Chapter 97: Deadman Wonderland Side Part 7

A/N: There are many transitional scenes in this chapter, so please read it with care lest you get confused by the sudden time gap.

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My eyes opened, and the first thing I saw was a bright light.

It's always like this, isn't it?

This is...the ceiling? I'm lying down on a bed.

As my consciousness became more awake, I soon realized where I was - a hospital. The smell of the hospital, the beeping sounds of the machine, the pure white interior with a gentle, soft yellow glow lights were typical descriptions of a hospital.

I sat upright, and to my surprise, I found no difficulty doing so.

What on Earth...? I broke two of my forearm bones, a few ribcages were broken, and the number of scars that I have attained shouldn't make sitting upright even possible.

By this time, my vision had returned to me, and I examined my own body. I often examined my own body when training myself; I didn't want to stunt my growth in any way, after all, so I was used to it.

And wow, I was fully healed. Was I in a coma for a few months? That was impossible. After all, complications during a coma include pressure sores, urinary tract infections, blood clots in the legs, and other problems, and none of them were present in my body.

I wanted to check on my tails, but it was a bad idea to do so in a public space. My fears were confirmed as the cubicle curtain around my bed suddenly opened without warning, and three men appeared in front of me.

"Fuutarou, right?" The first man asked, no, confirmed as he raised a badge in front of me.

"...Yes."

"We're taking you in as a suspect for mass murder at Nagano Fourth Junior High School."

My pupils dilated at the police officer's words, "Huh? What the..."

"I'm Tamaki, your court-appointed lawyer." A new person suddenly appeared, pushing the police officers in front of him and reaching beside me. He handed me a card, which stated his name - Tsunenaga Tamaki.

"Nice to meet you, Fuutarou."

Tamaki had a fox or weasel-like appearance, being relatively slim and skinny. He had a narrow face on with a smile. His hair was dark grey and combed backward, although there was one strand of hair standing upwards. His hair was a little longer on his neck.

He always wore a grey suit with a white, formal shirt, accompanied by a blue tie. He also wore a pair of glasses.

My hands were already handcuffed, but I didn't take the card. Everything about Tamaki reeks of suspicion, so I did what to anybody suspicious - I ignored him.

"Police officer, I want you to be my lawyer."

The quartet became stunned at my words, and Tamaki continued speaking, "Unfortunately-"

"Paragraph 1 of article 10 of the Juvenile Law recognizes that a juvenile and his/her guardian have the right to appoint an attendant; in cases where the juvenile is deprived of liberty during the proceedings of a juvenile trial, he/she may designate an attendant and make contact with an attendant." I said calmly, stunning everyone once again, "So let me repeat, I want you as my legal representation. Otherwise, I'll do this on my own."

"Why not Tamaki-san?"

"Because I don't trust him."

"That isn't an answer." The police officer frowned.

"Then how about this? Canadian consular officials can provide a list of lawyers who have expertise in your particular type of case and who may have represented Canadians in the past. They cannot, however, select or recommend a specific lawyer." I continued, "The moment they appointed Tamaki-san, he was already not on my list of lawyers. I know for a fact that I did not kill my classmates and friends, so when this happens, probably some sort of conspiracy is happening, aiming to frame me to go wherever they want me to."

"Which, in this case, is probably Deadman Wonderland." I tilted my head as I asked the police officer, "Am I right? That place is filled with sick entertainment for the people where they watch murderers and other criminals kill each other for fun, no?"

"...You have good insight, kid." The police officer spoke, "Fine. But I'm not defending you."

"Don't worry about that; I'll do that myself. You just need to be my eyes to keep an eye on me for the entire duration in case some other 'evidence' comes out to bury me deeper in the pit." I snorted, "Let's go."

"And Tamaki-san," I spoke with a bright smile towards him, "You may leave now. I'll definitely not choose you."

∞

I can't help but believe this is some sort of anime that I didn't watch before. It all seems too cliché for it to be an actual situation.

But the question remains: Who wants to frame me so badly that he would massacre my entire class?

I should have videoed the entire thing beforehand, but then again, I doubt anybody will believe it.

Sigh, I'm currently in prison with the police officer recording and observing my every move.

I've never been so glad to have law proficiency in my life.

"Ne, police officer-san, why are you guys framing me for the murder of my classmates?"

The police officer didn't reply to me. As I thought, something was suspicious about everything.

"Think about it logically. I'm just a regular number 1 student in my school with a relatively good amount of popularity. I don't have parents, so I don't have much stress. I don't get bullied. I don't have financial problems." I pointed out each point with a finger, counting up to my ring finger, "That means that my future is relatively bright, and I have stable and healthy mental health. So what could possibly be my motives?"

The police officer didn't respond as he continued closing his eyes, though it was apparent he wasn't sleeping and was listening to me talk to myself.

"Why would I risk my entire future for something so stupid? How would I be able to kill all 30 of my classmates within a matter of seconds? Did no one realize my actions and run away literally to the class next door and inform the students over there?"

"Quiet, kid. Tell that to the judge."

"Oh, you bet I will."

"Why do you want me to be here with you anyway?"

"Cause I need a guardian, and you seem to be the gruff, uncle type that doesn't betray their work ethics, unlike lawyers."

There is one more reason as to why I don't trust Tamaki. He had a scent that I remembered from that place. It was faint, but I easily recalled it with my smell capabilities and eidetic memory.

The red man's scent was stained with a bloody smell, which was the only reason I couldn't identify him when we fought.

"How long till the trail anyway?"

"...You are very carefree for a criminal."

"I'm a suspect. I have a different treatment from criminals. Japanese law prevents me, a minor below the age of fourteen, from being executed or sentenced to life. And I'm innocent."

With all the evidence proving that I wasn't the murderer, especially with the lack of a murder weapon, the judge cannot prove guilty.

But even so, I didn't relax. A conspiracy isn't so easily solved. Otherwise, it would be called a "conspiracy".

Sigh...I can only hope it will all work out. The only good luck I have is with my girls. As for other matters...yeah, Lady Luck farts at me.

∞

"After taking into account the numerous pieces of evidence, though unusual, we now sentence the defendant, Fuutarou, to death."

And...yeah.

As expected. These judges are corrupted.

I presented everything as well as a top-class lawyer would be able to do so, and they still sentenced me to death.

Hell, I was this close to presenting a freaking slide presentation to explain why I was not guilty.

What a bruh moment.

I was so pissed that I wanted to whip out my tails, enjoy their shock looks for a while before proceeding to massacre all of them. For real this time.

But then, something unexpected came out after 9 whole years of silence.

[Part 1 failed. Proceeding to part 2 - Wonderland.]

My system came out once more. But after presenting this one line, it disappeared once more.

Wonderland, huh? Does that refer to Deadman Wonderland? Does that mean I have to go there for the second part?

I don't think I've failed this trial yet, despite failing part 1. Otherwise, I would have failed my lineage trials already and been kicked out of this world. I still don't know what the trial wants me to do, and it's frustrating me to no end.

It's gonna be so much simpler if I knew the end objective. Sigh...

And so, the two police guards beside me went to handcuff me and lead me away.

I didn't struggle; there was no need to. The guards and I have the same goal - to send me to the ultimate prison for death row inmates like me.

The deadman wonderland.

Only this time, it wasn't for a school trip. It was to be a prisoner there.

********3rd POV ********

The naughty little woodpecker ♪

Knocked holes, crumbling the forest.

The angry wood god turned his beak into poison! ♪

The poor little woodpecker, his nest was poisoned, his supper too.

He touched his friends, and they all died. ♪

The sad little woodpecker ♪

His little poison tears twinkle and shine... ♪

At the top of a building in the shape of a ball, a girl sat on top of it. She was singing as she observed everything that was happening in her field of vision. Her completely white features and contrasting red eyes showed radiated loneliness as she stared into space.

Until a van drove towards them and entered the building. She suddenly hopped up to a standing position as she muttered curiously.

"Fuutarou?"

Underneath her, no. All around her, there was nothing but the ocean. Only 8 bridges linked the mainland to this place known as Deadman Wonderland.

There were seven bridges in the seven directions that visitors could use to start their tour from different attractions, while the last bridge was solely reserved for its prisoners, staff, and other important officials.

Deadman Wonderland.

Ten years have passed since Tokyo was hit by a gravitational collapse, an abnormal phenomenon called the Red Hole.

This is Japan's one and only fully-privatized prison whose main operation is tourism to support Tokyo's reconstruction.

Despite its name being a juxtaposition, its operation stayed through to its name. Deadman - the death row inmates. And Wonderland - the place where ordinary students and adults could visit for a time of fun, as long as they don't mind the sight of gruesome fights, games, and dead bodies, of course.

Deadman wonderland was gigantic, and it could easily be considered a city on its own. With plenty of non-violent, ordinary theme park attractions, even little children could have the time of their lives here without even being close to the criminals.

As Fuutarou entered, none of these fantastic sights could be seen. The only thing that greeted him was a tunnel that was lined with silver metal.

'Sigh, being a prisoner sucks. Imagine the showers...boy, I hope they have private showers.' Fuutarou thought with a shudder. The people surrounding him noticed this and felt that he was shuddering due to fear.

Fuutarou didn't know that, but even if he did, he wouldn't care. He had only two goals in mind when he came to this place - to complete the quest imposed on him, and of course, to survive.

A soldier came to greet them as he guided all the death row inmates into the building.

"Welcome to Deadman Wonderland. I hope all of you will have fun in this Wonderland."

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A/N: Since you guys already know the world we are in, it's time to put the lazy titles up. If you still don't know, just go read the manga or at least the fandom so you can expect what will happen in this place.

Sigh, I haven't written anything in 5 weeks now. School really sucks~

If you want to support me or/and want chapters in advance, link:

https://www.patréon.com/spirits_everywhere. We are currently 8 chapters ahead~