Persona 5: The Phantom Files

by sithlorde1988

Will cover the events of Persona 5 Royal, with the sequel set to cover Strikers. What happens when in addition to Ren being sentenced to go live in the care of Sojiro Sakura for a year after being sued for assault, his younger brother is also ordered to go and oversee him? How will this extra character change things? Read to find out! More info in chapter 1! ALL CHAPTERS NOW EDITED

33. Fusion Alarm! Rebellious Queen part 10

A/N: sithlorde1988 here, with another chapter of Persona 5- The Phantom Files! Hopefully everyone reading this (or at least those reading who celebrate it) had a happy Thanksgiving! (For reference, it's presently 12:42 PM on November 28th, or the Monday after Thanksgiving aka Cyber Monday as of the point I type this start-of-chapter A/N since I took a couple days off chapter posting for Thanksgiving, partly because I was over at my brother's house for the weekend for Thanksgiving and other Black Friday-related shenaniganry, but I am now back at home and ready to resume typing out chapters!)

That said, I have no doubt that the gap in typing chapters won't be noticed by you since I stayed on schedule for uploads and uploaded chapter 22 (I have as of the point of typing this A/N a 10 chapter backlog built up on chapters to post, so even though I just uploaded chapter 22, and plan to upload chapter 23 tomorrow, I'm now typing out chapter 33) so yeah, we're still on track in that regard.

Speaking of on track, if I'm keeping a correct tally, we should be close to finishing Kaneshiro's Palace, and by extension arc 3. I'd estimate at most maybe another 2 or 3 chapters remain for Kaneshiro's palace (if even that many), and then I might take a chapter or 2 (maybe 3) to do a bit of a filler section/fit in a mini-arc for Kusa, along with possibly a little something extra that both Kusa and Morgana alluded to in the last couple of chapters, to end Arc 3, but said mini-arc will also help to set up a plot point in arc 4. So that's a thing to look forward to I think.

That being said, time to do the disclaimer while I'm thinking of it!

Disclaimer: sithlorde1988 does NOT own the Persona series in ANY way shape or form (barring the OC Kusa/Draconis who he created and thus does own, along with any OCs that might appear in Kusa's side-arc near the end of Arc 3) and the actual credit for owning the Persona series belongs to Sega, Atlus and Koei Tecmo so all ownership credit for the Persona series belongs to them and is given to them freely so all credit to them!

And with that disclaimer out of the way, and without further ado, on with chapter 33!

Chapter 33: Exploring the Bank's Depths! Sounding the Fusion Alarm! The Rebellious Queen part 10

(Inside a Safe Room in Kaneshiro's Palace with Joker, Draconis, Mona, Skull, Panther, Fox and Queen)

After he looked around inside the safe room, Joker saw Queen and Fox looking like they wanted to talk. Joker then walked over to Fox and nodded at him as he spoke up.

"Something on your mind, Fox?" Joker asked Fox who looked at Joker and nodded as he spoke up.

"Hm...Not only is the security tight, but the floor layout is rather complicated. Let's be sure to proceed with caution." Fox said as Joker spoke up, smiling at Fox as he spoke.

"I agree. Rest assured Fox, we will be taking ALL possible precautions while going through this Palace and leaving nothing to chance, if for no other reason than both Mona and Draconis would probably roast me something fierce if I did anything less than that. And between us, I don't feel like being roasted by them, especially by Draconis, as his roasts can be quite brutal." Joker said as Fox nodded. Joker then walked over to Queen and spoke up, a smirk on his face as he spoke.

"Hey, why the serious face, Queen?" Joker asked Queen who frowned at Joker as she spoke up, a disapproving look on her face at Joker's attempt at levity as she spoke.

"Joker! Be serious for now! That said, there seems to be a great deal of security cameras...It may be best not to wander around blindly." Makoto said as Joker nodded and spoke up, smiling at Queen as he spoke.

"Relax, Queen. I can be serious. My code name may be Joker, but I do know when not to crack jokes for the most part. And we will be appropriately cautious, so don't worry." Joker assured Queen, who nodded in a satisfied manner to Joker's reassurance. Joker then noticed Draconis with a pensive look on his face and walked over to him, gently putting a hand on Draconis' shoulder to get his attention as he spoke up, looking at Draconis as he spoke.

"What's up, Draconis? You seem a bit distracted and/or bothered." Joker said to Draconis who looked at Joker before he spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Nah, was just mulling over our current situation and figuring out potential tactics, that's all. That and pondering these Showtimes that we learned about at the start of this Palace. I'm really not surprised that Mona and Panther were the first to get one, considering how hard Mona simps for Panther, but at the same time, any two of us could be the next to get one, though I would only be minimally surprised if it was Skull and Queen who get a Showtime next.

And yet, I can't help but feel as if one or both of us could be delayed in getting our Showtimes for some reason. That, and I have a gut feeling you and I won't end up having a Showtime together, but that's probably just as well, since I feel as if any Showtime we had might be just a tad bit overpowered, given your ability to wield many Personas and the staggering versatility that Smaug has, even if it's likely he won't get better than mid-to-high tier on any of his skills, bar maybe Almighty and Physical. Does that make sense?" Draconis asked Joker, who nodded with a smile as he spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"I probably will be the one delayed. You might be as well, but only because I sense each of us has a Showtime partner who's yet to join the group. That said, let's not stress on that for now, yeah? Let's worry about dealing with Kaneshiro and changing his heart. We can double back to other worries after that." Joker said as Draconis nodded before speaking up, an understanding look on his face as he spoke.

"Yeah, that's fair, Joker. I think I just think things over too much at times, not that that's a bad thing at all. But it's just one of my quirks, I'd say." Draconis said as Joker nodded. Joker then walked over to the door of the safe room as he went to leave, making Skull see this and smirk as he spoke up.

"All right, since Joker's at the exit door, I'd say we're done here. Okay, time to go." Skull said as the others nodded and left the Safe Room, ready to proceed. After a bit, the group remembered they were heading for the monitoring room from before, eventually getting there with a bit of fancy navigation, while also destroying some Shadows along the way. After they arrived at the room in question, Queen spoke up.

"Umm...Okay, I'll give it a try. Are we ready?" Queen asked as Joker looked at her and spoke up.

"Yeah, we're as ready as we're gonna be, so let's do this." Joker said confidently to Queen, who nodded and walked over to the communications equipment, turning to the group as she spoke up again, a serious look on her face as she spoke.

"Okay, stay quiet during this..." Queen said to the others who nodded as she then turned to the communications equipment and spoke into it as she kept speaking.

"Come in, security room! This is the monitoring room! We've been ambushed by intruders! Requesting backup, immediately! One person would be perfect!" Queen said as a voice replied at that point, the others staying quiet to listen as the voice replied.

"Roger that! We'll send someone your way at once!" The voice said as Queen cut the comms and turned to the others with a smirk as she spoke up.

"ALL RIGHT! And there we go! All we need to do now is wait for the enemy." Queen said as one of the two Shadows the group had eavesdropped on before burst into the monitoring room, looking around in confusion before it spoke up.

"Hm!? There's no one here...?" The Shadow said to itself before Skull spoke up with a frown on his face.

"Not exactly." Skull said as the group leapt out of hiding, surrounding the Shadow who blinked in surprise before speaking up.

"Y-You're...!?" The security Shadow said in shock as he looked at the group as Draconis smirked before he spoke up in a pleased-sounding tone, grinning as he spoke.

"Yep, we're your worst nightmare, Shadow! This was all just a trap and you fell for it, so thank you for making our job easier! Time to end you." Draconis said in a rare moment of sadistic pleasure, making the others look at him in surprise as they saw the faintest hint of a feral smirk on his face as he stared the Shadow down, who sputtered in disbelief as it spoke up.

"This was a trap!? You bastards!" The Shadow said as it changed forms into an unidentified being as the fight started! The group quickly figured out that the being was weak to electricity, so between Skull and Joker's Zio attacks, and the occasional All-Out Attacks, the being was rather quickly defeated by the combined efforts of Joker, Skull, Panther and Fox, or the current front lines. After the fight, the group picked up the item that the defeated Shadow had dropped, obtaining the 'Right Key' as a result. At that point, Mona did a closed eye smile as he spoke up, ignoring the frowns on Joker and Draconis' faces as they looked at it as he spoke.

"Oh! Oooh, he had a key!" Mona said happily as Skull crossed his arms and spoke up with a frown on his face as he spoke.

"Guess that went pretty well, huh? Not that I'm too surprised, given Queen did most of the work. Good job on that, by the way Queen. You're proving to be quite useful and worthwhile to the group, at least in my opinion." Skull said, not seeing Queen's eyes widen fractionally behind her mask at the, to her, unexpected praise from Skull, also having her cheeks go slightly pink in embarrassment as she spoke up, smiling at Skull as she spoke.

"Aww, thanks Skull. For a crass, vulgar troublemaker, you're all right when you want to be. That said, that means there should only be one Shadow in the security room! ALL RIGHT! Let's snatch the other key from it while we can!" Queen said, a smile on her face as she realized the implications of her efforts. Panther nodded as she spoke up.

"I agree, Queen. That said...Joker, do you want to go right to the security room from earlier?" Panther asked Joker, who nodded as he spoke up.

"Yeah. Let's not waste SP we don't have to by fighting off Shadows along the way. If we can head straight there, let's do so." Joker said decisively. The group then headed right to the security room, only to hide against the wall as the remaining Shadow spoke up in frustration to itself.

"Why isn't he coming back!? Could something have happened!?" The Shadow said to itself as Mona got the others attention and spoke up so the Shadow wouldn't hear.

"Now then! We'll be heading right into battle when we charge in there! Are you ready for this?" Mona asked Joker who nodded and spoke up.

"Perfectly ready, Mona. Let's do this!" Joker said as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"YES! Okay, let's go!" Mona said as the group charged into the room, leaving the Shadow to face them in stunned disbelief as it spoke up.

"Hm? Who are you!?" The Shadow asked the group as Skull spoke up with a frown.

"We're here for the other key!" Skull said as the Shadow's eyes narrowed in realization as it spoke up, glaring at the group as it spoke.

"What!? Then that comm earlier...HOW DARE YOU!" The Shadow said, as it shifted into its' monster form as the battle started. As the group kept fighting, Mona spoke up near the end of the fight after Panther got up from being knocked down by the Mabufu that the enemy had hit her with.

"YAY, you're back! NOW IT'S SHOWTIME!" Mona said as Panther nodded and spoke up.

"Follow my lead!" Panther said as Mona nodded, pulling out a bouquet of flowers as he spoke up.

"This is how I really feel!" Mona said as Panther smiled and nodded while reaching into the bouquet as she spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"Thanks! You have...SUCH GREAT TASTE!" Panther said as she reached into the bouquet and pulled out her SMGs and sprayed bullets at the stunned enemy, leaping up with Mona as the two spoke up in unison.

"WOO-HOO!" Panther and Mona said as he smirked and pulled out a bomb, speaking up as he tossed it at a stunned Shadow.

"And here's the bullet!" Mona said as the bomb fell, hit the stunned Shadow, and destroyed it, reducing it to black mist to end the fight as he and Panther high-fived. As a result of the EXP from the win, Panther hit level 23. After the fight, the group picked up the item that the destroyed Shadow had dropped, getting the 'Left Key' for their efforts. Fox then smiled as he spoke up.

"OKAY! Perfect, we've now obtained both keys!" Fox said as Queen blinked and spoke up at that point, cutting off Draconis who had opened his mouth to speak, ignoring the huff he gave as she spoke.

"Oh, just one moment!" Queen said as she walked across the room, noticing the object on the wall behind the group and walking over to it as she kept speaking.

"Doesn't this map have a little more information than our own?" Queen asked as she seized the map from the wall as Mona smirked and spoke up.

"NICE! Ah, right you are! Well done, Queen!" Mona said as Panther spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"Maybe it can tell us what the bank is like further down." Panther said as the group looked over the map and Skull spoke up.

"How's it look? You see where the Treasure is?" Skull asked the group as Mona frowned and spoke up, looking at Skull as he spoke.

"Hmm...Well, the most suspicious area would be the deepest part..." Mona said as Draconis nodded and spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"That tracks, honestly. I distinctly recall Kaneshiro telling the Shadows around here, and I quote, 'Under no circumstances are you to let them further down!', suggesting to me that the Treasure probably is in one of the deepest parts of this area, if not THE deepest part." Draconis said as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"Well reasoned, Draconis. Now, everyone look here." Mona said, pointing to a section of the map labeled 'Laundering Office' as he kept speaking.

"There's an elevator that leads down. The Treasure must be past there." Mona said as Fox nodded and spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Indeed. This map seems to indicate that the area beyond the partition is rather large as well..." Fox said as Mona nodded and spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"That's true, Fox...I'm sure security will keep getting more intense from here onward, too. We need to be careful." Mona said as the group kept moving. After a bit of a walk, the group found the door from before, at which point Skull spoke up as he and Panther moved to the terminals on either side of the door while turning to face Panther as he spoke.

"Okay...Let's try turnin' it all at the same time." Skull said as Panther nodded and spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"Agreed! On three! One, two...!" Panther said as she and Skull toggled both terminals, making a triumphant-sounding jingle play as the door opened up as Fox spoke up.

"This took some time, but we managed to force it open." Fox said as Draconis nodded before he spoke up.

"Precisely. The question now becomes, what awaits us further down? Besides the remaining two Will Seeds, that is. Those are definitely down below since I'm sure the one we found previously is likely the only one up this way. Or so I'm hoping." Draconis said as Joker nodded and spoke up.

"Exactly, Draconis. That said, great teamwork everyone! Queen may have made the most clutch moves, but we all had to work together to pull this off so props to all of us." Joker said confidently as Queen nodded and spoke up, smiling as she spoke up.

"Yes, I agree. The cooperation of our whole team is what helped us through this particular ordeal." Queen said as the group kept moving. After a few steps forward, the group stopped to look around, most of them gaping at how much cash was scattered on the ground, making Skull blink as he spoke up.

"Dude...There's money all over the floor..." Skull said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"And a lot of it, too. Just at a cursory glance, I'd say it's not a stretch to say there's probably millions in this area, but I doubt we have the time to do a proper count to verify my guess, so we'll have to rely on a blind estimate for now." Draconis said as Mona frowned and spoke up, growling slightly as he spoke.

"Good point, Draconis. But let's not forget something here. So, he took all this from the weak..." Mona said as Draconis, Skull and Queen all frowned at this, the latter growling as she spoke up in an angry yet resolute tone, frowning as she spoke.

"He's going to pay for this..." Queen said as the group kept moving. After a bit, in which the group crossed the money-laced hallway and tried a fake door, they went past a door on the other side of the hall, at which point Mona stopped the group as he spoke up, blinking in surprise as he spoke up.

"Hm!? Wait, Joker! Hide!" Mona said as Joker did as asked while Skull spoke up once the group had hidden, frowning as he spoke.

"What, more cameras?" Skull said as Mona shook his head as he spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"No...These ones seem different from what we've seen before...They turn on and off." Mona said as Draconis swore under his breath and spoke up.

"So you're saying those are automated!? That's a bit of a problem, since those are likely harder to disable than the others, but I'd imagine the strat we've been using, aka Joker's mighty boot, should still work for now unless we figure out otherwise." Draconis said as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Precisely, Draconis. It might be a surveillance system that switches between multiple cameras for efficient coverage..." Queen said as Skull nodded and spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"That's true, Queen, but how about this!? That just means we gotta pass by when it's not recordin', yeah?" Skull said as Mona nodded and spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"That should work...but there are guards to watch out for too. We need to proceed with caution!" Mona said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed, Mona-sensei. We should be on our guard." Draconis said, ignoring the shocked look on Queen's face as she mouthed 'sensei?' to herself, not expecting Draconis to refer to the not-cat as 'Sensei' like he had. The group then kept moving. After navigating the hall in question, Mona frowned as his ears stood up and he spoke up.

"YES! Hm!? This presence...Guys, I'm sensing a Will Seed nearby! Let's go get it!" Mona said as Draconis spoke up.

"Another Will Seed already!? Don't freaking mind if we do, Mona-sensei! The quicker we can wrap this Palace up, the better in my opinion." Draconis said as the others nodded and kept moving. As they went, Skull gaped at all the money and spoke up.

"Dude! Look at the sea of cash..." Skull said as Fox spoke up with a nod.

"Indeed. Some people really are 'loaded', as you put it Skull." Fox said as Draconis spoke up.

"I think the better term in this case would be 'filthy, stinkin' rich' since Queen literally compared Kaneshiro to a fly before. Which if that holds true, we're gonna probably need one huge ass flyswatter to swat him if he is a fly." Draconis said as Mona frowned and spoke up, glaring at Draconis as he spoke.

"Not funny, Draconis! And there's no flyswatter big enough to be able to swat Kaneshiro's fat ass! I say we let Queen beat him up with her Fists of Justice." Mona said, referring to the fact that Queen once called her All-Out Attack 'FIST! OF! JUSTICE!', which had of course promptly caught on as a nickname for the All-Out Attack in question, much to her chagrin and embarrassment. Queen then spoke up with a frown.

"Shut up, Mona. Or do you want to be smacked?" Queen said as Draconis frowned and spoke up, glaring slightly at Queen as he spoke.

"Wait until we're done here to smack him, Queen! We need him conscious and in one piece, since for now he's our navigator. But I agree that his comments were uncalled for." Draconis said as Queen nodded to Draconis' logic as she spoke up.

"Good point, Draconis. I'll hold off for now." Queen said as Mona shot Draconis a grateful look as he spoke up once more, frowning as he spoke.

"As I was saying, that's dirty money, remember? So just forget about it." Mona said as the group kept moving. After dropping down a few ledges, Joker used a grapple point to grapple the group over to another viney door that Queen spoke up on seeing.

"We've found another of Kaneshiro's Will Seeds, guys. It's behind that door, so let's go grab it." Queen said as Draconis nodded agreeably, speaking up and smiling as he spoke.

"Agreed. I'm okay with basically being at the 2/3rds finished mark already." Draconis said as Joker chopped down the vines, opened the door and seized the 'Green Gluttony Seed' from its pedestal. Queen then spoke up again at that point.

"We've got another Will Seed. That's two so far." Queen said as Joker nodded as he spoke up.

"Good. We're making nice progress so far. I'm willing to bet the last Will Seed is probably near the Treasure if things proceed like they did in Madarame's Palace." Joker said as the others nodded and kept moving. After beating on some Shadows, Skull and Fox hit level 24, the level up letting Captain Kidd acquire the Physical skill 'Memory Blow'. Skull smirked as he spoke up.

"Check out this new skill!" Skull said as Captain Kidd acquired 'Memory Blow'. On top of that, Goemon also acquired a Physical skill in the form of 'Rising Slash'.

"Heh heh heh, what a skill!" Fox said as Goemon acquired 'Rising Slash'. The group then kept moving. After going down another hall, the group used the elevator in the next room. Once there, Mona spoke up, his eyes going glinty as he spoke.

"Look, a treasure chest! Why don't we crack it open?" Mona said as Draconis spoke up.

"We could, but we need to be on guard for Shadows in this area." Draconis said as the group kept moving. As the group crossed the hall, seizing the 'Relax Gel' from the chest Mona had sensed previously, Panther spoke up as they proceeded into the next room, frowning as she spoke.

"Hm? Huh...? Do you... hear something coming from below?" Panther said as the camera panned to show a security Shadow, but more surprisingly the security Shadow was talking to Kaneshiro's Shadow! Skull blinked at this and spoke up.

"Isn't that Kaneshiro? What's he doin' down here?" Skull asked as Fox frowned and spoke up.

"It is difficult to hear what he's saying from where we are now..." Fox said as Draconis spoke up with a nod.

"Indeed. So we need to find a better vantage point to listen in from then." Draconis said as the others nodded and the group kept moving. As a result of defeating some Shadows which happened to include a Treasure Demon, Joker and Draconis hit level 25, the latter smirking as Smaug obtained the Physical skill Assault Dive as a result of his level up. Draconis then smirked as he spoke up.

"Sweet! Get a load of this new skill! Time to flex it on some Shadows next chance we get! Mwehehe!" Draconis said with a smirk as Mona and Joker facefaulted at how similar the laugh Draconis did at the end was to that of a certain not-cat, before picking themselves back up off the ground quickly. Joker then smirked as he spoke up.

"With this power...!" Joker said as his felt himself get stronger from his level up. The group kept going. The group then ducked into a nearby Safe Room, where Joker saw Queen and Fox looking like they wanted to talk, so he walked over to Queen and looked at her.

"Why the angry look, Queen?" Joker asked Queen who spoke up, blinking as she spoke.

"Oh, I'm just annoyed about Kaneshiro. Just looking at his face makes me mad." Queen said as Draconis chuckled as he spoke up.

"As it should, Queen. Kaneshiro is one scummy son of a bitch, regardless of whatever past he may have had with your sister. Hopefully we can make him the person he used to be though once we change his heart." Draconis said as Queen nodded and Joker walked over to Fox. Joker then spoke up.

"What's on your mind, Fox?" Joker asked as Fox looked at Joker and spoke up.

"Hm...We'll need to be able to draw a little closer to be able to hear their exchange." Fox said as Joker nodded approvingly before he spoke up.

"Indeed we will, Fox. And I plan to get us into said spot as best I can." Joker said reassuringly as Fox nodded. Joker then gathered the group at the table as Mona spoke up.

"What are you gonna do, Joker?" Mona asked as Joker spoke up.

"I'm gonna talk to you guys a bit. It's been a bit since we last consulted so it's about time." Joker said as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"What do you want to talk about?" Mona asked Joker who spoke up after a pause to consider his response.

"For starters, how's everyone holding up?" Joker asked as Queen spoke up.

"Yes, I'm feeling a little off but don't worry- I can continue on." Queen said as Skull frowned.

"If you say so, Queen, but don't be afraid to lean on us if you get too worn out. You're not gonna do any of us any good if you over-work yourself. You might feel the need to prove yourself useful, but not when it's bad for you." Skull said softly but firmly as Queen nodded, a very subtle dusting of red appearing on her face behind her mask at Skull's words as she gave Skull a grateful smile for his concern, ignoring the knowing smirks Joker and Draconis exchanged at this. Mona then spoke up.

"Everyone seems to still have energy, but make sure you pace yourselves, okay? What are your thoughts? Is there anything else you want to discuss?" Mona asked as Joker nodded.

"Yep. Since we all seem to be good to continue for now, how's our progress?" Joker asked as Panther smiled a closed-eye smile and spoke up.

"I'm okay! I'm glad we managed to get through that partition. Still...I'm a little disappointed the Treasure wasn't behind it." Panther said with a frown as Draconis laughed and spoke up.

"I would've been astounded if it'd been that easy, Panther! But I also get a gut feeling we're not that far from it, at the same time. So hang in there. That said, given we have two Will Seeds in our possession from here, I'd say we're easily at the 2/3rds point of the Palace, but that's purely a guess on my part." Draconis said as Mona nodded and spoke up to comfort Panther, smiling at her as he spoke.

"Don't get hasty, Panther. We can't expect to do this all in one day." Mona said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"That is true, but at the pace we're going, we can damn sure get the majority of it done today, maybe even secure our route, which would be insane if we did it all in this one trip, not counting the roadblock we hit with Queen's awakening, but I don't blame her for that at all, since it was to our benefit that she did awaken, since she's proven to be a crazy good asset to us so far." Draconis said as Skull nodded his agreement and spoke up, giving Queen an encouraging smile as he spoke, ignoring the smirk on Draconis' face as he saw the subtle hints of red on Skull's face under his mask.

"Yeah, y'know what people say, haste makes waste. C-Crap, bit my tongue while I said that. And that's like the only old sayin' I actually know. Dammit..." Skull said as Queen and Draconis winced, the former speaking up with a frown as she spoke.

"First of all, careful Skull! Don't hurt yourself trying to sound cool. Besides, you don't need to. You're already pretty cool to me. That said...Um, that's just a regular proverb. There's nothing 'old' about it." Queen said as Draconis smirked and spoke up, grinning as he spoke.

"Be fair, Queen. Technically it's an 'old' school proverb, so there's that 'old' to it at least." Draconis pointed out as Skull nodded before Mona frowned and spoke up, glaring as he spoke.

"Hey, stop fooling around and let's go. The final part of our battle is just about to begin." Mona said as Joker nodded and spoke up.

"Well, I think that's about everything I wanted to discuss, so let's keep going, everyone." Joker said. Fox nodded and spoke up.

"Hm. In that case, let us go." Fox said as the others nodded. As Joker approached the door, Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Got it. Let's get back to work." Queen said as the group kept going. After dispatching a strong-looking Shadow who was guarding a treasure chest, Panther hit 24 and Queen hit 25. After the fight, Joker used a Lockpick to open the chest, seizing the 'Knuckle Duster' from within, prompting Queen to speak up as she looked at the Knuckle Duster as she spoke, smiling at it.

"This is...Oh, that looks like it performs better than what I have now-would it be all right if I tried using it?" Queen asked as Joker nodded and spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Go for it, Queen. If it'll make the team stronger, more power to you." Joker said approvingly as he handed the 'Knuckle Duster' to Queen so she could try it out. Queen nodded as she tried it on, smiling as it fit perfectly and she spoke up.

"I understand. Thank you...Ah, this is great." Queen said as the group kept moving. As the group kept moving, Mona stopped them by speaking up.

"Now then, we may enter a battle if we get any closer. Are you ready?" Mona asked Joker, who nodded.

"I'm good to go. Let's do this." Joker said as the group approached the Shadow. Queen glared at Kaneshiro's Shadow as she spoke up.

"Kaneshiro! We're coming for you, Junya-kun!" Queen yelled at Kaneshiro as Kaneshiro glared at the group and the security Shadow turned to face them as Kaneshiro spoke up.

"Y-You bastards...How did you get this far!? What about my security!?" Kaneshiro asked in disbelief. Skull smirked as he spoke up, grinning as he spoke.

"Sorry, that shit was a piece of cake for us!" Skull said as Fox spoke up with a frown, huffing as he spoke.

"Well, I wouldn't say it was that simple..." Fox said as Kaneshiro turned to the strong Shadow with a frown.

"H-Hey, finish off these vermin here! Keep them away from the elevator at all costs!" Kaneshiro said as Draconis glared at Kaneshiro as he spoke up, his eyes narrowing behind his mask as he spoke, clearly pissed at being called vermin.

"What did you just call us, Kaneshiro!? We are NOT vermin!" Draconis snapped, his eyes narrowing at being called a vermin. The strong Shadow then assumed monster form as the battle started. After trading a bunch of back and forth attacks with the three Shadows that appeared, the group eventually defeated the enemies, the ensuing EXP gain bringing Mona to level 25. After the fight, the group blinked as Draconis swore under his breath as Kaneshiro was nowhere to be seen, having presumably vanished after the fight. Queen frowned as she spoke up, not pleased as she spoke.

"Where is Kaneshiro!?" Queen asked as Skull frowned and spoke up, huffing as he spoke.

"Grrr, he took off while we were busy fightin'..." Skull said angrily as Fox spoke up, seeing something on the ground that he picked up.

"Yes, but...he seems to have been in a hurry. He left this behind. It's a journal. Let us see what lies inside...'R=C=0, I=1, H=2', What could this mean...?" Fox asked as Queen frowned as she noticed something else that Fox appeared to have missed, speaking up as she frowned, glaring at the book as she spoke.

"The pages afterward have been torn out as well. Could it be a code of some sort?" Queen asked as the group shrugged before Skull spoke up, giving Queen a reassuring smile as he spoke.

"If w're not gonna figure this shit out now, we should just keep goin' forward, yeah?" Skull said as Mona nodded, hopping up and down as he spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Considering Kaneshiro's reaction, this elevator should lead us to the innermost part of the bank. If so, it'll be the most secure area as well. Okay, let's go! Let's make sure we're ready for whatever awaits!" Mona said as the group kept moving. As the group got into the elevator behind where they'd fought off the trio of strong Shadows, Mona spoke up.

"Hey, look!" Mona said as the group looked out at the spiraling formation in front of them as Skull gaped and spoke up.

"Wh-What the hell!? Are these all vaults!? How messed up is this guy?" Skull asked as Panther gaped and spoke up.

"We're supposed to check ALL of these for the Treasure!?" Panther asked in disbelief as Queen blinked in realization, gasping silently as she spoke up.

"Hold on, this distinct shape...Could it be..." Queen said as Fox turned to her and spoke up, looking concerned for her.

"What's the matter?" Fox asked Queen who smiled as she looked at the others as she spoke up, smirking as she spoke.

"If my prediction is correct, we won't need to check every single one of these vaults." Queen said as Panther turned to face her and spoke up, gaping as she spoke.

"For real!?" Panther asked as Draconis spoke up at that point, his arms crossed as he gave Queen an appraising look as he spoke.

"That a fact, Queen? And do we get to hear this theory of yours? I'll admit, I had a thought occur to me as well when I saw the shape of what we're dealing with, but like you, I'm waiting to venture any guesses until we get more info so I can confirm a few things." Draconis said as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Not right now, but soon you will. And yes that's a fact...that is, I hope. I'll explain why once I've confirmed my theory." Queen said as Mona sighed and spoke up.

"I seriously hope so too..." Mona said as the elevator finished descending and opened up so the group could keep moving. After moving around the area, the group frowned as they saw no signs of a way forward, at least until Draconis noticed a screen with a keypad on it that the group had walked past, speaking up at that point.

"Guys, I think this might be a clue to the way forward." Draconis said as the others looked over at the terminal that Draconis had found as the terminal spoke up.

"The lock is currently engaged. Please enter the requisite PIN." The terminal said as Skull frowned and spoke up.

"Wha...PIN? So is this gonna open one of the vaults?" Skull asked as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"Yes. In theory, if we can crack this PIN, we can open up the way forward. At least that's as close to a lead as we have right now." Draconis said as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed, Draconis. But wait...Hm, there's something written above the number pad on here...'RICH'...This is disgusting. How obsessed can one man be with his money?" Queen asked in disgust, Draconis and Skull nodding their agreement as Panther spoke up with a surprised look on her face as realization hit her as she spoke.

"Wait, there might be something more than that! Do you think this is connected to that journal...?" Panther asked as Fox nodded and spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Indeed. Hm, let me think...If I remember correctly, it said 'R=C=0 I=1 H=2'." Fox said as Panther smiled at Yusuke's recollection and spoke up.

"See? It has all of the letters in the word 'RICH'!" Panther said as Queen and Draconis both blinked in surprise, exchanging a skeptical glance. Could Panther have figured the first puzzle out? Queen spoke up after a moment, shrugging as she spoke.

"Huh. That might be worth a try. Can you do it, Joker?" Queen asked Joker who nodded as he spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"I'll figure it out. Worst case, between Draconis and I, we can probably figure it out." Joker said with a nod. Fox nodded as he spoke up.

"Agreed. We will leave it to you. The Treasure may be beyond here." Fox said as Queen looked at Joker and spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"If you get confused, just take a look at Kaneshiro's journal. It's among our belongings." Queen said as Joker nodded, looking over the terminal. Fox spoke up once more.

"Indeed. The journal said 'R=C=0, I=1, H=2'." Fox said as Queen then spoke up, smiling at Joker as she spoke.

"This may be worth trying out. Joker, can you do it?" Queen asked Joker who nodded.

"I'll try. I think I have it figured out." Joker said as he walked forward and typed '0102' into the terminal where the word 'CORRECT' flashed on the screen as whirring sounds could be heard as the area rotated and a path forward opened up, making Skull jump in shock as he spoke up.

"Gah! What the!? The whole vault moved!?" Skull said in surprise as Queen nodded and smiled as she spoke up, seeming pleased as she spoke.

"So my deduction may be correct..." Queen said before the whole group flinched as they could hear Kaneshiro's Shadow's voice at that moment.

"Money...I need more money...I must grow richer! As long as I'm rich, anything will be possible..." Kaneshiro's Shadow could be heard saying as Panther frowned, looking shocked as she spoke up, gaping as she spoke.

"That voice...It's Kaneshiro! Is he watching us!?" Panther asked as Mona shook his head before speaking up in a confident tone, looking at Panther as he spoke.

"That doesn't seem to be the case. It sounds more like the voice of his heart...I guess all he really thinks about is money, after all." Mona said as Skull scoffed and spoke up.

"Tch! So he blackmails people outta their savings, and that's still not enough? What a douche..." Skull said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed, Skull. This man needs a change of heart badly. But that's just my opinion." Draconis said as Panther spoke up with a slight smile as she spoke.

"More importantly, the message in the journal was the PIN code!" Panther said as Fox nodded before speaking up, smiling as he spoke.

"That aside...Yes, it seems so. But I doubt it will be that easy from this point forward. The rest of the pages were torn out of the journal. Who knows what clues they may hold..." Fox said as Mona spoke up with a smile, trying to reassure the group as he spoke.

"Well, let's not get pessimistic. We should look around and try to find some other clues. Time to head further in and find those PINs!" Mona said as the others nodded and the group kept moving. After taking out a strong Shadow in the first vault, Joker and Draconis hit level 26 while Fox and Skull hit level 25. Joker smirked as he leveled up.

"All right! Level up!" Joker said as he felt himself get stronger from his level up. After finding some doors in the vault, the group went into one, defeated the Shadow inside, and found a good-sized golden piggy inside, making Ryuji frown as he spoke up, looking annoyed as he spoke.

"I know we already saw one o' these earlier in the Palace, but man, is it ugly." Skull said as Draconis smirked and nodded as he spoke up, fist-bumping Skull as he spoke.

"Truth, Skull! It's also quite conspicuous in my opinion. Why would you need one of these?" Draconis asked as Panther nodded and spoke up, smiling at Draconis as she spoke.

"Exactly! I mean, it's a golden piggy bank. Pretty obvious that money's the only thing on his mind." Panther said as the group kept moving, eventually examining the monitor next to the piggy as Queen spoke up, a look of surprise on her face as she spoke.

"Joker! We may have found the controls we've been looking for. Anything we can do here?" Makoto asked Joker who shrugged as he hit some buttons on the monitor, making a loud sound play as the shutters opened up and went out of sight, making Panther smile and cheer as she spoke up, doing a closed-eye smile as she spoke.

"YES! Oh, look! The shutter's gone! We can keep going now!" Panther said, as the PA system chose that moment to blare on to the group's shock.

"Attention all guards! Attention all guards! The rats have made their way to every floor! Tighten security at all levels! They must not proceed any further! Protect the golden pig at all costs!" A voice that the group quickly identified as belonging to Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Mona frowned as he spoke up, sighing as he spoke.

"Oh, man! Man, he seems really worked up..." Mona said as Fox nodded, smirking as he spoke.

"Indeed...He must truly not want us gaining access to this 'golden pig'." Fox said as Skull nodded, grinning as he spoke up, a smirk on his face as he spoke.

"Did you notice? Well, pretty sure that one there's the one he mentioned. Pretty suspicious, if you ask me..." Skull said as Joker nodded, before he walked over and punched the nose of the piggy, making the face lift up, and an object be dispensed from the pig, an object that was identified as 'Torn Page 1'. Queen picked the page up and gasped.

"This is...! Hm? There's a note here...It says 'P=I'." Queen said as Skull frowned and spoke up, huffing as he spoke.

"Ugh...The hell's that supposed to mean?" Skull asked as Queen gave Skull a reassuring pat on the shoulder before her eyes widened slightly as she took a closer look at the note, speaking up and gasping in recognition as she spoke.

"Wait, the edge of it is torn. Maybe it came from Kaneshiro's journal?" Queen guessed as Mona did a closed eye smile as he spoke up, grinning as he spoke.

"Nice! Oh, so it's the continuation of the code we found in there! This should be useful!" Mona said as the group kept moving. As the group headed to the area behind the shutters, they turned and blinked as they found another terminal with a keypad on it as Fox spoke up.

"Hm...This is a PIN input device. 'REAP' is written on this one." Fox said as Panther frowned before speaking up, looking confused as she spoke.

"Reap? Isn't that like, to harvest? Why would he have that as a password...?" Panther asked as Mona spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"That man sees people as walking ATMs...He must think of collecting money from them as a harvest." Mona said as Fox and Dracnis growled, the former speaking up while sighing as he spoke.

"How unsightly! Kaneshiro is truly rotten to the core..." Fox said as Draconis nodded before speaking up.

"Agreed. With all apologies to Queen, Queen's sister was very clearly on something when she decided to date the likes of Kaneshiro." Draconis said as Queen frowned at Draconis as she spoke up with a huff, not amused by Draconis' remark if the glare she aimed at him as she spoke was any indication.

"Shut up, Draconis! And for the record, my sister was very much clean and sober when she went out with Kaneshiro, thank you very much! So you can quit making aspersions on her character any time!" Queen said, clearly offended. Draconis winced before speaking up, giving Queen a look that was both contrite and apologetic as he spoke.

"Sorry, Queen. I meant no offense by my comment. I was just moreso saying that I have no idea what your sister might've seen in Kaneshiro if she agreed to be his girlfriend for any length of time." Draconis said contritely as Queen nodded approvingly to Draconis' apology as she spoke up.

"Forgiven. But I still took offense to that just the same." Queen said as Panther spoke up, frowning in confusion as she spoke.

"If this is the same kind of thing as before, the hints should help us find the password, right?" Panther said as Queen spoke up, looking at Panther as she spoke.

"We'll see about that. Why don't we check the information we have on hand?" Queen said as the group kept moving. After beating more Shadows, the group found another golden pig that Joker punched the snout of to get 'Torn Page 2' for his efforts, which Queen looked at before speaking up, frowning as she spoke.

"Hm? There's a note here...It says 'E=9 A=3'." Queen said as Fox nodded and spoke up, frowning slightly as he spoke.

"It seems to be the same as the one we found earlier. The edge here is frayed as well." Fox said as Mona smiled and spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"NICE! Perfect! The more hints we find, the closer we get to solving the code. Come on, let's hurry over to the input machine!" Mona said as Joker nodded and the group quickly dashed back to the input machine which spoke up as they approached it.

"The lock is engaged. Please enter the requisite PIN." The input machine said as Panther spoke up, blinking as she spoke up.

"So we just have to make 'REAP' into numbers like before, right?" Panther asked as Queen nodded and spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"Yes, if we can decode the hints." Queen said as Joker spoke up, smirking as he looked at Draconis as he spoke.

"Not a problem. I'm a pretty solid decoder, and even if I'm not able to get it, Draconis is a crazy-good decoder. But let me give it a shot first." Joker said as he walked over to the input machine and punched in the PIN of '0931' which caused 'CORRECT' to flash on the screen before the usual whirring ensued as the path forward opened up further. Queen then smiled as she spoke up, looking at Joker approvingly as she spoke.

"That sound...It seems like the vault has moved again." Queen said as Skull grinned and spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"All right, it worked!" Skull said as they heard Kaneshiro's Shadow's voice once more.

"Tch...This isn't anywhere near your quota for this month. Don't gimme your excuses. Just go reap every last penny!" The voice of Kaneshiro's Shadow could be heard, making Fox frown as he spoke up, looking annoyed as he spoke.

"This voice again.." Fox said as they heard Kaneshiro's Shadow's voice once more.

"I'll make you understand if you don't get it...People who can't earn money are worthless to me!" Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Panther frowned and spoke up, sounding unsure but worried as she spoke.

"He's completely distorted..." Panther said as Queen sighed and spoke up, sounding like she pitied Kaneshiro's Shadow as she spoke.

"It looks like he really believes money is more important than human life...What a pitiful man." Queen said as Skull spoke up, nodding as he looked at Queen as he spoke.

"Yeah...Let's finish this quick. The door's prolly opened up, so we should head back and check it out." Skull said as Queen got lost in thought for a moment.

"Oh, Junya-kun...Why? Why have you become this distorted excuse for a man? What happened to the honorable, selfless man who loved Sae with all his heart and would do anything to make her happy? Where did he go?" Queen thought, blinking as she heard Panther speak up.

"What do you think, Joker? Should we go straight to the vault?" Panther asked Joker who nodded.

"Yeah, let's go straight there! The faster we get this done, the better!" Joker said as the group nodded, heading back to the underground vault quickly. Once they saw more of the path was open, Skull smirked as he spoke up.

"Yeah! Oooh, it's open!" Skull said as Queen spoke up, her face unreadable as she spoke.

"This is the second one...I wonder how many more there are..." Queen asked as Draconis spoke up.

"I couldn't say for sure Queen, but if I had to guess, I'd say not more than another 2 to 3, since I doubt Kaneshiro would move his deepest parts of his bank TOO far into the vault since I don't think he's in good enough shape to walk that far." Draconis said as Mona nodded approvingly as he spoke, smiling at Draconis as he spoke.

"Exactly, Draconis! I'm sure we'll find out as we go. Let's keep moving to our next one!" Mona said, getting nods from the others as the group kept moving. After beating up more Shadows, Queen hit level 26 and Panther hit level 25. As a result, Panther gained the support skill 'Fire Break' for Carmen. Panther spoke up.

"Whoa, a new move!" Panther said as Carmen acquired 'Fire Break'. After beating some strong Shadows which knocked Queen out, Mona hit level 26 and gained the upgraded Wind skill 'Garula'. Mona smirked as he spoke up, grinning as he spoke.

"Fits me like a glove!" Mona said as Zorro acquired 'Garula'. After some navigation, plenty of smashed power supply boxes and more navigation, the group found another golden pig that Joker punched to get 'Torn Page 3'. Queen frowned and spoke up after reading the note, blinking as she spoke.

"This is the same kind of note as before. It says 'U=A'." Queen said as Mona nodded and spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"It's just like the other codes we've been picking up. I think that'll be a hint!" Mona said as the group kept moving, eventually finding another golden pig that Joker punched the snout of to get 'Torn Page 4', which Queen reached for only for Skull to smile and take it instead.

"Here, let me get this one for you, Queen. No reason you have to do all the work, you know." Skull said kindly as he looked at the note and spoke up more, not seeing the grateful smile Queen gave him or the admiring look she had on her face as he spoke after studying the note.

"Aw yeah, another note. If I'm readin' it right, it says 'G=P'." Skull said as Panther smiled and spoke up, nodding her agreement as she spoke.

"Okay, we have one more hint than before. Let's keep it up!" Panther said as the group kept moving. After a bit, they found the input device they needed by where they'd gotten Torn Page 3. Skull looked at the screen and spoke up once more with a frown.

"Hey, it's another one of them input things. This time the word's, uh...'HUGS'?" Skull said with a frown as Panther groaned and spoke up, glaring at Skull as she spoke.

"It says 'HUGE', you moron! Can you even read?" Panther said as Draconis chuckled at Panther roasting Skull before he spoke up.

"Now, now, be nice to him Panther. He did get MOST of the word right after all. Besides, the only thing huge in this place is Kaneshiro's obsession with cash." Draconis said, changing his mind last-second from mentioning how huge of a simp Mona was for Panther and deciding to roast Kaneshiro's cash obsession instead. Mona nodded at Draconis' remark as he spoke up, not seeing Skull give Draconis a grateful look for his intervention as he spoke.

"So we'll need to transpose this one into numbers too. I hope we can do it with the hints we have..." Mona said as the group kept moving until Joker examined the panel again, being prompted to enter the PIN. Skull then spoke up.

"This one's the third PIN. Uhhh...What's this word again?" Skull said as Panther huffed and spoke up with a frown, sighing as she spoke.

"Ugh, it's 'HUGE'! As in, you're a HUGE idiot! Anyway, this can be made into a number too, right?" Panther asked as Queen spoke up with a nod, smiling as she spoke.

"Panther, be nice to Skull. He might be an idiot at times, but he means well...I think. Either way, he has a good heart from what I've seen so far. Anyways, I hope it's not too difficult." Queen said as Joker nodded and spoke up.

"I'll take a crack at it." Joker said as he stepped up to the input panel. After pondering it, he punched in '2319' as his guess for the PIN, and smirked as he saw 'CORRECT' flash on the display as the usual sounds of machinery moving could be heard as more of the path opened, making Panther smirk as she spoke up.

"Great, it looks like the vault opened up even more now." Panther said as Mona smirked and spoke up, smiling at Panther as he spoke.

"Well then, we should keep-" Mona said before he was interrupted by the sound of Kaneshiro's Shadow's voice from somewhere nearby.

"This is bullshit! This isn't enough...I need to have a huge presence!" Kaneshiro's Shadow could be heard saying as Skull frowned and spoke up, scoffing as he spoke.

"What now?" Skull said as Kaneshiro's Shadow spoke up once more.

"I'm done having other people walk all over me...It's my turn now..." Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Fox hissed, gritting his teeth in anger as he spoke up.

"You are unforgivable! He is beyond redemption...It seems he cares not for those he tramples upon himself." Fox said as Queen frowned as she got lost in thought for a moment.

"Sae, if it comes to it, forgive me for what I might have to do to Junya-kun in order to change his heart...but I WILL hopefully get back some semblance of the man he used to be!" Queen thought to herself before she spoke up, her gaze hardening as she spoke.

"Every step we take is strengthening my resolve. Let's push onward." Queen said as Skull gave Queen a gentle pat on the shoulder before he spoke up.

"Wanna go back to the vault then, Joker?" Skull asked Joker who nodded as he spoke up.

"Yeah, let's head back. The quicker we end this, the better." Joker said as the group headed back to the path. Skull smiled as he saw the open section.

"Yeah! Check it out! This one's open for us now too!" Skull said with a smile that made Queen smile slightly herself as she looked at it before she spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"This movement...There can be no doubt." Queen said as Fox spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"Hm? Did you notice something?" Fox asked Queen who nodded as Draconis spoke up, giving Queen a nod as he spoke.

"If it's the same thing I've surmised, then it'll have to do with the layout of this floor, am I right Queen?" Draconis said to Queen, who nodded as she spoke up once more.

"Correct, Draconis. This entire floor's layout is the cylinder of a lock." Queen said, giving Draconis an impressed nod, pleased with the logic he used to figure out the same thing she did. Panther frowned in confusion as she spoke up, her face clearly showing how perplexed she was as she spoke.

"Wh-What do you mean by that? Can you explain that a little more for the rest of us?" Panther asked Queen who smiled and nodded as she spoke up once more.

"The cylinder is the mechanism that judges if a key is the proper shape. If you use the correct key and all the discs align, the lock opens." Queen said as Draconis nodded and spoke up to finish the explanation, smiling as he spoke.

"And the PINs we've found thus far have been the metaphorical keys for the lock, so to speak. Each key being entered into the next 'disc' of the path, each opening the next. Eventually our path to the Treasure will be clear if we keep going." Draconis said as Fox spoke up, realization hitting him as he spoke.

"That makes a lot of sense, Draconis. Also, now that you mention it, while the walls rotate, the path forward has remained facing the same way..." Fox said as Mona blinked before he spoke up, his expression one of mixed shock and surprise as he spoke.

"So you're saying the whole floor is just one giant lock...?" Mona asked as both Draconis and Queen nodded and the latter spoke up to answer Mona, smiling as she spoke.

"That's right. All the smaller vaults in here aren't important. There has to be an area further in, locked away by the room itself." Queen said as Skull's eyes widened in recognition as he grinned before speaking up, smirking as he spoke.

"All right, let's go! And that's where the Treasure's gotta be! Sweet, let's get goin'!" Skull said as the group kept moving. As they moved, they saw a strong Shadow blocking the way as Skull spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"Tch, another one of these jerks!? What's it doin' here!?" Skull said as Queen smiled and spoke up gently to correct Skull, only to blink at what she saw behind the Shadow as she spoke up.

"I think it's probably blocking our path forward. But never mind that! Look, behind it!" Queen said as Fox saw what Queen was pointing at and frowned as he spoke up.

"Another button device...The Shadow must be protecting it..." Fox said as Mona nodded and spoke up, looking at Joker as he spoke.

"It seems like we'll have to take it down to move on...Are you ready for this, Joker?" Mona asked Joker who nodded and spoke up.

"Hell yeah, I am. Let's do it!" Joker said as the group charged at the security Shadow who huffed and spoke up as they glared at the group.

"Hmph, you guys must be the rats we've been hearing about...Well, Mister Kaneshiro ordered me to absolutely not let anyone past this point. Accept your death!" The security Shadow said as the fight began. After the fight, which was difficult, Joker's Matador Persona hit level 21 and Skull hit level 26, Captain Kidd gaining the heavy-tier Physical skill 'Assault Dive' from the level up as Skull smirked and spoke up.

"Yo! Check out this new skill!" Skull said happily as Captain Kidd acquired 'Assault Dive'. After that, the group proceeded forward to the terminal, which to the group's surprise didn't need a password. Skull blinked at this as he spoke up in surprise, gaping as he spoke.

"Huh...This one doesn't need a password or anything..." Skull said as Panther spoke up at that point with a shrug.

"I guess that's why the Shadow was protecting it?" Panther said as Queen crossed her arms as she spoke up.

"Hm, it doesn't seem to require any keys, but there are buttons on the left and right of the box..." Queen said as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"There must be a reason that thing was guarding it. Let's try and figure out why." Mona said as Joker walked forward and hit the right button, seeing the path forward open up a bit. After some button hitting, the group opened up a path forward that had Mona speak up.

"Good...This isn't the path to the Treasure, BUUUT I think it DOES lead towards the final Will Seed of this Palace." Mona said as Draconis blinked and spoke up.

"For real!? That was fast. Maybe we WILL take this thing down in one run, two if we count returning to face Kaneshiro's Shadow as a run, and three if we count our short-lived trip here when Queen first awakened to her Persona as a trip." Draconis said as the group nodded and followed the open path, eventually stopping as they saw another strong-looking Shadow ahead, making Fox speak up.

"There are Shadows here as well...Perhaps they are protecting something." Fox said as Panther nodded and spoke up.

"True. That one seems pretty tough...We'll have to make sure we're good and ready." Panther said as the group kept moving. While in the Safe Room to catch their breath, Joker walked over to Panther who frowned at Joker with a partial wince as she spoke up.

"Another code? Are you any good at these, Joker?" Panther asked as Draconis scoffed from next to her as he spoke up.

"Panther, unless I'm mistaken, Joker here has solved ALL of these codes so far with only minimal input from myself, Queen and Mona-sensei, so I'd say he's very good at codes." Draconis said, coming to Joker's defense, getting a grateful smile from Joker as he spoke up.

"Thanks, Draconis. And Panther, the codes will be a cakewalk. Fighting the Shadows that are guarding some of the codes? That part will be the tough part if we're not ready for them." Joker said. Panther smiled, doing a closed-eye smile as she spoke up.

"Good point, Draconis. And awesome! We're counting on you, Joker!" Panther said as Joker nodded. He then walked over to Fox and spoke up.

"Something bothering you, Fox? You seem uneasy." Joker said as Fox looked at Joker before speaking up contemplatively.

"I think that, for someone claiming to aim for great heights, he does seem rather cowardly in how he does things." Fox said as Joker spoke up.

"That's true Fox, but we're aiming for doing the right thing, so no shot that he stops us." Joker said as Fox nodded and walked over to Queen who he saw seemed a bit upset, speaking up warily.

"What's the matter, Queen? You look like you're sad." Joker said as Queen spoke up with a sigh.

"I cannot let this continue when one of our own students is a victim here." Queen said as Skull smiled at her, gently reaching over to take her hand in his own and give it a gentle but encouraging squeeze, making Queen look over before giving Skull a grateful smile as she spoke up, looking at Skull as she spoke.

"Skull...You're right. I need to not lose my head here. Thank you. You're really a good guy when you get past that trouble making exterior of yours. I apologize for misjudging you before." Queen said with a bow as Skull smiled and spoke up after chuckling.

"Don't worry about it, Queen. What's done is done, yeah? Let's focus on the here and now, and how much we can do to screw up that asshole Kaneshiro's plans!" Skull said confidently yet resolutely as Queen nodded, speaking up with a resolved look of her own.

"You're right, Skull. Let's keep going." Queen said as Joker nodded. As he went to leave the Safe Room, Mona smiled and spoke up from next to Draconis.

"Come on, guys! The Treasure awaits!" Mona said as Draconis spoke up.

"I concur. But more importantly, so does the final Will Seed of this Palace!" Draconis said as the group kept moving. Eventually, they got back to the security Shadow who glared as he saw the group approach and spoke up.

"What the...! What're you doing here! But since you're here...it'll be the last of you!" The security Shadow said before he shifted into his monster form as Queen spoke up.

"Here it comes-get ready!" Queen said as the battle began. After a lot of attacking and flinging of Bufu from Fox, the Shadow was destroyed and the ensuing EXP gain brought Draconis and Joker to level 27, the former's level up giving Smaug the ability to use the healing skill 'Media', giving him a group healing skill, something the group sorely needed. Draconis smirked as he spoke up.

"Let's get it! Now I'm that much more versatile! Get a load of this sweet new skill!" Draconis said happily as Smaug acquired 'Media' while Joker also got his level up. After reaching the viney door holding the last Will Seed, Queen spoke up.

"One of Kaneshiro's Will Seeds...He's taken from so many people, and now we're taking from him. I suppose it's karma." Queen said as Joker nodded, slicing down the viney door to open the path forward after which he seized the 'Blue Gluttony Seed' from its pedestal at which point the three seeds spun around as one and fused into a three headed skull, and Joker obtained the 'Crystal of Gluttony'. At that point, Mona spoke up.

"A Will Seed! That's the last of them for this Palace!" Mona said as Queen gaped and spoke up.

"So THAT's what Draconis meant when he said they combine into a new form when we get all three! That was rather interesting to see. And you say there's three of those in each and every Palace?" Queen said as Draconis nodded before he spoke up.

"Yeah, or at least that's the going theory that Mona and I are working under for the time being. If nothing else, it hasn't been proven wrong so far." Draconis said as Queen nodded and the group kept moving. After beating another group of Shadows in the next vault, Panther and Fox both hit level 26. After some more walking, the group spotted another golden pig gated off by electromagnetic fencing, making Fox gape as he spoke up, looking stunned as he spoke.

"Isn't that...? Security appears much tighter here..." Fox said as Draconis spoke up with a nod.

"Not surprising, given we're probably right in front of the path to the Treasure." Draconis said sagely as Queen nodded and spoke up at that point.

"Agreed, Draconis. Not to worry-we just need to deal with the power to the bars like we did before." Queen said as Skull grinned and spoke up.

"Hell yeah! Looks like it's time for more of the Joker's Boot show, eh Joker?" Skull said as Joker smirked and nodded. Mona winced as he spoke up.

"Ignoring those two idiots, let's focus on this. Based on how this looks, we're going to have to find a bunch of power boxes..." Mona said as Joker and Skull fist-bumped, knowing this meant even more chances to see Joker's boot smash stuff, neither even flinching when they were knocked down by Draconis bopping the two over the head with a huff as he spoke up.

"Can you two be serious for now? We're almost done here. Let's focus and finish this out so we can deal with Kaneshiro's Shadow. The sooner we change that scumbag's heart, the better." Draconis said. The group nodded and kept moving. After beating more Shadows, Queen hit level 27 and gained the healing skill 'Energy Shower' making Queen smile as she spoke up.

"That's a new skill! Let's try it out!" Queen said as Johanna acquired Energy Shower. After that, and beating some Shadows that ambushed the group, Joker found a power supply box and smashed it, making some but not all of the gates deactivate, making Mona wince as he spoke up.

"There are still more? This is really becoming a hassle now..." Mona said as Draconis patted Mona gently on the shoulder as he spoke up.

"Cheer up, Mona-sensei. Odds are good the next box should let us get at the pig, and we can get what I'm guessing will be the last Torn Page so we can open the path to the Treasure." Draconis said sagely as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"That's a good point, Draconis. That said, could there be any over our heads in here?" Mona asked as the group kept moving. After finding a grapple point and reaching the upper parts of the area, Joker found and smashed not one, but two more power supply boxes, both disabling the cameras and the rest of the electromagnetic fencing around the pig, making Queen smile as she spoke up.

"All right! Looks like we've finally deactivated the bars." Queen said as the group kept moving. Joker headed down and punched the snout of the now-exposed pig to get 'Torn Page 5' which Queen looked at as she read the page.

"This is...! Hm, there's a note here...It says 'O+H=10'." Queen said as Mona winced and spoke up, sighing as he spoke.

"So we're getting into calculations now...Good grief." Mona said as Draconis smirked and spoke up, looking Mona in the eyes with a smile as he spoke.

"Relax, Mona-sensei. Need I remind you that I have a solid mind for numbers? So provided we have all the clues, which by now we should, this will be a snap for Joker and I to sort out, eh Joker?" Draconis said as Joker nodded and the group kept moving. After heading to the next part of the area, Skull gaped as he spoke up.

"Dude! Daaamn! This is nuts...!" Skull said as Fox nodded his agreement and spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"I see...Safes everywhere...Kaneshiro must have gained an obscene amount of money. Though, walking around the Palace, I don't see anything that he seems to have spent it on..." Fox said as Queen's eyes widened fractionally as realization set in for her as she spoke up.

"This is...! Perhaps all he wants to do with it is hoard it...Now's not the time for this discussion, though. Let's keep moving." Queen said as Panther spoke up with a frown.

"Hey, look at that!" Panther said pointing towards an area behind more electromagnetic fences and cheering as she spoke up.

"YES! Over there! It's a clue thing!" Panther said as Joker and Queen looked at each other, exchanged stunned looks, and both turned to a sheepish-looking Draconis, who spoke up after seeing the frowns aimed at him, wincing as he spoke.

"Uh, maybe I might have misspoken before...my bad." Draconis said with a wince. Mona nodded and spoke up, taking the attention off a grateful Draconis as he spoke.

"It happens, Draconis. That said, look over there! And isn't that the power for the bars?" Mona said as Panther blinked and nodded as she spoke up once more.

"Oh. You're right-we can't go this way." Panther said, sighing as she spoke up once more.

"Ugh, I guess we'll just have to look for another path." Panther said as the group kept moving. After some fancy navigation, another smashed power supply box and some platforming, the group found the back way to the golden pig, whose snout Joker punched to relieve the pig of 'Torn Page 6' which Queen looked at and spoke up.

"This note is a new one. It says 'L=U+G, D=G'." Queen said as Panther winced and frowned as she spoke up, groaning as she spoke.

"Ugh, it's like, algebra or something? I'm getting confused..." Panther said as Mona frowned and spoke up.

"Panther...This is really just simple addition..." Mona said as the group kept moving. After more navigating, the group finally found the input device they needed next to another power supply box which Joker smashed with his boot as Panther spoke up with a sigh, frowning as she spoke.

"This is our fourth PIN device. The code this time is 'GOLD'...That's pretty straightforward." Panther said as Joker and Draconis both glared at the choice of PIN for this terminal, both agreeing that they were glad Yoshizawa wasn't here in that moment, since using that as a PIN is a tremendous insult to what she stands for as a gymnast. Queen spoke up before either Joker or Draconis could voice their thoughts, however.

"I'd expect it's the same pattern we've followed so far. We'll need to decode that word into numbers." Queen said as Fox nodded and spoke up.

"I believe you're correct. I only hope we can do so with the hints we currently have on us." Fox said as the group kept moving. Joker then approached the terminal and nodded when Panther asked if he wanted to try. He then spoke up.

"I'll give it a try. Here I go." Joker said as he punched in '1841', which caused 'CORRECT' to flash onscreen as the path opened up more as Skull grinned and spoke up happily, smirking as he spoke.

"Heh, YEAH! Aw yeah, we got it right again!" Skull said, right as they heard the voice of Kaneshiro's Shadow as it spoke up.

"Ah, heh heh. This gold sheen..." Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Fox winced and spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"Again?" Fox said in disgust as Kaneshiro's Shadow spoke up once more.

"This...This is the fruit of all my hard labor!" Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Skull winced before growling as he spoke up.

"WHAT WAS THAT!? He thinks robbin' people is something to celebrate? That guy needs to get his brain checked..." Skull said as Draconis nodded as he spoke up.

"That, or his heart changed, either or." Draconis said as Kaneshiro's Shadow spoke up once more.

"With this much, I will be invincible! Omnipotent! Nothing will stop me now! I'll get my revenge and then get her back! I've changed...I'm no longer the person I used to be...Makoto-chan, Sae-san, forgive me, but the Junya you know might as well no longer exist." Kaneshiro's Shadow said as Queen gasped audibly, her hands going over her mouth in shock at her reaction as Panther spoke up.

"The person he used to be...? What could have happened to make him so distorted?" Panther asked as Queen opened her mouth to speak up, but Mona cut across whatever she was about say as he spoke up with a frown, huffing as he spoke.

"I don't know, but no matter what kind of past he had, his actions are unforgivable." Mona said as Queen winced at Mona's tone before nodding resolutely as she spoke up.

"You're right! That's right. Now, if my deductions are correct, unlike Draconis' deductions, that should've been the final mechanism." Queen said ignoring the frown on Draconis face and the huff he gave at being called out, though he didn't argue her on the point since he knew she was right. Mona then spoke up.

"All right then. Let's head back and check out the vault! We know where it is, so going back should be easy. What do you think, Joker?" Mona said as Joker spoke up.

"I say let's head straight back. I can see we're getting a tad bit worn out from all the Shadows we've fought, and some of our tempers might be rising slightly, so maybe we should try to speed up the finding of the Treasure route, so we can get out of here and rest up before one of us says something they regret later." Joker said, giving Draconis a warning glare as he spoke, seeing the mulish, if almost indignant, frown on Draconis' face as he spoke up.

"I can keep my temper in check just fine, Joker! Also, I said I was sorry for being off on my calculations, Queen. I make mistakes too, you know. Ask Mona-sensei, he'll tell you that none of us are infallible." Draconis said huffily as he crossed his arms with a pout. Panther giggled at how adorable Draconis' pout looked, while Skull just shrugged, as did Fox, while the group went back to the main underground vault path. Once they got to the newly opened path, everyone gaped at the now-visible elevator in the middle of the area as Skull spoke up in shock and disbelief, blinking as he spoke.

"Whoa...! H-Hey, this is an elevator, yeah? So a way down really did show up...You're so amazing...just like some kinda prophet, Queen..." Skull said admiringly as Queen blushed slightly behind her mask at Skull's praise before shaking it off as she spoke up.

"T-Thanks, Skull. But in all seriousness, it's mostly thanks to that notebook. We wouldn't be here if it weren't for that." Queen said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"True that. Who'd have thought that Kaneshiro would end up being his own greatest security liability? Not that any of us are complaining, I'm sure." Draconis said as the others nodded before Queen huffed and spoke up, nodding as she spoke.

"That's true, Draconis. But more importantly, did you guys hear all those things Shadow Kaneshiro was saying?" Queen asked as Panther nodded, speaking up with a smile, looking at Queen as she spoke.

"Uh-huh! Oh yeah, I was wondering about that! Didn't he seem kinda...insecure or something?" Panther asked as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Exactly. He kept bringing up how rich and powerful he wants to be." Queen said as Skull nodded and spoke up, frowning slightly as he spoke.

"So, if he's insecure about that shit...he thinks he's really just some poor little weakling, huh?" Skull said as Queen nodded, smiling at Skull as she spoke up, even as she winced while she spoke.

"Maybe by thinking he was going to be a strong, wealthy man, he convinced himself it was true." Makoto said as Draconis spoke up, smiling at Queen as he spoke.

"That sounds accurate to me, Queen. But I also wonder...could his insecurities have anything to do with whatever caused him and your sister to break up? Because I doubt your sister is the type to just dump a man for no reason? And I'd rather not make assumptions about anyone if I can avoid it. What's your take on that?" Draconis asked Queen, who blinked as she spoke up.

"I don't really remember their break-up that well, to be honest Draconis. I recall they were arguing about him joining the mob, but never why he did it. Not that there's a reason good enough to do such a thing, but you could be right that he had a reason to do so. I never thought of that, to be honest." Queen said as Fox huffed and spoke up.

"That's true. Still...I wonder...Well, we will discover the truth for ourselves when we change his heart. Let us hurry, Joker." Fox said as Joker nodded and the group kept moving, heading into the now-open elevator and riding it down to the lowest level, where multi-colored searchlights were surrounding an undefinable orb of light in the middle of the room making Mona speak up with a firm frown on his face, looking at the middle of the room as he spoke.

"Found it! It's right here!" Mona said as Queen frowned in confusion before she spoke up, perplexed by Mona's statement as she spoke.

"I don't see anything." Queen said as Draconis spoke up to clarify things for Queen.

"Do you see that floating blob in the middle of the room, Queen?" Draconis asked Queen, who nodded as Draconis kept speaking.

"Well, that's the un-materialized form of the Treasure. It isn't really visible now, but we'll make it visible soon enough." Draconis said as Skull nodded and took over the explanation, smiling at Queen as he spoke.

"Once we get this far, we need this callin' card thing." Skull said as Queen blinked in realization as she spoke up, figuring out the rest on her own.

"A calling card? Ah, I see how this works now. Simply put, by making the target believe that the Treasure is in danger, their resulting change in cognition will cause it to materialize. That's quite a bold trick." Queen said as Skull and Panther blinked, the latter speaking up in shock, blinking as she spoke.

"Huh? She understood?" Panther asked as Skull nodded and spoke up, smirking as he spoke.

"Of course she understood, Panther! Queen is a smart lady! So of course she understood! Probably more than either of us did to be sure." Skull said as Queen blushed in embarrassment at Skull's flattering praise as Fox spoke up, looking at Joker as he spoke and thus missing the knowing grin on Draconis' face next to him as he watched the pink-faced Skull and red-faced Queen speaking about the calling card and past ones that were sent, while Panther just watched in confusion, also smiling as she saw the softened look in Skull and Queen's eyes as they looked at each other while Fox spoke.

"Joker, we'll defer to you regarding its timing." Fox said as Mona nodded and spoke up, smiling as he spoke up.

"Okay guys, let's get ready for the heist!" Mona said as the group headed back up the elevator. Once back on the path, Panther spoke up, smiling as she spoke up.

"Okay guys, the next time we enter that Treasure room will be after we send out the calling card." Panther said with a smile. Skull huffed as he spoke up, frowning as he spoke.

"In the end, that Kaneshiro bastard only showed his stupid face once in this Palace, twice if we count his appearance during Queen's Awakening." Skull said as Draconis frowned before speaking up.

"Good point, Skull. Well, no matter. We'll be dealing with his scummy ass soon enough, and hopefully we can change his heart back to how Queen and her sister remember him being, even if he doesn't end up reconciling with Queen's sister." Draconis said sagely. Mona nodded as he spoke up, smiling as he spoke.

"Good point, Draconis. And none of that other stuff matters. As long as we steal the Treasure, we'll change his heart for sure." Mona said as Queen nodded and looked at Joker as she spoke up, giving him and Draconis a grateful smile as she spoke.

"Then let's act as the Phantom Thieves should, and send the calling card. It's on you, Joker." Queen said as Fox nodded and spoke up to add his two cents in, smiling as he spoke.

"If you wish to train or explore further before sending it, that decision is purely yours." Fox said as Joker nodded, before the group headed to the Safe Room so they could warp to the exit of the Palace. After entering the Safe Room, Joker walked over to Panther and spoke up.

"You okay, Panther? You seemed a bit worried back there." Joker said to Panther, who smiled as she spoke up.

"I'm fine, Joker. But more importantly, did you take care of everything you needed to? Let's make sure we're as ready as possible." Panther said as Joker nodded. He then walked over to Fox and spoke up.

"Well, well, looks like we're at the calling card stage of this Palace already. Time flies when we're infiltrating a Palace, doesn't it Fox?" Joker said as Fox nodded and spoke up.

"Indeed. And now we have to send out our calling card. However, we must still prepare the calling card. I hope you all look forward to what I produce." Fox said as Joker nodded, walking over to a deep-in-thought Queen and speaking up.

"Why the thoughtful expression, Queen?" Joker asked Queen who looked at him before giggling as she spoke up.

"No reason, just thinking about my sister's past with Junya-kun. So we're going to send the calling card? I suppose I truly am a phantom thief now, aren't I?" Queen said as Draconis chuckled and spoke up.

"You're just now realizing that, Queen? Silly Queen, you've been one of us since you helped get us into Kaneshiro's Palace. Never doubt that you're one of us." Draconis said firmly but encouragingly as Queen nodded and spoke up while giving Draconis a grateful smile.

"Thanks, Draconis. That means a lot." Queen said as she looked over at Skull and kept speaking while giving Skull a closed-eye smile, gently sliding her hand into that of a surprised Skull as she spoke.

"More than you can imagine. But I think I might get to like being a Phantom Thief, if for no other reason than you lot never let there be a dull moment, especially Skull here." Queen said as she smiled, giggling at the stunned look on Skull's face as he realized he was holding hands with Queen. Joker then laughed as he fast-traveled the group to the entrance, as a red door flashed in front of Joker, who had an uneasy feeling wash over him. Justine noticed Joker and spoke up as she opened the door to the Velvet Room.

"There is a matter we must discuss with you. Enter." Justine said as Joker nodded and went into the Velvet Room. Once inside, Ren saw sirens going off all over the place as Caroline noticed him and huffed as she spoke up.

"What do you think, Inmate? Surprised?" Caroline asked Ren who blinked as he spoke up.

"A siren?" Ren asked. Justine nodded as she spoke up, smiling as she spoke.

"This is a failsafe to ensure you do not neglect your rehabilitation. It's intended to push you into performing executions. We call it a 'Fusion Alarm'." Justine said as Caroilne frowned at Ren as she spoke up.

"It's a warning system that tells you when you've been slacking off on your duties! When you hear this sound, the first thing on your mind should be this place and executions!" Caroline rebuked Ren as Justine spoke up firmly, looking at Ren as she spoke.

"You must become stronger for the sake of your rehabilitation." Justine said as Caroline spoke up once more.

"Executions will be much more severe when the alarm is sounding! The result of this is that any fused Personas will be further strengthened!" Caroline said as Justine spoke up warily, a warning look on her face as she spoke up.

"However, the more executions that you perform during the alarm, the higher the chance of an accident occurring. With that in mind, you must prepare more than usual while performing executions in the midst of an alarm." Justine said as Caroline nodded and spoke up, frowning as she spoke.

"The alarm will sound after you've endured numerous repeated battles! Make certain you come here as soon as you hear it! Got that!?" Caroline said firmly as Ren nodded.

"Got it. I'll be sure to get here ASAP when I hear the Fusion Alarm sound." Ren said with a nod. Caroline smiled and nodded approvingly at Ren's response.

"Good! You'd better make excellent use of the alarm!" Caroline said as Justine looked at Ren and smiled as she spoke up.

"Well then, continue to devote yourself to further rehabilitation." Justine said as Ren nodded. After some fusing, Ren had his first fusion accident trying to fuse a powerful Leanan Sidhe, which instead turned into a Kodama. After that, Ren was booted out of the Velvet Room where Mona told him to get going. After some more Persona management, Joker finally left the Velvet Room and the group headed to the exit where Mona spoke up.

"What do you wanna do, Joker? We've secured our route to the Treasure...Do you want to get out of here?" Mona asked Joker who nodded.

"Yeah, let's head on back to the real world. We've been in here long enough." Joker said decisively as his phone spoke up via the MetaNav app.

"Now returning to the real world from Kaneshiro's Palace. Thank you for your hard work." Joker's phone said as the group returned to the real world as the group's results were tallied, making Mona speak up once it was done.

"YES! We finally secured our route to the Treasure! All we need to do now is send out the calling card." Mona said as Fox nodded and spoke up.

"Okay! Indeed...We have finished the pre-arrangements, and now we shall face the true test. But this is no time to panic, Joker. Let us ensure we succeed after having come so far." Fox said as Joker and Draconis nodded and the group returned to the real world...

(Back in the real world, at Leblanc with Morgana, Ren and Kusa)

As Kusa and Ren returned to Leblanc, the latter lugging Morgana in his bag, Morgana spoke up once they were inside.

"You did great today. You tired?" Mona asked as Ren and Kusa's phones went off to signal a group chat with Ryuji, Yusuke, Ann and Makoto with Ryuji sending the first response.

"When're we gonna send the calling card? We should hurry it up." Ryuji sent as Ann sent a response at that point.

"I have to agree. The earlier the better in my book." Ann sent as Yusuke sent a response at that point.

"There is no assurance he will keep his promise, after all. What are your thoughts on the matter, Makoto?" Yusuke sent as Makoto sent her response.

"Honestly? I can't wait to send it. I want to put an end to his nasty crimes as soon as possible." Makoto sent as Ren sent a response at that point.

"Let's not get too hasty, Makoto. That said, I agree that the sooner we change Kaneshiro's heart, the better." Ren sent. Yusuke sent a response at that point.

"Hm, calm as always. Well, we'll leave it up to you." Yusuke sent as Ann and Kusa sent responses close together, Ann's coming through first.

"We'll be ready to go whenever you are!" Ann sent as Kusa's response came through.

"I agree with Ren that we have to proceed with caution since we'll only get one shot at it once we send the calling card. So the more prepared we are when we send it, the better. That being said, I also am excited to change Kaneshiro's heart." Kusa sent as Ren put his phone away. After that, he and Kusa went up to their room to plan out the group's next move while getting comfortable for the night...

END OF CHAPTER

A/N: And boom, another chapter done and dusted! Not as long as most of the previous chapters, I know, but it's still a good length to be sure. That being said, next chapter will be the third calling card, the fight with Kaneshiro's Shadow, and, if word count permits, possibly the start of Kusa's mini-arc which will probably encompass most of the rest of Arc 3. Also, I plan to have a bit between Arcs 3 and 4 that will be unique to this story. But I'll explain it more when we get to that point.

For now, we're at the end of another chapter! Thanks as always to those of you who read these chapters and follow/favorite the story. The support is greatly appreciated. If you like this story so far, feel free to leave a review with your thoughts, opinions, feedback and/or constructive criticism and I'll view it and respond to it if needed. Or if you prefer, you can PM me with said feedback, I enjoy hearing from my readers either way. And until next chapter, sithlorde1988 out!

CONFIDANT RANKS AS OF THE END OF CHAPTER 33

FOOL (Igor/Prison Master) : Rank 5

MAGICIAN (Morgana/Mona) : Rank 4

EMPEROR (Yusuke/Fox) : Rank 3

HIEROPHANT (Sojiro) : Rank 3

LOVERS (Ann/Panther) : Rank 5

CHARIOT (Ryuji/Skull) : Rank 5

JUSTICE (Akechi) : Rank 3

STRENGTH (Caroline and Justine/Twin Wardens) : Rank 3

DEATH (Takemi/Back-Alley Doctor) : Rank 5

TEMPERANCE (Kawakami) : Rank 1

MOON (Mishima) : Rank 4

SUN (Yoshida/Man Of The People) : Rank 3

WORLD (Kusa/Draconis) : Rank 3

FAITH (Kasumi/Yoshizawa) : Rank 2

COUNCILLOR (Maruki) : Rank 4

YET TO BE UNLOCKED: HERMIT, PRIESTESS/HIGH PRIESTESS, HANGED MAN, STAR, TOWER, EMPRESS, FORTUNE, DEVIL, JUDGMENT