Friday, 15th April, 20XX
"So I assume all of you know about the separation of powers?" Mr. Ushimaru began his lecture, "There are three branches in our government. The National Diet is legislative, the Cabinet is executive, and the Supreme Co-"
The ramblings of the class teacher were of course tuned out by Ryuji. Although, this time he wasn't ignoring the lecture because of boredom, but because of the various things plaguing his mind, which mainly had to do with finding a way to bring down Kamoshida.
After he got home, the teen had spent nearly all night racking his brain for some sort of method that could work, but it was all for naught.
'Dammit... No matter how hard I try think, there isn't any other way I can think of!' Ryuji narrowed his eyes in frustration, 'At this rate, the only thing that seems like it could work is all that shit Mona was talkin' about... But there's no way I can risk that!'
Ryuji felt like he was about to lose his mind over all of his failures, so, he pulled out his phone and sent a chat to the only person he could talk to about this.
Ryuji: It's no use dude...
Ryuji: I can't think of any other way...
Typing...
Ren: Are you cutting class?
Ryuji: Of course not!
Ryuji: But I can't focus on that shit right now!
Ryuji: What're we gonna do about Kamoshida?
Ren: I wish I had an answer to that...
Ryuji: Urgh...
Ren: Do you think we should go along with what Morgana was telling us?
Ryuji: At this point, it seems like that's the only damn thing that'll work
Ryuji: But there's no way I'm gonna risk killin' Kamoshida
Ryuji: Sure, I hate the dude, but that doesn't mean I want him dead!
Ren: Yeah, that's too much...
The teen let out a sigh as he put his phone back into his pocket. It seemed like today was just going to be another uneventful day of listening to lectures and unsuccessfully racking his brain for potential ways to stop Kamo-
"Hey... What's that...??" A random student suddenly stood up from their seat.
The student's sudden interjection caused everyone to look in the same direction he was looking at, which was the window in the hallways.
"What the...?" Ryuji whispered.
"Enough!" Mr. Ushimaru demanded, "This is a classroom!"
"Wait... She's going to jump!" Another student shouted.
At that, everyone in the classroom got up from their seats to leave and check out what was happening.
"Hey! Stay in your seats! Do not step foot outside of this room!" The teacher unsuccessfully tried to force everyone to stay seated.
Ryuji himself rushed out of the classroom to check out the situation, and he could see students from other classrooms emerging as well, but he was too focused on the sight outside of one of the hallway windows to care.
"Oh my God... She's gonna commit suicide!"
Ryuji squinted as he gazed through the window to assess what he was looking at. However, his confusion slowly morphed into an expression of shock and horror when he realized what he was seeing.
"What the fuck...?!"
A certain female student was standing atop the roof of Shujin Academy. She was in front of the fence that blocked the edges of the rooftop, and it didn't take a genius to realize what she was about to do.
However, what terrified Ryuji wasn't the fact that a girl was about commit suicide before his very eyes. It was the fact that he recognized who that girl was...
Shiho Suzui...
"S-Shiho...?" Ann Takamaki quietly mentioned her best friend's name with wide eyes.
Suzui herself watched the high view of the ground beneath her with an uneasy gaze, almost as if she were contemplating going through with what she was about to do.
If she did it, she could only imagine how her parents would feel... How Ryuji would feel... How Ann would feel...
Could she really do it...?
The door to a certain office opened, and the same injured Suzui could be seen entering.
"Umm... Y-You wanted to see me, Mr. Kamoshida...?" She sheepishly called out.
The man known as Kamoshida turned around from his spot in his chair to look at Shiho.
"Ah yes, Suzui." Kamoshida greeted with a grin that was way too wide, "Glad you could make it. Do me a favor and lock the door, will ya?"
The request sent a chill down the sheepish girl's spine, but she tried to suppress it and complied nonetheless.
"So... W-What did you want to see me for, sir?" She shakily asked, "A-Am I in trouble...?"
"Oh no no no, not at all!" Kamoshida waved off with an unconvincing comforting grin, "I just wanted to have a little chat with you, if you don't mind?" He said in a friendly tone, though the look in his eyes told a different story.
Knowing she couldn't say no, Shiho weakly shook her head, "O-Of course not."
"Great!" The teacher cheered, "Now, let's get to what I wanted to talk about..."
The teacher clapped his hands as he suddenly took a deep breath, almost as if he was getting ready for something.
"Suzui... You're skill is absolutely invaluable." He began, "Whenever you're out there on the court, you display an indomitable spirit... And there's no denying that you're one of out star players..."
Before the aforementioned girl could question the sudden praise, he continued.
"But... I'm afraid I might have to bench you in the upcoming nationals..."
"Wha... W-What...?!" Shiho exclaimed in shock, "W-Why?!"
"I'm sorry, Suzui... But lately, it just feels like you haven't been playing to your utmost abilities lately. It's almost as if your heart isn't in the sport of volleyball anymore." Kamoshida explained in false remorse, "And I just can't afford to have a student like that on the team. Especially when the nationals are coming up soon... So-"
"N-No... Please, don't do this!" Shiho shakily pleaded, "V-Volleyball is my life... You can't bench me! PLEASE!"
"I'm sorry, Suzui... But my mind is made up." Kamoshida apologized.
"P-Please... Please! Don't do this to me!" Shiho frantically begged, now on her knees and tearing up, "Please! I'll... I-I'll do anything...! Please...!"
As if a switch had been flipped, Kamoshida suddenly gained a dangerous grin at her words.
"Anything, huh...?" He repeated.
"H-Huh...?" She looked up at him as he suddenly walked up to her, "S-Sir... Ngh!"
She let out a yelp as Kamoshida suddenly grabbed her by the collar and raised her up to his level.
"You say you'll do anything to keep your position... Is that right?" He asked with an unnerving smirk.
"M-Mr. Kamoshida..." Shiho uttered in a pained voice, "P-Please... L-Let... G-Go-!"
She was then roughly dropped to the floor, and she began to cough as she regained her breathing. However, she noticed the "predatory" look on her coach's face, and she fearfully backed up toward the wall behind her.
"M-Mr, Kamoshida... W-What are you-?"
"If that's the case, then why don't you and I put that to the test, shall we?" Kamoshida chuckled deeply as he got up close to Suzui, reminding her of how much he towered over her.
Shiho cowered in fear as he looked straight into her eyes, almost as if he were enjoying the sight of her trembling.
The gym coach narrowed his eyes and grinned like a predator as he uttered five words Shiho would never forget for the rest of her life.
"Now... Take those clothes off..."
Shiho visibly grimaced at the memory of yesterday.
Time seemed to move in slow motion as she continued to look at the ground beneath her, with the birds in the flying freely in the sky, almost if they dared her to do it...
.
.
.
And then...
.
.
.
She jumped...
Everyone in the hallway let out various horrified gasps and screams as they watched Shiho eventually hit the ground.
"My God..." Mr. Ushimaru, who had ran out of the classroom to see what was happening himself, uttered in shock, "... B-Back to your seats, everyone! Now!"
"... N-No... Why...?" Ann shakily uttered at what she just witnessed with tears welling up in her eyes, "Shiho...!"
She pushed aside a certain student as she ran off to go to her friend.
The hallway turned into chaos as everyone there was either moving to go see the sight for themselves or was talking amongst themselves, still shaken by what they saw.
However, nothing could be compared to the utter flabbergastment and pure horror that Ryuji was currently feeling.
"... S... S-Suzui..." He uttered in an uncharacteristically quiet voice, "... Why did you...? W-What...?"
The blonde so deeply paralyzed in horror and disbelief that he couldn't even move from where he stood, and was still gazing at the sight outside the window.
"RYUJI!"
The sound of his name being called snapped Ryuji out of his stupor, and he looked to his right to see Ren running to him, looking shaken himself.
"R-Ren...!" Ryuji called out, "Y-You saw that too...?"
"Yeah..." Ren confirmed with a dejected tone before composing himself, "Takamaki-san saw it too... She just ran over to the courtyard. I think we should go there too."
"... Y-Yeah. You're right." Ryuji tried compose himself as well, "Let's go...!"
The two boys finally reached the courtyard and entered the crowd of students there to see that they were watching Shiho being taken by ambulance.
However, the sight of her body nearly caused Ryuji to vomit in his mouth.
'Oh God...'
"S-Shiho..." Ann was at the front watching with eyes that looked nearly lifeless.
Trying to look at anything but his friend's state, he looked around and noticed that some of the shocked students were using their phones to record the scene, and it absolutely pissed him off.
"What the hell is wrong with these people...?!" He asked in anger.
"I'd expect nothing more from the shameless alumni at this academy..." Ren chimed in disdain.
Suddenly, a small groan could be heard as Shiho, who was thought to be dead, slowly opened her eyes.
This didn't go unnoticed by Ann, Ryuji and Ren, and the former two quickly rushed over to her in surprise and a tiny hint of relief.
"Shiho!!"
"Suzui!!"
"A-Ann...? S-Sakamoto-kun...?" Shiho weakly called out the names of her friends who knelt by her side.
"I'm here, Shiho! Don't worry...!" Ann hastily called out.
"Suzui... Why?" Ryuji asked in an urgent tone, "Why did you do it...??"
"I... I-I'm sorry..." Shiho apologized in a pained tone, as if she were about to cry, "I can't take it... anymore...!"
"Huh...?" Both Ryuji and Ann uttered in confusion.
Ann put her ear next to Shiho, and the latter mentioned something that made her widen her eyes in shock.
"Kamoshida did what...?!" Ann exclaimed in disbelief, which didn't go unnoticed by Ryuji.
She didn't get to focus on it for long as Shiho's eyes then fluttered shut again.
"No... Shiho?!" Ann yelled for her as the paramedics from the ambulance car put her on a stretcher and pushed her inside.
"We need someone to go with her!" One of the paramedics announced, "Are there any teachers around?!"
"I-I'm not in charge of her class though..." One of the panicked teachers replied.
"W-We should leave this to Principal Kobayakawa..." Another teacher, who was clearly hesitant, added.
Seeing that none of the teachers were willing to step forward, Ann volunteered herself.
"I-I'll go!"
"Please hurry!" The paramedic ushered her inside with them before the doors closed and the vehicle sped off.
Ryuji watched the entire thing happen with a pensive look before walking back toward Ren.
"... She mentioned Kamoshida..." Ryuji revealed.
"Really?" Ren asked, "Then that's gotta mean he's involved with this somehow..."
Before Ryuji could respond, he look behind Ren, causing him to look as well, and they both noticed a certain blue-haired student hastily running off.
"Wasn't that Mishima that just ran off?" Ren asked in curiosity.
"Yeah... Didn't he seem a bit weird to you just now?" Ryuji questioned in confusion.
"Definitely..." Ren nodded before furrowing his eyebrows, "He knows something."
"Just what I was thinkin'..." Ryuji agreed before hardening his eyes, "We're gonna make him talk this time...!"
"W-What do you want...?" Mishima meekly asked the intimidating boys who cornered him.
"Why'd ya run like that? Huh?" Ryuji asked with crossed arms as he impatiently tapped his foot.
"I-I didn't run..." Mishima weakly lied.
"We saw you run out of the courtyard." Ren called out his lie.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about..."
The blue-haired teen jolted back in fear when Ryuji slammed the locker next to them.
"She jumped and tried to kill herself, dammit!" Ryuji yelled in anger.
"L-Leave me alone..." Mishima sheepishly refuted.
"We're not here to hurt you." Ren attempted to alleviate him, "We just want you to tell us what you know."
"He's right!" Ryuji calmed himself down before chiming in, "We ain't tryin' to get you busted. We won't say you talked either... Please!"
Mishima looked down and trembled as if he were mulling over the two boys' words.
"Suzui..." He uttered the name of his teammate who he watched fall to her doom, "S-She was called out by Mr. Kamoshida!"
"Wait, what?!" Ryuji uttered.
"I was called by him a number of times too... to the teacher's room." Mishima revealed, "It wasn't just me or Suzui either. He'd nominate someone when he was in a bad mood... and hit them."
"I knew it! So the physical punishment thing was for real..." Ryuji stated.
"That explains all of your bruises." Ren grimaced.
"But yesterday, he called Suzui out of the blue." Mishima revealed with a confused expression, "She didn't make any mistakes or anything..."
"So then why did he call her to his office?" Ren asked in perplexity.
"Mr. Kamoshida seemed really irritated that day, so it must've been worse than usual..." Mishima replied, "And when I ran into Suzui before she left, she was shaking as if she was holding back tears, and she refused to even look me in the eye..."
This caused Ren and Ryuji to enter a deep thinking process.
If Kamoshida was already regularly abusing the students, then what did he do to make Suzui act like that? And what could've possibly irritated him that much.
As they were thinking, Ryuji suddenly thought back to his run-in with Ann yesterday.
"Will you please give it a rest?! I told youI'mnot feeling up to it..."
.
.
.
"... He told me to go to his place after this..." Ann quietly revealed before crushing her tissue, "You know what it means..."
The blonde gasped at the separate memories.
"Wait a sec... I know exactly why Kamoshida was so pissed!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"Really?" Mishima asked with raised eyebrows.
"What is it?" Ren questioned curiously.
At that Ryuji decided to tell the two about his run-in with Ann, and the conversation they had at the restaurant.
By the end, Mishima was horrified while Ren was disgusted.
"That filthy pig..." Ren commented in contempt.
"To think he was doing that kind of thing too right under our noses..." Mishima quietly uttered, "B-But then what did he do to Suzui that made her act that way...?"
"That's what I don't get...!" Ryuji replied in thought.
Things stayed silent for a few seconds before Ren suddenly let out a gasp.
"Oh my God...!" He exclaimed in horror.
"What is it?!" Ryuji frantically questioned.
"Think about it for a sec...!" Ren responded, "If Kamoshida was angry at Takamaki-san because she refused to sleep with him, then what else could he have done to her best friend as revenge...?!"
"What else could he have done...?" Ryuji repeated with squinted eyes before they slowly widened in realization, "Wait... H-He didn't...?!"
"I... I-I'm sorry..." Shiho apologized in a pained tone, as if she were about to cry, "I can't take it... anymore...!"
As soon as he realized what Ren was getting at, the blonde clenched his fists so hard that it almost drew blood.
"THAT SON OF A BITCH!" He yelled in pure fury.
The blonde suddenly rushed off in the opposite direction, surprising Ren and Mishima, but they chased after him nonetheless.
"Wait, Ryuji!" Ren called out, "Where are you going?!"
This caused him to stop in place and look back at them.
"Where do you think...?" He quietly asked, "I'm going to confront that scumbag right now!"
The door to the P.E faculty office was kicked open, and Kamoshida looked back from his table.
"Huh...?" He uttered with a raised eyebrow.
Standing at the entrance was Ren Amamiya, Yuuki Mishima, and a very infuriated Ryuji Sakamoto. To say that he was pissed off would be a serious understatement.
"You bastard!" Ryuji cursed and pointed a finger at him, "The hell did you do to Suzui?!"
"What are you talking about?" Kamoshida asked before ignoring him and looking back at his table, "Don't barge in here just to ask stupid questions."
"DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH ME!" Ryuji demanded as he kicked a nearby metal chair, having none of Kamoshida's bullshit.
"That is enough!" Kamoshida looked back at him with furrowed eyebrows.
"... What you did... wasn't coaching...!" Mishima decided to finally speak up.
"... What did you say?" Kamoshida quietly asked, almost as if he were daring Mishima to continue.
"You... You ordered me to call Suzui here..." Mishima continued with narrowed eyes, "I can only imagine what you did to her...!"
"He already told us about the abuse." Ren added, "There's no use denying it now."
This prompted the muscular gym teacher to stand up and cross his arms.
"You're going on and on about things you have no proof of..." Kamoshida looked directly at Mishima, "You're only making these claims since you can't be a regular on the team, aren't you?"
"That's not what this is about...!" Mishima angrily refuted.
"Fine then. Let's say things are exactly as you imagine them to be... What can you do?" Kamoshida asked with a raised eyebrow.
He then brought a hand to his head and put on a false depressed expression, "We just received a call from the hospital. Suzui's in a coma. Poor girl..."
The news shocked all three of the teenage boys.
"What?!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"N-No...!" Mishima stammered.
"I hear her chances of recovery are slim, and there are no chances of her getting better..." Kamoshida added before gaining an insufferable smirk, "Then again, it's not like a vegetable can testify..."
The unapologetic term caused Ryuji to see red, and he wound his fist back.
"YOU GODDAMN-Ah!"
The blonde looked back to see that his arm had been caught by Ren before it could make contact with Kamoshida's face.
"Why're you stoppin' me?!" Ryuji questioned in outrage.
"Don't give him what he wants." Ren calmly but sternly responded, "This is exactly what happened last time, remember?"
The reply caused Ryuji to silently gasp as he knew what Ren was referring to, and he begrudgingly relented as he knew he was right.
"Oh... You're stopping him?" Kamoshida asked in surprise before smirking, "There's no need to hold back... Go ahead and attack me...!"
"But you won't though, 'cuz you can't! Hahaaa!" He boasted as he went back to his seat, making Ryuji growl.
Even though he wasn't trying to hit this bastard anymore, he sure was makin' it hard for him not to.
"Everyone present right now will be expelled." Kamoshida suddenly announced, shocking the three boys, "I'm reporting all of you at the next board meeting."
"What?!" Ren and Ryuji uttered.
"Y-You can't make a decision like that...!" Mishima tried to refute his claim.
"And who would seriously consider what scum like you say?" Kamoshida questioned before looking directly at Mishima, "You threatened me too, Mishima. So you're just as responsible."
"H-Huh...?"
"Don't act all innocent." Kamoshida stated, "You act like you're a victim, but you're the one who leaked the new kid's criminal record, didn't you? It's all over the internet. What a shame..." He revealed before laughing.
The revelation surprised Ryuji and Ren, and they looked back at the boy who accompanied them.
"Mishima...?" Ryuji mentioned his name while Ren stared at him in slight betrayal.
"He... H-He told me to do it..." Mishima weakly responded as he sunk to his knees, "I-I had no choice...!"
"Once you're expelled, you'll be sent to juvie..." Kamoshida began as he looked back at them, "I hope you guys didn't have any aspirations in life, because your futures belong to me now, got it...?"
"Now... GET OUT OF MY OFFICE!"
"... Well, that was a total shitshow." Ren commented from his bench with a sigh.
After the whole debacle with Kamoshida, the two of them had left his office and went to their usual meeting spot.
"What are we gonna do now?" Ren asked, "Should we just take Morgana's deal?"
However, Ryuji didn't answer as he was looking forward with an intense look, and Ren would be lying if he said he wasn't slightly unnerved by his friend's current state.
"Hey, Ren..." He suddenly spoke up.
"Uh, yeah...?"
"... Let's go and look for Morgana..." He instructed, "If we're lucky, we'll probably find him around the school somewhe-"
"There's no need to do all that!"
The boys looked to see Morgana emerging from his hiding spot behind one of the trash cans.
"Huh? What were you doing back there?" Ren asked incredulously.
"I was waiting for you guys to get here after your spat with Kamoshida." Morgana replied, "He's a lot scummier than I originally thought him to be."
"Wait, how do you know about that?" Ren questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"I was following you guys when you first cornered that Mishima kid, and I also followed you when you went into Kamoshida's office." Morgana revealed.
"You mean you were hiding in there the entire time...?!" Ren asked in surprise.
"Yup." Morgana nodded before smirking, "But more importantly, it seems like you guys have no options other than the offer I made yesterday. So, whaddya say? You gonna accept it or what...?"
Before Ren could give a response of his own, Ryuji finally chimed in.
"Hey, Morgana..."
"Hm? What's up?" The cat replied.
"... How hard is it to get rid of a Palace?"
The three Persona users were now standing in the same alleyway where all of this technically started.
"So, I assume you've made up your minds about this?" Morgana asked, "About how he might suffer a mental shutdown?"
"Well, we don't exactly have any other choice." Ren answered with a shrug, "So I guess I'm down."
"And you?" Morgana looked at Ryuji.
"Yeah... I've made up my mind..." Ryuji answered as he hardened his eyes.
"Someone I care about almost died because of him... That bastard can go rot in hell for all I care...!"
The pure venom and spite in his words took Ren and even Morgana aback, as they weren't used to seeing him this angry.
The cat had to clear his throat to shake it off, "... Then it's settled." He stated, "The moment we cross over, we'll treat each other like phantom thieves, so I hope you're ready."
"Phantom thieves?" Ryuji repeated in confusion.
"Those who covertly sneak in and stylishly steal Treasure-that is what we become!" Morgana enthusiastically declared.
"Huh. Not bad." Ren complimented with a smirk as he pulled out his phone.
"... Y'know what? That actually sounds kinda cool!" Ryuji beamed, his anger slowly dissipating.
"Y'know, sometimes I still can't help but wonder where this app originated from." Ren revealed as he entered the keywords, "I wonder if someone made it."
"As long as it sends us into bizzaro world, then it doesn't really matter where it came from, do it?" Ryuji asked, still hiding the true answer.
"Guess you have a point." Ren conceded before a sound came from his phone, "Oh. I think I got it!"
"Alright, then let's go!" Morgana exclaimed.
"Yeah! We'll show that 'effin Kamoshida!" Ryuji stated in determination.
The world began to shift for the three Persona users as they entered the familiar world of the Metaverse, completely unaware that a certain someone had been eavesdropping on them nearby...
"*Sigh* It's good to be back..." Ren sighed with relief as he stretched in his metaverse attire.
"You're really enjoying this..." Morgana, who was now in his anthropomorphic form, deadpanned.
"Alright! Let's get a move on!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"W-What the hell is this place?!"
The three Persona users turned around at the unfamiliar voice, and were surprised by what-
Sorry... Who they saw.
"Wuh-Takamaki?!" Ryuji called out in shock.
Standing before them was indeed Ann Takamaki, who was clearly bewildered by the unfamiliar environment.
"That voice... Sakamoto?!" Ann recognized him before turning to Ren, "And... are you... Amamiya?!"
"... In the flesh." Ren simply confirmed.
"For real, dude?!"
"No point in lying if she already recognizes us." Ren shrugged.
"What's going on?! Hey, where are we?! Isn't this the school?!" Ann frantically asked.
"W-We're the one's askin' the questions!" Ryuji refuted, "How the hell did you even get here?!"
"How should I know?!" Ann replied in exasperation, "I-I was just following you guys to see what you were up to and then all of a sudden we ended up here!"
Morgana, who had been staring at Ann so hard that his heart started beating out of his cas if he were in an old cartoon, quickly shook himself out of it.
"I see. Perhaps she was dragged in because of that app thing." He added his two cents, "If multiple people can enter with the person who uses it, it stands to reason it'll pull anyone nearby."
"That sounds like it could be a big problem..." Ren noted.
"What in the hell are you guys talking about it??" Ann interrupted them.
"That's not important!" Ryuji retorted, "You gotta leave right now!"
"No!" Ann refused.
"The shadows are going to find us if you make a scene!" Morgana warned.
However, this caused Ann to step back and get even louder in fear.
"No way...! It talked?!" She exclaimed in flabbergastment, "Oh my God... It's a monster cat!"
"M-Monster?!" Morgana repeated in bewilderment while Ren almost fell to the ground due to how hard he was laughing.
"You better explain what's going on!" Ann demanded, "I won't leave until you do!"
"*Sigh* Hate to say it, but it looks like we've gotta force her." Ryuji sighed.
"But how could we do that?" Ren asked.
"Just take her back to where we came in." Morgana instructed, "That's how it worked last time, right?"
"O-Oh, yeah!" Ryuji remembered, "Well, let's get this over with. Mind lendin' me a hand?"
"Why not?" Ren simply agreed.
They walked over to Takamaki, who was a bit on edge.
"What're you...?"
"We'll explain after everything's over." Ryuji simply responded.
"H-Hey!" Ann exclaimed in shock as the two suddenly grabbed her by the arms from opposite sides and escorted her near the entrance, "W-What the?! Let go!"
"Sorry, Takamaki-san." Ren apologized, "It's for your own good."
"What he said." Ryuji agreed.
"I-I said to let me go!"
The blonde girl tried to struggle against their holds, but their grips were too strong. In an attempt to stop her thrashing, Ryuji readjusted his arms to firmly keep her steady.
Unfortunately, that caused his right elbow to make contact with a certain round object belonging to Takamaki, which shocked both of them.
"H-Hey?! J-Just where are you touching?!" Ann exclaimed with a growing blush.
"W-Woah, s-sorry, I didn't mean-!" Ryuji tried to apologize.
"Wow, dude... You just couldn't help it, could you?" Ren asked in a disappointed tone which was betrayed by his smirk.
"S-Shaddup!! I didn't do it on purpose!!" Ryuji hastily defended himself with a blush of his own.
"You guys seriously- Ah?!"
Takamaki didn't get to finish as her figure slowly vanished from the Metaverse as soon as they reached the gate.
"Phew!" Ryuji let out in relief as him and Ren walked back to the castle, "We've gotta be careful from now on when we're usim' that app..."
"... I'm not gonna lie. Even though we had to kick her out, I still feel kinda bad..." Ren admitted as he rubbed his hair.
"I'd be lyin' if I said I didn't feel bad too..." Ryuji admitted, "But that castle is way too dangerous for someone without powers like ours. I'd never forgive myself if I put Takamaki's life at risk like that."
"You said it." Ren nodded.
"That girl's name is Ann Takamaki, right?" Morgana asked before crossing his arms and gaining a fond smile, "Lady Ann~"
"... Why do I feel unnerved just by hearing you say that?" Ren asked with narrowed eyes.
"Anyways, can we get a move on already?" Ryuji urged, "We gotta get this over with fast!"
"You're right." Morgana nodded, "The shadows have noticed our presence. You better brace yourselves, got it?" He warned.
"As long as I have Arsène with me, then I'm ready for anything." Ren twirled his dagger.
"All right! Time to go steal that treasure!" Ryuji exclaimed with a grin, "Let's dash for it!"
At that, the trio rushed on into the castle, with Ryuji somehow running a lot faster than before.
The sooner they took down Kamoshida, the better. He was absolutely determined to finish this, and he swore that he'd take that bastard down.
Not just for himself, but for Takamaki and Suzui...
Ryuji's Confidant List:
THE DEATH - Ren Amamiya:Rank1
THE FOOL - Igor: Rank 1
Oh, Shiho... I really wanted to save you. I really did, but I had no choice!
Truth be told, writing for Kamoshida is probably one of the most painful things I've ever done since I twisted my knee when I was 8
Tragedy has struck at Shujin, Secrets were exposed, and Ryuji is absolutely furious! Best believe, things are getting heated up now! Anyways, I cut this chapter short so that I could write a full Palace chapter right after I'm done with this one. Yup, you're pretty much getting back to back chapters this week. Be grateful!
Haha, but anyways, regardless of what happened, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and in the next one, a certain someone will awaken to her new power Stay tuned until then!
RinOta, out!