Chapter 32: "Don't Be So Cocky!"
Ω • Ω • Ω
•Akira•
"OH, GOD! PLEASE! HELP ME!"
Joker looked away from Skull, condemning him to his fate, focusing on his own survival as Caroline chased him, baton at the ready and a Slime moving scarily fast next to her for how pathetic it should've been.
"Get back here, Inmate!"
"Fuck that!" He cried, dodging to the left as her Slime Persona shot towards him, attempting to tackle him. He rolled back onto his feet, before having to bend over backward to avoid the massive beam of molten hot fire that Caroline's Jack O'Lantern unleashed, because apparently, THEY could switch between Personas like he could!
He saw Panther running in fear as well when Justine used a Jack Frost of her own to launch massive chunks of ice her way, rolling after her like she was in the first Indiana Jones movie… or that 'Indie Jonas' movie with the temple and the boulder. "JOKER! FOX! SOMEONE HELP!"
"I'm coming, Lady A— ACK!" Justine calmly turned and kicked Mona into the air, then Caroline came out of nowhere and spiked him into the ground with her baton. He did a double-take at the sight.
'How the hell did she get over there so quickly?! She was JUST chasing me!'
He wasn't sure just… how the situation had escalated so quickly. All the Twins had wanted to talk to him about was a match between them, a test of his strength, with his teammates allowed to join in. They would cordon off a section of Mementos and turn it into a facsimile of the Velvet Room, letting everyone go all out.
He'd readily accepted the challenge, hoping to show the twins that he wasn't so easy to push around when he could actually fight back…
Well, there went that plan.
He skid to a stop, reaching toward his mask in an attempt to use the distance between him and the Twins to try and do something. Maybe try Tangoo's Dormina and Eternal Rest combo, but that was a mistake. A Kodama of the twins' appeared and created a fucking tornado under him. Why couldn't his Kodama do that?!
Don't blame me! Those guys are off their rockers! Kodama cried in his head.
At least they're going easy on us, unlike Margaret.
This is going easy on— TRICKSTER, BRACE YOURSELF!
He had no time to do so, as the Garudyne tornado slammed him into a wall, and knocked him unconscious. The last thing he heard as his consciousness left him was both twins shouting in unison, "Don't Be So Cocky!"
…ugh…
Ω • Ω • Ω
He woke up with a splitting headache. Staring at the ceiling of the 'Velvet Room.' He sat up and saw everyone in various poses, completely dead to the world with how hard they must have all been hit. Caroline and Justine were staring at him, one angrily, the other apathetically, as always.
"That was pathetic, Inmate! Your team barely lasted more than a minute!"
"Indeed. I must say that I'm quite disappointed."
He held back on the joke he could've made, considering how young the two girls were. Or looked. That would've been weird.
"Not like you gave us a chance to warm up. Seriously, going all out like that from the start was not cool."
"You were the ones going all out. We were the ones that were going slow and warming up!"
"…oh."
"Oh indeed, Inmate. Unfortunately, if this is the level you are at, then Ruin will not be avoided. Please continue with your rehabilitation to… remedy that. Feel free to challenge us again, so we may see how you have improved upon yourselves."
"But don't expect to ever win," Caroline smirked. "No matter how much you improve, you won't be beating us!"
"That's a mistake, Caroline," he smirked back as he slowly stood, body aching. "Challenging me like that is just going to motivate me to kick your asses next time."
"Ha! Try as much as you like, we'll continue putting you in your place!"
"But it is good to see you have the drive to improve. Return at any time. And do not forget the current Persona we wish to see."
"Right, right… let me grab my friends and we'll get going."
Ω • Ω • Ω
It was a quiet Mementos trip after that. Although no one except for himself could remember the… encounter with the Twins, the pain and exhaustion were still there. Even the multiple Media spells that were cast weren't enough to completely erase their weariness. They kept to easier Shadows near the top of Mementos, besides a few targets found on the Phansite.
He drove as always, with Panther calling shotgun that day and propping up her head with one hand, Skull snoring in the backseat, and Fox sketching the various Personas and Shadows they fought. He was mostly driving around for the fun of it at this point, the few hearts they had changed that trip being enough to tucker everyone out even further.
Lazily collecting flowers and stamps for Jose, and cracking open treasure chests seemed like what they would be doing for the rest of the day.
"Remember to switch floors soon."
"I got it, Mona." He spun the wheel with one hand, the other covering a yawn. "No way I'm dealing with the Reaper putting another hole in me."
"Should you be driving when you're so tired?" Panther questioned, turning to look at him with a lazy smirk spread across her face. He felt a brief jolt up his spine at the sight of her half-lidded eyes and snapped his eyes back to the tracks.
"You want to be behind the wheel instead? Maybe I'll get some shut-eye and you can get some practice driving. After all, it seems like I do everything around here."
"Aw. Poor Joker, is the burden of leadership too much for you?"
He grinned at the banter. "Let's see, buying medicine, equipment, keeping track of schedules, organizing when we go into Palaces, deciding the roster… Don't get me wrong, winking at Shadows is truly arduous work, but I think I have a bit more on my plate, dear Panther."
"Maybe you should try to take some time and… relax, then." Oh god help him, tired Panther teasing him was doing too many wonderful things to his body to count. He forced his mind away from what exactly he could be doing with Panther to 'relax'—
Heh.
—And just smirked at the road. "Well, you just let me know if you can think of anything that we can do to relax a bit. I'll happily join in on any activities you can think of."
"Well, I can think of a few—"
"Joker, would you look towards Panther? This scene would be much better were the two of you meeting each other's eyes." He raised an eyebrow and checked the rearview mirror to see Fox sketching while staring at them.
"What, those two flirting up front?" Skull questioned, eyes still closed. "Doin' it in the Mona Mobile, huh? Weird but I ain't go— OW!" Joker had shared a look with Panther before slamming the brakes, sending Skull flying into the back of his seat.
"Oh, I'm sorry Skull! I really should be paying attention to the road!"
"Ah, asshole!"
"Hmph!" Mona huffed around them. He would have complained about Joker's rough handling, but it was done to shut Skull up, something he wholeheartedly approved of. "Unlike you, Joker's a gentleman. He doesn't just flirt willy-nilly, especially—"
Mona began going off on a tangent, Skull started arguing back, Fox ignored everything to continue sketching, and he shared a smile with Panther, winking at her. A slow day it may be… but a nevertheless entertaining one, with a great team like this.
Everyone then yelped when they heard chains and ducked onto a different floor of Aiyatsbus.
Ω • Ω • Ω
5/27, Friday
DEADLINE: June 5th
DAYS UNTIL LEGAL ACTION: 9
Steal Madarame's heart.
The day passed slowly as ever when there was something he wanted to do after school, more so since he still felt lethargic from their Mementos trip. Well, at least he'd gotten definitive proof that his guns were more powerful if they looked more realistic. His Tkachev was the weakest, the Governance hit harder, and the gun that had been in Iwai's bag, which looked like a heavily modified Tkachev called the Riot Police, was deadly, and could shock Shadows.
He sighed, now thinking of the logistics of buying everyone new weaponry or finding ways to augment them. Maybe he could get Iwai to upgrade them? The pen he spun between his fingers twirled swiftly, complex maneuvers developed from weeks of practice after he first tried and failed miserably at it years ago, trying to figure out what upgrades would be best for everyone.
…He had no idea why he had first wanted to learn how to twirl a pen so well, but he damn well wasn't going to accept being bad at it.
Either way… Ryuji's shotgun could do with a power boost, while Ann's sub-machine gun could do with some extended mags. Whenever she fired them, it seemed like she subscribed to the 'spray and pray' methodology. As for Yusuke, perhaps something to increase his accuracy, or reduce the recoil his guns had… he already had steady hands, maybe making him into something of the team's sniper with his rifle would serve everyone best? Then again—
TRICKSTER LOOK OUT!
"Starr-san!" He was beaned in the temple by chalk traveling at least Mach one, and the class burst into laughter. He gripped the side of his head and winced as Ushimaru glared at him. "Finally focusing, are we?"
He carefully pulled his hand away from his head, nearly sure that a bruise would form. "I was thinking about how I could become a professional chalk thrower. You've inspired me, I think it could be an Olympic sport, Sensei."
The social studies teacher just huffed. "If you've got time to be a smart ass, then you've got time to answer the question! If you were paying attention, then what was the latest partnership struck with another company by Andonut's Laboratories? I gave you the answer a minute ago!"
Alright. He could answer correctly, or show off.
…Yeah, that'll be fun.
"Well now, I'd be happy to answer that! I've actually studied the company in my off time, and I'd love to go over their history and what led to this deal!" Morgana groaned inside his desk, not liking the look on his face as he grabbed the thrown chalk and stood up with a wide grin. "The answer, of course, is their partnership with Maddice on personal use of artificial intelligence. Now, here's the timeline that led to this deal!"
He approached the blackboard and began sketching out every event that led to the deal. "Anthony Andonuts is recorded saying that he first became interested in artificial intelligence when the program Deep Blue defeated champion Gary Kasparov in their chess match in nineteen-ninety-seven When Andonuts was the age of sixteen. As he was already developing robotics at the time, he combined them to create the first robot that was capable of simulating human emotions and holding a conversation naturally, whose voice, but not looks, was capable of bypassing the uncanny valley at the turn of the millennium, the year two-thousand."
"The next uses of artificial intelligence may not seem as fancy as a conversational robot or a machine that can beat a chess world champion in the science fiction sense, but they still occurred in short order, one after another. Submarines piloted by A.I. began mapping more of the ocean, of which we still know less about than even outer space, as well as rovers piloted by A.I. that navigated the surfaces of Mars and Mercury. A side note, the rockets and rovers that landed on the surface of Mercury were also developed by Andonuts Laboratories in their aerospace division— are you all writing this down?"
He turned and glared at the class, tapping his foot. Students looked down at their books and quickly began writing. "Hmph. In any case, in recent years, the company has explored more complex A.I. that can operate within smaller machines, aiming to upgrade the Siri artificial intelligence that already exists on most modern-day mobile phones, the research, of course, spearheaded by Anthony Andonuts. They have partnered with the IT company Madicce on this project, while at the same time developing personal use machines capable of various tasks such as housework like cooking or cleaning, though there have been complaints that these artificial intelligence could steal job positions… in fact, some companies such as Okumura Foods have come forward with proposals to Andonut's Laboratories on entire workplace staff made up of machines… which we may very well see the results of in the near future, for better or for worse."
He placed the chalk down after underlining the final part of the timeline he drew, raising an eyebrow at Ushimaru. "Well, that was everything that led up to their current deal… Should I go into his work with the company's Aerospace division next? The company has some fascinating work in those fields as well—"
"Sit back down, Starr-san."
He smiled and bowed, walking back to his desk. He winked at Ann as he walked past, causing her to shake her head with a smile. "Show off."
"He asked, I answered."
"And it had nothing to do with you being upset that he nailed you with his chalk."
"I cannot confirm or deny that information."
The rest of the day passed in a blur of boredom, nothing nearly as exciting as his presentation in Ushimaru's Social Studies class happening until the end of the day. As he got out of his seat, waiting for Ann to put her books away, he began scrolling through his phone messages.
Mementos had been yesterday, and they'd changed a few hearts… plus the Twins kicking everyone's asses meant they needed the day… maybe even two days off. If so… Sunday they could go back in, though that was the day before the cleanup at the park, which would probably leave them pretty lethargic… He didn't want anyone to be chastised by the teachers for being lazy, especially if Niijima took the opportunity to grab one of them for a damn interrogation… but if they sent the card Monday… was that cutting it too close…? But maybe they could send the… calling card…
He straightened up with wide eyes as he thought up a plan, before immediately scowling. No, that wouldn't work. Ryuji would be doing his little 'extra credit' Monday afternoon. Although… it was the park cleanup day, maybe he wouldn't be? He pulled out his phone and opened the messenger.
You— Ryu, will you have that extra credit assignment after the park cleanup Monday?
Ryuji— nah. it's cleanup day so senpai figured I shouldn't wrry bout gardenin 2.
He grinned at the message. Well, that worked out in their favor rather well. He tapped Ann on the shoulder as he spun his phone. "I've got an idea I want to run by everyone, meet out by the alley where we came and went from Kamoshita's castle."
"Why not the hideout?"
"This won't take long, no need to meet up with everyone." Ann nodded, so he walked out of the classroom and down the stairs.
You— Alright, meet at the alley. Short team meeting.
Ryuji— aight gonna be a coupl of mins
He walked to the school entrance, pulling up Yusuke's number next, and winking at Niijima as he passed. "Senpai. Plan on stalking any suspects today?"
You— Text me when you're out of school and are able to call, there's something the team needs to discuss, but there's no need to meet at the hideout.
"Starr-kun." She began following him out, glaring with those sharp red eyes. "I'm not sure what you mean by 'stalking,' I've not stalked anyone to the best of my knowledge."
Yusuke— Very well.
"Hmhm," he chuckled, "I'm sure. So if you're not following me because I'm a suspect, does that mean you're following me because you need something?"
"Who said I'm following you at all?"
"Oh, then I guess this is where we part ways." He spun on his heel and fell back against the brick wall of the alley, placing his hands in his pockets. "Have a good rest of your day, Senpai."
"Are you waiting here?"
"Of course, what does it look like I'm doing? Not avoiding you, no, surely not!"
"I was going to say no, but when you say it so sarcastically, I seriously doubt that."
"Now why would your precious kouhai ever lie to you? Maybe I'm waiting for a girl. I hope you don't expect to follow me around while I'm on a date."
"As if I would want to follow you during some outing with a girl."
"Really? But you could learn so much about interacting with us humans, oh high and mighty president."
"And what does that mean?!" Several students walking by looked over in surprise at Niijima's shout, and he grinned at the girl as she clenched her fists.
"I'm sorry, Senpai. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I hadn't realized you even had any! Oh!" He saw Ann walking over, and he stepped away from Niijima. "Here she is. Anyway, I'll see you another time, Senpai! Have fun with your studies. Ann-pan, ready to go?"
"A-Ann-pan?!" Ann squeaked in surprise at the nickname, jerking back, and he felt himself flush in embarrassment. He was sure his face was burning bright red, but forced himself to just focus on her, leaning down as if he was going to kiss her cheek, but instead whispered into her ear.
"S-Sorry, I'm trying to get rid of President Bitch. Play along?" She looked at him with wide eyes, before nodding rapidly.
"H-He-Hey, um, Kiki? Ready to go?" They interlocked arms, and Ann's voice sounded like a mouse with how high it had become, but it didn't matter since the older girl was stammering and turning away.
"P-Public displays of affection should be kept to a minimum!"
"But dating other students isn't against the school rules is it?"
"J-Just because it isn't against the rules doesn't mean you should just.. go ahead and do t-that in public!" She shook her head and began walking away. "Don't be so… blasé out in the open like that!"
"Eh, you'll understand if you ever get a boyfriend of your own, Senpai. You just work on actually learning how to be human!" She walked away from them, and he let go of Ann, scowling at the president's back. Unseen by him, the president grit her teeth and clenched her fists at his words. "Ugh… I really hate her."
"Well, I wasn't expecting that… did that have anything to do with…?"
"No, nothing to do with what I wanted to talk about," he scoffed, keeping an eye on Niijima to make sure she didn't double back without him noticing to listen in. "Anyway… 'Kiki'?"
"Wha— shut up! You dropped that on me out of nowhere! What else was I supposed to come up with?!"
"You could've just stuck with my name. Not every couple uses pet names… probably."
"Oh yeah? So where did 'Ann-pan' come from then?"
He shrugged and smirked, the little high he'd gotten from holding her helping him ignore the embarrassment. "Well, considering you're the sweets connoisseur of our little group, I figured you enjoyed anpan just as much as any other sugary snack. And you can't tell me such a sweet nickname doesn't fit such a sweet— ow!" Morgana huffed as he placed one of his front paws on Akira's shoulder, smacking the back of his head with the other.
"Alright, alright, I get the flirting to get rid of Niijima, but you can quit it now!"
His expression caused Ann to start laughing, and Ryuji looked confused when he walked up. "Uh, the hell'd I miss?"
Yusuke— My classes have finished for the day. I await your call.
"Well, rumors might start circulating soon that the 'criminal transfer student' is dating the 'mixed blonde bombshell,' he scoffed.
"You think people will start— oh who am I kidding? The Shujin rumor mill never stops," Ann sighed.
"So… why would that suddenly be goin' round…?"
"Oh, no reason at all," he answered with an innocent smile.
"Dude, if I can tell you're lyin', then you ain't tryin' that hard." His smile just turned into a grin at Ryuji's words, typing in Yusuke's number and calling his phone, checking once more that Niijima hadn't returned.
"Hello, Akira."
"Yo, Yusuke!" Ryuji shouted over his shoulder, which ended up in a brief scuffle where both boys fought for the phone and Morgana almost became sick from how the bag was bouncing.
"Yusuke, I'm glad you were able to talk. You see, I have a plan that has to do with the Calling Card, and when we send it…"
Everyone's eyebrows rose, and they leaned in to hear it.
Ω • Ω • Ω
It hadn't taken much to convince the others of his plan. Each of them liked it, as it guaranteed that the Shujin students had an alibi for where they were when the Calling Card would be sent. As for Yusuke, he had no suspicions upon him at the time anyway, but extra insurance would always be nice. The impromptu meeting ended after he hung up, Ann left to go to a modeling gig, while he stuck around the entrance of Shujin with Ryuji. "Hey, uh, you remember that guy Yamauchi I was talkin' 'bout?"
"Kamoshita-lite, right?"
"Uh, whuh?"
"Mini-Kamoshita."
"Yeah, him! The teacher who's gonna be the new track team advisor. He doesn't give a rat's ass about the sport or the students…"
"Definitely not the kind of person I'd want in charge. Who decided that was a good idea?"
"Tch. In this school, nothin' good for the students ever happens…" He fought back the urge to correct Ryuji's Japanese. "Anyway, I heard this rumor that he's gotten in trouble with the school before with his drinkin'... but that hasn't stopped him from goin' out. You think maybe he'd let some shit slip while drunk?"
"Huh… well that's an idea. And I suppose you want us to tail him?"
"Yup. I'll look into where he goes to drink, and since he would recognize me, you should come with for the recon. But uh, what about today? Want to do some trainin'?"
Ryuji was clearly nowhere near as energetic as he normally was, the thoughts of Yamauchi and the track team bringing his mood down. He let a half-smirk form, elbowing the faux-blond. "Sounds good to me, man."
"Right on. Let's get changed and meet at, uh… hm… well, somewhere's gotta be open… Maybe the school gym or somethin'?"
"Would any clubs be using it right now…?" They wandered as they talked, and after changing, still weren't sure where they would train for the day. "Why don't we go to my place? I've actually got a pretty good regiment going there…" as much of a regiment as he could, anyway… but pull-ups with Morgana hanging onto him were surprisingly difficult.
"Oh please. We'd just end up playin' video games or somethin'! We should— wait, nah, if we stuck around here we'd prolly run into Nakaoka and them… But I guess we should at least check to see if no one's usin' the—"
"Hrgh!"
Hearing the grunt of pain, both boys glanced at each other, before running to the source. Standing in one of Shujin's small grassy patches, Nakaoka was surrounded by three other boys that were vaguely familiar to him, but Ryuji immediately narrowed his eyes, stepping closer. "Takeishi? The hell're you guys doin'?"
Takeishi scoffed, turning to glare at Ryuji. "We just have a few questions for Nakaoka here. It's none of your business."
"So what, you gonna ask him questions with your fists? And anyways, ain't a three-on-one kinda cowardly?"
"You could've waited for us to show up and make it fair, Tak-kun," he added with a smile that was all teeth.
Takeishi just grit his teeth. Akira's reputation as the dangerous transfer student still running strong. Seriously, the rumors about him had just gotten more exaggerated over time… when and how the hell could he have threatened the leader of, and then taken down an entire yakuza organization on his own? "The only coward here is Nakaoka! All the shit Kamoshida put us through is his fault… he was telling that bastard secrets about us the whole time!"
"Huh? That's a load of bull!"
"You all should trust Nakaoka," he added.
Ryuji nodded in thanks at him, before looking back at Takeishi. "That's right! You've been trainin' together for freakin' forever! Plus, ain't the track team comin' back? You don't gotta fight!"
"Sh-shut up! I'm telling you, this piece of shit sold us out! How do you think Kamoshida found out about your parents, Sakamoto?"
One of the other two boys hounding Nakaoka glared at him, hate etched into his face. "He's gotta be a snitch!"
"H-Hold up!" Ryuji strode forward, standing between Nakaoka and Takeishi, and Takeishi turned to follow him. He stood back and watched, ready to step in, but wanting to see how Ryuji would handle the situation.
"Out of the way, Sakamoto. We'll beat the shit outta you too if we need to."
"If you think that's gonna make you feel better, go for it… but you're gonna wish you didn't. Trust me, it feels real bad lookin' back on shitty stuff you've done."
"Huh?"
"Look… even if Nakaoka was workin' with Kamoshida… ain't it fine now? The bastard's gone, so you guys can just put this crap behind you. There's no reason to fight, yeah?"
"We can't keep people around who're gonna try and undermine our team."
"But… I didn't do anything. I wasn't working with Kamoshida. No matter how much you hit me, my answer's gonna stay the same."
Takeishi scoffed at Nakaoka. "Oh yeah? We've got proof. Yamauchi told us all about it."
"…Yamauchi?"
The other boy who had been threatening Nakaoka looked around, before shaking his head. "C'mon Takeishi, we gotta get out of here. It'd be real bad if anyone else showed up."
"… Nakaoka. Shit like you isn't welcome on our new track team. You'd better remember that." The boys walked away with scowls, leaving himself, Ryuji, and Nakaoka behind.
They watched them go before Ryuji looked over at Nakaoka with concern. "You okay? The hell was all that?"
"Just stay out of this, Sakamoto. It has nothing to do with you."
"But…"
"When you hit Kamoshida, you were really hitting all of us who tried so hard to endure his bullshit. You might've felt relieved, but it only made life harder for us… 'Cause of you, we lost the one place we could vent our frustrations… the one place we could really belong. Tensions got pretty high after that… and things've just been kinda rough from then on." Nakaoka glared at Ryuji, stepping closer as he clenched his fists. "You really think it's all fine now, huh? Well, what if I told you they're right about me? Would you still think it's fine if I was the one who told Kamoshida about your parents?!"
Ryuji just stayed silent during the boy's rant, before crossing his arms. "…yeah. If you told him, you told him. I'm over all that stuff with my parents anyways. Besides, I've realized something, Nakaoka. I might've messed up with Kamoshida back then, but hangin' on to the past ain't gonna help anythin'. I'm just gonna focus on bein' myself now… on bein' free."
"What're you talking about? Free, huh? Haha…" Nakaoka just brushed him aside and walked away, angry chuckles turning to silence.
They watched him go, before Ryuji turned to him, concern on his face. "Akira… you get what I'm tryin' to say, yeah?"
He just nodded, Ryuji's words resonating with him. "Absolutely."
"Right? He's the one who wasn't makin' any sense. I guess bein' free is like… it's like how I feel when I'm talkin' to you, man!"
"Really?" He blinked and looked at Ryuji. "What do you mean?"
"Uhhh, I dunno what else I gotta say. I just feel… free."
"Just from speaking to me?"
Ryuji snorted, before bursting into laughter. "What, are we stuck on repeat or something? Hahaha!" He felt his lips pull up into a smile before he let go and began laughing as well, feeling their bond grow even deeper.
RANK UP!
Chariot Arcana, Ryuji Sakamoto: Rank 6
"Mannn, that was some funny shit… so much for trainin' though, huh? C'mon, let's get outta here. Oooh, should we grab some ramen on the way home?"
"Sounds good to me."
Ω • Ω • Ω
5/28, Saturday
DEADLINE: June 5th
DAYS UNTIL LEGAL ACTION: 8
Steal Madarame's heart.
After the school day finished he talked with Ann and Ryuji for a few minutes, gave a cheeky wave to Niijima, and then got on the train to Yongen-Jaya. Some extra medicine just in case would be necessary if they ended up fighting Madarame's Shadow, and if it was as strong as Kamoshita's, so it was time to see what Takemi had… and maybe take another clinical trial if she had one available.
As he turned the corner of Yongen's back streets, he didn't expect to see what seemed to be a father and his daughter entering the clinic ahead of him. He walked inside to see the man pleading with Takemi, and the daughter sitting on the couch in clear pain.
"…So why come here? Aren't you under the care of another hospital?"
"I've heard rumors about this place. I'd like you to examine her, please. She was diagnosed with bronchitis, but the medicine she was given hasn't been working at all. She's got a fever that won't go away and she's losing weight because she's not hungry!"
Takemi frowned. "A young girl losing weight is definitely not good. But you should go to a bigger hospital. I can't provide a thorough examination here."
"We've been going to a big hospital! A university hospital in East Shinjuku! But all they tell us is that it's persistent bronchitis!"
"…A university in East Shinjuku?"
"The doctor there performs exams like he's on an assembly line. I think he's famous or something."
"A famous doctor, huh? I'm just a general practitioner out here in the sticks. As you can see, I don't even have any staff."
"Akira?" Morgana asked from his bag. "What's—?"
"Shh."
"W-Wait! I've heard there's a famous medicine that can only be acquired here! Please! I'll pay you! Please, at least examine her!"
"H-Hold on."
The girl coughed weakly, her voice faint. "D-Doctor… my chest really hurts…" Takemi looked at her silently, and he couldn't discern her expression.
So instead he walked up and knelt next to the girl with a smile. "Don't worry. Takemi-sensei will help."
"What?! When did you—?!"
"Doctor…!"
At his gaze and the man's pleading, Takemi finally relented and bent down to be level with the girl. "Ugh… fine. Is your vision blurry? How about your throat, does it hurt? Hm. No signs of swelling… Are you sure you've told me everything about her symptoms and treatments you've tried so far?"
"Yes, I'm sure!"
"Hmm…" Takemi suddenly pulled her phone out and dialed a number. "Hello, Uehara-san? Is Schweitzer-sensei there? There's something I'd like to ask him about a case that was in last month's medical journal." She listened to whatever they were saying, nodding along, before hanging up. "I see… I guess the ones in stock will have to do." She looked at him. "There's a shelf by the reception desk. Bring the contents of the second drawer into the exam room."
"Yes ma'am!"
She smirked at him. "I'm glad you're so agreeable. Since it's your fault I'm going through with this examination, you'll be helping me out. Oh, and bring me the beaker with the red label in the fridge, a towel, a wash basin, and measuring spoon. Well? What are you waiting for? Go!"
Ω • Ω • Ω
After that, he scrambled to follow Takemi's directions, flitting to grab the items she needed and putting his skill as Joker to good use. Though he couldn't exactly do backflips inside the small room…
Thou just likes showing off.
He grinned at Arsène's words but refocused on Takemi, as well as the girl and her father. The man was thanking her profusely, nearly crying from happiness. "Th-Thank you so much! I didn't expect her to recover so quickly…"
"It was a unique strain of an infectious disease. It can't be detected with conventional exams. I temporarily suppressed the symptoms, and we can make adjustments as her condition improves. Alright, that'll be one million yen for today."
"A m-million yen?! T-That's outrageous! You're completely taking advantage of…"
"Uh, Takemi, tell me you're joking!"
"No… No, it's alright. I agreed to pay. You don't… take credit cards, do you? I'll go withdraw some cash right now!"
He and Takemi looked at the father in surprise. "Huh? Wait, you're actually going to pay?" She closed her eyes, thinking, before peeking one eye open. "By the way… that famous doctor you mentioned earlier, was it Medical Chief of Staff Oyamada?"
"Yes. Are you familiar with him?"
"Heh. I knew it. In that case, I'll make this free of charge."
"F-Free?!"
"Hehe."
He smiled at her giggle. "Well, you're certainly happy."
"Yep. Doesn't it feel good? Treating his patient without permission? Oh, and by the way, thanks to your outburst earlier, I'm going to perform a very special examination on you today…"
"I'll, uh. I'll look forward to it… Maybe I should do my shopping first, then…?"
I believe you're in for a rather bad time… unless you're into that sort of thing, Apsaras giggled.
The girl's father looked back and forth between them. "So, is he your assistant? He seems awfully young."
"Yes, my assistant… guinea pig. He's about to put in a LOT of hard work today, aren't you?"
"Well, I always aim to impress. Heh. Heh…" he swallowed, already bracing for the incoming procedure, all while chains shattered in his head.
RANK UP!
Death Arcana, Back-Alley Doctor: Rank 4
"Um, Sensei?" The little girl asked. "Can I go back to school now?"
"Not for a while. You need to start eating and regain your strength first. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes! Thank you, Sensei!"
"Don't mention it… Your turn, Guinea Pig. I wonder what kind of response you'll have this time. Maybe you won't even be able to make it home…"
He barely did. As he walked up the stairs into his room, Takemi called, and he groaned as he collapsed back into his bed. "How are you feeling now? Today's drug was kind of rough, huh? But maybe it's just what my careless little Guinea Pig, huh? Especially after approving that little girl's consultation without my permission."
"Takemi-Sensei… you can punish me more if you'd like."
He grinned to himself when he heard silence on the other end of the line, having stolen any response she could've made. "...Good god." She sighed, and he thought he could hear some amusement there. "Well, none of my medicine can cure THAT."
"Not your medicine, only you—"
"I'm stopping you right there." He snorted to himself, wavering slightly as the medicine hit again. "Still, the drug does seem to be more stable compared to the early stages, though. Probably thanks to your cooperation. It feels like I'm almost there… So try not to die just yet, okay?"
"If it means more punishm—"
"All right, take care." He chuckled as she hung up, laying back as Morgana bat his head back onto a pillow then dragging their blanket up with his teeth.
Don't start falling for her as well as Panther, Ame-No-Uzume spoke in amusement.
The Trickster wields me… does this not mean he should also have multiple Lovers? Hahaha! He snorted at the great thief's words, before falling into a deep sleep, even the excitement of the upcoming Calling Card not enough to combat whatever concoction Takemi had cooked up that day.
Almost to the calling card! I've got the entire chapter leading up to it and the delivery done, just gotta write the infiltration, battle, and exfiltration. Can't wait for that! As for the twins boss fight... Yeah, Caroline and Justine's battle lasted about as long as most probably expected. They are definitely not far enough along in the story to take them on lol. Gonna need everyone to take those two on.
I liked making Akira so petty from being whacked with the chalk that he made a whole on-the-spot speech and presentation to answer the question. As for Death... Yup, gotta go with the 'punish me more' answer. It's truly the only right one for Doctor Legs after all. Rank 6 of best boy's Confidant reached too. Can't wait to write the Second Awakenings for everyone, that'll be a lot of fun.
So, let me know what you think of the chapter, or just leave a 'nice,' both are always great to read. See y'all next time!