The next part of Guren's side of the story is up! Ready to see the debut of the person who shows her the ropes in the Metaverse. Enjoy!
(Opening: Life will Change (Persona 5))
(Music intro)
(Starting in a backdrop of a city with gray and black buildings and a red sky, the camera pans through the place, while the white shadows of eleven individuals racing and leaping passed walls. Then the words 'I am thou. Thou art I' form in cryptic newspaper letter cutouts, followed by the title of the series)
It's not a game. I'm not a robot AI challenging you.
(Ren Amamiya steps out of Leblanc, heading to school, with Morgana in his bag. Guren Sakura joins his side as they both leave, and the screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Theives looks, with the names 'Joker' 'Mona' and 'Lioness' under their respective people.)
I'm not a phantom. I'm in your face and I'm here to see it through.
(Mia puts on her shoes as she heads to work, with Haneru racing up behind her, dislodging his slippers and putting on his shoes to go to school. He waves his mom goodbye as the both open the door to walk out. Screen freezes as they appear in their Phantom Thieves looks, with the names 'Kong' and 'Pixie' under each of them.)
Right before your eyes, watch us multiply
(Ryuji, Ann, and a silhouetted figure appear in three parts of the screen, then, with a flip of their respective confidant tarot cards, changing into their respective Phantom Thieves attire, with 'Skull' and 'Panther' listed to their respective owners.)
Come to claim our rights - it's time
(Three more silhouettes appear of the three remaining members, which shift to silhouettes of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits like the others.)
As our power grows, trying to stop us shows…
(Inside the interrogation room, Ren looks to Sae Nijima, who glares seriously at him, while she has pictures of victims he and the Phantom Thieves targeted on the table. Ren sees a sparkling blue butterfly pass his eyes, and he closes his eyes)
(You) Might as well go try'n stop time
(In the velvet room, the camera pans through the bars of the cell, past the twin prison wardens to Igor in his seat. He looks up at the protagonist with his usual grin, and the Metaverse Navigation app button appears behind him as he fades away, and the app activates.)
(Song break)
(From an overhead view of the central street of Tokyo, the area starts to shift as it changes to the Metaverse point of view. Tarot cards of every confidant fall down to the ground in the middle of the big street, where the Phantom Thieves stand, ready to go.)
So you know that we're out there, swatting lies in the making.
(Joker leads off summoning Arsene to his side, readying his dagger as he lunges at a masked Shadow, pulling it off and slashing at it. Lioness leaps in, stopping a pair of unknown Shadows with her rapier and stabbing them through the chest with a pair of thrusts.)
Can't move fast without breaking. Can't hold on or life won't change.
(Kong leap onto a head of a Shadow, whacking him in the back with his quarterstaff, knocking him to the ground before turning his staff into swords and making a falling stab onto him. Pixie uses Magaru with a twirl of her scythe, blowing away a bunch of Shadows. All four Persona users draw their guns out, pointing at four Shadows in the center of their circle, and fire at them.)
And our voices ring out, yeah. Took the mask off to feel free.
(Mona in van mode drives the known thieves, with Pixie at the wheel, as they journey through Mementos. They encounter a bunch of the main Shadow versions of human enemies, each transforming into large silhouettes of their respective monster forms, their eyes glowing.)
Fought it out in the debris, now we know that life will change.
(Mona transforms to normal as they all leap up into the air, Joker, Lioness and Kong taking off their masks to reveal their Personas, ready to attack.)
(Music ending)
(The scene shifts to several of their supporters doing their routines, from Sojiro running the Leblanc, to Mishima walking while looking at the Phan-Site on his phone, Akechi being interviewed on television, Takemi writing something at her clinic, to Kawakami teaching her class, Mifune flipping her tarot cards, then flipping over a calling card made by the Phantom Thieves. The scene shifts to a red and black, spiraling backdrop as the card along with all confidant cards fall into an abyss, replaced with the title of the series again.)
(Previously on P5: Phantom Drive)
Itsuki fearful look on his face, as he quickly shouted out, "What are you waiting for? Kill her! Kill her now!" The men that surrounded Guren ignited the flint on their guns, and fired.
Before the bullets hit, it was almost as if they slowed down in midair. She took one hand, and ripped the mask off in one fell swoop, tearing off some skin as she did so, crying out in pain. Blue flames engulfed her body, protecting her from the kill shots.
As the flames died down, Itsuki and the soldiers were shocked to see Guren standing there, wearing new attire that was different from before. The main uniform had the look of an elegant, yet fearsome soldier, sort of medieval. It was mainly black, with bronze-yellow trimmings and patterns about it. She wore a skirt underneath that was the same bronze-yellow color, black leggings boots, bronze gloves with black sleeves almost reaching her elbow, and a yellow lion's tail poking behind her attire. Holstered on a belt wrapping around her midriff was a scabbard, which held a rapier.
Standing behind her was something human-like, yet not at all. It seemed like a knight with long, wild yellow hair flowing out of its helmet, and had a red cape on. In its hand was a large sword, almost five times its height. By its side was what seemed like a black lion, letting out a fearsome roar.
"What the hell is this?!" Itsuki gasped, panicking at the sight of Guren's new look.
"Now it's time to put you in your place!" Guren shouted. "Let's show them our power, Alanna!"
After mustering up every ounce of courage in her, every rage she felt, Guren had gave birth to a power of some sort, one ready to fight against Itsuki and his men if need be.
"Are you waiting for an invitation?! Kill her now!" Itsuki ordered.
As he gave that order, his underlings all started to act quite odd. Next thing Guren knew, black ooze came out from their masks and engulfed them, causing them all to changed shapes. When the goop removed itself from them, in their place stood a Genbu, a Kelpie and a Mandrake.
As the three monsters charged at them, so did Guren, the knight and the black lion. The big feline grabbed the Mandrake in its mouth and tossed it around like a rag doll, eventually putting it out of its misery with a hard crunch. The knight brought its sword up to block the Kelpie's charging attack, causing it to skid back a little. The knight then pushed its opponent to a lamp post, cutting it and the pillar in half.
As for Guren, it was hard for her to attack her opponent, with it having two heads, with one of the two having a very long neck. As the said head lunge for her, Guren noticed a postal mailbox behind her and jumped, having the long head get slammed into it. She landed on the monster's neck and dashed towards the main body, as it tried to get its head out of the box. Guren removed her rapier from its scabbard, prepared to jab it deep in the main head's skull, when ice suddenly formed around it and shot towards her. Out of whatever reflex she had, she parried them all out of her way and got to the main body, stabbing her weapon deep between its eyes. The Genbu screamed and struggled before it eventually disintegrated into ashes. Guren landed on her feet on the ground, with the knight and the lion standing by her side.
Itsuki looked at her in fear before regaining his composure and turned to the rest of his men. "What are you waiting for?! It's just three!" The rest of the guys pulled out guns or swords and pointed them at the trio.
"I can tell this isn't gonna be a battle I can win against, right now." Guren said to her allies. "Let's get out of here!" As she took off, the knight bursted into blue flames and went to her face, changing back into a mask while the lion brought the girl on its back, hasting their escape.
"Go ahead and run!" Itsuki called out, "But it doesn't matter if you try to come back or not. I will still win, no matter which world you try to stop me in!"
Guren gritted her teeth, wanting to make a retort, but decided against it. She was too worn out at the moment after whatever she just did. She didn't even know how she ended up in the attire she was wearing now. Before she could ask any more questions, the world started to distort in Guren's eyes and next she knew, she fell on her face... in the middle of Yongen-Jaya.
"YOU HAVE RETURNED TO THE REAL WORLD. WELCOME BACK." she heard. As she painfully got back up, rubbing her face as she did so, Guren noticed the stares of many people around her. Though confused as to how there were suddenly so many, and why the snow suddenly disappeared, Guren just got up, acted natural and walked off.
'What the ef happened?' she couldn't help but wonder. 'How did I end up in snowy, homeless, shopeless Yongen-Jaya to the normal active one? No, better question: what was all that back there? From Over-Drama Queen Itsuki to that knight and black lion. And all those other monsters! What was all of that?!'
Guren was so focused on all the questions that popped up in her head, she didn't see where she was going and bumped into someone. "Oof! Sorry about that," she apologized.
"Guren?" came a voice familiar to her. Looking up, Guren saw the person she bumped into was her childhood and best friend Makoto. She was the same age as Guren, and around the same height as her. Her hair was dark brown short, with a French-braid styled headband that matched her hair color. Her eyes were an abnormal red color. She was wearing her Shujin Academy winter school uniform attire.
Before she knew it, she was caught in a hug by her. "Where were you?! Your family and I were worried sick about you!"
Confused, all Guren could do was hug her back and ask, "Wait, what?"
Makoto broke the hug, glaring at her. "Don't 'wait, what' me! Your uncle called me last night, telling me you just vanished! He and I tried calling you, but you didn't answer to either of us! He even went to your apartment with the spare key you gave him, but you weren't there! What happened yesterday?!"
Skeptical to what she was saying, Guren looked at her phone and saw that she did have some missed calls from Makoto and Sojiro. "Oh... So I did," she said, hiding her surprise. "Must've muted the ringtone. Sorry for making you worry, Makoto."
Makoto calmed herself down somewhat and advised her friend, "Just... don't do that again. We were really worried about you. Especially... after yesterday." Getting a quizzical look from her best friend, she added, "Your uncle, he... He told me what happened."
Guren looked down, realizing what she was getting at, as memories of the events that occurred the other day returned to her. "Oh..."
"Look, if there's anything I can do to help, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask me. You know I'll be there to help you."
A sigh escaped Guren's lips, followed by a smile. "You always have been, Makoto. Then again, that's what friends are for." As she said that, she took out a necklace hidden under her shirt. Hanging on it was the yang of the yin yang circle.
"Yeah. I guess so," Makoto agreed, taking out a necklace hidden under her shirt as well, this one with a yin hanging from it. The two girls had these two necklaces almost as long as they have been friends. The choice of who got each half was Guren's choice, as she knew all her life was shrouded in negativity, which the yang side meant.
"But even so, this is my problem to deal with." Guren continued, "You already have more than enough problems to deal with. Besides, you're trying out for Student Council President, aren't you? I can't ask you to take time off of that to help me."
Makoto had a worried look on her face when she heard Guren suggest that. "But, you're worth it…" she muttered, "I can't just ignore your issues."
"It's fine. I always get into these sort of trouble." Guren assured her, placing her hand on her best friend's shoulder, "Likewise, I always get out of them, whether it's myself, or you and your sister at the last minute. Don't worry about a thing, okay?"
As Makoto mulled it over, Guren mentally added, 'Though this may be the one thing I may not be able to get out of so easily.'
It took several seconds, but Makoto was convinced. "If you say so. But please, if it's too much for you to handle, at least try to reach out. I'm always here for you."
"I hear ya, soon-to-be Student Council Prez," Guren saluted sarcastically.
The second-born Niijima stifled a laugh. "How you still have a sense of humor, I'll never know." she giggled.
"Funny. Sojiro said the same thing yesterday." she replied.
After they walked to Sojiro's house, Makoto said, "I'd better head off. I got a meeting to prepare me for the upcoming speech for Student Council President. Plus, I don't want to get into any further interference with family affairs."
"I'm sure you'll do great." Guren replied, waving her off. Once Makoto was out of sight, she looked up at her uncle's house, hesitant. How would she respond if she was asked where she was last night and this morning? Even she had no clue what she had been through. She wasn't sure how to get around interrogation, as both Sojiro and Futaba both knew her too well. "Well, let's see what happens…" she told herself, and she entered the front gate of the house.
The moment Guren walked inside, the adult of the house instantly appeared as if sensing she had just returned. "Guren!" he called out, and pulled her into a hug, "Thank God, you are safe!"
The said girl was gasping for air, as she moaned, "Sojiro…can't…breath!"
"I'm so sorry." Sojiro apologized, easing up on his hug on her, but not letting go, "It was my fault. I snapped at you yesterday, even though you were only worrying about me and the café."
Guren looked at what she could see of Sojiro's expression, and a pang of regret came over her. "I-It wasn't your fault!" she retorted, "I just…I don't…" She wasn't sure how to explain herself. It's not like she could explain what she had been through. That would throw her family off, or make her believe that she was not right in the head.
"You don't have to explain…" Sojiro seemed to understand, calming down a bit, "I get it. You just needed some time to sort things out. I can understand that. You are growing up into an adult, and you have been dealing with a lot more than most should. At least show Futaba you are alright, okay?"
"I will, and…sorry to make you worry so much." she apologized, "I'll try not to make you guys worry like that again."
Soon as she was done making amends with her uncle, Guren made her way to Futaba's room while Sojiro, relieved to see his niece safe and sound, went to Leblanc to open it up. Guren had reached Futaba's door, and had just barely formed a knuckle to knock on the door, when the door flung open, and her cousin flew out, crying out, "Guren! You're safe!"
Futaba was shorter than her, possibly due to lack of exercise and outdoor time. She wore black-rimmed glasses over her brown eyes, and her bright orange-dyed hair nearly reached her hips. She wore a pair of headphones on her, a black tank top, and striped pajama bottoms.
"Hey, Futaba. Fancy seeing you bolt out of your room like-." She stopped as she felt the vibrations and heard the sobbing from her cousin. She gripped her waist as if believing that if she let go, she would disappear again.
"I…I was so scared!" she bawled, "You had no idea how scared I was! I…I don't want to lose you like I lost mom!"
Guren was startled that she would compare to her disappearance to Futaba's mom, Wakaba Isshiki, and her death. She barely even talked about her mom's death around her, as that was a subject that brought back too much pain and agony, specifically around the aftermath of her mom's death.
"I did everything I could to try and contact you." Futaba continued, "I even tried tracking your phone by hacking into the GPS device on it, but I couldn't find you. Where were you all this time?!"
"I…" Guren started, but she wasn't sure how to reply. She took a few seconds to try and come up with an excuse, but couldn't think of any that Futaba could see through. Finally, she answered, "I…can't say for certain myself."
"Why? Did you not know where you were before coming home?" Futaba asked, looking up at her in worry.
"Believe me when I say I was not sure where I ended up for a while, or how I got there." her cousin stated, bending down to be at eye-level, "However, rest assured when I tell you that I am back, and I'll always come back to you, no matter where I am."
These words seemed to do the trick. Though she had many questions, Futaba wiped away the tears on her face, and nodded in understanding. Guren always kept her word when it comes to family, especially involving her being with Futaba. The two were inseparable, especially for the past two years, when she was adopted by Sojiro. Yes, she was adopted, so she wasn't really part of his or Guren's family.
"W-Well, as long as you promise that, then I can let you off, this time." the short girl stated, trying to act like an adult to her.
Guren chuckled as she answered, "Very well then. It's a promise." She raised her pinky finger to her cousin, who held her's out, and they gave the pinky swear for one another. It was as if they were less cousins and more sisters, with Guren being the eldest of course.
For the rest of the day, Guren spent all of her time at Sojiro's place, playing with Futaba any way she could. Guren played many of Futaba's favorite songs on the piano they had at home, while even making her rice balls for lunch. Futaba took Guren's phone, making sure the GPS tracking system worked on it right. She was incredibly gifted at her hacking and programming skills, so it didn't take too long. She handed it back to her, finding no problems, other than finding that new app on her phone a bit strange. However, before she could elaborate, the exhaustion of everything caught up to her, and she collapsed, falling fast asleep. This was normal, due to her lack of physical strength.
Sojiro returned home later that evening, making Guren his specialty curry for her. It was incredibly delicious, though Sojiro did try to interrogate her on where she was. She responded similarly to what she told Futaba, stating that she had no clue how or where she ended up, and finally came up with an excuse that it was a really strange case of sleep-walking. While Sojiro wasn't 100% convinced, he wasn't denying the fact, either. Still, he decided to let it go, and let her go for the evening to rest up, jokingly adding she should bolt herself to the bed this time. Laughing at this, Guren returned to her apartment, where she got serious about what she really went through. She took out a notebook and jotted down some things that had happened to her today, trying to make sense with what had occurred.
"Okay. Let's go over what happened today…" she started to tell herself, "This morning, it was the same as every other morning, until I walked out the door and saw snow all over the streets. Not only that, the streets, which were usually busy, turned up empty, with some shops closed or boarded shut and people walking sitting around in rags, almost like we're in the middle of some war or in the time of poverty. This includes my own uncle and cousin. Then after that, Itsuki appeared in a royal carriage with bodyguards and slaves around him. And as if that wasn't weird enough, what happened after that…"
Guren thought back to when she had summoned out the knight and lion. "There was that voice in my head, a painful headache, and some flames. With the latter were that weird knight and black lion. But... who was that knight? Where did that lion come from? Speaking of where, thinking back, my clothes... also changed, didn't they? And the rapier too. Was I always that skilled with it? It felt natural."
Soon as she saw she was getting off topic, or soon to be, Guren shook her head and continued looking at her notes. "Anyway, after that, when I made my escape, my vision- no, I don't think it was my vision. It was my surroundings. They seemed distorted before changing back into the Yongen-Jaya I knew. And from the looks of people's faces, it didn't look like they knew about what happened before then. From what Makoto and Sojiro said, they had been looking for me all morning. In Sojiro's case, it was all night, too. But... how can that be possible? I was in my room all last night; I didn't set foot out of this building after the small incident yesterday. And I know Sojiro enough to know he wouldn't lie about me suddenly being gone. No one would ever do that."
She looked to her smartphone sitting on the table next to her, "What's more, Futaba told me that she couldn't even track me down using my phone's GPS. But how was that possible? I was clearly in broad daylight, out in the streets. I should've had a signal right then and there. There was no way Futaba wouldn't have noticed me!"
Guren took a few moments to take in the notes she wrote down. Even though they were her notes and she had experienced what she had written down, she still couldn't believe it herself. After a while, she scratched her scalp furiously with both hands, messing up her hair.
"Ugh. I can't make sense of any of this!" she exclaimed, "There's no logical explanation of what I just went through. The only thing I can think of is that I went through something supernatural. But that's-."
She cut herself off when she said that, realizing something. "Wait a second. I think Itsuki said something along that line of though. I think he said…"
"If I recall, the you in the other world has a son, as well. This is my world. I can do what I want here."
"'Other world'? 'My world'?" she echoed, "And let's not forget my pho-" A light bulb went off on her head as she realized one other thing. "My phone! This all happened last night, apparently. The last thing I did last night before going to sleep was…"
Taking out her phone, Guren looked at the mystery app that Futaba noticed before on her phone, and saw that it was indeed used to search for a location of some sort. She opened it up, and looked at the search history. The only one on the history showed three things.
"'Itsuki Kato', 'monarchy', 'Yongen-Jaya.'" she read, pondering for a second, "Earlier it said that I returned to the real world, didn't it? So then... is this some kind of portal to that other world? Though from the looks of it, it's only accessible if three conditions are met." Guren looked at the set of words, and the button on the screen that told her that she would like to go to this location. However, she was hesitant.
'Do I want to go back? If I do, I'll definitely be heading into a world of trouble,' she thought. 'Then again, my life is full of them in the first place. Plus...'
Her thoughts went to Itsuki's words in the other world. "This is my world." "How's this for a report? A desperate woman sells her own son's organs for cash!"
'If my hypothesis is correct, does that mean what happens in that world can happen in this one?' she asked herself, 'No, if that was true, then Sojiro and Futaba both wouldn't have a roof over their heads. By the looks of the app, considering this location has Itsuki's name, it would mean it focuses mainly on him. Could that mean that if something happens to him in that world, it could it also affect him in this one? If that were true, then if I can convince the Itsuki in the other world to call off the debt, the real one can actually call it off. Course, he's got all those weird creatures that were with him. I'm not sure if it can work, but it's the best solution I got for now.'
Though it was a risk, and something she was just building from a bunch of 'ifs', she decided to go with the only approach possible; learn as you go. With that mindset, Guren activated the app. As she did so, the world started to distort all around her. When the distortion ended, she looked out the window and saw snow on the ground.
"I cannot believe I am actually doing this," she muttered to herself.
Turning away from the window, she walked down to the entrance of the building. As she did so, she noticed the full-body mirror. Looking into it, she noticed she was back in the outfit from earlier. "Huh? These are... the clothes from earlier." She pointed out, seeing her mask, then looking down herself, examining every part of her, and even striking a few poses.
After a while, Guren couldn't help but notice... "I look good in these. And the mask too." As she moved the mask, she saw that there was what seemed like a gap between the face and the mane. Removing it, it was revealed that the mask was actually in two parts. "A two-part mask? Never see those every day." Guren put the mask back on, "Okay. Now to get to business."
Leaving her apartment, Guren noticed some of the suited men patrolling the streets and quickly hid in the shadows. Deciding that walking out in the open would be too risky, she took to the side street, and noticed her apartment's fire escape metal stairs that led to the roof. "Upwards and onwards, I guess…" she told herself, using nearby crates to grab the sliding ladder that hung underneath the stairs, and shimmied herself up it.
When she arrived at the rooftop, Guren looked around, hoping to find something that would hint out where Itsuki was or where he would be staying. Lo and behold, she spotted a mansion buildings away, one that didn't exist in the real world.
'Well, I guess the biggest thing out of place in this town should be the best place to start.' she sarcastically thought, 'Let's go.'
With her target in front of her, Guren jumped from one building to another to get to her destination. As she landed on one building halfway there, however, she heard the sound of a door opening and quickly hid. Peeking out from her hiding place, she saw one of the men exiting the door to the rooftops, equipped with a flintlock rifle, like the ones she saw before.
'Just great,' she thought, gritting her teeth. She really didn't want to deal with any enemies at the moment. But with how things were, it seemed to her that it couldn't be helped. Besides, if she were to escape to the real world now, she wouldn't be able to get back home, since her athletic abilities only exists in this alternative world. Also, she would rather not explain why she suddenly appeared on someone's roof.
Silently taking her rapier out of its scabbard, she snuck out of her hiding spot and rushed at the unaware man. The moment her weapon made contact, though, what happened next wasn't what she hoped for. Black ooze from earlier came out of his mask and took on a different form. Guren quickly jumped back and saw that the man turned into a Silky.
"You know. When I jabbed you with the rapier, you changing into a girl was the least I had expected to happen," she joked, "And you also have green skin. That ain't normal, either."
Whether s/he didn't find it funny or had no funny bone, Guren didn't know nor care, but the monster casted an ice spell, much like the Genbu had that morning. Guren dodge-rolled out of the way and dashed towards the monster once more. Just as she stabbed the monster right in the center of her chest, it breathed out gas on her face. Guren covered her mouth with her free hand and distanced herself from the now dead monster, as it faded away. Waving what remains of the gas away, Guren steadied herself, feeling a little light headed from breathing in a bit of it earlier.
'What was that about?' she wondered, referring to the vapor. 'Doesn't look like it did much to me. Don't feel my face melting. Although…'
"Hey!" She heard a voice call out to her from another building and looked to see two of Itsuki's guys facing her. She was about to head to cover when she tripped on her feet, and her vision blurred. Drowsiness was starting to consume her.
'What the...? That gas... What did... it do?' Gunshots were heard, but none hit her. The next thing she saw before she blacked out, someone else arrived on the building the shooters were on and attacked them.
It almost felt like a short time passed by before she woke up once more. When she was coming to, the first thing she felt was someone repeatedly, lightly, slapping her cheek, waking her up.
"Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey," she repeatedly heard. A groan escaped from her mouth, causing the person slapping her and calling her to stop doing so. "Are you coming to?"
"Yeah... I am..." she forced out of her mouth. Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was a big man's face.
Assuming the worst, she did what her instincts told her to do; deliver an uppercut. The punch she gave knocked the guy back with a sharp "Ouch!". She rose herself to her feet as the man moaned. "Oh! ... I'm going to feel that for a few days..." he said with a strained voice.
Upon further inspection, Guren saw she had attacked someone who didn't seem to be one of Itsuki's men, nor was he one of the fake hobos. What gave it away? The slightly obese and muscular mountain of a man with short, bristly black hair and slitted eyes, but no mask. He wore a black, long-sleeved shirt, blue jeans and black tennis shoes. Not a suit like the monster-changed bodyguards, nor rags like the people whose lives were ruined by Itsuki or soon-to-be. He looked like an everyday kind of guy…if guys were so tall, you don't even reach their shoulders.
The guy Guren attacked slowly got up, in which she responded by having her rapier in her hands, ready to fight if need be. He then placed both hands on his head and, with an audible crack, brought his head down to meet her at eye level.
'Who the hell is this guy?!' she wondered, 'Is he a friend or foe?'
"You pack a mean punch for someone so short. But I'm glad you're okay at least," he stated with a soft smile. "Although... I don't think I've seen you before. You certainly don't look like the Shadows here. And you're also not the victim of this Palace's ruler. By the look of the mask and that attire, I'd say you're a Persona user, ain't ya?"
Confused as she was with his observation, Guren kept silent and continued to glare at the man before her, not trusting him one bit.
"Keeping silent, huh? Well, I guess you have the right to remain silent. Even in a world like this, you never know who'd be listening in, whether it be a Shadow, a cognition, or someone else. Believe me, I know. Though, I think you can do better without the rapier. I'm not an enemy."
Despite the claim, Guren tightened her grip on her weapon, keeping her eyes on him.
"Quite a cautious one as well, I see." he chuckled, "I guess if a guy like me suddenly appeared before someone like you, I'd be wary of him, as well. Not a bad trait to have here, especially with what you have."
Guren raised a brow at the last statement, wondering what he meant. The man noticed the expression and said, "I may have seen what you did earlier today. Girl, you're a special one. Most Persona users can only use one Persona at a time. But you? You summoned out two."
'Persona? Does he mean Alanna and that lion?' she wondered.
"I can tell, based on what I saw, that you are new to the Metaverse, like a newborn kitten opening her eyes to the world, not sure of how to navigate here." the man continued, "I'm sure you have many questions about the Metaverse and your newfound powers. I'll be glad to answer all your questions, but first, let's lighten the hostility around here by having you lower your weapon."
Guren's stance and expression remained unchanged. Seeing his words not convincing her, he sighed, "You this high-strung? Come on, little lady. Ease up. I may be big, but I don't do any harm to innocent folks like yourself. Truth be told, I am kind of a softie. Look, how 'bout we start by introducing ourselves to one another. My name is Daichi Suzuki."
'The size is not the problem, adult,' Guren thought, but didn't bother to say out loud. Instead, she just kept her glare at him.
Seeing that he was not at all making progress with Guren, Daichi sighed again and turned. "You know what, I take it back. You're way to cautious for your own good. What's it gonna take for you to-." He stopped talking, as he felt the blade of Guren's rapier poking his neck behind him.
"Don't move," she said at last.
"Oh? So you ain't a mute after all!" Daichi happily said. He let out a short laugh and said, "And her I was, worryin' over nothin'!"
'Worried? An adult? Yeah right,' Guren mentally scoffed.
Once he stopped laughing, he didn't move his head, but his eyes looked back as he followed, "Though I get you find me as an enemy, there's no need for it. After all, by the looks of things, you want to take down the ruler of this Palace. I believe the feller's name is Itsuki Kato." Guren eyes widened at his words. "You're not the only one. This man ruined too many lives and has toyed with half the amount. From what I saw, you're one of them, aren't you?"
Guren looked down at his claim. She couldn't admit he was right, but she couldn't deny it either. Still, she quickly regained herself, keeping her rapier at the man's neck.
"I can help you. See, I've been venturing through the Metaverse for a long, long time." Daichi continued, "I've delved into one cognition to the next, and have tackled dozens of Palaces in my life. I've ventured in his mansion and got through half of it. The problem, here, is other half of the mansion. It's pretty much impossible to continue without the aid of someone else. With my big size, I can only scout so much. The cognitions of people around here ain't gonna help me out. I was pretty much in a pickle till I saw you. You wanna know how to change Itsuki? Then help me out."
Guren looked back up and inched her rapier closer to Daichi. "'Change Itsuki'?" she echoed, "There's no changing him. All I have to do is either make him forget about the debt my uncle and many others 'owed' him and make him fix the lives of those he ruined. Either that, or I'll kill him and put an end to this."
"Now, now. There's no need for that. Especially the killing part." Daichi told her, slowly turning around until he faced her once again, the tip of the rapier pointing at his Adam's apple now. "There is a way you can change him. Not only that, but if you look at it from a malicious point of view, it can make him pay for his crimes."
Though hidden behind her mask, he knew she was interested in hearing what it was. "I'm listening…" she muttered.
"To change Itsuki, we need to attack his Palace. In other words, that mansion over there." Daichi started, pointing his thumb to the said mansion, "Of course, that's easier said than done. It's not as easy as destroying it to smithereens; there are other requirements involved. We must get the Treasure hidden deep within the mansion and defeat Itsuki himself. Trust me, there were times when I tried to sneak treasure out myself, but the ruler of the palace always catch on and then I have to beat 'em close to death. After that, it's just telling them off once they know how tough you are, taking the Treasure, and the Palace will start to disappear."
"And what does the mansion have to do with changing Itsuki?" Guren questioned.
"A Palace is a manifestation of a person's distorted desire. The mansion symbolizes Itsuki's rule over other people. A man living in luxury, while poverty happens all throughout here. If his distorted desires were to disappear, Itsuki's desires would as well. Course, this doesn't make the crimes he committed vanish, but the weight of what he had done will be overwhelming for him, to the point where he turns himself in and rights his own wrongs."
Guren's eyes widened as she heard this explanation. She then narrowed them as she realized, "Why are you telling me so much?"
"As I said, we have the same enemy. If you or someone close to you is being played in Itsuki's debt, I assume it means you're on a time limit. Why else would you come back so soon, apart from sheer curiosity."
He stepped away from Guren almost casually, not even caring about the rapier she had pointing at him, and walked towards the edge of the roof, looking at the mansion. "I've seen people like him during my time as a Phantom Thief and want to stop as many as I could, change as many hearts as possible." he stated, "We both can benefit from each other. With my experience and current knowledge of the mansion, and your unique ability and your petite and nimble figure, I bet we can tackle that Palace, no problem. They do say two heads are better than one, after all."
She didn't want to admit it, but Daichi had a point. Right now, she has less than a week before Itsuki makes a false report on Cafe Leblanc and ruin her family. The only way she could stop him was to be a... Phantom Thief, as Daichi said. He has more experience than her and more knowledge of the palace than she did. Though she didn't trust him, she knew she couldn't clear the mansion alone, not with the possibility of guards around the mansion. "... If I see you try anything stupid, I'll ram my rapier through you," she threatened, sheathing her rapier again.
"Don't worry. I won't," he promised, turning with a gentle smile on his face, "Now then. Let's get going to the mansion."
As the two silently walked over the rooftops to the mansion, Guren kept a watchful eye on Daichi. He was surprisingly light on his feet for a man his size. The man was clearly use to this way of life. Guren had thousands of questions right now, but she wasn't sure if she should ask them or not.
As they were about halfway there from where they started, she finally asked, "So tell me something. If you use a Persona, why do you look so normal, while I look like…this?"
Daichi looked back at her, then answered, "I've trained myself to hide my identity as a threat from the Palace ruler. See, if the ruler of the Palace sees you as a threat, and you awakened to your Persona, that is the kind of look you gain. Call it a symbol of your rebellious spirit that wishes to change the Palace ruler's heart. But with it, you can fight the Shadows here."
"So this look demonstrates my rebellious nature, huh?" she asked, looking at her clothing again, "And I do remember fighting with those Persona characters of mine. Well, I do look good in it, that's for sure."
"True, though I have seen looks that are much prettier, and still as inconspicuous." he pointed out, leaping to the next roof.
"Hey, were you dissing me?!" she asked angrily, racing after him. He only answered with a laugh.
"So, while we're on the topic, you called those guys of Itsuki's Shadows. Mind elaborating on that?" she asked him.
"Shadows are basically the residence of this world. Creatures formed from people's hearts." the man explained, looking down to see a couple passing by, "They come in all kinds of forms. Some easy to take down like the ones you dealt with. Others are far more dangerous than them, and far out of your league. That's why it's best to avoid a fight if possible, but if you want the experience, then go for it."
"I…think I'll save the fighting for when I need the energy." Guren cautiously decided, avoiding the notice of the Shadow guards.
It took a while, but the two arrived at the entrance to the mansion. Guren noticed there were no snow at the building; the trees had leaves, the bushes and shrubs had flowers growing, it was the exact opposite of what was going on to the rest of the cognitive world. And it made her sick, knowing how highly Itsuki thought of himself.
"It's sick to look at, ain't it?" Daichi asked her.
"Why do people like him think this way, I have no idea." Guren growled, "Then again, I don't know many adults who don't think this way."
"Well, I know several who aren't this high and mighty about themselves." Daichi stated, walking away, "Come on. I know where to go to get inside this guys' Palace. Follow me."
She followed Daichi to the right of the gates. The big guy moved some rather loose bars over, making room for them to cross over, especially for himself. The two stayed in the shadows the trees and bushes provided for them, hiding from the sight of some guards. Daichi looked back and placed a finger on his lip, indicating Guren to stay silent, in which she nodded to as they both snuck past the men.
They got to the side of the building, by a low window with a dark room, in contrast to most of the lit-up house. Daichi licked his hand before placing it on a glass part. He lifted his hand from it, revealing a loose, circular hole in the window. After removing it, he reached in and unlocked their way in. When their secret entrance was open, Daichi gestured Guren to enter first, in which she did, and he followed her in.
Guren saw the room they had entered was a basement filled with crates, cages and drapes, but no door. "I assume there's a secret entrance of some sort in here?" she asked as he positioned the glass back in place again.
"You guess right," Daichi answered, moving one crate to reveal a switch. With one flick, a hidden door opened up in the wall, revealing a set of stairs going up. "Ladies first." he gestured to her.
"No, I insist." Guren retorted, not taking a step towards the stairs. She was not intending to have him walk from behind in a narrow passageway as this. Daichi chose not to argue, and went up first, followed by Guren.
For the most part, the journey was pretty much the same. The two of them sneaking around the mansion with Daichi leading and revealing hidden switches along the way. Some revealed secret passages, some triggered traps, some deactivated whatever security system they ran into. Mind you, they didn't activate all the switches; Daichi was explaining to Guren the differences between each of them, for if and when she dare enter a Palace alone. And though Guren didn't want to admit it, they were good lessons he was giving her. She was learning a lot about being a Phantom Thief.
Eventually, they arrived at a normal-looking and snuck in. Upon entering, Guren saw the room distort from what seemed like a small library to a meeting room of sort.
"This is what's called the safe room," Daichi muttered. "Here, as you may have noticed, this part of the mansion is kind of distorted with how it really is in the real world. That means the cognition here is weak, and the Shadows won't come in here. We can catch our breaths, or just return to the real world and come back later. "
"Why not finish the other half of the Palace now?" Guren demanded, annoyed by being halted from continuing onward.
"As much as I admire your dedication, it must be getting late right now. I may not have anything planned, but I'm sure you have something to do tomorrow. Friends and family might worry about you if you don't return to the real world." Guren looked down, thinking on how exactly right he was. He wasn't gonna let Makoto or the rest of her family worry about her again. Plus, she didn't want to involve them with something this dangerous. This was something she and she alone should do.
"Don't worry, we can continue this later." he assured her, "You may be on the clock, but you still have some time, don't you? Time before Itsuki does what he said he'll do."
"Yeah. Five days to go after today." she answered, feeling the regret to giving up today, "Fine. I'll come back at night. Meet you at the entrance."
"Sounds like an idea," he agreed. With that, the two rushed out the mansion the same way they came in and went their separate ways. Daichi left Guren's side as she used her app to return to the real world once more.
Throughout the day, instead of working in Leblanc, in which Sojiro closed for the day for reasons, Guren brought her keyboard to Shibuya, hoping to make some money playing some songs there. She would've spent the day sleeping in or finding another job, but how could she do either when she had to worry about what Itsuki would do and with her reputation? Besides, playing music helps her relax and think better anyway.
It was the middle of the afternoon when she was still playing her piano. When she was playing a couple of songs earlier, she didn't think she'll be making much. One look at the keyboard case right by her, though, and she was proven wrong. Not only that, she was also getting the attention of many people walking by. Good attention filled with impressed looks and awe, like at Cafe Leblanc. Seeing this made her relax even more.
After Guren finished playing a song, she decided to stop there for the day, especially after seeing the amount of yen she made for the day. Everyone applauded for her performance, in which she bowed in response. While some wanted an encore, she said she had prior engagements to take care of. Some left her some more money as they left, in which she was extremely grateful for.
"Well, so much for going to study." a familiar voice caught Guren's ears as she put her instrument away. Looking up, she saw Makoto looking down at her.
"Makoto? What are you doing here?" she asked, standing up with her keyboard case and stand on her back.
"Well, I was planning on going to the library to study, when I heard a familiar piano music on my way there." Makoto answered, smiling.
Guren blushed a bit as she felt guilty for distracting her best friend with her music. However, that was the least of her worries as Makoto leaned close to her and, for some reason, whispered, "Don't ask questions and follow my lead."
Hearing that confused Guren, for she never heard her best friend say anything that urgent before. Next she knew, Makoto grabbed her by the hand and dragged her away from the area.
"Wha-?! Makoto?!" she gasped. When she was about to ask her why she was dragging her, she heard a slight scream behind her and looked. Imagine her shock and rage when she saw Itsuki tailing them. "That guy again?!" Guren questioned. Part of her wanted to confront the man, but that part was being pulled along by Makoto as she tightened her grip on her, and picked up speed till she was running side-by-side with her best friend.
"I made sure to see what he looked like online just in case." Makoto explained as they ran, "I saw him watching you as I was approaching. He's definitely keeping an eye on you."
"So not only is he a journalist, he's a stalker?!" Guren questioned, "That guy so deserves to get his butt whooped by your aikido. Although, knowing him, he might turn that into a story about you assaulting an innocent civilian."
"He's that twisted?!" Makoto questioned in horror.
'The word 'distorted' more fits his description.' Guren thought, thinking about his desires.
Both teens were avoiding civilians as they ran, trying their best to lose the crazy reporter chasing them. It wasn't easy, but they managed to lose him in a large crowd. Guren and Makoto were currently in a fast food place called Big Bang Burger, taking a breather from all the running they had done.
"I never thought I'd get in another chase with you," the soon Council President said, for this wasn't the first time this had happened.
"I never thought I'd have to get in a chase two days after being let out of jail," Guren added, "And it was your sister who always told me to stay out of trouble. Never really works, since it always comes to me." Both girls laughed at the fact... which was then interrupted by stomach growl... from Guren's stomach.
"You skipped breakfast and didn't have lunch yet?" Makoto asked in an amused tone, knowing full well this was not the first time she had done this.
"You know me so well," an embarrassed Guren reply.
"Well, least we picked the right place to rest." her BF pointed out, "You want me to treat you? I know you need that money for more important things."
When Guren was about to answer, from the corner of her eyes, she saw a familiar woman ordering take out at the front. Her eyes widened when she realize it was the very same woman from back in Itsuki's cognitive world.
"You okay?" Makoto asked, noticing Guren's expression.
"I-I'm okay. Sorry." she apologized, "Why don't you get us something to go, okay? I'll meet up with you in a second."
While Makoto went to get a couple of their burgers to go, Guren, recalling the situation the woman was in, took out some money from her case and wordlessly approached the woman.
"Excuse me," she called, getting her attention. Guren paused for a second, then placed the money she pulled out, and placed it in front of her, much to her confusion. "Here. Take it." she told her, "Something tells me you'll be needing it more than I do." Without waiting for a response, she went back to her as Makoto watched her from afar, seeing what she had done.
"Guren. What...?" Makoto tried to ask.
"Sorry, Makoto. I just realized, I still haven't gotten myself prepared for school." she lied, "It's starting in a couple of days. I should at least get that done before I make money. Besides…" She looked back at the lady, who was watching Guren from afar, and mentally added, "I know she's going through a similar case as my family. One I hope to free her of, as well."
The second Guren got home, she dropped everything in her room, bringing only her smartphone, and raced out of her room. She headed to the area where she knew she would be close to the mansion in the other world. She readied the app on her smartphone, muttering, "I am so serious about changing that Itsuki's heart, now! That big guy better give me more info on this place, or I'm gonna scream in the middle of that mansion to lure those Shadows in myself!" She activated the app, and after enduring the distortions, she found herself right in front of the mansion, just as she planned. She already knew her attire had changed, so she ignored it.
"You're early," a voice spoke, and Daichi appeared out of nowhere right next to her, still wearing the same civilian clothing.
"That's my line," she replied.
"I never left. The Metaverse is my home." Daichi stated, spreading his arms out to the surrounding, "Now then, what say we get back to business?" Guren nodded in response, and the two went back into the mansion once more.
Like last time, as they searched and snuck through the whole building, Daichi was giving Guren more lessons. This time, he went into more details about Personas and Shadows.
Guren learned that Shadows can't instantly be defeated by a simply sneak attack. If she wanted to defeat them, she had to do it properly and fight them. There was a way to instantly kill them by ripping their mask off, but she had to be much stronger than the level she was now, and better trained, as well.
As for the Personas, which were the incarnation of their rebellious soul, just like the clothes she wore, she learned that they can be summoned if she called upon them from her mask. Despite this, even though she was able to summon out her knight Persona, Alanna, for some reason, the lion Persona wasn't responding to her command, mainly because she didn't know its name. Daichi questioned why she never asked the lion for its' name. She tried, but got no response, so she just decided to learn as time went on.
She also learned that both Personas and Shadows have their own elements and weaknesses to some of those elements, which meant she had to play smart around foes her Persona would be at a disadvantage against, for it would also mean she would be at a disadvantage against them. Fortunately, Daichi had some elemental items that, when used on a foe, cause all kinds of damage. He gave Guren one of each of the following; a Flame Bottle, a Frozen Spray, an Air Cannon, and a Stun Gun. She decided to use them wisely, and only use them when in a dire situation.
Both the learning and physical experience were doing her a lot of good for her, especially with the progress they were making. At some point, however, they arrived at what seemed to be the ball room and saw quite a handful of guards below them, all standing in front of a door.
"Well, Senpai, what are we gonna do now?" Guren whispered.
"Let me ask you this, first. Have you ever used a firearm of any kind before?" Daichi asked out of nowhere.
"I played sniper video games, if that counts," Guren answered, wondering where he was going with this.
"Good enough." All of a sudden, he handed her a sniper rifle. "One of my friends gave this to me for safety, even though I'm not that good with these sort of guns. But it's the best thing that can help us in this case." Guren looked perplexed as she looked at the large gun in her hands. It was clearly a model, based on how light it was.
"Where the heck did you get something like this from." she asked, knowing she didn't see the sniper rifle anywhere on him when she met up with Daichi. So where in the world…?
"Long story. In any case, you should shoot at one of them and get their attention. After that, I'll get down there and distract those guys. Take the shot when you see the chance."
'He's totally avoiding the question,' she thought with a slight sweat drop. She looked at the rifle again, then added, "This thing is way too light to be a real sniper rifle."
"Never mind that. Just shoot it, and you'll see what happens." Daichi assured her, and he slowly walked away.
Letting the matter pass, she lied down on the floor, setting the gun in place. From the scope, she could see she had a good aim of one of the Shadows. Looking back at Daichi, who was silently making his way to the other side of the terrace, where the guards were, she saw him nod at her, confirming that he was ready to go at any time. Nodding back, she looked into the scope once more and pulled the trigger.
BANG!
With a loud 'bang', much to Guren's shock, a bullet was shot out of the firearm and made its way straight into the Shadow's head. The rest of the Shadows looked at their direction and took out their own guns. Before they had a chance to fire, Daichi dropped in on them... literally for one of them. The remaining three changed into their true forms, consisting of the Genbu, Silky and Kelpie.
For someone who was suppose to be a Persona user, Daichi was doing quite well against the trio of monsters with his bare hands. He managed to punch the Kelpie's head into the ground, dazing it, and avoided getting struck by an icy attack from the Silky. Guren knew he wasn't going to handle the three of them alone.
She aimed her next bullet at the Genbu's main head and fired. Like before, the bullet struck true and killed off the two-headed Shadow.
The Kelpie regained itself, and noticed the second shot and charged right at hidden teen. Luckily for her, she was prepared for it. Her hand on her rapier, she instantly took the blade out, avoiding the creature's charge attack as she did so, and jammed it right through the eyes, causing it to scream in pain and dissipate. As soon as it disappeared, she sheathed her rapier back and returned to her sniping position.
As she saw Daichi handling himself against the Silky, she also saw the Shadow he landed on earlier revealing its true form, a Saki Mitama. She quickly took aim and fired yet another headshot, knocking it down and out.
By that time, Daichi was done with his opponent, punching the lady Shadow so hard, she slammed into a column and disappeared into nothingness. The big guy looked around for more opponents. Upon seeing the coast was clear of all enemies, he gave Guren the okay signal. The girl took the sniper rifle in her arms and joined him down below.
"Wow. You're really good with that thing. And that's an understatement," he commented. "I saw all your shots. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're a natural sniper."
Guren was quite flattered at the compliments and looked away, blushing slightly. "I still can't believe this thing was working like a real gun." she pointed out, examining the gun in her hands.
"This is a cognitive world. As long as the Shadows believe it's a real gun, then it acts like a real one." Daichi stated, "In the end, Shadows are simple-minded creatures who don't know any better."
"Wow. That's a pretty handy thing bit of info right there." Guren stated, handing Daichi back the gun, in which he pushed back to her.
"Keep it. Like I said, I'm not good with a sniper rifle. And you're a natural at it," he told her.
With a nod, she placed her new weapon over her shoulder. It took a moment before she realized the weapon suddenly felt like it wasn't there anymore, and looked to see it vanished. "How did it…" she started.
"I still have trouble figuring that out." Daichi answered, waving off the sudden disappearance of the weapon, "All I know is that if you need it, it appears in your hands. Just a cognitive world thing."
"I get the gun being real thing, but it disappearing and reappearing is just weird." Guren muttered.
They both looked at the door the Shadows were protecting. Both went on different sides of the door. Daichi took the lead once more, slowly and silently opening the door to a clear hallway.
After that, the two didn't have any difficulty with any Shadows they had to fight against. Basically, Guren would be swift enough to rip off the masks to start their fight. Once it starts, Daichi would be, in RPG classifications, the tank of the pair, distracting the enemies while Guren provides support either with her sniping skills or with her swift and precise strikes. All in all, the pair were quite a force to be reckon with.
There were also times during their continuing search that there were places Daichi couldn't get through due to his size, and had to talk Guren through with what she had to do.
The first was when they had to get past lasers across the hall, with the switch being on the other side. So to say... it was not at all fun for Guren. Especially since the lasers weren't warning lasers. Why was that the problem? She may have accidentally tripped on her feet and almost fell face-first into a laser. ALMOST! Girl managed to save herself by using her sniper rifle as a pole for support and kept her distance from the red light.
Next one was when they had to open up a security locked door. According to the map Daichi had with him, there was a way to the control room, which was on the other side of the door, and it was through the vent. It was easier than the lasers, that was for certain, except when she had to fight the Shadows alone.
Long story short... it was a tough battle. That time, she was facing a Succubus and an Incubus. They were both tough opponents and had incredible teamwork. Guren was close to losing, had she not remember that Shadows have a weakness. And fortunately for her, her Persona could use a Bless spell called Hama, weakening the Incubus while she shot at the Succubus with her sniper rifle, also greatly weakening her. After that, she finished the two off and deactivated the door, giving Daichi access to the other side. He had a couple of things called Life Stones, instructing her on how they could heal her, which she did.
Later on, after going through all those trials and tribulations, the two of them finally arrived at their one destination.
"This is the room?" Guren asked her mentor. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she was starting to warm up to Daichi, realizing he was not like most adults in the world.
"Yeah," he answered. "The one room Itsuki's treasure has to be in; the study hall." He looked at the map and said, "According to this map, this is the last room of this mansion. If the treasure's not in there, then that has to mean there's a secret room somewhere that we don't know of yet. Let's hope that's not the case, since it took me a long while to find those other secrets before."
"Well, with my luck, it's more than likely we have to do more searching." Guren warned him, "Let's just pray this isn't one of my bad luck moments." At that, the two barged into the room.
Within the study hall, there was no sign of life. Books and written reports were scattered everywhere. Pictures of people and places were hung, stapled, or taped on the walls or in the books. Guren even noticed some files scattered about. But one thing that caught her attention the most was a cloud of some sort.
"There it is," she heard Daichi muttered, grinning at the sight of it.
"That's the treasure?" she asked, confused. When she thought treasure, she was expecting something more than just a cloud.
The big guy noticed her confusion. "Oh yeah. Final lesson of the day. A ruler's treasure is basically the source of their desires. It doesn't have a physical form at the moment. As such, the treasure itself won't take a form unless the person is consciously aware of their desires being stolen."
"So in other words, unless if we make the treasure materialize, all we did was scout the whole mansion for nothing," Guren summed up, slightly irritated.
"Oh! You catch on fast! That's good!" Daichi answered, patting her shoulder, though with enough strength to make her knees buckle.
Ignoring the compliment, she then asked, "So how are we going to materialize it? I don't suppose telling him 'we're gonna steal your desires' is gonna do any good, right?"
"As a matter of fact, it will." he answered
Guren was shocked to hear she was right, and questioned, "Wait, I was right about that?! Okay, how are we gonna do that? Tell him directly?"
"Not exactly." Daichi answered, "Tell me, have you ever watched tv shows involving phantom thieves? You know the ones who like to send calling cards, warning people of what they are gonna steal?" The teen nodded at the adult's question. "That's what we're going to do to Itsuki. We'll send him a calling card, make him aware that his inner desires are at risk, and soon enough, the treasure will come to be. However... when we send him the card, we only have a short span of time while it is materialized. At the very best, twenty-four hours."
Feeling slightly pressured, Guren nodded at the risk they would be taking with the calling card.
"All right. We've secured the infiltration route. All that's left is to write up that card, get it to Itsuki without him knowing who it was from, and then, we finish the mission," Daichi said. "Do you want to do the honors?"
Guren's eyes widened slightly at his question. "W-What?"
"The calling card. This clearly means more to you than it does to me. Especially if you were willing to give up some money for a soon-to-be ruined mother, when you may need it just as much, if this fails. I can give you some ideas to write down on that card, but I'll leave it up to you to make it look good and send it discreetly. So... what do you say?"
The girl didn't know what to say. He was right in saying that changing Itsuki's heart meant a lot to her, but even so, it was a big responsibility. One she'll gladly take. "I-I'll do it!" she answered with confidence.
Daichi smiled at her response and nodded. "In that case, write up a good one. If I recall, Itsuki is a reporter. And from the looks of where this mansion is located in the real world, this must be a news corporation. I suggest after you make that card, you send it to their mailbox somehow." Guren nodded in understanding.
With their next plan set, the two of them exited the mansion. "I'll see you during the theft." Daichi told her, and walked off into the cold streets beyond. Guren used her smartphone to return to the real world once more, and made her way back home.
As soon as she arrived in her apartment, Guren realized something. "Wait a second... How did he know about what I did for that woman?" she wondered. After a while, her stomach growled, and she answered, "No time for that. I'm starving."
Next time: Mia & Haneru, a.k.a Pixie & Kong, now venture into Oda's Palace in search for the Treasure. In there, Kong learns of the reason around Oda's hatred for his father, and as the preparations begin for changing his heart, Nikolo becomes suspicious about Haneru's sudden change of personality, and wonders what he is doing. Will the mother & son pair be able to steal Oda's Treasure, and change his heart?