Chapter 14: The King of Lust…

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Akira•

"Okay, ready to ambush it?"

"Ready!" Waiting for the Guard to turn around, he and Skull burst forward and quickly attacked, Skull tripping it as he ripped its mask from its face. When the resulting ooze vanished from the battlefield the Shadow's forms were revealed, causing him and Skull to freeze.

The Shadow's form was a human woman, though she had sharp ears and black and red bat wings upon her back, with a spaded tail emerging from her tailbone. She wore a skintight black leotard, thigh-highs, and gloves going up to her biceps. Her piercing blue eyes peered at them, and Skull quickly turned towards him. "Recruit her."

"Hell yeah."

"Could you two stop staring at their boobs and fight?!"

"Ah, right, Panther!"

"Cait Sith!"

"Lea this tae me, Master!" With a wave of his sword, Sith launched an Agi fireball towards the Shadows, both of which dodged to the side.

"Oh my, how forward!" One of the women giggled and blew a kiss at him, eyes flashing pink. "Why don't you put down your weapon and listen to what I say? Maybe I'll let you do whatever you like afterward…" He listened to his instincts and looked away from her eyes, but Skull wasn't as quick and he quickly went rigid, a pink outline surrounding him.

"Skull, whatever you're thinking—"

The Shadow smirked, folding her arms beneath her breasts. "Attack your friend, there!"

"Ragh!" He grimaced and ducked beneath a swing from Skull's mace, rolling to the side.

"Panther, Mona, take care of the Shadows! Skull, calm down!" Luckily, the brainwashed Skull either didn't think to summon Captain Kidd to attack him or just couldn't while being controlled. He deflected another strike with the side of his knife, wincing as Skull's superior strength caused his arms to shake from the impact. But, where Skull was stronger, he was faster.

He dodged attack after attack, before dashing forward and shoulder-tackling Skull, causing the boy to stumble for a brief moment before he elbowed his friend in the mouth. When his head shot back he kicked Skull in the stomach and tossed him onto his back. "Have you snapped out of it yet?"

"Ugh… agh!"

Young one, I have a skill that should be useful to aid your friend. Do you wish me to use it?

"Of course I… Shit, how did I forget about that skill!? Saki Mitama! Energy Drop!" He summoned forth the golden teardrop, who smiled serenely at Skull.

"Do not fear, young one." A droplet of pure light appeared over Skull and splashed on his face, causing the pink aura to vanish.

"Skull, get your ass up!" He pulled Skull to his feet, who stumbled for a moment. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah… man, that felt weird! Whatever, let's do this!" They turned back to the Shadows, to find that one had been incinerated into ash, while the other was desperately dodging Mona's Garu attacks. He grinned and nodded at Skull, letting him get his revenge.

"Yo, you Shadow asshole!" The Shadow turned towards Skull in shock, before he smashed his mace into her stomach. She flew back and bounced along the ground, trying to fly back into the air by fluttering her wings, until one last Garu knocked her to the ground.

She looked up to find herself surrounded, with three guns and a slingshot pointing at her. "U-Uh… H-How can I help you?"

"Now that is a very good question." He smirked and knelt down still pointing his gun at her, keeping the barrel directly in her face. "See, my team and I do whatever we desire, and our desire right now is to take down the King reigning over this place. What do you desire?"

"E-Eh? Well, I guess the same goes for me too… I just like doing whatever I feel like doing. You're kinda like me, aren't you?"

"Is that so? Then why not team up? We could use someone like you on our team," he finished with a wink.

"Oh?" She smirked back at him, reaching out to poke his cheek. "Well well, perhaps I will. Someone as charming as me might be fun to work wi… Hey, I can remember now!" He stood up and twirled his gun as the Shadow flapped her wings and flew into the air. "I am no Shadow serving under some dumb King… I'm Succubus! And I exist within the Sea of Humanity's Souls… and now yours as well, cutie!" She kissed him on the cheek and gave a flirtatious wink, before transforming into a mask and entering his mind.

He turned to his teammates and saw Panther holding her hands on her hips as she raised an eyebrow at him, and Skull grinning. "Really?"

"Hey, I'm not apologizing for anything. I've got a Succubus living in my head now."

"Weren't you complaining about Incubus filling your head with dirty thoughts?" Mona asked drily. "Succubus is probably going to do the exact same thing."

"Yeah, but she's sexy." Panther face-palmed and Skull raised his hand to high-five him, which he gladly accepted. "Now come on, let's keep exploring. You can tease me about this when we exit the Metaverse, we all know how embarrassed I'm going to be when we're back in the real world."

Having such a strong-willed Master is fun, but seeing you embarrassed will be very cute, Succubus giggled in his head.

If thou shalt be flirting with thy Personas, leave me out of it.

Blegh, Mister Joker wouldn't flirt with you, Mister Arsène, that'd be, like, really weird.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Pixie." He rolled his eyes, looking back towards the elevator. There was a small headache forming in the back of his head, his stock of Personas nearly overflowing with the addition of Succubus. Should he fuse some away? Pixie was fun to talk to with how energetic she was, but he really only kept her for her Zio and Dia skills, and he hadn't used her for some time… she had gained Tarukaja and the ability to resist confusion when they had trained during the morning, but even then those skills could be transferred to another Persona.

It's fine if you want to fuse me away, Mister Joker! After all, I'm just another part of you, and always will be!

The same goes for me, of course. I am nearing the limits of mine current power, and it would be much more beneficial for thou to fuse me away. Perhaps one day thou wilt be able to regain me and strengthen me further.

He nodded slowly, before looking ahead. After they reached the next Safe Room, he'd backtrack and fuse away some Personas. Make room in his stock while creating more powerful ones. With a plan in place, he waved his team forward.

Ω • Ω • Ω

"Trickster… Welcome back to my Velvet Room."

"Hey, Igor. Twins."

"Speak with more respect, inmate!"

"I'll speak with more respect when you're taller than my waist, shortie." Caroline gasped and began slamming her baton into his cell bars while screaming angrily, as Justine stared at her emotionlessly. Though, he thought he could see a flicker of amusement in her eyes. "Anyway, I'm here to do some fusing."

"Of course." Justine handed him her clipboard, and he began swiping. He made sure to take his time, thinking over what would be best. Eventually, he settled for fusing together Arsène and Pixie, as they would create an Agathion, a Persona with a defensive ability that he could give Arsène's Eiha, Sukunda, and Dream Needle, plus Pixie's Tarukaja and Dia.

Nodding at his final selection he looked up, expecting to see the Velvet Room having transformed, Igor and his desk gone and the guillotines in their place, but instead he faced a slightly different sight. While the execution devices were certainly there, Arsène floated before the bars with an arm behind his back and the other stroking a non-existent chin. He knew the thief was smirking at him, as Justine and Caroline stared at the Persona with him.

"Arsène. Any last words before that over-sized tophat gets lobbed off your head?"

Demonic chuckles came from his true self, the Persona shaking his head. "Come now, is that a way to bid thy farewells to thy other self?" Arsène eyed him, the red flames calmly flickering from his mask regarding him with amusement. "In any case… Thou knoweth that I am thy true self. Even when forgotten, I shalt always remain by thy side."

He smiled, nodding. In truth, he had grown used to the thief's voice within his mind. He was a comforting presence, and always spoke what he dared not think but still felt.

"Worry not, even when gone my voice shalt remain to comfort thee. And we shall certainly meet again, even if you never return me… when thine fate reaches its end." He raised an eyebrow, but Arsène simply began laughing, prompting Justine and Caroline to grab him and drag him towards the guillotines. When the blades rose Arsène stood tall and proud, even as Pixie floated nervously next to him, until the twins threw the blue cloths over them and stuffed them into the death traps.

After the execution, he gained Agathion, but even when boosted by the Chariot Arcana Boost, he was still weaker than his other Personas. However, by combining him with Silky he was able to create Berith, the Savage Enemy that he hadn't managed to recruit yet. It wasn't that he was too weak to hold it, but that he didn't want to risk the negotiations failing and having the Shadow injure one of them greatly in the ensuing fight. So, after a beheading that he was getting eerily used to, Agathion and Silky had combined into the fearsome horseman Berith, Great Duke of Hell, and twenty-eighth demon of the Ars Goetia.

He grinned as the Persona manifested before his cell, the horse he sat upon nickering quietly as the knight looked at him through its helmet. "Thou thinketh thou art mine new master? Thy worth and strength are not to mine satisfaction." He blinked in surprise at the Persona's words, before remembering that in the legends, Berith would answer truthfully to any question, but if you weren't asking a question, Berith would always lie.

"Then I guess we're done here?"

Berith tilted his head in what he thought was amusement. "Indeed, I thank thee for choosing me as thy new servant, Sire."

With a flash of light, the knight vanished into his mind, and he shook his head. He would need to get used to one of his Personas constantly lying if he didn't remember to question them. With that, he turned and exited the Velvet Room, mentally sorting through his Persona.

Upon his exit, the Personas in his head immediately began conversing. Welcome to our cute little Master's mind, Berith, he heard Succubus coo. How are you finding the amenities?

Mine Sire's mind is an interesting place. What is this… television device that Cait Sith is using?

Tis a fin wee device that th' modern age haes granted us! sit doon 'n' jyne me, laddie!

It does not seem enjoyable at all. Why would I want to join thee knaves in such frivolousness? Of course, since he was lying he heard Berith dismount from his horse and join Cait Sith in watching… wait were they actually watching television in his head? They weren't joking about that?

Yes, Master. What else we do when you not use us for fighting?

"I…" He stared at nothing, trying to formulate some response to that.

What channels could they even get in there?

Ω • Ω • Ω

The upper levels of the tower got even more grueling the farther they got. Dodging brainwashing attacks from succubuses while at the same time avoiding the attacks from Savage Enemies proved to be a challenge, and even worse was when someone did end up brainwashed and they had to snap them out of it.

Of course, there weren't just Succubuses. Some had Incubuses accompanying them, which made things even worse considering their ability to suck the life force from any brainwashed teammates, who would let it happen happily. They managed to battle past more shifting floors and perverse statues, more unique enemies appearing to stop them as they went.

One type was the Heavenly Punisher, like the one they had fought within the chapel. Luckily, the one they had fought there seemed to have been uniquely strong, as the Heavenly Punishers within the Tower couldn't kill any of them with a stray attack. However, they now had the ability to blast the battlefield with a holy attack, which made him thankful that he'd fused away Arsène just beforehand.

After ascending another staircase and finding a hallway blocked by rising pillars they turned to a metal walkway, only for a massive swinging ax to nearly cut him in half. He yelped as he jumped back, Skull and Panther steadying him as they also looked at the axes with dread. "I don't think that even I could parkour my way through this…"

"Look, a statue!" Mona walked over to a statue of Kamoshida, similar to the one that had been in the dungeon, and lowered the bridge there. However, when Mona pulled on its jaw, nothing happened. "Of course, I didn't think it would be that easy…"

"Well, what's the problem? Why ain't it workin'?"

"Look," he pointed at the statue's eyes. "The eyeholes are empty."

"You mean we need to go looking for Kamoshida's eyeballs?" Panther questioned with a disturbed grimace.

"Yes, but where could they be?"

"It's likely that an enemy is holding them. A strong one, specifically."

"Yeah, that would make the most sense…"

"What, like one of the Shadows? How many d'ya think are just wanderin' around here?!"

"Did you seriously forget that Joker has a magic eye?"

"Psychic," he corrected. They began descending the stairs back down, finding even more enemies waiting for them. "...Where did they come from?"

"No idea, but we'll need to sneak past, or eliminate them quickly."

"Well, I'm ready to kick some ass!"

He chuckled and crept forward, before leaping onto a pillar and down onto the Shadow, ripping off its mask and rolling across the floor. "I'll reveal your true form!" The forms of the enemy were quickly revealed, as another set of scantily clad women, thanks to Kamoshida's perverted mind.

They were pale-skinned women wearing leather strips that only covered their groin, breasts, and stomach, connected to a choker and chain, with another band of leather covering their eyes with a symbol of a large eyeball on it. Her most striking feature was the large white angelic wings sprouting from their backs, which they flapped slowly and delicately.

"Man, why's this place filled with hot chicks?!"

"Stop lusting over the Shadows and fight," he called while running forward and slashing at one of the Zealous Messengers.

Panther scoffed as she dodged an attack, rolling to her feet as she pulled out her submachine gun. "It's funny you should say that, considering you recruited Succubus just because she was hot too." She unloaded, sending bullets flying and causing one of the Messengers to cry out as she was sent tumbling to the ground.

She has a point, Master, Succubus giggled.

"Oh, whatever. Cait Sith, Cleave!"

"Taste mah blade!" The Messenger cried out as Sith's sword sliced through her stomach, before Skull summoned Captain Kidd and had the pirate side-swipe her, sending her to the ground as well.

"All-Out Attack!"

"Alright, time for some pain!" Skull jumped into the fray, with the rest of the team following suit. Black blood spurted out of the Shadow's wounds, one of the women dying and turning to dust and the other panicking slightly. She tried to retreat, but because Panther summoned Carmen and commanded her to launch a fireball to cut off her escape route, she was stopped in her tracks.

"A-Ah… you would dare strike down one of heaven's messengers?"

"If it was to stand up for my own ideals, I would be glad to bind myself to the pits of hell," he shot back. "And can you truly call yourself a messenger of heaven when you kneel to a monster who is a slave to his own lust?"

The woman was silent, staring at him from behind her mask. Or perhaps her eyes were closed. "What you say may be true… But you are a sinner as well, are you not? You are thieves, slaves to your greed."

"I admit that thievery is exciting, however, we don't steal for ourselves, or at least, not fully. We are exposing Kamoshida's sins, and are not slaves to our own. Who would you rather follow? A monstrous sinner, or a heroic sinner?"

"..." The woman nodded, sitting up. "Very well, your words have struck a chord within my heart, and… yes, I remember now." She flew into the air, calmly flapping her wings. "I am no Shadow, serving a sinful King, I am Angel! Come, let us raise the flag of justice together."

He absorbed her into his mind and grinned as he motioned the team forward. "Come on, let's find those eyeballs."

"Ew."

Ω • Ω • Ω

Finding them hadn't been easy, but it hadn't been especially difficult either. Finding the specific enemies holding the keys they were searching for was easy with his Third Eye, but unfortunately, the enemies were cloaked in gold through his special sight, so he couldn't tell whether they were higher threats than the normal or even Savage Enemies.

The Shadows holding the eyes were the same type of Shadow they'd had to fight when Skull had Awakened to Captain Kidd, a Shadow riding upon a massive horse that stood several heads taller than Berith. They had been interesting battles, as he mainly used Berith for them to make it a battle between knights as he and the team provided backup for Berith, but they finally had the disgusting eyes and could progress.

After retracing their steps back to the swinging axes and statue, and battling their way through more Angels and Succubuses, he finally inserted the stone orbs and heard a distinct 'click.'

They began glowing, and he let out a sneer at the disgusting statue's leer, grabbing its mouth and pulling to shut off the axes. My oh my, what a delightful look this statue has.

Of course you would think so. Even when aiding Starr, you have the disgusting urges of a devil.

I am a Succubus, darling. It's practically my job to have such urges, she purred back to Angel.

Awright laddie, mynd breaking thae twa up? huvin thaim rammy lik' this certainly cannae be that entertaining.

'It certainly isn't. Angel, Succubus, break it up.'

As you wish.

Are you gonna punish us if we don't?

'I'll toss you in the guillotine.'

Kinky.

He groaned, turning to the pathway that had been blocked, and leading the team through it. Finally finding the next staircase up, they began climbing, and when they slipped through another doorway, they had finally reached the throne room. Or, they were right outside the throne room, according to the map.

"Come on, let's bust 'em down and grab the treasure!"

"You idiot!" Mona stopped Skull before he could attempt to kick the doors down, shaking his head. "We can't just bust down the front door! Haven't you learned anything?! Kamoshida's probably in there with his best guards!"

"While I wouldn't put it as rudely," he interrupted, "I do agree. Let's go in through the side." He pointed up at a statue, that if they climbed would let them get up to a balcony overlooking the throne room. Skull coughed when he realized he would need to grab the statue's butt to climb up, while he just smirked and motioned forward. "Well?"

"Uh, yeah, let me, just, uh…"

"Oh for the love of god, Skull, just climb the thing!" Skull yelped slightly at Panther's admonishment and leaped up the statue. He followed along, with Mona and Panther behind him, and at the top, they were able to enter the throne room and look down at the guards surrounding Kamoshida and his throne.

"Look at all those soldiers…"

"That damn bastard, I just wanna kick his ass, right here and right now!"

He hushed them, peeking over the railing and narrowing his eyes. "Let's see here…" This was the first time that he had seen Kamoshida's Shadow in person since gaining his Third Eye, and he was interested in exactly how powerful the Shadow was. When the world became muted in blacks and grays, the Shadows below lit up with bright red signatures, and Kamoshida's was similarly bright… It seemed there was some bite behind his bark.

We've told you multiple times, Master, we served Kamoshida for a reason, Succubus giggled.

The wench is incorrect. The knave I refused to call king is as weak as a novice knight, sire. He nodded at Berith's lie and motioned his team forward.

Sae laddie, whit's th' plan wi' Kamoshida?

'Hopefully, we can just grab the Treasure and go. But of course, it's never that simple.'

Young one, I understand it is best to be pragmatic and realistic, but staying positive never hurts.

Indeed. The Lord will watch over you, as long as you have a messenger of heaven by your side, you will never falter.

Oh come now, babe, we all know Master only keeps you around because you're a sexy Angel.

Oh goddamnit, he was not having another argument between the two humanoid women. 'Alright, I'm cutting this off here. Shut up, everyone.'

Tis thy fault for not seeing the problem of housing an angel and devil within thine mind simultaneously, Trickster. Arsène's words and chuckles were quiet, and he spoke much more rarely than he usually did after he had been fused away, as Arsène had told him would happen. He supposed that even with his other self not having a 'physical' form within his mind, Arsène being his true self allowed him to have a voice, even if it was weakened.

Sneaking around to the back of the throne room, they were greeted by a regal door, and after cracking it open, they finally reached the treasure room, both the under case and capitalized version. A second doorway was just within the first, and Skull grinned as he cracked his knuckles. "Now that looks promisin'! C'mon, Joker, help me open it!"

He joined Skull in slamming their shoulders into the doors, grunting as they slowly opened. After being shoved aside, Panther gasped and Mona ran into the room, prompting him and Skull to follow in confusion at what had gotten them so excited. Immediately, Skull's jaw dropped and he looked around in astonishment. "Whoa, holy shit!"

The room was filled to the brim with golden coins, several barrels bursting with them, and several shining trophies were sitting in the sea of coins. "Now that's what I call a treasure room."

Many gold in this room, Master…

Such frivolity is of no use to knights such as us, Sire.

Oh, so that means you're interested in so much money, would that be correct, dear? The knight simply chuckled and nodded in answer to Saki Mitama.

"Yeah, the Treasure's gotta be here!"

"Hey, uh, what's this weird cloud thing?"

He looked up at what Panther was indicating, and observed an odd gassy… thing, just hanging in midair. It seemed to be colored a milky white and glowed dully every few seconds. "Hehehe…" Mona jumped onto a trophy and giggled as he rubbed his paws together. "That's the Treasure! We've finally found it!"

He raised an eyebrow as he lazily waved his hand through the cloud. "How exactly are we supposed to get this thing out of here? It's intangible."

"Don't worry, I was going to tell you more once we'd gotten here." Mona cleared his throat, before placing his hands on his hips. "Treasures are never truly manifested within a Palace, as they have no physical forms. They're feelings, after all."

"Can't you say the same about Palaces?"

"Hush. So, we'll need to let the real person know that their desires are, in fact, a Treasure. Once they're conscious that their desires might be stolen, the Treasure will finally show itself."

"But how do we do that?"

"We warn them. Tell them, 'we're going to steal your heart."

"Wait, so we're sendin' a callin' card? Badass, that's totally what a phantom thief would do!"

"And once we've done that, the Treasure will appear! I think."

"You think?"

"No, it'll definitely work!"

Skull groaned at Mona's uncertainty, before grinning again. "Either way, sounds like it's worth givin' it a shot!"

"I suppose," he sighed.

"Well, our Infiltration Route has been secured! All that's left now is to pump out a calling card, have Kamoshida see it, then return and nab the Treasure!"

Panther sighed, looking up at the cloud. "This is it, huh…"

"Let's do this. For Shiho. The track team. For imprisoning you. And for being a fucking asshole to me." The team looked at him and nodded, before laughing as he spoke the last line.

"Yeah!"

"Remember, once we send that calling card, there'll be no turning back. If you want to search the castle top to bottom for more treasure chests or train some more before we send the card, now's the time."

He tapped his finger against his arm and nodded. "Alright. Let's train as much as we can for the rest of the day. We'll rest afterward, I'll buy more medicine and better weapons, then convene at the hideout and discuss the calling card." Nodding at his plan, they quickly began sneaking out, careful to attract no attention and spent the remainder of the day in battle.

Ω • Ω • Ω

Upon returning to Leblanc, he nodded at Sojiro, walked up to his room, and collapsed onto his bed. Master very tired, Slime chuckled seeing his state.

Of course he is. He worked very hard and deserves a good rest.

"Thanks, Mitama…" He yawned and turned over, Morgana hopping out of his bag and to his side.

"Ugh, I'm pooped…"

"How do you think I feel? I'm the one that has to spend way more energy to hit Ice, Holy and Curse weaknesses…"

"Well, I'm the one who's always healing everyone! Especially with my new Media skill!"

Berith huffed inside his head. Thy animal companion was certainly much more useful than mine blade.

Pride is yet another of the deadly sins that you and your companions suffer from, Starr.

'I'll fuse you with Succubus, I know neither of you wants that.' Arsène chuckled softly as Angel huffed, and Morgana clawed at his arm.

"Would you stop ignoring me!"

"Why should I? You're annoying." He smirked as Morgana yowled angrily at him before he was distracted by his phone buzzing. He grabbed it and looked at the screen, to find Ryuji texting the chat room.

Chat Room: Akira, Ryuji, Ann

Ryuji— U back home yet?

Ryuji— I'm pooped

Ryuji— It hit me like a damn ton o bricks when i sat doen

Ryuji— Down

"Ugh, it's just Ryuji." He snorted at Morgana's disdain.

Ann— We did walk pretty far in. And spent all day fighting too.

Ann— But at least we found the Treasure thing though!

"Oh, Lady Ann!" He rolled his eyes and began typing even as Ryuji sent a response.

Ryuji— So stealin it will turn Kamoshita into a good guy

Ryuji— Sounds way 2 good 2 b tru

You— In any case, we still have to ready the calling card.

Ann— Call us over to the hideout whenever you're ready to go, then!

Ryuji— Yea were ready 2 go!

He closed the app and lay back, throwing an arm over his face as Morgana hopped up onto his stomach. "The real challenge is coming up. I hope you're ready…"

Ω • Ω • Ω

4/25, Monday

DEADLINE: MAY 2ND

DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 7

Steal Kamoshida's heart.

He slowed to a stop, breathing heavily and unzipping his gym jacket as he did to fan himself off. Oh my, what a nice view!

Cease your sinful acts, Succubus, and curb your lust! That is our master, is he not?

He certainly isn't complaining, right, Berith, honey?

I take no sides in this, though sire does seem to take some enjoyment from it.

'Alright, all of you, quiet.' He shook his head and turned to Ryuji, who had also finished running. "Holding up alright?"

"Ah… yeah, just… man. I wanna move better, but I can't! Damnit… I was trainin' for nationals back in the day, but now I totally suck balls…"

"Back off, then, I'm only interested in girls. You're getting nowhere near my balls."

"I hate you, man." Even so, Ryuji laughed and slugged him in the shoulder. He grinned back and stretched, groaning as he did so.

"Let's take a five-minute break, then we can—"

Before he could finish, an irritated voice interrupted him, and he turned to see three boys also wearing gym uniforms approaching. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Ryuji looked shocked when he saw them, taking a step back. "Nakaoka… Takeishi…"

"Running, huh?" the boy apparently named Nakaoka asked. "I saw you from the window. What, you gonna try crawling back to the team?"

"E-Eh? H-Hell no…"

Nakaoka leered at him, before shaking his head. "Whatever, it's our spot now."

Takeishi spoke up next, sneering at Ryuji specifically, apparently having forgotten he was there. "We don't even have a locker room thanks to someone I know."

Ryuji winced and said nothing, causing him to frown and step forward. "Now, I don't believe we should be fighting. Was there anything that you actually needed, or are you going to complain to us about using a public space for training?"

The boys turned to him and seemed to be searching for something to say, while Ryuji scuffed the ground with his shoes. "We ain't fightin'..."

Nakaoka scoffed and crossed his arms. "Yeah, this ain't anything like a fight. Not even close." The boy looked at him closer and frowned, leaning in. "Hey, ain't you that transfer student? C'mon, you're really gonna hang out around this loser?"

The third boy, who hadn't been named, scoffed. "You better not hang out around the Track Traitor. He'll deck you the second he gets pissed off. I heard his dad was the same way! Like father like son, am I right? Now that's some scary shit."

"That don't got anythin' to do with this!" Ryuji shot back, stepping forward.

Stop friend, before he starts fight.

He held his arm out in front of his friend and narrowed his eyes at the boys, the glasses hiding his glare likely being the only thing that was preventing the boys from flinching at his gaze. "Calm down, Ryuji. As for the rest of you, I would prefer if you didn't insult my friend in front of my face. Or we will have a problem. Are we clear?"

Everyone was silent, and Ryuji rubbed the back of his head. "Thanks, man." He looked at Nakaoka and sighed. "Look, back then, I…"

"Save it, I don't need to hear your excuses. Everyone was going through the same bullshit with Kamoshida! The beatings, the impossible exercises… but we put up with it, all for the sake of the track team." Nakaoka growled and stepped forward, getting in Ryuji's face. "But no. You had to go and fuck all of that up! Man, I was stupid for ever thinking you cared or were my teammate."

"You…!" Ryuji shook his head. "Really?! I know that… that I screwed it up for the team, but I did it for the right reasons, man! I always cared about the team!" He raised his arms like he was going to shove Nakaoka, and for a moment Nakaoka looked like he was going to fight back, but he stepped in before either boy could do anything, placing his hand on Ryuji's chest and lightly pushing him back.

"Calm. Down." He turned to glare at Nakaoka. "And you. Get out of here, if you don't want an actual fight."

The boy stood there for a moment, before scoffing. "That's all I have to say to you. I'm outta here."

"I almost smacked him when he started talking about my dad, and there at the end when he said I didn't care for the team… I haven't changed at all." He shook his head and glanced at him. "And thanks for stickin' up for me, man, but… I don't want you gettin' into fights for me."

He winced, nodding. "Yes, I may have been a bit antagonistic."

"Still, you did stop it from turnin' into a whole brawl," Ryuji chuckled. He clapped him on the shoulder, grinning. "Thanks, man. I'm glad you were here with me!" They high-fived, laughing, and he smiled, ignoring the crashing chains inside his head.

RANK UP!

Chariot Arcana, Ryuji Sakamoto: Rank Two

"Alright, let's call it a day. We shouldn't wear ourselves out too much."

"Hey Nakaoka, why didn't you kick his ass?!"

"What?!"

"The hell's your problem?!"

He watched as the boys walked away griping at each other, while Ryuji crossed his arms. "Now they're just arguin' with each other." He was silent for a few seconds, before shaking his head. "...I should stay out of it. Well, it was fun trainin' today!"

He chuckled and followed Ryuji towards the locker room to change, stretching himself out. "It was. Especially since we didn't push ourselves to the brink of death this time." Ryuji snickered, and after letting Morgana jump into his bag, riding the train towards Shibuya, and exchanging goodbyes, they went their separate ways for the night.

Ah, two young boys sweating together… Today was wonderful!

He shivered slightly at Succubus' tone and giggles before Angel thankfully smacked her and shut her up. He assumed. All he could hear was the smack.

He seriously needed some way to find out what they were doing inside his head.

Ω • Ω • Ω

4/26, Tuesday

DEADLINE: MAY 2ND

DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 6

Steal Kamoshida's heart.

After returning to Yongen-Jaya and using the laundromat, he spent some time making coffee to drink in the Metaverse and did his homework before passing out.

He nearly overslept for the first time in years, and after rushing to school and not paying attention in any of his classes, he called the team up to the rooftop. Ann and Ryuji got there at about the same time and found him waiting for them, sitting on one of the air conditioners as Morgana lay in his bag on a table. "Thou hast arrived…"

"Uh, I think your Personas are influencin' how you talk, dude." He rolled his eyes and hopped down, leaning against the machine as his teammates sat down on the tables.

Morgana hopped out of his bag and looked around at them seriously, flicking his tail. "Alright, all that's left now is to send the calling card, and take Kamoshida's heart!"

Ryuji frowned and rubbed the back of his head. "Y'know, I've been meanin' ta ask, but couldn't we have just sent that calling card at the beginnin' of all this?"

"Well, it's not really that simple. A Treasure won't stay materialized forever. Once the impression of a card is gone, the Treasure will disappear. The shock of the card will likely last around a day, at most."

"The hell? Man, that's no time at all…"

He pushed his glasses up, murmuring to himself. "So we'll need him to witness the card sometime in the morning, and then carry out the heist in the afternoon. It'll have to be on a school day since we have no idea where he would be on a Sunday…"

"We have to come up with what the calling card is going to say, and we'll need to figure out how to post it somewhere Kamoshida will see, and when no one will see us do it."

"So we'll need to do it incredibly early in the morning, and since no one will be around the school won't even be unlocked. That could pose a problem."

"Ha! Looks like this is where I come in." Morgana smugly lifted his head and smirked at them, waving his paw. "Just leave me in the school overnight, and I can unlock a window or door for you to get in."

"That's our entry secured. Now for the cards themselves. Well, I suppose it'd be fine if they just inform Kamoshdia that we'll be 'stealing his desires' correct?"

"Nah, lemme handle 'em! I know exactly what to write! I've been studyin' up on cards after I heard about 'em!"

Ann looked at him skeptically. "Uh, I'm not sure about letting you handle this one…"

"Come on, I can do this!"

"I'll pitch in, but Ryuji will write most of it. He's been screwed over just as much by Kamoshida, I'd say we can trust him to write this."

"Hell yeah!"

He smiled at the enthusiasm, before steeling his expression. "Alright. Today, Ryuji and I will work on the calling card, and make copies if necessary. Tomorrow, I'll leave Morgana behind after school with some food and water so he doesn't go hungry, and the next morning he'll let in Ryuji to post the cards."

"Man, I'm not looking forward to having to get up so early, but it'll totally be worth it when I see the look on Kamoshida's face!"

"Just make sure you go to bed early. Morgana at least can sleep in my desk. After all, there's no way for him to know when you'll get to the school, meaning he'll need to stay awake all night." The cat drooped, apparently not having thought of that. "Alright. Let's do this."

As Ann left to go home, he took Ryuji to Big Bang Burger, where they sat in a corner booth and took out their notebooks, beginning to write down what exactly would go on the card. "Okay, okay, so how does that look?"

He grabbed Ryuji's notebook and raised an eyebrow. "'We know how shitty you are, and that you put your twisted desires on students that can't fight back. That's why we've decided to steal away your desires, and make you confess!'"

Friend is not good writer…

"Well, it certainly isn't poetic. Ryuji, if someone read this, would they be able to tell it's your style of writing?"

"Huh? I mean, we're gonna cut out magazine stuff and use that to write it out, right?"

"No, I'm not talking about your handwriting, I mean your sentence structure. Could someone tell this is similar to how you write?"

Ryuji rubbed the back of his head as he looked at the notebook. "...I guess?"

"Alright… well, let's change it up slightly. We'll keep the core message the same, of course, but we don't want this to be traced back to us."

"Yeah. Oh, oh, I wanted to add something!" Ryuji grinned and tapped the table. "Remember when you went on that whole rant at Kamoshida after he brought out the fake Ann, right after I had Awakened to Captain Kidd?"

"Yes? What about it?"

"There was something you said there… damn, what was it… Oh yeah! It was something like 'you're a bastard of lust!' I want to use something like that on the card!"

"Well, it would certainly fit, I suppose."

Morgana just sighed from within his bag, shaking his head.

They spent the next few hours perfecting their calling card, before buying several magazines, plus stationery supplies and began creating the card. When they were finished, both boys looked at it with pride. "Aw yeah, this is perfect!"

"Everything's set."

"Not yet! I want to make a bunch of copies of it! I'm gonna make this a sight to see!"

"You mean a sight to remember." He sighed and shook his head. "Alright, if that's how you want to do it. You're the one that's mainly in charge of the card, after all. Here, take some money for the copies, in case you need it."

"Thanks! Alright, see you tomorrow!"

Ω • Ω • Ω

4/28, Thursday

DEADLINE: MAY 2ND

DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 4

Steal Kamoshida's heart.

"Hey, did you see it?"

"Yeah, it's been posted since this morning, right?"

"Since before anyone even got to school!"

"What is it? A calling card?" Ann looked towards the boards that everyone was clustered around and found that they were covered in red cards, with the cards themselves spelling out Kamoshida's name. On each one was a badly done drawing of a grinning face with sharp teeth and a top hat over slanted eyes, with 'Take your heart!' and cut out newspaper clippings spelling out words beneath it.

"'Sir Suguru Kamoshida, the despicable indulger of lust. We know of the crimes you have committed in secret, fearful of the consequences that must be rightfully bestowed upon you. And so, we have decided to steal away your distorted desires and make you confess your horrid sins. Our heist will have been completed by the end of this day. We hope you are ready. From— The Phantom Thieves of Hearts.'" She held her breath for a moment, taking it all in, before sighing. "Yikes…"

Akira grinned as she walked towards him and Ryuji, adjusting the bag that Morgana was passed out in while Ryuji snickered. "Not bad, huh? We looked up a bunch of stuff for reference."

"Yeah… The wording isn't that bad, but the artwork and the name… 'Phantom Thieves of Hearts'?"

"H-Hey, Mona was already calling us phantom thieves! And my logo's great! Right, Aki?"

"No comment." He looked back towards the people crowding around the boards, watching them.

"Did Kamoshida-sensei do something wrong?"

"Does this mean the rumors are true?!"

"Uh, wait a sec, is someone going to take something from Kamoshida-sensei?"

Kamoshida suddenly rounded the corner, and everyone near the boards fell silent, fearful they might attract his attention. Upon seeing what was written on each card the man's face visibly screwed up in rage, and he began looking around wildly. "Who's responsible for this?!"

"A rather predictable response for someone who knows exactly what those cards are talking about," he spoke with a smirk.

"I think it's hittin' him pretty hard!"

As the students around him began quickly leaving, Kamoshida turned and saw them. His face somehow became even angrier, and he quickly began making his way towards them. "Ann, he still doesn't know you're involved. If you don't—"

"No."

He nodded in acceptance, before Kamoshida finally reached them, walking straight to him and using his superior height and stature to glare down at him and try to intimidate him. He stared right back, refusing to let him. "Was it you two?!"

"Better watch your back, sensei. It seems that someone has it out for you. Perhaps I should say… 'I told you so'?"

"You little…" Kamoshida shook his head and clenched his fists. "Whatever. It's not a problem. You'll be expelled soon enough anyway." The world around them seemingly distorted, causing Ryuji, Ann, and himself to instantly be on guard. Kamoshida still stood before them, but instead of his normal body, it was his Shadow, sneering at them. "Come… Steal it, if you can!"

When the world returned to normal, Kamoshida walked away. He watched the man go, then pushed his glasses up, scoffing."Well, judging from that… I'm pretty sure we had an effect on his Palace."

"So the Treasure's appeared?!"

"And we have to grab it today," Ryuji growled.

"It's all riding on this. Let's finish it." They walked their separate ways, hearts pounding as the clock ticked on to the end of the day. As school finally let out, they followed the stream of students from the building, listening to their speculation on the cards that had been posted. However, instead of walking to the subway with the rest of them, they instead entered their alley and opened the Metanav, smoothly transitioning from the real world to the world of desires.

Thump-thump.

Thump-thump.

The sky was pulsating, and every few moments he could hear a beat in the back of his head, like that of a heart throbbing nervously. A feral grin grew on his face, and his silver eyes shone with excitement that he rarely ever showed in the real world. Kamoshida could hide it as best he could, but inside his heart, the evidence of his terror was laid bare, and it was glorious.

My my, perhaps Master isn't just a sinner of Greed and Lust, but Wrath as well!

Starr, you should not seek his defeat from vengeance, but rather justice. That is the true way of the Lord.

Oh, hush, Angel, sin is so much sexier compared to virtue!

I will not argue on either side, dear, but I will say that with anger clouding your judgment, you may very well meet with a disaster.

'Thank you for the advice, Saki.'

Whatever may happen, a false king's reign will finally be challenged. Art thou ready?

'Oh yeah…'

He let his coat flap in the breeze, Panther, Skull, and Mona walking by his side as they all glared up at the tower, from which a golden light now shone. "We're coming, Kamoshida," Skull grinned.

"I don't think he's ready for us," Panther scoffed.

Mona laughed. "Even with all the prep time in the world, it wouldn't help him anyway!"

"Now, let's dethrone a king."

Life will change, I'm not a robot A.I. challenging you…

Succubus and Angel! I was looking forward to having them both in Akira's Persona stock at the same time. There are plenty more Persona combinations that should be fun to write conversations between, such as Setanta and Scatath, or Satan/Lucifer and Metatron/the Seraphim.

Welp, we've finally fused away Arsène. He'll (probably) eventually return when the Gallows is available, but for now, he'll just be a voice in Akira's head. Congrats to the people who figured out that all the Personas in his head are chilling in the Thieves Den. Akira won't be entering it himself, I just thought it'd be fun to reference. I've probably spent a good chunk of my time playing Royal in the Thieves Den, since playing Tycoon is surprisingly fun.

Heist day has arrived. I'll (probably) be doing double chapters whenever Heists occur. Considering this entire chapter was part of the next one as well, which of course included the Palace Ruler battle itself, I didn't want another situation like BBOH where I had a slog of a 14,000-word chapter. So, I cut them in half, and Chapter 15 will be released tomorrow.

So yeah, leave a review on everything you liked in the chapter or just a 'nice.' Both are always great to read. See y'all next time!