6/9 - Afternoon - Gekkoukan High School - Kotone

Kotone knocked on the door of Director Ikutsuki's office. "Kirijo-senpai, you called us?"

"Come in," Mitsuru's voice rang from the inside of the room. Kotone opened the door and led Yukari and Junpei in.

The room was pretty barren. It had awards and paintings on the white walls with golden accents, but it wasn't enough to fill it. There was a golden vase on top of a table on one side of the room. In the middle were two couches and a low table with paperwork on top of it. Ikutsuki sat on the table in front of the large window that let light into the room. Mitsuru and Akihiko sat opposite each other on the couches. All three were looking through papers.

Junpei gaped at the documents in front of him. "What are all these?" he asked.

"Documents regarding Amamiya-san," Mitsuru answered without looking at him and flipped through another page.

Yukari frowned. "All this is about him?" she asked.

"Yes," Mitsuru's answer came curtly.

"Uh... Isn't this a bit much?" Yukari asked again.

'She is not alright with this,' Kotone noted.

Ikutsuki nodded as he looked at Yukari. "Indeed, it is. However, with what Mitsuru described to me, it had to be done. He was very interesting to note."

"Is that why you're here, Mr. Chairman?" Kotone asked. "Usually, you'd visit us in the Dorm."

Ikutsuki nodded again. "You are correct. I don't have much time later today, so I decided to meet now instead. I will be busy keeping an eye on him and Yamagishi at night." Ikutsuki looked back towards the documents in front of him. "What you see before you are everything we have about him, from childbirth to today. This also includes reports from the orphanage to school records."

Yukari gasped. "Wait, that's an invasion of privacy!"

"Be as it may, we have no choice. Summoning a persona without an evoker goes against everything the Kirijo group has learned about the dark hour. His existence could be a breakthrough in our research, a one-off, or a sign that the Dark Hour is evolving." Kotone, Yukari, and Junpei stiffened at Ikutsuki's reply. "We must learn everything about him to see if something in his past could have caused it. If we can find anything like that, we may be able to apply it to our research."

"Wait, evolving?" Yukari asked incredulously.

Ikutsuki nodded. "It is only speculation, nothing more. It could be that humanity itself, not the Dark Hour, is evolving to fight the Shadows, to the point that regular people would be able to summon a Personas without the need for an Evoker. We need more information, and that is why we are looking through his history to see if anything is special."

Yukari grumbled. It seemed like she still wasn't satisfied. However, she sighed and sat on the same couch as Mitsuru, but on the other side of it. Kotone sat between them while Junpei sat next to Akihiko.

Kotone looked through the pile then towards Mitsuru. "What should we do?"

"Hmm...You said you met him during your train ride home a few days ago." Mitsuru said. "What can you tell us about him?"

"He said that he was an orphan," Kotone answered. "He lived in Tokyo, took a ton of part-time work, and left."

Junpei nodded. "Something about soul searching."

Ikutsuki held his chin between his thumb and index. "Indeed, that matches with the information we found.

"He was an orphan, abandoned by his biological parents, at the doorsteps of an orphanage. The caregivers had tried to find them but came up short." Ikutsuki flipped a page. "He continued to live in the orphanage and had a small penchant for trouble. It's noted that he took parkour as a hobby."

Akihiko nodded. "Yeah, we saw that in action yesterday. He even ran up the Shadow's arm. Reckless and gutsy at the same time. I like his style."

"Indeed," Ikutsuki continued. "He eventually got caught in a private area by the guards. However, instead of turning him in, he was sent off to an official parkour group. He went on to study at Shujin Academy and dropped out after only one year." Ikutsuki finished reading and placed the paper on the table. He clasped his fingers and rested his chin on them, glancing at Kotone, Yukari, and Junpei. "Did he mention anything else? Hobbies or any mentions of people in his life?"

"Well, there was that Shinjuku bar he said he worked at. He said he had a mutual friend with a proprietress," Yukari answered.

Mitsuru glanced towards Yukari. "A Shinjuku bar? That should be illegal."

"He said that he didn't deal with the alcohol," Yukari answered again.

Mitsuru sighed. "That just means that there could be some under-the-table work that won't be on the documents." Mitsuru rubbed her forehead for a moment and turned to the trio. "Did he say where he worked?"

"Well," Kotone began. "Sundays was the bar, volunteering on Mondays," she said as he began to count with her fingers. "He was a barista on Tuesdays, florist on Wednesdays, Thursdays were for a beef bowl shop, and Friday was for a convenience store." Kotone frowned as she moved a finger.

'What was the last one?' Kotone asked herself.

Kotone turned to Yukari and Junpei. "Do you guys remember what the last one was?"

Yukari and Junpei hummed as they thought. Suddenly, Junpei snapped his fingers.

"Don't worry, Junpei, Ace Detective, has it! It was an airsoft shop on Saturday."

Yukari looked at him with bafflement. "How'd you remember that?"

Junpei shrugged. "Every guy had the thought about working in a shop like that when they were kids! I thought he was pretty cool for working in a place like that."

"...An airsoft shop..." Mitsuru muttered as she wrote down on a piece of paper. "There. From what I remember, his school records mentioned that he worked in a convenience store and a flower shop in Shibuya. There were some complaints about it, but since it didn't affect his grades, the school let him."

"Oh yeah, what were his grades?" Junpei asked as he leaned forward and chuckled. "They must've sucked if he kept working."

Akihiko chuckled. "On the contrary, the opposite."

"Indeed," Mitsuru said with a slight smirk. "He was the top student in his grade."

"What?!" Kotone, Yukari, and Junpei yelled in surprise.

"Wait, hold on," Junpei stammered out. "How? He worked at night every day of the week!"

Yukari nodded. "When does he have time to study?"

Mitsuru nodded. "I understand your confusion. However, time and time again, he has shown that he deserves that spot."

"What do you mean?" Kotone asked.

"From what it looks like," Akihiko began, "the first time Amamiya scored his top marks, the school was in an uproar. It was already common knowledge that he worked at night. When the grades came out and saw him on top, other students and even some of the faculty members were convinced he was cheating."

"Takeba, Iori, Shiomi, do you think he is the type of person to do that?" Mitsuru asked them, and all three shook their heads. "Indeed, you are correct. Amamiya took another test and received perfect marks again. From then on, the school let him go, but the students did not." Mitsuru frowned. "They continued to harass him, from ignoring him to spreading rumors about him."

Kotone gasped. 'Is that what he meant by cog? He left because he couldn't deal with all that?' she thought.

"Kirijo-senpai, what did he do after that?" Kotone asked.

Mitsuru's frown turned to a smirk. "Well, it seemed like he doubled down. He took on more work but maintained his stellar grades." Mitsuru glanced at Ikutsuki. "To be quite honest, I'm surprised we didn't hear about something like this."

Ikutsuki shrugged. "My apologies, some things just happen to slip through. Plus, this didn't reach the news on any level, so it didn't reach us."

Junpei gaped. "That's seriously badass..."

Akihiko grunted. "Cheeky is more like it. He could have worn himself out."

"Um, he did mention something about leaving Tokyo instead of becoming a cog," Yukari said. "Do you think it's related to that?"

Mitsuru hummed. "Possibly. It could be that he didn't feel like being stifled in his old school, so he decided to leave. Was there anything else he said that stuck out in your mind?"

"He left Tokyo for some soul searching, specifically," Kotone said. "Staying in Tokyo could have made him into a cog." Kotone frowned. "But it sounded like he really liked living in Tokyo."

'What could have forced him to leave if he liked Tokyo so much?'

"I see," Ikutsuki said. "What about last night?" All the students looked at him. "Was there anything weird about him then?"

"Come to think of it," Yukari began, "he seemed different. Like he seemed more unhinged? I'm not sure how to put it."

Kotone nodded. "Yeah, he did. On the train, he seemed pretty quiet. But then, compared to when we were in the back alley, he was way more serious. Then last night, he seemed less reserved."

"He was smiling the entire time," Junpei added, "like he was having fun."

'It was as if he was free...' Kotone thought.

Yukari scoffed. "More like showing off." Akihiko nodded in agreement.

Ikutsuki nodded slowly as he hummed, taking in the information. "I see. Perhaps the unique way he summons his persona could cause a sudden shift in personalities? That still doesn't explain how he was able to summon it in a different way."

"Perhaps his mask acts as his Evoker?" Mitsuru prompted. "Shiomi, how does Amamiya-san summon his Persona? I saw that he tried to take off his mask before he was swallowed by fire."

Yukari nodded. "He did rip off the mask before the fire got him. After that, the fire turned into his Persona, and he came out with his costume," she added.

"Amamiya-kun summoned it by ripping his mask off," Kotone answered, and both Junpei and Akihiko nodded in agreement.

"There may be merit to what you said, Mitsuru," Ikutsuki said. "Your Evokers are powered by something called a Plume of Dusk. It's what allows Evokers and Mitsuru's bike to work. We do not know how they were created, only that the late Kirijo Kouetsu had a collection." Kotone noticed that Mitsuru clenched her jaw and her hand curled into a fist. "As of right now, we do not have a way to replenish our supply. If Amamiya-san's mask is a Plume of Dusk, we may be able to finally change that.

"Now, Yukari, you mentioned that his costume changed. What exactly happened?"

Yukari nodded. "His costume was all black, except for his red gloves. It wasn't super outlandish, but it still reeked of a show-off. It was like he was cosplaying or something."

"On top of that," Akihiko added, "it didn't seem like his outfit impeded his movements. He still did what he did with it on. If anything, it might have enhanced his movement. He said that he was never able to pull off those moves before." Kotone nodded.

"What? Like a Phoenix Ranger Featherman?! That's so cool!" Junpei stood up abruptly, surprising everyone. "I wanna get one too!"

"Umm…" Yukari interjected. "I'm not sure that his way is safe."

"Oh? In what way?" Ikutsuki asked.

"His mask," Yukari shuddered. "When he ripped it off, I saw blood dripping off his face. It was like the mask was his second skin. It was disgusting."

Junpei shuddered as well, deflating at what Yukari said. "That's honestly creepy." Junpei turned to Ikutsuki. "Is he going to join us?"

Ikutsuki chuckled. "That is our intention. I would like to see what Amamiya-kun can do. I plan on extending an invitation to him when he wakes up. This also includes Yamagishi-san as well."

"Aren't we being too fast with this? They haven't woken up yet, but you're already thinking of inviting them?" Yukari asked.

'She's really bothered by them joining us,' Kotone thought.

"Don't worry. It's just an invitation; they can turn it down if they want to," Mitsuru said.

"By the way," Kotone interjected. She already felt that the atmosphere was starting to become awkward. "How is Yamagishi-san?"

"Just like Amamiya-kun, she is stable. It's just a matter of when she will wake up," Ikutsuki answered.

"Really?" Junpei asked with a shocked face. "Wasn't she in Tartarus for, like, forever?"

"Ten hours or so," Ikutsuki corrected, "but it could be attributed to her receiving a Persona. The same could be said about Amamiya-kun. There have been no visible effects so far."

Suddenly, the school bell rang outside the Director's Office.

Ikutsuki nodded. "Well, it seems that free time is over."

"Indeed. We mustn't compromise our school grades with SEES activity," Mitsuru said as she stood up and began making her way to the door. "Let's go to class."

"She is right. You must keep angling for an A in Math class!" Ikutsuki quipped.

Everyone groaned in pain.

-Take Your Time-

?/? - ? - Velvet Room - Ren

A familiar hymn, a piano and a woman's voice, filled Ren's ears again, interrupted by the clanking of chains.

Ren opened his eyes, and velvet blue filled his vision. He stood up and walked towards Igor and Lavenza in the middle of the room.

"I must congratulate you, Trickster," Igor interjected, "for finding the Guest of this Journey. You have done well so far."

"So," Ren began, smirking as he placed both his hands in the outer pockets of his Metaverse Outfit, "how do you grade my acting?"

"Top scores," Lavenza said, chuckling at Ren's question. "With us placing your fake history throughout this era, we were able to make it seem like you truly existed now. Throughout your time here, you did not 'slip up,' as they say. You even managed to add more details, like how you never did such acrobatics before."

Ren's smirk turned into a gentle smile. "I've got to thank you too. You gave me the documents, and I only memorized them. Making it so close to my actual history helped a ton; the only real difference is that I grew up in Shibuya, not Inaba."

"You're welcome. We have also taken the liberty to 'touch up your room.' The documents about the Apathy Syndrome in your room might have been too much for a single person to have, so we have taken back most of what we have given you. What is left are the more recent and accessible documents."

Ren nodded in thanks. "Sounds good. I do have a question: what's my status as a Guest? I noticed that Arsène's weaker now. I also don't have my other Personas with me."

"You can use all the functionalities that you have gained in your Journey. This includes the Gallows, the Electric Chair, Lockdown, and the Execution. You also have access to your Compendium. Would you like to take the Arsène in your Compendium instead of your current one?"

Ren worked his jaw in thought. He glanced at Igor. "This is her Journey, right? Do you have any tips for me?"

"Indeed, it is her Journey," Igor answered. "All I can say is that you must take responsibility for your own actions, no matter what you do."

Ren closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 'This is her Journey. She has to be the one to do it, not me. I'm only here to help her. Is it right for me to take that from her?' Ren sighed slowly. 'No, it's not. I can't carry her through it, but I can't let anything irreversible happen through it either.' Ren opened his eyes.

"I've got it," Ren said. "I'll keep my Arsène and use it as my main Persona with the others. I need to pass off as a teammate and not the main player. On the other hand, mind if I go through my Compendium, Lav? I'd like to go through it and take some moving forward."

Lavenza turned to the Compendium, a large book on Igor's desk, and took it into her hands. She gave it to Ren and let go, making Ren buckle at the weight of it.

'Heavy!' Ren thought as he struggled to carry it in his arms. He did succeed after a few seconds.

"Please, take your time," she said as Ren flipped through the pages.

"Lav, why is it so heavy?"

"The Compendium grows with your Journey," Lavenza answered. "As you have gone through much, it only makes sense that the Compendium is as large as it is."

"Can't you, I don't know, make it lighter with Velvet Room magic?"

Lavenza pondered on Ren's words. "I could, but I don't want to."

Ren stopped flipping through the Compendium and stared in disbelief at Lavenza's innocent smile."...Why?"

"Think of it as my challenge," Lavenza answered, "all so that you may gain the muscles to carry it on your own in the future."

Ren pouted. "Bully." Lavenza's smile turned into a chuckle that rang through the Velvet Room, and Ren couldn't help laughing with her.

"I get it, I get it. I'll exercise more in the future," Ren said as the last of the laughter left both Lavenza and him. He soon resumed flipping through the Compendium. "By the way, where is Shiomi-san's Velvet Room entrance?" Ren asked. "I'd rather not have the same location as hers. We might end up seeing each other and blow my cover."

"I'll find a new location," Lavenza agreed. "Shiomi-san's Velvet Room is located in Paulownia Mall, so yours will be in a different location. I shall let you know at a later date."

"Sounds good, thanks," Ren said and closed the Compendium. He passed it back to Lavenza, and she graciously took it back. "I got what I need, eleven more Personas outside of my current Arsène."

Suddenly, a prison alarm rang through the Velvet Room.

"It is time, once again," Igor said.

"We will contact you at a later date," Lavenza said. "May you continue on your path in the world, my Trickster."

As Lavenza finished saying her goodbyes, Ren closed his eyes as white flooded his vision.

-Take Your Time-

6/10 - Afternoon - Iwatodai Hospital - Ren

Ren blearily woke up from his sleep. Compared to his previous nighttime Velvet Room visits, he felt groggier this time around. But then he remembered how he got here: his reawakening, the Shadow fights after that, then knocking out from exhaustion.

He took stock of himself and his surroundings. He was on a bed in a white room. His body was under a blanket, but his right arm was above it, with an IV connected to the inner side of his elbow. From what he could see, he wore a hospital gown, no longer the modified Shujin outfit he had. To the left of the bed was a table that held his wallet and phone from when he left the hotel room.

'I wonder if my stuff is still there. Sure hope that the staff didn't throw them out or something,' Ren thought. 'Maybe they just put that in some storage?'

The walls on his left had three windows, but only the middle window had its curtains open, letting the blinding light in. To his right, further down the room, was a closed door, most likely leading to the hallway. Cabinets also lined the wall on his right.

He tried to sit up without disturbing his right arm, afraid that the IV needle would-

"Damn it, he's getting sleepy. Wake him up. Get me another one of those needles," a man commanded.

Ren's vision was blurry. His face was hit with another splash of cold water. It helped with the grogginess, but he was too tired to keep his eyes open.

"Guess that's only going to work a few times," the same man said. "Fine, let him get an hour. We can wake him up then. In the meantime, get him those injections."

Ren blacked out.

Ren's heart rate skyrocketed, and he started to hyperventilate, breathing deeply through his open mouth. His eyes began to find something to get the attention of anyone. Now that he was sitting up, he saw that there was a remote beside his pillow. Not caring what the buttons did, he reached with his left hand and pressed every button he could find. He let go of the remote and looked up to the ceiling with closed eyes.

'Happy thoughts, happy thoughts,' Ren thought as he took a deep breath. 'Ramen with Ryuji, tinkering with Mona, checking out new desserts with Ann.' Exhale, then inhale again. 'Looking for inspiration with Yusuke, watching an old movie with Futaba, going to the gym with Makoto, sampling coffee with Haru.' His heart rate slowed down, but not enough. Another exhale, another inhale. 'Watching Sumire through her routines. Seeing Sophia's eyes sparkle at every new thing she saw. Cooking in the kitchen while Zenkichi bumbled around Akane.'

Suddenly, the door opened, and a doctor and nurse entered the room.

"Everything will be fine, sir," the nurse said as he rushed to Ren's side. "Lean back for now."

Ren absentmindedly complied, sliding back to his bed while not looking at his right arm. "Please, you have to get that thing out. I have a phobia."

The nurse immediately understood. He went through the cabinets, took a cup of water, passed it to Ren, and pulled down alcoholic swabs, gauze, and tape. The doctor, in the meantime, was on Ren's left.

"Don't worry, kid," the doctor said. "Just focus on me." Ren nodded. "Good. First, take a deep breath and drink some water." Ren nodded again and took sips at his cup of water. "Let's start with something simple: what's your name?"

"Ren, Amamiya Ren," Ren responded.

"Do you know where you are?"

"A hospital in Tatsumi Port Island."

"Can you try counting backwards?" the doctor asked, and Ren complied. In the background, the nurse worked to get the IV out of Ren, and the nurse finished quickly. "Looks like you're fine so far," the doctor summarized and looked at the nurse. "Call the Chairman and Kirijo-sama." The nurse nodded and left the room.

Ren shot a questioning look at the doctor. "'Kirijo-sama'?"

"Yep," the doctor responded with a smile. "I guess you didn't know. Welcome to one of the hospitals that is directly funded by the Kirijo Group."

-Take Your Time-

6/10 - Afternoon - Iwatodai Hospital - Mitsuru

Ikutsuki opened the door to Ren's hospital room and entered, with Mitsuru following in. Inside, Mitsuru saw that Ren's IV was taken off. The nurse was still tending to Ren while the doctor had noticed her and Ikutsuki.

"Ikutsuki-sama, Kirijo-sama. Thank you for coming in such short notice," the doctor spoke to the newcomers. "Amamiya Ren is doing quite well, all things considered. Blood pressure is normal, along with brain activity. No concussion, no missing memories either. Two things to note are his chest scar and his fear of needles. The first was on his files, but not the second."

"What?" Ikutsuki asked in shock.

"Yes, he had a reaction with his IV upon waking up. His readings spiked, which prompted us to come to his room immediately. However, it seems like he has some practice in dealing with his phobia."

"I... I see," Ikutsuki said. "We'll have to update his medical files to include his phobia then."

"Can he receive visitors now?" Mitsuru asked.

The doctor nodded. "Like I said, healthy on all accounts. Just make sure not to trigger his phobia, and he'll be fine." The doctor looked at the nurse. "How is he right now?" The nurse gave him the thumbs up.

"Very well," Ikutsuki said. "Would you mind giving us some privacy? We need to discuss confidential information." Both the doctor and nurse nodded and promptly left the room. Ikutsuki and Mitsuru walked towards Ren, taking the left side of his bed.

"So, apparently, I was out for a day and a half?" Ren asked Mitsuru with a raised eyebrow.

"Indeed," Mitsuru answered. "We believed that you might have gone longer."

"That bad? Then what about that other girl? Fuuka or something?"

"You mean Yamagishi Fuuka?" Ikutsuki asked, and Ren nodded. "She's been awake since yesterday. She's only bedridden to make sure that she is fine." Ikutsuki held out his hand. "My name is Ikutsuki Shuji," Ren shook his hand, "and I believe that you've met Kirijo Mitsuru."

"That I did. I'm guessing what happened that night was all real?" Ren asked.

Ikutsuki nodded. "Indeed. What do you remember about that night? Can you tell us what you saw and did?"

Ren glanced at Mitsuru. "Is he in on this too?" Mitsuru nodded.

"Well," Ren began as he leaned back to be more comfortable. "Might want to get a seat." Both complied and brought a chair closer. "I was awake in the middle of the night and I couldn't sleep for some reason. I was looking out the window, and all of a sudden, the moon got all huge and green. I stepped out of the hotel to take a look around and saw that tanned girl. You remember her, right, Kirijo-san?" Mitsuru nodded again. "Well, I followed her to Gekkou High, and it turned into this weird tower. I tried to stop her, but she ignored me, so I tried to physically stop her. She decided to bite me, so I gave up. With no choice, I decided to follow her in the school-tower thing. After that, I met Kirijo-san, and everything else is history. I summoned a thing, fought these big monsters, won, and conked out. By the way, is that girl okay? She didn't have the thing everyone else had last I remembered."

Mitsuru nodded once more. "Moriyama-san is fine; she doesn't remember what happened."

Ren was taken back. "How's that possible?"

"What you learn here does not leave the room, do you understand?" Ikutsuki asked, and Ren nodded. "Would you believe that there is a twenty-fifth hour in the day?"

Ren raised an eyebrow, and his mouth was slightly ajar. "You don't actually think I'd believe that, right?"

'There's the disbelief I was looking for. Yukari, Kotone, and Junpei took the revelation too easily,' Mitsuru thought.

"But then again, everything was too real that night. There're those coffins too..." Ren murmured to himself.

Mitsuru's shoulders sagged ever so slightly. 'And he convinced himself before we could say anything,' Mitsuru thought with a sigh.

"Alright," Ren said to Ikutsuki. "I believe that; what's next?"

"The tower that you entered, the one that the school turned into, is called Tartarus," Ikutsuki continued. "Tartarus is what we consider the nest of the Shadows, the monsters that you fought that night. As for the thing you summoned, it is what we call a Persona, and what is ultimately used to combat these Shadows."

Ren hummed to himself. "You mentioned before that Moriyama-san doesn't remember what happened. Are Personas related to that?"

Mitsuru nodded. "You are correct. Since she doesn't have a Persona, she can't remember what happened that night."

"On the topic of Personas," Ikutsuki interjected, "do you remember what you did while fighting that night?"

"Somewhat. It felt like I was in a rush. Faster, stronger, more powerful. I did everything so easily that night, even for things that I struggled with. I was jumping three times my height without a run-up, but I could only do my height and a half on average. I even got an outfit out of it. By the way, I noticed you guys only had some uniforms last night, but I got that cool outfit thing. What's up with that?" Ren asked.

Mitsuru shook her head. "We were wondering about that ourselves. What were those clothes? Where did you learn to fight like that?"

"Well, to start, I do parkour as a hobby. Vaulting, standing jumps, grips, you name it. As for the clothes, no clue. You saw that I went into that Tartarus place in normal clothes. It appeared after I summoned my Persona thing for the first time. It never appeared for you guys?"

Mitsuru shook her head again. "We've never had one. You're the first one we've ever seen. It's why we wanted to ask you about it. As for your Persona, did you learn its name? Control over your Persona is usually something that you instinctively know."

Ren closed his eyes and looked up slightly. "Its name is Arsène," he answered after a moment of silence and then looked back at Mitsuru. "By the way, I saw you guys point a gun to your head to summon your Personas. What's up with that? Mine just came out when I swiped my mask away."

"That 'gun' is called an Evoker," Mitsuru corrected. "From what we could tell, it seems like your mask acts like one."

"But a gun to your head isn't exactly..." Ren trailed off with a cringe.

Mitsuru shrugged. "It is what it is."

"How did it feel when you took away your mask?" Ikutsuki asked. "An Evoker is meant to bring out fear and stress in a user by making it seem like the person is about to take their own life. In a way, it is a reminder that we fight with our lives on the line."

"How I felt?" Ren reiterated before thinking to himself again. "Free. The freest I've ever felt."

Mitsuru and Ikutsuki looked in disbelief.

'Free? Why is it so different?' Mitsuru asked herself.

"Can you describe more of what you felt?" Ikutsuki asked.

"When I faced that Shadow, I felt that I needed to do something. I couldn't run away to save myself. I had to fight," Ren said as he smiled softly. "I couldn't let my own death decide my life for me. I will live to see another day and to live that life as free as I can."

Mitsuru crossed her arms, hiding the fist that began to form. 'That's it? That's the difference? To reject death, even in front of it? That's-'

"Were you scared at all?" Ikutsuki asked.

Ren hummed to himself again. "I think I was. I could die at any moment if I slipped up, but I wasn't going to let that scare me to freezing up. Even if the world and everyone around me told me I was wrong, I would still fight back, all to make sure that I'm never chained down again."

Mitsuru's breath hitched as she tried to stop a frown from forming on her face. 'To live life unchained? How lucky.'

Ikutsuki stared at Ren for a moment. "This was a very enlightening conversation, Amamiya-kun, thank you. Mitsuru, if you would." Ikutsuki rose from his chair, and Mitsuru followed suit. "We'll be back in a moment. I'd like to talk privately with her about everything."

"Uh, sure," Ren said as Ikutsuki and Mitsuru walked out the door. "Have a good one."

Ikutsuki led Mitsuru to a private room on the same floor of the hospital, and both entered it.

"What do you think, Mitsuru?" Ikutsuki asked as he and Mitsuru took a seat.

"Nothing has changed. I still think he will be an asset to SEES," Mitsuru answered.

"Even in the difference in your reasons? His reason for fighting is completely different from yours, Akihiko's, and Yukari's."

"Even then," Mitsuru insisted. "Those reasons may just be why his Persona is completely different from mine. But that shouldn't stop us from asking him to join SEES. It might even be beneficial for us."

"And his clothes, his mask?"

"Most likely a part of our difference in ideologies."

Ikutsuki nodded. "Very well. We will invite him to SEES then. I didn't find anything overtly suspicious in our conversation earlier. On top of that, I've never truly seen his new outfit, so I cannot pass judgment about it. We will continue to observe him for the time being as he continues to rest."

Mitsuru nodded in agreement. "Then let's go back. I'd like to be the one to invite him."

Both Ikutsuki and Mitsuru rose from their chairs and left the room, arriving back in Ren's room.

"So, what's up?" Ren asked. "Must be important that you have to leave."

Mitsuru nodded. "It is. How would you feel about joining us?"

"What do you mean?" Ren asked.

"The people you saw last night are part of a group called the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad, SEES for short," Mitsuru clarified. "We are an afterschool club whose sole purpose is to kill Shadows. Students that join are given education, lodging, and allowance."

"It's essentially a job," Ikutsuki added.

Ren nodded. "What do I have to do?"

"For one, you have to be a student," Ikutsuki began. "Now, from what others have said, you dropped out from your previous school, correct? You will have to enroll at Gekkoukan High School as a second-year student. Second, you will have to live at Iwatodai Dorms. Education that rivals the best in the country, lodging, and killing Shadows give money. Sounds like a pretty good deal, wouldn't you agree?"

"Killing them gives money?" Ren asked. "How does that work? Where does the money come from? Where do you guys spend it?"

Mitsuru reeled back for a bit. "Why do you care about that? Most people our age would rejoice about getting money."

Ren shrugged. "I worked endlessly for a year and used that money to get myself out. I'd like to think of myself as pretty financially responsible."

'Truly different from the others,' Mitsuru thought. "As for your question, we do not know everything about how Shadows work. This topic is one of those that we have accepted."

"Indeed," Ikutsuki agreed. "Even after ten years of research, much of the Dark Hour is still a mystery. How they function, how they live, and where the money comes from are just examples of what we do not know."

"As for expenses," Mitsuru said, "we leave that to the person's choice."

Ikutsuki giggled. "Saving the world gives us a bit of leeway," he said before coughing. "We've gotten sidetracked. Back to our question, will you join us? We do need all the help we can get."

Ren hummed to himself in thought. "What if I said no?"

"You would be free to live in the city," Ikutsuki answered, "but you won't be able to leave the city."

Mitsuru did all she could to stop her grimace from forming. 'Just like Shinji.'

"Not much choice, don't I?" Ren asked with a smirk. "Don't worry though, I'll join. Like I said, I can't just stand by if I know that I can be helping someone."

Mitsuru let go of the breath she didn't know she was holding.

Meanwhile, Ikutsuki smiled. "That is great to hear! We were told that you stayed in a hotel near the dorms, so we'll begin moving your luggage tonight," Ikutsuki said as he stood up. "For now, rest. We will rely on the doctor's orders on when you will be released. Fortunately, he did say you were fine, so it shouldn't take too long."

"Speaking of what the doctor said," Mitsuru interjected, "he mentioned two things. The first was a chest scar, which was already in your files. However, you have trypanophobia. How did you get these?"

Ren awkwardly chuckled as he played with a lock on his head. "Ah well, I got reckless during a routine run and fell. Something sharp on the side of the building nicked my chest on my way down. That was way back then. As for the phobia... Sorry, that one is personal."

Mitsuru tilted her head to the side slightly with a frown. 'Personal to the point that it wasn't on your records? Drug abuse?'

Ikutsuki, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow. "Well, if you say so. Would it be alright to update your files?" he asked to which Ren nodded.

"Yeah, it should be fine at this point," Ren said.

Ikutsuki smiled at Ren again. "Welcome to SEES, Amamiya-kun."