Ann groaned while rolling over in bed. Off day from school, she planned on not doing too much. She felt like she forgot something yesterday, but it was also a blur. That was until she checked her phone, noticing a message from Shiho that dated sometime last night. "Huh…WHAT!?"
Shiho: Happy Birthday, Ann!
That was yesterday!? Oh. Oh boy. "I forgot my own birthday…" Wow. That was a new one. In her defense, things were incredibly chaotic lately. With the tension of Mitsuyo's Palace finally collapsing, and their operation with Sae looming just days ahead. It was a little embarrassing. Curious, Ann decided to see if there were any other messages from a specific pair of people, not her friends, no…she was looking to see if her parent's remembered her birthday. Part of the reason that she forgot was due to not celebrating it too often. Just a hangout with Shiho since that was really the best she could do.
"Well, guess I wasn't the only one who forgot…" That didn't make it sting any less, though. Oh well, she was used to it by this point. Ann felt a bit awkward about making some announcement about her birthday to everyone, especially with everything going on. Well, there was one thing Ann knew she wanted to do today. First, she had to respond to Shiho and thank her for the happy birthday message. Then, she texted Hifumi.
Ann: Hey, Fumi. Since we have the day off, do you want to hang out?
Hifumi: That sounds nice. I was about to message you, actually. I got a text from Mika that's a little worrisome…
Ann: Is everything alright with her?
Hifumi: That's what I was going to check out myself. She wants to meet soon, will you come with me?
Ann: Sure!
Not exactly what she had in mind. But if Mika was in some kind of trouble, Ann couldn't leave it well enough alone. Plus, Ann did have a small feeling on what this could be about. Well, time to get dressed and see what all this was about.
.
.
Ann met with Hifumi in a café in Shibuya. Mika was going to arrive soon, Hifumi just wanted to get there before her. "I hope this isn't too awkward for Mika…" Hifumi said while placing her hands on her lap. "She texted me pretty early in the morning. Although, if I remember correctly, it does take her a while to get ready in the morning…"
"I think it's nice that she reached out to you, at least." Ann did have a slight smile. Even if Mika was her rival, and was occasionally the Worst, Ann could tell that Mika did have somewhat of a soft spot for Hifumi. With Mitsuyo's heart changed for the better, it appeared that Mika was taking this chance to reestablish their relationship.
"Yeah…" Hifumi smiled slightly. "I hope we can help her with whatever is bothering her…" Speaking of Mika, Hifumi noticed a woman awkwardly making her way over. She had a hat and sunglasses on. It was very clearly Mika; Hifumi recognized that disguise from the other day. So she decided to text Mika instead of calling attention to wave her over.
Mika did notice them eventually, quietly settling into the seat next to Hifumi. "Thanks for meeting me here." Her attention then shifted over to Ann, and she let out an exasperated, overdramatic groan. "But did you have to bring her here?"
"Do you want help or not?" Ann narrowed her eyes. "I can just take Fumi and go? We're a package deal."
"Mrgh…" Mika would've loved to retort that, but unfortunately for her, she couldn't take the chance, even if it was a bluff. "Actually, this probably works out for me. I could always use another pair of hands."
"Er…so, what is the problem, exactly?" Hifumi asked. She was sitting between Mika and Ann now.
"Right." Mika glanced around carefully, lowering her tone so this was kept between the three of them. "The past few weeks, I think I've been dealing with a stalker…" That kind of information made Ann and Hifumi's eyes widen.
"A stalker?!" Hifumi gasped.
"Ssssh!" Mika brought her index finger to Hifumi's lips to shush her. "That's not the only thing. Whoever they are, they've been leaving sharp objects at places I've been. On my front door steps, and even in front of or in my dressing rooms when I'm doing a shoot. I got a knife just the other day…."
"I remember…" Ann did recall how loudly Mika shrieked during the Halloween shoot. "Are you okay at least?"
"Just creeped out." Mika shuddered. "Wouldn't you be if some creep left you dangerous objects everywhere you went?" She did raise a good point too.
"Um…did you try contacting the Phantom Thieves about this?" Hifumi asked. Then again, she felt like Mishima would've let Ren know about a request like this. "Er, well…I don't know if you actually trust them or not, so I understand if…"
"I did try that Phan-site." Mika admitted. "I thought, well…if Hifumi trusts them, then they can't be all bad. Although, I did make my request just as they were going after your mother, so I don't know if they saw it. And also…based on how things work with them, I don't have a name for them to go and snatch that person's heart."
"S-Snatch…?" Ann said with a slight sweat drop.
"Yeah, isn't that how it works?" Mika crossed one leg over the other, staring at Ann and Hifumi with genuine curiosity. "Or are they like ghost? Do they just float in, take someone's heart, and float out? I suppose it would be less messy that way."
"Um…no." Hifumi shook her head. "T-That's not how it works at all…I-I mean, I don't think so, anyway." She quickly had to backpedal, just in case Mika questioned her choice of words.
"Huh." Mika frowned. "Well, since I couldn't reach them, I turned to the next best thing. You." She said, looking straight at Hifumi.
"M-Me?" Hifumi pointed at herself.
"I suppose Ann can be of 'some' use here too." Mika said while waving a hand, just barely acknowledging Ann's presence. That just made Ann roll her eyes. "Because I've come up with a rather fantastic plan. How to catch a stalker in a single afternoon!"
"Uh…." Hifumi and Ann looked at each other. Mika was quite serious about this. "Are you going to elaborate…?"
"Of course." Mika said with a smug smile. "I've noticed that this stalker of mine leaves me things after every shoot, no matter where I am. It just so happens that I have a shoot today, so we're going to catch them in the act!"
"And…how do you plan to do that?" Ann leaned forward, raising a brow.
"With you two of course." Mika said. "I'll just have you two hide and catch them when they so rudely break in!"
"Isn't that dangerous, considering they've been leaving you sharp objects?" Ann held a deadpan stare.
Hifumi then interjected. "Actually, I don't think it'll be that big of an issue. Even though Mika is being left sharp objects, it doesn't seem like whoever this is actually wants to hurt her? They know where she lives and nothing terrible has happened, right?"
"For now." Mika said. "I don't like the idea of some creep knowing where I live." Which was a very fair concern, especially with her growing status as a model. "So, Hifumi, will you help me…?" Mika was still omitting the '-chan' part when referring to Hifumi. Honestly, she felt a little awkward about this, especially considering the last face to face conversation she had with Hifumi. Ann's presence didn't exactly help either.
Hifumi could tell that behind Mika's smile and bravado, she was a little desperate with no one to turn to. Hifumi knew that feeling well… "Of course I'll help you, Mika." There was a part of her that missed Mika referring to her as 'Hifumi-chan', but easing back into a friendship wasn't exactly easy, especially with Mika dancing around that particular issue.
Ann then stood up. "We'll take care of this easily! So you just relax, and keep being the cool and beautiful Mika I know!"
Mika was stunned, only for a moment. And that was only because Ann's choice of words annoyed her. She stood up and threw her sunglasses onto the table. "I'm always cool and beautiful!"
Hifumi was awkwardly between Mika and Ann as they stared each other down. Their rivalry just flared up and she was in the middle of it. After a few moments of tension, they both sat down, wearing smirks. "Er…"
"Now, we still have a few hours before my shoot. So, Hifumi, what do you want to eat? I'll pay for it." Mika said with a slight grin, scooting closer to Hifumi while looking Ann directly in the eye.
"I…" Hifumi opened her mouth to speak, but Ann cut her off.
"Hold on, I'll be the one buying Fumi something!" Ann said, leering into Mika's gaze. "So just tell me, Fumi! And I'll take care of it!"
"Well…" Hifumi tried to speak again, but she felt Mika's arm wrap around her own and tug her closer. "Ah-? Um…what are you going to get, Ann?" The shogi player was trying really hard to keep the pace here, and the attention off her.
"Oh, let's see…there's a lot here that I want!" Ann was successfully thrown off the trail, pointing to numerous items on the menu. It was only a café, but she saw food and wanted to eat.
Mika tilted her head back, letting out another exasperated sigh. "It's only 10 AM. You really eat too much…" And still had that kind of figure? It made Mika so upset that Ann could eat and still look like that! Envy was the proper word, but she wasn't going to give Ann that satisfaction of knowing.
.
.
A few hours passed. Hifumi, Mika, and Ann were heading to the location of Mika's shoot at the Sky Tower. They were taking one of the modeling agency's cars as opposed to the subway. As IF Mika would step foot in there if she had to. Ann ended up in the passenger's seat, because Mika took the backseat with Hifumi. Hifumi used this time to scroll through Mika's social media, just to see if there were any clues about this stalker. She asked Futaba if she could find anything, but unfortunately nothing substantial came up. So for the time being, this unlikely trio was stuck with Mika's plan. As she looked, she noticed numerous pictures of Mika with animals. "You rescue animals?" She asked Mika, a bit surprised by this information. "That's so sweet…"
"Oh, you finally noticed?" Mika said with a widening smile. "I just do my part to help out however I can." It was also a huge boost in popularity too.
"Are you kidding me!? She helps animals!?" Ann's jaw dropped. "Are you kidding me!? You help animals too!" And she ended up voicing her inner thoughts out of pure shock. Mika really was going the extra mile! How was she supposed to compete with that!? Not to mention, it was a legitimately nice thing for her to be doing!? All that PR….
Ann's expression was exactly what Mika was hoping to see. She giggled in response. "I help all kinds of animals. I even helped a crow once; the poor thing was hurt bad. What have you been doing, Ann?"
God damn it. The temptation was so high for Ann to blurt out that she was one of the Phantom Thieves Mika tried seeking the help of. But no, she wasn't Ryuji. She had to bite her tongue and sulk in her seat for a second until she thought of a good retort. "Helping you. Hmph!"
"Okay, okay…" Hifumi had a sweat drop on her forehead. "Let's all play nice…" This felt like the longest car ride ever…
"Oh, by the way, where's that guy with the glasses?" Mika asked. "He's always around you two when I'm there…maybe he's the stalker…"
"Do you mean Ren…?" Hifumi asked. "I can vouch for him."
"Yeah, there's no way he'd do such a thing." Ann shook her head. "He's just our friend! He was helping me as moral support when you were being…you know. The worst."
"Hm." Mika let out a hum. "There goes one idea…"
Was she serious suspecting Ren!? Oh boy…that just meant she had no leads whatsoever as to who this stalker could be. Hifumi let out a very quiet sigh. Forget long car ride. This was just going to be a long day in general!
.
.
Eventually, the trio arrived at the Sky Tower. They were at the very top, standing in front of Mika's dressing room. "So, here's my plan. I expect that while I'm out for my shoot, the stalker in question is going to sneak in and leave a nasty surprise."
"And we lie and wait and catch him." Hifumi said.
"Precisely, Hifumi!" Mika nodded.
"Can two people even fit in that room?" Ann asked.
"Of course!" Mika smiled, turning to look at Hifumi. "If you want to come in and have a sneak peek at my outfit, you're more than welcome to."
"Ah-" Hifumi felt her face light up.
"Actually!" Ann spoke up. "While you take forever to get ready, Fumi and I are going to ask around and see if the crew has seen anyone suspicious!"
"Y-Yes, that would be a good idea…!" Hifumi quickly nodded.
"Fine, fine." Mika waved her hand. "I won't be that long, so hurry up." And then she entered her dressing room, closing the door behind her.
"Whew…" Hifumi let out a sigh. Mika was so forward… "I don't know if we'll find anything new, but it's worth a shot…"
"She's really confident this plan will work." Ann said with a sweat drop. "I mean, I can tell she's thought about it, but…"
"I know how you feel…" Hifumi rubbed her arm. "I'm still a little surprised she thought about reaching out to the Phantom Thieves. If we had a name…."
"Yeah…I guess we just have to do this the old fashion way. I've always wanted to try being a detective!" Ann was looking on the bright side. "Come on, let's go!" And she pulled Hifumi along to talk to the staff.
Mika had her door creaked open. She wasn't…intentionally eavesdropping, but she did get a little curious why Ann and Hifumi were whispering just outside of her dressing room door. Realistically, it wasn't their best move, but they believed they were being quiet enough and that Mika was too busy getting dressed to even think about listening in. They also didn't think she could hear them anyway. And…her eyes went wide at hearing Hifumi say "we" and "Phantom Thieves". Did that mean what she thought it meant…!? "…."
Some time passed and Mika was finally done changing. Ann and Hifumi were done asking around the shoot and their results were unfortunately lackluster. "Nobody's seen a single suspicious person…" Hifumi slumped over.
"But I know they have to exist…" Ann didn't understand it. The last time she was here, she witnessed the result with her own eyes! Looks like Mika's plan really was the only option they had…
Speaking of Mika, she stepped out of her dressing room in a white dress, a slit along the left side to reveal a lot of leg. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail as well. She did a little spin, smirking towards the two girls staring at her in awe. "I know, I look amazing, don't I?"
"…This so isn't fair." Ann huffed, pouting while crossing her arms and looking away.
Mika sauntered towards Hifumi. "And what do you think, Hifumi~?"
Oh, Hifumi couldn't take this at all. "Y-You look really lovely…" Hifumi was a bit awkward about that. "Um…"
"We're going to stakeout your dressing room now!" Ann quickly pulled Hifumi away from Mika, walking past the model into the dressing room.
"G-Good luck with the shoot!" Hifumi said as she was pulled into the dressing room.
"Hah. I don't need luck." With a flip of her hair, Mika went off to her shoot.
.
As for Hifumi and Ann, they were staking out Mika's dressing room. They left the door cracked open, expecting someone to drop in uninvited. They were hiding behind some seats in silence. "This dressing room is huge…" Hifumi whispered to Ann.
"Mine have never been this big…" Ann grumbled. There was a lot of envy for Mika at this point in time.
"Are we sure someone's going to come…?" Hifumi asked. "I don't doubt Mika, but this plan is just a little…farfetched."
"Mika with a plan is dangerous." Ann nodded. "All we can do is wait, I guess…" And wait they did. It felt like they were waiting for someone to arrive forever. Maybe this plan was a bust from the very beginning? Catching a stalker in a single day? Such a thing couldn't sound more unrealistic – and that was the sound of the door creaking open ever so slightly. "…!"
"Someone's here…!" Hifumi mouthed. It wasn't Mika. She was still at the shoot, and it wouldn't make sense to slowly open her own dressing room door like that. When the two girls slowly poked their heads over the chairs, they saw….a crow with a pair of scissors in its beak. "Huh…?"
"Is that a bird?" Ann was just as confused. It didn't appear as though the crow noticed them, so they could probably ambush it if they were quiet enough. Ann went left, Hifumi went right…they slowly crept around to pinch the crow. "Now!" Ann dove, and Hifumi dove, the door closing as she did so. What ensued was…not what either of them predicted.
A little time passed, and Mika was done with the shoot. As always, her photos were top notch. So now it was time to return to her dressing room. When she opened the door to check on Ann and Hifumi, it was completely a mess. The two girls were sprawled out on the floor with swirls in their eyes, while there was a crow sitting on the table nearby. "W-What happened in here!?"
"I don't remember…" Hifumi groaned. "It all happened so fast…it was a blur…"
"Same…" Ann didn't feel like getting up.
"How did that crow get in here!?" Mika was about to shriek since she saw a pair of scissors in its beak, but she stopped herself. "Oh…there was an open window on the floor, but hardly big enough for anyone to slip through…except a bird."
"But why a bird…" Ann sat up slowly.
Mika stared long and hard at the crow. It suddenly hit her! "Oh! I recognize this crow! This is the crow I helped out a while ago. But…that does not explain why it's here, or why you two look like you had the fight of your lives….did the crow win?"
"I don't want to talk about it." Hifumi slowly brought herself up. "But, um…I think this might be your stalker."
Mika stared at the crow. "The…crow has been following me around? That doesn't make sense…!"
"I think it does, actually." Hifumi interjected. "Crows have very good memory. I think it's just been trying to repay you for helping it…by giving you sharp objects. It would explain why it's been pretty much everywhere you've been. It knows where you live and wherever you work…yet no one has seen anyone suspicious following you. And despite sharp objects being left near you, you've never once been in danger. It all tracks."
"Huh…" Mika had to digest all of this information. "I…feel a little silly realizing that I was worried about a friendly crow of all things." Mika approached the crow and it just placed the pair of scissors into her hands. "If you're going to thank me, you could bring other things aside from sharp objects…" She told the crow, but far be it from her if she knew if it understood her or not.
"I guess…we did it?" Ann asked.
"I told you my plan would work!" Mika was now all smug that her plan was truly a success. "I saw those doubtful looks. You should learn to trust me more often, I always know what I'm doing."
"…" Great. Now Ann was going to have to hear about this for a while. But instead of sighing, she just held a grin of her own. "Isn't there something you should be saying to Fumi and I? After all, your plan wouldn't have worked without the two of us!"
Oh, right. Mika swallowed some pride for this one. "Thank you, Hifumi, and…Ann…" Ugh, that last part felt like a bitter pill to swallow. She had no choice but to thank Ann.
Ooh, that felt so, so good. Probably the best belated birthday present she could ask for. Mika, swallowing her pride to thank her? She could ride this high for a while. "You're welcome. Now, if that's all you needed from us…we should get going now."
"Mhm. We don't want to disturb your work any longer." Hifumi gave Mika a soft smile.
Leaving already? That's what Mika wanted to say, but….the words couldn't come out. So she just pretended she was fine with and nodded. "Fine, fine. Go on, then." It wasn't the most graceful goodbye, but Ann and Hifumi soon left the dressing room and planned to exit the Sky Tower. When they left, Mika looked around the room, noticing something out of place. It was a shogi piece. Kneeling down, she picked it up and stared at it for a bit. "I guess Hifumi forgot this…"
.
Ann and Hifumi were making their way to the elevator to leave, discussing the events that just happened. Ann was plucking a few crow feathers from her hair. "I still can't believe it was a crow! A crow of all things! That Mika rescued!"
"Me too. No wonder we couldn't find any clues…we can't change the heart of an animal…" Hifumi said.
"This was not how I thought I'd spend a majority of the day." Ann sighed a bit.
Hifumi noticed that Ann seemed a bit down after everything was said and done. "What's wrong…?"
Ann thought about it for a moment. Of course, Hifumi wouldn't know. She never did tell Hifumi her birthday or about the situation with her parents…so now seemed like a good time. "Truth is, yesterday was actually my birthday. I completely forgot about it with everything going on, but at least Shiho remembered."
"It was your birthday yesterday?!" Hifumi gasped. If she had known she would've…!
"Yeah." Ann nodded, calmly. But there was some disappointment on her face. "My parents didn't even bother calling me or anything yesterday…they haven't sent a message today either. I think they just completely forgot, while they're having fun overseas…"
That made Hifumi frown. "Oh, Ann…"
"But I'm not telling you this to try and make you feel bad or anything!" Ann quickly said, waving her hands. "I…I just contacted you over today, because I wanted to do something small with my closest friend today. While I don't mind hearing a 'thank you' from Mika, I'd also like to spend what's left of today with you, if that's alright."
"Of course it is." Hifumi tilted her head, giving a soft smile. "This is the least I could do for you, after all you've done for me. Oh, I know! I can take you to my favorite restaurant. It serves katsu curry, you know?" Before Hifumi could continue on, her phone buzzed. "Oh, it's Mika…she says I dropped something in her room. Which…makes sense, considering how crazy things got. I'll be right back, and we can go, alright?"
"I'll be here." Ann said with a slight smile. She was feeling slightly better about things already. Hifumi nodded and went back to Mika's dressing room.
.
Hifumi arrived back in Mika's dressing room, closing the door behind her. "Sorry…things got a little…insane in here earlier."
"I bet." Mika said while handing Hifumi the shogi piece she dropped. "I think this is yours, I had a small hunch." That slight joke did make Hifumi giggle, which Mika could smile at in return.
"Thank you…this shogi piece is important to me." Hifumi said, placing the shogi piece back into her bag. It was her mother's Treasure, after all.
Mika wasn't really sure how to ease into this next topic…so she just went out and said it. "…So, you can't change the heart of someone you don't know, huh?"
"H-Huh?" Hifumi froze. Why did Mika say it like that!? "I don't…"
"Oh, come on…we both know you can't lie to me." Mika said while crossing her arms. "I heard you earlier. Are you a Phantom Thief?"
"Well…" Hifumi glanced away and rubbed her arm.
"I won't tell anyone." Mika's smile softened. "I promise. I just wanted to know…and it's so unfair. I made fun of Ann for not doing anything, but she's helping people undercover? Gh, there's no way I'm going to lose to that…! Wait…that means you changed your mother's heart, too?"
Mika was quick at putting things together, sometimes. Hifumi didn't need her powers to know that Mika was serious in keeping this a secret, so she relaxed a little bit and nodded. "Yes. I had been meaning to do something about her actions and behavior for a while. It was just hard at the time…and well, actually…I think the last straw was when you lied to me for the first time."
"Huh?" Mika blinked.
"When you said my mother wasn't the reason you wanted to break off our friendship…" Hifumi said shyly. "I could tell…you never lied to me before then. I guess…you're not the only one who can't lie in this friendship…"
Friendship? "You're still calling me your friend?" Mika could hardly believe it. "I mean, I really was just using you for the publicity at first, are you really going to forgive that so easily?"
"It's fine." Hifumi gave a nod. "Because I got to see the real you a little bit. I'm still having a hard time figuring you out, but I don't think you're a bad person at all. Well…a little ruthless when it comes to your career…but I liked the time we spent together. And if you're willing to try things again…I know I would like to."
This girl was so weird. Mika was thoroughly convinced of that. Yet that didn't explain the somewhat hopeful smile on her face. "…You're really weird. You really make an effort to be friends with someone like me…you even went and got me something when you were in Hawaii." That flowery bracelet. Mika had it in her purse and she pulled it out, showing to Hifumi that she hung onto it all this time. She could never get rid of it.
Seeing that bracelet made Hifumi's eyes light up slightly. She was so happy that Mika kept it. After their last meeting, she was worried…. "I'm used to being called weird. I should be the one asking if you're alright with being my friend. After all, I'm known as the Phony Princess now. I guess you weren't wrong to break things off, my reputation is at an all time low."
"Like I care about that." Mika waved a hand dismissively. "I know the real you…and you're a very genuine person, unlike me. So if anyone has anything bad to say about you, they'll be hearing from me."
"Hehe…thank you, Mika." Hifumi's smile was very soft at this moment.
Mika extended the flowery bracelet to Hifumi. "Would you mind doing the honors…Hifumi-chan?"
There it was. Hifumi wasn't going to deny how much she missed hearing that. She nodded, taking the bracelet and sliding it onto Mika's wrist. "There you go."
"Perfect. I missed wearing this, if I'm being honest." Mika said. "I don't mean to keep you, though. We can hang out some other time…Ann did technically call dibs for the rest of the day. But next time, you'll be all mine."
"I'll be looking forward to it." Hifumi said, turning to leave. But she stopped for a moment. "….You visited my father in the hospital right? What did you two talk about."
Mika brought her finger to her own lips. "Not telling. That's a secret."
"…So it was you!" Hifumi said.
…Ah. Mika then just pushed Hifumi out the door, gently of course. "Go on! We're done for the day, thank you for your help, I mean it! Now go!" Once Hifumi was out the door, she closed it and let out a relieved sigh. That whole conversation felt more stressful than it should've been. But now that it was over, Mika felt very, very relieved. She thought back to her visit with Mitsurugi the other day…
"I want to try connecting with Hifumi again…but I have no idea how. She might not even want to talk to me again…"
"I don't think you have to worry about that. My daughter is a very nice girl…all you have to do is reach out. I think she'll gladly meet you halfway."
"…Guess he was right after all." Mika could smile now. Today wasn't such a bad day after all…
.
.
In Kichijoji, Ren and Akechi were playing another game of billiards. Akechi found it odd that Ren was willing to spend time with him, even while he was blackmailing the Phantom Thieves. He didn't understand it…he loathed it…and at the same time, he also…enjoyed it? It was a mixture of emotions that whirled about inside him. But there was one tipping point tonight that would change everything. Ren's final shot in the game…was the winning shot. Akechi watched as Ren sank an impressive final shot. "…Impressive. You win." Akechi wore a smile. But on the inside…?
"I…lost…?"
"Whew…" Ren exhaled. That game was incredibly tense. It came down to the wire, but in the end, he was finally able to score a victory over his rival. "You did not make that easy."
"That was the point." Akechi kept his fake smile. "That was quite a heated match. Why don't we go outside and cool down?" A good idea. Ren and Akechi stepped outside the game corner. "Even if it was with my self-imposed handicap, I'm impressed that you eat me. You've become quite skilled." Akechi had only been using his non-dominate hand in games against Ren and Hifumi. Ren was the first one to beat him with this handicap.
"I couldn't let myself lose to you." Ren responded honestly.
"I see. So we even share that perspective." Akechi nodded in understanding. "We truly are similar. We're both victims of unjust adults. And now, we have the will and power to rise up against them. Yet I'm doing so as a detective, and you're acting as a phantom thief. Our stances couldn't be more different."
"But we're teammates now." Ren said.
"Yes, for now." Akechi amended that statement. "But even that united front will soon end. And after that, everything will return to the way it was, no?" He paused for a moment, pondering something. "Why not join me instead? All you'd have to do is abandon the teammates you have now."
Ren was going to pass this off as a joke…but the look in Akechi's eyes were completely serious. He was not joking about this. "You're my rival. I'm not doing that."
"Hah…" Akechi's smile shifted slightly. It was more wry now. "Good answers. I wouldn't want you to make a promise you can't keep anyway. You're at least aware of possible consequences. But, having said that…so long as we work together, you'll have my strength."
"Good. I'll be counting on you." Ren replied.
"Likewise, Ren. Now then, if you'll excuse me, I should be going." Nodding, Akechi started to walk off. The moment he was far enough, a full scowl crossed his lips.
"I lost to that piece of criminal trash!? And then he has the nerve to turn down my offer? My moment of weakness made me want to spare him, but I won't stand for this type of humiliation! This is unacceptable! Rivals, is it? Then I think we should settle the score once and for all…"