I couldn't believe what I was seeing.
The body lay in front of me like a rag doll brutally torn apart by a giant hand. Blood still flowed slowly from the shattered head, seeping into the cracks between the stone paving, its metallic stench piercing my nose so sharply that my stomach churned. Anya's long, straight black hair — usually neat behind her thin veil — was now disheveled and soaked, sticking to her face that no longer held any expression. Her limbs were twisted unnaturally — her left arm bent in an impossible direction, her right leg folded beneath her body, as if her bones had shattered into pieces the moment she hit the ground.
This can't be real…
I looked up, my neck stiff from shock. On the highest floor of the Main Building, one of the windows that had been tightly boarded up was now wide open. The window shutters swayed gently in the night wind, like a dark mouth that had just spat out death. There was no faint light from inside the room — only thick darkness peering down.
Then… I saw it, with the help of the moonlight.
A fleeting shadow. Just for a moment, at the edge of that window. A figure moving quickly, turning around, then vanishing into the dark corridor. Only a silhouette — hair, a fluttering jacket, or maybe a black school uniform? It was too fast to recognize in this darkness. But I was certain: someone had been there.
"Anya…" I whispered hoarsely, my voice almost lost in my throat. "This… this can't be. She… she was still in the Archive Room earlier. She said she would stay there until she finished…"
Beside me, Selena could no longer hold it in. She knelt on the cold stone ground, her hands trembling violently as she touched Anya's motionless arm. Her tears fell heavily, mixing with the pool of blood that was beginning to flow toward her knees.
"A-Anya… wake up… this is just a nightmare, right?" Her voice broke, the usual playful or flirtatious tone completely gone. "You… you can't die like this… please wake up… I beg you…"
Aulia appeared from the direction of the dorm, running with all her strength. Her batik scarf fluttered wildly behind her, her wavy black hair messy from the night wind. She was panting, her eyes widening when she saw the two of us in the darkness.
"Reno! Selena! What happened?! I saw — something falling from above —" She stopped abruptly a few steps away from us, then her eyes fell on the body lying on the ground. Her face turned deathly pale in an instant. "That… that's Anya…? …No… it can't be…"
She knelt beside Selena, her hands trembling as she touched the girl's shoulder. Tears began to well up in Aulia's large, usually empathetic eyes. "Selena… is that…? Reno… tell me. Tell me this is just an accident… it can't be Anya…"
Before I could answer, the speakers across the entire island crackled loudly. That familiar flirtatious voice shattered the oppressive silence, echoing from every direction like the laughter of a devil that could not be escaped.
"Puhuhu~ Good evening, my sweet Ultimates~ Or… should I say, a tragically good evening?"
MonoGaru laughed softly, its voice sweet but full of mockery.
"Wah, wah… a body has already been found, huh? And this time our victim is Anya Kurnia Putri — the Ultimate Historian! Her cold body, just like her personality, now lies shattered on the stone ground after plunging from the highest floor of the Main Building. Really… I can't believe someone died again so quickly. Where is that determination you all had yesterday when you said 'we won't let this crazy game continue'? Where is your promise of unity? Where is the hope you tried to build together?"
It laughed again, this time longer, more vicious, its voice echoing like a cave's empty resonance.
"Learn your lesson well, my children~ Find the truth. Find who the killer is. Or… you will all experience true despair. And I'll be waiting for you in the Trial Room like yesterday~ Fufufu~!"
Its evil laughter faded slowly, replaced by an even more oppressive silence than before.
Lira, Adi, and Nova appeared from the Main Building gate, their steps hurried. Lira clutched her bell necklace tightly, her graceful face pale when she saw Anya's body.
"Anya…?!"
Adi stopped beside her, his notebook falling to the ground without him noticing. "This… this is impossible. Just this afternoon we were still talking to her in the Archive Room. She said she would stay there… but now…"
Nova stood silently behind them, his long black coat blending perfectly with the darkness. His eyes narrowed philosophically. "Darkness… is becoming clearer. Even as it takes… the sharpest one among us."
Bima came next from the direction of the first-floor corridor, his leather jacket still neatly on. He stopped abruptly, eyes widening. "What was that announcement?! I heard a loud falling sound from above when the lights went out. I was on the first floor, near the stairs… I saw something plunging from the upper-floor window! That… that was Anya?!"
Dion ran from the direction of the Entertainment Room. "Hey everyone! I heard the announcement… huh?! Anya?!"
Zahra and Sinta appeared from the direction of the dorm, their clothes whatever they had on — Zahra only wearing a loose t-shirt and work shorts, her short reddish-brown hair still wet, Sinta holding a towel with water dripping from it. The two of them stopped in front of the body, their faces deathly pale.
"Anya… is gone?! We just heard the announcement from the dorm… we were taking a bath… and suddenly the lights went out."
Sinta covered her mouth with her hand, tears falling heavily. "I… I had just made a calming potion for her… because she said she would stay up late reading the archives… this… this isn't fair…"
The lights suddenly came back on. The eternal torches and red neon lights brightened again, illuminating the entire area cruelly. Anya's body was now clearly visible — the impact of her fall was painfully real: her shattered head with blood drying in her hair, long scrapes on her arms and legs probably from scraping the walls as she fell, clothes torn in several places, and a pool of blood now glistening under the light. Her corpse looked even more horrifying, even more real.
Rian arrived last, running hurriedly from the direction of the Main Building, his thick glasses askew, hands full of oil. Behind him, Zayn was running.
"Was that announcement real?!" Rian stopped in front of the body, breathing heavily. "I had just tried to turn the lights back on… the underground room door was locked from the inside! I was trapped in there… Zayn heard me shouting and helped me get out…"
Zayn stared at the body with wide eyes. "This… this is insane. We had just said we wouldn't let this game continue… AND AGAIN—"
Everyone expressed their disbelief, their voices overlapping in the cold night air.
Aulia cried softly while hugging Selena. "Why… why did it have to be her…"
Adi punched the wall quite hard. "We… we promised we wouldn't let this happen again!"
Bima cursed harshly, fists clenched. "Whoever the killer is… I'll find them and finish them myself if I have to."
Zahra knelt down, her hands trembling as she touched the ground beside the pool of blood. "Anya… why… why did it have to be you."
Sinta sobbed. "I… I didn't get to give her the calming potion… I'm sorry, Anya…"
Dion stood silently, gripping his old compass tightly. "I… I failed again…"
Nova whispered. "Darkness… has finally swallowed the sanest one among us…"
Rian bowed his head, his voice soft. "Even with the lights back on… the price feels so expensive if this is what we find."
The atmosphere in front of the Main Building grew more chaotic. Voices full of disbelief overlapped in the darkness that had just brightened again. I still stood in the same spot, my right hand still holding Selena's cold and trembling hand. My voice came out softly, but firmly, cutting through the small commotion that was beginning to rise.
"This happened right after the lights across the entire island went out completely," I said. "Selena and I were in the garden near the pond. Suddenly everything went pitch black. We walked toward the Main Building to find Rian… or at least try to turn the lights back on. Then… we heard a loud falling sound. And when we got closer… Anya was already lying here."
I looked at the twisted body once more, my chest feeling tight. "I don't understand… why would Anya do this? Who would be heartless enough to do it?"
Adi stood silently for a moment, his notebook gripped tightly in his hand. His eyes scanned the surroundings — the still-wide-open upper-floor window, the pool of blood, and the dark shadows in the corridor. His voice was full of calculation.
"There are many possibilities," he said passionately but controlled. "Lights going out simultaneously, an open window, someone who might have seen something from above… we can't conclude anything yet. There are too many uncertainties."
Bima roughly rubbed his chin, his jacket swaying. "I agree with Adi. But… think about this too. Anya was probably heavily burdened. For the past few days she barely left the Archive Room. She read those documents nonstop — names of criminals, deaths, unforgivable crimes, everything. Maybe… she finally chose to end her own life. Too many truths she discovered, too many secrets she kept to herself."
Zayn immediately turned sharply, his voice full of anger. "Why would Anya even think of ending her life?! She said big lies are stronger than the truth, and the truth must be revealed to destroy the lies. Someone like her doesn't break easily just from reading archives!"
Suddenly, from the side of the Main Building, Krisna appeared with calm steps. His neat hair was still tidy, the paintbrush in his pocket unmoved. His face showed no shock at all — instead, there was that faint, empty smile as usual.
"I witnessed the window on the third floor wide open," he said politely, his voice flat. "Because it was too dark, I didn't know who was there. But I saw something… or someone… jumping from there. The body fell so quickly."
I immediately looked at him sharply. "Was that you, Krisna? I also caught a glimpse of a shadow on the third floor before the lights came back on. Was that you?"
Krisna only smiled faintly, his eyes empty. "I was indeed near there."
Nova, standing behind, immediately spoke up, his voice quiet but philosophical. "It's possible. I didn't see anyone else besides Krisna upstairs. At that time I was on the second floor with Lira."
Adi nodded slowly. "I myself was in the cafeteria when the lights went out. I didn't see anyone on the second floor."
Selena, still kneeling beside the body, her voice trembling. "No matter how you look at it… it's most likely that Anya ended her own life. She… she knew too much."
Aulia suddenly stepped back, her face deathly pale. Her hands gripped her batik scarf so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her voice broke, full of deep guilt.
"Was… was this because of what I said this afternoon? I… I threatened Anya. I said if she kept revealing all those truths, we could all be destroyed. I just wanted her to stop… I was scared she would trigger even greater chaos. Was… was that why she did all this? Did… did I cause her death?"
Zahra immediately shook her head firmly, her voice fiery even though her eyes were wet. "I don't believe Anya would do something like this! She wasn't the type to give up easily. She was the most cynical, the most stubborn… she must have had a reason to keep living and revealing everything!"
Dion, standing behind, finally spoke up, his voice calm but firm. "What other proof is there to doubt it? Many people saw Anya jump from the third floor. The open window, the shadow on top… everything points there."
I couldn't take it anymore. I gently released Selena's hand and approached Anya's body. I knelt beside her, my rough hands carefully touching the twisted arm. My eyes narrowed, examining it more closely. There were several cut marks on her arms and neck — thin, sharp wounds, as if made by a sharp object before the fall. The marks were too neat, too "deliberate," to be just injuries from falling from a height.
"These cut marks… aren't natural for someone who jumped," I muttered softly. "It's like… someone hurt her before she fell."
Bima immediately stepped forward and roughly pulled my shoulder. "Hey! What are you trying to do to a dead person's body?! Show some respect, Reno!"
I stopped, my hands pulling back slowly. But the doubt in my chest grew even stronger.
Zayn stepped forward, his voice full of determination even though still hesitant. "Everyone, spread out and search carefully around here! Even though I myself believe Anya ended her own life, there might be something we missed. We can't afford to make a mistake in the Class Trial later."
Adi nodded in agreement, his voice passionate. "True. I also don't want anyone to choose wrong and die in vain. We have to search. Now."
One by one they began to disperse — Aulia and Selena toward the stairs, Zahra and Sinta around the impact area, Bima and Adi to the second floor, Lira and Dion toward the gate. Krisna only gave a faint smile before walking alone in another direction.
I stood in the middle, staring at Anya's body now clearly illuminated by the torchlight. Those cut marks still lingered in my mind.
Rian stood a bit far from the body, his oil-covered hands clenched tightly until his knuckles turned white. His usually geeky and meticulous face was now clearly filled with frustration.
"Why did the lights go out just like that?!" he grumbled loudly, his voice full of frustration. "I had just been tinkering with the panel in the Control Room. Everything was stable. Nothing was wrong. I stepped away for a moment and suddenly the whole island went dark… this doesn't make sense!"
He shook his head hard, then turned with quick steps toward the Control Room. "I'm going back underground. I think something's wrong with the generator or the main panel. If it wasn't me who touched something wrong, then someone deliberately turned it off."
Zayn nodded briefly toward Rian, then headed toward the first floor of the Main Building. His torn jacket fluttered lightly as he walked. "I'm going to the first floor. Maybe something was missed there. If someone really tampered with things, there might be traces on the stairs or in the corridor."
Gradually, the area in front of Anya's body became quieter. Only Nova and I remained.
Nova stood silently in his spot, his long black coat blending perfectly with the night shadows. His quiet eyes scanned the surroundings carefully, then dropped to Anya's body lying on the stone ground. He observed every detail — the position of the fall, the pool of blood, the wounds on the body — without any change in expression.
I bowed my head, looking at Anya's body again. My chest still felt tight. I stepped closer, then knelt beside her. My right hand slowly reached toward the now-cold body.
Nova turned slowly, his voice low. "What exactly are you trying to do, Reno?"
I didn't answer immediately. My fingers carefully reached behind Anya's clothes, searching for something that should have been there. The secret she had entrusted to me and Aulia.
But… there was nothing.
I pulled my hand back, my breath heavy. "Just as I thought… Anya couldn't have done all this."
Nova narrowed his eyes. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
I stood up slowly, looking directly at Nova. My voice was low, but full of conviction.
"Anya entrusted something to me and Aulia. A big secret she wanted to reveal, even if she was targeted or even killed. She said if she died first, the two of us had to continue it. She had organized everything neatly in something she kept behind her clothes. But now… that item is gone. Which means someone was indeed targeting her, before Anya could hide it perfectly."
Nova was silent for a moment. Then, for the first time since I had known him, he smiled. A small, faint smile. There was something sharp behind it.
"In other words… Anya was murdered. Not suicide, you're saying."
I nodded slowly. "Correct."
Nova looked at Anya's body once more, then back at my face. His smile still lingered on his lips.
"You really are an interesting person, Reno Adi. In the middle of this hard wall, you can still see the cracks that others miss."
He continued in a weak voice, almost like a whisper.
"After helping Lira sing last night, I saw someone going up the stairs from the first floor when the lights went out. Then the lights went out, until I heard someone running down from the third floor. Not long after that, the news of Anya's body being found came."
Nova turned slowly, his black coat swaying like a living shadow.
"I will help you uncover this mystery. But for now… I'll try to find other evidence first."
He walked away toward the darkness beside the Main Building, his steps light and calm. Before completely disappearing into the shadows, he looked back once more.
"Uncover the truth, Reno."
Then he vanished.
Leaving me weighing all the facts Nova had given. The shadow on the first floor… the shadow running from the third floor… the missing secret box… the unnatural cut marks on Anya's body.
I decided to head toward the stone staircase of the Main Building, going up to the third floor — the place believed to be where Anya "jumped." Every step felt heavier than usual, as if an invisible weight was pressing on my shoulders.
When I arrived there, three people were already present.
Aulia stood in front of the wide-open window. Her eyes stared downward, toward the stone ground where Anya's body still lay. Her face was pale, her lips trembling slightly.
Selena stood beside her, her hands touching the scattered wooden boards on the floor. Several pieces of wood were peeled and broken, as if someone had forced the window open roughly.
Krisna stood a bit farther in the corner of the room, his fingers moving slowly in the air as if drawing invisible patterns on the wall.
When I approached, Aulia turned. Her usually large and empathetic eyes were now filled with deep guilt.
"Reno…" her voice almost broke. She looked down again, toward Anya's small body on the ground. "This… this is all because of me, right? This afternoon… I forced Anya. I forced her to find out if my brother might still be alive. I forced her to seek the truth about Haris. If I hadn't said that… maybe she wouldn't have kept digging through the archives until late at night. Maybe she wouldn't have… done this."
Selena shook her head slowly, her hands still touching the broken wood. Her voice trembled, but she tried to calm her.
"That's not entirely your fault, Aulia. Anya was always a loner. She always kept everything to herself. She rarely talked about what she found. She… was like someone carrying the weight of the world on her own shoulders."
Aulia shook her head more strongly, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.
"No… it's because of me. Anya knew too many facts. Way too many. And when she found out my brother was still alive… I forced her to seek the truth about that. I… I'm the one who burdened her until she committed suicide."
Selena was shocked, her eyes widening. "Wait… Anya managed to find information that Haris Vermana is still alive? I… I didn't think she could know that far."
I approached the open window. The wooden boards that had previously sealed it tightly were now scattered on the floor. Some pieces were broken with sharp edges, as if someone had forced them open with violence. I looked down once more — the height was extremely high. Falling from here meant instant death.
I turned toward Krisna, who was still standing in the corner of the room.
"Krisna… what were you doing earlier on the third floor?"
Krisna stopped moving his paintbrush. He turned slowly, his faint smile still in place, his eyes empty.
"I was only trying to study the symbols here," he answered politely. "I believe there is something hiding a code, or this is the result of what people before us made. The patterns on these walls… are too neat to be mere decorations."
Selena snorted softly, her voice still trembling. "You really are weird, Krisna. At a time like this, you're still curious about patterns."
Krisna shrugged lightly. "I didn't do it. I didn't kill Anya. The wood was already rotten before. Maybe someone realized and removed it all while I was focused on studying the symbols or drawing. The sound of Lira's singing from the speaker earlier… echoed very loudly in the hallway. I couldn't hear anything except that song."
I nodded slowly, not blaming them. After that, I left the broadcasting club room and continued to the cafeteria on the same floor.
In the cafeteria, Adi was already there. He stood in front of the long table where spoons, forks, chopsticks, and some food seasonings were neatly arranged. His eyes narrowed seriously as he counted something.
"Adi," I called. "What are you doing?"
Adi turned, his notebook open in his hand. "Isn't the number of steak knives here much fewer than usual?"
I approached and observed. True, the steak knife rack looked a bit empty, but I myself hadn't paid much attention before.
"How many are missing?" I asked.
"Roughly two," Adi answered firmly. "I've always recorded the number of every utensil in this cafeteria since the first day. Look."
He opened a page in his notebook and showed a neat list with the numbers of spoons, forks, knives, and chopsticks. The numbers were written in small, meticulous handwriting.
I shook my head slowly. "Are you crazy for recording all that?"
Adi smiled faintly, though his face remained serious. "Before the lights went out, I was eating in the cafeteria as usual. Then Bima came. He didn't eat anything, just bought some bread quickly. He stood for a moment in front of this utensil area before leaving. Maybe at that time he was in a hurry to help Lira sabotage the speaker. After that the lights went out."
I thought to myself. Why would someone bother taking steak knives? What for? Or had the knives already been missing before? Or did someone deliberately drop them?
I couldn't stay here too long. I nodded toward Adi and decided to return to the first floor, heading toward the underground room.
As I quickly descended to the first floor, I immediately headed toward the iron door leading to the underground room. Once in the underground corridor, I decided to check the rooms one by one. The automatic iron doors still functioned, though their sound seemed heavier than usual.
First, I entered the Lab Room.
Inside, Sinta was already standing in front of one of the tall shelves full of research liquid bottles. Her bag hung on her shoulder, her hands trembling as she touched one dark green bottle. Her small face was pale, her eyes wide with shock.
She noticed my presence and immediately turned.
"Reno…" her voice was chatty but this time full of fear. "There… there's something strange here."
I approached quickly. "What is it?"
Sinta pointed to the dark green bottle that looked very similar to her failed potion from before. The bottle cap wasn't closed properly, and the liquid inside was clearly reduced — only about three-quarters of what it should have been.
"This bottle… the liquid similar to my failed potion. Its contents are less. And the cap… isn't closed tightly. Most likely someone used it recently."
I examined the bottle more closely. A faint, sharp chemical smell still lingered.
"What would someone use this for?" I asked softly. "To… kill someone else?"
Sinta shook her head quickly, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. "I… I don't know. But I hope no one uses it at all. This liquid… is dangerous. Its effect mimics a heart attack. No clear traces. This reminds me again of my failure before… when I accidentally killed someone because of the wrong potion. I don't want… I don't want anyone to use it for the same thing."
I placed my hand on her shoulder for a moment, trying to calm her, then left the Lab Room. There were still two more rooms to check.
The automatic door of the Archive Room opened with a soft hiss.
As soon as I entered, I was immediately stunned with shock.
The room that had been neat with rows of iron shelves was now completely chaotic. Many shelves were tilted or toppled, documents scattered across the floor like dry leaves destroyed by a storm. Several folders were torn, papers strewn everywhere, and there were even small splatters of dried blood on the concrete floor and on several document sheets.
Zayn was already standing in the middle of the room, his jacket covered in dust. He stared at the chaos with a tense face.
"The condition of this room is truly horrifying," he said softly. "It looks like someone went berserk in here."
I stepped inside, my voice heavy. "What exactly happened? Wasn't Anya always in this room for a long time? She barely ever left."
Zayn shook his head. "Maybe Anya went crazy. Too many crazy truths she read in the archives. Maybe she couldn't take it anymore and trashed everything before… jumping."
I didn't want to believe that. I walked around the room, observing every detail. There were small blood splatters on the floor and on several documents — like traces of wounds that had spurted. Not as much blood as at the place where Anya fell, but enough to show there had been resistance or a struggle here.
Then, behind a pile of toppled documents, I saw a small silver glint.
I brushed aside the papers.
A steak knife lay there. Its tip still had dried blood stains.
Not far from the iron shelf, I found another steak knife that had been knocked away. Near it was a pale green color that almost blended with the blood stains — liquid similar to what was in the Lab Room.
I froze.
"This… is the steak knife Adi said was missing from the cafeteria," I muttered.
Zayn approached, his eyebrows furrowed. "Why is there a steak knife here? What for?"
I stared at the knife with my heart pounding hard. "Maybe someone tried to kill Anya in this room. Anya fought back… until she was bleeding. Then… somehow she still managed to survive."
Zayn shook his head firmly. "That's all impossible. From the file MonoGaru sent alone it's already clear — the death occurred after the lights went out. Anya's body was found in a state of severe shock from falling from a height. Most likely because she fell."
I pointed to the knife and the blood splatters. "Then why are there knives and blood splatters here?"
Zayn let out a long breath, his voice full of doubt but firm.
"Maybe Anya went crazy. Because she couldn't stand seeing all the crimes in the archives, she slashed herself… then finally decided to commit suicide by jumping from the upper floor."
I left the Archive Room with my head full of fog. Zayn was still standing in the middle of the chaos, but I no longer listened to his theory about Anya "going crazy." No. I didn't want to believe it. Someone as cold and sharp as Anya — who could read falsehoods in seconds, who stored truths like treasures — couldn't possibly suddenly go berserk and destroy the archive room, slash herself, then jump from the upper floor just because she couldn't stand seeing the sins of the past.
It was impossible.
My steps carried me to the end of the underground corridor, heading toward the Control Room. The thick iron door opened automatically with a soft hiss, releasing a blast of cold air smelling of oil and rusted metal.
Inside, Rian was already there. He stood in front of the main panel, his thick glasses askew, his oil-covered hands clenched at his sides. His face was filled with confusion that I rarely saw — usually he was always calm when tinkering with machines.
"Rian," I called softly.
He turned quickly, his expression still tense. "It's you, Reno. I… I don't understand. There's nothing wrong with the system at all."
Then the man pointed to the control panel screen that was still faintly lit. Numbers and circuit diagrams blinked steadily.
"Look here. The generator is still working normally. Its power output is stable, even more stable than usual. No overload, no damage. The lights didn't go out because of a machine error. I'm sure… it was deliberately turned off."
Rian pressed a few buttons, then enlarged the master control display.
"What was turned off was only the masterkey for the eternal torches and the electricity for the entire Main Building. It was as if someone knew exactly where the button was and deliberately chose only this area. Just enough to create darkness in the crowded place… the place where Anya usually spent her time."
I approached, my eyes narrowing as I read the diagram. "Who could do this? You're the one who understands this system the most."
Rian shook his head hard, his voice full of frustration. "I stepped away from this room for a moment. I wanted to rest for a bit in the classroom because my head was hurting. But when I came back… the lights were already out. I checked immediately, and this is the result. The person who did it… understood this system very well. Not just anyone."
He paused for a moment, then looked at me with tired eyes. "Maybe… maybe MonoGaru did it. So that this murder or suicide could happen. So that the Killing Game would continue."
Suddenly, from the darkness behind the large generator, the familiar creak of mechanical wings sounded.
"Huwawa~ Who's calling MonoGaru's name~?"
MonoGaru appeared out of nowhere from the shadows, its black-and-white body lightly jumping onto the control panel. Its wings fluttered gently, its red eyes glowing with a wide, crooked smile.
"I didn't do anything, you know~" it said flirtatiously, its small finger pointing at itself. "I don't like interfering in the game I created myself. Of course it wouldn't be fun if the supervisor joined in playing, right? You all have to struggle on your own. That's the point of this test~"
I looked at it sharply. "Then tell me. Does this game continue to the Class Trial, even if someone commits suicide? And if we vote for the suicide… will we pass?"
MonoGaru tilted its head, as if thinking hard while tapping its small chin. Then it laughed softly.
"Suicide can happen, and you can vote for that~ It's considered valid. You can consider it as a 'killer' who managed to escape without being caught… or you can consider it as a victim who chose their own path. It's up to you. The important thing is… because one person died, the Trial must still be held. If you vote wrong… well, you know the consequences~"
Rian wiped the sweat from his glasses. "Maybe… someone tried to make it look like Anya was murdered. Or… Anya herself wanted to kill everyone and take her secrets with her. That's why she committed suicide. So that the truth she discovered wouldn't leak."
MonoGaru giggled, its voice becoming more flirtatious and terrifying. "That could happen~ If you're really sure, just decide in the Trial later. I'll be waiting with great anticipation~ Fufufu~!"
MonoGaru jumped down from the panel and ran off into the corridor, disappearing completely again.
The room fell silent once more, only the low hum of the generator.
I stood silently, my mind spinning hard.
In my mind, I wasn't so sure Anya had ended her own life. She wasn't the type to bury all the island's secrets and then cover them with death. But… the small box she kept containing the secret information… really wasn't behind her clothes.
Could it be… that it was true?
Could it be that Anya had only used me and Aulia as tools? Could it be that she really wanted to try to kill all of us, by hiding the box and finally deciding to commit suicide to take everything to the grave?
I clenched my hands until my knuckles turned white.
No.
I couldn't just believe that.
The truth Anya wanted to reveal… was still somewhere. And I had to find it — the culprit who did all this madness.