Akane no Mai

by Kanius

A man from the world of Vein drops into a world of Thieves. He meets a pragmatic woman. She greets him with a calm smile. "My name is Togo Hifumi." Following the fateful encounter, a host of monsters arrive, disrupting the peace. The Thieves return to confront these entities outside their realm and ultimately cross paths with the Revenant man.

52. The Vein Upheaval Climax

Chapter XXX: The Vein Upheaval Climax

---

Destroyed Roppongi Hills Mori Tower (六本木ヒルズ森タワー)/Roppongi (六本木)/Minato, Tokyo (港区, 東京)/11:51 PM (JST)

"Eheheh! Skyler's body is ripe with potential for me to utilize! And what can I say? I've acquired Skyler's handsome looks." Mido-Sion announced flamboyantly, laughing to his giddy heart's content. He got scornful glares from the Thieves, Tennyo, Moonlight/Io, Hunter/Jack, and Songstress/Eva. "C'mon, why the long faces? You're all about to witness me implement a goddess' power into myself. I wonder what happens when I combine the power of a Revenant and a goddess. It should make for an interesting experiment."

"That won't happen!" Joker protested as he and the Thieves spread out and surrounded Mido-Sion and Mido-Sekiken, but the mind-frenzied Mircalla/Mia, and Omusubi/Yakumo intercepted them.

Mido-Sekiken cut off Queen and Noir. Mircalla quickly intercepted Mona, Oracle, and Fox. Yakumo stopped Skull. Mido-Sion halted Joker and Panther.

"Surely you haven't forgotten Skyler's dear friends are under my control?" chortled Mido-Sion. Lifting his hands, two swords materialized. In his right hand, he produced Sion's Queenslayer Blade. On his left, he held Mido's Judgment Edge. "Does anyone wish to step up and face me now?" His eyes veered from the Thieves, settling on Tennyo and Moonlight. "Or, perhaps you'd be willing to volunteer, Vein Remnant? Or, does Hifumi wish to surrender her body to me?"

Tennyo frowned disapprovingly and with much contempt. "I'll never let you do what you want with his body!" Brandishing her ko-naginata, she rushed head-on with Mido-Sion.

"Hifumi!" The Thieves and Moonlight called out.

Moonlight wasted no time chasing after her. As Tennyo lunged for Mido-Sion, the other three Revenants stepped in and intervened on his behalf. Tennyo readied her ko-naginata, refusing to let anyone stand in her way. Mido-Sekiken invoked his Ogre-Type Blood Veil and attacked Tennyo. Tennyo dodged and swung her ko-naginata, countering Mido-Sekiken's demonic hand. When Mircalla went for her Blood Veil, Moonlight conjured spikes from the ground and stopped the metal scorpion's tail. Omusubi unleashed his Hound-Type Blood Veil, as the two metal hound heads went for Tennyo and Moonlight.

"Hang on!" Yelled out Joker as he sent Arsène to stop the canine heads. Arsène countered the head heads's attacks with blue flames.

The other Thieves, Hunter, and Songstress joined in, standing beside Joker, Tennyo, and Moonlight. Mido-Sion clapped his hands so loud everyone turned to face him.

"Bravo! Splendid show!" Mido-Sion cackled gleefully much to the chagrin of Tennyo, Moonlight, Hunter, Songstress, and the Thieves. "That was quite the appetizer. Now, we get ready for the main course." With a finger snap, the Successor of the Beasts and the Virgin Born awoke as they advanced toward their adversaries.

"Great, what now?" Skull muttered.

"What else? We fight like we always have," Queen added, her attentive gaze fell on Mido-Sekiken.

"We must save them," Noir nodded, not taking her eyes off Mido-Sekiken, too.

"I'm going to need more than just Arsène," Joker remarked as he conjured two more Persona. On Joker's left is Satan and on the right is Raoul. "Mido, save your laughter because you won't be celebrating for long!"

"Ooh, is that right, Ren-ren?! Then, do come and get me!" Mido-Sion goaded the Phantom Thief leader to attack him. "Or, perhaps you'd like Annie to fight your battle since she resents me after all I've done to destroy your relationship!"

Upon hearing this, Panther's whip cracked the ground, splintering the earth with tremendous force. Angry flames burst from the whip and shot toward Mido-Sion's path. Jumping up at the last possible second, Mido-Sion evaded Panther's attack and noted her eyes burning with vexation.

"Call me Annie again… AND I'LL BURN YOU ALIVE!" Panther screamed with fury, matching the intensity of her wild flames.

"Panther, that's Sion's body you're still attacking!" Fox reminded her.

"That's right. Our priority is purging Mido out of Skyler and freeing the others," Tennyo stated. "Then, after that, you can burn Mido for all I care."

"Then, we know we have to do it," Hunter affirmed, locking eyes with Mido-Sion. "Hang on, Skyler. We're getting that bastard out of you!"

"By the way, I'll be joining this battle," Crow interjected as he, Violet, and the Elven Princesses arrived on the scene. "My three colleagues here will lend support to the others, but Joker, make room for me, ok? I'd like to have a shot at Mido, too. What a shame he decided to hijack Skyler and Louis' bodies." He quickly pivoted and faced Mido-Sion. "As much as I would like to admire a man with contingency plans, I can't let what you tried to do to Niijima Sae go unpunished."

"Even getting an earful from Shido's hellspawn? I'm not sure whether to be flattered or insulted. No matter, you'll share the same fate as the others. How about we get the horror show underway?!" Mido-Sion openly declared as the Virgin Born, the three Revenants, and the Successors of Beasts attacked.

Joined by Omusubi, Timaeus attacked Fox and Oracle. Fox summoned Gorokichi to defend him and Oracle from the giant hippopotamus-like monster. Omusubi drew out his greatsword, taking Fox and Oracle on. Nadia, Adel/Emily, and Gunslinger/Shinya stepped in to help Fox and Oracle.

Joined by Mircalla, Critias attacked Mona, Skull, Songstress, Protector/Nicola, and Anastasia. Skull and Mona summoned their Ultimate Personas to hold off the giant eel. Protector launched himself into Critias, clobbered the eel-like beast with his shield, and struck it with a three-hit punch combo, dazing the beast. Anastasia fired a light arrow barrage at Critias' side. Mircalla frantically unleashed her metal tail on Mona, Skull, and Songstress. The Successor of the Throat conjured defense magic, protecting Mona and Skull from any damage.

"Lady Mia, you've got to stop this!" Mona pleaded to Mircalla.

"Afraid she can't hear us anymore!" Skull growled as he swung his mace at her, but Mircalla disarmed him with her metal tail and tossed it aside. She then ran up and punched Skull so hard, she nearly knocked the wind out of him.

Songstress unleashed a whirlwind attack, knocking Mircalla back. This gave Mona time to heal Skull.

"You dummy. There's no way you can beat a Revenant in a fistfight!" Mona chided him.

"You're being awfully reckless, Skull!" Anastasia chided him.

"First off, I wasn't even fighting with my fists! And second…" Skull then cracked a stupid grin. "What can I say? I'm a dumbass that does what his body tells him."

Mona scoffed. "Ugh, you…" He then heard Mircalla's horrifying screams, prompting him to turn and watch Mircalla relentlessly striking Songstress with her metal tail. "We're going to save you no matter what, Lady Mia!" He took out his slingshot. "Even if I have to beat you myself." He shot and hit Mircalla with an explosive, quickly drawing her attention. "Yeah, it's me, Lady Mia. You want me? Come and get me!"

Letting out a beastly roar, Mircalla chased Mona.

Joined by Mido-Sekiken, Hermocrates went straight for Queen and Noir. Clenching her fist, Queen jumped up and punched Hermocrates's bird visage, but the Mido-Sekiken tackled her away and dropped her to the ground. Confronting Hermocrates, Violet summoned her Persona Ella to drive it back.

"Louis! I know you're still in there! Don't let Mido win you over your mind and body! Resist him!" Medic/Karen pleaded toward Mido-Sekiken, who completely shut himself off from her cries and focused his intent on killing the Phantom Thief.

"It's no use. Looks like we'll have to beat Mido out of Louis," Leto/Aurora said with contempt toward Mido's body-stealing strategy.

"Louis, you have to snap out of it!" Queen yelled into Mido-Sekiken's face, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. Struggling to match the Revenant's strength, Queen still managed to kick him off.

Hearing footsteps approaching him, Mido-Sekiken instinctively dodged Noir's axe nearly splitting him in two. He turned and saw the axe-wielding disheartened Noir.

"Please don't make me do this, Louis," Noir begged him.

Scanning around, Mido-Sekiken was boxed in with Queen and Noir circling him. The two ladies exchanged nods and went straight to neutralize Mido-Sekiken. However, the Revenant fought back, defending against Noir's axe with his sword and using his demonic arm against Queen.

Hermocrates found itself cornered by Agnes, Lucy, Ella, and Leto. The three Personas and the Successor of the Ribcage relentlessly attacked the Successor of the Beast, holding it off from attacking the Thieves and their allies.

---

Separating himself from the rest, Mido-Sion sent the Virgin Born to attack Joker, Tennyo, Moonlight, Crow, Panther, Hunter, and Shinchū. Joker sent Arsène, Raoul, and Satan to hold off the Virgin Born. The Virgin Born expelled blue miasma again, attempting to poison Joker's Personas, but they strayed away from getting caught by the creature's mist.

During this battle, they spread out away from the collapsed Roppongi building. Several civilians, who hadn't evacuated, witnessed the heated battles and were nearly involved. Among these witnesses were Kawakami Sadayo, Takemi Tae, Mashima Yuuki, and Yoshida Toranosuke. Upon seeing the civilians and the three confidants, Joker prioritized getting them far away.

"Don't worry, Joker! Leave that to us!" Sophie called, arriving alongside Wolf, Sae, Zephryman/Konoe, Zatanna/Akane, and Horkew/Joaquin.

"Everyone, follow me! We'll guide you through!" Wolf yelled out, gathering the civilian crowd away.

"This way!" Sophie beckoned the crowd. "I shall search the other vicinities and find if there are others who haven't evacuated."

"Thanks, Sophie!" Panther said.

As the crowd was being escorted away, the Thieves and the Vein Remnants pressed on with their fighting.

Kawakami briefly turned and watched Joker in action. Smiling, the educator muttered as she could only think about Ren. "That has to be you. Right?"

"Miss, we need to keep going," Toranosuke said, gently pulling Kawakami away. He also watched Joker. "Looking at you, he continues to remind me of him."

"One day, I have to know if you are truly the man behind that mask," Tae muttered. "Still, I'm honored if this whole time I helped nurse the Phantom Thieves' leader."

"If you are Ren, then thanks man," Mishima said as he was being escorted away with the others.

With his two swords drawn, Mido-Sion rushed at Joker and attacked him. Joker barely evaded being sliced apart. Crow then stepped in and tried slashing Mido-Sion from behind, but Mido-Sion blocked Crow's sneak attack and effortlessly knocked him away with Sion's Queenslayer Blade. Interjecting on Joker's behalf, Tennyo summoned two Shogi pieces that slammed into and knocked Mido-Sion back.

"I shall exorcize you!" Tennyo declared, summoning a thunderbolt with her ko-naginata. She launched a Divine Thorn at Mido-Sion, who barely rolled away. She fired again, but he jumped up and evaded getting struck.

"You're going to shoot me faster than that, Togo Hifumi!" Mido-Sion shifted around, mocking and laughing at Tennyo. Just then, the ground shifted under him as spikes came shooting up at him. He realized it was Moonlight, who just conjured her Ivy-Type Blood Veil. "Almost had me, Vein Remnant! But, still not good enough!" He jumped over the spikes.

Moonlight jumped up to reach Mido-Sion and swung her halberd. Mido-Sion countered with his swords, lifting the Judgment Edge overheard to slash her. Just then, Shinchū ensnared Mido-Sion with threads and tossed explosive orbs, which knocked up smoke around him. With his vision blocked by the smoke, a blur quickly pushed Mido-Sion back and sent him crashing to the ground. Stirring and sitting up, Mido-Sion saw Hunter with his readily drawn sword.

"Mido! You better release my friends now!" Hunter yelled out as he charged toward Mido-Sion.

"Would you risk crippling your friend's bodies if it meant freeing them from my control?!" Mido-Sion rushed forward and swung his two swords at Hunter, who evaded close-quarters fighting with the Mido-possessed Revenant.

"I don't need to destroy Skyler and Louis's bodies! I just need to force your essence out of them!" Hunter shouted as he and Mido-Sion exchanged sword slashes. While pushing Mido-Sion back with the weight of his sword, two hound heads materialized behind Hunter as they eyed their intended target and attempted to ensnare Mido-Sion.

Mido-Sion quickly swung his two swords, defending himself from the hound's bone-crushing jaws. Hunter rushed ahead and clashed swords with Mido-Sion. Fiercely glaring into Mido-Sion's frenzied eyes, Hunter's eyes glowed blue.

"This is not quite how you wanted to duel with your friend, huh, Jack?" Mido-Sion taunted the blue-eyed Revenant.

"Shut up! Don't talk like you're Skyler Jones!" Hunter angrily retorted, swinging his sword against Mido-Sion's Queenslayer Blade.

"Eheheh, gee you don't say?!" Mido-Sion quipped, snickering much to Hunter's annoyance.

Allowing a cooler head to prevail, Hunter shut off Mido-Sion's taunts. He evaded close quarters from Mido-Sion's Judgment Edge. Delivering a quick swing with Judgment Edge, Mido-Sion unleashed a powerful slash that cut through the ground and headed for Hunter. Jumping at the last possible second, Hunter escaped the clutches of death. He glanced past his shoulder and Mido-Sion was gone.

"Jack!" Songstress called out to him.

"Eheheh! Nice dodge there, Jacky boy!" Mido-Sion chimed in with a mocking tone.

Hearing Mido-Sion's voice, Hunter turned around as a demonic hand grabbed him. Hunter managed to block with his sword. Then, two similar hound heads popped out behind Mido-Sion. Hunter's hounds came out and clashed with Mido-Sion's.

"Hahah, what is that all?! Why not transform into that dragon to fight me?!" Mido-Sion cackled as a metal tail materialized behind him, which he then turned loose on Hunter.

Fighting off all of Mido-Sion's Blood Veils, Hunter struggled to even land a hit on him. Mido-Sion rushed forward and caught Hunter with a quick swipe with his Queenslayer Blade. Knocked off his feet by Mido-Sion's attack, Hunter received a chest wound.

"Not quite Skyler's equal, are you, Jacky boy?" Mido-Sion chuckled, licking the Revenant's blood from his Queenslayer Blade. "Eh, ichor doesn't quite have the refined taste as a full-blood human." As he said this, his attention turned toward Tennyo, who was tending to Moonlight.

As Mido-Sion turned his metal tail toward Tennyo and Moonlight, Joker fired bullets and Shinchū threw explosives at him. With a swing with his tail, the Revenant blocked the explosive blasts. Joker nodded to someone behind Mido-Sion. Looking past his shoulder, a pillar of flames headed his way. Mido-Sion sidestepped the raging fire, coming from Panther and Celestine.

"You just can't let bygones be bygones, huh, Annie?" Mido-Sion devilishly grinned much to Panther's irritation.

Screaming with fury, Panther and Celestine unleashed incandescent flames toward Mido-Sion. Mido-Sion jumped up, madly swinging his two swords to fight off the flames.

"HOLD STILL!" Panther screamed.

"Oh, did I strike a nerve, Annie?!" Mido-Sion cackled.

"SHUT UP, YOU ASSHOLE!" She retorted and blasted him with Agidyne.

Observing the intense fighting, Tennyo and Moonlight stood poised to fight Mido-Sion. After Panther and Celestine's flames pushed him back, Tennyo and Moonlight quickly ran up to Mido-Sion. Tennyo struck him with Divine Thorn, allowing Moonlight to hit him across the back with her halberd. Shinchū quickly slapped a thread full of explosives around Mido-Sion, which created a big enough explosion to send him flying back. After being blasted into the air, Joker jumped in front of Mido-Sion and put a dagger to his throat. Struggling to hold on, Joker was outmatched by Mido-Sion, who flipped him over and tossed him aside. Crow stood ready to engage Mido-Sion, but the Revenant quickly took him down with a Stinger-Type Blood Veil.

"Alright, no more child's games," angrily scoffed Mido-Sion. With his eyes glowing, a dark red aura formed over him. The aura pulsated like a heart's beat as the Revenant's power coursed through and augmented him. Gaining a strength and speed boost, he attacked Joker, Panther, Tennyo, Moonlight, Hunter, Crow, and Shinchū with lightning-fast strikes.

None were able to discern Mido-Sion's newfound speed. He turned and smiled over his beaten foes.

"Had enough already? Gee, and I haven't even gotten started," Mido-Sion taunted them.

---

On another side of the city, civilians who hadn't been evacuated watched Fox, Oracle, Gunslinger, Adel, and Nadia fighting Omusubi. Among the witnesses were Ohya Ichiko and Sakura Sojiro.

When she saw Sojiro, Oracle called out to him.

"Sojiro, you need to get out of here! Get these people out of the vicinity!" Oracle yelled.

Just then, Sophie arrived and helped to escort the crowd away.

"Futaba, please be ok! Make sure you and the others find me after you deal with this!" Sojiro shouted to his adoptive daughter.

"Let's go, sir," Sophie said, guiding Sojiro away with the other civilians.

"Thanks, Sophie. I owe you," Oracle smirked.

Openly snarling at his former friends, Omusubi quickly headed off Fox, Oracle, Gunslinger, Adel, and Nadia. Nadia tried to block Omusubi's path and threw a whip toward him. Omusubi casually sidestepped Nadia's whip and pushed Nadia away with a powerful shoulder tackle. As Gunslinger fired repeated shots with his laser gun, Omusubi blocked them with his greatsword.

"YAKUMO!" Adel shouted as she dove straight into Omusubi, pushing him away from Fox and Oracle. "Listen to me, Yakumo! You need to fight Mido's control! Don't let him completely turn you into his mindless puppet!"

Growling and giving her a murderous gaze, Omusubi rushed toward Adel. Taking a few mad swings at Adel, the frenzied Revenant forced her to withdraw 20 feet back. Adel extracted long red claws.

"Yakumo, it's me, Emily! Listen to me, you're under Mido's control!" Adel pleaded with him again.

Gnashing his teeth, Omusubi snarled and swung his greatsword at the Successor of the Claw. Adel parried his sword slashes.

"I know you can hear me, Yakumo! The enemy has you under their control! Resist their control!" She delivered a claw strike that Omusubi countered with his greatsword. "Yakumo!"

Hearing his name uttered by this humanoid cat only irked Omusubi, who went to stab her with his sword. Adel briefly undid her mask, revealing her real face. Upon seeing Emily's face, Omusubi ceased his attack as his sword stopped a few inches from her face. Standing unfazed, Emily gazed directly at Omusubi.

"It's me, Yakumo! You can stop this! Remember, you want to kill Mido for the anguish he brought on us!" Adel pleaded to him.

Gritting his teeth, Omusubi struggled with his mind seemingly resisting Mido's control. Omusubi's eyes switched from glowing red to their natural color. His eye color switched as he mentally struggled.

"Is he going to be ok?" Gunslinger asked.

"I-I hope so," Adel replied cautiously, eyeing Omusubi's mental struggle.

"C'mon, Yakumo!" Oracle called out. Just then, a loud beep came out of her visor. She turned toward Timaeus, whose tusks glowed with dark purple light. "Crap, the big tusked bastard's about to attack us!"

"Gorokichi, come to our defense!" Fox beckoned his Ultimate Persona.

When Timaeus mounted an offensive charge, Gorokichi interjected on his summoner and company's behalf. As its tusks glowed, Timaeus unleashed its Judgment Charge. Gorokichi quickly struck back, hitting it with a Vicious Strike. The sword slash fazed but merely slowed the Successor beast down.

"I don't know how long Gorokichi can hold it, but we need to get Yakumo back to his senses," Fox stated.

"Doesn't mean we have to stand idly by like a couple of dumbshits," Oracle said, whipping out her laser sword. "Yo, Shinya! Give us support!"

"You got it!" Gunslinger fired laser shots at Timaeus, prompting Oracle to slash the beast's back legs.

As Fox, Oracle, and Gunslinger assisted Gorokichi, Adel embraced Omusubi, who lashed out and growled. He pushed her off, but Adel hugged him tighter. Omusubi's growls slowly ceased and the red in his eyes faded, his shoulder spikes disappeared and his white hair color returned to his normal hair color.

Refusing to let him go, Adel pleaded tearfully. "Come back to us, Yakumo."

"Emily?" Omusubi muttered, causing Adel to hug him tight. "Is everything ok?"

"I'm just glad you're you again," Adel nodded, tightening her hug further.

---

The Successor of the Breath dropped in and punched Critias's face. The eel-like monster quickly rebounded and slapped Protector back with its tail. The eel unleashed a tidal wave that crashed into the large armored Protector. The Waves of Retribution pushed the Successor of the Breath back, sending it crashing into a heap on the street.

"Mia! It's me, Nicola!" The Successor of the Breath worryingly called out to the frenzied Revenant.

For a moment, Mircalla's eyes turned to normal, but her frenzied state returned. She continued her attack on Skull and Mona. Songstress eventually joined in, breaking away from Joker's group.

"I'm here to help! Have any of you gotten through Mia?" Songstress asked the group fighting Mircalla.

"Nah! She's a hard shell to crack!" Skull replied. "But, we ain't giving up!"

"Nicola, keep talking to Lady Mia! You were able to get through to her for a brief moment!" Mona called out to the Successor of the Breath.

"Yeah, but easier said than done!" Protector called out while fending off Critias.

"Leave it to us!" Skull added as he beckoned William, who delivered a Swift Strike to batter the giant eel and followed it with Mazionga to electrically stun the Successor beast.

"Go, Diego!" Mona beckoned his Ultimate Persona, who blasted Critias with a Magarudyne. "Keep calling to her, Nicola!"

"Mia! It's me, Nicola!" The Successor of the Breath yelled out, drawing his brainwashed sister's attention away from the heated battle.

With red eyes locked with Protector, Mircalla snarled and shot her metal tail at him. He stepped in and used his armored body to deflect Mircalla's tail.

"That's not going to work on me, sis. Stop this now," Protector pleaded. As Mircalla continued attacking, he guarded himself against Mircalla's metal tail. While Protector was preoccupied with his sister, Skull interjected and charged up a yellow aura around him. He rushed in and rammed into Mircalla, charging himself like a lightning bolt and blasting her back.

After Skull delivered his Electric Kaio-ken, Mona jumped up and shot Mircalla between her eyes with an explosive smoke ball. Blinded by a billowing smoke cloud, Mircalla frenziedly swung her metal tail around, missing her targets. Protector quickly picked up and hugged Mircalla.

"Sis! Please, stop this! I know you can hear me!" Protector pleaded, hoping his heart-wrenching words could reach Mircalla. For a brief moment, Mircalla's frenzied state lessened. The red in her eyes faded. "Mia?"

"Lady Mia! Don't let that jerkass take hold of you and the others!" Mona cried out.

Letting out a high-pitched wail, Mircalla's will seemingly begin to resist the miasma's influence. Her shoulder spikes disappear and her white hair color returns to her normal hair color.

"C'mon, sis! You can do it!" Protector encouraged her.

---

Witnessing the other two Revenants resisting his control, Mido-Sion didn't take any more chances and went straight for Tennyo. Joker, Panther, Moonlight, and Hunter attempted to cut him off, but Mido-Sion brushed them off with his two swords. Joker fired with his Tyrant Pistol, but Mido-Sion pushed him back with his Judgment Edge. Hunter went for a sword strike, but the possessed Revenant countered his blow with his Queenslayer Blade. After parrying Hunter's strikes, the possessed Revenant conjured a bullet made of his own blood and struck Hunter's with it. The Blood Bullet quickly struck Hunter's side and knocked him far back.

Defending Tennyo, Moonlight summoned her Blood Veil, but Mido-Sion wiped them out with a double sword swing.

"You're just delaying the inevitable," growled Mido-Sion, who rushed over and delivered a double sword strike, knocking Moonlight's halberd away. After disarming the pale-skinned Revenant, Mido-Sion conjured two black orbs, which surrounded Moonlight. "Now play dead, Vein Remnant!" With a finger snap, the two orbs combined into a single red sphere and exploded like a bomb, hitting Moonlight full force and knocking her away. "Now, it's down to you and me, Togo Hifumi. Ren-ren and the others can't save you now."

Gazing over her fallen colleagues, Tennyo quivered with trepidation. Mido-Sion felt the young woman's fear and relished in it.

"I can feel your fear. Are you afraid of what I can and will possibly do to you with your lover's body? Well, how about I show you?!" Mido-Sion shot up and grabbed Tennyo's neck before her mind could even click and react. He seized Tennyo and flew far away, carrying her away from the others.

Joker quickly came to and called out. "HIFUMI!" He sent his Personas toward Mido-Sion and Tennyo's direction, but the Virgin Born intervened and halted the Personas. "Damn it!"

Distancing himself and Tennyo from the others, Mido-Sion slammed Tennyo against the back of an abandoned bus. With his hold tightening, Tennyo felt her strength leaving her. Discarding his mask and evilly grinning, Mido-Sion dropped Tennyo. When she tried crawling away, Mido-Sion grabbed her leg and flipped her over. He quickly mounted on top of Tennyo and pinned her arms down.

Tennyo screamed. Mido-Sion cupped her mouth shut and put a finger to his lips as if telling her to hush.

"Now, now, we can't have that, Togo Hifumi," Mido-Sion chortled as the woman had an expression written all over her face that described her plight: contempt. "Heheh, you must despise me so much. Well, you're going to hold even more contempt for what I'm going to do to you. One way or another, Shin-Io's power will be mine."

Between her muffled screams and her contempt for Mido, Tennyo was still looking into the face of the man she loved. Now, this same monster was prepared to use Sion's body to violate her and implant a fragment of himself into her. Recalling every beautiful and erotic intercourse they've indulged themselves in, Tennyo resisted with every fiber of her being against Mido-Sion's forceful penetration.

"With Shin-Io's power, I can carry out my intended wish and force humanity to evolve into my desired perfect specimens to populate the world. We can create a haven of superhumans like Revenants, leading to the dawn of a new age of superhumans! And with me on top of the food chain!" Mido-Sion declared as he grabbed Tennyo's top half of her dress and ripped fabrics off it, revealing her breasts. "Heheh, yes, based on Skyler's memories, I can see why he loves you. You have a magnificent body, Togo Hifumi. Perhaps you can be my personal experiment once I have control of your goddess powers?" As Tennyo's face contorted with utter disgust, Mido-Sion shook his head. "No, that would be redundant since I have someone waiting for me who shares your exact characteristics. She's waiting for her 'daddy' to continue her 'check-up'."

Tennyo muffled screams continued as she kicked at him. She even tried biting him, but this act of defiance didn't deter him. It encouraged him to restrain Tennyo. Mido-Sion's eyes started shifting toward the lower area of her dress.

"How about a little more before I put a little red bow on my plan?" The perverse Revenant slowly placed his hand over the lower part of her dress. As he slipped his hand under her dress, a defiant voice shouted inside his mind. "What?!"

"Leave her alone! LEAVE HIFUMI ALONE!"

Feeling his hand trembling on its own, Mido-Sion was bewildered by this involuntary action. He felt the body suddenly going against his will.

"What the hell is this?! Skyler Jones?! How are you doing this?!"

Upon seeing Mido-Sion struggling against Sion, Tennyo bit his hand again. Mido-Sion withdrew his hand away. Letting out an unbridled roar, Mido-Sion's mind was in an internal struggle between two wills: Skyler's and Mido's.

"Skyler! Resist that monster! You can do it!" Tennyo encouraged him. As Mido-Sion grabbed his head and violently thrashed around, she picked up her ko-naginata.

"Skyler Jones! You can't resist me! I have your woman now! She will be the precursor to a new age of humanity! How would you be against this next step in human evolution?! We will make a beautiful future together!" Mido-Sion berated the man whose body he's claimed.

"Because you don't make that choice! And you're about to violate my woman!"

"Heheheh, well it's not too late to do that, now is it?!"

"STOP!"

Turning around, Tennyo swung her ko-naginata at him, but Mido-Sion seized and disarmed her. He pushed her down and mounted her. He prepared to finish what he started. As he leaned in for a kiss, Mido-Sion's face contorted. His left eye turned back to normal, a sign he regained control of half of his body.

"YOU WILL NOT RESIST ME, SKYLER! ACCEPT THE FATE THAT'S ABOUT TO BEFALL HUMANITY! I WILL AUGMENT HUMAN EVOLUTION BY A HUNDRED YEARS!"

Sion's voice came out of Mido-Sion's lips. "NEVER!"

"SKYLER!" Tennyo screamed to him.

"Hifumi… please… forgive me…" Sion muttered.

Before Hifumi could offer a single word, Mido-Sion bit Tennyo's neck and drained some of her blood through his vampiric fangs. After drinking his girlfriend's blood, Sion utilized the goddess' power coursing through him to severe Mido's control.

"NO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! STOP!" The apprehensive roars of Mido came out as Shin-Io's power coursing through Sion's body forced Mido's contaminated essence out.

Having been forced out of Sion, the blue miasma reformed into Mido, who fell to a knee and panted hard. The shoulder spikes of Sion disappear, blue eye colors return to normal, while the white hair color returns to his normal hair color. Gazing toward Sion and Tennyo, Mido was beside himself.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE, SKYLER JONES?!" Bellowed an irate Mido, who struggled to stand. He quickly swung Judgment Edge at Sion.

However, Sion swiftly countered Mido's attack with his Queenslayer Blade and Hanemukuro. Taken aback by Sion's counterattack, Mido was repelled by the dual sword attack. Then, he was pushed back by a fiery projectile, conjured as a result of Sion's Frenzied Fire.

"Ugh, you underhanded bastard…" Scowled the Revenant scientist, shaking off the remnants of the fire that nearly burned him whole.

"Underhanded? Look who's talking. You should look in a mirror," Sion retorted as Joker, Panther, Moonlight, and Hunter arrived.

"You thought you could control Skyler like that? Attacking his woman was the biggest mistake you can ever make," Hunter plainly said.

"Skyler, Hifumi!" Moonlight called out. Upon seeing Sion holding Tennyo, he kissed her and returned the goddess' power he borrowed to purge Mido from his body. That energy was used to restore the torn upper dress Mido ripped apart.

"Hifumi, can you hear me?" Sion asked her.

As she awoke, Tennyo let out a deep gasp.

"Hifumi, thank goodness."

"So, it worked," Tennyo smiled, realizing Shin-Io's power saved her and Sion.

---

More civilians hadn't been evacuated and they watched the other battles that spread into their area. Mifune Chihaya and Iwai Munehisa were seen in the crowd. Sophie, Wolf, and Sae arrived to escort them away. Sae also noticed her husband Hojo.

"Sae!" Hojo called to his wife. Upon seeing her, he ran over and hugged her. "I was so worried! Makoto called me and…"

"I'm ok now, but I never want to go through all I've seen again."

"Where's Makoto?"

"Out there fighting to protect us," Sae answered, vaguely smiling.

Meanwhile, Hermocrates found itself briefly overwhelmed by Agnes, Lucy, Ella, and Leto. The Successor of Ribcage collided with the Successor beast. Reiko convened with Queen and Noir. Shikama/Reiko formed a white barrier, halting Mido-Sekiken and giving the Phantom Thieves recovery time.

"Thank you," Noir said as she utilized Lucy's Amrita Shower to heal herself and Queen.

"C'mon, we can't let Reiko get hurt under our watch!" Queen said as Shikama started reinforcing her barrier against Mido-Sekiken's deadly strikes.

Laughing at Shikama, Mido-Sekiken conjured his Ogre-Type Blood Veil and shoved his demonic hand into Shikama's barrier. "Foolish girl, you think this insignificant barrier can keep me at bay?!"

"I won't let you hurt my friends, Mido!" Shikama shouted in defiance.

Suddenly, Mido-Sekiken's demon hand cracked the face of the barrier, alarming Shikama. Shikama augmented the barrier further, but a punch from Mido-Sekiken's fist shattered the wall. Queen and Noir promptly rushed at the Revenant. Lunging head-on with Mido-Sekiken, Queen forcefully pushed the Revenant into some debris from the fallen building.

"Louis! I know you can hear me! Resist Mido's control!" Queen passionately yelled into the frenzied Revenant's face.

"We know you and the others have strong wills! Don't let Mido's influence overtake you!" Noir openly pleaded with him.

With Agnes and Lucy's assistance, the Successor of the Ribcage pushed back against Hermocrates. The giant white wolf conjured electrically charged blows against the large Roc bird-like monster. In retaliation, Hermocrates flapped its wings and unleashed a strong wind force against Aurora and the two Ultimate Personas. The wolf cast a barrage of icicles, which stopped and froze Hermocrates's Redemption Acrobatics. After halting the Roc bird's attack with her Frost Bolts, the Successor of the Ribcage faced Sekiken's way.

Leto called out to the brainwashed Revenant. "Louis, you must stop attacking them! They're your beloved girlfriends! You're attacking Makoto and Haru!"

Upon hearing Aurora's voice, Mido-Sekiken slightly turned and conveyed irritation by her constant pleas. The Mido side prepared to blast Leto. This distracted him long enough for Queen to punch him hard. Queen then elbowed and swiftly uppercutted him high into the air. Mido-Sekiken flew up and crashed hard on the floor. Queen then mounted Louis and reared her fist back.

"Mako-chan!" Noir shouted to her.

"Heh, what do you think you can do to save your lover, Niijima Makoto?! You'll never have him because he's mine! His mind, body, and soul belong to me!" Mido-Sekiken callously taunted Queen. "You wouldn't dare bruise your charming Louis' face, would you?"

Smirking, Queen clenched her fist. "You want to try me, Mido?" She looked into Mido-Sekiken's frenzied eyes. He tried biting her hand, but the Phantom Thief swiftly punched his face. "That's for my sis!"

"Oh dear," Noir gasped at Queen's lack of restraint. "Give him another! One for Louis!"

"Louis, try and come back to us," Queen pleaded as she punched him again.

"Oh, that's enough, Mako-chan!" Noir called out as she slid over next to Queen. "I didn't mean to encourage you, but if you keep hitting him like that…!"

"I might kill him? It's better than letting that psychopath control him against his will! I'd rather that than let him be someone else's plaything!" Queen snapped, her eyes brimming with tears. Upon noticing her fresh tears, she withdrew even meeting Noir's gaze. "Sorry, I don't want you to see me like this."

Noir smiled. "No, do what you must, Mako-chan. But, we can try another way."

"What?"

"C'mon, you'd dare ask?"

Just then, Mido-Sekiken shot up and tried to wring their necks, but Queen and Noir pushed him into a wall. He struggled to break loose. With resolved looks, Queen and Noir nodded as they took off their masks and kissed Sekiken's lips. Queen lip-locked Sekiken first but he resisted and tried biting her lips. Taking her turn, Noir kissed Sekiken. With her lips meeting his, Queen quickly grabbed Sekiken's crotch to try arousing the Revenant.

Shikama blushed upon seeing the romantic intercourse. "Oh, wow…"

A chuckle came from Aurora, who was still in the middle of staving off Hermocrates. "Well, that's one way of saving the one you love."

During Queen and Noir's romantic intercourse, Sekiken's blue eyes slowly fade back to his normal eye color. The shoulder spikes disappear while Sekiken's white hair color returns to his normal hair color. His will struggled to resist Mido's control, but Sekiken's love for his girlfriends gave him a fighting chance.

However, the kiss wasn't the only deciding factor that allowed him to resist Mido's influence. He quickly grabbed his head and ground his teeth.

"Don't think your girlfriends' love for you will be enough to drive me out, Louis! I own your mind and body!" Mido's voice yelled out from Sekiken's mouth.

"Shut up, Mido!" Sekiken angrily retorted.

"I will never let you go, Louis! You belong to me!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Sekiken resisted as he clenched his right fist and punched himself in the face. "YOU WILL NEVER LAY CLAIM TO ME! MY BODY AND HEART BELONG TO MAKOTO AND HARU!"

Mido's voice started to fade. "Damn it… no, this cannot be. I'm losing control… this shouldn't be possible."

"Most of all, I will never become your slave. So… YOU CAN GO TO FUCKING HELL!" Sekiken used his willpower to break the last vestiges of Mido's influence over him. Having freed himself, Sekiken fell to his knees, prompting Queen and Noir to run over to him.

"Louis! Oh, thank goodness," Medic sighed with relief as she smiled.

"It took his love for Makoto & Haru and his willpower to overcome Mido. I have to give it to your brother. He's an amazing guy," Leto added, giving Sekiken his props for character strength.

"He is an amazing guy," Medic nodded, watching Sekiken, Queen, and Noir embracing together.

Standing together, Sekiken, Queen, and Noir turned toward the other groups. They noticed Sion, Mircalla, and Omusubi were normal, too, and witnessed Mido standing solitarily and being cornered.

"C'mon, it's time for some payback," Sekiken stated, vehemently glaring at Mido.

"You and us both," Queen added.

---

"You're fools! We could've had something beautiful to work with! With Shin-Io's power, we could've produced the next step in human evolution! We could've had superhumans! Something to replace the weak, feeble, and corrupted simians that currently propagate this planet! But, you'd rather let this world rot into decadence?!" Mido scornfully lambasted the group. "Skyler Jones, I thought you and your friends would understand, but it seems that living among these simpleton humans has softened you. The humans that refuse to evolve would only serve to become our food source. That's survival at its fittest!"

"You don't get to decide that. The minute you decide to experiment on people, you lose any privilege to dictate humanity's fate!" Joker said, pointing his dagger toward Mido. "Juzo Mido, we won't take your heart. A monster like you can't be allowed to exist. So, prepare to meet your end!"

As the other three Revenants' started regaining control over their bodies, white auras formed over them. Sion, too, became enveloped in a white aura, which surprised him.

"What the hell is happening now?" Mido was confounded by this new development.

"This is your power, Hifumi," Sion muttered as he faced her. "Shin-Io's will not only purge Mido from me, but its essence has purified the others."

"That's right. I have now bestowed you the power to invoke your full potential and in turn, immunize your bodies from Mido's miasma."

Upon hearing this, Sion genuinely smiled. "Is that so? Hear that, Mido? That means you can't pull another dirty trick and try taking my body again, because I'll just kick you out. Your free rent service is permanently void."

Scowling, Mido sank to one knee and clenched his fists. "This isn't over yet. You think you've won? I have other contingencies in place."

"You can try, but you'll fail," the voice of Sekiken chimed in.

As Mido turned, he saw Sekiken, Mircalla, and Omusubi float over next to Sion. The other Phantom Thieves and the Successors arrived to confront Mido.

"Hey, Mido! We broke free from your influence!" Omusubi yelled out.

"We won't be mind-controlled by you ever again. Do you hear me?!" Mircalla shouted.

"You will never use my body as long as I'm still breathing, Mido!" Sekiken said.

"Then if I can't have yours and Skyler's bodies, then I'll get rid of you both," Mido scowled.

Having assembled the Beasts and the Virgin Born by his side, Mido pointed them toward their enemies. The Phantom Thieves & their Personas, the Envoys of Vein, the four Successors, and their allies assembled as they headed off Mido's forces. Then, all hell broke loose in the Roppongi prefecture.

Leading the charge against Mido and the Virgin Born, Joker and Sion amassed Tennyo, Panther, Crow, Hunter, Moonlight, and Shinchū. Joker's four Personas quickly collided with and attacked the Virgin Born. Throwing its left claw outward, the Virgin Born tried to swipe the group away, but the Thieves and Revenants rolled away. The Virgin Born launched thorn projectiles, which Satan and Raoul neutralized with offensive attacks. Using Diamond Dust, Satan wiped out some of the Virgin Born's Purging Thorns. Raoul unleashed a darkness wave, wiping out the remaining thorns. After purging the thorns with its Blazing Hell, Raoul cast Heat Riser on Satanael, increasing its strength and defense. Gathering energy through its claws, the Virgin Born tossed a fast-moving beam that wiped out Raoul.

"Joker, we can't simply destroy that creature! There are still two people inside! Louis wouldn't appreciate it if anything happened to Gregorio and his daughter," Sion reminded the Phantom Thief leader.

"Yeah, I realize that," Joker replied.

Swinging his Judgment Edge with murderous intent, Mido charged toward Joker and Sion. Coming to their defense, Tennyo, Hunter, Panther, Crow, Moonlight, and Shinchū engaged the villain. Tennyo conjured large Shogi pieces, which fired lightning blasts. With lightning bolts hitting him, Moonlight quickly slashed his body with her Kunitokotachi ko-naginata. Panther furiously unleashed a fiery wave from her whip. With his Judgment Edge, Mido guarded himself from Panther's flames.

With unbridled and volcanic fury, Panther screamed. "YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY WITHOUT A SCRATCH, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Her fiery rage was enough to slightly unnerve Mido.

An apprehensive look formed on Joker's face, conveying newfound fear of his wife's volatile behavior. The last time Panther showed this level of aggression was when the Yami Matter possessed her and spawned Cognitive Ann. However, her current anger has greatly surpassed that.

Upon summoning Celestine, Panther gave herself and her Ultimate Persona a Burn Boost. Augmenting their power, Panther amassed fire from Celestine and blasted Mido with Blazing Hell. Mido defended himself with Judgment Edge, pushing back against Panther's fiery wrath.

Panther furiously screamed. "BURN, YOU MONSTER!"

Noticing his own feet being pushed back, Mido was taken aback by Panther's unrestrained anger increasing her fire's power. Joker noticed Mido left himself unguarded from the back and sent Satanael to blast him with Riot Gun.

"Your wife is truly showing us an uninhibited side I never thought I'd see. I must admit she is unnerving even me," Crow smirked as he set his sights on Mido. "Now, how about I pay you back in spades, Mido?"

Following up Joker's attack, Crow sent Hereward to strike the Revenant scientist with Laevateinn. With his Executioner sword, Hunter landed successive slashes all over Mido. Then, as he leaped high, Hunter came down and slammed into Mido with incredible force, performing his Severing Abyss Gift to overwhelm the villain. After the group inflicted considerable damage on Mido, Shinchū snuck behind the villainous Revenant and wrapped him with threads, which exploded and left him heavily damaged.

"Don't mess with my friend Hifumi and her friends, you monster," Shinchū whispered to Mido as she hopped over him and ran over to Tennyo. "Did you see what I did, Hifumi?! I got the last hit on him!"

"Yes, great work, but don't celebrate yet," Tennyo said as she and the others cautiously watched Mido collapse on one knee. Despite the heavy toll taken on him, the Revenant scientist refused to relent to his adversaries.

Raising his face and with his one eye glowing bright red, Mido seethed at the sight of Sion, Joker, Tennyo, and the others standing their ground.

"Virgin Born! Destroy them!" Mido beckoned the entity toward the aforementioned Thieves and Revenants.

As the Virgin Born swiped Satanael, Raoul, and Arsène away, the creature prepared an attack on the group. After sheathing his blade, Sion's body started to grow.

"Be careful what you wish for, Mido! Don't forget, we have our own Successor forms to counter your beasts!" Sion reminded him.

"Datenshi learned that the hard way," Joker added. "But, wait. Aren't you always prepared with contingencies? You should've seen this one coming."

"A slight oversight, but that can be course corrected. I'm no fool like that Angel of Control," Mido replied.

The Virgin Born and Sion quickly collided. The Virgin Born grappled the 11-foot-tall allosaurid and pushed it to the ground. It fired a fast-moving projectile, known as the Thorn Spear, from the energy charge in its claws, but the allosaurid ensnared the creature's front left leg and delivered a bone-crushing bite, breaking off the front leg. The Successor of Julius Deion then stood up and smacked it with its feathered tail. Then, the allosaurid stomped its hind legs, sending a powerful seismic wave through the earth. Unleashing its Vasto Quake, the allosaurid quickly knocked the Virgin Born down. Then, the allosaurid mounted the Virgin Born's back, using its jaws and claws to tear open its back.

"Can this thing handle two Successor beasts? Let's find out," Hunter said, invoking his necklace as it glowed and infused him with power that transformed him into his Successor of the Drake form.

Songstress briefly paused from her battle and witnessed her lover in his dragon form. "Things have escalated if they need their Successor forms."

As the allosaurid headbutted the Virgin Born, the Successor of the Drake swung around and tail whipped the latter. After getting tail whipped, the Virgin Born collapsed. Calling upon its Hound-Type Blood Veil, the dragon summoned its two other heads. The three heads delivered a triple bite force and dealt its Slavic Fangs on the Virgin Born. The Virgin Born responded by releasing energy from its claws and hastily struck the dragon. The dragon formed a defensive barrier, protecting it from the Virgin Born. As the Virgin Born battered the dragon's Otr's Concealment Wall, the Successor of Julius Deinos bit down on the Virgin Born's back. The Virgin Born grabbed and tossed the allosaurid off its back. Fighting back with its might, the Virgin Born lobbed three projectiles toward the two beasts, both of whom sidestepped its attacks. The dragon expelled blue flames and blasted the Virgin Born with its Fafnir's Breath.

"Satanael! Pillage that monster!" Joker beckoned his Ultimate Persona. After that, he transformed into his Persona's Ascendancy form, Raoul ΩX. Setting his sights on the wounded Virgin Born, Raoul ΩX sent Satanael to fire an Ω Sinful Shell. As the powerful bullet tore through the back of the Virgin Born, the entity let out a blood-curdling bellow and violently thrashed around until it collapsed.

"We cannot lose this war, Virgin Born. I will ensure that," Mido growled as his self-regeneration healed most of his wounds, giving him another chance to reenter the battle. He lunged toward Sion, Hunter, and Raoul ΩX, unleashing a flurry of punches, and delivering painful body shots to his three adversaries. Then, he forged four black spheres from his hands. He telekinetically shifted the black spheres all over the place, before making them fly and spin around Raoul ΩX, Sion, and Hunter randomly. "Which one of you three will be first to be shot? Oh well, how about you both?!" He flicked his left index finger, causing the black spheres to behave like time bombs and fire a barrage of red beams.

Converging on their three targets, these 'death beams' bombarded Raoul ΩX, Sion, and Hunter. However, Satanel quickly flew in front of Raoul ΩX, Sion, and Hunter, taking most of Mido's Collapsar Ray.

"Satanael!" Raoul ΩX yelled out, collapsing as he had taken a few shots from Mido's beams.

Hunter attempted to fight back with his Slavic Fangs but Mido's beams bombarded the dragon and caused him to turn back to his normal self. Struggling to stand, Hunter was left baffled by the difference between his and Mido's power.

When Sion tried defending himself, Mido conjured an array of floating red energy blades that flew at the allosaurid and slashed his unguarded spots. He was quickly struck down by Mido's Blades of Richelieu.

"Yes, how are you enjoying the pain, boys? Do you want more? I'll happily oblige," Mido said, forming more black spheres.

"Sion!" Tennyo shouted as she, Moonlight, Hunter, Crow, Panther, and Shinchū headed off the Revenant scientist, but Mido redirected the black spheres toward the group.

While Tennyo and Moonlight quickly put up barriers, they protected the group from Mido's attacks. However, a few managed to bypass Tennyo and Moonlight's defenses. The few black spheres launched red beams and blasted the group.

"C'mon, let's not let up, Hifumi!" Moonlight yelled as she and Tennyo formed another barrier while managing to nullify Mido's Collapsar Ray.

"Get up, Joker!" Panther called to the Phantom Thief, who began to stir.

"Skyler!" Tennyo and Moonlight cried out to the Revenant allosaurid.

"Get your ass up, Skyler!" Hunter hounded him.

Hearing his friends' pleas, Sion opened his eyes and stood up, fiercely snarling toward Mido and the Virgin Born.

"We're still in this fight, Mido. We won't keel over to you," Raoul ΩX declared, giving Mido a menacing glare that irritated Mido. "Panther, Crow, it's time! Ascend now!"

Panther and Crow then merged with their respective Ultimate Personas, invoking their Persona's Ascendancy states. Panther became Celestine ΩX and Crow became Hereward ΩX.

"It's time, Hifumi. Let us become Shin-Io," Moonlight promptly declared as she and Tennyo put their hands together. As a white light enveloped them, Moonlight's body converted into a white light that immersed with Tennyo, transforming her outward appearance. She gained some of Io's features, including her clothing and her golden eyes. Her long brown hair turned full-on white. A cyan blue shrine maiden's tiara-like headpiece formed over Shin-Io's head coupled with hair accessory amber knots. Six feathered wings sprouted from Shin-Io's back, giving her the majestic presence of an angel-like being.

Upon seeing Shin-Io, Mido was mesmerized by her divine presence. "Incredible. I never imagined Shin-Io's power would be this majestic, but it's power… it's incredible… somehow, I must have it." He then shifted toward the three Ascended Phantom Thieves. "And I'll have the distinct honor of challenging the ultimate power of Persona's Ascendancy, the same powers used to fight the Angel of Control."

Narrowing her golden-eyed gaze, Shin-Io gave Mido a scornful glare. "I won't be your property, Juzo Mido. You're finished here."

"And don't forget about me! We have things to settle!" Celestine ΩX stepped up, tightly gripping the whip in her hand. Everyone close to Celestine X ΩX sensed her feral aura. Like a volcano waiting to erupt and like a bomb ready to go off, Celestine ΩX snarled toward Mido.

"What's wrong, Annie? Cat got your tongue?" Mido purposefully taunted Celestine ΩX, who rebuked with abhorrence.

"How about I rip out your tongue, MOTHERFUCKER?!"

Most of the others, except Shin-Io, who was the least fazed, backed away from Celestine ΩX, who stood covered in a bright red aura.

Mido laughed off Celestine ΩX's threat. "Such a cute idle threat, Annie. Come and humor me then, my friends. I shall make sure there's nothing left of you all." With that, Mido immediately targeted the group and launched more black spheres, unleashing another array of Collapsar Rays. He saw Raoul ΩX, Celestine ΩX, and Hereward ΩX swiftly evading his beams.

Swinging her ko-naginata, Shin-Io casually neutralized Mido's red beams. Having briefly turned back into his humanoid state, Sion imbued white light through his Queenslayer Blade and Hanemukuro. The Revenant then hastily ran forward, cutting through and nullifying Mido's beams. As Hunter joined Sion, the duo double-teamed Mido. While Mido parried their attacks, Hunter saw an opening and knocked Mido away with his Hound-Type Blood Veil. Seizing this chance, the opportunistic Revenant invoked his Will of d'Artagnan and delivered quick and blinding slashes over Mido.

"The other Sion used this attack on Datenshi, now you get to feel the pain from my blade, Mido!" Sion said, preparing to deliver another barrage of strikes.

"Wasted your time running your mouth, Skyler…" Mido muttered as he sneakily lobbed his red Blades of Richelieu at the Revenant. However, Sion readily batted the red energy blades away with his glowing white blade. Having dropped his guard for a split second, Mido jumped up and unleashed another flurry of punches on Sion before landing a devastating punch into Sion's gut. "You're not looking so tough now, Skyler Jones!"

Shin-Io and Hunter dove toward Mido, prompting the Revenant scientist to lob more black spheres at them. Shin-Io quickly dispelled Mido's spheres with a divine lightning bolt. After Shin-Io cleared the field with her Tengoku Divine Thorn, Hunter dove into Mido and pushed him into debris. Mido clubbed Hunter's back several times before landing an elbow to the back of the Revenant's neck.

"You're fooling yourselves if you think I'm finished yet," Mido scowled as he raised his hand over Hunter.

Suddenly, Raoul ΩX shot Mido's back with his Riot Gun. The Ascended Phantom Thief's action drew Mido's attention, prompting him to throw more red blades toward Raoul ΩX. Forging projectiles, Hereward ΩX stopped Mido's blades with his Twilight Arrows. Then, Celestine ΩX summoned her two black dog heads, akin to Hecate's dogs and the Hound-Type Blood Veils, which snarled and mauled Mido. Inflicting their Cerberi Fangs on Mido, the hound heads viciously tore into Mido.

"Tear his ass up, my babies," Celestine ΩX darkly muttered, watching her black hounds ripping into Mido. Then, much to her dismay, Mido blasted them back with his Collapsar Rays. "No, that won't do, Juzo Mido." Her tone became cold and lifeless before her anger took over. Matching her inner fury, a fiery veil shrouded Celestine ΩX. Her aura then created wisps of divine ember. "Burn, Juzo Mido!" She immediately cast Habanera Riser to boost her fiery stats. As Mido launched himself toward Celestine ΩX, she tossed her whip and blasted him head-on with a fiery wave.

"You think this will be enough, Annie?!" Mido resisted while effortlessly flying through his fiery wave. As he came closer, Mido reached for her neck.

Raoul ΩX dove forward and pushed Celestine ΩX away, narrowly saving her from Mido's grasp. Sion recovered and kicked Mido back. Manifesting a blue sphere with her ko-naginata, Shin-Io cast her Tengoku Star and pushed Mido back with it.

"That was a nice save, Ren-ren! Had you not saved your dearest Annie at the last second, I would've snapped her twig-like neck! And I must say… you are all becoming annoyances!" Mido snarled while the blue sphere exploded and created a shockwave that repelled him.

"Good, then we're doing our job right. C'mon, Hifumi and Io!" Sion called out to Shin-Io, who aided him against Mido.

As he held Celestine ΩX close, Raoul ΩX sighed with relief. "Thank goodness you're ok, Ann."

"Ren…"

"That was stupid of you, Ann. I understand you want payback, but we're in this together. We'll take him out together, but remember you're still…" He paused as he eyed Celestine ΩX's abdomen.

"I know," Celestine ΩX nodded as he helped her up. "My power is protecting our…" Before she could finish, she and Raoul ΩX were interrupted by the intense sound of explosive blasts caused by Mido, Shin-Io, Sion, Hunter, and Hereward ΩX's attacks.

"C'mon, let's go and help them, Ann," Raoul ΩX said, taking Celestine ΩX's hand.

"Yeah," she replied.

Observing the ongoing battle from a distance, Shinchū bided her time until Mido dropped his guard. She wrapped some threads over her fingers.

"This is incredible. I feel like I'm out of my league, but I can't let Hifumi and Skyler show me up now," Shinchū muttered. "I just need an opening."

---

Elsewhere, Critias was being outmatched by Mircalla, Noir, Oracle, Songstress, Protector, and Anastasia. With her Bayonet rifle, Mircalla fired rapid shots that pierced holes through the eel's body. She then shot her Stinger-Type Blood Veil and stabbed the base of the eel's body. Critias pulled Mircalla along into the air.

"Hang on, sis!" Protector called out as he hopped over Critias and rammed his shield into its face while using said shield to perform a spinning attack and smash it over the eel's back.

As the Successor of the Breath and Critias crashed on the ground, Oracle used Al Azif's Subrecover HP EX to restore Mircalla and Protector's powers. Anastasia blasted the eel-like behemoth with light arrows and inflicted some wounds on it.

"That should slow it down!" Anastasia said.

"Thanks, Oracle," Mircalla said as she readied her Bayonet rifle. "Alright, you big slimy freak! It's go time!"

"Oracle, why don't we ascend and bring this battle to an end?" Noir suggested, getting a thumbs up from Oracle.

"Just what I was thinking!" Oracle gleefully replied as she and Noir invoked their Persona's Ascendancy and merged with their Ultimate Personas.

Mircalla and the others briefly watched Noir and Oracle transform into their ascended states. Noir became Lucy ΩX and Oracle became Al Azif ΩX.

"Persona's Ascendancy, huh? Now I know you aren't trying to show me up," Mircalla playfully said as they set their sights on Critias.

When Critias raised its face and went for Mircalla, Lucy ΩX conjured Tetrakarn and hit the creature with it. The eel crashed into a barrier that Lucy ΩX willfully materialized. Readying her axe, Lucy ΩX converted it into a 17th-century German axe pistol and fired her Buster Axe, which blindsided Critias. Then, Al Azif ΩX used her Detective Eye to scan Critias' inner workings and pinpointed its critical point.

"Here I go," Al Azif remarked, producing multi-colored projectiles that turned into a barrage of laser beams, which burned Critias' body. After neutralizing the beast with her DJ Laser Storm, the hacker beckoned toward Mircalla. "The big guy has been neutralized! He's all yours!"

"I owe you and Oracle, Noir," Mircalla added, a white aura then materialized around her. Channeling that white energy into her Bayonet rifle, she unloaded a barrage of white beam Bullets of Aramis that blasted the eel back. With her eyes locked on her target, Mircalla snarled. "You want some of me,you big bastard?!"

In response, Critias recoiled and angrily screeched at Mircalla.

"You think that's all? Think again!" She dropped her rifle and like Sekiken before her, she got down on all fours. The white light spread over Mircalla, transforming the blonde-haired Revenant into her Successor of Alexandra Panthera beast form. Uncoiling her stinger tail, Mircalla howled with ferocity at Critias.

As it sprinted toward Critias, the Successor of Alexandra Panthera lunged at the front of the eel's face. It swung around and pierced the back of Critias's neck with its venomous tail. Critias hissed and pried Mircalla off its neck. Songstress swiftly summoned tornadoes, which expelled enough power to knock away the giant eel.

"This is your chance! Take it!" Songstress called out to the Successor of Alexandra Panthera.

With that, Mircalla lunged at Critias. The eel unleashed its Waves of Retribution, but Songstress's tornadoes blasted away the water attacks. The scorpion-tailed snow leopard quickly cut through Critias's body, delivering her Ose's Vespula Strike to carve through and bisect the giant eel. The Successor beast let out a pained screech as its bisected body collapsed and fell to the ground in a heap. Mircalla landed on top of the eel's remains and let out a victory roar.

"Beautifully done, Mircalla," Noir stated.

"Yeah, we did it, sis!" The Successor of the Breath cheered Mircalla.

---

On the opposite side from Critias' battle, Omusubi, Skull, Fox, Gunslinger, Adel, and Nadia pummeled Timaeus. With his greatsword, Omusubi delivered quick and powerful strikes on the Timaeus. Though its tough hide could withstand most precision strikes, Omusubi's greatsword was imbued with his new white light, which effectively sliced through the creature's tough skin.

"We're fired up now, William! Let's show 'em Persona's Ascendancy!" Skull boastfully yelled out, quickly fusing with his Ultimate Persona. In their place was William ΩX, who rode his Nimbus airship forward. "Can ya handle getting zapped?! Eat this!"

Casting Maziodyne, William ΩX's electrical blast neutralized Timaeus.

"It's our turn, Gorokichi! Let us combine our strength, intellect, and artistic vision!" Fox declared, merging with his Ultimate Persona. After completing the fusion, Gorokichi ΩX stood in their place. "Come." Performing his Divine Glaive, he delivered a quick and powerful forward slash with his katana, slashing through Critias' hide.

With his laser gun, Gunslinger fired beams into the tusked beast's eyes. Nadia's whip delivered numerous gashes all over Timaeus' thick body. Adel hastily delivered consecutive claw strikes, slashing out the beast's left eye. Then, the Successor of the Claw drew out a sword and used it to cut off its left tusk, but the Successor beast charged and went for a Vicious Strike. Attempting to run its tusks through Adel, Omusubi dove in as he folded both arms in front.

"Get back, Emily!" Omusubi called her back, opening his arms up and conjuring a projectile shaped like a canine's jaws. He then invoked his Hound-Type Blood Veil to ensnare and hold the hippopotamus-like beast in a stationary place.

When Timaeus's tusks glowed with purple energy again, Omusubi's Jaws of Porthos projectile collided with the beast. The powerful jaw-like force snapped and broke the beast's tusks off, undoing its ultimate defense.

"You did it, Yakumo!" Adel cheered him.

Just then, the infuriated Successor beast charged head-on with Omusubi.

"Hang tight, we got this! Ready, Fox?!" William ΩX nodded to his friend, who smirked.

Gorokichi ΩX performed lightning-quick katas and produced nine clones of himself. Completing his Fox Shadow technique, delved into his hidden passive abilities. The clones charged and were quickly crushed by Timaeus. When the beast finally reached the real Gorokichi ΩX, the ascended Thief melted into black ink. The beast glanced around confusedly, looking for Gorokichi ΩX.

Suddenly, Gorokichi ΩX reappeared behind Timaeus.

"Now, Skull!" Gorokichi called out.

"I hope ya enjoy the light show, ya big freak!" William ΩX hollered, diving with his Nimbus airship toward Timaeus. He cast an Ω Thunder Reign and blasted Timaeus with an intense bolt of electricity.

Then, Gorokichi ΩX unleashed an Ω Diamond Dust, delivering freezing damage to the beast.

"Thanks for softening him for me, guys. I'll finish it here!" Omusubi called, making a quick dash toward the beast. When he shoved his greatsword into Timaeus's face, the beast had enough grit to bite down and toss the sword away.

"Is that how it's going to be?!" Omusubi snarled as he got down on all fours. His body shrouded in white light transformed him into the Successor of Persian Ursine.

"Let's see how this thing handles a Successor of our own," Nadia firmly stated.

"Now, the tables are about to be turned," Gorokichi ΩX added.

"Let that big freak have it, Yakumo!" William ΩX cheered him on.

"Tear his ass up!" Adel shouted.

The bear-like doberman let out a deep roar and rushed head-on with Timaeus. As they collided, the beast traded blows. The Successor beast tried shoving its horns into Omusubi. Despite his large build, the Successor of Persian Ursine quickly evaded Timaeus's horns. Omusubi sidestepped Timaeus and focused on the latent power coursing through him. He invoked an aura shaped like a large bear. The spirit bear roared.

"Here he comes, Yakumo!" Adel wasted no time and teleported on top of Timaeus's back. She shoved her sword and claws through its back. "I've got him neutralized! Take it down!"

With that, Omusubi unleashed his Savagery of Marchosias, which engulfed Timaeus. The bear spirit delivered the fatal blow and crushed the Successor beast's skull, causing it to flip over on its right side.

"Yeah, we did it, Yakumo!" Adel happily cheered as Omusubi bellowed a victory roar.

---

On the opposite side from the Mido and Virgin Born, Hermocrates as the last of the three beasts was losing ground against Queen, Sekiken, Mona, Violet, Shikama, and Leto.

"I'm ready to bring an end to this fight!" Queen openly declared as she and Agnes combined, invoking Persona's Ascendancy. In their place is Agnes ΩX, who immediately blasted the Roc bird with an Atomic Flare. The nuclear-charged beam ran a giant hole through Hermocrates's upper body.

"Now, you're talking my game, Queen! Diego, let's combine!" Mona beckoned his Ultimate Persona as they combined and became Diego ΩX.

Before heading into the fight, Diego ΩX used an Ω Salvation, restoring Leto's power. Receiving a boost from Diego, the Successor of the Ribcage amassed lightning and a violet mist into her hands, coalescing both elements to fire her Arc Beam at the Successor of the Beast. The beam cut through and blasted off Hermocrates's left wing. The Roc bird attempted Redemption Acrobatics with its one wing, but Shikama conjured a barrier to stop its physical attack.

"It's about time to finish this!" Sekiken declared, taking out his sword, which he imbued with the power of his white light. Much like Sion, he produced his Blade of Athos, but he instead ran it through Hermocrates's torso and slashed upward, cutting through its feathered chest.

Hermocrates gave a loud screeching roar as it stumbled back while covering its wound with one wing.

"You're finished!" Violet declared, combining and invoking her Persona's Ascendacy merger with Ella. Harvesting power from Ella, Violet became Ella ΩX. Ella ΩX performed Ω Masquerade and landed devastating blows on Hermocrates. "That should do it! Who wants to take the shot?!"

"Queen! Give it a knock-out blow!" Sekiken called out.

Not one to disappoint, Agnes ΩX flew toward Hermocrates. Channeling raw energy in her right hand, Queen balled her hand into a fist and punched Hermocrates's face, not only shattering its skull but breaking off its upper beak with her Nuclear Fist.

"That's the way, Makoto. Now, save me some more!" fiendishly smiled Sekiken as he got down on all fours. His fearsome yelling turned into a deep lion's roar. A white aura enveloped the Revenant's body as he grew into the Successor of Babylon Leo.

"It's impressive to remember Louis and the others have their Successor forms," Diego ΩX stated.

"Take it down, Louis!" Agnes ΩX called out.

Setting its sights on the dying Roc bird, the Successor of Babylon Leo unleashed a powerful roar with enough force to shake the entire vicinity. With its Vapula's Roar, Sekiken blew up Hermocrates's head. The headless corpse collapsed in defeat.

"Yuck," Shikama expressed her disdain for the gory aftermath.

"And that's the last one. We've slain Mido's three beasts," Ella ΩX verified.

"Louis," Agnes ΩX gasped as the Successor of Babylon Leo gave a victory roar. The lion then headed over to meet Agnes ΩX. He leaned over and rubbed his maned face against her. She happily stroked his mane and embraced him.

"Thank goddess, you did it, Louis," Medic smiled, watching her brother and his girlfriend bonding.

"We performed spectacularly, Makoto."

"Yeah, but what about, Haru?"

Sekiken replied. "Looks like she'll be ok since they defeated one of those other beasts."

---

Upon witnessing his beast vessels massacred, Mido was utterly incensed. "You think this is over, you cretins? I still have another surprise for you all. Your end will truly be at hand!" Scowling, he clenched his right hand as the three beasts vanished. Their essences converted into glowing red orbs, all of which represented Mido's soul fragments. He beckoned the three soul fragments toward him. He amassed the three orbs and reabsorbed them inside his body.

As the three other groups reconvened with Raoul ΩX's team, they confronted and outnumbered Mido, who didn't hesitate to hold his ground.

"Give it up, Mido. You're surrounded," Sion said.

"You have zero chance of beating us all. Not when you're dealing with Persona's Ascendancy and four Envoys," Raoul ΩX added.

"And don't forget a few of us Successors who are still able to fight," Medic replied.

"Mido! You are not leaving here alive! We're going to kill your ass!" Sekiken snapped.

Unfazed by their disparaging remarks, Mido shrugged. "What can I say? A man of science like myself does not need petty attachments such as bonds. All of you are just mere subjects for my experiments. Fortunately, you all won't be alive to witness the rise of the new superhuman race." As he said this, a red glow radiated off his body, giving off a thumping sound akin to a heartbeat rhythm.

"No, something's happening to him!" Ella ΩX cried out.

"Look out! His power is growing!" Mircalla warned the others.

"Jack, get back from him!" Songstress called out to her lover.

"Panther, you better get moving, too! I don't like where this is leading!" Gorokichi ΩX shouted.

Taking heed of their warning, Celestine ΩX, Sekiken, Omusubi, and Hunter moved away from Mido. The red aura surrounding Mido covered him from head to toe.

"Hehehe, why don't we bring our war to a climax, my adversaries?" Mido asked the group. "However, you won't just be fighting them again. You will fight them here and now!"

"No, don't tell me you…! You took their power and turned yourself into a Successor?!" Sekiken gasped, realizing what Mido hinted toward.

"Having incorporated the powers of my three Successor beasts, behold the pinnacle of Revenant evolution!"

With that, as a red aura wisped over him, the Revenant researcher underwent his transformation. His body grew many stories tall. Now towering over his adversaries, Mido reached up to 30 feet tall. His bipedal body frame gained a slight hunch as his body structure changed. His appearance started to resemble Hermocrates the Zealous Ziz. Mido became that same avian Roc-like monster but maintained his dark schemed armor. The metallic feathers forming all over his body were both bronze and silver with tints of black retained. Brahma bull horns and tusks popped out, features previously seen on Timaeus the Grappler Behemoth. He has gained Critias the Abyss Leviathan's oarfish backfins. His face has the same hoatzin visage Eon's Successor Beast form had. His long blond hair of his Envoy form also spread through his wings, making the outer wings feel fur-like besides having metallic feathers. Opening up his right eye, the same red eye scanned over his adversaries.

Arching his head up, Mido towered over the Revenants and the Thieves. After letting out a loud screech and a few bellows, Mido's voice, now distorted, came out of the Roc-like titan. "I've integrated the power of Hermocrates, Timaeus, and Critias into my being! Witness the peak of Revenant evolution! Behold the power of the Successor of the Grand Beast!" He ended with another deepened bird-like screech as he opened up his wings and rushed to attack members of the Thieves and the Vein Remnants.

The Thieves and Vein Remnants spread out and conjured their attacks. However, after letting out a high-pitched bellow, the Successor of the Grand Beast swung its fin-like tail forward, generating a massive shockwave and unleashing a tidal wave. The makeshift tsunami crashed through and nearly wiped out the environment. The group quickly searched for higher ground, avoiding getting swallowed up and swept away by the Successor's Panthalassic Meteotsunami.

Having avoided being swallowed by the massive waves, the group spread to higher ground and evaluated their next attacks on the giant Roc-like beast. It then stomped its feet, creating seismic shaking. As he made earthquakes occur, the group quickly distanced away from the Successor's reach. The Successor's Pangaea Ultima created more earthquakes, knocking some of his adversaries off their feet.

"Great, so he's using attacks based on the elements?!" Omusubi exclaimed.

"Water and Earth. All that's left is…" Before Gorokichi ΩX can finish, William ΩX cuts him off with an irked glare.

"Dude, don't jinx us!" William ΩX yelled out.

"Did you mean fire and wind?" Hereward ΩX conjectured.

"I was talking to Fox! And like I said, don't jinx us!" William ΩX chided him.

"Crap, too late," Al Azif ΩX gulped, pointing to Mido gathering air from his surroundings. The giant Roc then swallowed the air through its beak. Then, a few moments passed.

It seemingly did nothing.

Then, it unleashed a massive energy beam from its beak and blasted its surroundings. It pivoted and directed its Beam of Lemuria toward the group as the intense beam continued cutting through the area.

The Thieves and the Vein Remnants desperately scrambled around, evading the Successor's destructive ray. Every member hid behind debris and enclosed spots to stay out of the giant Roc's field of vision. However, this strategy became null when the Successor flew high into the air and located them.

Letting out a high-pitched bellow, the Successor enveloped its entire body with intense flames. These flames bathed the Roc until it started to resemble a phoenix. The flames then imbued the Successor's avian armor, converting it to look like molten lava. Flapping its blazing wings, the Successor unleashed a volley of fiery blasts as they rained down. As if that wasn't enough, the Successor expelled a molten lava blast from its beak. As fire and lava spread, the Successor's Volcanic Shahrokh eroded anything it touched. This enabled the Successor to expose his enemies from hiding.

"Shit, at this rate we're all going to be burned and melted!" Sekiken shouted. His eyes and mouth became terrified at the Successor's potent fire attacks.

The behemoth cackled. "Oh, did I forget to mention contingencies? I still have another set in place!"

"What the hell now?!" Raoul ΩX cried out.

Suddenly, the group watched the Virgin Born glowing brightly as it floated on its own.

"That thing is still kicking?!" Gunslinger yelled.

"Oh great, this isn't good!" Shikama said.

"Wait, something's happening," Shin-Io pointed out as a deep black crack split the Virgin Born's body in two. When the Yami Matter's influence enveloped the entity, it split into two entities: Cruz and Gregorio.

Upon seeing his ex-lover and her father, Sekiken passionately called out to them. "Cruz! Gregorio! They're…!"

"I do not need for you, Gregorio. Now, Yami Matter, consume and rejuvenate Cruz Silva!" Mido hissed as he let Gregorio fall to the ground, prompting Sekiken to catch the large man. However, he expected Cruz to fall with him, but he and the others witnessed a bluish light enveloping the woman.

As the sound of a heartbeat loudly pulsated, the ascended Thieves, the Vein Remnants, and their allies witnessed Cruz undergoing a new transformation. With the Yami Matter taking her body over, Cruz's eyes and mouth widened as blue light leaked out and filled her with rejuvenated power. Before being completely consumed by this power, Cruz called out.

"Louis!"

"Cruz?!" Sekiken cried out, hearing his ex-lover.

"Louis, I… I remember everything…" Cruz weakly muttered as tears fell from her now natural red eyes, which was a sign that she regained every memory vestige involving her Revenant life, her relationship with Louis, and later becoming the Queen. "I know you don't want to hear this…"

"What do you mean? Cruz, what are you trying to tell me?"

Cruz deeply sighed, letting heartfelt tears fall from her eyes. "You'll have to kill me, Louis…"

"I can't do that! Do you understand what that's going to do to me?!"

Nodding, Cruz cried. "Yes, and I'm sorry… but… I'm beyond saving… Mido and the Yami Matter… are turning me back into the Queen! My body is beyond saving! I don't want to get in the way of your new relationship with Niijima Makoto and Okumura Haru!"

"No, you can still live! We can still be friends!" Sekiken pleaded with her.

"He's right! Don't let it end like this!" Lucy ΩX cried out, her eyes, too, becoming teary.

"You must… Louis… I…" Cruz then let out a blood-curdling scream as light armor resembling the Virgin Born's body replaced her clothing and her tearful eyes turned lifeless blue irises and thin black pupils. The Virgin Born's wings formed behind her and a queen's crown materialized on her head, signaling her reawakening as the Queen once more.

"CRUZ!" Sekiken screamed, witnessing her turning into the Queen.

"It's just like last time," Hunter grimaced.

"Operation Queenslayer," Sion muttered.

Letting out an intense screech, Mido's cackling voice came out of the Successor behemoth. "Yes, rise my Queen Reborn! Assume your place as my ultimate chess piece and destroy Louis and his friends! This time, it'll be a battle to the bitter end!"

As Sekiken and the Revenants faced down the Queen Reborn, Agnes ΩX placed a hand on Sekiken's back.

"Listen, Louis. We might have to do what she says."

"You mean kill her? I can't…"

"Cruz insists. She said as much she's beyond saving."

"How the hell can you say that, Makoto?!" Sekiken yelled as he turned and saw Agnes ΩX's eyes full of tears. "But, you're…"

"I don't want to do as much as you do, but she'd rather die than continue to be used by Mido and the Yami Matter," Agnes ΩX said, wiping the tears from her face as she regained her resolve. "Who knows? Maybe there's a chance to save her, but I have my doubts. I'm sorry, Louis."

Just then, Gregorio began to stir. When he awoke, Gregorio saw his daughter bathed in a bright and malignant blue aura. His eyes widened in horror upon seeing his daughter become the Queen again.

"My daughter… Cruz…"

"Gregorio?!" Sekiken called out as he checked on the older man. "Sir, I'm sorry, but Cruz… she…"

Letting out a dejected breath, Gregorio replied. "There's no saving my daughter is there?"

"You don't want to hear it."

"I heard you passionately crying for my daughter's fate. Cruz is beyond saving now. Honor her wish, Louis. End the monster that has taken over Cruz and kill Juzo Mido."

Clenching his fists, Sekiken set his sights on both the Successor of the Grand Beast and the Queen Reborn.

"You don't have to tell us twice about killing Mido, Gregorio," Sion affirmed.

"Please, don't refer to me by my name on the battlefield. Right now, I will fight with you as an equal. You go by codenames, correct?" Gregorio said.

"Yeah? Have you decided on one, sir?" Omusubi queried.

"Considering I'm a politician, you can call me Governor," Gregorio firmly stated, standing alongside the Vein Remnants.

"Good to have you joining our cause, sir," Hunter nodded.

"All right, let this be our final battle here and now!" Raoul ΩX declared that the massive group must be divided into two teams to battle the Queen Reborn and Mido.

Agnes ΩX amassed her group to take on the Queen Reborn. Joining Sae's younger sister were Sekiken, Mircalla, Omusubi, Diego ΩX, William ΩX, Lucy ΩX, Al Azif ΩX, Songstress, Shikama, Leto, Gunslinger, Adel, Protector, Medic, Anastasia, Nadia, and Governor.

"Spread out and attack her from various spots!" Sekiken commanded. Deep down, he resented being put in this situation and having to attack his ex-lover. As he ran up to the Queen Reborn, he swung his Enduring Crimson sword at her. However, he quickly stopped as his sword was barely a few inches from her head.

"Louis! What are you doing?! Don't stop now!" Agnes ΩX called out.

"Oh no, Louis," Lucy ΩX gasped.

"I gave you my consent to kill the thing that's taken over Cruz, Louis!" Governor bellowed.

"Wake up, Louis! She's not the same Cruz anymore!" Medic cried out.

"Look out, Louis!" Omusubi warned as the Queen Reborn seized Sekiken's sword and tossed him into the air. After discarding Sekiken, the Queen Reborn manifested a hundred golden orbs of light that sprayed crystallized shards toward the group.

As the group evaded the shard barrage, some took cover behind debris and others spread out to avoid the Queen Reborn's beams. Agnes ΩX and Lucy ΩX raced to retrieve Sekiken from being obliterated by the beams. Mircalla, Omusubi, Diego ΩX, William ΩX, Al Azif ΩX, Songstress, Leto, Protector, Adel, Anastasia, and Nadia rushed in to attack the Queen Reborn.

Forging a barrier over them, Shikama guarded herself, Gunslinger, Medic, and Governor from the crystallized blasts.

"Thanks, Reiko. I'm going in!" Gunslinger said, heading into the battle as he witnessed the Queen Reborn making short work of her enemies. He witnessed the Queen Reborn pushing back Protector, Leto, and Adel with crystallized blasts.

As her eyes became laser-focused on the Queen Reborn, Mircalla fired her Bullets of Aramis from her Bayonet rifle. Omusubi manifested a projectile shaped like a canine's jaws. Smashing his jaw-like force against the Queen Reborn, Omusubi's Jaws of Porthos smashed some of the Queen Reborn's shards. Songstress manifested a blade of sand and sliced through the Queen Reborn's projectiles. The Queen Reborn then smashed the ground with incredible force, unleashing a powerful shockwave that repelled the three Revenants away.

Diving toward the Queen Reborn on his Nimbus airship, William ΩX jumped off and amassed a ball of yellow electricity in his hands. The ascended Phantom Thief then pushed his hands forward and unleashed his Electric Kamehameha toward the Queen Reborn. At the same time, Diego ΩX cast his Ω Panta Rhei, sending a wave at their enemy. Gorokichi ΩX performed his Ω Diamond Dust, attempting to freeze the Queen Reborn. As Al Azif ΩX unleashed her DJ Laser Storm on the Queen Reborn, she scanned their target with her Detective Eye.

"Her stats are extremely high, guys! Be careful!" Al Azif ΩX warned her friends.

Smirking evilly, the Queen Reborn spun around, unleashing another shockwave that repelled the ascended Thieves away.

The Elven Princesses cautiously evaded the Queen Reborn's projectiles and took cover behind the debris.

"Louis, get yourself over that girl! She's far long gone!" Nadia yelled out, chastising the mentally broken Revenant.

"C'mon, Louis," Anastasia pitifully watched him behind shaken by Agnes ΩX and Lucy ΩX.

"Please, we need you in this fight. If we don't stop the Queen now, we're all done for," Lucy ΩX pleaded with him.

"Look, I can't make any promises that Cruz will be fine after all this, but I think she'd rather want us to end her suffering than be Mido's tool!" Agnes ΩX tried getting Sekiken out of his distressed state.

"But, I'll have to kill her…"

"Then, give her a mercy killing. She'd prefer that."

Suddenly, their conversation was cut short by the ensuing battle full of explosions and debris being crushed. They saw the Queen Reborn floating toward Sekiken, Agnes ΩX, and Lucy ΩX. Her lifeless blue eyes were firmly locked on Sekiken. When she eyed the two ascended Thieves, a malevolent frown smeared over her features. She quickly flung crystallized projectiles at the three.

"Stay back!" Lucy ΩX cast her Ω Psycho Force, attempting to overpower the Queen Reborn with her psychic force. "I can only hold her back for so long!"

"This is your only chance, Louis!" Agnes ΩX cried out as she dove head-on with the Queen Reborn. Clenching her right hand, she imbued nuclear energy into her balled fist and hit the Queen Reborn with a devastating Ω Atomic Flare.

Observing his girlfriends fighting on his behalf, Sekiken delved deep and found the courage he needed to face his biggest fear. When Agnes ΩX struck the Queen Reborn with her Nuclear Fist, Sekiken raced forward. He called Agnes ΩX to move away and infused white light through his sword, delivering an upward slash on the Queen Reborn. After striking the Queen Reborn with his Blade of Athos, Sekiken grabbed his ex-lover.

"If you can hear me, I know what I must do, Cruz," Sekiken muttered to the Queen Reborn, whose eyes widened with shock.

Meanwhile, Shin-Io, Raoul ΩX, and Sion led Celestine ΩX, Hunter, Hereward ΩX, and Ella ΩX to engage Mido the Successor of the Grand Beast.

The two Revenants began by attacking the giant Roc with their Blood Veils. Hunter summoned his Hound-Type Blood Veil, using it to tear into Mido's wings. After striking Mido's face with his Stinger-Type Blood Veil, Sion slashed the behemoth with his Queenslayer Blade and Hanemukuro.

Raoul ΩX, Hereward ΩX, and Ella ΩX hastily flew head-on against the giant Roc. Hereward ΩX launched his Twilight Arrows, targeting most of the giant Roc's body. While Hereward ΩX's arrows bombarded Mido, Ella ΩX performed her Ω Sword Dance, attempting to cut through Mido's body.

Raoul ΩX soared over Mido's head and summoned Satanael. After Raoul ΩX's Persona blasted Mido with Riot Gun, he summoned four Personas: the Four Horsemen, Pale Rider, White Rider, Red Rider, and Black Rider. The Horsemen assisted their master as they attacked the giant Roc. When Raoul ΩX called for the Four Horsemen Strike, they charged and inflicted numerous bloody slashes on Mido's large frame. Amid the assault, Raoul ΩX conjured Titania and Queen Mab Personas, allowing him to access and fire a Fairy Sphere toward Mido. Unleashing another high-pitched screech, Mido's Panthalassic Meteotsunami effortlesslywiped out the ascended Thief's attack. After instantly pushing away his adversaries with a tidal wave, the giant Roc let out another screech.

However, the Thieves and the Vein Remnants didn't cease their attack on the giant Roc. Shin-Io, Sion, and Celestine ΩX initiated their assault on the giant Roc. With fiery scorn burning in her eyes, Celestine ΩX's face contorted with murderous intent, and swung down her whip. She fiercely hit Mido with her Ω Blazing Hell. While this attack did little to damage the behemoth, the ascended Thief had no plans to cease her relentless attacks.

During the heated battle, Shinchū arrived and witnessed the group fighting the Successor of the Grand Beast. Baffled by the sheer size of Mido's Successor form, Shinchū looked at the threads in her hands and took a deep breath.

"It's now or never. We can't let this go on any further," Shinchū muttered, adjusting her blue butterfly mask.

During Celestine ΩX's fiery rampage, Shin-Io and Sion double-teamed against Mido. Sion cut through Mido's body with his glowing white blades. He delivered quick and consecutive slashes into Mido's body with his swords. After performing his Will of d'Artagnan, Sion unleashed his Frenzied Fire Gift on the behemoth.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you're still alive so Louis can get his chance to kill you, Mido!" Sion yelled out during his assault.

"Don't hold your breath, Skyler! You'll all be dead when it's all said and done!" Mido boasted, firing another Beam of Lemuria from his beak.

As Sion crossed his glowing swords, he attempted to counter and push back Mido's attack. However, when it became clear that Mido's beam would obliterate Sion, Shin-Io intervened and cast her Tengoku Divine Thorn, sending a massive lightning bolt to Mido's head. Of all of the attacks, Shin-Io's dealt the most damage as it was enough to daze and knock the Successor of the Grand Beast back.

Amid Shin-Io's attack, Sion transformed into his Successor of the Julius Deion form. The allosaurid Revenant mounted Mido's back and unleashed seismic waves with its Vasto Quake attack. Hunter transformed into his Successor of the Drake form and expelled his Fafnir's Breath, blasting the giant Roc with powerful blue flames. Celestine ΩX cast another Ω Blazing Hell, surrounding Mido in a massive ring of blazing fire.

"Burn. Burn. BURN!" Celestine ΩX furiously screamed while setting the bottom of Mido's massive body ablaze.

Although he resisted the flames, they trapped him. This allowed the ascended Thieves, the two Vein Remnants, and Shin-Io to continue attacking him relentlessly. Screeching loudly, the Successor of the Grand Beast's body glowed with blazing fire and unleashed molten lava blasts. He quickly repelled them with his Volcanic Shahrokh.

"We're not finished yet, Mido!" Raoul ΩX howled with determination as blue flames erupted out of him. As these flames enveloped his face, Raoul's visage appeared, letting out an insidious laugh. The flames then burned away the ascended Thief's garb. The ascended Thief grew into a form that the others were familiar with. In Raoul ΩX's place is the 25-foot tall, three-headed dragon The middle head possessed Raoul's ferocious visage. He once again became the Devil Hydra. The three heads let out high-pitched crackling bellows and set their sights on the giant Roc.

"The monstrosity that destroyed one of the Knights of Control, battled the Angel of Control to the finish, and obliterated that other parallel dimension! You dare to challenge the power of the elements I wield?!" Mido boastfully bellowed as he prepared to blast Raoul ΩX with another beam.

"He won't be fighting you alone!" Shin-Io called out as she flew on top of the Devil Hydra's middle head. Standing with arms crossed, Shin-Io faced Mido with intense valor. "This is it, Juzo Mido! Not only will your plans fall apart, but you'll never have my power!"

"Heheh, don't be so insipid! The goddess of victory is ready to shine down on me!" The giant Roc boasted as Mido's voice and laughter filled the vicinity. As he advanced toward Shin-Io and Raoul ΩX, the other three Thieves and the two Vein Remnants relentlessly pummeled him with a myriad of attacks.

Once again, Celestine ΩX manifested her flames and set Mido's path ablaze. "YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE, ASSHOLE! HE'S YOURS, SHIN-IO!"

Nodding, Shin-Io pointed forward and beckoned the Devil Hydra to attack the Successor of the Grand Beast.

"Go forth and let us deliver the final attack! Your king commands it!" Shin-Io declared, immediately shifting into Hifumi's competitive and passionate personality.

"You a king?! Nonsense! If anyone shall become king… IT SHALL BE ME AND ME ALONE!" Mido bellowed as his beak opened and fired another Beam of Lemuria.

"Initiate a counterattack, Devil Hydra!" Shin-Io hollered while Raoul ΩX fired a Sinful Neutron Blast.

As the powerful beams collided, the pressure from both powers caused their environment to rumble. The two behemoths were locked in an intense beam struggle. Gazing on with fierce determination, Shin-Io raised her ko-naginata.

"We will not and cannot lose this battle! Mido, your biggest mistake was overthinking and putting so much faith in your contingencies. Now, it seems like you've played out all of your cards! I have my doubts you have anything else beyond this Successor of the Grand Beast!" Shin-Io berated Mido. "You also forgot another thing. You incurred my and my friend's anger. And for using Skyler's body to try and take my goddess powers by violating me! I will never let that down!" Dropping a thumbs down, Shin-Io's face contorted with anger. "Checkmate, Juzo Mido."

With their Successor powers and Persona's Ascendancy powers in full effect, Sion, Hunter, Celestine ΩX, Hereward ΩX, and Ella ΩX unleashed a full-on assault on the giant Roc. Utilizing his Ω Negative Pile, Hereward ΩX attacked the giant Roc with a lethal combination of sword strikes. After Hereward ΩX completed his combo, Sion turned back into his Revenant self and carved him up with his dual swords. Then, as he readied his glowing Queenslayer, he delivered a powerful slash with his Will of D'Artagnan. Ella ΩX performed her Ω Masquerade and dealt a critical blow to Mido. After breaking off half of Mido's beak with his Slavic Fangs, Hunter fired a bigger Fafnir's Breath, which Celestine ΩX immediately took advantage of by combining her flames with the dragon's. As the two fire elements coalesced, they engulfed the giant Roc.

Celestine ΩX summoned her two hounds as they viciously mauled Mido's shoulders and burned him with their fiery imbued Cerberi Fangs. However, the hounds didn't cease their vicious mauling at the behest of their master, Celestine ΩX, who smiled with cruel satisfaction at Mido's plight. As she empowered herself with Habanera Riser, she unleashed her most devastating Ω Blazing Hell, which burned and ripped through Mido's behemoth body.

Finally, Shin-Io cast not one but two Tengoku Stars. Her Double Tengoku Star combined with Raoul ΩX's Sinful Neutron Blast. This became the catalyst that determined the battle. Shin-Io and Raoul ΩX won the beam struggle as their combined beam ran through Mido's beam and obliterated the Successor's body, causing the beast to regress in size and turn back into Mido's Envoy of Evolution state.

Growling with fury, Mido vehemently bellowed. "What have you done?!" As he prepared to fight back, Shin-Io flew down with Sion joining her. "You…!" His one eye glowed bright red with fury.

"Mido, don't think you're getting off easy!" Sion shouted, imbuing his hands with white light. "You're not getting away with what you almost did with Hifumi!"

"And I'll make you regret it!" Shin-Io fiercely readied her ko-naginata.

Suddenly, Shinchū swiftly appeared in front of Mido and trapped him with her thread bindings.

"Miki?!" Shin-Io and Sion cried out in unison, taken aback by Shinchū's abrupt intervention.

"I'd say this is as great timing as any! Ok, Mido! This is where your evil influence dies!" Shinchū declared, preparing to trigger the explosions imbued in her threads.

"Miki, be careful!" Shin-Io cried out as she noticed Mido's right hand converted into a massive claw. Thanks to the Yami Matter, Mido recovered enough power to use against Shin-Io but instead, he used this deadly force and punched through Shinchū's chest.

Gasping aloud, Shinchū's eyes and mouth widened as Mido effortlessly blasted her away. The last thing that Shin-Io and Sion witnessed was Shinchū's body falling into the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower debris. Shin-Io tried to save her but some debris fell and crushed Shinchū.

Upon seeing Shinchū's getting killed before her eyes, Shin-Io was utterly aghast.

"Miki… no… you can't be… MIKI!" Shin-Io screamed.

"Such a shame. I was saving that just for you, Shin-Io. Had I succeeded, I would've killed you and harvested the goddess' power… but alas, it was not meant to be. Your dear friend paid the price…"

"That's enough," Shin-Io scowled, quickly turning around and giving him a look of ire. "You are dead, Juzo Mido." Gripping her ko-naginata, Shin-Io flew forward and kicked Mido's face so hard, she nearly shattered his mask.

"MIDO! YOU BASTARD!" Sion roared, swinging his Queenslayer at the villain.

Sion and Shin-Io teamed against the Revenant scientist. With his bare hands imbued in white light, Sion unleashed the Will of d'Artagnan in the form of a white flare of light that knocked Mido back. Summoning two Shogi pieces, Shin-Io sent them to deliver electrical blasts to the villain.

Shin-Io didn't stop there as she unleashed a Divine Thorn on Mido. However, her desire for vengeance wasn't satisfied. She blasted him again. And again. And again. She kept this going until the abomination was unable to defend himself.

"That's for taking my boyfriend's body and trying to violate me!" Shin-Io responded with a chilling look and tone that could kill, possibly enough to disturb Mido. "And this one is for Miki!" With a powerful swing with her ko-naginata, Shin-Io slashed through Mido's torso and split his body in two, leaving him a bloody and defeated heap.

Meanwhile, Sekiken, Agnes ΩX, and Lucy ΩX made their last stand against the Queen Reborn. As Lucy ΩX prepared her artillery cannons, she blasted the Queen Reborn with her Ω Triple Down. At the same time, Agnes ΩX cast Ω Checkmate, attempting to cut down on the Queen Reborn's attack, defense, and agility abilities temporarily.

The Queen Reborn's aura nullified the female Thieves' attacks, but they distracted her long enough for Sekiken to appear in front of her. As he prepared to stab her, the Queen Reborn's eyes briefly turned red as she mumbled, 'Kill me'. With some hesitation, Sekiken set aside his selfish wishes and shoved his sword through her body. As the Queen Reborn coughed blood, she leaned onto Sekiken's shoulder. As Sekiken looked dead in her eyes, he saw her blue eyes fade and regain their natural red.

"...Louis…"

"Cruz?! Hang in there, it's me!" Sekiken cried as he held his ex-lover in his arms. As Agnes ΩX approached them, Lucy ΩX stopped her.

Everyone else who fought the Queen Reborn hurried over and witnessed the tragic scene. The others who fought Mido also pivoted their attention to a heart-wrenching scene.

"Cruz! Oh my god, no…" Gregorio gasped in horror seeing his daughter dying in Sekiken's arms.

"Louis… thank goodness, you and your friends are ok…" Cruz weakly muttered, glancing toward everyone watching them. She scanned their faces, recognizing the Revenants. "And father, too… he's ok…"

"Cruz, we're going to save you… my sister and I can take you to the new Bloodspring. You can drink and recover…" Before Sekiken could finish, Cruz dismissively nodded and weakly smiled.

"Please, don't bother, Louis… it's… too late for me…"

"Don't you dare say that!"

Shaking her head, Cruz coughed as some black slime mixed with her blood spilled out. "...look… the black blood you see? The Yami Matter has damaged my body beyond repair… not even a Revenant can heal from this…I've only been hanging on this long because I'm a Revenant again…"

"Then, that means… it's true. Your memories…"

"Yes, they've all returned. I remember it all, Louis. The visions from my memories have become… painfully clear as day. I know all that happened between us in another timeline. We were schoolmates and a couple before… and I remember the experiments I was subjected to… that not only turned me into a Revenant but an experiment that could potentially save humankind… and Revenants as well." Cruz suddenly let out a wretched and pained groan, causing Sekiken to hold onto her with dear life.

"Cruz!"

"It's ok… it's just my body breaking down… I don't have much time left… but there's just enough to tell you what I want you to do for me."

"Anything. What do you want?" Sekiken asked as his tears didn't stop. He felt Cruz gripping his hands.

Sorrowfully smiling, Cruz whispered. "After I pass… spread my ashes into the sea… wherever you want… tell my father what you intend for me."She looked at Gregorio, who was seen walking toward her and falling to his knees in tears. "I love you, dad."

"But, I don't understand how Gregorio's body wasn't damaged by the Yami Matter," Omusubi wondered.

"The Yami Matter used me as the base for the Virgin Born's body and used me again to revive the Queen again. My body… took the bigger toll…" Cruz muttered weakly. I was the main power source… dad was just the backup source."

"This isn't right. You shouldn't have to die because Mido used you and your dad to revive that thing!" Mircalla nodded disapprovingly.

Shaking his head, Sion turned toward Shin-Io. "Is there anything you can do? Can't your goddess power save her? You can restore and rewrite reality. Can't you save Cruz before the Yami Matter infected her?"

However, the response Sion got wasn't what he wanted. He discerned Shin-Io wearing a vacant look. This placed the others in a disquieting state. Sekiken teared up even more.

"Please, don't cry for me, Louis," Cruz smiled as she caressed Sekiken's left cheek, feeling the warmth of his tears. "As part of the grieving process… move on from me… and stay with the ones who love you." She motioned over Agnes ΩX and Lucy ΩX, who sat down with Sekiken. "These two will take care of you in my place…"

"I'm sorry, Cruz," Lucy ΩX muttered sadly. "I'm truly sorry it had to be like this. Rest assured, Louis is in our care."

"But, you don't have to die," Agnes ΩX disproved this tragic outcome.

"I'm afraid my power to write history and reverse the law of universal physics, I cannot save Cruz Silva's life," Shin-Io addressed them, bewildering most if not all listening to her.

"What do you mean? Surely Hifumi can use that power to save one person! She helped restore a whole dimension the Yami Matter damaged!" Sion said, referencing Joker and the Thieves' brief venture into a parallel dimension.

"It's because the original Cruz Silva from the original dimension is already dead," Shin-Io revealed to the Thieves' shock, but the Revenants recognized this fact but didn't want to be reminded of this fact.

"Is this true?" Sekiken asked Cruz, who nodded.

"Having regained Cruz's full memories, this Cruz took on her full identity and became a Revenant much like the rest of you," Shin-Io informed the Vein Remnants and the other Revenants. "That is partly why she's hanging on by a thread to speak now. Any normal human possessed by the Yami Matter would have surely been dead by now, but Cruz's half-Revenant body and self-healing are prolonging her life, but only briefly. She has but a few moments to live."

"So, we can't save this woman because she has the other Cruz's memories? We can't change her fate?" Raoul ΩX asked Shin-Io.

"Having gained the other Cruz's memories, she was left with her tragic fate. No matter what happens, Cruz Silva was meant to die. The Yami Matter's influence was so strong it engulfed this Cruz's mind, granting her shared memories of the other Cruz Silva. This is unlike the rest of you when I restored your full memories," Shin-Io reminded the Vein Remnants. "The Cruz that died in the other dimension contained so much corrupted power and darkness that she ultimately became incurable. Once the Yami Matter took hold of this Cruz, she gained shared memories and the same terminal infection that transformed her into the unstable entity called the Queen."

Shin-Io's logical comments brought silence to the group who hoped to never hear any of this.

Not one to handle the cold and hard facts, Sekiken cried and grasped Cruz's now cold hands.

"I'm sorry, Louis… I wish there was another way…" Shin-Io tearfully apologized.

Gnashing his teeth, Sekiken pulled Cruz into a heartfelt embrace. Cruz shut her eyes and folded her arms behind his head.

"One more thing before I go…" As Cruz said this, her skin started to dry and crack. A painless ripple formed through her body as white light leaked out like mist. "...continue to live your life to its fullest with Ms. Niijima and Ms. Okumura. Love them as much as you loved me… help your friends… stop Mido… before he harms any more innocent lives… and tell dad… that I love him…"

"Cruz!" Gregorio called out to his daughter, whose hearing had gone. His cries fell on deaf ears.

Cruz smiled as her body quickly burst into cremated ashes. "...love you, my dear Louis…" Her final words rang out, internally tearing Sekiken apart as he broke down and felt the ashes of his old love flowing through his arms. The young man's tears fell on top of Cruz's ashes.

Every man present dropped their heads, paying their respects. The women tearfully cried. Raoul ΩX held a crying Celestine ΩX. Sion embraced Shin-Io, who not only cried for the tragedy but also the notion that her power still couldn't have prevented Cruz's tragic fate. Lucy ΩX cried onto and embraced Agnes ΩX. Reiko broke down, holding Shinya.

Emotions poured out for a few minutes. Agnes ΩX and Lucy ΩX stayed close to Sekiken, who listlessly stared over Cruz's remains.

Eyeing his daughter's ashes, Gregorio sobbed and closed his eyes.

"Original Cruz, original us… I do wonder. It's hard to imagine we have full memories of these other people," Mircalla sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"Don't dwell on it much. While we share their memories, we were physically born in this dimension thanks to Shin-Io's rewrite," Sion addressed his Revenant friends.

"Heheh, might I offer something mind-boggling, my friends?" Mido's voice interjected, alarming the Thieves and the Revenants. They all turned toward Mido's remains. His upper body moved and sat up, weakly chuckling. "...what I remind you of before… that you're all just stand-ins for those Revenants in that other dimension? While Skyler Jones is a real person, I can't say the same for 'Louis', 'Mia', 'Yakumo', 'Karen', 'Emily', 'Nicola', 'Jack', 'Eva'… they are just identities you've taken on since you inherited their names and their Revenant abilities."

Mido laughed. "You all will come to know your real names in this reality… but unlike the rest of you… I am the original Juzo Mido to remind… and I come from that aforementioned reality where those Revenants exist…"

"Who cares what he is?" Celestine ΩX scoffed as she manifested fire in her hands. "He needs to die right now."

"So sorry to disappoint, my friends… but we will meet again…" Mido cackled. As he looked up, their surroundings became distorted by a black mass.

The Thieves, the Revenants, and the others were taken aback by this sudden turn of events.

"Don't think you're getting away with all the shit you put us through!" Sekiken snarled as he stood with eyes full of ire.

As he stirred, Mido heard the whispers of the Yami Matter communicating with him.

"I've suffered a tremendous loss… I lost this Vein Upheavalbattle, but our war is far from over," Mido muttered as the Yami Matter dragged his split body parts through the black hole distortion. "We will finish this another time, Phantom Thieves and my Revenant friends!"

"No, you aren't getting away!" Sekiken shouted as he, Sion, Shin-Io, and the other Revenants rushed to stop him.

"The Yami Matter is pulling him out of this dimension!" Shin-Io warned them.

"Heh, be sure to send your old beloved my regards, Louie!" Mido openly taunted Sekiken, verbally shoving a dagger into Sekiken's heart.

"YOU FUCKING BASTARD! GET BACK HERE!" Sekiken bellowed as he ran over to kill Mido.

"You can't be allowed to go after all you've done to us!" Celestine ΩX screamed, running as fast as her legs could allow. She threw her fiery whip at Mido, who vanished inside the Yami Matter portal. "FUCK!"

Raoul ΩX ran up and patted his wife's shoulders. "We'll get him next time and make no mistake we're killing his ass."

Diego ΩX sighed. "Lady Ann, please don't try to scare us like that again. I'm all for killing that sorry bastard for what he did to you and killing Cruz, but let us help you slay him."

"Just between us, Ann, but both of us should get our shot at killing that rat bastard," Sekiken said.

"The question is, which one of us gets him first," Celestine ΩX nodded.

"Um, guys. You might want to see this," Al Azif ΩX pointed the group toward the screens all across the area showing Juzo Mido's human face.

In truth, Mido placed cameras throughout Tokyo that were linked to every television and computer. Ultimately, Mido sent a message across the country regarding himself and his enemies, the Vein Remnants.

"If you are seeing this, I have unfortunately met my demise at the hands of the Phantom Thieves and their latest allies, the Vein Remnants. Who are these Vein Remnants you ask? Well first, allow me to introduce myself, I am Dr. Juzo Mido. You may know me as the famed paleontologist and a genetic bioengineer. My renowned reputation is public throughout the scientific community. In truth, I am not a human being. My true form is what you see before you…" Mido's human face vanished behind static lines as it morphed into his true Revenant visage. "This is who I am. I am Revenant. What is a Revenant? We are vampiric creatures from another world. I've been involved in a long conflict with the same group calling themselves the Vein Remnants. They are Revenants, too, but unlike me, they are an immediate danger to the public. I'd advise you to avoid these monsters at all costs. They pretend to be allies of justice. The Phantom Thieves will learn the hard way to trust them. Here's their faces and names."

The screen then switched to recent photographs of Sekiken, Sion, Hunter, Omusubi, Mircalla, and Songstress.

"These six and a few of their associates are living among you. I'd advise hiding your children, your families, and whatever loved ones you hold dear. In due time, they will create havoc and cause more collateral damage. Their crimes cannot go unpunished, but rest assured, I am formulating a plan to manifest superhumans to fight these blood-sucking creatures pretending to be humans. That plan is in the works. It will come when the Yliaster Utopia is close at hand. Humanity will be blessed with superpowers to help fight against the Revenant pestilence. And Phantom Thieves, if you are hearing this, this is your chance to break ties with these creatures and help me usher in the Yliaster Utopia. Global powers, I'll leave it to you to decide whose side you're on.

For the better of humanity, it's time to embrace my utopia if we want the Revenants eliminated for good. The next step of human evolution is upon us. Do the right thing."

With that, the broadcast shut off, eliciting mixed reactions and signals after the shocking announcement.

As for the Phantom Thieves and the Revenants, they were left speechless.

With the Vein Upheaval behind them, a new rising conflict was in their future.

That conflict is the Yliaster Utopia.

---

Chapter Soundtrack
Code Vein OST - Blue-blooded Vein - vs. Mido-Sion and Mido-Sekiken alongside the Virgin Born.
Neurotech - Stigma - 03 - Of Adversity- vs. controlled Revenants and the Successor of the Beasts.
Blood Stain Child - Lost Humanity - An alternative song of vs. Mido-Sion, Mido-Sekiken, the Virgin Born, the controlled Revenants and the Successor of the Beasts. A dark reprise of the Blood Stain Child songs used back in the AnimeJapan chapters.
Frenzy Cutscene Music (Long Version) - Code Vein - Mido-Sion attempting to rape Hifumi.
RE:ARR.X (THEMEX Rearranged) - Xenoblade Chronicles X OST - Hiroyuki Sawano - Sion resists Mido's control and bites Hifumi's neck for her blood to heal him. Vein Remnants free from Mido's control as the protagonists strike back. Phantom Thieves become Persona's Ascendancy again.
Code Vein OST - Code Vein (Main Theme) - vs. Mido (Envoy of Evolution), the Virgin Born, and the Successor of the Beasts in the climax. Mido transformed into the Successor of the Grand Beast in showing off his magnificence of evolution.
VAMPS - Underworld- Tennyo, Sion, Raoul ΩX (Devil Hydra), Celestine ΩX, Hunter (Successor of the Drake), Moonlight, Hereward ΩX, Ella ΩX vs. Mido (Successor of the Grand Beast). The rest of the protagonists vs. the Queen Reborn in reliving Operation Queenslayer. Sekiken's tearful moments in reminding of Cruz. It's the same song used back in Book I's prologue.
Code Vein OST - King of the Shingai - Defeating the Queen Reborn (with Louis mercy killing her) and Mido (Successor of the Grand Beast) in its climatic phase.
Shin Megami Tensei V OST - Disruption of Order - Mido announces all of the general public across the world his real identity as a Revenant, reveal that the Vein Remnants are indeed real vampires as Revenants like himself, and warns the world that his Yliaster Utopia is coming. This is the Vein Upheaval indeed that shocks human society.

---

A/N: Who thought Mido would keep Sion's body? We should've known better, but the method in which he purged Mido out was very desperate, but whatever works. This would be one of those instances when a vampire feeds to save himself and his lover. Since Shin-Io's power courses through Hifumi, her blood helps purge Mido's essence out of Sion.

Mido also learned the hard way to never incur the unbridled fury of a woman like Panther/Ann. He deserved every burning from her and every lightning bolt from Hifumi.

The final phase of the battle featured Mido's Successor of the Grand Beast and what a surprise that was. Did anyone pick up on the Yu-Gi-Oh reference when Shin-Io rode the Hydra Devil and clashed with the giant Mido chicken beast? Picture someone riding the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon against the Winged Dragon of Ra. More surprising is Cruz becoming the Queen Reborn, which took its toll on her and led to her tragic demise.

We also had another tragic death. Miki/Shinchū was killed in action. However, in doing so, she prevented Mido's last-ditch effort from extracting Shin-Io's goddess powers.

The final shocking moments: It's not only Mido surviving and escaping (though, that's honestly the least surprising part). It's the reveal that the Revenants we've come to know aren't really them. They've been OC human stand-ins who only inherited the Revenants' names and abilities via Shin-Io's reality-warping power. The next chapter will go deeper into this and the 'Revenants's real civilian names will be revealed. The other big shocker and the biggest plot stinger: the reveal of Mido's Yliaster Utopia. Seems like we have part of the plot for Book III.

And Mido gets the final laugh when he smears the Revenants' good names and paints them as 'monsters' to the public. This will now lead to ramifications and build public distrust in Sion and his friends. That will be a theme in the next part: rebuilding trust.

All There in the Manual relating to the Envoys of Vein
-Since the Envoys of Vein were originally not as destructive in causing collateral damage unlike Persona's Ascendancy (that remains more powerful than the Envoys of Vein) of being used early in Akane no Mai, they are more commonly used as another example of the Revenants wanting acceptance and equality in society. Their appearances in the consolidated trilogy take it up to 'beyond acceptance' eleven levels of desire to surpass the Persona's Ascendancy appearances. The Envoys of Vein are immune to the corrupted effects like Mido's control, getting them much early at the start of Book II for the OC stand-ins makes them start with these full immunities. But, throughout the developments in getting to know modern times and the characters, of wanting acceptance and making a change (such as Louis's goals as a young leader of wanting fairness between the Japanese and foreigners like Revenants and humans to match the complete Code Vein story, even reminding the Revenants of venturing to the outside society of Vein of helping humanity from the Aragami in the God Eater franchise, there are at times feel that the Envoys of Vein wielders have an internal selfish side and inner insecurities/negativity, constantly using these forms more often of wanting to stand out, the more personal selfishness/negativity (similar how the Phantom Thieves started out of wanting recognition back in Persona 5 and especially from Ryuji until Okumura's death), their immunities to the darkness is slowly weakened, yet the Envoys of Vein wielders are unaware of this as they refuse to listen to their mistakes (unlike Okumura's death for the Thieves) in keep using these forms in the Maria, Halloween (of making the fight against Dracula and his brides a more easier battle in making themselves more overpowered to these classic vampires (even causing collateral damage in the Hollywood Horror Mansion, by this point, the Revenants are growing stronger throughout Book II that the Envoy forms become strong enough to deal more collateral damage similar to Persona's Ascendancy (To the point the Envoys' power levels are now the same as equal to Persona's Ascendancy in Akane no Mai (Which Mido during his public announcement would also mention the Revenants' collateral damage besides himself). With the full Revenant abilities/BOR parasite traits supporting the growing Revenant strengths in battles, their Envoy of Vein forms become stronger till they're equal to Persona's Ascendancy.) that the Thieves became alert), by that point, the Phantom Thieves even lampshade this and called out the Vein Remnants of the overuse of the Envoy forms relating to their selfish recognition (alongside Sae reprimanding poor Akechi)), until the immunities are fully gone by the time of the fifth Yami Matter event, allowing Mido and the Virgin Born to easily control Sekiken, Sion and their other two friends in turning the Envoys of Vein wielders against their allies. These show the deconstructions of overusing fanmade forms (since we're working on settings that are pseudo-official/official relating to this), unlike Digimon Fusion Kai's Ascendants and YuYuGiDigiMoon/YYGDM-01's fan made forms that were commonly used in typical AU fanfics. It is then that when Mido-Sion is attempting to rape Hifumi, and Sion realizes that it's fully his fault that he allows his inner selfishness for Mido (even Mido himself is not wrong about this, because had Sion and the others been not been internally self-centered, their immunities would have to remain intact of Mido not controlling him) to control him and his friends and threatening his lover, uses his willpower to free himself and save Hifumi (and apologizes to her), and by coming to terms with his and his friends' identities, the immunities from him and his friends are fully restored and this time it's permanent with renewed determination and positivity, and especially the Envoys of Vein and Persona's Ascendancy fight side by side in the revise fifth YM's climax. With these revised experiences, and especially the general public's divided opinion on Revenants that clearly humbled the Vein Remnants, they no longer stand out too much and fight alongside the Phantom Thieves and allies as better equals.

Book II has two chapters left. The next one will feature a debate about the Revenants and the Thieves' continued involvement with them. It's going to be interesting and unpleasant.