Capítulo 9: 5
"Allow me to explain the rules."
Sakamochi returned to his cheerful voice. The classroom began to reek of Yoshitoki Kuninobu's fresh blood, an odor entirely different than that of the dried blood of their instructor, "Dragonfly" Hayashida. Shuya couldn't see Fumiyo Fujiyoshi's face from his seat, but it seemed like there was very little blood coming out of her.
"I think you all know how this works. The rules are simple. All you have to do is kill each other. There are no violations. And," Sakamochi wore a wide grin, "the last remaining survivor can go home. You even get a nice card autographed by the Dictator. Isn't that wonderful?" In his mind, Shuya spat to his side.
"Now you may think this is a horrible game. But in life the unexpected is bound to happen. You must at all times maintain self-control in order to respond properly to accidents. Consider this an exercise then. Also, men and women will be treated equally. There will be no handicaps for either side. I do have good news for the girls, though. According to Program statistics, 49% of past winning survivors have been girls. The motto here is, 'I'm just like the others and the others are like me.' There is nothing to be afraid of."
Sakamochi made a signal. The camouflaged trio went into the hall and began to haul in the large, black, nylon day packs. The packs formed a pile right beside the body bag of Mr. Hayashida. Some of them were lopsided, as if they might contain a pole-shaped object inside trying to poke out.
"We will have you leave one by one. Each one of you will take one of these bags prior to departure. Each pack contains food, water, and a weapon. Let's see, as I said, every one of you differs according to ability. So these weapons will add another random element. Well, that sounds complicated. In other words, it will make the game all the more unpredictable. You will each end up with a randomly selected weapon. As you leave in order, you will take the pack on top of the pile. Each pack also contains a map of the island, a compass, and a watch. Are there any of you who don't have watches? You all do? Oh, I forgot to mention this, but we are on an island with an approximate circumference of six kilometers. Its never been used for the Program. We had the residents evacuate the island. So there is absolutely no one else here. So…"
Sakamochi faced the blackboard and grabbed a piece of chalk. He drew a rough diamond shape next to where he had written his name, "Kinpatsu Sakamochi." On the top-right he drew an arrow pointing upward and the letter "N." He wrote an "X" inside the diamond, right of its center. With the chalk still pressed against the blackboard, he turned towards the students.
"All right then. We're in the school on this island. This is a diagram of the island, so this indicates the school. Got that?" Sakamochi tapped the symbol with his chalk. "I'm going to be staying here. I'll be overlooking your efforts."
Sakamochi then drew four spindle shapes scattered to the north, south, east, and west sides of the diamond.
"These are ships. They are there to kill anyone attempting to escape by sea." Then he drew parallel vertical and horizontal lines over the island. The diamond shape indicating the island resembled a warped grill now. Starting from the top-left, Sakamochi wrote markers in each grid,
"A=l," "A=2,"…in order. The next row read, "B=l," "B=2," etc.
"This is just a simplified diagram. The map inside your packs will look something like this." Sakamochi placed his chalk down and clapped his hands to clear off the dust.
"Once you leave the premises, you are free to go anywhere. However, announcements will be made across the entire island at the hours of twelve and six, in the morning and at night. That's four a day. I'll be referring to this map when I announce the location of zones that will be forbidden after a certain time. You must examine your maps closely and check your compasses against them. If you are in a forbidden zone you must clear out of the area as soon as possible. Because…"
Sakamochi put his hands on the lectern and looked at everyone.
"…of the collars around your necks."
Until he had made this remark, several students had failed to notice the collars. They touched their necks and looked shocked.
"That device is the result of the latest technology developed by our Republic. It is 100% waterproof, antishock, and uh-uh, no, no, it can't come off. It won't come off. If you try to pry it loose…" Sakamochi took a small breath, "…it will explode."
Several students who had been fingering their collars immediately released their hands. Sakamochi grinned. "The collar monitors your pulse in order to verify signs of life and transmits this information to the mainframe at this school. It also pinpoints your exact position on the island for us. Now, let's return to the map."
Sakamochi swung his right arm back and pointed to the map on the blackboard.
"This same computer will also randomly select forbidden zones. And if there are any students left in the zone after the designated time—of course dead students won't matter—the computer will automatically detect anyone alive and immediately send a signal to his or her collar. Then…" Shuya knew what he would say.
"That collar will explode."
He was right.
Sakamochi paused for a moment to examine everyone. Then he continued, "Why would we do this?
Because if everyone huddled up together in one spot, the game wouldn't proceed. So we will make you move. Simultaneously, the area you can move around in will shrink. Got that?" Sakamochi called it a game. No wonder. It was fucking outrageous. No one said a word but everyone appeared to understand the rules.
"All right, so that means hiding in a building will do you no good. Even if you hide in some hole you dug in the ground the transmission will reach you. Oh and by the way, you are free to hide in any building but you won't be able to use the phone. You won't be able to contact your parents. You have to fight on your own alone. But that's how the game of life is anyway. Now I did say that the game will begin without any forbidden zones, but there is one exception: this school. Twenty minutes after your departure this school will become a forbidden zone. So please first get out of this area. Let's see, you must be two hundred meters away. Got that? Now, in my announcements I will also read off the names of those who have died in the past six hours. Each announcement will be made regularly at six-hour intervals, but I'll also be contacting the last remaining survivor by announcement as well. Oh…and one more thing. There is a time limit. Listen up. A time limit. A lot of people die in the Program, but if no one dies within twenty-four hours then your time's expired, and it won't matter how many students are left...." Shuya knew what he would say.
"The computer will detonate the collars of the remaining students. There will be no winner." Again he was right.
Sakamochi stopped speaking. The entire classroom had become silent. The room was still reeking with the heavy stench of Yoshitoki Kuninobu's blood. Everyone remained in their collective daze. They were scared, but this situation, where they were about to be thrown into a killing game, seemed beyond their comprehension.
As if responding to their general state of mind, Sakamochi clapped his hands. "Well, I've covered all the tedious details. Now I have something more important to tell you. A piece of advice. Some of you might be thinking that murdering your classmates is impossible. But don't forget there are others willing to do it." Shuya wanted to scream, you're full of it! But with the Fumiyo-Fujiyoshi-executed-for-whispering incident only moments in the past he could only stay put.
Everybody remained silent, but something had suddenly changed and Shuya knew it. Everyone was looking around, glancing at the others' pale faces. Whenever anyone's gaze met, their eyes would nervously turn toward Sakamochi. It only happened within a matter of seconds, but their expressions were exactly the same: they were tense and suspicious, wondering who was already ready to take part. Only a few, like Shinji Mimura, remained calm.
Shuya clenched his teeth again. You're falling into their trap! Think about it, we're a group. There's no way we can kill each other!
"All right then, I need to make sure you get my point. You'll find some paper and pencils in your desks." Everyone timidly took out their paper and pencils. Shuya had no choice but to follow his instructions.
"Now then, I want you to write this down. To memorize something, it's best to write it down. Write this.
'We will kill each other.' Write it three times."
Shuya heard the pencils scribbling against the paper. Noriko too held her pencil, looking morose. While Shuya wrote out this insane motto, he glanced at Yoshitoki's body, which remained lying between the desks. He recalled Yoshitoki's warm smile.
Sakamochi continued, "Okay then. 'If I don't kill, I will be killed.' Write this down three times too." Shuya also glanced over at Fumiyo Fujiyoshi. Her white fingers poking out of the cuffs of her sailor suit uniform gently formed a bowl. She was the nurse's aide. She was quiet but very caring. Then he looked up at Sakamochi.
Fucking bastard, I'll stab you in the chest with this pencil!
40 students remaining
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