Shuuen no Shiori - Volume 2 - Chapter 5

In the school building that’s supposed to be deserted, the sound of footsteps resounds.
The wooden floor makes unpleasant, creaking noises.
It’s become completely dark outside.

The sound of water slowly dripping from a tap somewhere could be heard.
As well as the window clattering as the wind hit it.

It’s the same as always.
An unchanging result, one seen many times.

D-ne had killed B-ko.
And after that D-ne also died.
Then A-ya had killed C-ta.

Finally A-ya had committed suicide here.

No one is left.
This time as well, not a single person is left.

With this, this round’s pattern has finished.
Game Over.
Ahh, I’ve done it again.
How boring, boring, boring, boring!

I’ve had enough of this B-grade outcome.
Come on, lets put an end to this already. 

No matter how many times it happens, it’ll be the same.
Somewhere in my heart, I wish for an irregular outcome that should never happen.
The result of a story that fled to a worn out, extremely common, incredibly boring parallel world.

And then, opening the “ordinary” old school building’s music room’s door……

 ———!?

 I couldn’t understand the scene that appeared before my eyes.

Standing along with A-ya, in the former music room in the old school building, B-ko, C-ta and D-ne, all of whom should have been dead, were present. Gathered just as they always did, in the uniforms they always wore, just as always…!

And then, all of them point at me.

 ……What in the world was this?

“……At long last, I understand this game’s plot.”
A-ya tells me.
“This game is one that’s impossible to beat. Ever since the beginning, I thought it was strange, that such a game was impossible.”
“That’s right.”
Then, B-ko continues.
“For example, the announcer’s voice after we did Kokkuri-san. We can’t deny the possibility of that being just a prank. Because it’s also feasible in “reality”.”

……!

“Next was that classmate’s hanging incident.”
D-ne thrusts on further.
“It’s an unlikely incident……But, even so, it’s not like it is completely impossible……”
C-ta continues.
“But, the directing was so over the top……almost as if, it was **’s world’s doing.”

……So, what are you trying to say……?!

“Why are we alive? The face you’re making seems to be asking that. D-ne, B-ko and C-ta die, and then I die here – isn’t that was how it was meant to be……? But what you saw earlier, “that” was one possible conclusion. But it’s different this time. In a world of possibilities, we’re in a state of both being dead and alive at the same time. Almost like Schrödinger’s cat……After you observe us, you first assume a conclusion. But that kind of thing is impossible……Perhaps, this world is close to something like the Brain in a Vat Hypothesis−−−−“

A-ya continues to speak.

“But, we’re definitely here. And in this world, “reality” does exist.”

As A-ya speaks, he brings out a small mummified hand from his pocket.
It was in its original condition - not a single finger broken.

“I’ll solve it for you” 

……! 

“This ‘Monkey’s Paw’ is an almost dream-like item.”

Grasping the “Bookmark of Demise”, A-ya holds up the mummified hand and continues.

“As you can see, I didn’t use the ‘Monkey’s Paw’ even once. Of course, I know exactly what kind of item this is. It’s a dream-like item, but as the same time, it’s not like you can create 1 from 0 by using this item: creating a condition where whatever you wish for using this, something of the same value will be lost to give you that “something”, or it’ll be taken from “somewhere” from someone’s possession. There was a couple that wished to the Monkey’s Paw that they wanted money, and the next day, they heard that their son had died in an accident at work, and because of that, just as they’d wished, the received money from the company – I think that story is the most popular? Supposing I was in front of a vending machine, and I wished that I wanted juice, a one bottle of juice would disappear from within that vending machine, and in exchange, would the respective amount of money disappear from my wallet? But if it’s going to be like that, I could’ve just put in money and pressed the button.”

Putting down the ‘Monkey’s Paw’, A-ya continues further.
“The contents of the wish aren’t important. The main point is, the knowledge that the ‘Monkey’s Paw’ isn’t even needed……”

……W-what are you saying……?

“What you saw till now was just a common Bad End. An elaborate prank.”
With those eyes full of conviction, those eyes that corner me……!

“To put it simply, no matter what’s written on a CD’s jacket, no one knows what genre of music it is until they listen to it themselves. There’s a chance that it’s classical, or that it’s rock, or that it’s jazz, and so on……Of course, there’s also a possibility that it’s empty and has no audio……The menu for dinner, or the popcorn in theatre, or even the content of that movie are all the same in that they all reach a conclusion in the presence of onlookers, observers, the audience in the theatre, and readers. In other words, the ones who know the conclusion are the participants and the witnesses. However, the witnesses already have a preconceived notion of what this conclusion is. Thinking, “it’s probably going to turn out like this”, or “it’s surely that”……Once you have an image in your head, you can’t run away from it. Isn’t there something like that in your head too? Of our Bad End……” 

As A-ya says that, he puts his arm up and says this.

“The decisive evidence was the proposition by the mastermind. That one of us is the traitor…the ‘fox’. I read this in a book once. That no matter how absurd the choices are, once you’ve considered and eliminated all the other possibilities, if that’s the only one left, without doubt, it must be the truth. In other words, if you eliminate all everyone other than the ‘fox’, the only person left must be the ‘fox’……To be honest, I was suspicious of one of us…to be exact, the definition of “one of us”…….we just decided that it meant the 4 of us and no one else. But you know, when I think about it, that’s wrong.”

A newspaper article clipping is thrown at me.

“It’s indirect, but I noticed it in the incident that happened 10 years ago. 4 dead, and 1 in critical condition……This isn’t the most direct piece of evidence. However, the more I researched, the parallels between the Demise Game and this incident increased. It was almost as though the Demise Game was created using that incident as a reference. That’s why, the only difference was the existence of one more person, and it showed me of the possibility of another person outside the 4 of us.“

“That’s why, A-ya first told me that the “fox” was someone other than the 4 of us. And then, he told me to go to where D-ne was.”
B-ko said.
“After that, he told me the same thing by email, and joined me when I was at his house……”
C-ta looks at A-ya and smiles.
“I knew that I wasn’t the “fox”. And then, that all 4 of us thought the same……”
D-ne looks at B-ko and continues further……!

“…………Therefore, the only one who knew about this had to be there, have “witnessed” Kokkuri-san…Hey, you were there, you witnessed Kokkuri-san, knew about it and were always with us, right? Because, if that’s not true, there’s no way you could know, right? It didn’t say anywhere in the rules that the “fox” was one of us four.  It was just that, all of us decided by ourselves that the culprit was one of us four. Even you did. …The fourth wall has, already…a trick that could be used because the fourth wall was a level surface, has already broken apart. If the “Monkey’s Paw” can really grant wishes, then let’s put an end to this game, this pointless charade.”

Tearing the Book of Demise apart and pointing his finger this way, his mouth warped, he pronounced so.

“Like I said earlier, no matter how improbable it is, after eliminating all the other possibilities, this is the only one that remained. There’s also a possibility that the unseen culprit is the first to be excluded…”

A-ya swallows his breath. And then, tells me———.

“This time, the “fox” of the Demise Game is…you!”

“……And, this may also be another Bad End. For the participants———“

From then on, I couldn’t hear a thing. My vision shook violently, and as I moved, I notice sense of discomfort.

Inside my pocket, there was a single “letter”.

I slowly open it. 

There, very plainly, was written……