"Hehe… everything is slotting together nicely. At this pace I should be able to secure myself a half-decent servant."
Celestia Ludenberg clings to a single, sparkling dream: one day she will erect a colossal gothic castle with the fortune she amasses and reign there as queen, attended by an army of charming butlers.
But Hope's Peak Academy is the antithesis of that fantasy. A sealed killing arena with no gentlemen to wait on her—only paranoia and the stench of impending murder. The claustrophobia is enough to drive a gambler insane.
Still, a boy of some interest turned up recently. While she was musing alone in the dining hall he approached out of nowhere and asked, ever so politely, whether she fancied a cup of black tea.
At first the interruption irked her, but the word "tea" hooked her curiosity. She decided that if the brew offended her palate, she would simply hurl the cup in his face—so she ordered him to prepare a pot.
Against her expectations the tea was exquisite. Steeped to the precise ratio she preferred, it granted her first moment of genuine satisfaction since arriving here.
True, the boy's gloomy appearance lost him style points, yet he was not wholly unpresentable. Factor in his obedient temperament and first-class tea-making skills, and Celestia judged him worthy of a Class-C servant.
She condescended to inform him of this honor—and he smiled sheepishly and declined. Kicking aside the chance to serve her filled her with incandescent displeasure.
Perhaps that is why, when the two of them lingered alone in the library that night, she challenged him to a wager on impulse.
Whether he truly lacked gambling experience, or merely failed to notice that she too was one of the fifteen captives, he accepted without hesitation.
Having issued the challenge, Celestia vowed to win and use her wish to work the boy to the bone.
Yes—this miserable school life might become amusing for a while, but a gambler never lets her guard slip; complacency is identical to defeat.
"So, what do you think about K?"
"Mm… a nice guy who hands me donuts whenever I'm hungry…?"
"Hehe, so he bribed you as well?"
"Huh? What are you talking about…?"
To seal victory, Celestia stalked the other students, whispering poisonous rumors. K was normally well-liked, yet the explosive weight of the secret he hid—amplified by her silver tongue—left every classmate nodding bleakly by the end of their chat.
"When we were alone in the library, K suddenly pounced on me…"
"I-is… is that true? Th-the mentor would never…"
"But it is true. Look at the marks on my neck and arms…"
"M-my goodness… impossible…"
For her final vote she even bruised her own skin before approaching Hifumi Yamada, ensuring he would cast a reflexive "No." Satisfied, she planned to rest in the dining hall before hunting down Makoto Naegi—K's most outspoken defender.
Yet whether by a sliver of bad luck—or someone else's outrageous fortune—she missed Naegi exiting K's room by seconds and failed to catch him again that day.
Evening arrived. The students gathered in the dining hall to decide, by secret ballot, whether they would trust K.
"My, it seems everyone's assembled. Shall we begin the vote?"
At Celestia's cue the others—everyone except K—filed to the voting box. K felt his pulse drum in his skull. If the majority rejected him, he would be locked in his room; even if he won but failed to earn at least ten affirmative votes, he would be forced to grant Celestia's wish.
"The target we ought to oppose is obvious," Byakuya Togami scoffed. "Why we must indulge in this vote is beyond me. Still, arguing the point is tedious—so I will humour you this once."
With the pompous heir's ballot cast, the box was full. Celestia stepped forward, smile razor-sharp.
"Then, let us begin the count."
She drew the first slip. Her grin widened.
"Cannot trust: one vote."
Not an auspicious start. She lifted the next ballot, only for her face to twist.
"…Can trust: one vote."
So far only a single rejection. Plenty of room to crush him.
But as the count crawled on, Celestia's poker face began to fracture.
In the first eight ballots she'd bagged five rejections—victory practically assured. Then came a relentless streak of affirmatives…
"Can trust: eight votes…"
By the thirteenth slip, "Trust K" had reached eight. The majority verdict was sealed: they would trust him. Grumbles, sighs of relief, and half-hearted congratulations rippled across the room—but Celestia's wager with K was not yet finished.
"Can trust: nine votes…"
Only one ballot remained.
Celestia's hand hovered, trembling harder than any roulette spin of her life. Instinct shrieked: shred the paper, destroy the evidence.
"Am I… afraid? Me, who always bets on certain victory—shaking over the contents of a scrap of paper?"
Logic barged back in. Five rejections, nine approvals. One more "No" and triumph was hers.
She had seen Hifumi Yamada's signature scrawl on his obscene comics in the dining hall; that same pudgy penmanship hadn't surfaced yet. The final slip had to be his.
Victory was hers. The moment she confirmed it, she would gain a servant—perhaps even a powerful pawn for a future murder trick.
Suppressing the quiver in her gut, she unfolded the final ballot.
– Miss Taeko Yasuhiro, I have decided to trust Makoto Naegi and Master K.
"Y-y-you filthy PIGGGG!"
"E-ek! W-why are you angry, Miss Celestia…?" Hifumi squeaked.
"Because of a swine like you…! I… I…!"
No—she hadn't lost simply because Yamada changed his mind.
She lost because, in this game, she trusted only herself and treated everyone else as tools. Against the mutual faith of K and Makoto Naegi, that strategy crumbled.
K had quietly provided Naegi with a list of every student's favourite gift and asked him to persuade them.
That was all. K believed in Naegi's integrity, the unshakeable hope he always radiated. Naegi, in turn, trusted K's behaviour so far—K had saved Sayaka Maizono and declared his intent to end the Killing Game.
A weapon as potent as any blade: mutual trust. Naegi had spoken to every wavering classmate and dismantled Celestia's lies one by one. The cola he procured for Yamada—knowledge K supplied—became the clincher.
"So, it's settled. Sorry to the five who voted against me, but I intend to end this Killing Game. I can't afford to stay locked up."
"You insolent…" Byakuya growled, but K ignored the glare.
He addressed the room. "I can't reveal my entire secret yet—if the Mastermind learned what I know, it would paint a target on all of us—but please understand my goal is to shut this game down."
"Tch… We've chosen to trust you, so we might as well see it through," Mondo Owada muttered.
"Naegi spoke for you, and your actions back him up," Sakura Oogami rumbled.
"If you're the Mastermind, my fortune-telling contract is worthless—so remember to sign it later, okay?" Yasuhiro Hagakure chimed in.
"Once I choose to believe, I believe to the bitter end! That is the path I walk!" Leon Kuwata roared—though no one had asked.
Some faces still carried doubt, but overall the atmosphere favoured K. He flashed Celestia a grin; her mask shattered and she trembled like a cornered mouse.
She flinched as his smile widened.
He'd decide on her "wish" later. For now he shouted across the hall: "Thanks, Naegi! Because of you everything worked out. Now… about your 'little problem.'"
"Uh… w-what little problem…?"
K flicked his eyes toward Sayaka Maizono. Colour flooded Naegi's cheeks.
"We'll talk after we've caught our breath. Meet me in the sauna a bit before nighttime curfew—sweat it out while we chat!"
Leaving the beet-red Naegi behind, K headed for his room. From the shadows Mukuro Ikusaba and Sakura Oogami watched in silence.
Later, in the locker room outside the sauna—
"S-so, K… about that 'little problem'…" Naegi entered, mortified.
"Oh, that? Sorry, total lie. I brought you here to share my secret."
Naegi froze, then adopted a grave expression. "Are you sure you want to tell me?"
"You said you trusted me—and I trust you. Right now only Kyoko Kirigiri and I know this."
K unveiled the same truths he had confessed to Kyoko. Naegi listened, nodding solemnly, eyes widening at intervals.
"It's hard to swallow, but… if the truth is that explosive, I understand why you keep it sealed."
"Exactly. I'll reveal it only to people I'm certain of. Please keep it secret for now—without evidence it would only cause chaos."
"I understand. Then…"
The door slid open and Kyoko Kirigiri stepped in.
"K? I thought we agreed to meet alone tonight."
"Ah! Kyoko, it's fine! Naegi knows ev—"
"Th-then I'll just… go!"
Naegi's face went crimson far deeper than before, and he bolted from the locker room.
"Huh? I figured we could all talk together…"
"K, did you not hear me?" Kyoko's eyes flashed—half irritation, half something else entirely.
"S-sorry, Kyoko. I told him without asking, but Naegi is trustworthy—"
"No… that's not… Ugh, this will just create a misunderstanding… or maybe that's better… whatever, forget it."
She sighed, cheeks tinted pink, but then schooled her expression back to icy composure and approached.
"All right. Let's discuss what we need to do next."
…Honestly? She's adorable.