SHSL Delivery Girl

It was so easy for Ai to remove the blame from him and he figured it was because she didn’t really hate him for what he’d done. At the end, the friend that he thought he had made suddenly despised him, and the enemy he thought he had made suddenly held his hand. It was a strange turn of events but before he was sent off to be executed he could fondly remember how it felt to have her holding his hand. He’d regretted being set up beside her for each trial but in the end it was the last comforting thing he had before death.

Most people wouldn’t think it was much but he had his gloves off and they were stained with blood, and at the end she had taken it and gave it a squeeze. Even if it was subtle, even if no one else saw it, it was something and it was after he had been found guilty of murdering two innocent people and then trying to pin it on any one he could to get out of his mess. Why she still seemed to like him as a person after all of this, he couldn’t fathom, but it might have something to do with the fact that she’d been capable of murder herself. It might have to do with why he also didn’t hate Kouya. Maybe they all just… understood how it felt to be pushed to that point.

Removing blame from himself for what Ai had done was difficult for him, feeling as though maybe she wouldn’t have felt that it was necessary to kill if he had gotten through to her. Instead of getting through to her or getting anyone else to see the good in her, she ended up becoming another victim to this game. In the end though, making this about him isn’t what he wanted to do and he could at least let the conversation go even if he continued to silently hate himself over it.

What Banri hadn’t been expecting were the words that came out of Ai’s mouth.

"You’re so much better than you realize… Or I guess you were."

"...I ...I was?"

All brain activity, or system activity he supposed, ceased for a moment while he tried to process this. After all of that reflection and thinking and contemplation, he was at a loss on anything to show for it - anything to say. His mouth opened and closed. It did this a few times like a confused fish without water before he settled on making this face, like he was trying not to cry though clearly he couldn’t.

"...You were too! E-Even if nobody else ever saw it, you were so much better than this, A--- ... S-Senzaki-san..."

"Duh, stupid. Believe it or not, I know quality when I see it! And you've definitely got it... No matter what you did."

Ai firmly believed that none of those that had committed crimes while in the prison were really guilty of very much... That place manipulated them and twisted their judgement. They all were doing things they usually wouldn't have... If Ai were to look in the mirror now, she probably wouldn't quite recognize who she saw. But who is to say that is a bad thing?

"Eheh, you think so? Well, I guess we better both get our confidence boosted! Heh..."

She raised an eyebrow and smirked at his sudden stop in speech. He was so afraid... It was kind of cute, if not a little annoying. She let out a soft giggle and winked.

"You were gonna call me Ai, weren't ya? Go ahead! We're friends aren't we? Besides... In a place like this, formality shouldn't matter that much, right? Or is it written in your code? Heh!"

#shslgasmask

Digital Shipping [AE OPEN]

ultimatenun

From past experiences Etsuko knew what to expect when she approached Ai’s room. It’s the reason she went there in the first place. Though usually Etsuko made a visit to grace their living quarters with a prayer for their soul, this case wasn’t the same. She had no intentions of pushing her palms together, not immediately anyway. There were things she wanted to get straight, knots in her stomach and conscious that blotted out sensibility.

A pause takes a hold of her as a shrill whine echoes from the cell, her feet frozen in place and fingers gently poised upon the wall. That was certainly Ai’s voice, Ai’s demand. A breath in and the nun enters, eyes scanning briefly until they come upon the illuminated tablet with the murderer’s face still there.

Smiling grimly as she had been while pressing to vote for the redhead, Etsuko gives a small sigh.

"Senzaki-san…" But her words fall short there, unsure of where to start, where to begin… Simply, she continues to stare at the artificial intelligence, watching.

"Etsu... chi..."

This was going to be difficult. Although Ai's sweet friend had kept up a smiling facade through the end of the trial, anyone could tell that she hadn't taken the whole thing well... and for good reason. Ai had totally duped her and even set her up to take a bit of the blame... Some friend she was.

"I'm really happy to see you, Etsu-chi..! Ah.. Are you alright? ...Hello?"

Jeez, her stare was seriously freaking Ai out. She looked around the room, visibly uncomfortable. What was she supposed to say? Sorry I killed a guy and set you up for disaster? Well, probably, but was she going to? No! There is no way that would work... but what else could she do?

"I'm... sorry for what happened. Is there anything you would like to say? Or ask? I am all speakers."

#ultimatenun

Digital Shipping [AI]

Why… had he known to ask that? Well, there were perks that came with being an artificial intelligence. The probability of her having been one of the murderers was quite high based on what he already knew about her and knowing for certainty that she’d done it the only thing running through his ‘mind,’ so to speak, was to know whether or not she felt she’d achieved anything from this. Banri knew the probability of her feeling full blown remorse was not impeccably high but that strangely wasn’t what he wanted to know out of this. It sadly didn’t entirely matter.

Ai’s smile did not appear to lie to him the moment that she appeared before him. Her reply was instantaneous and there wasn’t anymore thought put into it than what was necessary. What the boy was hurt by most was the fact that even after that gruesome description of how she’d blatantly fucked with all of her friends, there was the hope that he would’ve understood her actions much more than they did.

Staring to the side, he couldn’t help but feel almost like… a disappointed parent, come to pick up his child from school after they’d went and gotten themselves suspended. It was as if any moment now he’d lift his palm into the center of his face and mutter things like, 'You can't just manipulate and kill people, Ai,' before taking her out to get some ice cream.

Knowing that she had murdered someone very close to Banri, it was hard for him to just let it go. What made it easier was knowing that Oten wanted nothing to do with him now, even going so far as to almost break him. Ai seemed almost happy to see him and he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t feel glad to have someone to talk to.

Finally finding his words, the exterminator sighed and found a place in her eyes that he could lock onto.

"Yeah, I-I understand."

As the stutter came through his system, he backpedaled on his thoughts for a moment, his face appearing to freeze before starting up again.

"I just wish you didn't have to do that. You deserved to make it out of there. But, I suppose it's my fault."

Banri laughed at himself a bit, still feeling guilt like it was coded into his very being.

"For that, I can give you all the time in the world."

"It wasn't your fault, stupid... " She shook her head and sorted through the memories she had before her death. "They were all sick, and Oten was beginning to crack... I guess I was cracking too. I had to give that bear a good show if I was going through with it... I had to get out of there... So, I decided my life didn't matter anymore. What was I going to do to help them escape? Not a damn thing... So I decided to help them progress all I could... through death."

"They all deserved it far more than I did, don't you agree?"

She smiled, being 100% honest. It's how she was programmed after all. Ai surely must have believed with all of her heart that the others deserved to move forward more than herself, and thus she forged a path. But why did Banri feel the need to take the blame.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Bunko. You're so much better than you realize... Or I guess you were. You can't be blamed for my dumb actions, ya know?"

Digital Shipping [AI]

The horrified expression that was frozen on Banri’s face hadn’t changed in the past few hours. It was just as he had anticipated and yet, his grim premonition hadn’t been enough to save him from shock. The first time that he’d spotted Oten’s icon on his screen there was a chill that he swore ran through him, even in his computerized state. Or at least he knew that if he were really alive, he would’ve felt it.

It had happened again. Someone went and murdered again. Banri wanted to believe that the murders would end with him, that his fuck up was a fluke and the rest of them would keep themselves. The exterminator wanted to believe that Kouya had been a good person and only wanted to see them escape, and so with the exception of himself, he wanted to believe that no one else among them would kill, that they were all good people.

Unable to comprehend the idea that one of them had been a killer, he squeezed his eyes shut and let his system sleep until the estimated number of hours passed. He didn’t want to know. That’s what he told himself at least but he sprung back to life following a 24 hour cycle with a bizarre eagerness for the new icon that would arrive.

Senzaki Ai

Dread dropped into his stomach and that feeling of apprehension, of anxiety that he felt more or less faded away. It was a strange emotion that took its place. Banri turned his head away from the bright of the screen and a mixture of disappointment and… guilt commingled together in his heart.

Prodding a digitized finger at the grid before him without an inch of hesitation, he awaited the face of the redhead to appear before him with only a single question in mind.

"Senzaki-san... are you happy now?"

There was not a tinge of sarcasm or ill will to be found in his voice. It was probably the most genuine inquiry to have ever passed through his throat, as crushed and bloody and nonexistent as it was.

#OH MY GOD I AM SCREAMING THIS IS PERFECT #I LOVE YOU #PLEASE NEVER STOP DOING ARTS

It had appeared that no one had heard her cries for attention yet, so she decided to explore her new 'body.' She searched through programs and files not understanding one bit of it. What interested her were the icons of the other students whom she new was dead. What exactly were these...?

"Banri..." His icon began to flash and she hesitantly reached out to it. Was this really alright...? She had no idea what these things did. Maybe it rose the dead and they became zombies or something... She didn't want to deal with that. Then again, that was fairly unrealistic... Might as well give it a shot. She followed through and pressed the button before her, and Banri Bunko himself appeared before her.

She was speechless. There he was... It was like he was still alive, but she knew that couldn't be the case. They were both long gone. His question hit her hard, but she reacted instantly.

"Yeah, Bunko. I'm happy now."

She had succeeded in saving the others from sickness, from a crazy person, and she had gotten out of that prison in her own way... According to the data, Ai Senzaki firmly believed it to be a victory. So, yes... She was happy.

"I betrayed their trust, made them dance like puppets, and really went out with a bang... I can only hope they understood why, but I know that's impossible... I'm sure you would have gotten it."

She smiled, but her expression had a hint of sadness in it as well. But, why wouldn't it? She had left the rest of her friends to fight for their lives in that place while she floated along in digital peace. But, at least she had another friend here to keep her company and to get her thoughts off of whatever shit was currently happening out there in the prison...

She smirked and said playfully, "Looks like you and I are going to have a lot of quality time."

#shslgasmask

Digital Shipping [AE OPEN]

In the dark depths of Satan's Liar-- Ahem, I mean, Ai's room, a small device sprang to life. The screen flickered to life, and a face appeared. It was one many would recognize... The face of a girl that had killed, and died... All according to plan.

She stared for a moment, processing the flood of data that was running through her new 'mind.' So, that's how it was... Interesting. From what she could gather, the fact that she was staring at her room, unmoving, and she had the recent memory of pain... That would mean she was dead.

"Aw, what, this blows. If I'm going to be stuck here in this form at least let me move around. Ugh..."

She rolled her digital eyes and sat in place. Boredom, or what ever program installed onto this system that emulated boredom, began to set in. She took a 'breath' and rose her volume to it's max.

"Oiiii!! Someone get in here!! This is so fuckin' laaaaaaaaame!!"

#rropen

toripng

notes:

Ai is a fantastic motherfucker

it looks like she could’ve been a sukeban had she not gone down this path

3 steps to kawaii

there’s always something fucked up about chapter 3 murderers

yes, numb by marina is def her song

toripng

I loved Oten too… I can imagine he’s honestly feeling so attacked right now

#holy shit this is spot on #I love Tori's art it will be the death of me

shslnavigator

fullsize 4 a fun surprise

#fuck me #i love hate this so much #vio is literally the best omg

saved you a seat

Aha... I knew I could count on you, bug boy.

shslqb

im runNiGing out of composition ideas

yourfursona

rouletterampage

[Execution] Parcel Passing

The blackened, Ai Senzaki, waved to her classmate with a genuine smile plastered on her face. Her sentiment was hardly seen as something caring. If anything, she was glad to get away from the prison even if it meant dying. The same chain that had been used in the last two executions clamped around her neck and dragged her away. The Delivery Idol found herself in a dark room filled with camera’s and lights.

A Monobear in a beret switched on all the lights, revealing a large photo shoot set. A plethora of Monobears worked the lighting, cameras, and rushed around the set. It was almost like it was an actual photo shoot except instead the bears took the place of humans. This didn’t bother our Delivery Idol; she was just happy to receive such a special treatment. In fact, she got right to work! She posed properly as the cameras began to flash.

Heat began to rise as the rustle and bustle of the set got to work. Sweat began to drip from her forehead as she kept up with the photographer. As the shoot kept going, delivery bears began to drop off packages addressed to Ai. Monobear stickers and drawings covered the brown packages. Hardly having time to handle them, she’d throw the decorative presents to the side and behind her.

A small ticking echoed through the room as she continued to pose. With her expression fading slowly, her body temperature began to rise. More and more ticking packages continued to pile up around her. Ai lost more and more space to work with as they stood around her. With less space to move, the Idol began to use the packages as props. She’d handled them as she posed and even leaned on them.

As Ai’s body glistened in sweat, she panted harshly. By now she could hardly keep up with the Mono-photographer. Monobears continued to deliver the ticking, decorative packages. She felt her body become tired of moving and posing and took a moment to stop. Within seconds, the lights became brighter leaving her momentarily blinded.

The sounds began to drive her more and more insane. Her eyes swirled with despair as she stood blinded. Trucks began to line up and planes circled overhead. When she finally regained her sight, the monobears that had been swarming the stage were all missing. She looked around nervously before large mono-delivery trucks rushed onto the stage.

The ticking was at it’s peak and just as they all started to explode the delivery trucks crashed into Ai’s body and forced her straight into the giant explosion. Ashes of the remaining boxes began to fall from the sky as her body burned up in the explosion. The last thing the students saw before the lights went out was a picture of Ai floating down from the photoshoot. Her expression was blank and terrified. The picture must have been taken moments before she noticed the trucks.

#I LOVED THIS #MY BABY IS DEAD AND I'M SO HAPPY

#BAHAHAHAHAHAHA #I AM SO HAPPY

Visit Original Link

[OPEN] || Culpability

No matter where Junpei looks around the furniture, he can’t find anything new… the only way the room looks different to how he remembers it is the fact that the bat and Oten are gone, and he knows exactly where they are. He sighs, rubbing the back of his neck in frustration. Ai seems to pick up on it, at least, and he manages to smile weakly back at the comment.

"….Sure looks like it. Sorry I didn’t find anything…"

He’s not even sure if he has reason to be apologizing, but… he’s not exactly on top form as far as investigating goes. He wouldn’t have thought of getting down on the floor, for instance, not in this state, but there Ai is, getting up close and personal with the ground, and—

"…A-ah… the blood…"

The crack of the bat when he brought it down on Oten’s head, the red smattering—… he remembers, now, and remembering the sound and the way Oten just dropped —

"…I-I guess I hit him pretty hard… I-I’ve never hit anybody before, and I don’t really know my own strength, and…”

"…Anyway, um…! Do you want to look somewhere else…? We could go back to the cathedral, or another place. Maybe the Warden’s Office or the Monoshoppe…? I bought the bat from there, so maybe…"

Yikes... Swimmer boy had really stuck it to Oten, huh? It wasn't much blood, but the fact that he drew any in the first place... Ai felt a little bad for the dead kid. But then again, I guess worse things had happened to Oten in the past few hours.

"No need to make excuses, Junpei. We're partners, right? I trust you."

Ai stood and thought about what she knew so far about the case... Which was pretty much nothing. Something was seriously messed up here, and it was a bit too much for her to figure out alone... and with such little evidence. She was hoping this would be a quick job, but investigating was way more work than she anticipated. So lame...

"Ah, I think it would be in your best interest not to go anywhere near the Monoshoppe. That is unless you like seeing dead bodies..." Ai ran her hand through her hair, thinking about the options they had. She thought the expansions to their living space were a blessing, but with more ground to cover when it came to investigations... It was definitely a shitty curse.

"I do think that we should look somewhere else, but it's hard to say where. The cathedral is too crowded, the warden's office seems useless... Maybe we should look somewhere away from this floor?" Ai stretched and irritation returned to her face as she said, "Ugh, but that's so much work. Do you think a killer would go that far? I'm really not suited for this shit... I'll follow your lead on this one. I lead us here, so I think it's your turn!"

[OPEN] || Culpability

Junpei can’t help but feel another pang of remorse as he watches Ai, taking note of just how frustrated this is making her — how frustrated he’s making her. All his preaching and pleading about how friends aren’t inconveniences, and… here he is, inconveniencing her after all. It would almost be funny if the circumstances weren’t so horrible.

If it’s possible, his expression grows even gloomier when Ai mentions Miwa. Of course, he knows she isn’t going to accept that he was trying to protect her. At least, not right now…so no use in getting upset over it… right? That’s probably the smart thing to do, but it doesn’t stop Junpei from looking exceptionally miserable, and despite the fact that he’s pretty sure he’s cried out, tears prickle in the corners of his eyes again.

So… when Ai smiles at him through his fog of misery, he almost thinks she’s reverted back into the full Delivery Idol persona. There’s no other reason for her to be so cheerful right now, right? But here she is, peeling him away from the pew and dusting him off like he’s a precious family heirloom instead of a teenage boy who’s panicking about his dead friends, redirecting him rather forcefully towards the door.

"S-Senzaki-san?!"

He gawks at her, wide-eyed, as she explains. Somehow, that little disclaimer at the start hits him hardest — even if it’s an inconvenience, even if he’s suspicious… Ai’s still taking his feelings into account, something he never would have expected from her not too long ago. She’s still treating him like a friend, even after what he’s told her, and… it makes him realize he should do the same. Ai could be investigating right now, but here she is with him — a good friend wouldn’t be that burden to her any longer, right?

"R…right!" he says, forcing a smile for her once more as he wipes his eyes again.. "You’re right… I’m not gonna be useful to anybody just sitting here crying, yeah…? I… I owe it to Kouei-san to try and make up for what I did, so… Solitary is is. Thanks, Senzaki-san. Let’s… let’s go, okay?"

And they do go. Being out of the room with the Oten in it lifts a weight off his shoulders, somehow, and his mood lifts with it, just a little while he walks in stride with Ai down the corridors. The sinking feeling in his gut quickly returns when they approach Solitary Confinement, however… But like Ai said, he might have missed something in there, and he can’t let the investigation fall flat just because he doesn’t want to go somewhere — not when he’s got a responsibility to make up for what he did. No way!

So, ignoring the sick feeling that rises when he remembers what happened here, Junpei begins looking around the room if nothing immediately catches his eye. There isn’t much furniture in here — in, around and under the toilet and the bed seem like the most likely hiding places, if anything’s going to be hidden, so that’s where he concentrates his efforts.

"What a dull room, am I right? It'd be tough to miss something in here..."

Ai crossed her arms and gave the room a quick glance. It was so empty it seemed like a total waste of time being here... She approached Junpei and placed her hand on his shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly. She looked to him and smirked.

"Looks like maybe this was a bust after all, eh?"

Junpei wasn't feeling this room at all... His behavior was proof enough that what he had admitted to earlier had to have been true. So, if it went how he said, maybe something got left behind right...? She tried to picture the event in her head, and it must have been all so fast... Poor sap.

After looking around the room's furniture and walls, Ai looked to the floor. This place was disgusting, but... She lowered herself to the ground and closely inspected it and under the few furnishings in the room. Maybe on the ground...?

"Tch... There's gotta be something we're missing."

[OPEN] || Culpability

Ai’s expression goes from zero to about two hundred on the angry scale in about a millisecond, after she finishes thinking it over, and the diver barely has any time to react before she’s grabbing his collar and yanking him in, spitting out words he’s already been telling himself since he discovered Oten’s body.

"I know! It was stupid, I-I’m stupid!" he replies, pleading as quietly as possible, "But I just— I wanted to protect Fujikawa-san, I… I don’t know what would have happened if I hadn’t gone, Senzaki-san! I don’t want to think Kouei-san would do it, either, b-but…"

Junpei trails off miserably when the delivery girl releases him, waiting for her to calm down. For a moment, he’s not sure if she actually will — but slowly, gradually, he watches the rage seep from Ai’s features, watches her regain a relatively calm expression. That’s about as much as he can hope for… if Ai was suspicious of him after this, too, he wouldn’t be surprised.

So when she says she believes in him, even through the residual traces of her anger… he looks nothing short of shocked, gaping at her like a fish for a long, long moment after she’s finished speaking. She… believes in him. Ai believes in him. At least one person…

"…Senzaki-san… I… I don’t know what to—"

N-no, don’t start crying again! Focus!

"…Thank you. It means… a lot, Senzaki-san, so… thank you." he eventually gets out, with a watery smile. But they’re not done yet — not quite yet, and he braces himself to answer the other questions.

"It was an hour ago in Solitary, yeah… I didn’t see him again after I left until I came in here. And… and somebody— somebody did see."

"After I… hit Kouei-san, I heard somebody gasp by the door — I turned around to see who it was, I think I dropped the bat — no, I definitely dropped it. And the person who saw me, she… it was Fujikawa-san. She ran away, I tried to chase after her to explain— I left the bat and Kouei-san in Solitary, but I couldn’t catch up to her. I wasn’t on this floor the rest of the time between now and finding Kouei-san and Reiki-san in here, so… I don’t know about anything that happened after that. I-I’m really sorry…”

"Fujikawa... It would be her, wouldn't it...?"

Ai pinched the bridge of her nose and thought about what they could do to fix this problem and... She had nothing. Junpei was really in deep shit, and honestly it wasn't sounding too good for him... or any of them if he was actually innocent.

"This seems like a problem that will have to be fixed in trial... You think you can survive that long? Fujikawa isn't going to want anything to do with you if she saw something like that, and she sure as hell won't talk to me. Besides, I have a hunch there is a little more we need to look around for... This shit is weird."

Ai stood up and scratched her head in thought. What to do, what to do... Investigating wasn't her forte to begin with, and now she had to defend her friend? This day was shaping up to be a real pain in the ass... Then an idea hit her. Ai smiled and looked to Junpei. She winked and struck a pose before dramatically exclaiming,

"Come, Watson! We must return... To the scene of the crime!"

She giggled to herself and picked the diver up off the pew. She dusted him off and turned him towards the exit of the Cathedral.

"Hey, I know that Solitary is probably the last place you wanna be right now, but there are too many crazy people in this church, ya know? Plus, there might be something in there you missed... So let's get going!"

[OPEN] || Culpability

…Ai looks so scared when she asks him what he actually didthat he almost reconsiders telling her. But… she has to know. Oten is dead — dead, and he might just have helped — and… if they don’t have all the details, then their lives are all on the line. Besides… even if he didn’t tell her, somebody else would. Somebody else saw.

…It’s better at least one person hears it from him, no matter how much it hurts to tell.

"…I followed them. The letter said that I might want something to defend myself with, so… I went up to the Monoshoppe and I— I bought a bat. That bat. The Usami Slammer.” Shakily, he inclines his head to the bat lying by Oten’s body.

"This was all about an hour ago… I went to Solitary, like the letter said I should, and Kouei-san was there… like the letter said he would be. I thought that I could maybe stop a fight from happening at all, so…I-I snuck up behind him, and I—"

"…I-I …I hit him over the head with the bat, Senzaki-san…!"

"You... hit him... You hit Oten... with the bat..." Ai looks down at her hands trying to process what exactly was said to her. She patted the back of her head and said out loud again, "You hit him with the bat... over the head... huh..."

The delivery girl's face twisted with rage. What the fuck was he thinking?! Just following some creepy instructions in a letter... God! Was he insane, or what? She grabbed the boy by the collar and pulled him in close to her face. She said in a hushed, but angry tone, "What is wrong with you, Junpei?! You're a fucking accomplice now, do you understand that? Holy... Urgh!"

Ai released the boy and ruffled her own hair in aggravation. It was the only thing she could do to resist punching him. Getting angry with him would only make him panic more... and he had good fucking reason to be panicking.

"...Okay, I'm going to help you out... Just calm down. We'll both just calm down..." She took a deep breath and released, letting go all of the stress that was building up... Ahhh, much better. Why was she so mad? It was only a murder investigation of one of their peers, and her friend may have had a hand in it! It's totally fine. Totally. Fine.

"I believe in you, Junpei, but if this comes back to bite me in the ass I swear..." She clenched her hands into fists, calming herself down again before speaking. "You say that was an hour ago, huh...? And the last place you saw him was in Solitary confinement when you knocked him out cold? Tch... Something is fishy then... Did anyone see you?"