Chapter 17: Shogun of Vanity

May 22

"You know, despite being into art myself, I hadn't heard of the Silver Ratio before today's lesson," Octavia mused to Ren as everyone gathered at the hideout. "If it's more common in Japanese art, maybe I should ask my Uncle Andre about it. He has a thing for Eastern art, after all…"

That made Collin perk up. "Wait, your uncle wouldn't happen to have a flamboyant personality with an icy aura and a liking to wearing blues and furs, would he?"

Octavia raised an eyebrow. "That's… exactly like him, actually. Wait, was he the demon you saw at the exhibit?" She sighed. "Of course he was. Marquis Andrealphus, my mother's brother, and eternal rival to my father. Seriously, just because they both have domains in astrology, doesn't mean it has to be a competition."

"Should we be worried that another demon is involved in all this?" Ann asked.

Octavia shook her head. "Andre isn't one for fighting unless it's to get into someone's pants. And let's just say that for all my uncle's… eccentric choice of partners, Madarame certainly isn't his type."

"Speaking of Madarame, we can take him down now, yes?" Yusuke asked.

"Madarame's going to be a changed man," Morgana nodded. "There won't be any way to revert it though. Are you sure you're okay with that?"

"I have thought it over carefully, and I cannot think of a future in which he does not pay his dues," Yusuke replied. "He has preyed not only on the art world, but on countless talents… so, I humbly request your help."

"Don't get too worked up," Ren said.

"I apologize for making you do this…" Yusuke said.

"Not at all," Ann shook her head. "We just didn't want to impose if you weren't feeling up to it, Yusuke. But if you're already determined to do it, then there's nothing more for us to say."

"If I recall our next step is sending a "calling card," correct? What a suave maneuver," Yusuke mused.

"It's not about acting cool. The calling card is a way to trigger a change in his cognition," Morgana explained.

Yusuke nodded. "A change in cognition… That reminds me, you went through some trouble regarding that before…"

"You mean when we had to open the security gate in the courtyard," Octavia said. "The Palace is a cognitive world, so changing its ruler's cognition changes the topography."

"Very nicely put, Octavia! You're absolutely correct. This will be a vital tactic from here forward," Morgana smiled.

"Hopefully with less… stripping, next time," Collin shuttered.

"Actually may I ask a truly basic question?" Yusuke said. "You continue to mention cognition quite readily… But why does this world formed from materialized cognition even exist to begin with? Don't tell me… Has it always existed, while we go about our daily lives completely oblivious?"

"Honestly, we're not sure," Octavia said. "I don't think the Metaverse existed like it does now in the past, or else Duke Raoul wouldn't have waited until now to try and do something about it. This ordeal that we have been sent on is strange to be sure…"

"At the very least, I know it existed before the Kamoshida incident… but that's all," Morgana added.

"I see…" Yusuke nodded.

"Crap, you totally caught me off guard with that…" Ryuji shook his head. "It's kinda weird thinking there are whole worlds we just don't know a damn thing about… I mean, Heaven and Hell exist too, imagine that! Did the thought ever cross your mind, Ren?"

"Of course it did," Ren said, a bit melancholy in tone.

"Don't be so anxious. You don't even know everything about the city you live in, after all," Morgana replied. "All that's important is that we know how to make use of the Metaverse and how to traverse it."

"So, are we just going to talk or send the calling card out?" Loona asked. The others all voiced their agreement to the plan. "Then let's send a message to this fraud that the Phantom Thieves are on his ass now!"

"A calling card, hm? Will he take it seriously?" Yusuke wondered. "He is famous, after all… He has often received slanderous letters till now, as well."

"He'll know best whether the crime written on it is for real or not," Ryuji assured.

"Wait. Are you going to write it again, Ryuji? That last one was questionable at best…" Morgana said.

"You should do it, Yusuke," Octavia said.

"Oh! Make it really artistic and stuff!" Ann suggested.

Yusuke shook his head. "No. It'll end with him figuring it out. He knows my drawing and writing styles all too well."

"Then I'll help with this one," Loona offered. "You can just add your "Yusuke-ness" to it afterwards. It'll be better than what Ryuji did last time, at least."

"Hey!" the blonde shouted.

"Designing a calling card, hm…" Yusuke closed his eyes and smiled. "Interesting. It shall be proof that the Phantom Thieves do exist."

"It's decided then," Loona grinned.

"Great! All that's left is to make the Treasure ours!" Morgana cheered. "You guys better come fully prepared!" With that the gang broke off for the day, ready to steal the Treasure tomorrow.

Loona: Yo, I tried changing the chat icon.

Octavia: ?

Collin: ?

Ryuji: ?

Ann: Looks the same to me.

Loona: Maybe it's just for the group and doesn't show up in here… Well, you should look later. It's that Phantom Thieves logo I had Yusuke draw for us. The calling card turned out kickass because of him too. Anyways, this is the first job for the Phantom Thieves. We really can't fuck this up, k?

Octavia: We're not underestimating anything, I assure you.

Ryuji: And make sure Yusuke gets a lot of rest today, OK?

Ann: Yeah.

Loona: See you all tomorrow!

Ren: Night.

Ann: See you tomorrow!

[***]

Collin: Ren, can we hang out? I know it's bad timing, the night before a calling card but… I really need to do something to calm my nerves…

Ren: Sure.

Collin: Oh, thank you! Let's meet in Shibuya. I could use a late-night snack.

Letting Ren decide where they would eat, the leader of the Phantom Thieves decided to go to Big Bang Burger. While Ren ordered a regular burger, Collin went for a kid's meal instead. "Oh yeah, a light snack is just what I needed for my nerves," the cherub sighed. "Although I am disappointed the kid's meal doesn't come with a toy like other restaurants… It's the little things in life that make you happy, you know?"

"Speaking of which, what do you do for a living, Collin?" Ren asked.

"Oh, well, before I was a part of a group called CHERUB. It's a group whose mission was to bless human souls on Earth, be it saving people from death or convincing them to live on and be better people," Collin explained. "Although I don't remember if we ever decided what our acronym stood for…"

"Sounds noble," Ren said.

"Admittedly, it wasn't easy. Humans can be ungrateful at times, and I got hurt… a lot…" Collin sighed. "But that's just because I was so dedicated to the cause! If Cletus and Keenie needed something, I'd happily do it!"

"Cletus and Keenie?" Ren asked.

"Oh, they're my… co-workers," Collin explained. He pulled out his phone and showed Ren a picture of the CHERUB team together. "Cletus is the leader and founder of CHERUB, while Keenie is the financial expert and muscle. I mostly did everything else, including paperwork, keeping our weapons cleaned, that kind of stuff."

"Did they help you with that stuff?" Ren asked.

Collin shrugged. "Sometimes, but it's not like it bothered me. We were doing the Lord's work, so why should I complain? At least, before that one mission that ruined everything…" The cherub looked at his food, pushing the tray away. "Suddenly I'm not so hungry anymore…"

Ren looked at his friend with concern. "If you ever want to talk about it, you can tell me. I promise not to tell the others if you don't want me to."

"Thank you for the offer, but I'm good for now," Collin said. "Hm, you know, even if I'm banished now, I can still use my skills from CHERUB to help the Phantom Thieves. I know a protection spell that can block fatal attacks, and I'm sure that with some effort, I can make it work in Palaces."

"Sounds useful," Ren nodded.

"It only works one time, though, so we'd have to make it count before I can recharge it," Collin explained. "How about I focus on protecting you, Ren? Since you're the leader, if you fall, the rest of us will have a hard time going on without you." He smiled to himself. "Okay then, I'm going to do this. I'll prove my worth and make sure you stand strong, Joker!"

"Just don't overwork yourself," Ren laughed. After they finished their meal, the two left back to their homes to sleep for the night, a big day ahead of them.

[***]

May 23

At the art exhibit the next day, Yusuke stood with Madarame when one of the exhibit staff approached the fraudulent artist. "Pardon me, sir. There's a matter we need to notify you about…"

"Please excuse me for a moment," Madarame said to his guests. Yusuke made sure to listen in on the conversation. "What is it?"

"We found this outside…" the staff member said, pulling out the calling card.

"A letter?" Madarame raised an eyebrow.

"It's… uh…" the man stuttered, passing the card over to Madarame to look at. "Sir Ichiryusai Madarame, a great sinner of vanity whose talent has been exhausted. You are an artist who uses his authority to shamelessly steal the ideas of his pupils. We have decided to make you confess all your crimes with your own mouth. We will take your distorted desires without fail. From, The Phantoms…"

Madarame crumpled up the card in his hand. "Who's doing this!?"

"We don't know! The same letter's been posted everywhere…" the staff member cowered.

"What about the security cameras!?" Madarame asked angerly.

"There were no signs of the culprit…" the staff member replied. "In fact, it looked like the letters appeared out of thin air…"

'Thank you for that, Collin,' Yusuke thought.

"Remove these at once!" Madarame shouted.

"Of course!" the staff member replied. "Um…"

"What now!?" Madarame huffed.

"it's about this affecting the exhibit… We believe it's just a prank, but what of the mass media?" the staff member asked.

"Are you insinuating that this slander is true?" Madarame glared.

"Of course not!" the staff member quickly said.

Yusuke felt the world shutter as he suddenly saw Madarame's Shadow standing in his sensei's place. "It's those damn brats' doing, isn't it? Well, it means nothing… They'll only be able to do as they please until this exhibit is over…" After seeing that, Yusuke went over to where the Phantom Thieves were hanging out.

"Will that do?" the artist asked.

"Yup! It was perfect! The composition was way cooler too!" Ann nodded.

"The Treasure should appear right about now," Morgana said.

"You better enjoy the air of freedom while you still can, old man," Ryuji said. "Anyways, did you guys check online? People are already talking about that calling card. We'll show 'em… We're gonna surprise 'em all!"

"I'm sure you know, but we only get one shot to pull this off!" Morgana reminded them.

"It's do or die," Ren said.

"Come on Ren, chin up. We need our leader to stand up tall," Octavia said.

"You down for this too, right Yusuke?" Loona asked.

"Of course I am," he replied. "We'll do this."

With that the group walked off, activating the Meta-Nav as the museum heist as about to begin.

[***]

Location: Museum of Vanity Entrance

"The atmosphere in here seems significantly different…" Fox noted.

"I mean, we did basically declare war on him by sending that card," Lycan pointed out.

"But there's nothing to fear," Mona said. "We've secured a rout, and we're ready to go. We'll take the Treasure in style!" Heading into the Palace, the gang made a break for the crane controls, all their roles set to steal the Treasure."

"It's finally time…" Skull said.

"There will be no turning back once we begin the operation," Fox warned.

"And if worse comes to worst, we might have to fight…" Panther said.

"That's right. Are you ready, Joker?" Mona asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Joker replied.

"Then everyone, to your positions!" Omen ordered. The gang all split up, with Skull, Panther, and Lycan heading to the control room, Skull distracting the guards so the other two could mess with the controls. Up above, Fox and Templar secured Mona to the crane hook, with Templar acting as an emergency safely line to catch the not-cat in case something went wrong with the crane.

Once the signal was sent, Panther turned off the lights, prompting Joker to lower the crane, allowing Mona to grab the Treasure below! "Hehehe! How's that for a skilled plan?" Mona laughed as he was pulled up. The Treasure seemed to be in the form of a covered painting.

"That was amazing, Mona!" Omen complimented, helping to pull the not-cat down.

"Lord Madarame! Th-The piece is gone!" a Shadow exclaimed from below.

The shogun made a tisk noise. "How dare those vermin… But now we'll corner them like the rats they are! Lock all the doors at once! They have nowhere to run!"

"What is the Treasure? If I had to guess, it looks like a painting," Lycan asked.

"We can look into that later. For now, we must escape," Fox said.

"Yeah, it's time to go!" Mona cheered. Running across the scaffolding, the Phantom thieves made their exit out a window, completely bypassing the doors being set into lockdown mode.

"Woah, this shit's real high up…" Skull said, looking down from the roof.

"But at least we're outside! Is there a way down out here!?" Mona asked. Climbing down the building, the gang soon came across a portal door like the ones in the distorted room.

"Aw shit, not this again…" Lycan cursed.

"We don't have time to lose. Just go through it! Now's our chance!" Mona said.

Lycan rolled her eyes. "Seriously? But… I guess there's no other way!" Moving through the portal, the Phantom Thieves found themselves in the courtyard area. "Wait, how'd we end up here?"

"I knew it! All that security wouldn't been meaningless if it just led back inside!" Mona cheered.

"It seems we managed to escape their siege," Fox mused.

Mona suddenly started meowing. "Dude… Why's Mona getting excited now of all times?" Skull asked.

"I just can't take it anymore! Let's take a look at this Treasure!" Mona exclaimed. Gathering around, the not-cat took off the cloth and practically started hugging the painting inside. "Treasure… huh!?"

Looking down, the painting was that of an odd face. "This is the Treasure!?" Lycan and Skull shouted.

Omen shuttered, before noticing the laser gates rising from the ground. "Everyone scatter!" she exclaimed, everyone moving out of the way before they could be capture.

"Meddlesome vermin," Shadow Madarame said, stepping out of the museum with two guards, one holding a golden painting. "Is this what you're looking for?"

"How dare you try to trap me like some kind of mouse!" Mona chided.

"So you had a fake prepped, huh!?" Skull said.

Counterfeits are accepted in the world of Japanese art," the shogun mused.

"What made you change like this!? Is it because you became famous!?" Fox asked. "Can't you understand how much it pains me to inquire about the crimes of my foster father!?"

"Now that I think back, the only reason I took you in was due to the ties with your mother," Shadow Madarame explained. "That woman never lost her passion for painting even after her husband died. Her skills and talents were quite astonishing… That's why I decided to look after her. Your mother and the artwork she created- they're all my works of art!"

"How low can you sink?" Omen asked in disgust.

"I suppose I can grant you a gift before you die- a glimpse of the genuine "Sayuri"!" the shogun mused.

"Genuine…?" Fox wondered. The guard stepped forward, holding up the painting. It was indeed the "Sayuri", but instead of having fog cover the bottom of the painting, the woman was shown holding a newborn baby instead. "That's… the real "Sayuri"?" Fox questioned. "This can't be! Mom…"

"Wait, the "Sayuri"… is a self-portrait of Yusuke's mother!" Omen realized. "That's why you feel so attached to the painting, Fox!"

"Indeed it is. A woman who knew her death was coming painted her last wishes, for the son she would leave behind," Shadow Madarame confirmed. "That is the truth behind the mystery of "Sayuri"'s expression!"

"You stole something that personal!?" Skull asked.

"I knew at first glance. I knew it'd be a huge success if I added a touch to the painting and announced it under my name!" the shogun explained.

"But the baby in the picture… Why did you paint over it?" Fox asked.

"It was all to stage it," Shadow Madarame replied. "If the babe is erased, the reason for the woman's expression will become a mystery! That is what the general public is drawn to! Each of those parasitic critics wrote the same thing!"

"I always felt something was off about all this… Now I know what it is," Omen said. "If you really treasured that painting, you wouldn't even think about replicating it for profit! You don't love art at all!"

"Though you have a real Treasure, your true skills are nothing more than those scribbles on that fake!" Mona added.

"It makes me laugh, asshole!" Lycan shouted.

"So you'll defy me no matter what…" Shadow Madarame crossed his arms. "Well then, since you're my work of art, Yusuke, I'm going to reap you for the sake of my future… Along with those insolent friends of yours there."

"I can't believe you're treating both mother and son like objects… You're inhuman!" Templar exclaimed.

Omen then noticed that Fox had been very silent. "Fox?"

"I've heard that you destroy your "art" once they outlive their usefulness… Did that include my mother as well?" Fox asked darkly. Everyone's heads whipped around to look at the shogun for answers.

"She just so happened to have a seizure in front of me. That's when a thought crossed my mind… If I don't call for help and leave her be, I could obtain her painting without any strings attached," Madarame said with a sick grin.

"No… You let her die!?" Panther gasped.

"She was physically weak. No one would doubt if she just dropped dead because of a seizure. Above all, Yusuke, didn't you think it was old that I discovered your talent when you were only three?" Shadow Madarame explained. "The reason why I kept you around was to keep you from realized the truth behind "Sayuri."

Fox glared with deadly intent behind his mask. "You killed her…!"

"The artistic talents you inherited from your mother were a delightful miscalculation, though," the shogun continued. "If I'm to steal ideas, it's much easier robbing the future of brats who don't fight back than adults. It's thanks to you that I came up with the idea. You have my gratitude."

Fox suddenly started laughing. "Yusuke?" Panther asked worriedly.

"I thank you, Madarame!" Fox said. "Every reason for me to forgive you has disappeared without a trace at this very moment! You aren't some rotten artist… You're a despicable fiend who wears the skin of an artist!"

"All you good-for-nothings…! Barging into my museum and doing whatever the hell you want…" Shadow Madarame said, powering building around him. "Those who have the connections make the rules; those who don't, follow them. Not to mention, the value of art is all subjective. I make the rules of the art scene! I am the supreme being! I am the god of the art world!"

"This isn't good. Get back!" Mona warned.

As the shogun laughed, his body was shed, transforming into four different paintings: two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. "I'll paint all over you! Now… let's begin, you vermin!"

"You use others for your own desires, Madarame…" Fox said. "You aren't even worth the art you "create"!"

"Huh, the world didn't shift like it did last time," Omen noted. "But I get the feeling that this form isn't his true self. Everyone, let's see what we can do about this eyesore of self-portraits!" Going into battle, the gang quickly figured out that the eyes and nose absorbed magic attacks while the mouth absorbed physical attacks. Since the mouth hurt like a truck when it attacked, the Phantom Thieves took that one down first, only for it to be restored!

"They regenerated!?" Mona exclaimed.

"That means we just have to take them all down at the same time!" Templar said. As the battle went on, the right eye used an odd attack against Panther, covering her in ink. "What is this attack!?"

"There has to be more than just our color changing! We should be cautious!" Mona warned. As they soon found out, the paint attack made whoever was covered in the stuff vulnerable to all attacks! Lycan made sure to defend Panther from attacks until they could get rid of it. "That paint-coating attack is a real hassle… What's the plan, Joker?"

Before Joker could respond, he was suddenly blindsided by an attack by the mouth painting. "Joker!" Templar shouted, pressing his hands together. A holy light suddenly surrounded their leader, blocking the almost assuredly deadly attack.

"Thank you, Templar," Joker said.

"We have to make sure you pull through this," Templar replied, casting Dia to heal him. "I'm just glad my blessing worked…"

"Good job making sure we don't die, Lambchop," Lycan said. "But we should really end this battle now so we all don't kick the bucket to this asshole. Got a plan, Joker?"

Looking around, Joker noticed some nearby paint cans. "Let's turn the tables on him," he suggested.

Mona gasped. "Isn't that the same thing Madarame's been using? Let's try covering him with paint!"

"That's a great idea!" Templar said. "Fox, help me out with this!"

"Time to bestow the humiliation of being painted over to him!" Fox nodded. Rushing over to the paint cans, Templar summoned Zaphnath-Paaneah, his Persona using its water affinity to pull the water-based paint out of the buckets. With a flourish of his sword, Fox coated his katana in the paint, becoming a paintbrush that he used to cut up and douse Madarame in his own attack!

"Wh-Wat the…!? My powers… They're suddenly draining…" the painting said.

"Now Joker!" Mona shouted. Joker nodded, summoning Jack Frost to cast Mabufu, knocking down all of the paintings and forcing Madarame to assume his true form.

"Very skillful, Fox and Templar! Like a true artist should be!" Omen cheered. The gang soon surrounded Shadow Madarame in a Hold Up.

"Damnit… I'm the great Madarame… The Madarame who gathers a full crowd every time he opens an exhibit! I'm not someone that worthless brats like you are allowed to defy!" the shogun shouted.

"Enough of your egotistical rantings!" Fox shot back. Taste the wrath of all those you've preyed upon!" With that, they gang did an All-Out Attack on the Shogun of Vanity.

"I am the great artist, Madarame! If you brats can't fathom that… Then you'll witness it for yourselves! Behind my master craft!" With a show of power, Shadow Madarame created elemental clones of himself: one for fire, lighting, ice, and wind respectively.

"He created copies of himself…! Hah, I see. Creating duplicates is his specialty!" Mona laughed.

Omen suddenly winced, watching as the world around them shifted slightly to barren wasteland. "Who is… Azazel…?" she asked aloud.

"Like the fallen angel!?" Collin gasped. "Hm, I guess it makes sense. Vanity is something a fallen angel would still have pride in. And the fallen angel of scapegoats nonetheless…"

"Let's focus on knocking down his clones, and then we can focus on the true one!" Joker said. Exploiting weaknesses and Baton Passing for maximum damage, the Phantom Thieves took out the clones, letting them focus on Azazel.

"Stop this… is this how you show your gratitude to the man who raised you!?" Azazel shouted.

"Silence! Don't waste your breath!" Yusuke chided. Azazel then summoned more copies, this time adding in purple gravity, orange earth, and light blue water clones as well.

"Lycan, hit the Gravity clones, Templar go for the Earth clones, and I'll handle the Water ones!" Omen ordered. The cycle repeated once more, with the Baton Pass and Joker's Persona changing coming in handy to knock down all of the fakes and do damage to Azazel.

"Damnit… Damnit… Stop it, you brats, or else…!" Azazel threatened.

"You think we'll be daunted by such threats!?" Fox scoffed. As Azazel summoned in more clones, some of them seemed to be inflicted with status conditions of various kinds.

"Hey, something seems wrong! Could he have…?" Mona wondered.

Even the Shadow was surprised. "What!? I, the great Madarame… made an error!?"

Omen scoffed. "So you're already at your limit? How pathetic."

"To think you'd fail to produce even one of your counterfeits- please, don't disappoint me any further!" Fox taunted. With the status effects in place, it made passing the baton even easier, and soon enough they had the full chain completed.

"Would you like to do the honor, Fox?" Lycan asked.

He nodded. "Goemon!" Summoning his Persona, the true artist attacked Azazel with Vicious Strike, the Shadow going down with a scream of defeat. With that, the world turned back into the Palace proper.

Shadow Madarame stumbled backwards as Fox approached him, the shogun falling to the ground and cowering behind the Treasure. "No one cares for true art… All they want are easily recognizable brands! I'm a victim in his too! Wouldn't you agree!?" the Shadow pleaded.

"Excuses now?" Omen scoffed.

"The art wound revolves around money, after all… You can't rise up without any money…" Shadow Madarame tried to defend himself "Yusuke, you understand, don't you!? Being a poor artist is truly miserable! I just didn't want to return to that life!"

Fox grabbed the shogun by his collar. "A fiend like you has no right to speak about the world of art! You're done for- along with this whole wretched world!"

Shadow Madarame shrieked in fear. "No, please! Just… don't kill me!"

Fox tossed the Shadow the ground. "Return to yourself in reality and confess to your crimes- all of them!"

"Y-You're not going to kill me?" the shogun asked in surprise.

"Swear it!" Fox shouted.

Shadow Madarame shrieked again. "All right… All right! Wh-What about the other one though? The one with the black mask?"

"Huh?" Templar tilted his head.

"Don't try to fool us," Joker warned.

"I don't have any energy left to pull such petty tricks…" Shadow Madarame said.

"A black mask?" Lycan repeated. "I mean, some of us have black masks but… who's he talking about?"

"It can't be… There was another intruder besides us within in Palace!?" Mona gasped.

The world suddenly started shaking as the Palace began to crumble. "There's no time! Hurry!" Skull exclaimed.

Mona took a few steps back before turning into his car from. "Get on!"

As everyone got into the van, Shadow Madarame looked to Fox, whom has the Treasure in his hands. "Hey Yusuke… What should I do?"

"Put an end to all this and use your own artwork for once," Fox stated bluntly.

"Fox! We have to go!" Omen called.

"No, wait! Please! Yusuke! Yusuke!" the shogun cried out.

As the Phantom Thieves made their escape, Omen looked out the window and swore she saw a strange figure: an all-black suit with a pointed black mask. 'Was that-?" she thought, before they made their escape from the Palace.

[***]

"The destination has been deleted."

"It would be bad if people started getting suspicious of us. We should leave at once," Morgana said.

"Yusuke, come on," Ryuji said.

"Right…" the artist nodded. "Goodbye, Sensei." The gang retreated back to the hideout, treasure in hand as they all processed what had just happened.

"Well, the mission worked out in the end. Now we just have to wait and see if he had a change of heart," Loona said, setting out drinks (non-alcoholic for the minors, at Octavia's insistence) for everyone.

"Ugh, so bitter… Why'd you give me black coffee?" Ryuji wretched.

"The "Sayuri"…" Yusuke breathed, looking at the Treasure in his hands.

"You're not gonna get all teary-eyed and say stuff like, "Mom!" are you?" Loona asked.

"To think that this painting was the source of Madarame's distorted desires," Yusuke mused. "The only saving grace is that my mother won't know of what transpired…"

"The genuine painting at his atelier has been altered, after all…" Morgana said. "Ironic as it may be, this one is her true-self-portrait now."

"It's a wonderful painting," Ann smiled. "And… although it took some time it's in your hands now, Yusuke."

"I'm thankful for it," Yusuke returned the smile. "However, it's impossible for this painting to be acknowledged by society anymore…"

"That's a shame," Collin sighed.

"It's not such a bad thing, though," Octavia said.

Ren hummed. "Was "Sayuri" your mom's name?" he asked.

Yusuke shook his head. "No. I doubt it's the name of any woman in particular. I bet it was to make it more mysterious- just a part of Madarame's foolish staging."

"I guess it would have been obvious that he plagiarized it if he had used her real name," Octavia pointed out.

"So, this is my mother… There's no way that I would remember her face clearly… But I was right about the rush of emotion I felt when I saw this painting," Yusuke said.

Collin suddenly got a determined look on his face. "When I get back to Heaven, I'll look for your mom, Yusuke. I'm sure- no, I'm certain that a kind soul such as her would have ended up in the Lord's kingdom, even if most of this country doesn't believe in Him. I'm sure she's looking down on us now, happy that you were able to break away from Madarame's hold."

"That's noble of you, Collin," Yusuke nodded.

Ryuji suddenly let out a burb in Ann's face. "Stop that!" she shouted.

"You're so vulgar, Ryuji," Morgana sighed.

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Ryuji asked Yusuke, ignoring the others. "We're gonna keep targeting big shots."

"Why do you do such things?" the artist questioned.

"It's to get back at scumbags and like… society in general?" Ryuji replied. "We also want to give courage to the people that're suffering 'cause of selfish adults."

"Courage, hm… What good does that do? You mean the courage to stand up for themselves, correct? Will acquiring that make them happy?" Yusuke asked.

"I'm not sure," Ren admitted.

"He's right. There's no way of knowing that… but have to try," Octavia said.

"In other words, it all depends on the person, hm?" Yusuke mused. "Then the same can be said about myself right now. I also suffered because of an adult's selfish act. Moreover, if we investigate these Palaces, it may expand my artistic repertoire."

"You really only think about art, huh? You're impressive," Loona chuckled.

"Well I won't take part in any inelegant plans, all right?" Yusuke said.

"No worries! I've got us covered!" Ann assured him. "Plus we have a rule that says we always have to decide on a target unanimously."

"How about it, Joker?" Morgana asked. "We can give our calling cards a lot more "oomph" if we have Yusuke on our team."

"He would make a great member," Ren said with a nod and smile.

"I will try and live up to those expectations," Yusuke gave a small bow.

"At any rate, I'm curious… Another intruder besides us, huh?" Morgana said.

"I think I caught of glimpse of them when we made our escape," Octavia admitted. "But if our only clue is a black mask, that doesn't mean we're dealing with just one person. For all we know, it could be a whole other team of phantom thieves."

"Not like we can go back and check since the Palace went boom," Loona shook her head.

"I'll try probing Madarame. I may be able to learn something from him," Yusuke offered.

"Are you sure?" Collin asked. "I mean-"

"I'll contact you if anything turns up," Yusuke assured.

"We should probably exchange our contact info with you then," Ann said.

"About time he gets added to the group chat," Octavia said, the gang all adding Yusuke to their contacts.

"An artist and a phantom thief… It seems I'll be engaging in two trades from now on," the artist mused. "Very well. You only live once, after all. Still, the incident about this other intruder does concern me a little…"

Ryuji: Yo, good job guys.

Ann: We all did our best.

Yusuke: Allow me to express my thanks once again. Because of you, I was able to retrieve the painting that had been filled with my mother's love.

Octavia: Hearing you say that makes the whole thing worth it, Yusuke!

Collin: Seriously.

Ann: I wasn't sure you'd really want to change Madarame's heart.

Yusuke: I'm sorry to have worried you. I have no regrets about it now.

Loona: The change of heart WILL happen this time, right?

Ren: You worried?

Loona: I just want to be sure the first time wasn't a fluke. Btw, wtf was up with the black mask bullshit?

Ryuji: You mean about the other intruder besides us? Only Via really saw it, so…

Octavia: And even then, I don't know if my eyes were just playing tricks on me or not.

Yusuke: That may have been nothing more than a lie. Madarame was quite deranged at that point, after all. For now, we should wait for his change of heart in peace.

Ann: OK.

Confidant Rank Up

Confidant: Collin Pastor

Arcana: Sirius

Rank 2 Description: You took Collin out for a late-night snack, and he told you about his past role in an organization called CHERUB.

Rank 2 Ability: Guardian's Blessing: Once per battle, Collin will nullify a skill that would otherwise knock out Joker (including Instant Death skills, excluding scripted events)

Author's Note

This chapter kinda became a Collin chapter, almost by accident. I think him being an angel makes me want to have him be the most forward in wanting the Palace Rulers to repent for their sins, so him having a leading role in these boss chapters just makes sense. He's also slowly opening up to Ren about his past as well, and I have quite a few ideas for how I want to explore Collin's past role in CHERUB.

Also, Collin get's his first unique Confidant skill, Guardian's Blessing! It gives Joker a free nullify attack on any skill that might have otherwise killed him, giving you a second chance to prepare if an enemy jumps you with an attack you weren't ready for. It only works once per battle, though, so if it gets used on an Instant Death skill, that's the only free escape from death you're getting that round.

For as fun of a boss fight as the Royal version of Azazel is, I do find it odd that Madarame's sin is Vanity. I know that in the past Vanity was considered one of the deadly sins, but nowadays it's considered part of Pride. I dunno, I think Sloth could have worked well too, but that one as well has a different Palace I feel like could have fit in better to... Either way, since Azazel isn't one of the Ring Ruler demons, his alternate reality doesn't take the form of one of the rings like what happened with Asmodeus. What that means for the future will be revealed later.

Next time will have the boys all taking part in another iconic Persona 5 moment, as well as Octavia meeting the other Royal exclusive character. See you all then!