~X~
~ May 18 - Café Leblanc - After School ~
The bell on the door rang as I opened it, and Ryuji and Ann followed me in.
"Welcome b- Oh? Who are they?" Sojiro glanced at the two who walked in with me.
"These are my friends. Ryuji Sakamoto and Ann Takamaki," I answered and motioned to each of them.
"Hello!" Ann cheerfully greeted, and Ryuji nodded at him.
"Is that so," Sojiro said.
"Yuki has really helped us out," Ann said.
"Huh. Sit down. This curry will be on the house," Sojiro said and started preparing a couple of plates for them.
I, meanwhile, went around the counter and started cooking a new batch of curry. This is mostly for myself and Futaba who will show up later as, like everyone in the Emiya Household, she is spoiled on my food.
"Wow. I'm not much of a coffee guy, but this is pretty good," Ryuji said.
"It goes really well with the curry," Ann complimented. "But why don't you have a plate, Yuki?"
"I make my own curry… And Futaba's as well," I added. "Speaking of, she should be here right about…"
"Curry time!" the door flew open, and a familiar gamer/hacker was at the door.
"Now," I finished.
"Hey, YuYu. I'll have my usual," Futaba said, then froze when she saw strangers at the counter staring at her. She nervously looked over at me, and I winked. She got the message and slowly sat on the seat closest to the stairs. "Hi…" she shyly said to Ryuji and Ann.
"YuYu?" I asked while placing a plate of curry in front of her.
"Yeah, you know, like YuYu Hakusho," she said, slowly coming out of her nervousness since I'm close by.
"I guess it's okay," I shrugged and sat in the chair between Futaba and Ann.
~X~
We finished up our food and went to my room upstairs. Though Futaba brought up a second curry to eat.
Ryuji was sitting on a chair, Ann was on the couch, Morgana was on the coffee table, I was on the bed, and Futaba was behind me eating and slightly hiding from the others. Before I start, I used my usual Berkano rune so we're not overheard.
"Alright, Futaba, these are the others. Starting with Ryuji Sakamoto."
"'Sup."
"Ann Takamaki."
"Hello."
"And Morgana."
"Hi there."
Futaba blinked at him. "Woah, the kitty just talked."
"You'll get used to it," I said.
"Eh, I guess I will. After everything I've seen so far, a talking cat's not that high up on the list," Futaba shrugged.
"I'm not a cat," Morgana reflexively said.
"Really? You look like a cat, walk like a cat, and sound like one," Futaba tilted her head. "So…"
"Hah! That's what I say," Ryuji chuckled.
"Mrrr…" Morgana groaned in annoyance.
"Moving on. You're fine with joining us?" Ann asked Futaba.
"YuYu told you about my past?" Futaba asked, and the others nodded. "Then yes, I want to join. I want to find the people who killed my mom, and the Phantom Thieves are my best chance."
"We're gonna go after them too?" Ryuji asked seriously. "'Cause these kinds of adults sound like the kind we should go after."
"One heist at a time Ryuji," I said. "Let's focus on Madarame. Which reminds me, we'll need to leave soon if we want to be on time to meet Nakanohara."
"Great. Imma head downstairs and let Sojiro know I'm heading out," Futaba got and started toward the stairs.
"He'll let you go?" I said with a bit of shock.
"Normally no, but since I'm going with you, he will," Futaba said and went down.
"...You know, I'm kind of surprised that Futaba is willing to go out in public so quickly," I commented. "She's already helping around the café. She's nervous when she interacts with customers, but I see the smile on her face. She was willing to meet you guys and is already joking around a bit. And now she wants to head out in public? Her pace is a lot faster than I thought it'd be," I shook my head in disbelief.
"I… think it's because of you," Ann said.
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"I don't know how to put this…" Ann bit her lip while thinking what to say. "There's just something about you. Something that draws others to you. It's like… I don't know how to put it."
"It's like there's this air around you. What do they call it? Charisma?" Ryuji continued Ann's train of thought.
"She looks like she feels safest around you, even more so than with Sojiro," Morgana added his own observations. "It seems like Futaba sees you as an anchor."
I think Shadow Futaba maybe a comment about how I had a high Charisma level. I took a look at the skill in question.
[Charisma] Level: 20 [2%]
A composite skill consisting of a person's charm as well as their natural talent to command or unify a country.
- Increase damage dealt by allies and self by 10%.
- Certain actions are easier the higher level this skill is.
.
I guess level 20 is pretty high. In terms of Servant stats, this would be equivalent to a D-rank in Charisma.
An anchor, huh? I know I played a significant role in her life, helping her with her distorted desires, but I didn't think Futaba would see it that big, enough to where she's willing to go so far out of her comfort zone if I ask her to.
Why does it feel like I tend to underestimate myself?
"Because you do," Merlin spoke from within my mind. "I told you, you need to give yourself more credit."
…
"Come on. "Let's go."
We stood up and headed out.
~X~
~ Shibuya Station - After School ~
The five of us were hanging around in the station, waiting for Nakanohara to arrive. Futaba was sticking very close to my side and was nervously looking around. I wish I knew the Calm spell to help her out a bit.
"Hey, is that him?" I heard Ann say. I turned to see that it was indeed Nakanohara approaching.
"Natushiko Nakanohara?" I asked when he came up to us. Futaba she from my side to hiding behind me.
"Yes, that's me," Nakanohara said. "You must be the ones that the administrator of the Phantom Aficionado Website asked me to meet."
"He doesn't seem like a stalker type," Ann whispered. "I guess the change of heart helped."
"If my belief is correct, you're planning to trigger a change of heart on Madarame?" Nakonohara asked.
"That depends on you," I said.
"Then yes. I am requesting it. I was one of Madarame's pupils and everything I said in my post is true," Nakanohara said.
"So, everything from the abuse and working his pupils like slaves to make art that he plagiarizes? That's all true?" I asked to confirm.
"Yes," he said, then went on to explain more. "When I was his pupil he gave me lodging where I thought only about art. I genuinely wanted to be an artist… There was another pupil. A talented man, multiple years my senior. Obviously, Madarame kept tabs on him. Everything he made was claimed as a 'Madarame Original'. …And in response to Madarame's actions, that senior pupil committed suicide."
"Suicide…" Ann frowned, most likely reminded of Shiho. I could feel Futaba shuffle around behind me.
"He must have been unable to bear seeing his work praised under Madarame's name," Nakanohara looked down and shook his head like he was having a flashback, then wanted to clear his thoughts. "That was when I disobeyed Madrame's orders and left."
"Then Madarame retaliated against you," I said.
"Yes. He quickly used his connections and pressured other parts of the art world to blacklist me. My dreams as a painter were destroyed," Nakanohara confirmed. "I tried to turn over a new leaf working at a ward office… but it was no use."
"What do you mean?" Ann asked.
"My attention to art warped my emotions. Soon I began getting attached to everything… In the end, I even turned into a stalker… Ha… haha," he laughed bitterly at himself. He soon recomposed himself. "...I'd like to ask again. Please, make Madarame have a change of heart. Not only for me. It's… to save another man's life, as well."
"Another? Are you talking about Yusuke?" Ann said.
"Yes, Yusuke Kitagawa. Madarame took him in when his mother passed away. Quite the prodigy," Nakanohara nodded. "Because of this feels he owes Madarame for that. He is the perfect target…"
"And Yusuke feels like he's got no choice but to listen!" Ryuji said.
"I actually spoke to him a few times, back when I was still living at Madarame's. I asked him if he found it painful to stay with Madarame, and do you know what he said?" Nakanohara said. "'If I could leave, I would…'.
I have no right to say this given my prior cowardice, but I don't want to see another suicide! I'd like to find a way to save this young man. He has a bright future ahead of him. Please consider that when thinking about changing Madarame's heart," he finished his plea. "Thank you for listening to me. I need to get going.
He then left.
"Let's head to the expressway," I said.
~X~
~ Shibuya Walkway - After School ~
"Damnit. Madarame's just a real piece of shit who preys on the weak," Ryuji snapped after hearing Nakanohara's account.
"Suicide… I'll never let something like that happen," Ann whispered to herself. "Plus, we finally got to hear how Kitagawa-kun really feels."
"We're going after his treasure, right?" Futaba said.
"We are," I nodded.
"Our first course of action is to secure an infiltration route to the Treasure," Morgana said. "After that, we'll send our calling card so that the Treasure will materialize, and then we steal it."
"Oooh, I got a question!" Ryuji shouted. Good thing using the Berkano rune is starting to become second nature. "Madarame doesn't know that we were doin' stuff in the Palace yet. Why are we already gettin' treated like criminals there?"
"You're learning, Ryuji. Well done," Morgana honestly complimented.
"Madarame strikes me as an overly cautious person," I said. "We saw the lengths he went to in his Palace to keep track of all of his former pupils. Even going as far as to ruin them when they're no longer under his thumb borders on paranoia. Anyone he doesn't trust is his enemy, and he doesn't trust easily.
"And because of that, it affects his Cognition," Futaba said. "His Palace might have more security than your pervy gym teacher."
"That's right," Morgana said. "That means we need to be more careful about avoiding the shadows and making sure we don't raise the security level."
"As bad as I feel about Kitagawa-kun, we have to be careful around him," Ann said. "I'm sure that whatever he sees will just get passed on to Madarame."
"Which means we have to try not to get on their bad side in reality, as well," I said.
"Hey, what do you think Madarame's Treasure going to be? Another crown?"
"I doubt it," I said. "A Palace Treasure sounds like a personal sort of thing. Kamoshida's was his Olympic gold medal."
"And for my Palace, well, it took some thinking, but I'm pretty sure that my Treasure was myself," Futaba added.
"For real? How does that work?" Ryuji asked confused.
"I'd have to go deep into Psychology and Cognitive Pscience to explain it, but we don't have time for that," Futaba shrugged.
"As for Madrame's Treasure, I have a six sense for that sort of thing," Morgana said. "I'll know it when I see it."
"And our timeline is when the exhibit ends, right?" Ryuji said. "When is that?"
"June 5th," Ann supplied.
"Which means we need to have our infiltration route secured by June 2nd," Morgana said.
"Then let's get started," I said.
.
Quest Added
[Museum of Vanity]
Madarame is nothing but a counterfeiter who takes advantage of his pupils for his own success. Time for the team's second heist. Steal his Treasure and induce a change of heart before his exhibit ends.
Deadline: June 5
Objective:
- Secure an infiltration route to the Treasure. [ ]
Rewards: 30000 EXP, 5 Gacha Tickets, +10 Skill Token.
~X~
~ Museum of Vanity - After School ~
"Woah, that's a lot of gold," Futaba stared up at the museum. "Rather pretentious, huh?"
"I guess so," Panther said. "I said something similar when I first saw it."
"Alright, let's head in," Skull pumped his fist.
"Hold on. We still need to choose a code name for our new recruit," Mona said.
"Hm?" Futaba tilted her head.
"Oh yeah! There's that," Skull seemed excited.
"We don't want to use our real names in a Palace," I explained. "There's no way to tell what kind of effect it could have on the Palace Ruler back in reality. So, better safe than sorry."
"Yup. We have Joker, Mona, Skull, Panther…" Mona said.
"Right, so what code name…" Ann tapped a finger on her chin. "How about 'Mech'?"
"'Hacker'?" Ryuji chimed in.
"No," Futaba flatly said.
"Why don't we go literal and call her 'Goggles'?" Mona looked proud at that.
"Really, Mona?" I rolled my eyes; that was bad.
"Super lame. You've got no taste, kitty," Futaba dryly said.
"What do you think, Joker?" Panther asked.
"Hm… What about 'Navi'? Short for Navigator," I had to throw that one in.
"That's… Huh. That one's actually pretty good, but I want to go with 'Oracle'," Futaba said. "With my vision, I'll guide you all to victory. Plus, I'm a huge fan of Barbara Gordon."
"Aw, you don't want to be like that fairy from Ocarina of Time?" I asked playfully. "Come on, you don't want to poke fun by always getting to say 'Hey! Listen!' before giving some important info?" I nudged her side. "Hey! Listen! If you go with Navi, you'll have the bestest code name ever!"
"Please stop," Futaba deadpanned.
I chuckled at her response.
"So, uh, Oracle is the code name you're using," Panther said, looking between the two of us.
I looked at Futaba, raised a curious eyebrow, and smiled.
Is it? You can still use Navi. ;)
Futaba rolled her eyes but smiled in return.
Dork.
"Yup. Call me Oracle,"
"Right then, with that finished, let's start," Mona said.
~X~
We followed the same path to the skylight, except for Futaba who used her Persona to fly up there and entered the familiar gallery room. Skull was about to move on to the next room when I grabbed him on the shoulder and stopped him.
"What's up," he asked.
"The infrared laser security system is active now," I motion to the system attached to the door frame.
"Hm, it looks like Madarame is getting more cautious," Mona observed.
"Oracle, can you turn them off," I turned to UFO above us.
"Nope, I already tried," she answered. "However, I can make the lasers on the system more visible."
When she said that, the lasers in front of us got stronger and thus more visible. We can now easily see that the bottom laser isn't on.
"It'll do. We'll just have to slide under these."
And that's what we did. We slid under and moved further into the next room. We had to hide around a corner when we saw a familiar sight.
"Shadows," Mona whispered. "Goes to show Madarame is even more on guard if he has shadows actively looking for intruders."
"What's the plan?" Panther said.
"Let's take 'em out. It'll be easier to move through this maze if we don't have to watch our backs," I said. And we could use the experience.
When the shadow got close enough, I dashed around the corner, hopped on its shoulders, and tore off its mask. The shadow dissolved into a puddle which quickly exploded into three of the same shadows.
I used my Mystic Eyes to get a good idea of everyone's strengths.
[Leafy Old Man] Level: 9
[Leafy Old Man] Level: 9
[Leafy Old Man] Level: 9
[Mona] Level: 11
[Skull] Level:10
[Panther] Level: 10
[Oracle] Level: 31
[Joker] Level: 26
.
…I think Oracle and I are a little over-leveled for this.
Sure enough, when I used Orpheus and hit the shadow with Agilao it went down in one hit.
"...Right then, You're up, Panther," I passed the baton to her.
She hit the other two with a Maragi, knocking them down. And we finished them off with an All-out Attack.
Things were this simple as we moved on to the room with the big sculpture we saw the last time we were here.
We all looked at the golden sculpture with varying amounts of disgust before looking at the door on the other side of the room.
"Past that door is uncharted territory," Panther noted.
"Security will probably be tighter. So, make sure you don't touch anything or run into any of the displays, all right?" Mona said.
We all stared at Skull.
"What're you lookin' at me for!?" Skull shouted in indignation.
With that, we moved. It was a hop and a slide past some lasers 'til we reached a safe room.
~X~
"You know, I've been wondering something," I said once everyone settled in the safe room.
"What is it," Panther asked.
"All of this gold, this glitz and glamour, it's obvious Madarame enjoys a luxurious life."
"That's one deduction you can make based on his Palace," Mona agreed.
"I'm certain he makes a fortune off his plagiarism, especially if he's been doing this for so long," I continued. "What I'm wondering is where does all of his money go?"
"...Maybe to charities?" Ryuji threw out there. "He does have an image to keep."
"...You're not wrong, but I think he would only donate the minimum required to keep that image. Remember, he seems to enjoy his wealth and luxuries," I thought, then turned to our resident hacker. "Oracle, the file you sent me had notes about how you checked his finances."
"Yup. When you had me research his students and plagiarism came up, I decided to take a peek at his bank accounts," Oracle explained. "He owns a luxury car and a mansion, though no one knows about those because they're in his mistress' name."
"That's right!" Panther had a look of realization on her face. "Remember when we first met him outside the train station? He pulled up in a luxury car. That was probably it."
"Tch. So, while his pupils live in a shack, he's livin' it up in a mansion," Skull scowled.
"There's more," Oracle continued. "He's sending millions of yen somewhere. I don't know exactly where, but more than 30% of his fortune goes to places unknown. I tried following the money, but I lost the trail in off-shore accounts."
Really? Well, that's interesting…
"Jeez, that much?" Skull scratched his head.
"Why would he do that?" Panther asked.
"We can only speculate that, and we don't have enough information," Mona stated. "We should get a move on, Joker."
"Yeah, let's go."
~X~
We exited the safe room and went into the next room. This one looks to be another gallery.
"Look, there are more portraits of people," Panther pointed out.
"With more names," I pointed at the plaques. I made sure to make a note of them.
"These are probably more students of Madarame's," Mona deduced.
"Jeez, how many did this guy have?" Skull said.
We moved on further to see another Shadow, but this one had a red aura coming off of it.
"Careful, that one's really strong. It might be best to sneak around it," Oracle advised.
…I want to fight it.
…
I really want to fight it.
…
"I'm gonna fight it," I said out loud.
"What?" my teammates said in response.
I jumped from around the corner and used my grappling hook. It latched onto its back, and I was pulled toward it. I landed on its shoulders and swiftly pulled off its mask, jumping away from it and getting into a battle stance, ready to fight what looks like a Shiki-Ouji.
[Bringer of Misfortune] Level: 21
[HP: 3500/3500]
My teammates quickly moved into position to fight alongside me.
"What the hell, Joker!?" Skull exclaimed.
"I'll take point. You guys hit it from a distance," I ordered, then charged forward.
"You'll have to use magic. It's immune to physical attacks," Oracle helpfully informed.
"What is up with you, Joker?" Mona groaned in frustration at my actions. "Zorro! Garu!"
The others started peppering it with their elemental magic as I kept charging.
The Shadow took full damage but wasn't phased by the magic. It raised one of its arms to slam me, and I raised my Nihil Sword to block the strike. The clash produced a small shockwave, but I held firm. Blocking that was no trouble for me. I used Reinforcement to increase the strength in my arms and pushed the Shadow back.
"What!?" Panther shouted in surprise at what she saw.
"I'm pretty sure I'd have trouble doin' that," Skull also looked on in shock.
"Wooow, nice going, Joker," Oracle was impressed.
"I guess being trapped in a Palace and another world forced her to get stronger," Mona whispered.
He is right. Singularity F and Futaba's Palace did make me more powerful than the others. Anyway, back to the Shadow.
I used Hellish Rebuke to distract it, then used my new skill, Flame Weapon, to coat my sword in fire. I swung several quick slashes and was pleased to see it actually did damage.
Well, sort of. The magical aspect of the attack did full damage but the physical aspect was completely nullified because of the Shadow's immunity.
The Shadow tried multiple physical attacks, even using skills to try and hit me, but they were all dodged or deflected. My teammates have stopped their attacks and have taken to just watching me fight it alone.
Eventually, it swung at me with a large overhead swing.
[HP: 347/3500]
Hmm, there's a skill I'd like to try here. I want to see what it does against a Shadow that's supposed to be immune to physical attacks. I sheathed my Nihil Sword and got into Quickdraw stance.
At the last possible second, just before it hit me, I took a step forward and started drawing my sword…
"Zantetsuken…"
…And appeared behind it, my sword sliding into the sheath as the Shadow had seemingly frozen its movements.
*CLICK*
A black slash with a red outline flew across the Shadow's body, and the it exploded.
…
My teammates had their jaws touching the ground at this point. All of them were in complete awe at my finishing technique.
…Time to troll.
"Hm…" I unsheathed and resheathed my sword experimentally. "Nope, still doesn't feel right… Maybe I should try it with a katana instead," I said, acting like what I pulled off wasn't a huge deal.
…Silence continued until…
"HUH!?"
"HOW-?"
"WHAT THE FRICK WAS THAT!?"
"THAT WAS AWESOME!"
Oracle seemed to be the only one who enjoyed the move.
"Right, let's move on," I said and walked on ahead, pretending to be oblivious to their reactions.
As for the skill I just used, I got it from one of my free weekly gacha pulls.
[Zantetsuken] Level: 2 [12%]
A single, impossibly fast sword strike, usually dealing a devastating amount of damage.
- Base Damage: 500% of STR and DEX.
- Critical Chance: 100%.
- Automatically kills target if its HP is below 10%.
.
I love this skill so much. Thank you RNGesus.
Anyway, the test was successful. This skill can insta-kill targets that are immune to physical attacks.
Although, I was serious about using a katana. Using this skill with a longsword feels unnatural. The draw and sheathe doesn't feel… fluid.
Guess I finally have a reason to use Satori that I got a couple weeks ago, back in Singularity F.
~X~
Once my teammates finally snapped out of it, they caught up with me. Obviously, they wanted to know how I did what I did, but I pointed out we still have a Palace to get through.
"Come on, at least tell us how you made that fight look so easy," Skull kept asking for details. "I had a hard time keepin' up with that Shadow's speed."
"I'll say this," I said, finally giving them something. "That fight was a lot easier than fighting the Cognitive Sphinx in Oracle's Palace.
"Huh, I guess if you fought something stronger, then that would've seemed easy," Skull accepted.
As we moved down the corridor, we passed a golden vase that was sparkling clean.
"H-Hey, wait a second!" Mona stopped in his tracks and turned to the item. "You're just gonna ignore that golden sheen?"
"Yes, we are," I said. "It's not what we're here for."
"Come on, just… look at that luster…" Mona actually licked his lips, staring at it. "I know it might be tough to take with us, but don't you think it'd sell for tons?"
"Mona, I already got so much gold and jewels from the pyramid. We don't need that," I tried to dissuade him from the item. I don't want to waste time and go through this part.
He didn't listen as he jumped up on the display…
"Wait, Mona! Don't!" Oracle tried to warn but was too late.
Because Mona stepped on something.
I quickly backflipped away from the display as a laser system was activated. Only Oracle and I managed to avoid it as everyone else was trapped.
"Oh no. I tripped the security," Mona stated the obvious.
"Great, nice goin', cat. Weren't you the one who told us to be careful?" Skull fumed.
"Oracle, can you shut it off? I said.
"No, if I try, it'll alert the Shadows," Oracle tapped around on her screens. "It looks like there are switches on opposite sides of this room that'll shut off the first two levels of security. Then you'll have to go to the control room to turn it off completely."
"Then that's what I'll do,"
There were some crates in the corner, to my left, that allowed me to climb to a landing to move to a part of the room that's normally cut off by a glass wall. After scaling my way up, I ambushed the Shadow that was patrolling here.
[Rooftop Lion] Level: 15
"It's just one enemy. It shouldn't be a problem for you," Oracle remarked.
She was right it was pretty easy. I summoned Raoul and hit it with Eiha, knocking it down. I then pulled out Ebony and Ivory with a twirl, crossed the two, and started charging both of them with mana.
"Jackpot!"
I pulled the triggers. Both charged shots flew forward and obliterated the Shadow.
"Stylish," Oracle complimented. "You know, I never thought about bringing replicas of well-known weapons into the Metaverse. I guess the Cognition lets them function as they do in the video games."
"Who said they're replicas?" I said as I pushed a button that released the first level of security.
Oracle knows about my magical background. She should figure out I'm telling the truth.
"No way…" I can feel her staring at me in that UFO.
I winked at her and regrouped with Panther, who was released from the trap. Good thing the others were too far to hear us. Still not ready to tell Panther and Skull.
"Thanks! Now, let's get the other two," Panther said.
I nodded, and we climbed back up to the landing surrounding the room. We crossed a catwalk to the other side of the room. There was another Shadow that was very easy to ambush.
[Leafy Old Man] Level: 9
[Waterside Nymph] Level: 11
[Rooftop Lion] Level: 15
"Three of 'em and that old man is a Disaster Shadow," Oracle called out.
"Easy. Izanagi, Zio!!" I shouted.
The lightning spell knocked down the Nymph.
"You're up, Panther," I high-fived her for a Baton Pass.
"All right! Dance, Carmen!"
She lit all of them up with a Maragi. The leafy one was defeated in one hit. All that damage it took triggered a huge explosion destroying the other two Shadows.
"Phew, now for the switch," I said.
"It's behind that tilted painting," Oracle informed us.
I moved to the painting she pointed out, and behind it was the switch. I pressed that one to release the second level of security, which freed Skull. Panther and I then regrouped with him.
"Nice goin'," Skull said.
I nodded, then turned to Mona. "Sit tight, Mona. You'll be out of there in no time.
"Sure, it's not like I'm going anywhere." Mona actually sat down.
I turned to the team. "Come on. Let's climb back up. I saw a vent that might take us there."
And it was a pretty straightforward journey through the vent, into the control room, and finding the security terminal.
"Look, it says security-whatever on here!" Skull said. "Maybe this'll let us turn them lasers off!"
Password: _
"But it looks like it needs a password to use it," Panther frowned.
"Urgh, of course, it's not that easy," Skull grumbled.
"Maybe we can eavesdrop on some guards and see if they know?" Panther suggested.
"Or I could try to hack it," Oracle said.
"Or we could look at this post-it note that says 'password'," I said.
"Today's Password: 07734."
"For real? They just… write it for everyone to see," Skull said in disbelief.
"I'm not complaining," I typed in the password and was in. It was easy to turn off the lasers. There was an icon for just that.
.
We regrouped back at the display to catch up with Mona.
"I-I'm sorry… That was very unlike me…" Mona said apologetically.
"Sheesh, weren't you the one tellin' us not to touch anything," Skull said.
"Urgh, that's true…" Mona grimaced. "But something about this vase is drawing me to it."
"What do you mean? Isn't it an ordinary gold vase?" Ann said.
Hmm… I decided to take a closer look. …There is something about it. I can see the air rippling around but what…
Wait. I have my Mystic Eyes. I could use those.
What I saw made my eyes widen. I lunged at the vase destroying it.
"The heck?"
"Joker?"
The others questioned my sudden change in behavior, but I was paying attention to what spawned in front of us, a spinning red gem.
"So that's why!" Mona shouted.
"Treasure Demon!" I shouted, and the gem started flying away. "Catch it, catch it, CATCH IT!" I chased it down as fast as I could.
"The heck!?" Oracle was taken aback. "Is Joker always like this on a heist?"
"No, it's usually Mona," Panther answered.
"Come on!" Mona said. "Let's catch up with her! We need to catch that thing!"
The others followed behind me. I got impatient and used my grappling hook to latch onto it. The hook reeled me in, and I kicked the gem. It was sent flying and hit a wall. When it landed, out popped some blue entity that looked like a ghost with yellow eyes and was circling the gem.
"Knock it down, quick!" I shouted.
Skull, Panther, and Mona summoned their Personas and hit with their skills and magic. It took damage but wasn't knocked down.
"I got it! Its weakness is nuclear attacks," Oracle said.
Okay then. "Suzaku, Frei!" And the Treasure Demon was knocked down.
"Haha, no need for chitchat," the ghost sat up. "That was a nice chase. Name's Regent. I'm willing to join my existence with yours.
Regent turned to mask the same as mine flew to my face, dissolving just as it reached me.
"Great! We caught one on our first try," Mona said excitedly.
"What's so special about these Treasure Demons?" Panther asked.
"They're a rare type of Shadow that like to hide treasures," Mona explained.
"They can also make my Personas stronger," I added.
"So that's why you went all bloodhound after it," Oracle said.
"Well, with that small speed bump out of the way, let's continue," I said and we moved further into the Palace.
~X~
Several paths and Shadow encounters later, we came across the garden with a path that led to an absolute eyesore of a building. It was, this is hard to describe, it was this blindingly gold building that was haphazardly put together. It had this peacock feather design all over the thing.
"Whoa, it's even gaudier than the rest of the museum," Panther observed.
"Jeez, my eyes hurt just starin' at it," Skull rubbed his eyes.
"It looks like something a kid would put together in Minecraft," Oracle commented. "Except with a kid, it's fun. For Madrame it's tasteless."
"It looks like something important would be hidden in there," Mona said.
"Let's check it out," I said.
We went down the golden path, passed the door that opened for us, and came upon a courtyard with infrared lasers and electrical currents everywhere. Beyond that was a huge double door with golden peacock feathers fanned out on it.
"Whoa! The hell?" Skull said.
"That is a lot of lasers," I said.
"This level of security only proves there's something worth protecting up ahead," Mona replied.
"Hey, look at this," Panther walked up to a sign. "'All personnel: This door can only be opened via the security room that lies beyond it. Please be cautious, as it is impossible to open from the outside.'"
"So, it's never gonna open!? How're we supposed to get past!?" Skull protested.
"Oracle?" I tried asking.
"It's not happening," Oracle sounded miffed. "That door is way too embedded in Madarame's Cognition for me to hack."
"Wait a minute… I've seen that door before!" Mona jumped up, eyes wide.
"You have!? Where?" Skull asked.
"First, let's get to a safe room. There should be one back the way we came," Mona said.
~X~
"All right, you said something about seeing that door before," I asked as soon as we all settled.
"Yup, it's in Madarame's shack. I remember seeing it when you asked me to look around the place," Mona replied. "It stuck in my mind because it was such a fancy door in a shabby place. Also, there was a pretty hefty padlock keeping it shut."
"If it's locked, that means there's something in there he doesn't want people to see," Panther said
"But don't we wanna open the door in the Palace?" Skull asked, confused at where this was going.
"Yes, and we're going to do that by opening the real one in front of Madarame's eyes," Mona said.
"I get it. You want to change his Cognition," Oracle had a look of realization. "Right now, Madarame believes no one can get past that door. By opening it in front of him in the real world, the door here in his Palace is no longer unopenable."
"Exactly," Mona nodded.
"Okay, how are we going to open the door in front of him?" I asked.
"I can get past the lock. Just give me a hairpin, and it'll be a breeze," Mona explained. "But it's going to take some time. We're going to need to distract him until I can get it open."
"How we gonna-" Skull noticed who Mona was staring at. "Oh… Ohhh!"
"...What?" Panther did not like the stares from Skull and Mona. I kept quiet.
"Man, how are we even gonna get into his house? We'd get reported for sure if we force ourselves in…" Skull said. Panther frowned at him, wondering what he was getting at. "I guess the only way is… havin' you go nude."
"WHAT!?" Panther shouted.
"Nude?" Oracle blinked, wondering where that came from.
"Fancy you say that, Skull. I was just thinking the same thing," Mona continued.
"This isn't funny!" Panther protested.
"Enough teasing," I stepped in. Teasing her is not going to get her on board with this plan. "Panther, they're not saying you should really get naked. Just provide a distraction long enough for Mona to get the door open.
"But why do I have to be the distraction!?" Panther said.
"Skull and I aren't welcome there anymore and Yusuke wants to paint you," I explained. "You have the perfect excuse to be there."
"This is all too sudden…" Panther shook her head. "I mean, I don't even know where the locked door is."
"Don't worry about that. I'll be going with you," Mona said.
"But that's still technically only me…" Panther trailed. "What if I get found out?"
"Then run into the Palace," I said. "They can't follow you there."
"Ughhh… Do I really have to do this?" Panther groaned. It's pretty clear she doesn't want to.
"It's the only way," I said with finality and poured some Charisma into it.
"But what if, you know…? Uhh! Um…" Panther was trying to come up with an argument. "...Nothing,"
"All you gotta do is trick Yusuke, have him take you to that room, and open the door," Skull said.
"You make it sound so easy…
…
…
Urghhh! God!" Panther shouted in frustration. "Fine, I'll do it! For justice! You better pull this off! I don't want to have to go through all this for nothing!"
"If it's for your sake Panther, then I'll keep scratching until my claws break," Mona declared.
"I'll make this up to you when this is all over," I said.
"I expect a well-made desert and nothing less," Panther said.
"Uh, question," Oracle raised her hand. "What will we be doing?" she asked, referring to herself, Skull, and me.
"Waiting here, in the Palace for the door to open. Once it does, we'll go to the other side and find a way to keep it open," I explained.
"All right, so we got the plan. Let's do it tomorrow," Skull said.
"Tomorrow!?" Panther shouted, surprised that it was so soon.
"The earlier, the better."
"Will Kitagawa-kun agree so soon?"
"Just say that tomorrow is the best day for you," I said. "Yusuke is a bit desperate to get this portrait done soon, he should accept."
"Okay… Tomorrow it is," Panther sulked a bit.
"...You know what? Do you guys have time before you head home?" I said.
~X~
~ Café Leblanc - After School ~
We made our way back to the café and I told them to hang out in my room while I prepared Filipino Chicken Adobo, a favorite of mine in my previous life. I bought my own ingredients at the store and borrowed the kitchen.
"Phew, that smells really good," Sojiro commented.
"Heh, don't worry, Boss. I made enough for you, as well," I said.
When finished, I brought the wok with the food and pot of rice upstairs with some drinks.
"Oh, wooow," Morgana said when he noticed the smell. I could see him drooling.
After passing out plates and forks and spoons, we all made our own serving sizes. I took a bite and… Yup, it tastes as good as I remember. The others made their own noises when they took their first bite.
"Ohhh, this is the best food I ever had," Ann complimented.
"Damn, this is better than that 'professional' food from that hotel buffet we ate at," Ryuji said.
Futaba and Morgana, who already had my cooking before, had more subdued reactions but still voiced their enjoyment.
"I take it you all enjoy the food?" I asked.
Nobody answered as they were all eating the food, but I already knew the answer. Eventually, Ryuji and Ann's new appreciation for the taste of food calmed down and we all got to chatting.
…
"For real, it was freakin' amazing! There were girls all over me!" Ryuji finished gloating about his story. "...Wait, you don't believe a word I'm sayin', do ya?"
"Uh, it's you we're talking about here," Ann said skeptically. "There's no way you were ever a chick magnet,"
"What was that!?" Ryuji said.
"Agreed. As a member of the opposite sex, I sense no charm from you, Ryuji," Futaba said bluntly.
"Plus, popular guys wouldn't go bragging about that stuff to other people," Morgana added.
"That's not entirely true, Morgana," I said. "You'd be surprised at some of the stupid stuff popular people come up with."
…
"I keep wondering if I should do it while I'm still young… but the dresses show a lot more skin, right?" Ann finished. Then she noticed something. "Hey! Are you even listening?"
"There's no point talkin' about wedding dresses right now," Ryuji said tiredly. "None of us have significant others."
"Yup, I'm not getting married anytime soon," Futaba agreed.
"Can we please talk about something else!?" Morgana said, thoroughly bored of the conversation.
"Oh, come on! What about you, Yuki?" Ann looked at me.
"...If I ever get married, which I highly doubt, I'm gonna be the one wearing the suit."
…
"Well, I think it's time for me to head home," Ann stood up.
"Yeah, same here," Ryuji stood, as well.
"I hate to remind you after this fun night, but don't forget to contact Yusuke," I said.
"Ugh, that's right…" Ann sighed. "I'll text you guys later what he says."
Futaba and I followed them to the café door to see them out.
"Thanks for dinner, Yuki. See you tomorrow," Ann waved goodbye.
"Yup, have a good night, all," Ryuji left.
[-̴̢̾̅̚͜͝ͅ-̶̨̙͉̗̈̈́͐͝͝-̴̖͎̯̦̝͔̔͠-̵̡̈͋̓̓͒̕͝ Confidant (Phantom Thieves of Hearts) has reached Rank 2.]
~X~
"So, what was the dinner party about?" Morgana asked once the three of us went back upstairs.
"Two reasons. The first was to calm down Ann and take her mind off of the nude painting," I said.
"Well, that worked. Despite your reminder, she left with her morale meter high," Futaba said. "And the second."
"The second was so you could hang out with the Phantom Thieves."
"I… thought I already did that earlier today?"
"No, that wasn't hanging out, that was business," I explained. "You and the others needed a chance to get to know each other better outside of a Palace."
"I see. That reminds me… Can you show me, Ebony and Ivory?" Futaba said excitedly.
"Heh," I chuckled at her enthusiasm and pulled out the guns from my Inventory. I made sure to unload the guns before I handed them to her.
She immediately took them, one in each hand. She lifted them to aim both but I saw her arms were shaking a bit. She then let the guns fall to her side.
"Wow, they're heavier than I thought. I don't think my scrawny arms can hold them up for long," Futaba said.
"Really? They feel light to me," I ask confused.
"How much do they weigh?"
"1360 grams (3 lbs) each."
Futaba deadpanned at me. "That's pretty heavy for a handgun and you're also stronger than me."
"That true," I acquiesced.
Futaba sat down on the soda, placed Ebony on the coffee table, and examined Ivory. She then switched them with Ivory on the table and Ebony in her hands. She paid special attention to the engravings.
Ebony and Ivory
For Tony Redgrave
By .45 Art Works
"They look exactly as they do in the video games," she commented. "You alluded that they weren't replicas. So, these are the real deal?" I nodded. "How'd you get them?"
How much do I want to tell her?
"Do you know the Multiverse Theory?"
"Yeah. It's the idea that out there in the many universes, all possible worlds exist and they're as real as ours," Futaba nodded, then her eyes widened. "You mean out in the multiverse, Devil May Cry is real!?"
"Yup. Somewhere out there, Dante is delivering demonic beatdowns," I nodded.
"Still, how'd you get the guns if they're from another world?"
Oh boy. How do I explain this?
"I have something of a… patron," I said. "He can access the multiverse very easily, and he gives me random stuff from time to time."
"Huh, weird. Did you get anything interesting?" Futaba simply asked.
I raised an eyebrow at her lack of questions about my patron but moved on. "Well, there are these," I pulled out a PS5 and a certain game.
Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition
…
"...We're playing this right now," Futaba said.
"We only have about an hour until Sojiro closes the shop," I said as I pulled out a 4K TV from my Inventory.
"Eh, I can convince him to let me sleep over," Futaba started setting everything up.
While she was doing that, I set up an area so the objects inside the runes are unnoticeable to those without magic. Think of a runic version of what hides the Leaky Cauldron just much smaller. Sojiro shouldn't be able to notice the TV and PS5.
"Devil May Cry."
When did she start up the game?
She was already in a seat focused on the screen. I sat next to her and brought some chips and soda from my Inventory.
"What the-," something moved to the soda I placed on the table. It took me a second to realize it was Morgana.
"You two forgot I was here," Morgana deadpanned at me.
"I guess so," I shrugged and picked up my soda. "Come on, let's be annoying back-seat gamers"
And so, we watched Futaba go through the prologue.
"What!? Rebellion broke!? Come on!" she shouted.
~X~
~ "Pull my Devil Trigger." ~
"Damn, Nero got cooler," Futaba commented.
"Well, he is more battle-hardened, and he's been hanging out with Dante," I said.
"Still, who the heck is V?"
"That'll obviously get explained as the story goes on. Now, pay attention. It's time for combat."
Morgana and I watched as Futaba tried to figure out some of Nero's combos.
It didn't take her that long.
~X~
When Sojiro closed the store an hour later, he came up to take Futaba home. But she really did manage to let her sleep over here.
So, we, or rather she, played DMC 5. Morgana and I watched and added our own commentary.
We finished up Mission 08, where we decided to call it a night. It was already 3AM. I had school, and we were going to pull off the plan to get further into the Palace in the afternoon. So, we needed some rest.
Still, this impromptu game night was pretty fun. I can tell Futaba and Morgana had fun as well.
[Hermit Confidant (Futaba Sakura) has reached Rank 2.]
One final thing.
While Futaba was gaming, I finally raised my END and INT to the point where I got new perks.
.
[Due to your base END reaching 100, you have gained a new perk.]
Perk Acquired.
[Steel is my Body]
- Physical damage taken is reduced by 20%.
.
[Due to your base INT reaching 100, you have gained a new perk.]
Perk Acquired.
[Mana Savant I]
- Increase maximum MP by 10%.
- Increase damage of magic-based skills by 10%.
~X~
Social Links:
? - -̴̢̾̅̚͜͝ͅ-̶̨̙͉̗̈̈́͐͝͝-̴̖͎̯̦̝͔̔͠-̵̡̈͋̓̓͒̕͝ (Phantom Thieves of Hearts) - Rank 2
0 - F̵͎̓ơ̷̥o̴̥̐l̸̫̍ (Igor) – Rank 3
I - Magician (Morgana) – Rank 2
V - Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura) – Rank 3
VI - Lovers (Ann Takamaki) – Rank 2
VII - Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto) – Rank 6
IX - Hermit (Futaba Sakura) - Rank 2
XIII - Death (Rei Emiya) - Rank 2
XIV - Temperance (Artoria Pendragon) - Rank 2
XVII - Star (Issei Hyoudou) - Rank 3
XX - Judgement (Takayuki Yagami) - Rank 1
~X~
Author's Note:
Chapter 17 is complete. The 2nd day of Palace exploration and some time hanging out together.
More Palace exploration next time. And finally…
A Social Link!
As always, constructive criticism is appreciated.
(Preview)
"By the way, have you… gained some weight?
(x)
"A breathtaking sight…
Imitations they may be, but together, they make a fine spectacle…
Though the flowers of evil bloom, be it known…
Abominations are fated to perish!"
(x)
"Looks like the test score have been posted."
"I hope I did well. It was exhausting doing four days' worth of tests in just one day."
(x)
"Hm. I believe the last time I taught magecraft was back when I was a teacher at Hogwarts."
"So, you really did attend Hogwarts?"
"Yup!"
"Then I have some questions. The wizards know you were a good friend of King Arthur who lived in the late 5th century."
"Yes?"
"Then why are those wizards under the impression you were born in the late 10th century?"
"Ah. There's a fun story behind that."
"Why are they also under the impression that you're an old man with a long beard?"
"Heh. There's a story behind that too."