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Welp, that's one heck of a Major Trinket right there.
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Dec 13, 2022 02:40
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drat, that's a cold way to push things. "To live you must not only kill, but mutilate the corpses of the people you kill." Although I guess it could also be used without killing just by mutilating the corpses a different person left behind them.... 
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Dec 13, 2022 03:38
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Once again, nobody mentions Sheep's Major Trinket. Sure, only 1 personality can be converted, but it's terrible that nobody considers using the life-saving trinket. I want to assume that the DETERMINED juror is the one who activated the Butcher's Knife. Since Rooster and Pig have alibis with Mouse, they are probably not DETERMINED. We already know Mouse(Clever), Bunny(Victorious), Dog(Defeated), Tiger(Selfless), Snake(Ambitious), and Monkey(Content). That leaves Ox, Horse, Dragon(probably Hateful), and Sheep (probably Desperate) as possible culprits. I'm going to blame Horse for this route. He is DETERMINED to Gallop and slash his way to the end.
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Dec 13, 2022 03:59
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NeoRonTheNeuron posted:I'm going to blame Horse for this route. He is DETERMINED to Gallop and slash his way to the end. Dragon can halt Horse in his tracks with her Dragon Breath, but Horse will likely target Dragon first because of that.
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Dec 13, 2022 05:37
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Sketchie posted:That is a very potent combo. Slash someone, move 3 spaces, use Gallop, move an additional 3 spaces. No one else would be able to keep up (other than Mouse if she keeps using Sneaky Ride on Horse, but Horse may wise up to that...). If horse is shooting ahead that fast they may not care that mouse gets out with them. You also assume that our killer is going to stick to one a round. If it's pig and she offs a few people on top of her personal ability it could end the race instantly.
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Dec 13, 2022 06:22
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Did the sinus/ear thing pass, Mix? You all good on that front?
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Dec 13, 2022 06:33
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FoolyCharged posted:You also assume that our killer is going to stick to one a round. If it's pig and she offs a few people on top of her personal ability it could end the race instantly.
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Dec 13, 2022 16:14
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taming whip got used seven trillion times in a single round, so i don't see why the knife would be limited without an explicit rule about it
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Dec 14, 2022 03:34
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 [BGM: Hear No Evil]  Instead of elaborating, the tablet speakers went silent. What... what on earth was that about? It was one thing to play this creepy game with the threat of execution, but now all of the sudden it was a hunt? Who would activate such a crazy, batshit Major Trinket? The others were also struggling with the news.  WHAT!! What. The. Hell!!! There's no way, I can't run or hide, I don't want my life to end in a crappy retelling of a Richard Connell story. Actually, I wish it was like that! At least then I'd have half a chance of fighting back! Hunting? Me? I know I'm a fabulous catch, but this is going a little far. Ah ha, hahaha, oh God I'm really going to die like this, aren't I? You two, snap out of it! Seriously, I'm sick of this group just falling apart the moment things start to get a little scary. I thought we already flushed this 'fear of death' thing out of our systems back in the cafeteria! To be fair, that's an awful big thing to flush away in a single panic session. No no, Mouse is right. We shouldn't jump to conclusions this quickly, we don't have any idea about what's happening right now. Just because someone activated an item doesn't mean they're going to use it. Why else would you activate it? To test it out? Please. We already know that someone's trying to kill us all, this is clearly the work of that person. We d-don't know that there's someone trying to kill us! Pig, did you not listen to the rules? Whoever has the determined personality has to kill us all to survive. They're absolutely going to try and do that. Maybe not! There are some people who would be willing to sacrifice themselves for the group. Name one person other than that idiot Tiger. Uh... Horse? Are you joking with me right now? Horse? That guy? Horse? The person we just saw? Horse? That big brute? That's the guy you're talking about, the one you're thinking would sacrifice himself for us? Horse? Y-yeah, that's right. You don't think so? Please. No offense to the guy, but inside his head there are just two response buttons, and those buttons are 'Fine' and 'Murder'. That seems a little harsh... Again, guys, shut up. We all need to group up and discuss this. To make sure everybody gets to the cafeteria, we should split up and gather everybody. Are you pranking with me right now?? Ashton Kutcher much?? Your plan means talking with someone who has that knife. Mouse, I don't know if you know this, but talking is the number two thing to occur immediately before a murder. What's number one? Assault. Actually, I think Rooster's right. If someone's trying to kill us, splitting seems like a really really really really really really really really really rea- I get it. The others probably know we need to meet up in the cafeteria. Let's trust them. And group up like a big buffet for a potential purloiner of our unslit throats? A truly confounding plan. Rooster, it sounds like you've had an objection with everything we've suggested so far. What do you think we should do? Panic. ...Okay, well we're not doing that, so I guess we'll go with Pig's plan. She's right, the others will probably know to meet at the cafeteria. Fine. But I like my idea better.With a plan to regroup in mind, we ran back to the cafeteria. Luckily, it wasn't too far away. When we got back, Snake, Ox, and Tiger were there. [BGM: Dance of the Snakes]   Ah, it seems I wasn't mistaken in thinking that others would realize the proper course of strategy. Good work, everybody. Mouse! Thank God you guys are all safe. Ox, Snake! You two both thought to meet here and try to group up with everyone else as well? Well, this is the type of announcement that warrants group discussion. Um, Ox, you're smart, right? I'd like to think so, yes. I'm here, too. Do you think it's possible that someone was just seeing what a Major Trinket did? Just not going to respond, huh? I see how it is. I certainly think it's possible, if optimistic. However, if that's the case, there's no reason to panic. Which is exactly why we should panic as if they didn't plan that. Huh? I believe Ox is attempting to invoke the theory of 'playing your outs'. A term originally used by Poker theorists, the general concept is to ignore possibilities which inevitably lead to your loss or victory, since they will happen regardless of your input.  Instead, pretend like the only possibilities are ones where you are in control of your victory/defeat state, and strategize against those. I get it. If someone really was just testing it out, there's no need to panic. They'll just admit it when asked about it. So we should pretend that they're definitely trying to kill us, regardless of whether or not that's true, since if that's the case whether we live or die is still in our control. A quick learner, I see.Just as this exchange finished, I saw Sheep make her way into the cafeteria. She looked petrified. Sheep! Are you okay?  … Y-yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Thank god there are more people over here, though. I was really starting to f-freak out, wandering the halls all alone. Well don't worry about that now, we're all here! I'm just... I'm really nervous right now. What if someone like Horse bursts in here right now, knife in hand, trying to stab us to death! Don't worry, you're in a group now! I can guarantee that with this many people, he probably wouldn't be able to kill us all, not with this many escape routes. Rooster! Not helpful! Why not? It's a valid point. Why would someone do this? We were all getting along...Sheep looked like she was on the brink of tears. Luckily, Ox and Pig walked over to comfort her. That's probably for the best. Being a consoling figure wasn't exactly my greatest strength. Just as that was going on, Dragon walked into the cafeteria, with Bunny shortly behind her.  Tch. So you were all over here, huh? I guess Bunny was right after all. Dragon! Bunny! Are you two okay? Uh, does it look like any of us aren't okay? You've got eyes, dipshit, use 'em. Well that's not exactly needed...  Thanks for asking, Mouse, we're all fine. In fact, you could say that they're grrrreat! ...Is... Is that, are you doing a tiger pun right now, or- Tiger pun? You know what? Forget it. Glad to see that you two are safe. So some rear end in a top hat turned this thing into a hunt all of the sudden? Of course things would go to poo poo. Don't worry! If it's a fight someone wants, then it's a fight that they're going to get! That's what I'm talking about! I should've just gone around looking for the rear end in a top hat with the knife and challenged them to a fight! As you can see, it was a struggle to get her to agree to come over here. I appreciate the effort. We need to talk about this.Just then, I noticed that Monkey had also made her way back to the cafeteria.  Mouse, are you holding up okay? I know the news is dismaying, but keep a level head. We can get through this together. I am here for you. I'm fine, Monkey, I really am. ...If you say so.[BGM: Silence]  Even when faced with such a scary looming threat, Monkey's first instinct was to check up on me. God bless her. Now the only people missing were Dog and Horse. We hoped the two would make their way here, but... Time passed, and no one joined the group. After a few minutes, we started to worry that they weren't coming. Well, that wasn't the concern. We started to worry that they couldn't come. What on earth could be happening outside of the cafeteria? This unease grew to unrest when someone else voiced these concerns, albeit in a slightly unexpected way. [BGM: Bullfighter]  I'm boooored. Excuse me? Bored. We've just been sitting in this one room and the stragglers still haven't come. I'm sorry our meeting about a potentially deadly butcher isn't engaging you, would you prefer it if something was happening? Maybe. Right now I just feel like I'm being eaten alive by worry. I think we should leave the cafeteria and check out what's happening in the rest of the school. And why on earth would we leave the safety of the group and weapons? There's a buncha good reasons. Let's take Dog, for instance. He seemed like a cool guy, and yet he might be bleeding to death right at this moment, begging for our help. You have absolutely no evidence to support that statement. Well, what if grouping up like this is just what the Knife-Man wants? They could be planting a bomb above us or something! Are you being serious right now? A bomb? How on earth would that get in a school? We found a grenade in the gym! Okay, I know you're supposed to be the smart one or something, but I think I'm actually right here. Like I'm not being crazy right now, right? Like I'm actually correct about this? Look, if you're saying Horse or Dog is trying to kill us all, then it's just as likely that they're hiding outside, waiting to attack when we wander away from the group. You think the traitor's plan is to let us get bored and come to them? They're not an idiot. They can't possibly expect us to be careless enough to just wander out and let them kill us. So you're aware of how dumb you're sounding. Idiocy and genius are oft mistaken- both fall outside the pattern of normal thinking. That doesn't- you know what, whatever. Mouse, could you please tell Rooster that we are waiting for Dog and Horse to get here? This will surprise you just as much as me, but I actually think Rooster has a point. Of course I have a point! This fact should not be surprising in the slightest. And yet it is. Mouse, do you really want to go find those two? They might not know that we're meeting in the cafeteria right now! It's not like assumed knowledge or anything. It's worth it to go and look for them. I can't convince you otherwise, can I? I doubt it. Fine. In that case, I'm coming with you. Can't exactly trust anyone else to proceed with the necessary caution. Wow, how brave! You two are looking super stunning right now, really, the camera would be loving you. Honestly Ox, you've got some real star power, you should work with that in the future. Hold on, I might be confused here- am I wrong, or is it sounding like you're not actually going to leave the safe zone? Who me? Goodness no, that sort of thing is for the expendables like you. …Before Ox could speak up, Sheep interceded. Apparently she had been listening in to our conversation for a while now.  Actually, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I want to come along as well. Sheep? Are you sure about this? You know it's dangerous, right? I know. But I want to help. Well, if that's how you feel, I'm in no place to object to such help. Mouse?
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Dec 15, 2022 00:38
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Okay gang, believe it or not, at some point soon we are going to encounter a dead body.  Which means we're gonna have to investigate it, because there's something that might be out of place. Without giving too much away, the body is in one of the classrooms, and there are three places to check for something out of place: near the windows, some nearby textbooks, or behind the body?
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Dec 15, 2022 00:41
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The textbooks, because we need to study the crime scene. E: let sheep come along. Of those that didn't arrive in a pair(thus having a witness that they didn't activate the killy knife) we have: Monkey(verified not it by other routes) Sheep Dog(verified not it by other routes, no show - possibly kia) Horse(no show - possibly kia) That old adage about keeping your friends close and your enemies closer. FoolyCharged fucked around with this message at 02:21 on Dec 15, 2022 |
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Dec 15, 2022 00:49
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Without any other context on the crime scene, I guess I'll go for textbooks as well. If there was something the culprit left behind then it probably wouldn't be right behind the body, and the windows are presumably sealed shut. It's making it look really obviously Horse as the culprit, and given that we know or can infer most of the roles by now there aren't many other options. The only other unconfirmed person who has been suspect so far is Sheep, who came back alone. eta: Yes on bringing Sheep. She still feels suspicious to me, so maybe something will come of it. Sybot fucked around with this message at 01:22 on Dec 15, 2022 |
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Dec 15, 2022 01:13
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Oh also this is a vote if we take Sheep with us. 
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Dec 15, 2022 01:20
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I'm thinking behind the body. If whoever died was able to leave any sort of clue or message behind, it would likely be around where they died. Yes to taking Sheep as well. The more bodies with us, the safer we'll be at this point.
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Dec 15, 2022 03:43
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Take Sheep with us. Going alone is dumb if there's a killer, so long as the killer isn't Sheep. Having some backup seems necessary, especially as Tiger's here, which means no one is guarding the weapons right now! Also, we should check near the windows. There's not much to go on, but assuming that the killer used the announcement in part to lure Tiger away and get some weapons (remember, the knife just needs to cut bodies, it doesn't need to be what kills them), then looking at a place where a ranged attack could have happened from might work.
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Dec 15, 2022 15:00
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I think we can take Sheep in a fight, so let's take her with us and also check out some textbooks while we're there. If we leave her ... well, she can't do much in a group setting, but it's more fun if we bring her.
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Dec 15, 2022 15:20
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 content warning: emetophobia The thread voted to bring Sheep along with us. [BGM: Bullfighter]  Of course you can come! The more the merrier. I don't think that saying's apt here. Whatever, my point is that I'd be happy to have you help. Thanks! I promise I won't get in the way.[BGM: Silence]  And with that, things were set. People had objections with giving out a gun, but we were granted a taser, just in case. We left the cafeteria and started to look around the school for Dog and Horse. Based on where the others had been searching, we decided to start by looking around the second floor. That was where they likely were before the announcement. We tried looking through some rooms, but after a while, I came to a classroom I had difficulty opening.  Is this locked? I can't imagine that to be the case. Here, let me try.Ox stepped in front of me and tried to open the door, but it was to no avail. Why did you think you could open it when I couldn't? I don't know, I just wanted to try!Annoyed, Ox started pushing on the door, and to my surprise, it did start to open. It seemed something was just in the way of the doorframe. As I made my way into the classroom, my heart sank as I realized what it was. I heard a shrill scream, but no sound escaped my mouth. How could it?  It was clenched close, in order to keep myself from vomiting all over the floor. The only proper reaction to finding a body. Death is never pleasant. At most it might be slightly gratifying, if it's someone getting their just desserts, but even then there's a bitterness to it. But no, generally death is accompanied by sadness. Or fear. And I felt both, but not nearly as much as I felt confusion. [BGM: Steadfast Gallop]  Because the dead body was none other than Horse's, a seemingly unkillable man. What on earth? No!!! Why, why did this happen? Seriously? How did this happen?? I-I don't know. I can't... I can't, I can't I can't I can't! It's my fault, it's my fault... just like before, it's my fault. Sheep, easy, hey, it's okay, it's not your fault. What do you mean, “it's just like before”? Ox, not the time! It was my fault he died. And this, it's just like that, if I had searched with Horse and stayed with him, he wouldn't have... Sheep, snap out of it! I don't know what 'last time' is, but you certainly can't be expected to watch over everyone all the time. You're not responsible for Horse's death whatsoever. ...I think I need to sit down for a bit. Do you mind if I just... stay in the corner of the room? Not looking at the body? Of course. Sheep sickendly limped over to the corner of the room. She didn't look okay. I wanted to talk with her more, make sure she was alright, but... Now wasn't the time for that. Not when someone had just been killed. Great job guys, we've now traumatized this poor woman.  It looks like he's been shot to death. I guess there are more guns in this building than the ones we found earlier. Or not. Maybe this was one of those guns. Looking at this wound, I would guess this was a pistol shot. And with a location like this... yeah, that'd cause him to bleed out rather quickly. Right through the chest. But that's weird, right? That a gun was apparently fired and that we didn't know about it. This school isn't that big, we should've been able to hear a gunshot. The amount of blood is also suspicious. Don't get me wrong, it's disgusting, but for someone who should've bled to death there should've been more blood than this. Maybe this isn't where he was originally shot? But we didn't find a blood trail, nor any other place with a lot of blood pooled everywhere. Yeah, it's really weird, isn't it? That's not even touching on the weirdest part of all. Which is?[BGM: Dog Days]  Remember how we found the body? It was blocking the door, he was completely slumped in front of it. Yeah, that was pretty annoying. So what though? A wound like this isn't instantly fatal per se, especially for a man of Horse's size, but he shouldn't have been able to move after being shot. And yet, he was completely blocking off the only exit from this room. Did he have his tablet on him? That way we could check what his personality is! Already checked. Couldn't find the tablet. Oh. drat. drat indeed. You don't think the Jade Emperor did this, do you? That would completely defeat the purpose of his own game. And if we're keeping Snake's 'playing your outs' theory in mind, if the Jade Emperor did do this, it would mean he was fine with just killing us at random for no reason, meaning we're all as good as dead anyways. It's probably best to assume that one of us did this. But how? Hm... you could go out the windows, but they 're probably blocked off just like all the other exits. When we found the door, he was properly slumped against the door, so I don't think only opening the door a little bit would do it. And like you said, he couldn't move much after taking a shot like that. It's almost like a “locked room mystery” you see in those dumb detective shows. I never thought I'd ever see one of them in real life, though.With this puzzle in mind, I looked around the room. It was, for all intents and purposes, just a standard classroom. And yet, looking around, a thought crossed my mind. Ah, I've got it. I know how this happened. Oh? Do continue. We've just got to examine one simple part of the room. I also had the thread vote on this one; however, I intentionally left off the closet since we've already done Snake's route... so we already know the closets are locked (and why), so there's no point in it even being an option The option that got the most votes was to check some nearby textbooks. The textbooks? Yeah, look at how they're placed. Someone's clearly moved them recently. Well, it's a school Mouse, textbooks are moved all the time. Just let me look through them.I went over to the textbooks and started opening them up, flipping through their pages. It took a bit of persistence, but sure enough I found one with bloodstained pages. Aha! I knew it was used in the crime. I'll admit, I'm a bit impressed. But why is there blood all over this thing? Elementary, my dear Oxen. You already mentioned the lack of blood, both here and in the hallway, correct? Well, I agree that Horse was not actually killed in this room. Rather, he was brought in here, and made to lean against the door. And to hide the fact that the body was moved postmortem, the killer used these textbooks as makeshift rags, wiping away the blood in the hallway! First off, not only is 'Oxen' as a pun atrocious, it also doesn't work because Oxen is plural, and I am only one person. Second, you're probably right about wiping away the blood, but I still don't see how that solves the doorway problem. Well, you see, the thing about that is, uh, I haven't figured that part out yet. Amazing deductions. It was at least something! It was, in fact, something. I shall grant the floor that much. Anyways, the specifics of how the body ended up like that probably don't actually matter much, the point is that someone shot Horse and now he's dead. Yeah, I don't really get any of this. The biggest mystery is who killed Horse, and I don't know if solving the door mystery will help with that. That might not be so much of a mystery. You know who did it? No. But I might be able to soon. Think about it- we heard about the Butcher's Knife, right? Right. Well, it's hard to tell with the current wounds, but its possible that this body has already been stabbed. If that's the case, then at the end of this round, the culprit will move an extra 3 spaces. Huh. That makes sense! For now, we should go back to the cafeteria and tell everybody what we found. Gotcha. Sheep, are you good to go? I'm ready to leave this place whenever you are.The trek back to the cafeteria was grim. How could it not be, having already faced down death? When we got back, we explained the situation to the group. … [BGM: A Bite That Persists]  H-Horse is dead! How horrible! How unfortunate. Wait, does this mean someone's really trying to hunt us down and kill us? Perhaps. Tiger, no one's used any of the weapons, correct?  Nope! I've been looking over them this whole time! Check to see if any of the weapons have been used, if you want. Then that means there are more weapons than just the ones we found. Christ, how many weapons did that kid put in here? And we didn't find Dog, did we? I bet he did it! What reckless accusations you make. It is just as likely that he is another victim. Another victim!! Everyone, everyone, let's calm down. The Round is almost over, and I don't know about you all, but I still haven't input my action. We should all split up and select 'Run'. Bunny's right. Let's all go into separate rooms and use our tablets. Then we can check everyone's movements, and that might help us figure out who's used the Butcher's Knife, if anyone. After that, we can start planning and figuring out what our next steps should be. Sound good? Let's go with that.And just like that, we split up. I went down the right hallway, and Rooster followed near me. I entered into a nearby classroom and turned on my tablet. There, I pressed the RUN button. It was a difficult situation all around, but if we could pull through, the group could still use the Minor Trinkets to pull away as a group! After making my move, I returned to the cafeteria. Everyone seemed to be returning at about the same time.  After a bit, however, I noticed someone was missing. ...Well, another person was missing. Is Pig back yet? I don't see her around? How long does it take to press a button? She might just be slow. Did anyone see which room she actually went in? If all the nearby ones were occupied, perhaps she was forced to visit one a bit farther. How much farther would you need to go? Settle down, all of you. For now, let's just focus on the race results. We can deal with where Pig is after that. The most important thing is seeing if anyone moves irregularly. If we see that, we can start figuring out what's going on.We were scattered around the cafeteria. However, the moment the television turned on, the entire focus of the room shifted. All eyes were glued onto the TV screen. How could they not be? This could show if Dog was alive, if he was the one with the Butcher's Knife, if someone else had the Butcher's Knife, and more. At this point, I didn't even know what I was hoping for. [BGM: Silence]   Round 4 has ended. Now, let us see how the race has progressed. The Rat has RUN one space. The Ox has RUN one space. The Tiger has RUN one space. The Bunny has RUN one space. The Dragon has RUN one space. The Snake has RUN one space. The Horse has failed to make a move. The Sheep has RUN one space. The Monkey has RUN one space. The Rooster has RUN one space. The Dog has RUN one space. The Pig has RUN one space. Now, Round 5 has begun. Do your best, and choose wisely.
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Dec 17, 2022 02:32
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It would certainly make sense for the Knife-wielder to make sure they kill enough people to cross the finish line and then slash all the corpses in a single round, so as not to reveal themselves too early. (And as was already pointed out... Pig would definitely benefit from not pulling ahead of the others too soon, and if she can slash a handful of people while also using her ability to jump a space ahead for all other living players, that could secure her a solo win.) Pig's definitely looking suspicious.
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Dec 17, 2022 03:21
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Dog is alive 
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Dec 17, 2022 05:04
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I mean, we haven't exactly seen any proof there was only 1 murder E: oh hey there's a new update up there
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Dec 17, 2022 05:10
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PepperedMoth posted:It would certainly make sense for the Knife-wielder to make sure they kill enough people to cross the finish line and then slash all the corpses in a single round, so as not to reveal themselves too early. (And as was already pointed out... Pig would definitely benefit from not pulling ahead of the others too soon, and if she can slash a handful of people while also using her ability to jump a space ahead for all other living players, that could secure her a solo win.) Pig was with mouse when the activation happened. She's got an airtight alibi. And probably a shortage of blood.
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Dec 17, 2022 05:18
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wologar posted:Dog is alive Not necessarily - Dog put a move in at some point in the round, but that could have been at the start of the round.
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Dec 17, 2022 05:20
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Strange, there goes Horse again. He hasn't done very well in most routes so far. The Butcher's Knife is best if used in a single round to slash a bunch of bodies. Using it early is foolish. It lets people know what's going to happen and gives them the chance to prepare against it, which isn't so bad with the cafeteria weapons cache. Whoever killed Horse has a gun and his tablet. I think they also have the Knife. Not sure why they bothered with a locked room mystery or why Sheep was freaking out though. Too many questions on this route.
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Dec 17, 2022 10:38
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Concerning Sheep, if nothing else, it was at least established that Sheep and Horse awoke in the same room and that she was comfortable around him.
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Dec 17, 2022 11:01
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NeoRonTheNeuron posted:Strange, there goes Horse again. He hasn't done very well in most routes so far. Being the physically strongest he's an obvious early target (and from a writing perspective, you need to do something so he doesn't just brute force his way through a problem).
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Dec 19, 2022 16:05
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 [BGM: Silence]  It took a moment to process what that meant. So... I guess Dog is alive then? We do not know that for sure. Once someone is dead, others can operate their tablet without cause for concern. If he was killed, their killer could have disguised that death with this, at least for a turn. Interesting how that's where your mind first jumps, and not the idea that he might've just input his move before he got killed. That would break from the pattern we had previously established, would it not? Earlier, we had decided it best to input moves at the end of the round, in case something came up. Although, since we are seemingly so set in our strategy of running until we have the needed Trinkets, the need for such a routine becomes increasingly unclear. Always gotta have the last word, huh? I was simply answering your question.[BGM: Rat's Awakening]  Um, guys?Sheep piped up from the back of the room. Pig's still missing. Now this is getting ridiculous. You don't think something happened to her, do you? What? No way! Actually, we can't dismiss such possibilities so quickly anymore. Things have become tense and dangerous. Before further discussion, we should look around the nearby rooms and try and find her. Alright! She couldn't have gone far.Once again, the group spread out. It was starting to feel like every time this happened, one fewer person returned. Still, Ox was right. Pig's disappearance was a cause of concern for all of us. I went down the right hallway to see if she had entered a room in this direction. I didn't see her coming down this way, but I could've just missed her. It wasn't long, however, before I heard a scream. [BGM: Silence]  I ran back into the cafeteria, and I saw Tiger and Bunny looking horrified at the side of one of the pillars. What were they looking at? I ran around, and quickly realized what was leaning against the other side of the pillar. Pig's bloody body. I didn't physically black out, but I immediately needed to sit down. Horse's body was one thing, but I was able to get through that thanks to the adrenaline. But Pig's body marked that Horse was no fluke accident. There was a killer among us. A killer who wouldn't stop until each and every one of us was dead. And that was a little much for me to deal with at the moment. While I recuperated, Ox, Tiger, Bunny, Snake, Sheep, and Rooster all gathered around the body. They all donned expressions of shock and horror. Who could say if they were all genuine? [BGM: Weak Pig]  Disastrous! Monstrous! Soul crushing! We are all both actors and audience of life's greatest tragedy. Sleep peacefully, dear Pig, for now the woes of the world worry you not. Hey, could you not mock this woman's death with your bullshit soliloquies? Are you even actually sad? Of course my heart aches! Who would not mourn the death of any potential fan? I feel like we bonded then, even if she wouldn't admit it. I'd gladly give up my time to speak at her funeral when all is said and done. I don't even know why I bother. Why is this happening? Why would someone kill her? It's not much of a mystery. Clearly, one of our personalities is determined. This person found the Butcher's Knife, and found an out. They killed Horse, they killed Pig, and they might have killed Dog. But why? They didn't use the knife on Horse, so what's the point? Not yet. But remember, the rules didn't specify that the person must have been killed with the knife, just that the corpse must be slashed by it. Our assailant is waiting until there are enough targets, at which point they shall run about the place, claiming the spaces as rewards. No way! But when was she killed? Before or after the round change? She was killed right in this cafeteria, but we were walking all around here! How terrifying... Bunny, you were the one to find her when you were walking back to the cafeteria, right? Yeah. Is it possible you didn't see her when you walked this way? It's totally possible she was already there when we went out to look for her. The pillar blocked my view and I could've ju st ignored her and moved forwards. But after I input my move for last round, I walked back down that hallway, and I didn't see her then. So she was killed sometime after we first returned from inputting our moves but before just now. That's a lot of time... You know what, forget this. If we just start tunneling on this, none of us are going to escape in time. Based on my last count, we should have 6 Minor Trinkets among us. Horse and Pig are dead, and Tiger has already accepted her fate. It's possible Dog is dead, so we might need as little as 8 Minor Trinkets before we have enough for everybody. The moment that happens, we can all stay as a single group together, with each person making the same choice every time and people making their moves one at a time. There'll be no chance for the killer to make a move, especially with Tiger guarding those weapons. It might feel like we're turning a blind eye to what's happening, but I honestly think we should still focus on finding Minor Trinkets. That makes sense. By the way, aren't we missing some people? Oh, Monkey went looking for Pig on the third floor. She said she thought Pig might've decided to just flee from the group. Have no fear, I shall inform her of the proceedings.Rooster left to go talk to Monkey. [BGM: Silence]  Well, for the rest of you, stay alert. There's likely a killer among us. Don't let them get you.Ox was just saying to ignore Pig's murder? I got his point, we needed to find Trinkets, but... Actually, I want to investigate Pig's death. What? I don't like the idea of just ignoring the killer and putting all our eggs in the 'Trinket Finding' basket. The killer might pull something again, and if they do, it'd be best if we could identify them.Surprisingly, I had an advocate.   I agree! Someone just... killed Horse. Killed Pig. It's not right. I don't want to just ignore that. This seems like a waste of time. But it'd be more wasteful to argue it.[BGM: See No Evil]  Sheep, Mouse, you can be on investigation duty if you want. Tiger, keep guarding those weapons. And the rest of us will look for Trinkets. Does that sound fairer to you? Yes, it does. Great.With that, the rest of the group started to split up. That just left Sheep and myself standing by the body. Well, I guess that's that. Are you going to start investigating now? I don't really know how to, but yeah, I guess I will. Do you mind if I join in? I feel like I haven't done anything helpful so far, and... and I want to know who killed Horse. ...I at least owe him that much. Hey, helping's why you're here with me. Why wouldn't I want the extra hands? I just don't know how useful I'm going to be. Don't worry, it's not like you have to be useful to be useful. Um... what? Well, for one, it's always good to have a witness around in case someone tries to off the detective. You're like a form of protection! Oh, well, that's nice. But you know, I could try and also solve things too. Sure, you can also try. You... you know I'm older than you, right? Right. ...Okay. Please start your investigation. Great. Now, let's begin by examining the body.It wasn't going to be pretty, but I needed to steel my nerves. I walked over to Pig's body and started looking at it. Looking closer, I could see that she was stabbed in the heart with a knife. So this one was killed by a knife, huh? Do you think it was the Butcher's Knife? It would certainly appear that way. If that's the case, we could just wait to the end of the round again, and we'd get our answer then. But... That seems a little too easy. I don't like the idea of putting things off with the assurance that things'll be solved if we do nothing but wait a bit longer. You're right. The killer might kill again while we wait for that. Gosh, this is a really gross sight. The blood's all over her. Hey, isn't that a big clue? Hm? If Pig was killed with a knife, the killer must've gotten blood on their hands, right? But I didn't see anyone with blood on their hands. So either we haven't seen the killer after they've killed, or the killer had a chance to use a restroom. Hey, that's some great thinking, Sheep! There are only 3 restrooms on this floor. We should figure out who would have had a chance to go to any of them, and when. How would we do that? After we're done here, we should ask other people about their movements, both when they went to input their moves and when we split up to look for Pig. Got it. That makes sense. But...There's a lot of blood on Pig. So why hasn't a drop gotten on the floor surrounding her? [BGM: Dog Days]  So she was definitely killed by the knife?Was she? Against my better judgment, I examined Pig's body closer. To my surprise, this investigation actually turned up something useful. Her neck's been bruised. Hey, doesn't this mean she was strangled? Really? Yeah, these are definitely someone's hands. Wow, so she was actually strangled, huh? Probably. If she was already dead, it'd probably be easier for the killer to not spill as much blood on themselves. Though, with what we can see from the splatter on her shirt, it's still impossible for none of it to have gotten on the killer. Isn't it pretty difficult to strangle someone to death? I know I couldn't do something like that. Me neither. But if you were going to, Pig was probably an easier target. I think probably anyone but us two, Monkey, and Snake could've choked her to death. Probably. I think that's all we're going to get from this scene. But let's look around the cafeteria some more, just in case.
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Dec 20, 2022 02:46
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The rest of this route is going to explore how Sheep managed to kill them all, huh?
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Dec 20, 2022 04:45
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Mouse posted:Pig was probably an easier target. I think probably anyone but us two, Monkey, and Snake could've choked her to death. Thanks for that, Mouse. Snake and Tiger would like a word with you.
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Dec 20, 2022 04:45
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 [BGM: Dog Days]  I tried to look around the cafeteria to see if I could see anything else. There were various chairs and tables. Tiger was guarding the weapon pile in the corner. There was the television where the race was displayed, obviously. And on the opposite side of the room, there was a kitchen area. The kitchen was super close to the pillar where Pig showed up, a mere couple of steps away.  Intrigued, I tried looking around the place. It was pretty barren, mostly housing things like bags of ice and stacks of plastic bags. Still, it did have a good selection of silverware. ...Including knives. Hmm. Okay, time to start talking with Tiger. Did you find all the clues? Uh, yeah. But how can you know that? It's a Devil's Proof. A Devil's Proof? What's that? Um, it just means that you were trying to prove a negative, which is pretty much impossible. Not with that attitude! That doesn't... okay. Let's go talk with Tiger.And so, we walked over to Tiger. Hopefully she could provide some good info on everyone's movements. Hey Mouse! I saw you two investigating over there. How are things going on that front? They're, uh, they're coming along. Great! Coming along is the first step in getting to your destination! That's true, probably. Um, Tiger, would you mind if we asked you some questions? Hit me. Where did you go when you input your move? Oh, that? I wanted to stay as close to the weapons pile as possible, since I was on guard duty and all, so I entered this restroom over here. It's the closest separate room to the cafeteria. That makes sense, I guess. Although, we probably could've just had you input your move at a separate time to everyone else and avoid even having to leave the weapons. Oh, you're right. Man, we're kind of dumb, aren't we? It's a stressful situation, and everyone's kind of just panicking. I've got a feeling a lot of us have been going about things pretty poorly. You do need a clear head to make good decisions. Trust me, if you get too heated, you can, uh, really mess things up. So no one else went into that restroom? No, I don't think so. What about when we looked for Pig's body? Where did you go then? Oh, I didn't leave.  I take my guard duties seriously, you know! I stayed by the weapons pile. Wait, you were here the whole time? Yup. Could you tell us where everyone went, then? Uh, my memory's not that great. Plus I wasn't paying that much attention. I was focused on guarding, you know? That's annoying. Sorry. But you would've seen if someone killed Pig when you were around. Oh, totally! I wasn't blind or anything, I'm just not a genius. If there was anything blatantly suspicious I definitely would've seen it. Huh. Um, okay, I think that's it for now. It is? Isn't it? Uh... yeah, we'll talk to you later, Tiger. Alright, keep up the great work![BGM: Silence]  At Sheep's clear request, we walked away from Tiger. When we were far enough away, I started questioning her. You noticed something? Mouse, what Tiger just said doesn't make any sense. It doesn't? If she's telling the truth, Pig wasn't killed when we left to look for her. However, if Rooster was telling the truth, Pig wasn't killed when he came back.  But if both of those things are right, that means Pig was k-killed right... right when we were all there. We were in the same room as the crime! I doubt that. I'm pretty sure we would've noticed if a murder was happening in the corner of the room we were in. Even a really silent murder would've made some noise. But you're right. At the very least, we were all accounted for. Um, almost all of us. What do you mean? We still don't know where Dog is, right? So? Um, don't you think that might mean something? Not really, no. At least, not regarding this incident. Oh, okay.[BGM: Dance of the Snakes]  Just as we were having this conversation, I saw Snake walking down the hallway. Yo, Snake, hold up a minute!He was another good person to interrogate. Do you mind if I asked you some questions? For your little investigation, yes? I doubt I will provide much of use, but fine, ask away. That's exactly how a guilty person responds, you know. Oh? What a fascinating observation. Surely you can make that claim as someone who's interviewed countless innocent and guilty subjects alike, no? … Your assumption doesn't come from watching a dozen low-rate crime dramas, does it? Look, are you going to cooperate or not? I already said I would, you're the one who has yet to ask me anything. Alright then, why don't you tell me which room you went in to input your action for the fourth round? I went down the upper-right hallway and entered the closest room, that is, the men's locker room. I then went back down that hallway, and I didn't see Pig's body. ...I suspect you might doubt that claim, no? Of course I do! The men's locker room, there's a restroom in there, isn't there? Oh, you're also trying to see who visited restrooms, are you? Then yes, there was a restroom there. I also feel it prudent to inform you that I saw Dragon input her action in the women's locker room down the hall. Also, if you're collecting locations, I believe Monkey was in one of the classrooms between us. Providing an awful lot of information there. I just wish to be thorough. So, for the sake of thoroughness, where'd you look for Pig? I believe I checked some of the rooms down the right hallway. Nothing turned up. Tch. Unpleased with my response? There's not a lot to be happy about with it. Did you think I was going to say 'I was murdering Pig'? It would've been great if you did. I fear for this investigation. Hey, mind your own business! I would very much think the potential apprehension of a killer is my business. If I may, here's a thought that might help out some. Didn't ask, but okay. No matter who the killer is, it is an undeniable fact that killing Pig in that way would be a large risk to them. There's just no way to do that in a way that doesn't require some small leap of faith. Therefore, we should consider why the killer felt the need to take a risk in the first place. They need to kill us all so they can stay alive. Duh. But they didn't need to kill someone in such a heavily crowded area when the group was splitting up. So what are you saying? Exactly what I said.[BGM: Silence]  I should continue to look for Minor Trinkets. They are our lifeline, after all. If you want to keep interrogating people, I noticed that Ox and Bunny are working as a pair on the other side of this floor. Got it. Thanks for the help. A pleasure.Snake walked away, continuing his search. I am not a fan of that guy. We got some information from him, though. Nothing useful, I'm afraid. You think? Did you hear anything useful? I guess not... Well, if I didn't hear anything useful, and you didn't hear anything useful, I'm just gonna go out on a limb and say it wasn't useful. Now come on, let's go find Ox and Bunny....  We moved to the other end of the school and eventually found Ox and Bunny looking around an art studio. Ox, Bunny. I'd like to ask you a few questions about your movements. Interviewing witnesses, huh? Classic investigation move. Good work. I hope your search has been fruitful, seeing as you've prioritized it over finding Trinkets. Oh, come off it, Ox. I was bad at finding Trinkets anyways. Besides, if you really cared about figuring out who murdered Pig, the cop and the prosecutor would be doing the investigation, not us. Agreed. Because I don't really care about that, I care about finding the Minor Trinkets. You seem to be really uninterested in this mystery. Almost as if you'd prefer we don't find out who the killer is. Mouse, are you honestly calling me a suspect? We're all suspects, Ox! I find it funny how you're so opposed to being called one. Of course I don't want to be suspected, who would? You're just going to ask me about my movements during the suspected time of the crime, right? Fine then. When we first split up to input our actions, I went down the left hall-*bang!* [BGM: Fire Breath]  Whatever he was about to say got cut off with the deafening sound of a loud bang. That was a gunshot if I had ever heard one. Oh God. Please don't let anyone else turn up dead. AAAGH! A gunshot! From where? I-I-I think it came from, um, the third floor maybe? Quickly, we need to see where that came from. Mouse, wait up! I didn't. I rushed forward, determined to locate the source of the sound as soon as possible. I had to imagine someone was the recipient of the gun in this case. Depending on where the gun was aimed, the time to find the victim might be the difference between life and death.
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Dec 22, 2022 04:05
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Mouse kinda sucks in this route, doesn't she?
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Dec 22, 2022 04:47
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Given Sheep's high presence so far, I want to say that this is her route and that it's also the first route where the owner isn't a baddie. I don't see her or Tiger as capable of going through with a full betrayal of the other jurors, so their routes may involve surviving challenges caused by others.
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Dec 22, 2022 07:32
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Why kill Pig in such a risky way? The most obvious answer is that she had seen or heard something incriminating, and the killer needed to silence her before it was brought up; another possibility is that they wanted Pig to die at a time when they seemed to have a clear alibi, so they needed to kill her nearby so as to minimize the time they'd be away.
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Dec 22, 2022 15:47
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By the way, we'll be finishing the route we're on next week, so I figured might as well throw the poll up again for what route to do next since tomorrow's update will have a vote as well, and it's one that might spark some discussion so best to not take away from it
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Dec 22, 2022 22:37
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 [BGM: Fire Breath]  Up the stairs, up the stairs, up the stairs. I started rushing through the third floor hallways, trying to look for any suspicious looking spots. Eventually, I ran across Monkey. Monkey! Do you know any thing about that gunshot? Maybe where it was fired? No, I'm just as surprised as you. I think it came from downstairs though. Downstairs? Yes, second or first floor. Second then. Quickly, let's look. I shall hurry.Monkey sprinted ahead of me, surprisingly quick, in search of the elusive gunshot. I made my way down the other staircase, onto the second floor. I started spreading out, trying to find any sign of trouble. Instead, I heard Monkey shouting out for me, calling me over to the crime scene. Because of course it was a crime scene. What else could a sound like that lead to? There were no fireworks inside this building, so there was really only one option. [BGM: Silence]  And sure enough, lying dead on the ground, the body of Dragon was found lying in a classroom's doorway. At this point, I didn't even feel sorrow or panic. Looking at all these deaths had a numbing effect. All I felt was emptiness, a bitter sting for what might've been. Dragon wasn't the easiest to get along with, but something told me she had a really big heart. Something told me she would be sorely missed by some. Eventually, Bunny, Sheep, and Ox all made their ways to the scene. Evidently, my sprint had caught them all off guard, and none of them were exactly able to keep up. [BGM: Stampede of Truth]   Not again! Not another!At the mere sight of the body, Sheep started curling up and turning away. Almost absentmindedly, she started wandering down the hallway, unable to take the sight of another corpse. Someone really should've gone after her, to make sure she was safe. No one did. Dragon, huh? I thought she might try and confront the butcher, but to end up like this... It's sobering to see. It's expected to see at this point. How many people is this butcher going to take from us? Why don't they show their face?!Even though I hadn't realized it, Monkey had also begun to look unwell.   Apologies, everyone, but I'd very much prefer not to be here. I'll keep looking for Trinkets.And like that, she just walked away. Monkey... She was always so calm in our sessions, so steadfast. Seeing her freak out more than me, it really stopped me in my tracks. Was I becoming too numb to all of this? No, focus. Not the time to be thinking about stuff like that. I should make sure she doesn't get in trouble. With this crazy killer, it's probably not safe to go off alone like that. I trust you two to take care of any detective work. Hold up a minute, you don't seriously expect me to let you go like this, do you? Why not? You don't suspect me, right? We were together ever since the start of the fifth round. You're right, but- Relax, I'll be fine.Without further discussion, Bunny walked away, leaving Ox alone with me. Sigh. This has well and truly become a total mess at this point. People are all over the place. The deaths are starting to get hard to track. It's not even worth looking over the scene. Why?! What, do you really think there's anything to be solved at this point?  We don't even know if this is the work of one culprit, everyone's alibis and whereabouts are all over the place, there's al most no physical evidence, I just can't see how we're going to be able to find anything to narrow down who did it! If you think like that, you certainly won't! Is that why you didn't bother investigating Pig's murder? I believe that there's no mystery humans can't solve if they put their mind to it! Aren't you the optimistic one. No, you're just pessimistic. Now come on, if you have time to complain, you have time to examine the scene. Fine. I guess it's worth noting Dragon's body as the first peculiarity. Dragon's body? I mean her cause of death. We heard a gunshot, so I expected someone to be shot, but this is another case where the victim was stabbed in the neck. I don't know if its relevant, but judging by the location the victim's windpipe should've been punctured, meaning the death would be near instantaneous. That would definitely get blood on the perpetrator, so we can assume they would've had to wash it off. Again, blood comes up as a pretty big clue determiner. It tends to be in crime investigation. I still don't know what to think of the blood situation with Pig's murder. Yes, someone could wash off blood off themselves, but that would take some time, wouldn't it? I guess Dog did it then. He has no alibi. Are you sure? That doesn't sit well with me. Then it must've been a suicide. Now you're just being ridiculous on purpose! Is it so ridiculous? There was no knife by the scene! Well then, where does that leave us? I don't know. That's what we have to figure out. What a joy. I moved in to examine the cut to Dragon's throat. Yup, it was definitely a knife cut. Didn't seem too clean, though. The killer definitely struggled with the 'slashing' motion. This was probably made by the Butcher's Knife, right? Probably. There, on the ground- there's a bullet shot right by Dragon's head. But not through it. Indeed. Perhaps we can take this as some sort of warning shot. Say the killer pushed Dragon to the ground, was holding a gun at her. Dragon made some sort of move, the killer fired right at the side of her head. Then, for some reason, the killer decided to cut things short with the knife. When you put it like that, it almost sounds as if the killer was interrogating Dragon, trying to get information out of her. But what could that be? Who knows?I pushed the door fully open with a shove, and I noticed what looked like water drip down. Drip down? It didn't make much sense to me at first, but then I realized where it came from. I got on my tip toes and pressed my hand to the top of the door. Sure enough, the very top of the door seemed to be... wet. Wet? Yeah, wet. Huh. I've no idea what that could mean. Maybe it means nothing. Maybe. But seeing how water tends to evaporate, I don't think that's the case. Then how on earth is it relevant? I don't know, it just is, probably. Hm. I'm not convinced. Good for you. Any other bright observations you want to dismiss? Are there? Um, let's see... Okay, this could be nothing, but this isn't an arts and crafts classroom, right? Right. Then why's there a bundle of string over there? Where? There, right between the tape dispenser and the pencil sharpener. Oh, I see it now. I don't know, it could be used for weird math measurements, maybe some student's project. I think you're the one reaching for straws now. I guess. If we're done with the investigation, we should get out of here. Standing in a room with a dead person is giving me the creeps. Agreed. Come, we can have a discussion in the hallway.… [BGM: Silence]  I feel like we don't know anything more than we did when we started this thing. I thought you were supposed to be the optimist. I'm the realist. And I really think we're boned. I agree. At this point, it might just be most effective to just find enough Trinkets and stay as a group. So that's it? We just give up on thinking? It was your suggestion! I know... It's a bad one. We can't give up. The butcher's identity... when we put together all the clues, it's got to give us an answer. Oh? Then enlighten me. Who should we be afraid of? Let's look at this logically. Horse was shot at the beginning of this game. Pig was choked to death at some point after we all split up to input our moves for the fourth round. Dragon was then stabbed some time after that. You and Bunny have been together ever since the group got back together, so there's no possible way either of you could've killed Dragon. And of course, I'm not the killer. And if we trust Brian, then there should only be 12 people in this building. Given all the available suspects, all the clues found at the relevant crime scenes, the alibis of the people involved, and the motivation behind that piece of evidence, I think only one person fits the butcher's MO.
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Dec 23, 2022 16:07
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So, who do you all think is the killer?
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Dec 23, 2022 16:08
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Hrrrrm. I'm going to go back through all the posts for this route, but I'm still suspicious of Sheep, if not as the actual killer (I think she has alibis?) then as an accomplice. I'm getting real Danganronpa Case 3 vibes here.
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Dec 23, 2022 16:52
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Ox isn't on the list but man he's acting really suspicious this go-round.
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Dec 23, 2022 18:03
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Podima posted:Ox isn't on the list but man he's acting really suspicious this go-round. And how do we know that Mouse isn't above suspicion? "It could be you! It could be me! It could even be..."
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Dec 23, 2022 18:15
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I'm sticking with sheep. The ominous pointing out of her immediate, solo departure from the crime scene, the fact that she's on the list at all given she was with us when the gunshot went off, and the fact that the clues we found make me think a rube Goldberg with the string pulling the trigger.
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Dec 23, 2022 18:53
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| # ? Jun 8, 2024 23:23 |
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Dirk the Average posted:And how do we know that Mouse isn't above suspicion? *splat* What? It was obvious! She was the butcher. Watch, she'll turn red any second now.... Aaaannny second now... See! Red! Oh wait, that's blood...
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Dec 23, 2022 18:59
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