments ago were gone. He figured he'd won the bet, yet now Owada couldn't care less.
Carefully hefting the boy onto his back, Owada muttered,
"Call it a draw."
Feeling as though he'd just solved a stubborn problem, Owada carried the boy out of the sauna.