Chapter 4: Regicide

April 13th. 2016

Today was the volleyball rally. Kamoshida's excuse to beat up the students in broad daylight under the guise of 'accidents'. He had power here. He was in control. No one had the spine to stand up against him.

The Volleyball team were spineless cowards against him, and the fellow teachers, even the students watching them, stood in awe of his spikes. But there were those that did not. The loudmouth and criminal stood at the side, not even giving him the attention that he commanded. It was fine, he couldn't care less about them, but what irked him was the Okumura heiress and Student President were with them.

How could they ignore him?! And Ann, the traitor, stood beside that loudmouth with her back turned towards him!

No matter. He would find a way to get rid of those two and their pesky cat later. Spiking the volleyball, he aims it at the weakling Mishima, grinning as the ball zooms towards him. Only to drop his jaw in shock as the boy manages to not only block it but pass it into the air!

And Shiho was already there to spike it at him! He could only watch as she hit the ball directly at him, slamming it into his stomach with a surprising amount of force.

"Nice one, Shiho!" He could hear Ann's cheer behind him as he rubbed his stomach. Looking at the two students, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Before yesterday, they had been docile and meek, willing to put up with ANYTHING he threw at them. It's what made them his favourite pawns.

But now. They were anything but.

And it angered him to no end. He would not let these upstart children get ahead of him in HIS sport! Spiking the ball, he aims it towards Shiho, only to watch as she blocks it towards Mishima, who, with a smirk on his face, spikes it right at him!

He could not understand how these two were doing this! Blocking the ball with his arm, again noting the surprisingly hard hit, he passes it towards a teacher before taking a glance behind him. Ann, along with them, were loudly cheering on both Shiho AND Mishima. When did they all get so close anyway!?

He was so distracted by his thoughts that he failed to see the incoming Volleyball from Shiho before it hit him in the face, sending him to the floor.

"Kamoshida-san!? Are you alright?" One of the teachers asks as he sits back up, rubbing his face.

"Yes, I am. That was on me for not paying attention." He replies with his fake smile, while on the inside, he was fuming! "Not a bad hit, Suzui!" He complimented, but it was all fake anyway. He would be planning a fitting punishment for her 'rebellion' soon. "Alright, let's take a break, people!" He calls out as everyone begins leaving the hall. He could hear the students whispering about what had happened, a chink in his invincibility.

I'll show them who's the king of this castle. No one gets away with crossing me. He glares at the criminal as he and his small group leave the hall, Mishima and Shiho following close behind them. No one.

"Alright, the door is locked. No one will hear us in here." Makoto says, walking away from the Student Council Room door. The blinds over the windows had also been closed, letting no one able to see into the room. "Now that we have our route to the Treasure, it's time for the final step."

"Sending the Calling Card." Ryuji informs Shiho and Mishima as they sit at full attention.

"What does the Card have to look like? It needs to be able to grab someone's eye, right?" Shiho asks. A slight cough from Ren draws everyone's attention as he reaches into his bag with a grin.

"We don't have to worry about that. We already have some we can use." Pulling his hand from his bag, he pulls out one of the cards he had gotten from Yusuke and gently tosses it onto the desk. The logo blazing on top.

"The hell?" Ryuji asks, amazed as the Thieves stand in amazement at the card. Haru gently picked it up, noting the back was blank of words before her eyes lit up.

"Ren-kun. Did Yusuke send you this?" She asks, forgetting that Shiho and Mishima are in the room with them.

"Who's Yusuke?" Mishima asks.

"Yusuke is a friend of mine, or rather more like a brother, who goes to Kosei High School. He's an avid artist." Ren replies casually.

"Does he also know about the Metaverse?" Shiho asks, looking at the card in Haru's hand.

"He does. Though how he came to find out we will explain after Kamoshida is beaten. We promised to tell you everything, and we will." Morgana replies, poking his head out of the bag. "That said, having the card is all fine and good, but we need a message on the back. To let them know that their treasure is a thing and that it can be stolen." Haru places the card back on the table as Ryuji looks at it. He glances at Ann, who gives him a nod before the two look at Shiho and Mishima.

"Hey, you guys want to help me and Ann write the Card?" He asks the two.

"Huh? You want us to help write it?" Mishima asks, surprised. "But we don't even know what to write."

"It doesn't matter. You two are the most affected by him after Ryuji and me. You both deserve a hand in writing the card." Ann folds her hands on the table. "After everything he did to the four of us, it's only right that we write the card. We can write it at my house. My parents are out of the country anyway."

"I think we should write it, Mishima." Shiho speaks, picking the card up. "Kamoshida. He ruined so many lives, destroyed countless dreams, and who knows what else. And we are victims of that." She looks at him with a fire in her eyes. "It's fitting that we help write it."

"I wasn't going to say no, Shiho." Mishima replies. "I'm all for helping. Should we also use newspaper clippings as well?"

"That goes without saying." Makoto interjects. "We need to leave zero evidence that can be traced back to us. Writing it ourselves would easily give us away. As for where it could go…" She glances at Ren, pulling out more cards. "I think the main board in the entrance hall would be perfect. No way will he miss it." The bell rings out through the school, signalling the end of the Rally and the school day.

"That's it for today. Tomorrow, we steal Kamoshida's heart. Rest well, guys." Ren speaks as he stands. The group slowly left the room, Ann leaving with Shiho and Ryuji with Mishima in case Kamoshida was looking for them.

A prudent decision, as the pervy teacher was waiting for them. Only to snarl as he watches the four leave the school.

I will show them. No one defies me. He stomps through the empty hall, eyes glancing at the retreating students. A primal feeling builds within him as he gazes lustfully at the female students. His eyes danced over them. I'm the king here. I can do whatever I want.

He continues his march down the hall, finding Kawakami just leaving her classroom and heading for the stairs. With anyone I want. He wears a lustful grin as he starts walking towards her before noticing one of the girls from the Volleyball club. And like that, the target of his mind changes.

"Hey." He casually calls the student. She flinches in fear before turning around to see him. Good. Obedient. And very indulging… "There are some things I need to speak to you about in my office. Come with me." The girl nods, timid and obediently, before following after him. They will learn who rules the school. All the while unaware of Kawakami watching them leave.

Watching with a concerned frown before moving to follow them.

It was late at night, and no lights shined inside the School. Its halls are empty and filled with shadows. A sudden movement brushes past a small plant as four figures appear before the main billboard, dominating the entrance hall.

Silent as mice, they quickly get to work posting cards over it, gluing them to the frame while they remove any important notices. The rest, either unneeded, pointless or outdated, were left behind with the cards glued on top. Covering it with red and black. A few cards faced outwards, proudly displaying the emblem they bore, while others were faced backwards.

A message written on their backs.

The four shadows stand proud of their work before quickly melting away. Leaving behind no evidence of their passing.

April 14th, 2016

Sir Suguru Kamoshida, the depraved king of lust. You are a fallen athlete who praised upon the weak, abusing your position and using them as puppets to fuel your twisted desires and fantasies. We shall have you confess all of your crimes, with your own mouth. We will take your distorted desires without fail.

From, The Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

Ren couldn't help but smirk at the Calling Card. Compared to what they had the first time, it was clearly the superior one. That and having their proper emblem blazing on the back of the card made it all the more better. And it looks like it's having a larger effect than last time. He mentally notes, seeing the large crowd looking at the cards.

Walking away from the large crowd, he spots the others observing the crowd near the right corner, chatting to themselves in hushed tones.

"Got to give props to Shiho and Mishima. They were the ones to finalise it." Ryuji says, smiling at the two, who look away bashfully.

"And it certainly does the trick." Ren says, announcing his presence to the team. "Now all we have to do is—"

"Who's responsible for this!?" Kamoshida bellows in anger, glaring at the billboard. The students surrounding it clear away as Kamoshida walks up to it, glaring at the emblem on the card as though it was both mocking him and staring right into his crooked, distorted soul.

"And there it is. A predictable reaction from someone who knows what we mean by distorted desires." Morgana whispers to the Thieves, although he is more informing the two new members than anything else.

"Did you do this!? Or was it you!?" Kamoshida accuses the students around him, who back away in fear.

"It's really hitting him." Shiho whispers, hiding her grin. A good thing two, as Kamoshida turns his glare towards the group as the students run. With fury in his eyes, he marches towards them, hoping to elicit fear from them. But all he got was indifference, which seemed to make him even angrier.

"Was it one of you!?" He asks, glaring particularly at Ren and Ryuji.

"What are you talking about?" Ren asks, playing innocently.

"Don't play dumb, I KNOW it was one of you! So fess up! Which one of you did it!?"

"Do you even have any proof that we did, Kamoshida?" Ryuji asks mockingly. If Kamoshida could go any redder at Ryuji's question, he would have.

"I fear I must agree, Kamoshida. I personally left here with them when school had closed. And as Student Council President, I am the only one with the back key needed to get in." Makoto says calmly, flicking her hair back.

"If that's true, then show me the key right now!" Kamoshida demands, hoping to catch her without it. Only to be disappointed at her holding up her keys with said backdoor key attached to the ring. "Tch! No matter. It doesn't matter if it was you or not. I will personally see to it that all of you are expelled in May." He threatens the team. "You don't even belong here."

It came as no surprise to them that he would threaten them. He had planned to do so to Ren and Ryuji since the start, and Mishima was an unfortunate add-on. Only now he was expanding that net to Makoto, Haru, Ann, Shiho and Mishima. Certainly a much harder argument to make than in the original timeline.

Just as the words had left his mouth, the world is plunged into darkness around them while Kamoshida morphs into his Shadow Self, glaring at the team with a cocky and taunting smile.

Come… Steal it if you can!

"You can kiss your futures goodbye." Kamoshida gloats before he turns on his feet and leaves.

"Alright. The Treasure will have taken form. All we need to do is steal it." Morgana whispers.

"I don't think his Shadow will let us take it without a fight, though." Mishima asks with concern.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, we have school to attend." Makoto replies, the team taking the queue to separate. With Ren, Ann and Mishima heading to their class. But when they arrived, Kawakami-sensei was not there.

"Strange. Kawakami-sensei is usually her five minutes before the bell." Mishima points out as they enter the class. And judging by the looks on everyone in the room, it was clear they were all thinking the same thing.

"Maybe something came up in the faculty office?" Ann suggests, but not with much confidence in her voice. Ren silently shrugs his shoulders before the three take their seats. Just as the door opens.

But it was not Kawakami who walked in.

"Ah, everyone is here. Good." Ms. Chouno states as she walks into the room. The class are surprised at her appearance, but for Ren and Ann, a pit begins forming in their stomachs.

"Chouno-sensei? Where is Kawakami-sensei?" One of the students asks. A flash of guilt spreads over the English Teacher's face as she leans against Kawakami's desk.

"I'm afraid Kawakami-chan has been hospitalised since last night." A chorus of shocked gasps fills the room at the announcement. "Apparently, Kamoshida-san had found her lying in an alleyway, beaten and bruised. We are assuming she was assaulted by members of a gang. Thankfully, her possessions were still with her, and her life is not in any danger, but she is currently unconscious. It is unknown when she will wake up. In the meantime, I and the other teachers will take over as homeroom and her class. That is all."

With a heavy heart, she leaves the shocked class behind as whispers begin circling around.

Kawakami was assaulted? How can that be? Ren puts a hand over his mouth, eyes narrowing. Chouno-sensei said that Kamoshida found her after… Wait… A cold thought travelled down his spine as the implications filled his mind.

And it made him sick to his stomach.

"Someone has been missing from your class the whole day, Shiho-chan?" Haru asks. The team were gathered on the roof, readying to infiltrate Kamoshida's Castle and steal his heart.

"Yeah. She's also a member of the Volleyball team. It's strange not to see her today. She was one of the lucky ones to not fall under Kamoshida's gaze." Shiho replies, looking over some medicines she had brought with her.

"And Kawakami-sensei as well. Who do you think attacked her? I didn't think there were any gangs around here." Mishima asks.

"Because there isn't, and I think I can hazard a guess who really assaulted her." Ren replies, arms folded. The team turn to look at him as he pushes his fake glasses up. "Who was it that 'found' Kawakami-sensei?" The team pauses for a second before their eyes go wide.

"Kamoshida? You think the slimy bastard actually assaulted her?" Ryuji asks with building anger.

"But why? He's never shown any interest in either Kawakami-sensei or Chouno-sensei. So why now?" Anna asks, her own anger filling her words.

"We can ask Kamoshida himself once we steal his heart. Or better yet, beat it out of his Shadow." Makoto informs, cracking her knuckles. "Either way, the truth will come out after today. No matter what." With a collective nod, the team leave the roof and heads for the alleyway in separate teams.

Once arrived, Ren took out his phone and readied the app. With one final look around him, he puts on his Joker smirk.

"It's Showtime."

The atmosphere of Kamoshida's palace pulsed with anger, knights prowling the ground with eyes blazing as they searched for the Phantom Thieves. Unfortunately for them, the Thieves had already sneaked right past them with them, teleporting straight to the safe room outside the Throne Room.

"How does that even work? Travelling between Safe Rooms, I mean?" Spring asks as the Thieves exit the room, finding the hallway clean of knights.

"At this point, we think it's all down to Cognition." Panther replies with an embarrassed smile. Frankly, anything they did in the Metaverse could be explained by the 'Power of Cognition'. That's just how the place worked. Pushing the thought to the back of their minds and joining the other unanswered questions, the team heads into the now-empty throne room.

Ignoring the obvious kneeling legs at the entrance and the obvious breasts from the ceiling, the team rushed towards the treasure room, finding the desire had taken form. A floating giant crown with heart-like jewels around the base.

"So this is the treasure? I guess it's obvious it would be a crown. It's even based on the crown that the Queen of England wore at her coronation. Only a lot more gaudy." Queen points out. While she and Haru already knew it was a crown, they never saw what type of crown it was.

"But how do we get it out? It's WAY too big to carry for one of us." Outlaw asks, taken aback by the size of the crown.

"We'll all have to carry it." Joker replies before a joyous purr from Mona draws all eyes to the non-cat. Mona's eyes were diluted into two glowing stars as he gazed at the treasure before letting out a loud meow and leaping onto the crown. Rubbing his head against it and purring like mad.

"Erm…is Mona okay?" Spring asks, concerned at Mona's behaviour. The other Thieves sigh at Mona's antics before Noir gently pulls him away.

"Come along, Mona-chan. It's not catnip." She says sweetly, snapping Mona from his funk.

"Right. Sorry about that." Mona apologises, coming back to his senses. "Anyway, let's get a move on and get this out of here."

"Right. Everyone grab hold of it." Joker informs, walking to the crown with Queen right behind him. With each member, barring Mona, of course, grabbing a hold of the crown the team slowly begin heading back to the safe room. Despite the weight, the Thieves were moving at a decent pace.

Until they reached halfway through the Throne Room.

"Go, go! Let's go, Ka-mo-shida!" A pair of voices echoes from above, briefly startling the team. But for Joker, Skull, Panther and Mona, they knew what was about to happen.

"Everyone move!" Joker calls, leaping away from the crown. The rest of the team quickly followed suit right before several Volleyballs slammed into where they were just standing. Then, Shadow-Kamoshida leaps over the crown, landing in front of the throne before willing the crown into his hand, shrinking it to a normal size.

He holds it triumphantly as the cognitions of Shiho and Ann wrap themselves around him.

"I won't let anyone take this!" He declares defiantly. "This proves that I am the king of this castle—it is the core of my world!"

"That's how he sees us, right Panther?" Spring asks with anger in her words. Panther silently nods in reply, her own eyes hard.

"I knew you would be here. Making it all the more easy to find you. And now I'll dispose of you right here, right now."

"I believe that is our line, Kamoshida." Noir replies, axe resting on her shoulder.

"What a selfish misunderstanding."

"Misunderstanding? How is it misunderstanding!? You abuse us! Take advantage of us! Treat us as slaves! What gives you the right to call it a misunderstanding!?" Outlaw shouts.

"It's simple. The people around me kept the whole thing a secret. Adults who want to share in my accomplishments, students who have the drive to become winners… They are willing to protect me so that all may profit from it. Even the principal."

"Principal Kobayakawa? He knew about everything you were doing?" Spring asks, hands tightening. This wasn't known to Joker and the others, but they knew how Spring and Outlaw felt at hearing the truth.

"Of course he did. Unlike all the imbeciles who don't understand, HE does! So he willingly dusts everything under the rug to keep me here. He gave me the keys to my very own castle! Imbeciles like you should just get on your knees and take it! Just like that teacher who tried to stop me."

"Teacher? You mean Kawakami-sensei?" Queen angrily asks.

"Yes! Her! She just had to step in just as I was about to get it on with a member of the club. A shame she got away, but she won't dare to speak up against me. As for the teacher who tried to stop me, well…" If the grin on his face could get any larger, he could give Igor a run for his yen.

"You sick bastard!" Skull yells, swinging his pipe into the floor and cracking it. "Don't you dare think you're getting away with this, you asshole!"

"We're taking your heart, whether you like it or not, demon." Joker calmly speaks, but on the inside, he is fuming. Just like how Sojiro became like a dad to him, Kawakami had become like a mom to him and the Thieves. To hear that Kamoshida did THIS to her… He could even feel Arsène and the other personae inside him feeling the same rage he and the other were feeling.

"That's right, I am a demon." Shadow-Kamoshida replies, a deranged gleeful smile on his face as shadows envelop both him and the cognitions. " A DEMON WHO RULES THIS WORLD!" In an instant, the shadows consume Shadow Kamoshida as he begins to grow at a rapid rate. The crown sat on his head, nestled between two ram horns, covered in messy sweat-encrusted hair as two more arms emerged from his back, each one holding a different item. A fork, a knife, a baton and a wine glass. A golden trophy, filled with only the lower half of female bodies, sat in front of the now-sitting monstrosity, the robe reaching down his back like a waterfall.

His face how had wide, chameleon-like, bloodshot eyes, while his wide gaping mouth had a long and saliva-covered purple tongue. Matching the now pink skin of Kamoshida.

"What the hell?" Outlaw asks as Suguru 'Asmodeus' Kamoshida laughs down at them, saliva flying out of his mouth and landing around the Thieves. On each side of Kamoshida, chained slaves tied to giant golden balls stood by.

"I'm allowed to do, whatever the hell I want! Students, teachers, it doesn't matter who!"

"And that ends today, Kamoshida!" Ren calls out, summoning Arsène to his side. "Eiga!" The blast of darkness flies towards Kamoshida, smacking him right in the face.

"ARGH! You brat, that actually hurt! Good thing I have these!" Kamoshida drives his fork into the trophy, using his knife to cut into one of the torsos.

"No you don't! Hecate! Agilao!" Kamoshida's hand holding the fork was instantly engulfed in fire, forcing the abomination to drop the fork in surprise. With an angry growl, he whacks his baton against the ground, ordering his slaves to launch a barrage of volleyballs at the Thieves. Only for Mona to block them with a gust of Magaru from Mercurius.

He orders the slaves to attack again, only for a blast of thunder from Skull and a surge of energy from Queen annihilates the cognitions. Then, a gunshot rang out, followed by a ping as a bullet ricocheted off the golden trophy. Courtesy of Outlaw.

"Hey! Stop that! You don't know how much this is worth, you stupid brats! Don't do it anymore, alright!? I've warned you!"

"Don't you know, Kamoshida? When someone says to stop…" Outlaw begins as he summons Drifter behind him.

"…it makes us want to keep on doing it!" Spring finishes as Kore materialises behind her. "Kore! Kouha!"

"Drifter! Dream Needle!" The two attacks of the personas strike the golden trophy, shattering its base and spilling the contents over the floor, legs sprawling around before vanishing into black smoke.

"NOOOO! That trophy… That was from when I won the nationals!" Kamoshida cries in sorrow before finding himself surrounded by the Thieves, guns raised. "You meddlesome brats! You think you can get away with this!? Don't you realise who I am!?"

"So? We don't give a damn about who you are. You're just a pathetic nobody." Joker replies cooly.

"We thought you were someone who was untouchable. But now? You're just a giant kid throwing a tantrum." Outlaw adds.

"We've let you control our lives for long enough. We're taking back our future with our own hands, free of yours." Spring adds on.

"You've ruined so many lives, all for your own perverted ideals. We're bringing your empire down and salting what remains." Queen speaks evenly.

"You're no condescending hotshot, Kamo-dick-head. Just some pathetic loser who doesn't know when to call it quits." Skull says, shotgun aimed right at Kamoshida's right eye.

"We're avenging Kawakami-sensei. Surrender, or we will not hold back." Noir speaks, grenade launcher aimed at Kamoshida's midsection.

"We're taking your heart, no matter what! So make it easy yourself and hand over that crown!" Panther shouts, gun pointed at Kamoshida's left eye. But Kamoshida growls in anger, refusing to back down.

"SILENCE! I won't let you have this!"

"We gave you the chance to end this, but you just threw it away. In that case, we're not holding back anymore!" Mona shouts as Joker snaps his fingers. As one, the Thieves flip back before jumping into the air and launching an All-Out Attack on Kamoshida.

The attack snaps his baton in two, knocking the knife out of his hand and smashing the glass in his other, sending shards into his face. But even after that, he was still standing.

"FINE THEN! You punks have asked for it! Time for me to unleash my ultimate attack, back from when I was in my prime! My Ultimate Kill Shot!"

"Over here, Lord Kamoshida! We've brought your ball!" The cognitions of Ann and Shiho call out, holding a Volleyball in their hands.

"Ahhh, very good, Suzui and Takamaki. Now be good girls and throw it over here!" Kamoshida smiles, or at least tries to with the mouth he has, as the cognitions as they ready to throw the ball.

"Noir, remember what we planned?" Joker asks, hand on his mask.

"Of course, Joker." Noir replies, hand reaching for her own as she smiles deceivingly cutely. At that moment, the cognitions toss the ball into the air, with Kamoshida jumping after it. The ball seemed to inflate as it flew before Kamoshida slammed his hand down in a powerful spike. The Thieves brace for the incoming attack as the volleyball dives towards them, blazing on fire.

"Astarte! Psio!" The volleyball is frozen in place, held tightly by Noir's persona as the flames are extinguished. Kamoshida gawks at seeing his attack stopped so easily as the Thieves turn to him with smirks of their own. With a powerful thrust of her mind, Noir sends the volleyball back towards Kamoshida. Smacking him directly in the middle of his face and knocking the crow right off his head.

The cognitions, watching from the balcony, disappear with terrified screams as Kamoshida warps back into his human form. The crown shrinks back to its normal size. As the Thieves move to pick the crown up, Kamoshida grabs it and runs for a nearby window. Only to pause in fear as he realises the balcony he was on was far too high to jump from.

With the Thieves cornering him from behind.

"What's wrong? Not running?" Panther taunts, enjoying seeing Kamoshida cower again.

"Why don't you run? Aren't you a great athlete?" Spring adds, a hand on her hip. Panther holds back a chuckle at hearing her. It was the same words she said the first time, after all.

"It's always been like this… all those goddamn hyenas forcing their expectations on me! I'm doing all of this for them! What's wrong with demanding a reward for that!?" A gunshot rings out as a bullet zips past Kamoshida's cheek.

"Now you are pushing the blame onto other people? Just how low can you go?" Outlaw asks, lowering his smoking rifle. Kamoshida stays silent as he continues to glare over the edge, looking down at the city below him.

"Are you scared, Kamoshida? Right now, you are seeing a view that many people see when they feel they have no choice left in their lives. What will you choose, I wonder?" Noir questions.

"Will you jump? Or will you surrender your heart and change." Queen asks while folding her arms.

"You want this right? Then take it." Kamoshida acquests, rolling the crown over to Joker. "Go ahead and finish me. With me gone, my other self will pass away. It was you want, right?"

"No." Spring says, turning around to face her back to him. "We want you to face your crimes. You can't do that if you are dead."

"And not only that." Joker chimes in, picking the crown up. "We do not kill. We refuse to fall down to your level." The Thieves nod at Joker's words in unanimous agreement. Shadow-Kamoshida looks at them, defeat plastered over his face as he sits on his knees.

"I've lost…You're through when you lose. Kobayakawa won't protect me. My backer, the one who got me here, will cut me off. What am I— What am I supposed to do now?"

"It's simple, asshole. Atone for your sins. Tell everyone, with your own mouth, the crimes you have committed. Leave nothing unsaid." Skull decrees. Outlaw and Spring refuse to look at Kamoshida, denying the fallen king any chance to gauge their reactions. As Shadow-Kamoshida begins to glow, he nods his head with tears falling down his face.

"All right… I will return to my other self… I'll make certain that I…" Before he finishes his words, he vanishes into particles of light. The team sighs in great relief, with the king finally defeated.

Until the veterans remembered a slight problem when it came to defeating Palace Rulers.

"We need to go now!" Queen yells before the castle is rocked by an earthquake, almost sending everyone to the ground.

"What's going on!?" Spring calls out as parts of the ceiling fall around them.

"Kamoshida's shadow has returned to himself! And without the Ruler, the Palace is falling apart!" Mona informs the two before sprinting to the throne room entrance. "We need to leave now!" Mona's words reverberated through the crumbling room as more rubble fell from above.

Not wanting to argue, the Thieves begin to run through the tight corridors of the Palace. The Shadow Knights still inside, trying and falling to keep the castle from falling as they are crushed by the debris. At one point, Spring and Skull start to lag behind as their knee and leg injuries start to play up, with Outlaw and Panther helping them along as support.

Mona even changes back into his cat form as he grasps Joker's shoulder as the Thieves near the exit before Queen presses the Nav on her phone. Sending them back to reality.

Unaware of small orbs of light leaving the castle. One of them settling into Outlaw.

With gaping breaths, the Thieves take a moment to breathe as they stand in the alleyway near Shujin, hidden from sight. Mishima with a hand on his head, while Shiho had both hands on her knees. "Did it work?" She asks between breaths to the others. Ann pulls out her phone and opens the Nav, smiling at the response she received.

The destination has been deleted.

"Deleted? Then that means?"

"Yeah, it does. We did it." Ann confirms, putting her phone back into her pocket. "Now, all we got to do is wait."

"For real... I need to start working out again. My leg is all cramped up." Ryuji moans as he stretches his leg. Shiho copies him as she massages her knee.

"Are you okay, Mishima-kun? Did you hurt your head?" Haru suddenly asks, alerting the team to Mishima. He was looking at the ground, hand clutching his head, before rising to meet the gaze of the others. Shocking them, a tear ran down from his eye as he looked at Ren and the others with recognition in his eyes.

"I…I remember. Everything…"

In a small room in a hospital, Kawakami sleeps peacefully in bed. Her face was bruised as her right eye held the remains of a black eye. She had been asleep since yesterday, unresponsive, apart from her breathing. The doctors had connected her to a drip to keep her alive until she awoke.

From the window, invisible to all, a small orb of light gently passes through before settling into Kawakami. A few seconds later, Kawakami stirs as she awakens from her slumber.

"Where…am I?" She asks, sitting up. "I remember following Kamoshida to his office with that student before… Wait, Kamoshida?" She looks around as she becomes more alert, eyes falling on the calendar as she reads the date aloud. "April 14th? That can't be right…" She catches a look at herself in a mirror, wincing at the marks on her face before leaning back into the bed.

"What have you done now, Ren?"

Yaldabaoth hums in satisfaction as he could feel one of the escapees returning to his embrace. He chuckles to himself at how his pawn, under the guise of 'Changing Hearts', was actually sending those who had escaped his pull back into his embrace.

Now, who was to be the next target?

He had so many to choose from. The artist. The mob leader. The president. So many targets and yet so little time.

But there was one Palace that had his attention.

The daughter of his other pawn's first victim. He could feel it. Her palace was slowly vanishing, transforming into a persona. This could not stand.

Sending a wave through his veins, he aims his influence on her Palace. It was strange. As though two hearts occupied the same space. Not that it mattered to him. So long as she was returned to his embrace, he couldn't care less as to what happened.

Yaldabaoth chuckles to himself as he sends a wave of energy to this Palace. He could not wait to see the result.