Chapter 9: Going back to the Castle of Lust

Kagura's POV

"He knows!" That's what i was thinking the whole time. I was in class and i couldn't concentrate because of Kamoshida. That bastard is no joke, i wasn't expecting him to know about "That". No one should know about it. The moment classes are over, I'll run to the entrance and go to his Palace to torture his Shadow and make him kiss my shoes and lick my toes before i steal his treasure. Akira and Ryuji had it worst though. They are going to be expelled in the next board meeting and that would be... In May. We don't have that much time. I wait patiently until school was over. The bell ringed and i grab my bag and leave, i almost run away from the classroom. On my way to the entrance, i found Akira and Ryuji in the courtyard.

"I thought that i say entrance, not courtyard" I said to them. Morgana was there too. Looks like they were talking to each other.

"We were just talking" Said Morgana. "Ryuji want to beat up Kamoshida's Shadow. I told him that he can't"

"True, you can't... Because i will" I said and everyone looked at me. "Remember when i told you that simply stealing his treasure isn't enough? Ryuji interrupted me so I couldn't tell you much. We need the Shadow to repent too. If we simply steal his treasure, the Palace will collapse and the Shadow will go down with it. The Shadow don't need to die, we can force him to repent... We'll fight his Shadow, but first, we need to find his treasure"

"I see" Said Ryuji. "Hey. It's as difficult as it sounds?"

"That depends on the Palace and it's ruler, but the tricky part is always the same, search for the treasure. Just do as i say and everything will go fine"

"Alright. I'll be counting on you" Said Ryuji. "With you on our side, it shouldn't be that difficult"

"Is it true that you're getting expelled?" I heard a voice from behind. I turn around and saw a blonde girl. I knew her, she was Ann Takamaki. It was hard to miss thanks to the rumors about her and Kamoshida. "Everyone's talking about it..."

"That asshole's at it again...!" Ryuji curse Kamoshida. "So you came all this way to tell us that?"

"If you're going to deal with Kamoshida... Let me in on it too" She said. "I can't just sit back and do nothing after what happened to Shiho!"

"Not a chance" I said to her. "This has nothing to do with you... Get lost"

"But it does! Shiho's my-"

"Didn't you heard her!? Don't get in our way!" Ryuji yells at Ann. Ann looks down and ran away.

"That was harsh" Said Morgana.

"We don't have time to deal with Takamaki" I said. "Besides. We can't take her with us. It'll be stupid, she'll get in our way"

"I hope that she doesn't torment herself over this... When it comes down to it, women don't hesitate" Said Morgana. I look down for a moment and sigh.

"Alright, let's go. We can't just stand here like idiots" We leave the courtyard and exit the school. We hide in the alley in front of the school gates.

"The moment we cross over, we'll treat each other like Phantom Thieves, so I hope you're ready" Said Morgana

"But don't get too excited about it" I said. "It's only temporary"

"I know, but it does sound cool. You come up with this name, Kagura?" Ryuji asks me.

"... Yes, it wasn't that difficult. I just wanted something that sounded cool and kinda menacing" I remember the moment i come up with the name, i have to give part of the credit to Makoto and her fear of ghost.

"Alright. So we open the app and we just gotta say the school, Kamoshida's name and... castle? Then we end up in bizarro world" Said Ryuji.

"Correct" I said.

"How the hell's all this work? Someone make it?" Ryuji asks and something come to my mind... How do they have that app? Does Philemon give them the app? If Ryuji was asking who made it, then he didn't meet Philemon and i bet Akira didn't meet him either, so he must have given them the app to help me...? I don't know, but for the moment, only Philemon could have done this... What is he planning?

"I don't know and right now it doesn't matter" Said Akira. "Maybe some creepy old man with a long nose did it, or a god trying to make money with it. I don't care"

"True. There's no point in thinking about it now... We'll show that effin' Kamoshida!"

"Let's go" I take out my phone, open the app and say the keywords. "Suguru Kamoshida... Shujin Academy... Castle" The app find the location and take us right there. I see the school disappearing and being replaced by a giant castle. I saw surprise to see this kind of castle replacing the school. I saw crazy shit in the Metaverse, some crazier than others, but this was in my top 5 around the third place. The first one was an abyss... No kidding, a literal abyss in the middle of Shinjuku. Nothing can top that one. I walk to the castle and scratch my head.

"... It's bigger than i was expecting" I said.

"Kagura... Your clothes" Said Ryuji. I look down, it was my usual clothes for the Metaverse.

"What about them?"

"N-Nothing, I wasn't expecting that kind of clothes. That mask is freaking me out, you know..." Ryuji looks at me from head to toes. "By the way... Can you even fight in that skirt?"

"I like to fight in style. The skirt won't get in the way" I look at both, Akira and Ryuji. Their clothes were cooler than i was expecting, especially Akira. He looked like an Anime thief and Ryuji looked like a thug. "Anyway, you too look good on those clothes, i won't deny that. Alright, this is what we are going to-"

"What is this!?" Ann appears behind us. Looks like she got sucked up with us in the transition between worlds.

"T-Takamaki!?" Ryuji said

"I can't believe this" I said

"That voice... Sakamoto!? And... are you Akira-kun!?" Ann looks ar Akira and then to me. "Who are you!?"

"There's no need for you to know, you're leaving now" I grab her arm and take her out of the Metaverse.

"Hey! I'm not leaving! What's going on? Where are we!? Isn't this the school!?" Ann asked me all those questions in less than a second. "Is THIS related to Kamoshida!?"

"Like i said, there's no need for you to know" I take her to the alley where the distortion ended and push her out. "Go home!"

"That was kinda harsh, you know?" Said Morgana.

"We don't need someone like her with us. She'll be dead before she even knows it" I said.

"We better be careful with that app" Said Ryuji.

"It's the first time i drag someone else to the Metaverse. She must've been really close to getting sucked in" I explain. It was certainly unexpected.

"Geez, Takamaki found out right when we were startin' off... We gotta deal with this fast!" Said Ryuji.

"Calm down. Reaching the treasure can't be done in a day. Palaces are always full of traps, labyrinths, puzzles, etc. Not to mention the Shadows that are inside" I look at the castle, i could hear the Shadows running around inside.

"The Shadows have noticed us. You better brace yourself, got it?" Said Morgana. He turns to Akira. "We are counting on you, Joker!"

"... Joker? That a nickname?" Ryuji asks.

"Don't refer to it in such a lame way. It's a code name" Said Morgana. "What kind of stupid Phantom Thief would use their name!? I'm not down for that! And there's no telling what kind of effect yelling our real names will have on the Palace... It's just a precaution"

"So he's Joker... What about you?" Ryuji asks me. I sigh and reveal my codename to them.

"... Clown"

"Pfff..." Ryuji was trying so hard to not laugh but fail miserably. "Hahahaha, Clown!?"

"Laugh all you want Sakamoto... Once we are done with this, i will kick your ass so hard you won't be able to sit down for your entire life" I say to him with a smile hiding my anger. "Did I make myself clear?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am"

"... So you like your codename?" Morgana asks Akira.

"Huh... Not bad" He said

"It's settled then. Next up is you, Ryuji. You'll be... Let's see... Thug" Say Morgana and i laugh at him.

"Are you picking a fight with me!? I'll choose it myself! Hey, stop laughing, Clown!" Ryuji yells at me, but i didn't care. "Hm... When it comes to me, it's gotta be this mask"

"... So, Skull?" I ask. "Not bad"

"Yeah! I'm Skull... What about Morgana?" He asks.

"Well... We actually didn't think on one for him. We run around in Mementos the last couple of months, so it was not really a reason for him to have a codename... He gives me one though..." I explain.

"Alright, let's see... How about Mona?" Ryuji asks Morgana. He nodded.

"Well, if Clown thinks is easier to call me like that, then i'll go with it. All right, from here on out, we're, Clown, Joker, Skull and Mona. We need to be absolutely thorough about using those code names from now on!"

"All right! Let's go nab this Treasure thing!" Said Ryuji.

"Now that all this is out of the way, i'm explaining to you what we'll do" I take out a walkie-talkie and give it to Joker. "We are going for separate ways, mostly because you need to train your Personas and i'll get on the way. I'll go around and find another entrance, if something comes up, call me and i'll go right where you are"

"Wait, you are not coming with us?" Ryuji asks.

"I told you. I'll get in your way. For the moment, Joker will be in charge of the group, i'll go alone for now. Remember, call me if something happens" I saw my way in. A couple of boxes laying on a corner, above them was a road of stairs that leads to a window. I run to the boxes and jump as hard as i can to reach the stairs. I grab the border and impulse me with my hand. Obviously, i can't do any of this in the real world. All this is thanks to my Persona and the fact that this world doesn't care about the laws of physics. I run through the stairs and slowly open the window and enter the castle...

Akira's POV

We saw Kagura... I mean Clown, jump to the stairs and enter the castle through a window. I didn't saw that as an entrance, she obviously knows more than us. She's more experienced in this. I turn to Ryuji and Morgana.

"Is she going to be okay by herself?" I ask Morgana.

"Don't worry about her, we should focus on finding our way through the castle. We'll eventually find her on our way. Remember, if we have problems then call her and she'll go to us" Said Morgana and we enter the Palace through the ventilation shaft.

Ann's POV

I was taking out of that weird castle. I was confused, i didn't know what was happening. That girl pushes me out of that place and i appear again in front of the school. It wasn't a castle anymore. I walk again to the alley and try to find a way back to that weird castle, but there was nothing. I must've looked stupid to the students walking around, i was walking in circles and moving my arms trying to find a way back, but nothing. My phone vibrates, i take out and find something weird on it. An app appears in my phone, it looked so weird. It was a red eye with a star in the middle... Or think it was an eye. It was so out of place. The app opens itself and looked like a navigation app. I remember what Sakamoto said... And i repeat it...

"School, Shujin Academy?... Kamoshida... And... Castle?" I said and the App react.

"Candidate found. Beginning Navigation..." Said the app and everything around my start to distort itself. I saw the school changing and a Castle appear in it's place. I didn't know what to think anymore at this point.

"This is that place from earlier..." I said. I look at my phone, that app was still active. "What's up with this app? I just said the words Sakamoto said, and I ended up-"

"Princess?" Someone said. I look up and saw a soldier with a big armor. "Princess!" He said and run after me. I didn't stand there, i just run away from him.

"Aaaah!"

Kagura's POV

I run through the corridor of the second floor of the castle. I had my hook sword ready for any enemy that tries to take me down. I stop in a corner and saw a Shadow guarding the door at the end of the corridor. I could kill it in many ways, but I decided to just simply walk toward him. I show myself in front of him and slowly walk toward him. He saw me and told me to stay where I was, I didn't obey him, I just keep walking he runs toward me, which was a big mistake from him. As soon I had him in my space, I jump on top of him and with my swords destroy his mask. I stab him and my swords went through him like he was made of liquid or air. I jump away from him and he takes the form of a succubus. I didn't let her take a chance to attack me, instead of using my Persona, I decided to take it out myself, I need to conserve energy. I jump at her and swing my blades, I cut her wings and she falls to the ground hitting her head. She looks up at me while I point at her with a gun, a Pfeifer-Zeliska .600 Nitro Express Magnum. It was so big that makes the Shadow sweat in an instant and beg for her life.

"P-Please, don't do it" The Succubus said. I smile at her like a crazy person and pull the trigger. With only one bullet, I destroy her head completely and the body disintegrates.

"Every time I fire this thing... It's so fucking awesome, but it also hurts... Totally worth it" I was having a good time when I make them explode with this gun. I don't use it that often because Morgana told me to not do it in front of him. He said I freak him out. I walk to the door and open it, I found myself in place that looked like a church, there was a statue of Kamoshida at the end of the room. I wanted to spit on that thing. A large group of Shadows surrounded me and prepare to attack me. I wait for them to make their move, they all jumped at me to kill me. I take out my mask and summon Kuma Lisa. With one word it was all over. "Magrydyne" Every single Shadow was crushed against the floor by an unknown force. It was a Gravity skill, basically, gravity itself crush them toward the floor. Kuma Lisa has control over a lot of elements at this point. She was strong to all attacks but weak against physical attack. She was extremely powerful, but it was weak against any basic attack. That is why I always make sure to keep my distance and kill all the Shadows before they could attack me. One physical attack and I was done for... I was more fragile than I looked like. Not to mention that my levels of stamina are low, I have to be careful on how I use my abilities, when I use it and how much I use it. But sometimes I just let myself go... All the Shadows were dead and I look for a way to keep going. Looks like the only way out was up. There was another floor in the same room.

"I see... A way out" I whisper and summon Kuma Lisa again. "Gravity Shift" I said and Kuma Lisa makes everything in the room to float. I go up and landed on the next floor. As soon I landed, the effect ended and everything falls to the ground. "This place is big... But easier than i thought..."

Akira's POV

We've been inside the palace for at least 15 minutes. There were more Shadows than i was expecting. As soon we fight our first Shadow, i learn that i can recruit them and make them my Personas. It was odd, weird, but useful. Still, i have to convince them to join and i try it again on the others, but they proved to be very difficult to deal with... And quite stubborn. We stop for a moment when we find a Safe Room, a place where Shadows can't find us. We enter and talk about our progress.

"Aren't there even more Shadows here than before?" Ryuji asks me.

"I was thinking the same thing" I said.

"Just gettin' this far's been a real pain in my ass!"

"It's all because you guys provoked Kamoshida, you know" Said Morgana. "Still... He seems to be awfully on guard... I hope Clown's okay. I shouldn't be worrying though. I'm sure she can handle this"

"Anyways, how're we supposed to steal that Treasure thing?" Ryuji ask

"Don't be so hasty. First, we'll need to secure an infiltration route" Said Morgana

"... A what?"

"A path to the Treasure's location. But honestly, I think we'll need a little more manpower in order to accomplish this. Call Clown, tell her to come back and help us. Ask her if she's near the Treasure while you're at it" Morgana said to me. I grab the walkie-talkie and call her.

"Clown? Where are you?" I ask and wait for her to answer me. After a couple of seconds, she answers.

"Well... How do i put this? I think i'm near the Treasure, but something is blocking my way there" She said.

"It's an enemy?" Morgana asked.

"Not really... The Treasure is in the tower and there's no way to enter so I might need to climb it. My Persona can take me to a window, but after that, I'll have to walk. She can't take me to the top. How about you?"

"Not that good" I said. "There's a lot of Shadows here. We might need you after all"

"... Ugh, fine" She said and didn't talk for a couple of seconds. "I'll go back to the entrance and reunite with you there. Try to not die on your way there... See you in 5 minutes"

"At least we can rely on her for this" Said Morgana. We heard the Shadows talking outside of the Safe Room.

"Still, why was the princess in such an odd place...?" One of them say.

"Princess?" Ryuji ask.

"I could have sworn we were pursuing the readings of an intruder..."

"It doesn't matter now. We must take her back to King Kamoshida!"

"... Who's this princess they're talking about?" Ryuji asks and Morgana goes outside.

"I should probably look into this!" Morgana leaves the room.

"Hey, stuff like the castle and that navigation app are mysterious... But Morgana's got 'em both beat" Said Ryuji.

"It's Mona... But yes. What is he exactly? He keeps saying he's human, but something about hi seems off. Well, he did say he don't really remember, so I'll give him the benefit of doubt"

"So you trust in him?"

"Kind of. If not, we can trust in Clown. She seems to know how all this works. How long she's been doing this?"

"I don't know, but if we success she might actually say something" Morgana came back, worried.

"This is bad!" He said. "Your friend... Ann Takamaki! She's been taken by Shadows!"

"Wait, what!? Clown send her home earlier" Said Ryuji.

"If Ann does indeed have the app, it could be possible" Morgana explain. It was the only logical explanation.

"Oh no... Don't tell me it got put on hers just like mine!? Dammit! We let her out for her own safety, and she just came back in by herself!"

"Let's go! We need to save her!" I said and get out of the room. As soon we get out, a Shadow was waiting for us in the corridor. "We'll fight our way to her!"

Kagura's weapons were a little difficult to come up with. I go with the Magnum (Pfeifer-Zeliska .600 Nitro Express) as her gun and the Shuang Gou (Chinese Hook Swords) as her main weapon, mainly because i wanted weapons that are not that usual. You don't see that many Hook Swords and about that Magnum... It's so Ridiculously big and over the top that i felt that i should actually put it.

Also, i will answer some questions, now that i'm here. Because i can see that some of you might ask it later, if not... Well, i did it anyway.

1-Kagura is as smart as Makoto

2- Kagura's Confidant will take a while to start

3- Morgana does not fall in love for Ann. I find it kinda pointless, Teddie was funnier in that aspect. (Also, i wanted Morgana to be a girl. Mostly because of the name and the fact that he's voiced by a woman in both Japanese and English. And i was debating if i should make him a girl for this fanfic but i said... Screw it, maybe next time)

4-Kamoshida is an ASSHOLE and deserve to DIE! (We all know that, but i just wanted to say it)

5- Morgana will stay with Akira. It's essential to the plot after all... And he needs to GO TO SLEEP. Once in a while :D

6- I find it weird that no one is asking me about Philemon in the story and why i put him in :P (I just wanted to point it out. Philemon should appear again in the next games. I kinda miss the guy)

7- When Kamoshida mentions the "Accident"... (You'll need to keep reading if you want to find out)

PLEASE, LEAVE A REVIEW :D ¡Nos vemos mañana!