It was a long day in Sendai Jail. Night had fallen in reality and the group gathered at the table in front of the RV after eating. They all wanted to go rest up, but Futaba noticed something important that had to be called to attention. "Hey, sorry to bring up business when we're all so tired…" Futaba began, feeling a bit bad after knowing full well how exhausting the plot of Prince of Nightmares was to experience.
"That's alright," Haru reassured Futaba. "I think we're feeling a lot better now that we've eaten. So what's wrong?"
"Have you learned something about Natsume?" Yusuke asked.
"Nope." Futaba shook her head. "Not Natsume. This is about Alice?" There was a name they didn't expect to hear again so soon.
"Alice?" Ann blinked.
"Did something happen after we changed her heart?" Sumire asked. "I hope it wasn't something bad…"
"Nothing bad happened." Futaba clarified. "I was looking into this even after her heart changed back in Shibuya…but it looks like some of her fans never reverted back to normal."
"Hm?" Akechi quirked a brow. "That's strange. I watched you all defeat her and set those stolen Desires free."
"Yeah, we saw 'em all go back!" Ryuji agreed with Akechi. They all saw it!
"Well, yeah…but some people still get set off if you criticize Alice even just a little." Futaba reported. "There're reports of people getting threatened and even attacked. Seriously messed up."
"I didn't think this would be a possibility." Hifumi furrowed her brows. "But I suppose it's impossible for us to keep track of every single Desire. So I cannot be too surprised if not everyone returned to normal if a few Desires slipped under our radar."
"There's a lot we still don't know about the Jails." Makoto pointed out. "Maybe this has to do with the fact Shibuya Jail didn't vanish like a Palace."
"Okay…" Ren was somewhat understanding the situation. "I'd suggest we go and check it out, but the problem is…how?"
"Yeah…we're pretty far from Shibuya right now." Morgana said. "Going all the way back just to check something like this…" It was pretty out of their way.
"Why not just visit the Jail?" Sophia suggested casually from Sumire's phone. Naturally, everyone looked at her. "There's no need to go back. You can visit the Shibuya Jail from here."
"Huh? How?!" Ann was surprised to hear this.
"Ever since we left Shibuya Jail, I was curious if we'd ever be able to get back inside." Sophia said. "I entered the keyword and sure enough, I was given access to Shibuya Jail. I couldn't the same with Sendai Jail, however, so it may have something to do with the fact the Jail no longer has a Monarch. It works somewhat like a backdoor function. I think."
"Well, isn't that convenient." Akechi stroked his chin. "Jails continue to raise more and more questions. I'm getting more intrigued as to where they came from in the first place."
"Just the idea of a Metaverse existing without an owner is a first for us…" Morgana added. "I guess our experience with Palaces can only help so much here."
"But how cool is this?" Ryuji was grinning. "We can basically warp to Shibuya anytime we want, right?"
"Don't tell me you actually think that's how it works." Ann gave Ryuji a deadpanned look.
"It doesn't work that way." Sophia clarified. "You can only visit the Jail from here. Leaving will simply take you back to where you entered."
"I suppose things wouldn't be that convenient…" Yusuke sighed. There was a hope that they could fast travel.
"Alright then, I suppose a few of us should go looking at Shibuya Jail." Ren said while standing up. He could tell a few of them were still tired and exhausted. "Who's up?"
"Whatever gets this done sooner." Akechi rolled his eyes. "This shouldn't take long."
"…Then I'll go too." Haru said. She didn't trust Akechi to go alone with anyone, especially Ren. "With Mona-chan and Sophia, we should be able to detect the Desires easily." Morgana only blinked when he was pulled into this, but it was probably for the best.
"Okay, I've got it." Sophia replied.
"I'm going too, of course." Futaba said. She was the one who brought this to everyone's attention, so it was only natural she would accompany them.
"The rest of you can go rest. We'll take care of this." Ren said. They were all fairly exhausted and needed to conserve their strength for the raid on the Castle tomorrow.
"It won't take long." Akechi said while pulling out his phone.
"Be careful, you guys." Sumire said with a faint smile. She was a little worried but…she just had to have faith how things would go. They'd just have to wait for them to return to get an update on the situation.
.
.
The night was winding down while the small group was in the Metaverse. Sendai slowed down for the most part, but Ann and Hifumi were once again at the parfait shop. Ann needed something sweet to distract herself from what happened earlier in the Jail. "Ugh." That was all Ann could do: groan.
"I'm sorry, Ann." Hifumi rubbed Ann's back comfortingly.
"It's fine…" Ann grumbled. Having something sweet at least took her mind off things. "I just hate having to deal with that kind of stuff in the Metaverse, too…"
"I know. At least we made short work of them…" That was the one upside Hifumi saw to it. But that hardly dealt with the damage. Ann still looked down, understandably so.
"Thanks, Fumi…" Ann was glad that Hifumi was there to make her feel better. So she leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "I feel a little better, but I'm still mostly a little crummy. I think I'll just finish this and head to bed."
"Mm…okay." Hifumi gave a slight smile at the kiss to her cheek. But she still felt pretty bad overall that she couldn't do much for Ann. So when Ann left to go to the RV, she sat with a frown. "I wish she wouldn't have to deal with this behavior in both realities…" A quiet sigh escaped her, and she was thinking now of ways to help cheer her up.
"Ugh…" A man nearby groaned. He was trying to order something specific from the parfait store, but he wasn't able to. "I know that secret item is there somehow…but I don't know how to get it…"
Hifumi wasn't intentionally listening, but she did perk up at the mention of a secret item did catch her attention. "A secret parfait item…?" She muttered to herself. If this were true, Ann would absolutely love something like that! They had a little too much on their plate right now, but before they left Sendai, Hifumi would get that secret item…!
.
.
Meanwhile, in the Shibuya Jail, Joker, Crow, Mona, Noir, Sophie, and Oracle just finished hunting down and taking out the Shadow that was desperately clinging to a lingering Desire. With the Shadow defeated, the Desire vanished, finally returning to its rightful owner. "That was hardly any trouble." Crow crossed his arms. "I would've been rather irritated if we had to waste our time travelling all the way back for this."
"It at least confirms that what Sophie was telling us was true after all," Joker said, not that he doubted Sophie. Just experiencing this kind of warp was far different than anything he was used to concerning the Metaverse.
"With this, the Desire should go back to the person it belongs to, right?" Noir looked to Oracle.
"Yeah, it should. I'll check when we get to reality." Oracle nodded. But for the most part, it seemed like they took care of the sudden request.
"Looks like we can head back to reality then." Mona said. The others agreed and started to make their way back to the entrance. Crow and Noir lingered behind, mostly because Crow could feel Noir's gaze burning into his back.
However, before they could discuss this, a familiar voice called our to them. "Oh! Mister!" Joker turned when he heard the voice, only to see Jose driving towards them.
"What the..." Crow watched as this mysterious child from before appeared in front of them.
"Jose?" Joker blinked. "What are you doing here...?"
"This place is different from before." Jose said with a slow nod, looking around at the scenery of the Jail. "The flowers are different, too..."
"Who is this?" Sophie pointed at Jose curiously.
"I'm called Jose!" Jose looked over to Sophie. She was new. He didn't recall seeing her before. "Who are you?"
"I am Sophie, humanity's companion!" Sophie introduced herself with a hum.
"Humanity's companion? Wow, you might be the person I'm looking for!" Jose said with a grin. "I'm still trying to learn about humans myself!"
"It's nice to meet you, Jose!" Sophie beamed.
"Erm." Noir poked her fingers together. This was not a meeting she was expecting to have. "It's nice to see you again. Were you exploring the Metaverse again?"
"That's right." Jose nodded. "This place popped up so suddenly. It looked too crowded before, so I didn't want to get involved. But I guess you guys took care of it?"
"Yeah, we beat the person in charge." Mona said. "But hey! That doesn't mean this place is safe!"
"Considering how deep in Mementos this one could go, I have no doubts he can handle himself." Crow scoffed. "Besides, we should really be going."
"Oh! You're right. I have to be going to. But I'll be here and in other places if you're trying to find me. See you later!" With that, Jose was off in his little car, leaving the group a little dumbfounded.
"...I wasn't expecting to see him again..." Joker admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. With that, they began to leave, but Crow and Noir lingered behind.
"You've been staring intently at me this whole time." Crow said, not turning back to look at her.
"The others may have slowly warmed up to you, but…" Noir furrowed her brows. She already made her feelings on this clear before they started their road trip, but it bore repeating.
"I would say they tolerate me. More than you, at least. But that isn't saying much." Crow shrugged indifferently. He started to walk again.
Noir lingered for a bit longer. It was only now setting in that Crow was really a part of their operation. Even when they were in a group, he was always distancing himself away, keeping himself at arm's length from the others. Noir wasn't sure if that was for the best, or if that was still too close for her liking. These feelings exhausted her and she let out a sigh before walking out of the Jail along with the others. They'd share what the experience was like with the others was like in the morning.
.
.
August 3rd.
The new day rolled around. It was early in the morning, so the group was preparing to storm the castle in Sendai Jail. Everyone wandered about the city for a bit at their leisure, but once they were ready, around noon, As usual, they gathered right outside the RV hideout, keeping into the shade since it was plenty hot outside. "And that's what happened last night." Morgana reported.
"So you really can go to other Jails that easily…" Ryuji was stunned, but also still disappointed they couldn't just warp from city to city.
"If we're going to be running into more Jails, this is something to keep in mind in case things go awry." Ren said. "Things went well, though."
"Yeah, there are no more reports of Alice fans going ballistic over the smallest things anymore." Futaba was looking on her phone. Everything looked perfectly fine at last. "So we don't have to worry about that."
"So we can focus on Natsume, then." Akechi said. "We are to storm his castle today, yes? What did you do after?"
"We'll show you." Haru had an idea in mind. Something that would give her a little amusement, probably. She just recalled what happened the last time they reached the top of a castle, so….
"It's a process." Ann said. "…That reminds me, is there anything we should be wary of?" She looked to Yusuke and Hifumi curiously; the experts of Prince of Nightmares.
"Hm…" Hifumi closed her eyes. "We defeated the Fearsome Four. So that leaves the Overlord himself and his retainer, Doramu. We did not see hide or hair of him during our assault, so it is safe to assume he will act to prevent our entry."
"There's another one?" Haru blinked. So many names. "That same sounds so similar to Domu, though…"
"It's pretty clear that the creativity is running dry as we reach the end." Futaba couldn't even muster the energy to roll her eyes.
"That means we only have one obstacle left in front of us." Makoto brushed her hair back.
"So, are we ready to get going?" Ren looked to the others. The Natsume operation was finally kicking into high gear. The others nodded in confirmation; it was time to get things started.
.
.
The Phantom Thieves reentered Sendai Jail, immediately making a beeline for the Overlord's castle. Since they obtained the three proofs, they were now eligible to pass through the gate and proceed towards the castle. The moment they came close to the doorway, Doramu appeared before them. "The brave heroes approach their foe…" It sounded as if he was reading off of a script or some sort. "Who goes there? Who dares disturb my slumber!?"
"Oh crap, we got another one!" Oracle exclaimed.
"There he is!" Dragon pointed her staff at Doramu. "The retainer of the Prince of Nightmares, Doramu!"
"Why is he narrating…?" Panther was at a loss.
"Silence, whelps!" Doramu barked. "I am his excellency the Overlord's retainer, Doramu!"
"…Didn't Dragon already say that?" Sophie looked to Dragon.
"I don't think we have to be concerned with the quality of the story or the characters at this point." Joker pointed out.
"My liege's castle lies just beyond." Doramu continued on, ignoring the chattering of the thieves before him. "Lowly humans such as yourselves have no place in its hallowed halls! Your end is at hand! Prepare yourselves, you foolish, repulsive looking creatures!"
"It's so aggressive I'm almost offended." Violet admitted with a sweat drop.
"We'll just make quick work of this guy!" Skull said while rushing ahead. He leapt into the air and aimed his mace at Doramu, only to be intercepted by the retainer's arm and knocked into a nearby wall. The others watched with wide eyes as Skull was knocked back and he was groaning from the impact. "Ugh…okay, this guy's kinda strong, huh?"
"Begone, foolish heroes!" Doramu conjured several large black orbs around his person, shooting them towards the Phantom Thieves. Despite their appearance, these were not orbs composed of Curse magic, but instead Life Drain. He intended to bleed the chosen heroes dry before they even had the chance to lay eyes on the Overlord. Everyone scattered as numerous explosions occurred in the courtyard.
"So this one does have a little fight in him!" Dragon leapt into the air, extending her staff before bringing it down on Doramu's head. The servant of the Overlord did evade this, and her staff instead struck the ground. She withdrew her staff quickly, spinning around to aim another hit. This one connected and Doramu was sent staggering off to the side.
"We're not done yet!" Panther grinned while passing Dragon by, hands colliding for a Baton Pass. Panther used this momentum to twist around, her whip igniting in flames. She slammed her whip on the ground, multiple pillars of flame rising around Doramu to keep him pinned.
"Fire…!?" Doramu gasped.
"Joker, you're up!" Panther slid past Joker and high fived him, passing the baton. Joker used his grappling hook to latch onto a wall behind Doramu, propelling himself into the air as his mask faded. "Pryo Jack!" Joker summoned Pryo Jack by his side, and together, then released a potent blast of fire onto Doramu to cook him alive, only amplified by Panther's flames.
"GAAAH!" Doramu staggered around before shaking his head. He was severely outnumbered by the chosen heroes, but that didn't mean he was going to give up! However, because he was only a lone solider at the end of the day, it meant he couldn't deal with the numerous attacks coming his way.
"Sorry, but the chosen heroes have a job to do!" Sophie said while pointing her hand forward, charging an energy bullet. She let this bullet fire and it struck Doramu, expanding into a miniature vortex to keep him pinned.
Joker then landed and pointed his pistol at the trapped and struggling Doramu. "Say hello to the Fearsome Four for us." With a click of the trigger, a bullet flew from the barrel and through Doramu's chest. The retainer was beginning to tip back, but just to ensure he stayed down, Joker, Sophie, Panther, and Dragon all lunged at him for an All Out Attack, bombarding him with blows. The four then stood before the defeated foe as their joint attack finished him off. "It's over."
"Well, that was a minor waste of time." Crow shrugged his shoulders. At least it was over.
"So…have we taken out all of the Overlord's servants?" Noir asked. She wasn't really sure if she could handle one more forgettable character popping in front of them suddenly.
"That is all of them." Fox said with a nod. "The only thing we have left to do is scale the castle."
"Then let's not waste any more time!" Mona said. The entrance to the castle was in front of them. It wasn't the front door, but it was a way inside. So, this was all they needed to slip inside and begin making their way to the top.
.
.
The entrance they took was within that of the Underground Prison. "Ugh…this place stinks…" Panther complained.
"This appears to be the underground dungeon of the Castle." Dragon said while taking one look at their surroundings. It was a very depressing and unpleasant area to be inside of.
"There has to be a way forward somewhere. Keep your eyes peeled." Queen told the others, keeping an eye out for a way forward. It was then that her eyes fell onto what looked to be a small crawlspace, similar to a vent. "…Well."
"I don't want to, but we must." Noir sighed. Crawling in a place as dirty as this? It wasn't like she was a neat freak, but the girls often had reservations of crawling through these types of spaces. It couldn't be helped; it was the only way to move forward. Dungeon crawling wasn't exactly the worst thing. When they made through the dungeon, they found themselves in the entrance hall of the castle.
"So we've looped around to the front door…" Fox took note of this, and then look towards the stairway nearby. Before they could think about moving, they were suddenly stopped by multiple Shadows appearing in front of them. "I suppose they know we're here now."
"Fun. Let's slaughter 'em." Crow said while rolling his neck. Letting loose on Shadows was not something he would pass up.
Fox nodded and quickly jumped into the air, his eyes having locked onto a chandelier from above. He wasted no time drawing his sword, cutting the chain in a swift motion. The chandelier fell into the crowd and exploded. Fox landed on the ground and summoned Gorokichi, freezing a majority of the now airborne Shadows in their tracks with his ice magic.
Crow was the one to follow up, choosing to waste as little time as possible in their assault on the castle. Hereward was summoned, letting loose a myriad of curse arrows to bombard the Shadows that were caught by Fox's ice. It was a quick and efficient slaughter, with not a single Shadow remaining in the entry hall. "There."
"Nice work, you two." Joker said with a nod.
"…" Noir didn't say anything. She didn't want to.
"We're not out of the woods yet. We have to keep moving." Queen motioned for the others to follow her up the stairs. Unlike Alice's castle, ascending Natsume's was easier. They still had to fight their way to the top, but they didn't have to work around any faulty or trapped elevators. The most pressing issue was when they entered a corridor and made some progress. That's when spiked gates began to rise up from the ground.
"What the-!?" Skull yelped.
"It's a trap!" Oracle yelled in a panic. Everyone started picking up the pace.
"How could he!?" Dragon grumbled. Such a cowardly trap!
"Just be quiet and run!" Mona yelled. He couldn't turn into a bus here, unfortunately. This was the most difficult to navigate corridor that left no room for such a thing! The most they could do was rush to the other side to avoid being trapped, since there was no turning back!
.
.
Eventually, they made their way to the top of the Castle and inside of the birdcage. Crow glanced up to look upon the large Desire being held captive. "…It's much bigger up close." This was his first time looking at it from up close. In Alice's Jail, he looked on from a distance.
Skull was focused on the door in front of them. He knew that behind that door, inside of that room ahead of them, Shadow Natsume was there. "Think that bastard is kicking inside somewhere?" He asked the others.
"I'd love to bust it down, but…" Mona looked to Sophie. "How's it look."
"The birdcage is still locked." Sophie gestured to the gigantic lock on the side of the birdcage. They wouldn't be able to get inside like this. "We'll need someone to touch it so we can hear the voices in his heart."
"Well, Crow? You should do it." Noir said.
"…Excuse me?" Crow blinked, confused. This was the first time he was being notified of this.
"You just approach the birdcage slowly and hold your hand out." Noir explained. "The rest should come to you."
"…Uh…" Dragon wasn't sure about this.
"Are you sure…?" Oracle spoke up.
"I can join you." Fox suggested. If they were going to take a look into the inner thoughts of Natsume, he felt that he needed to have a look himself.
"Whatever gets this done faster." Crow wasn't aware of what was coming next. So he slowly approached the door and held his hand up along with Fox. That's when his palm hit the invisible wall, he felt a strong shock surging through him. Normally he would withdraw, but he felt stubborn enough to not let go.
"Sheesh, you'd think someone of his age would have SOME talent…"
"Like it matters. This kid's gonna make us a fortune…"
"What the…?" Crow spoke through gritted teeth. This was his first time being exposed to this.
"I'm hearing the voices…" Mona said.
'These voices are somehow related to Natsume's emotional scars?" Queen didn't quite understand yet.
"Most likely." Sophie nodded. "We just need to listen to the conversation and figure out his trauma from there."
"So we're looking for something like what Shujin Academy was to Alice." Panther clarified. That narrowed down their search a great deal.
"Let us keep listening." Dragon said.
"Sir, try to keep your voice down. He'll be back any minute."
"Oh, come off it. Can you really blame me for complaining? I'm the one who has to read his crap every day."
"Eh, the kid's got motivation, but that's about all he's got. Seems any talent for writing in that family died along with his grandfather. Oh 'scuse me, ca I get another Gatorre coffee?"
"Oh, yes. One moment."
"Well, he's still our little money tree. No way in hell are we letting him go."
"Ahaha…you're terrible, sir…"
As it turns out, Natsume was overhearing this conversation. These scathing words about his writing…something he poured his heart and soul into. These two people he trusted were completely trampling everything he worked on, disregarding his effort. "What…what's going on here…?"
"Ngh…" Fox had no choice but to pull back.
"…" Crow silently grunted while pulling back. He shook his hand a bit, growling lowly in response to the pain he felt. Noir didn't exactly know how to feel about it…she got what she was hoping for, but it didn't provide the satisfaction she expected either. So she just felt a little deflated. "…I don't understand what that was about, but it sounds as if it took place at a café of some sort."
"One of them said…Gatorre Coffee?" Violet looked to the others.
"Mhm." Noir nodded. She recognized that name. "It's the name of a coffee chain, but…I don't think I saw any around Sendai Station…"
"If there aren't a lot of them, that'll make finding the right location that much easier." Mona was looking at the bright side.
"We're one step closer to finding the Trauma Room." Oracle said in agreement.
"Right. Let's get out of here and find the coffee shop." Joker said. They could plan their next move from there. Right now, they had to exit the Metaverse and return to reality first.
.
.
After returning to reality, the group gathered at Sendai Station as their starting point for hunting down this "Gatorre Coffee". "Alright, we're on the hunt for a Gatorre Coffee! First, let's find out how many are in the area!" Futaba said.
Sophia chimed in from Sumire's phone. "Gatorre Coffee…got it. There's only one that's close to Sendai Station."
"Whoa, that was fast." Ann was shocked. Sophia was always on the ball for these kinds of things.
"It's a bit of a walk, but I'd be happy to guide you to your destination." Sophia said.
"You're amazing, Sophia." Haru beamed. "It's like you were made to be a navigator."
"Ugh…but being the navigator's my job…" Futaba grumbled. She was feeling jealous at how easily Sophia could navigate them in reality. Of course, she was competing with an AI, but still…!
"It's simply a question of having the right person for the right job." Yusuke said causally. "Fear not, Futaba. There are plenty of things that only you can do."
To think she'd be getting encouragement from Yusuke of all people. But this did put the wind back into her sails. "Huh, you're right. And nobody can be a weirdo quite like you can, Inari…" Futaba then glanced at Hifumi. "Actually, you have some competition."
"Who are you calling a weirdo…!?" Yusuke let out an offended gasp.
"Hey…!" Hifumi pouted. It wasn't like she could beat the weirdo allegations, though. She knew full well how eccentric she could be at times, unlike Yusuke who seemed to be oblivious to it most of the time. Ann just had a smile and patted Hifumi on the shoulder.
"Alright, alright…let's get moving, shall we?" Makoto had to get the topic of conversation back on track.
"Okay, I've got it." Sophia said, beginning the navigation to Gatorre Coffee. It really was a bit of a walk, they had to go very out of their way to find the place. "We have arrived."
Yusuke approached the café entrance. "I can smell the coffee. It appears to be just an ordinary café."
"Are we sure this is the right place?" Haru was a little doubtful. She was expecting something a bit more…telling.
"We just have to put in the keyword and see." Morgana said. It was the only way they were going to find out.
"Alright! The Trauma Cell is calling our name!" Futaba puffed her chest out.
"…Trauma Cell?" Akechi too curious to not ask. Terminology was important when it came to these kinds of operations, but this was…
"It's just a name I came up with. Trauma Room sounds like some cheesy hospital drama." Futaba explained her process. She was met with numerous question marks.
"…Yeah, sure. That works." Ren wasn't going to argue about it.
"Call it whatever you want, we gotta get going!" Ryuji said.
"Allow me." Hifumi said while clearing her throat. "Prince of Nightmares!"
.
.
By uttering the keyword in front of Gatorre Coffee, they entered the Trauma Cell. At first glance, it really did appear like just a café, but there was a very unsettling vibe to the place with the red light outside peeking out from the windows. "Well, isn't this atmosphere lovely?" Crow said sarcastically.
"This is just like what happened in Shibuya." Mona said. "This is where his trauma comes from…"
"I wonder what could've happened here…" Fox wondered aloud. That was the big question on everyone's mind.
"Sssh!" Queen pointed ahead. "There's someone over there!" At the counter, there were two people sitting down.
"Are you sure about this? Awarding him with the grand prize for THAT?!" The one speaking was Natsume's editor. "Ango Natsume…the kid's entered every contest, but he's never made it past the first stage. He's as stubborn as he is incompetent. What's more, his writing is so painfully generic. It only becomes more obvious when you compare it to the other candidates."
"W-What…!?" That voice belonged to Natsume. "They can't be…they acknowledged my work…"
"How horrible…" Dragon frowned.
"It's fine…" The Chief Editor waved a hand dismissively at the other editor's complaints. "He's the great Sogo Natsume's grandson, remember? Brand recognition is a huge part of marketability. Nobody gives a rat's ass about what's beyond the cover. Though a certain someone seems to think he's actually worth a damn. Poor kid can't even see how hopeless he really is…haha. Seriously, it's pathetic."
"B-But…I'm trying as hard as I can…!" Natsume's voice quivered.
The Chief Editor moved from his chair, turning around to walk towards the Phantom Thieves, standing in front of them. "No skin off my nose so long as he keeps raking it in. We hit the jackpot with that one, and I plan on riding him straight to the top. And if he does by some miracle make something decent of himself, well, then everyone wins, right? AHAHAHA!" That's when he transformed into a Lock Keeper. Like the one in Shibuya, this one held four weapons in a single hand, in this case: swords.
"These guys are the worst!" Hearing that conversation made Panther's stomach churn from disgust. "You don't treat people this way!" How could they treat someone like this!?
No time for chatter. The Lock Keeper was ready to fight, and the surroundings quickly began to change to a more prison-like battlefield, just like before. A fight was coming. "Here it comes!" Fox warned.
"This one looks like it'll be worth something…" Crow said with a small scoff. Finally, something with a little bite to it. Maybe this would help him feel again.
"Write all you want, a talentless hack like you is hopeless, hopeless, HOPELESS!" The Lock Keeper roared before charging at the Phantom Thieves, swinging every single sword in its position. The climax of their Sendai Jail operation was now upon them, and the Lock Keeper held the key to that success…!