School (G7), Okishima Island, 5:38 PM
"I'm so busy!"
Kinpatsu Sakamochi (Supervisor) set down the phone, and his call with one of the higher-ups terminated. They had been discussing various topics, some of which were very important (security concerns which had potential repercussions for the version of Program in progress, though just how accurate the speculation was seemed unclear) and some of which were much less so (the status of various bets).
The betting pool was not officially sanctioned, but neither was it condemned, and implicitly it was widely accepted. Almost everyone involved in the operation of the program participated. The money was put together, and then at the end was distributed to those who bet on the winner in proportion to how much they paid in. Betting on more than one student was forbidden, of course.
Sakamochi had twenty thousand yen riding on his choice. It was a decent amount of money, nothing life-changing either way, especially since he'd chosen a popular pick, but he would definitely feel the loss of pocket change for the next couple weeks. Surely his superior had less to worry about with his own bet, but the salary of a program coordinator was less than might be expected. It was certainly better than when Sakamochi had been an actual high school teacher, though, and the job suited him much better as well.
But you could never get away from bad students. Sakamochi's superior had access to all the classified information regarding the program, but also he hadn't kept up with the times, and was simply hopeless with computers. It was easier for him to phone Sakamochi up and request a verbal update than to use the secret government database.
Well, but it wasn't so bad: at least his pick and Sakamochi's had crossed paths, so the information had been close at hand. With a subordinate, though, Sakamochi would've made him look up the information himself.
The pile of papers on his desk wasn't getting any smaller. Every so often, a soldier would come in and add something new, and the numbers weren't dwindling as quickly as they had in some past programs. The soldiers took watch at the gun ports of the metal-plated windows in shifts, and rested in the classrooms at other times, but nowhere was especially comfortable. But still, it had been going well so far, and it was almost time for another update. Maybe this would hurry things along.
School (G7), Okishima Island, 6:00 PM
"Alright, alright. Good evening, everyone. Once again, this is your teacher, Sakamochi, speaking. The time is 6 PM. It has been half a day since last time I checked in with you. Have you been having a good time?"
Once more, Sakamochi's voice was upbeat. It came from everywhere, the hidden speakers amplifying the words and sending animals in the more remote reaches scattering in the face of the sudden disruption.
"Now I will tell you who has died in the past twelve hours.
"No. 13, Takako Chigusa.
"No. 2, Keita Iijima.
"No. 8, Kayoko Kotohiki.
"No. 2, Yukie Utsumi.
"No. 20, Kaori Minami.
"No. 19, Shinji Mimura.
"No. 4, Toshinori Oda.
"And, finally, No. 4, Sakura Ogawa.
"It's evenly balanced between the sexes this time. Of course, the killing really hasn't been that fast. You're averaging less than one an hour. Oh, but it's not a problem for me. There's plenty of food in here.
"Well then, now for the forbidden zones. Write these down, because you won't want to forget. I will tell you that one person has already died because of being in a forbidden zone, so don't test this yourself.
"At 7 PM, in one hour, H-9. You have less time for this one than the others, so move quickly.
"At 9 PM, three hours from now, B-6.
"At 11 PM, after five hours, D-2.
"At 1 AM, after the new day starts, E-4.
"At 3 AM, in nine hours from now, and right about twenty-four from the beginning, G-1.
"At 5 AM, which is eleven hours after now, F-10.
"That's all. Do your best, and take care."
Then, the relative silence returned.
Weather: 6:00 PM, Day One
The mild, comfortable weather persists, though as evening falls the environment does become slightly cooler. The sky is clear, so outside at night visibility is better than might be expected, thanks to moon and starlight.
And, the rolls. Due to an instance of terminal inactivity, we have only rolled three characters this cycle.
1. Mitsuru Numai (ItzToxie) - Haruka Tanizawa (Yonagoda, Hero Card used)
2. Yuko Sakaki (Skraal)
3. Yuka Nakagawa (Sunnybunny)
Three days for cards, and a further seven for deaths.
Once again, our Forbidden Zones are staggered. The Harbor (H9) is forbidden immediately, with three days for normal activity and an additional seven to exit.
Come mid-month rolls, the House With Well (E4) will become forbidden, with its own timer (and you'll be notified/reminded then too). Until then, it's still open like any area.
The remaining Forbidden Zones do not directly correspond to specific locations. Unlike in other games, Forbidden Zones are not lifted as the game progresses, and no warning is given to students who linger in or enter one.
