Take Responsibility.

[kingmakereffect]

The elevator doors slide open at the end of the allotted time for investigating, and the ride down is quick-paced and smooth; there's a lot more space in here than there was at the start of the game, that much is obvious. But then, perhaps that's to be expected with almost a third of your original number dead. The doors slide open when the courtroom is reached, the podium circle waiting as always in the middle of what still seems to be an endless dark void; Yato, Taichi and Megumi have joined the ranks of the dead, their podiums draped in black, greyscale portraits set upon them. Watching the proceedings. And as always, they aren't the only ones watching. The Kingmaker waits until everyone is settled at their podiums to begin speaking; it's still impossible to tell where his voice is coming from – other than, perhaps, 'everywhere.' "Protective has been taken from you. Looks like the guilty thought their secret was worth more than her life... Or maybe they just wanted out and decided to be the one to succeed at Rule Seven where everyone else has failed. Whether they succeed or not is up to you." Nineteen Survivors remain. How many are still alive at the end of the day is your decision.

Comments

[sleepingkogoro]

[Mouri is ready.

He has key evidence with him and he knows it. He doesn't go to his podium, instead walking around the room and looking at some people's heads. He tries to be as subtle as possible, after all, he doesn't want to alert the culprit.

Whether that works or not remains to be seen]

Let's start. From my examination of the crime scene I have found out Sakura-san was murdered in her bedroom, apparently from being stabbed over and over. Bruce-san knows more details about that.

It is rather possible Sakura-san attempted to defend herself, but it seems she was unsuccessful, as the room doesn't show many signs of a fight.

The weapon of the crime couldn't be localized.

Were there other places that could be related to the murder?

[cherryblooded]

Incinerator room had blood on the floor. Not to mention that the incinerator was on when I got there.

[garudynamic]

There was more blood too, and it went from her room to the incinerator then to the bar.

I can't say for sure, but it looked like that was the order of rooms from how the blood fell.

[captainobnoxious]

... Oh. The bar had blood too, but just near the entrance and on the knife.

[That's... secondary, okay. The alcohol was important.]

[cherryblooded]

If Yosuke's right about the order of things, maybe the entrance was where the fight ended? But that wouldn't explain all the broken things.

[captainobnoxious]

So it has to be the beginning. They could've smashed her on the noisepress.

[... Maybe...]

[cherryblooded]

Megumi's bruising is on the back of her head. Can you really break a piano with just somebody's head?

--Well, you could if you were strong enough, I suppose.

[ratingspoint]

...I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have the back of her head anymore, in that case.

[captainobnoxious]

Honestly, didn't look all that hard at it. Probably should've.

[Her bad. Don't let her be an investigator.]

But from experience, things that big tend to get smashed when you hit bodies on them. Unless you were strong enough.

[garudynamic]

Or maybe not- it's possible they just went to town on the bar in a fit. Like... if they regretted what they did. And went to the bar to get hammered.

[captainobnoxious]

If they regretted what they did, they should speak up. They know the cost by now.

[pokexplorer]

That may be the case.

When I observed Miss Megumi's room, I did not see blood coming into the room, only leaving it. I'm not so sure she was up herself.

[sleepingkogoro]

...blood and a mess...

There's no discussion, then. The crime scene must have been the Bar, all the way to the fourth floor.

[Nice! We are making quick progress]

Why would the culprit carry the body all the way to Sakura-san's bedroom?

[cherryblooded]

Good question. I'd say 'something about the bar implicates them' but we were bound to discover that scene anyway with the blood trail.

[captainobnoxious]

I got it! I got the murder weapon! Misa gave it to me!

[Please... please don't be so excited about your bloody knife, honey.]

We found it in the bar, which was recklessly trashed and there was so much booze gone it was just-- it was terrible.

[...]

And the noisepress was cracked pretty much in half. I couldn't even play it.

[isafraid]

...."Noisepress"?

[um, Sigrun?]

I'm guessing you mean the piano?

[captainobnoxious]

Yeah. I don't like the name since it doesn't make sense, so it's a noisepress now.

[isafraid]

But it does, and...

[....We could probably stand around and argue about this, but... you know. Dead person.]

Uh, in any case, it could be important that it's been broken in half.

[captainobnoxious]

[They can make it their next dinner conversation.]

I think someone got smashed on it. Probably teach. We're gonna have to replace it.

[psychoh]

I-It'd have to be someone pretty strong then, wouldn't it? To be able to take her downstairs, too.

[isafraid]

If someone was smashed into it, I think someone would have a fair bit of bruising all over if they hit it hard enough to crack!

[....does this mean more stripping?

oh no]

[penduli]

Its original name was "pianoforte" before it was shortened to just "piano," and it referred to being able to have soft and loud dynamics compared to the instrument that came before it, the harpischord.

Pianoforte. Soft-loud. [ ...humans are dumb. ]

It just got shortened because "piano" sounds nicer. What doesn't make sense?

[captainobnoxious]

[.....................]

Because it's not soft when you press it.

[notjustawriter]

Miss Sakura was hit over the head.

The back of her head was bruised. Couldn't tell what was used to knock her out, but it looks like she was stabbed after she was unconscious.

[amygdalae]

I examined the bruise on her head further - it seemed to have come prior to her death, and I tired to see if I could get a size of the bruise, but was unable to. There's also nothing that could show what could have been used to hit her, either.