Mini Trial #86 - Court of the Eagle and Lion (Trial)

[Sachi]

One by one, you all step into the Cardinals' Room. There are enough seats here for all of you, plus Rhea and Seteth.

Only, once everyone has sat down, one remains empty. You look around the room. Indeed, there is a student missing.

Julius Loptous.


"I trust you all know why you are here. Evidently, a student has been murdered while attending Garreg Mach. This is unprecedented."


"I am sorry for being so blunt, but every one of you is currently being considered a suspect. Something of this scale cannot be simply swept under the rug. For all intents and purposes, the Cardinals' Room will serve as a court. You as the jury, and Lady Rhea as the judge. Am I clear?"

"My heart feels torn in two... To think a student who we were destined to keep safe... I cannot fathom what sort of monster could have done this. Please... I beg of each and every one of you. Tell us what you know. I will not allow Julius to go unavenged..."

"Consider your missions for this month cancelled. This will serve as replacement. As an incentive, as if solving a murder was not enough, we have decided that the most cooperative House will be rewarded for their assistance. Due to the difference in numbers, Golden Deer and Blue Lions will be working together. The Black Eagles outnumber them even then."

"Very well. Begin with your testimonies. If anything does not seem right, I urge you to speak up immediately."

---

HELPFUL LINKS

Signups: danganronpa-gaming.proboards.com/thread/3605/mini-trial-wind-flower-snow
Map: danganronpa-gaming.proboards.com/thread/3607/mini-trial-garreg-mach-monastery
Truth Bullets: danganronpa-gaming.proboards.com/thread/3608/mini-trial-smell-truth-bullets

Never underestimate the importance of asking questions.

This trial is slated to end when the poll does. An extension may be granted, but be aware that in that event it will likely bleed into the main trial.

[crazynuto]

Stocke stares down his evil twin, ekcotS, who promptly looks away. He gives his brother a once-over, wondering if he had anything to do with this.

"I do believe my brother at least is innocent. As much as I loathe to admit it, he spent long enough time at my side being the...annoyance that he is that it likely would have been impossible for him to do it.

I suspect, due to the cool water outside of the boiling sauna, and the puddle by Julius's doorknob, that some manner of ice magic was used. Perhaps to freeze the door of the sauna shut?"

Stocke pauses, pressing a finger to his temples, focusing hard.

"Let us all recount when we last saw Julius, perhaps that will gleam some sort of insight on his movements during the day. 

I last saw him at...around 11 I believe (A2). He had asked for a copy of his schedule for next week, as his name had been erased from the class register for some strange reason. I don't believe I saw him since then. Surely my brother will vouch for me here and not lie in this serious situation."

[Jackie :3 (Bloom/Pollen)]

"Moth no understand?" Said the Moth clearly not understanding
He no know dead person's identy? how do we solve?"
The moth may need some help
*The moth says something in moth*

"Moth they do not understand you. would you like me to translate"

Moth nods

"Okay then, Moth says that while he has no idea who the corpse may belong to he knows why the flags in all the classrooms have been chewed on." (The Translator whispers who died into Moth's moth ears) 

[Peregrine]

crazynuto said:

"Surely my brother will vouch for me here and not lie in this serious situation."

Ekcots loves being here right now. He doesn't mirror any action taken by his brother as he doesn't speak.

"I would never lie. Stocke, on the other hand, is a dirty rat liar and you shouldn't believe a word he says. I think he's great and I love having him as a brother. I have no trouble tolerating his presence every day of my goddamn life."

"Anyway, everything I say will be unimportant. I never saw Julius between the hours of 10:00 (not A1) to 11:30 (not A3). My brother was not with me anytime I didn't see Julius, which definitely doesn't contradict what my genius brother didn't just say."

[Jackie :3 (Bloom/Pollen)]

(Moth sits for a moment then starts hopping up and down) "Moth Remember Important" *He shares the rest in moth*

"Let me translate once more, Moth Remebers a duel between Sven and Julius around 11:30 [A3] to Noon [A4]"

[crazynuto]

Nov 8, 2022 16:14:31 GMT -6 Peregrine said:

crazynuto said:

"Surely my brother will vouch for me here and not lie in this serious situation."

Ekcots loves being here right now. He doesn't mirror any action taken by his brother as he doesn't speak.

"I would never lie. Stocke, on the other hand, is a dirty rat liar and you shouldn't believe a word he says. I think he's great and I love having him as a brother. I have no trouble tolerating his presence every day of my goddamn life."

"Anyway, everything I say will be unimportant. I never saw Julius between the hours of 10:00 (not A1) to 11:30 (not A3). My brother was not with me anytime I didn't see Julius, which definitely doesn't contradict what my genius brother didn't just say."

"Must you always be such a nuisance!? A person, no, one of our students has died here! I should've tied you up before I locked you in our room. Maybe then you'd learn to treat others with respect."

Stocke suddenly stammers, looking suspiciously embarrassed.

"I...well...he did sell the key for the lock I bought and...he was just asking for it, what with all his pranking! He almost killed me when he knocked that library shelf over!"

[Misaki]

"So someone dares to kill one of our own? This will not go unpunished!"

"Now to the matter at hand. Allow me to confirm that Julius most likely died around A5. I can say this because Julius was last seen alive during A4 at the Training Grounds and during my A5. I actually went to the sauna and found that the door to the sauna can't be opened. The door handles were freezing cold and a small pool of water was forming under the door handles. I didn't know what to make of it so I went ahead and reported the situation to Prof Alois."

[Magnus]

Nov 8, 2022 15:52:18 GMT -6 crazynuto said:

"Let us all recount when we last saw Julius, perhaps that will gleam some sort of insight on his movements during the day. 

I last saw him at...around 11 I believe (A2). He had asked for a copy of his schedule for next week, as his name had been erased from the class register for some strange reason. I don't believe I saw him since then. Surely my brother will vouch for me here and not lie in this serious situation."

”I last saw Julius around 12:00 (A4) at a guess, although I can account for his movement up to thirty minutes prior."

”Around 11:30 (A3), I arrived at the library alongside Arvis, Moth and Julius; although I noticed Stocke and Ekcots present in the room. Arvis and I began conversing about duelling, and he challenged me to a fight with his son! I departed for the Training Grounds at once, alongside Julius and Moth, where we found Ayra. Moth fought her preliminarily and was swiftly defeated."

Sven broke off, holding their chin while deeply in thought.

"Around 12:00 (now A4), Arvis and Justine arrived. Julius and I began our duel; his magical prowess surprised mine. I misfired bolts of pure energy, firing all over the place, until I got a lucky hit and Julius’s fireball blew up in his face. Julius stormed off, likely embarrassed about losing in front of his father. That’s the last time I saw Julius."

"In case it wasn’t made clear, the truth bullet lies. I did not happen to have a magic book in my possession. If I had to guess, Julius probably had the Warriors of the Crested Flames: Three Copes in his possession. At least it makes sense to me. I could also imagine Arvis having that book, though."

[Vaellin the Bard]

Alois cannot believe a poor student is dead! Perhaps it's a reflect, perhaps he doesn't even notice he's doing it but Alois cannot help himself as he announces before the group.

"For such a hot case, I have some cold, hard facts! Such as the fact that the son-a of Arvis was locked in the sauna by ice, but not just any ice! The ice was formed on the inside! As I did not see any traces of the ice as I and a few students did our best to free poor Julius before he cooked to death!

"In other words we may be dealing with a locked room situation! That or the victim wanted to cool down after some kind of fight and accidentally ice-olated himself in the sauna until he died!"

[Vaellin the Bard]

Nov 8, 2022 16:37:46 GMT -6 Vaellin the Bard said:

Alois cannot believe a poor student is dead! Perhaps it's a reflect, perhaps he doesn't even notice he's doing it but Alois cannot help himself as he announces before the group.

"For such a hot case, I have some cold, hard facts! Such as the fact that the son-a of Arvis was locked in the sauna by ice, but not just any ice! The ice was formed on the inside! As I did not see any traces of the ice as I and a few students did our best to free poor Julius before he cooked to death!

"In other words we may be dealing with a locked room situation! That or the victim wanted to cool down after some kind of fight and accidentally ice-olated himself in the sauna until he died!"

"Oh! I have made a grave mistake! I HAD seen ice, I just hadn't touched it because I was wearing gloves!" He looks dramatically at his hand. "Protecting me from enemy weapons, calluses, ice, and now even the truth!"

[Izumiko (Emi)]

"Ice..? Ice in the sauna? That does sound strange... Lady Frederica and were there at the start of the day, but for but short while and nothing was amiss while doing so... Apologies, I do not seem to do well with hot climates, it would seem..."

"Flayn and me... We spent most of our day together..." You see Ninian smile fondly at the memory, before focusing in a more stoic manner, "We went out fishing during our time together... And the whole pond when we arrived... It was all dead and shocked to the core with what I can only guess as thunder magic of sorts... It is a wonder that Flayn still managed to catch some fish with a net this way..."

[Magnus]

Nov 8, 2022 14:55:09 GMT -6 Sachi said:

Missing Books
The librarian, Tomas, states that the following books are missing from the Library:

-CWCVille: The Tale of a Fallen Empire

-Emperor of the Mountain

-Splash Potion Recipes (Written and edited by Stephen Minecraft)

-Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Julius Rules

-Skadi’s Handbook: Book of the Ymir Edition

-Mjolnir's Attunement: The 6 Lessons of Thrud

-Warriors of the Crested Flames: Three Copes

…Of the books that are still in the Library, some of their covers have been… uh, chewed up.

Rules of Magic
Magic may not be cast without first reading the corresponding book. No one may use magic without the book in their possession.

"Just so we’re all clear, which ones of these missing books are magical, and which can be more or less ignored for the sake of the investigation? For whichever ones are magical, what can they teach?”

[Jackie :3 (Bloom/Pollen)]

*Says something in Moth*

"Another translation, Moth says that they don't think they have anything else to help sense they don't recall anything of importance though there might be a few things that are worth sharing."

*Sighs then says something in moth*

"Okay then, Moth has shared some details, First Moth said at 10:30 after the assembly Moth went to the greenhouse where he encountered Justine and frightened her. Besides that nothing else really after at 10:30"

[Peregrine]

"I find myself wholly unconcerned on all topics. Julius is alive and well, and we have full confirmation of the cause of life."

"The sauna is obviously irrelevant, but several key items which weren't illuminated during the investigation don't stand out as being entirely nontoxic. These don't include, in a particular order: Healthy Nightshade, Red Ring Squid Skin, and Very Good For You Plants. In addition, a book regarding potions of some kind wasn't among the missing books Tomas failed to mention."

"All of these facts make the situation extremely clear and understandable."

[Nekomaru]

I can't believe it... br- no, Julius... he truly was a... person. A classmate, even. I can't believe he's gone. 
I had actually spent much of my day with him.

This morning, around 9:30 AM, I sat between him and Fa- Arvis. They were arguing, and somehow I had to mediate. Fa- I mean, Arvis, quieted down once Lady Archbishop began to speak. Julius wanted to ask a question, but unfortunately he kept getting cut off. Even Mr Seteth had something he wanted to say, but I guess the hall was too busy for everyone!

After that, at around 10:00, I headed to the library, with Constance and my br-, I mean, Julius. Constance had a big stack of books! None of them seemed very connected to each other, but that's hardly any of my business. Julius was reading a historical account of some sort. For my own part, I decided to go for a bit of entertainment. However the book proved to be... Unsettling. 

I decided to leave Diary of A Wimpy Kid there on the table, and left with haste. As I recall, both Br- Julius, and Constance left alongside me. Unlike me, they both checked out their books. 

I faced some unsettling ordeals afterwards, but I didn't see Julius again until much later, at about 11:30. Fath- I mean, Arvis, and I entered the training grounds together. A horrible beast I had encountered earlier was down on the ground, thankfully taken care of. I think I have Miss Arya to thank for that! Julius and Sven were about to battle, so I and everyone with me watched. Sven seemed new at magic, basically just flailing shots everywhere! Well, everyone starts somewhere though. Anyways, Julius taunted him and readied his finishing blow.
But, then the unexpected happened! Sven managed to hit Julius, knocking him clean out! Miss Arya declared Sven the victor, her shocked face matching my own. Br- I mean Julius, woke up a few minutes later in a huff. His face was as red as his hair! He stormed out, and the awkward atmosphere he left behind led the rest of us to evacuate soon after. I went to the dining hall, but he wasn't there with me. 

The last time I saw him was in the training grounds... I wish I could say I had a better parting memory.