[June 11th, lunchtime]
Let's just say… the TV trip yesterday ended up being somewhat viral. And the thieves could definitely say that they had underestimated Akechi's popularity.
"Emergency! It's an emergency!"
Being pulled away right as he was about to return to his classroom, Akira couldn't help but let out a sigh. Especially when for some reason, now they were in the toilet out of all places.
"…What is it?" He asked, arm crossed. "Besides, if it's about the Phantom Thieves stuff, can't you just tell Ren about it instead?"
"That's the problem, I can't find him! So please, be my messenger for now," Frantically tapping his phone, Mishima showed the comment page for the Phan-site. "Ever since the whole thing with the Akechi guy, the site has been bloated with comments."
"…Okay?" With an eye raised in confusion, Akira leaned in and read through the comments. "'What a bunch of criminals', 'I bet they're just a bunch of kids playing justice', 'I don't know what Togo Hifumi sees in you guys'…"
"See?! It's not going well, man!" With fear clear on his face, Mishima closed the phone and put it back in his pocket. "What that Akechi guy said really put a dent in our reputation…"
"Yeah, he certainly does," Akira shrugged, arm crossed but still looking casual.
"…Wait, you're fine with it?!"
"It's not like we can do anything about it either," Shrugging again, the amateur writer patted Mishima on the shoulder. "Well, we might try to look for a target to show that we're the good guys. But meanwhile… good luck with the comments and stuff."
"Not that we can just find a big criminal laying around."
Thankfully, instead of the retort he was expecting, Mishima's eyes were brimmed with… excitement and surprise. "O-of course I will!"
"…I guess Ren was right that you're kinda a fanboy of us…" Pinching his nose bridge, Akira took a few steps back toward the exit behind him. "Anyway, I need to get going, Shiho's gonna be angry at me if I took too long."
"But still, good luck with the comments. I think you're gonna need it."
With that said, the leader of The Fools basically ran out of the toilet as his life depended on it, leaving Mishima on the spot. And for the admin, confusion quickly emerged.
"…Wait, when does he start caring about how Suzui-san feels about him?"
Unfortunately, it seemed like even the god didn't want him to meet Shiho in time. As Akira was about to reach the staircase toward the first floor, a hand came out of nowhere and grabbed his shoulder. And turned him around.
"Explain yourself," Giving Akira a death glare from nowhere, Saya took a step closer to him. "What's your relationship with Togo Hifumi?"
"…Huh? W-what?"
"You heard me, what's your relationship with Togo Hifumi?" As if she was treating Akira's reaction as excuses and deflections, the pseudo-journalist narrowed her gaze. "Because from what I heard yesterday, you two are anything but strangers."
"I mean… I can be friends with celebrities… right?" Internally scolding himself for his weak response, Akira just put on a wry smile. "We just met over… mutual interest in Shogi, that's all."
"…We both know it's not the truth," Deadpanned, Saya's eyes slowly widened in horror. "Wait… don't tell me you're cheating on Suzui! You jerk!"
"Wha-NO!" Not noticing the glances he was attracting, Akira exclaimed in pure disbelief. "I'm not cheating on Shiho, and I swear that I would never think about it!"
Shocked by the sudden reaction from Akira, the pseudo-journalist physically took a step back. "…U-uh… I-I'm sorry if I assumed wrongfully," She said, with slight shuttering. "But still, how in the world did you get to personally know Togo Hifumi?"
"W-well… it was the truth!" Raising his hand to better convey that he was genuine, Akira put on a nervous smile again. "I met her in that church that she rumored to appear in, and just became friends naturally!"
For a long moment, Saya kept her gaze steady and straight into his eyes. "…Did Suzui knows about this?" She asked, clearing in somewhat of deep thought. "All good relationship builds on honesty, and you're the same."
"Of course! Shiho also knows her too, the friendship is mutual," Feeling his pants pocket buzz, Akira hastily took out his phone and checked. "Oh no, now Shiho's texting me…"
Shiho: Hey, I can't find Keigo and now I can't find you either. Weird, isn't it?
Shiho: I'm by the store, and I bought Yakisoba Pan for the both of us! Even though there's only one here, I want to share.
Shiho: Akira? Did my text overwhelm you? Please respond~
"U-uh… I really gotta go now, sorry," Hastily typing a response to Shiho, Akira slowly stepped back, toward the stair. "But I promise that I'm telling the truth! I swear!"
With that said, Akira rushed to the stair like his life depended on it, again. And watching how the view of is back disappeared like a blur, Saya couldn't help but gave out a sigh.
"…He does sound genuine," She murmured to herself, arm crossed. "But it still feels like he's hiding something, weird-"
Stopping herself in mid-sentence, Saya's eyes widened in horror, again. "Oh no… he wasn't cheating on Suzui… Is he making a harem?!"
"Who's making a harem?"
Surprised by the sudden voice coming from behind her, the pseudo-journalist turned around and came face-to-face with her only other friend in this school. With a few sandwiches and two cans of soda, Mogami Yumeko tilted her head in confusion.
"U-uh… it's just one of my classmates, but it's not like I have proof that he is doing that," Decided to change the topic, Saya noticed the lunch in Yumeko's arms. "Yumeko, it's all for you?"
"Nope, I was going to ask Ikesugi-senpai for a lunch together, but he's not here today," Shaking her head, Yumeko offered a sandwich to her. "Besides, I wouldn't be a good friend if I just put all my attention on Ikesugi-senpai, right?"
Finding that nothing came out of her mouth for a few long moments, Saya nodded slowly. "Y-yeah!" She shuttered, taking the offer with a bright smile. "My classroom or yours?"
"Uh… maybe mine," With a soft chuckle between the two girls, they moved toward Class 2-B's room together. And Saya left the suspicion about Akira a potential harem shelved in the back of her mind.
"But seriously though, someone's making a harem? I'm intrigued!"
Well, maybe she couldn't.
[Meanwhile, the courtyard]
"Dammit!"
Planting the second-hardest punch of his life into the poor vending machine, Ryuji panted and grunted, frustrated. "…That effin' detective from yesterday really pissed me off! We're some kinda threat?"
"Let's see him do it, then!"
"Ryuji, I understand your frustration, but… not the poor vending machine," Ren sighed, leaning into the blue bench. "And tone it down, you're just gonna grab people's attention."
"I'm tryin' to! But it's just… URGH!" Stomping the ground with his healthy leg, Ryuji groaned again. "If someone else could help 'em, we wouldn't be doin' stuff as the Phantom Thieves to start with!"
"Ryuji, tune your volume down."
"I know- ow!" Before the ex-runner could finish his response, a hand came from nowhere and slapped the back of his head. And the said hand belonged to a certain blonde model, who was stuffing her mouth with Koala's Chocolate Biscuits.
"You're being way too loud, Ryuji," Ann spoke up, with her voice slightly muffled with the biscuits in her mouth. "I can literally hear you from a mile away."
"Who cares? Everybody's talkin' about this stuff anyways," Rubbing the back of his head, Ryuji scowled. "It'd just be more suspicious if we were whisperin'."
"Ryuji has a point," Ren chimed in, nodding. "The best disguise is 'hiding in plain sight', after all."
"See, Renren agrees with me!"
Noting the subtle glare their leader gave to Ryuji, Ann just sighed and took another Koala Chocolate biscuit and stuffed it into her mouth. "Boys just gotta be boys…"
However, it caught Ryuji's eyes. "Hey, you really just gonna keep eatin' and eatin' and eatin' those things all by yourself?"
"If you want one, just ask for one," With a small smile, Ann extended the box of Koala Chocolate Biscuits to him. "Here, just one though, nothing more."
"Sure," With a beaming smile in return, Ryuji poked his hand into the box and grabbed one biscuit, and tossed it into his mouth. "…Man, I always love 'em…"
"Yeah, right? The original is always the best!"
Poking his head out from Ren's bag, Morgana deadpanned as he looked at the blonde duo. "You guys are too laid back. The police are getting involved now, you know."
And with Morgana's words, the mood Ann brought up dropped again. "So you think it's true?" Ann asked, giving out a long sigh and looking downward. "We'll be okay if we keep doing this… right?"
"We can't let the cops scare us outta bein' phantom thieves," Ryuji responded with a scowl. "In comparison, cops are nothing to what we're facin' every time."
"But… what about that weird guy Madarame's shadow mentioned?" Giving out another sigh, the natural blonde put down her box of Koala Chocolate Biscuits. "Isn't there a lot we don't know?"
"Ann's right, but there's no going back…" With his arms crossed, Ren let a frown emerge on his face. Until his gaze caught someone standing in front of them.
It was Niijima Makoto, standing there with her phone raised. And instead of being all smug, she looked… dreadful? Conflicted? Regretful? But all and all, it looked like she just discovered something she didn't want to discover.
Noticing how both Ryuji and Ann practically glared at her. Makoto just awkwardly raised her hand with an attempt at a friendly smile. "H-hello there, fancy you three here."
"You snoopin' on us again, Niijima?" With his glare intensified, Ryuji leaned against the vending machine. "We said before, we don't know nothin'."
"N-no, I just happened to pass by and want to greet all of you," Shaking her head, Makoto put her phone back into her pocket. "I… I want to be a better student council president, moving forward-"
"Cut the crap, Niijima," Cutting her off, Ann felt her fist tighten into a grip. "You're really that hungry for a good letter of recommendation?"
"Of course you are, nobody would take on your annoying job if they weren't."
In response, Makoto's posture stiffened. "What that's supposed to mean?"
"…As you said yourself, you're student council president, right?" Taking a few steps closer to Makoto, Ann let her glare intensify. "Wouldn't you have known about Kamoshida?"
"O-of course not-" Cutting herself off, Makoto suddenly stayed silent. "N-no, I… I did, but I… I couldn't do anything about it."
"You just take the teacher's side, huh?" With the repressed rage of what happened, Ann felt her fist tighten. "That's what a good council president does, right? You just stay back and watch, even if you know what's happening."
"A-as I said, I couldn't do anything," Taking a step back, Makoto's eyes widened at the mention of 'Stay back and watch'. "I-I didn't just stay back and watch, I-I tried to… do something…"
"No, you just choose not to! You didn't even try!" Exclaimed in rage, Ann took another few steps forward. "Shiho almost jumped off the roof because of him! If not for Ichijo, I… I don't want to imagine what'd happen."
"Tell me, what did you do!"
"…In the case of Suzui, you're her friend," As much as Makoto tried her best to keep her composure, even Ren could see how her hands were shaking. "You're her closest friend, shouldn't you be the one to help her?"
"Tell me what can I do then? Offer myself to that creep for her?" Taking a few more steps toward Makoto, Ann kept pressing forward until Makoto was leaning against the steel fence. "We both know what would happen, right? Just like how Akashi was-"
"Just… please, don't use her like this," With a tight grip on her right arm, all Makoto could do was just try to keep her arms from shaking. "I… I was also affected by what happened with her."
"What, because you're the student council president, and you care so much about your peer?"
"No, because…" Trailing off, it seemed like Makoto was going to reply something. But nothing came out, and she just gritted her teeth and tightened her grip. And a single drop of tear leaked and trailed on her cheek.
"…Just make sure y-you… show up to your class."
With a deep, choked breath, Makoto turned and hastily left the courtyard. And with each step, she slowly picked up her pace, until it broke out into a full-on sprint.
And once the sound of her steps faded away, Ann relaxed her tightened fist, she faced the two boys with a solemn look. "I… I went a bit too far, right?"
"Yeah, you totally went a bit too far, Ann," Ryuji nodded, putting his hands on her shoulder. "But I can understand why, you… you've been holdin' this all inside yourself, even after that shithead is gone for good now, right?"
"I… I know I shouldn't do that, but it's just…" Trailing off, Ann let her gaze drop. "I couldn't hold it in, even after all this time."
"Yeah, you really did just that," With a small chuckle, Ryuji was about to say something more when Ann suddenly reached her arms around his.
Without anything said, Ann pulled him into a tight hug.
"Just… don't say anything."
Surprised, Ryuji just stood frozen and turned his gaze toward Ren and Morgana. "Wha- what am I supposed to do?" He mouthed, not making a sound.
Meanwhile, Ren just nudged his head, telling Ryuji to 'Just hug her back' without saying anything at all. And Morgana just gave him a deadpan as well.
"Lady Ann is hugging you, return the favor!" The feline hissed, as panic subtly, but visibly emerged on Ryuji's face. "I-I'm making this an exception! Just do it!"
Opening his mouth as if he tried to reply with something, Ryuji stopped himself and hesitantly returned the hug. In response, the arms around him tightened further, as if she didn't want to let go.
Until two sets of voices chimed in.
"…What is happening?"
Standing side by side and holding their lunches, Akira and Shiho blinked at the scene before them. In total unison, they shifted their gaze to Ren and Morgana.
In response, Ren just shrugged with a subtle smirk, as Morgana just dove back into the shoulder bag. And snapped back to reality, Ann hastily broke off the hug and faced Shiho.
And on her cheek was a deep shade of crimson, almost as deep as her Phantom Thief attire.
[After school, outside of Shibuya station]
With everyone present and gathered right next to the green train cart, the thieves' mood was… not at its best spot.
"Comments are coming in at an alarming rate," Showing the Phan-site with his phone, Yusuke let a faint scowl appear. "However, negative ones seem to be more prominent."
Turning the phone's screen to himself, Yusuke's gaze caught onto one of the longer comments. "'Criminal group with unknown goals that does whatever it wants in the name of justice.' Huh…"
"And that's already on the tamer side too," Akira added, crossing his arms. "Mishima dragged me away to tell me 'bout it earlier. He's probably struggling to deal with the comments now."
"It's prolly 'cause of Akechi…" Ryuji sighed, kicking the ground with the same scowl. "TV's got some crazy sway."
"It's definitely because of Akechi," Keigo added, leaning at the train cart as he stood in the middle of Yusuke and Hifumi. "He's the only person who publicly labeled us as a criminal group, after all."
"He's free to deny our actions, but being cursed by his influence is another thing entirely," Yusuke said, with his scowl deepened.
"Just when we were starting to get people to believe in us too…" Ann murmured, sharing the same scowl as everyone else.
"I guess we just have a tendency for bad timing," Sharing the same posture as Akira, Shiho sighed. "First Hifumi with her TV appearance, then we stumbled at Ann and Sakamoto, and now this…"
"C'mon, just forget 'bout it already," Flexing his arm, Ryuji tried his best to hide his embarrassment. "All we gotta do is to take down another hot shot, right?"
"And THAT'S the problem, Sakamoto," Hifumi deadpanned, just as Yusuke chimed in as well.
"…Well, do you have any ideas who this next 'hot short' could be?"
"I… ain't got a thing yet… Dammit, this is real irritatin'…" Trailing off, Ryuji stuffed his hands into his pants pocket, noticing the luggage sitting next to Yusuke. "By the way, what's up with that luggage?"
"Oh, I decided to leave the school dorm," With a strange casualness in his voice, Yusuke shrugged. "They were not only filthy, but too noisy as well… No true art could come from such a place."
"While also wasting the hassle Yanagishita go through to get you a dorm room," With a deadpan, Hifumi added.
"I've formally apologized to him, and he's fine with my decision."
"What are you gonna do then?" Akira asked, raising an eye. "It's not like you can go back to that shack, after all."
"I was planning on staying at Takamaki-san's- I mean, Ann's house," Notice how everyone (aside from Hifumi) had their gaze widened, Yusuke shifted his gaze onto Ren instead. "But… well, I apologize for bothering you, Ren. It seems like Leblanc is the only choice I have right now."
"It's… totally fine, I do welcome a new roommate," Hastily recomposed himself, Ren nodded. "Just having Morgana with me is getting a bit annoying now-"
"That's only because you keep pulling an all-nighter night after night!" Cutting him off, the said not-cat gave Ren a death glare. "But well, seeing as Yusuke is an important member of our team… I'll lend a hand!"
"Come stay at our place! It's dirty, but at least you'll have somewhere to sleep!"
"Dude, why are you takin' the credit?" Ryuji deadpanned, to which Ren responded with a sigh.
"Oh, right! Don't you two live in a cafe? I've been wondering about that for a while." Meanwhile, an idea seemed to pop up inside Ann's mind. "Yongen's not too far, is it?"
"Nope, it's just a station away, and a few minutes' walk from there," Akira answered. "Before anyone of you asks, my apartment is next to Leblanc, that's why I know where it is."
"Then how about we go there now?" Nodding at Akira's answer, a bright smile crept onto the blonde model's face. "We can have a party to celebrate Madarame's change of heart!"
"Ooh, good idea!" Sharing the same beam as Ann, Ryuji pumped his fist. "We can make it a welcome party for Yusuke and Ichijo's team too!"
"No objection from me," Keigo said. "I'm quite interested in seeing the cafe myself."
"I agree with this too," Hifumi added, stroking her chin with intrigue clear within her eyes. "I've never been to Yongen before, and I'm looking forward to see it for the first time."
"Same here," Shiho nodded, giving Akira a cheeky wink as subtle as she could.
"All right! It's decided then!" With a beaming smile, Ann walked toward the station with everyone else following her.
Being the last two (or three if Morgana was counted) of the ride, Akira and Ren shared a small sigh together. However, a smirk slowly crept up on Ren's face. "I did notice the wink Suzui gave you, so you two are gonna…"
"In your dreams. Actually, don't even dream about this," Giving Ren a mixture of a glare and a deadpan, Akira pulled out his phone as he joined the rest of the group. "Anyway, I should tell Liz about this first…"
Watching them go, Ren couldn't help but gave out a long sigh. "Sojiro's gonna kill me, for sure."
"Well, it's up to you to convince him now," Morgana said with a clear smirk, earning a groan from him. "C'mon, you didn't say any objection either-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll just deal with the consequences then."
[Soon after, Leblanc]
Just like what Akira described, the ride toward Leblanc only took a few minutes at max. And thankfully, Hifumi wasn't recognized for the most part. There might be some glances, but that was the full extent.
With the chiming sound of the wind bell filling the cafe, the group was a bit surprised to see the place itself. First, other than Sojiro, there was not really anyone here, but that wasn't what caught their eyes.
"Ah, what a nice smell…" Sniffing in the smell of a mixture between coffee and wood, Ann couldn't help but smiled.
Meanwhile, Ryuji was… thoughtful, as he turned back toward the rest of the team. "This place looks so outdated… I can't say I hate though."
"People refer to that as 'Retro'," Yusuke and Hifumi said in an accidental unison, and they gave each other a shocked gaze.
"…It's so comfy," Looking around with intrigue shining in her eyes, Shiho turned her gaze back to her boyfriend. "Akira, why didn't you bring me here sooner?"
"It's just too far from your house, and a bit too close to mine," Scratching his chin with a faint blush, Akira looked away. "Besides, there's still a lot of other places I have in mind…"
"Before you two continue, I'd like to say that we're all here," Before anyone could say anything, Keigo took the initiative and gave the couple a deadpan. "Keep your PDA to a minimum, okay?"
Finally noticing the voice from behind, Sojiro tore his gaze from the wall full of coffee beans. "Hm? Who're they?"
"Hello!" Ann greeted, full of friendliness in her voice.
"Girls too…?" Blinked in surprise, Sojiro let her gaze scanned through everyone before him. Albeit very subtle, his eyes had definitely widened at Hifumi and Akira.
"Ren has really helped us a lot lately," Ann continued, and the Boss gave Ren a look of sight disbelief in return.
"Heh, I bet you're the ones doing all the helping."
"No, really, he's been great."
"Huh…" Trailing off, the disbelief melted away and was replaced by a friendly smile. "Sit down. This round'll be on the house."
However, his smile dropped as quickly as it came up, as he turned to Ren. "You're helping though."
"Roger, Boss," Ren nodded, putting down his shoulder bag alongside Mona and putting on his apron. Meanwhile, Ryuji took the far left spot of the counter, then Ann, Shiho, and Yusuke took their seat right to each other.
Keigo sat by the table right behind them, with Akira and Hifumi sitting opposite of him. And the coffee came in fairly quickly, even with the number of people here.
Taking a sip, Ann couldn't help but moan in delight. "Wow… this is delicious!" She exclaimed.
"Indeed, there's a great depth to its acidity," Yusuke nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, it's fantastic!" Turning around and facing her boyfriend, Shiho puffed her cheeks. "Akira, now I'm jealous. I wish I got this great cafe just next to my house too!"
"Well, you can ask Boss to open a second cafe close to your house," Chuckling in response, the amateur writer shrugged with a playful undertone. "Boss, you're down for another cafe?"
"No, it shouldn't be my job to handle your girl," Sojiro refused without a second thought, shooting back a mock glare at Akira. "It's your job."
"…Well, you heard boss, I did my best," Shrugging again, Akira noticed something lacking in this conversation. "…Wait. Keigo, you're not gonna scold us for PDA?"
Turning his head to the half-Frenchman before him, Akira only saw how… concentrated Keigo was. For some reason, he seemed thoughtful and weirdly fixated on the half-drunk coffee itself.
"…Keigo?"
"…Splendid, excellente," Muttering out loud, Keigo took out a small notebook from his chest pocket. "I should bring Okumura-Senpai here, she seems to love coffee with a passion…"
"…Maybe we should… leave him be for a moment?" Hifumi sweatdropped, took out her phone and took a picture of the cup of coffee. "But on a different note, I should tell mom about this place. She's a coffee addict, and I bet she would love it."
"Oh yeah, I remember now!" Eyes widened in recognition, Ann's sudden exclaim took hold of Sojiro's attention. "I think I've seen Leblanc mentioned in a magazine before…"
"That was a long time ago," Sojiro chuckled, rubbing his neck.
Meanwhile, Ryuji raised an eye in intrigue. "For real? Gimme a taste."
"Sure, just a sec-"
Before the boss could even finish his sentence, Ryuji already reached for his nearest cup of coffee and took a sip. And the moment the hot coffee gazed with his tongue, the bitterness got the better of him.
"Bleh!" Putting back the cup of coffee, the ex-runner reached for his drink and chugged it down his throat. "It's so bitter! This has gotta be cruel and unusual punishment!"
"Aha, that's because you've never tasted one before…" Trailing off, Ann turned around and slowly came face-to-face with everyone's shocked gaze. Namely, Ren, who even had his entire body frozen. "Uh… everyone?"
"…Wait, Ann," Snapping out from her shock, Shiho leaned toward her and gestured to the coffee on the table. "You didn't notice who's coffee Ryuji just had a taste from?"
"I didn't-" Cutting off herself, Ann snapped her gaze and met with Ryuji's. "…Oh."
As if on cue, the two's cheeks immediately were lit on fire.
After some serious scolding from Shiho about 'Being way too oblivious of what's around you' (Ann surprisingly didn't say anything the whole time), the team finally recomposed themselves. And the first stop they took was the attic of Leblanc.
Or on other words, Ren's room.
Feeling the gazes as everyone took a closer look at his room, Ren couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed.
Rubbing his neck (and still not really over what just happened), Ryuji turned to Ren with a slight frown. "Whaddya think of this room? I dunno where to begin…"
"It seems quite ordinary to me," Yusuke chimed in, earning a deadpanned gaze from Hifumi.
"You're serious?" Akira asked, arm crossed as he took another glance at the room. "It's… not really that great if you ask me."
"I'm with Akira, you really should have a better living arrangement than this," Keigo added.
"Well, it's not like I'm in a dump or anything, that's alright in my book," Ren shrugged in response, noting the surprised glances from Ryuji. "I mean, my expectation wasn't that high in the first place anyway."
"For real?" Deadpanned, he immediately averted his gaze away as Ann and Shiho emerged from the stair.
Stopping by the stairs, the two took a long, look at the room around them. "It's… clearer than I thought it would be," Ann said, as Shiho agreed with a nod.
"I… don't think I give off the impression that I don't clean my room, right?" Sweatdropped, Ren gave Akira a questioning look. And Akira just shrugged with a wry smile.
Meanwhile, free from the 'prison' everyone called a shoulder bag, Morgana sat in the middle of the group and on the ground. "Well, sit wherever you'd like."
And they did just that.
"We're all over the news," Scrolling through the social media, Yusuke stated with a frown. "Even those who previously believed in us have been influenced by the comments made on TV."
"It's all that effin' Akechi's fault!" With a scowl clear on his face, Ryuji crossed his arms with a groan.
"As much as I agree with you, keep it down," Hifumi said, also having her arms crossed. "We're not alone here, and we don't want anyone to overhear us."
"…At this rate we're just going to worry everyone instead of giving them courage…" Ann sighed, resting her head against the back of her palm.
"After all, the people we've gone after aren't bad people for the outsiders," Akira furrowed his brow, feeling his fist tighten. "In their eyes, we're just exposing 'good' people and nothing else really."
"Then we need to find a way to make our rightfulness known to society," Morgana said. "It's time we think about our next move. You planned to talk about this today, right?"
"Yes," The young painter nodded. "First, we need to search for a candidate."
"If only it's that easy," Hifumi said, giving out a long breath.
"Yeah, it's not like we're just gonna stumble upon some important target though," Ryuji agreed, with his gaze scanning through everyone. "You guys don't know anyone, do you?"
"I don't," Ann shook her head, leaning back into the sofa she was sitting on.
"Me neither…" Yusuke added.
"Nothing on my end," Shiho said.
"Same here, nothing," Akira sighed.
"Same as everyone else," Keigo added.
Groaning in frustration, the ex-runner sat down on the ground and turned to Ren. "Whaddya think, Ren?"
"What about Mishima's site?"
"I did ask him to help look for targets, but nothing notable has come up," Akira shook his head, scrolling through the text he had with Mishima. "Besides, he's dealing with the comments full-time. So I don't think he'd help us that much either."
"Dammit…" Ryuji cursed. "At this rate, we're just gonna prove that Akechi guy right!"
"But it's just no big targets right now…" Giving out a long breath, Ann suddenly stood up from her sofa. "Anyway, we're also coming here to have a celebration and a welcome party, right?"
"Someone's excited," Ryuji muttered out loud, but the frown disappeared and was replaced by a small smile.
Giggling, she pointed at somewhere near the stairs. "I think I've found something. Isn't that a portable stove?"
"Can't we make hotpot on it?"
"That sounds great!" Morgana exclaimed, nodding its head. "I've heard that eating hot pot together brings people closer!"
"That's true, but…" Trailing off, Keigo just had a wry smile on his face. "Hot pots are usually for winter though."
"Nah, we just have to make the most out of what we get," Ryuji stood up with a wide grin. "Whaddya think, Ren?"
"Sure," Nodding, the non-delinquent stretched his arms. "I'll get the pot."
"I'll come-" With his words being cut off by the vibration in his phone, Akira took out his phone and sighed. "Nevermind, I'm gonna stay."
"That's fine," Ryuji shrugged. "But anyway, let's go buy ingredients!"
"Good afternoon!"
Flabbergasted by the sudden voice coming from the front door, Sojiro turned and came face-to-face with a certain silver-haired woman with a puppy in her arms. "H-hello there, who are you?"
"I'm Elizabeth, just call me Liz!"
"Okay?" Taken back by her strange enthusiasm, Sojiro slowly pushed his glasses. "And uh… about that puppy-"
"Liz!" Rushing down the stairs and accidentally cutting off Sojiro's question, Akira panted. "I just told you that you don't have to come here, why bring Paff here too?"
"Because I'm going to have dinner with Fuuka-chan tonight!" Upholding that enthusiasm a moment ago, Liz handed the puppy over to Akira. "So, YOU'RE going to take care of Paff tonight!"
"…Well, it's either you or me, so I guess I have no choice here…" Trailing off, Akira accepted Paff and kept it in his arms. "But wait, you're going to have dinner with Fuuka-san?"
"Yep! We have a lot to catch up on, after all."
With that said, Liz quickly left the cafe, as quickly as how she arrived. Just like a gust of wind.
"…Wait, what's your relationship with that woman?" Snapping out from his momentary shock, Sojiro cast a questioning glare at Akira. "You're too young to be a player, y'know?"
"We're just apartment-mate, she's a friend of Mitsuru," Technically, Akira wasn't lying here. "Besides, my heart's with Shiho, and Shiho alone."
Genuinely surprised by the conviction in his voice, Sojiro stayed silent for a few moments. "That's… don't break her heart then, and she should hear it herself."
"I'm planning to, don't worry too much, Boss," With a slight smile, he turned back and walked back to the stairs. "And oh, I'll take care of Paff here."
With that said, Sojiro couldn't help but gave a long breath as Akira returned to the attic upstairs. "Kids nowadays…"
[Later, evening]
Just as they hoped, the hot pot was delicious. Not only thanks to the soup Ryuji bought on the way, but also with Akira's help with seasoning.
"Man, I can't take another bite now…" Ryuji groaned, slumping against the chair.
"Same here…" Ren nodded, taking a last sip of the soda. "Wow, even for like nine people, it's still a lot."
"That's probably why, we might have bought a bit too many ingredients," Hifumi said, finishing whatever her bowl had left. "At least we don't have to waste any of them, that's a big plus."
"And Akira's seasoning is great as always!" With her head leaned against Akira's shoulder, Shiho smiled warmly as Paff hopped and rest on her thighs. "And hey, Paff seems to like me!"
"That's great!" Akira chuckled. "She's really the second cutest thing in the world…"
"And the first one is me, right?"
"Yeah."
"As much as I wanna comment on the PDA, I'm tired…" Trailing off, Ann tried her best to suppress a yawn. "Sorry, I'm gonna have to borrow the sofa."
With that said, Ann lay down on the sofa and… fell asleep, remarkably quick. And the entire group just exchanged with a wry smile with one another. "We… should just leave her be," Ryuji said, shrugging. "I bet she's dead tired anyway."
Deciding to change the topic away, Yusuke spoke up first. "By the way, Ryuji… how do you know Ann?"
"Huh?" Slightly surprised, Ryuji quickly recomposed himself. "Oh, we went to middle school together."
"And way longer than me too," Shiho added. "I met her back in my First year in Shujin."
"Then how's Lady Ann like back then?" Morgana asked, with a hint of sparks visible in his eyes.
"Not so different from now," Ryuji said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Once we got to high school, we ended up in different classes and stopped talkin'…"
"But… other than Suzui here, I don't think she has many friends," He continued. "I mean she grew up overseas, plus there's her look. The popular kids hate her; the quiet ones stay away."
"That sounds like it…" Casting a sympathetic glance at Ann, Hifumi nodded.
"Yeah, it's lucky that I called her painting sucks," Shiho added, sitting up straight now. "If not so, she might be all alone for all this time…"
"I see…" Trailing off, Yusuke turned to everyone. "Then… what about all of you?"
"Huh?" Ren blinked in slight confusion.
"This is a great opportunity to get to know each other better," the young artist explained. "Even though we're all a team now, we still don't know much about one another."
"That's fair…" Keigo nodded in agreement, just as everyone else followed.
"Well, I got nothin' to lose, after all," Ryuji shrugged, straightening in his seat. "All right, I'll start first then. It's just a normal story about a rotten kid though."
Taking in a deep breath, he started talking. "My dad left when I was young… Ever since then it's just been me and my mom," He said. "I was actually tryin' to get a track scholarship so I could make things easier for her."
"But in the end, I just screwed it all up. Turns out I'm a pretty bad son, huh?" With a joyless chuckle, Ryuji shook his head and paused for a moment. "Back when I was a first year, my mom got called out to school for me raisin' my hand at Kamoshida."
"All the teachers kept houndin' her for what I did, but she just stayed quiet through it all," Noticing the solemn look everyone gave him, and his own memories surfacing again, he paused again. "I'll never forget the look on her face though."
"On the way home, she… she apologized to me. For bein' a single mom and all…" Finishing off, Ryuji looked up from the table that he's been staring at halfway to the recollection.
"So that's what happened…" Shaking his head, Yusuke then turned to Akira. "Then Ichijo, what about you?"
"Me…" Feeling how Shiho gave his hand a gentle squeeze, Akira took in a deep breath. "Well before I start, I think we should all on a first-name basis, it's a bit confusing at times."
"But… well, it's better to spill it out sometimes," Taking in another deep breath, he started. "I lost my family back when I was just ten years old, then I got to live with my cousin for a while before coming to Tokyo for my first-year."
"And I used to have a few friends with me, Shinji and Kimiko," Feeling a lump in his throat, Akira paused for a moment. "Kimiko was the leader of the volleyball team back then, so she's also the main victim of Kamoshida."
"So then… she… took the only way out. Shinji left not long after, and I somehow got the blame from Kamoshida," Finishing up, Akira tried his best to give Shiho a reassuring smile. "So… yeah, that's pretty much it."
"Yeah, you got the worst end of the stick here," Ryuji sighed, patting his shoulder.
"That's… still sad to hear," Ren added. "If only we can reverse time or something…"
"Nah, it'd be unrealistic," Shaking his head, Akira then turned back to Keigo. "Keigo, you wanna share too?"
"…I… Sure," With some hesitation in his eyes, Keigo nodded. "As some of you know, I was transferred to Tokyo after the Kamoshida incident. And I'm originally from Ayanagi."
"My mom was French, and my dad was Japanese. I never really knew how she looked like though, she was forced to go back to French not long after I was born," He continued. "My dad and I had a rocky relationship, and… I wished I couldn't make amend with him before he passed away a year ago."
"And besides, he spent his last moment trying to save me, from that Persona-user," Feeling his fight tighten, Keigo tried his best to keep his emotion in check. "So in Ayanagi, there's actually been… a conflict between Persona-users, my dad and I got caught in the crossfire."
"After that, I was found to have awakened Fou Roux, then was recruited to the group I've mentioned before," He pushed his glasses, contemplating his wording. "After a while, I got sent here to investigate the business with the Metaverse. And now I'm here."
"…A conflict between Persona-users…" Ren repeated under his breath, narrowing his gaze. "That reminds me of that black mask Madarame mentioned."
"And… our life just kept being filled with regrets too," Shiho said, taking the slot of the next person to speak. "For me… it's more about Ann here."
"So I was the main player of the volleyball team, and because Ann's my best friend… Kamoshida used my position as leverage to get in Ann's pants," She started, this time feeling the squeeze from Akira instead. "And when he can't get into hers, he came for me… If not for Akira saving me, I don't want to imagine how things would turn out."
"That bastard of a teacher rally ruined a lot of people's life…" Ren muttered, clearly pissed. "At least he's gone for good now."
"I agree," Yusuke nodded, turning his gaze at Ren now. "What about you, Ren? How did you get here?"
"Well… I…" Trailing off, Ren took a few seconds to process everything. "I was going back home that night, and came across some drunk man trying to drag a lady to his car."
"I called the police and tried to separate them, but that guy fell to his own feet and busted his head," Crossing his arms, a rare scowl appeared on his forehead. "Somehow, he flipped the whole thing around and said that I'm assaulting him, he even forced the woman to lie for him."
"Then the court went extremely quick for some reason. And now I have a criminal record of an assault."
"…It still pisses me off, no matter how many times I hear this," Barely able to hold his anger, Ryuji huffed. "It's so unfair, man."
"Yeah, that guy probably had so much power that he just screwed you over for this," Akira agreed, also crossing his arms. "What a prick."
"That man is just the kind of person that should have his heart changed!" Morgana exclaimed. "Who is he, and where we can find him?!"
"I wish I could, but he stayed anonymous, and I never had a clear look at him."
"It seems like some corruption is at play here," Keigo added, rage also clear within his gaze. "So much for law being fair to everyone…"
"That sucks, not to mention how Kamoshida leaked it because he got scared that you'd take the spotlight…" Shiho said, looking somewhat pissed as well.
"Yeah, when justice can't be served through the right way, that's when we come in," Akira said, conviction clear in his eyes.
"And show what true justice is," Yusuke finished for him, the same conviction was also present in his gaze. "So people can come to their senses."
"Not just that, but also saving people from suffering too," Hifumi added. " No matter if it's themselves, or because people like that person who screwed over Ren."
"Hell yeah, we're definitely not gonna stop then!" Ryuji nodded, pumping his fist.
"Same, we're still gonna continue on!", Shiho nodded as well.
As if on cue, Ann slowly sat up and stretched her arms. "What are you guys getting so excited about?"
"Oh, sorry," Rubbing the back of his neck Ryuji apologized with slight embarrassment. "Did we woke you up?"
"No, I've been awake for a while now," Shaking her head, Ann then turned to Hifumi instead. "Besides, you guys missed Hifumi here too."
"Oh, sorry…" Apologized again, Ryuji just felt a bit more embarrassed now. "We kinda took your turn…"
"It's fine, I don't think I have much to say about my past either. You all know the gist of it from mom's press conference," Shaking her head, Hifumi lightly scratched her face with a shy smile. "I guess to lighten up the mood, I can talk about how my mom's been after the change of heart."
"Aside from the obvious, I've also discovered her… another side per se," Chuckling, she started recalling. "Like, it turns out that she's a giant nerd who loves both Shojo manga and even BL stuff."
...
"Mom?!" Still, in her school uniform, Hifumi widened her gaze in worry and rushed to the weeping Mitsuyo's side. "You're okay?!"
"Ka-I can't believe it just ended like this!" Exclaiming in mid-weeping, Mitsuyo shakingly pointed at the tower of Manga on the table. "I can't even see how they got married or see them as a married couple!"
"Huh?!" Blinked in shock, Hifumi took one of the manga from the table and had a closer look. "...Cardcaptor Sakura?!"
...
"For the past few days, I think I've basically lost count of how many times I came in and she's watching some BL drama or adaptation of Shojo manga to drama series," She laughed, giggling at those memories."It's certainly an emotional whiplash, but I'm really happy for her."
"But, she's uh… basically a huge fangirl over me," She continued, showing her phone to everyone. "Like how she's been texting me about the fanart people made about me, especially after the shooting yesterday."
And she was right, it was filled with fanart that Mitsuyo had sent to her. Not only that, there even were some comments about how cute they were.
"And on top of it all, she's found a liking to tease about me and Yusuke here," Pocketing the phone and giving out a long breath, Hifumi gestured to Yusuke next to her. "Sometimes it feels like she just became my annoying big sister instead of my mom."
"Wait, she's been doing that?" Blinked in genuine surprise and shock, it took Yusuke a moment to find the right word to say. "Uh… maybe I should say something to Togo-san?"
"Nah, you're probably gonna make it worse instead," Ryuji deadpanned, just as both Akira and Ren agreed.
"But that also means now you're getting to know your mom better, Hifumi," Keigo said, but a smile quickly crept up to his face. "That's great to know."
"Yes, it is," With a small smile, Hifumi nodded.
Meanwhile all it went on, Morgana couldn't help but frown. "That's good to know how similar you guys all were… I'm the only one who doesn't fit in…"
"I don't have any past to look back on… no memories…"
"Whaddya mean? We could search the whole world and we couldn't find a bigger misfit than you," In response, Ryuji just gave him a big grin. "And the reason we're goin' to Mementos is to get your memories back, right?"
"Amnesia, that must suck…" Trailing off, Shiho moved Paff from her lap and placed her next to Morgana, and she immediately started rubbing against him. "Here, at least it'd give you some comfort."
"I don't need…" Seeing that Paff had no intention of stopping, Morgana just sighed. "Fine, she can stay here."
"I'm sure your past is as troubled as all of us," Holding a small smile, Yusuke said. "No doubt."
"Hmph, we'll see about that," With a bit of regained confidence, Morgana stood up.
"Anyway, it's getting late and…" Standing up and stretching her arms, Ann stroked her chin. "I remembered seeing a bathhouse outside when we're coming back, how about we all have a bath there?"
[Soon after, the bathouse]
And they all agreed immediately.
"Man, it's been a while since I've taken a full bath," Giving out a sigh of contentment, Akira let his body slump against the wall. "Most of the time, I'm just taking showers instead…"
"Oh hell yeah, huge bathtubs really are the best," Ryuji nodded, grinning. "You've been missing out, Akira."
"Same, it's been a while for me too," Keigo nodded, stretching his legs. "Shame that I don't have a bathhouse near my apartment."
However, Ren had his gaze… filled with curiosity toward Akira. "Actually, I've been curious, Akira… How in the world that you're still not going public about you and Shiho?"
"H-huh? Why so sudden?" Feeling his chin start to heat up, Akira rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "But uh… it's more just we never had a conversation about going public. Besides, we're already kinda public with the rumors and stuff…"
"That's because you two just love to do PDA," Keigo deadpanned, arm crossed. "To be honest, I don't feel much of a difference before and after you two started dating. Hell, I can't even tell when the hell you two confessed."
"Ah… I guess other than being a bit more public and honest with each other, nothing's really changed…"
"Oh yeah, definitely," Ryuji deadpanned, following Keigo's example. "But anyway… what do you guys think the girls are talking about on the other side, heh?"
Meanwhile, on the other side, things weren't as what the boys had imagined though.
"So… yeah, there's been something on my mind for a while now."
With concern clear within their gaze, Shiho and Ann both reached out and patted Hifumi's shoulder. "Then why didn't you tell us earlier?" Shiho asked.
"Yeah, we are willing to listen."
"I just don't want to bring down the mood seconds after I lightened it up," Giving out a long breath, Hifumi leaned back against the wall. "But… it's about my friend. She's been… overworking herself lately…"
[Earlier, Kosei]
"What do you mean by 'she's not here'?"
Standing before the student council room, Hifumi scowled at the boy before her. Meanwhile, Hajime, the boy who stood between Hifumi and the student council room, just shook his head with a sympathetic sigh. "And why are you acting like you're guarding the room?"
"I'm actually here for her too, but she's just not here... And I guess I'm just used to acting like that for her," He said, glancing back at the empty room behind him. "I know how you feel Togo-san, but she's been…"
"Distant and way too overworked, right?" Finishing his sentence, the scowl on Hifumi's face deepened. However, it wasn't toward anyone. "She just had to carry everything to herself, huh?"
"Why wouldn't she just talk with us?"
"Maybe… because she cares about us?" Trying to find an answer that had a positive implication, Hajime let out a nervous and awkward chuckle. "She just doesn't want us to worry too much…"
Watching how Hajime just trailed off with each word, silence hung between the two. And right here, a single thought and emotion shared between them, concern.
And with a deep frown, Hifumi murmured out loud. "What in the world did you get yourself into, Hinaki…"
[Meanwhile, The principal's Office]
"It's just getting worse, Hoshido-Kocho."
Standing before the principal's desk with a solemn look, Hinaki and the principal shared a tired sigh together. Ever since the rumors of students in Tokyo being dragged into schemes and scams to extort every dime of their money out of them, nothing had ever gone in a positive way.
Reading through the report of what happened recently, the principal- Hoshido took off her glasses and rubbed her nose-bridge with a deep frown. "They're just getting bolder and bolder…"
Principal Hoshido was a woman in her mid-forties but still looked relatively young. Especially with the slick-back mid-length black hair, she got, with a splash of Skunk Stripe in it. And she wore a white long-sleeved shirt with some subtle splashes of green and blue on it, with a purple jacket that she wore like a cape instead.
However, as intimating as she'd look usually to everyone else. Right now, her vibe felt more like a somewhat frustrated, but caring friend instead.
"Then we should do something about it," Placing her hands on the table, Hinaki leaned a bit forward. "We can't just let this continue, Hoshido-Kocho. It's directly harming Kosei's students!"
For a split second, there was a thought to just say Shinji and Naoko's names. However, following this exact thought, the memories of yesterday followed immediately.
"Just… Don't tell the principal about this, she'd definitely call mom and… spiral everything out of control. I don't want her to worry."
With her fist tightened, Hinaki couldn't help but regretted promising to keep Shinji's secret. Even if his intention was to keep his mother safe, keeping this a secret wouldn't only make her more worried in the end. In the end, it fixed nothing…
And Hoshido did notice the tightened fist. "…Hinaki, I know you're worried, since you're the student council president. But…" Trailing off, she took another look at the report laid before her. "This is way beyond the power I have here, as a principal. But… I'll try to find some ways to help."
"Just don't be too hard on yourself."
"I know…" Hinaki relaxed her fists, took a step back and straightened herself. "Then I'll… also try to find some help on this problem."
Hoshido nodded, as the student council president bowed politely and left the said room.
Once she heard the 'click' from the door, Hinaki picked up her pace toward the student council's room. Just as an idea emerged, as someone who might have some ways to assist her on this.
"Right…" Murmuring to herself, she took out her phone and scrolled through the short contact list. "She should be right here… Yep! There she is."
She stopped scrolling at one particular number, one that was labeled as "Makidou-sensei". With determination filling her gaze, she made the call.
And it only took a few beeps before it was answered, as a cheerful voice spoke up first. "Hinaki! It's been a while, isn't it?"
"It is, Makidou-sensei."
"C'mon, I told you to just call me 'Konan', remember?" Makidou-sensei laughed, giggling to herself. "But hey, at least you're here to talk with me, I really need someone to talk to right now."
"Huh? Something's wrong, Sensei?" Eyes widened and filled with concern, Hinaki immediately stopped at her track.
"Yes and no," Giving out a long breath, Konan paused for a moment before continuing. "I'm fine, but my cases… They've been stuck in the mud."
"First, there's the whole case with the White Nail Killer, then there's also helping the SIU for the Mental Shutdown case," She sighed "Not to mention how frustrated Sae has been, AND to add those Phantom Thieves on top of this mess…"
"Oh, that's… I'm sorry to hear this," Wincing at her recounting, second thought about her own request emerged. "Then uh… It's fine then, I'll try to-"
"You'll try to carry all this problem and fix it yourself, right?" Cutting her off, the cheerful and lighthearted tone earlier was gone in Konan's voice. "If you need to call me for help, then it must be something serious."
"I… it is."
"Then tell me, I'm all ears."
"It… is about what happened recently with teenagers being lured into doing biddings for the mafia, and being extorted out of money," Hinaki said with a deep breath, slowly picking up her pace again. "Some students in Kosei also got dragged into this mess."
"…So it's about that, huh…" Trailing off, silence hung between the phone line for a few moments. "I'm sorry that I got bad news, but… the head of that mafia has been untouchable from the police for months now."
"Oh…"
"But I'm not officially a part of the force, so I might try to use my connections to see if I can help," Even though the line between them was voice only, Hinaki could still feel a comforting smile from the other end. "I can't guarantee anything, but I'll try."
"…Thank you, Makidou-sensei."
"I told you to call me 'Konan' instead, 'Makidou-sensei' makes me feel old."
"Sorry, I got used to it," The student council president chuckled, but it quickly died down and was replaced by a serious expression. "But… thank you."
"Don't mention it."
With that said, Hinaki ended the call and picked up her pace. But a frown emerged not long after. As every second passed, she regretted the decision to promise Shinji to keep this a secret.
"Why did he just have to carry everything alone?"
[On the other end, Shujin's principal office]
"Listen to me, sir. This is serious!"
Feeling less and less patient at Kobayakawa's inaction to the problem of mafia threatening students, Makoto could feel herself at the urge of letting rage take her over. And the tightened fist she hid behind her back seemed to start to lose its effect.
"Our students are getting threatened by the mafia of all people, and we're just going to do nothing?"
"Niijima, this isn't your concern," Taken back by her attitude, a visible drop of sweat trailed across Kobayakawa's face. "W-we can't do anything about it, it's out of our control."
"But that doesn't mean we just keep letting it like everything is fine!" Makoto retorted. "It is getting worse and worse, and it's only because nothing has been done!"
"But… we just got out of the media's attention because of what happened with Mr. Kamoshida. If this happened right after that-"
"The school's reputation will be tainted, right?" With the edge clear within her voice, Makoto could feel her other hand slowly curled into a fist as well. "Not only that, this would only mean more trouble for you to handle."
"N-no, of course not! I do care about the students too!" With another drop of sweat trailing across his chin, Kobayakawa could swear this felt familiar to him. As if someone else had said the same thing to him before-
"You never do," Cutting off his thought, Makoto's glare was enough to kill someone. And not only that, it was the exact same as someone. A certain vice-president of the student council. "Shujin's reputation was what you cared about."
"You just want to get all this shit off from you, isn't it? Kimiko fucking died because of that piece of shit, and you're just gonna keep him here like you're his bitch, huh?"
"Izumo Shinji! Watch your mouth-"
"I am leaving this place you call a school anyway. So for once, I can speak my fucking mind at you, you fat fuck!"
However, unlike Shinji, Makoto just turned around and reached for the door in silence. Just bottled up all her rage about how stubborn and incompetent this man before her was. "You'll just ask me to continue investigating the Phantom Thieves, right? Because it'd earn me a recommendation letter from you."
Not bothered to even wait for a response, she left the room and slammed the door shut. It definitely had grabbed the eyes of everyone who happened to pass by, and Makoto was sure that her expression sure looked horrifying.
But she didn't care.
With both of her fists tightened, Makoto walked toward the student council room. And with each step, the scowl on her face relaxed, as a different urge emerged from within. Gone was the horrifying scowl on her face, and what replaced... was an immense sense of sorrow.
Makoto felt like she was a near-broken dam, forcing herself to hold it in with a deep and raspy breath. And she kept blinking, as if it'd do anything helpful to hold any tears from leaking out.
Before long, she arrived at the student council's room, and she hastily opened the door and entered. Slamming the door shut and had her back leaned against it, strength faded in both of her legs as she slumped to the ground.
She could feel how her chest raised and fell with each breath, as it got quicker and quicker by the second. Opening her mouth and taking in a deep breath, Makoto felt that urge only grow bigger and bigger.
For one single moment, she tried to hold her breath and clutched her eyes shut. And so did her fists, as tight as she could in the hope to force it back down. She had been keeping all these emotions inside her, why she just couldn't do it today? Why does it just have to be today?
And the first crack of that dam surfaced, and a pained cry suddenly leaked from her throat. Struggling to calm herself down, Makoto's efforts were gone within seconds with another choked cry.
"S-stop… Just stop-"
With another cry cutting her off, Makoto felt all the control she had over her emotion evaporated. And all those emotions she kept to herself broke free and overwhelmed her like a wave of Tsunami.
The empty room was only filled with the pained cry of Makoto, full of rage against everything in her life and herself, and the loneliness after all this time. But it didn't help, even for a single bit.
She felt utterly alone.
Reaching into her pocket with a shaking hand, the sobbing girl took out her phone. And opened the list of voice recordings, which consisted of only one recording. One that she recorded earlier in the day.
Makoto stared at the said recording, and hesitation filled her gaze, along with sorrow.
(To be continued)
Preview:
Rejected.
Outcast.
Ignored.
Alone.
These words are what Niijima Makoto would use to describe herself.
Struggling to be a role model for everyone.
Struggling to be a good sister.
Struggling and failing to move on from what happened.
With each passing day, it seemed like the option she had left are running out.
Next Chapter:
"Last Resort"
Stay tuned!
So... *Double check* Exactly a month after the last chapter, Chapter 40 is finally here!
Originally I intended to have it released earlier, but it just keeps getting longer than I thought. I'm sorry that it took this long.
But also, in the meantime, Chapter 2 of the Mementos Mission is also out too! So Id highly recommends everyone to check that chapter out after this one.
Also, from this chapter onward, we're going full-on into the next palace's arc! After being subtly mentioned and shown in previous chapters, Makoto and Shinji are finally coming into the spotlight.
But that also means the lighthearted portion would be over... at least for a while. As already shown in the preview above.
Review response:
Jake Hallows: You have a point here, it is a dead giveaway that Akechi kinda doubled down on. But don't worry, this time someone did notice it, just not like he'd spell it out right then and there.
Asterun: Sorry for being three chapters late with the response here, but thank you for liking it!
Anyway, I hope you all like the story so far! Reviews and Favorites are definitely welcomed!
