Inner Rebellion Finally Let Out
"You got to be shitting me!" Ryuji groaned in pain as he finally woke up.
"Are you okay, Ryuji-Senpai?" Iruma asked, checking to make sure he isn't hurt too badly by those armored people.
"Yeah, I think so…" Ryuji said, then look around to see they're in some sort of jail cell.
"Those armored guys put us in here then told me to stay put which I had no choice but to do as they say because of how I am before coming to this school." Iruma explained. He really hates how he's a total pushover.
"Wha…? Never mind, looks like this ain't no dream." Ryuji shook his head and stood up. "Ugh, what's goin' on?"
Ryuji ran over to the cell door banging on the bars with his fist to get some attention from anyone who happens to be around here.
"Hey, let us outta here! I know there's someone out there!" Ryuji called out, but no answer which only frustrated him more.
"Damnit, where are we? Is this some kinda movie set?!" Ryuji asked.
"I used to work in some movie sets before, and I can promise you this isn't one of this sets. I think this is…" Iruma wanted to say more but felt too scared to.
But then they suddenly heard a loud scream coming from nearby, and it sounded really painful.
"Th-The Hell was that just now?" Ryuji asked, shaken up by that scream.
"M-Maybe it's from a papercut." Iruma guessed, hoping that's the case but the screaming and bashing sound didn't really help convince his senpai otherwise.
"A really, really bad papercut…" Iruma exclaimed.
"Whoa… Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa… You're shittin' me, right?" Ryuji gulped.
"This is real bad…! Isn't there some way outta here? C'mon, we gotta do something!" Ryuji said, hoping there is at least something to help them get out of here.
"(Okay, okay, this is bad. Now I'm starting to wish that I learn how to pick a lock.)" Iruma thought gulped in fear.
Iruma starts looking around to see if there is something they could use to get out of this room, but nothing appears to be useful like they can't hide in the barrels because they don't know how long it will be before those guards come back and the chains are just for torture.
This day has not been going good for Iruma that he was really looking forward to finally go to school and live a normal life, but now this "shit" as Ryuji would put it happen and they're probably going to get torture like the scream of a random guy they just heard.
"Huh? You hear that?" Ryuji asked.
"Yeah, I think those are footsteps." Iruma said.
They go over to the bars to see if there is someone coming, and unfortunately, it's the armored men from the entrance walking up to them.
"Be glad that your punishment has been decided upon. Your charge is "unlawful entry"." The guard captain said.
"S-So, are we doing community service?" Iruma asked, really hoping that's the case even though deep down he knew better it's not.
"Thus, you will be sentenced to death." The guard captain revealed their sentence.
"Say what?" Ryuji gasped and Iruma went pale.
"No one's allowed to do as they please in my castle." A man stated, walking past the guards and up to the prisoners.
"Huh? Wait… Is that you, Kamoshida?" Ryuji was surprised to see the man he hates is here, and dress so weird too.
"You mean the guy from the car earlier?" Iruma asked in surprise too. Why is this guy dress like that?
"I thought it was some petty thief, but to think it'd be you, Sakamoto…" Kamoshida was a little surprised to see this blonde idiot.
Kamoshida now wears a gold crown, a red heart printed cape and pink underwear, leaving his torso and hairy legs exposed. And for some reason his eyes are also golden-yellow with a sense of evil in them.
"Are you trying to disobey me again? It looks like you haven't learned your lesson at all, huh?" Kamoshida grinned mockingly.
"And you brought a friend this time… because you can't do anything for yourself." Kamoshida looked at the blue hair kid, thinking he's shit scared right now which is most likely the case.
"This ain't funny, you asshole!" Ryuji cursed in anger.
"Is that how you speak to a king? It seems you don't understand the position you're in at all. Not only did you sneak into my castle, you committed the crime of insulting me—the king. The punishment for that is death." Kamoshida explained the "reason" for the punishment.
"It's time for an execution! Take him out!" Kamoshida declared.
"Isn't that going to the extreme?" Iruma exclaimed, but his words were ignored.
"S-Stop it…" Ryuji begged, but the guards came inside to give the intruder the death sentence.
"Goddamit…" Ryuji cursed that this kind of shit is happening for real, but he refuses to let himself by killed by that pervy bastard of a teacher.
"What do we do now?" Iruma asked in fear.
Ryuji answer by charging at one of the guards and tackles him down to the ground with all his might.
"I ain't down for this shit! C'mon, we're outta here!" Ryuji said to Iruma.
However, another guard struck Ryuji in the stomach making him go down on his knees groaning in pain.
"Ryuji-Senpai!" Iruma gasped.
"Just go! Get outta here! These guys are serious!" Ryuji shouted, not wanting this kid to die here.
"What…? You want me to leave you here?" Iruma asked in shock.
"Oh, running away, are we? What a heartless friend you are." Kamoshida shouted a little for the kid to hear.
"He ain't a friend…" Ryuji pointed out, having only met Iruma moments ago and it's better that they don't know each other this way.
"C'mon! Hurry up and go!" Ryuji shouted at Iruma again.
Iruma immediately ran past the guards and Kamoshida getting out of the cell and ran for this life due to being told what to do, but there is still a problem of how to get out of this crazy dungeon and somehow get back to the real school.
"Wow, you really are worse than trash to abandon a friend. Pathetic scum isn't worth my time…" Kamoshida insulted, turning his attention back to Ryuji.
"I'll focus on this one's execution." Kamoshida smirked.
Iruma tries to force the gate to open, but it wouldn't budge and then saw another gate on the other side of this river that is open with a narrow gap that he could probably jump.
"Take this!" Kamoshida shouted that Iruma heard making him turn at where he escaped from.
"Lousy sum! Useless pest!" Kamoshida shouted more with delight with the painful screams from Ryuji filling Iruma's ears.
"That guy who's supposed to be a teacher… He's hurting my friend!" Iruma exclaimed.
"(Wait, friend?)" Iruma thought realized the word he just said.
"(That's right, I never had a friend before. Not once.)" Iruma thought reminded himself of that fact.
(Flashback)
"All my life, I was just so focused on my survival in getting through the hardships that I was forced to live in, just by myself." Iruma said.
Iruma is carrying some heavy trash bags to take out into the alleyway while the other workers are just minding their own business nor doing their own cooking of the restaurant they work in.
Iruma is running through the room of office workers, passing out some papers for them to see and get to pass onto another one, and even vacuuming the floor while doing it.
Iruma is doing some hard, painful work at a construction site, carrying some heavy bags and tools, and digging through the dirt to make a path for the job. He fell from exhaustion, but no one was going to help him.
"I was all alone. And no one cared about me."
The scene changes to when Iruma just met Sojiro who needed some help with his back pain, then he shared a plate of curry with Iruma and a genuine smile.
"No except Boss…"
"Hey kid, do you have any friends?" Sojiro asked.
"No, I'm just by myself making money for my parents." Iruma answered.
"That's sad, having friends can really help brighten your life better than being a yes-man to everything." Sojiro stated.
"Is having friends really that important?" Iruma asked in confusion.
"Big time. When you have friends, you can feel like you have where you truly belong and do things you wouldn't be able to do alone, creating bonds that will last a lifetime. And those are the things you should cherish the most." Sojiro explained with a nod.
"You know, kid. I believe you'll be able to find those friends and hold onto them, never abandon them no matter what because those who do are worse than trash." Sojiro advised strongly.
"That's right, I remember now…" Iruma realized.
(Flashback End)
"(Sojiro taught me what friends are, and that guy with the crown said Ryuji-Senpai is my friend.)" Iruma thought started to feel something different from within.
"Hmph. Where'd your energy from earlier go? A peasant like you isn't worth beating." Kamoshida insulted as one guard toss Ryuji away.
"I'll have you kill right now." Kamoshida smirked.
"(But in all my life, I've always avoided danger, to stay away from them. So why… Why am I walking towards danger now?)" Iruma thought found himself back at the cell where he ran from.
Iruma's eyes widen to see Ryuji getting grabbed by one of the guards and pin against the wall, and one sword is aimed at him.
"This is truly an unjust game… Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you…" The mysterious butterfly flew past Iruma then fade away.
Iruma was confused by the butterfly, and then another mysterious voice is heard in his head.
"What's wrong? Are you really just going to stand there and watch him die? That guy's life is going to be gone from this world if you don't get your shit together." A man's voice pointed out, scaring Iruma.
"What the… Who said that?" Iruma asked, that voice couldn't have been from anyone here, yet this voice felt like he knows it deep down.
"What about the time you tried to help that woman back then? You really did want to help her, right?" The man voice asked.
Iruma started thinking back on that night with the woman and the drunken man, he thought it was only because that woman said "Please" as one of his trigger words.
But now, maybe deep down Iruma really did want to help that woman and the word she said was just the excuse he needed to try saving her from that drunken man despite what happened after that.
"I… If I had the chance to go back to that moment, then… I wouldn't change anything! Not one bit!" Iruma answered, being sincere about it.
"Yes! Very well done, that's what I wanted to hear!" The man laughed excitedly.
Suddenly Iruma started feeling something going off in his head like his mind is being stabbed by sharp blades and throbbing headaches erupting.
"Now we can form the contract! I am thou, thou art I… The boy who allows himself to be pushed around is over! It's time for you to let out your inner demon against the injustice that has abused you for too long! Shout out with all the rage you've been holding back and call out my name!" The man voice encouraged the boy to go rebel now.
Iruma's eyes change into something like someone who is not going to get push around and stand by anymore.
"Execute him!" Kamoshida ordered.
"Stop it right now. You fake king!" Iruma shouted from right outside the cell. That got Kamoshida's attention.
"What was that…?" Kamoshida asked, shocked to not only see the blue hair boy back but also dare to say such a thing to him.
The guard holding Ryuji let him go sensing the king's anger towards that boy.
"You desire to be killed that much? Fine!" Kamoshida grinned; he gestures to his guards to kill the kid.
But a sudden burst of wind from Iruma stop the guards and then he felt something on his face, some sort of red mask while feeling the instinct to take it off. Iruma pulls on the mask though it was stuck on his face like glue, but he kept pulling until he rips it off with blood gushing out.
"Persona!" Iruma said the one word.
It was painful, but that pain would be worth it as Iruma's eyes turned golden for a moment and blue flame engulfs him entirely, then the blue flame takes form above Iruma now wearing a completely different outfit and the flame change into what appears to be a man with horns.
The creature man waves his arm creating a shockwave that knocks the guards down and Kamoshida shivers away in fear.
"Wha… What the…?" Ryuji was completely horrified of what just happened to Iruma.
"I feel… Different, stronger too." Iruma felt his body rushing with energy.
"I am the King that reign over all demons, Derkila! You can think of me as your inner rebellion, and now it's time to unleash that power! Ready, kid?" Derkila asked grinning.
"Yes, I want the power to save my friend and get the Hell out of here!" Iruma was determined.
"Then your wish is my command." Derkila said.
"Who the Hell are you?!" Kamoshida asked, this kid is scary, but he wasn't going to let this kid make a fool out of him.
"Guards!" Kamoshida called out, the guards got back up. "Start by killing that one!" He ordered.
The two guards shake up for a bit then explode, turning into some flying pumpkin-headed creatures with lanterns.
"You'll learn the true strength of my men!" Kamoshida smirked.
"Pumpkin monsters? As if things weren't freaky enough." Iruma was surprised.
"Don't worry, kid. My power is yours, destroy the enemies in front of you for they stand in the way of your freedom. Go crazy!" Derkila said.
"Okay then, attack!" Iruma commanded, and his Persona to attack one of them with the skill Eigaonto destroy one.
"Try attacking with your sword." Derkila suggested.
"Sword, but I don't—Huh, where did this come from?" Iruma was surprised to have a blue-colored knife in his hand, but he didn't have time to question this and just charge at the second pumpkin monster to slash it a few times then finish it off with Derkila.
"I… I did it. And I suddenly feel like I've gotten stronger from that." Iruma was surprised.
"Well done, kid. Looks like we're going to be quite a team together." Derkila said before vanishing.
"That's gonna be a little hard getting use to. Now, why do I have a knife. Huh? And when did I change clothes?!" Iruma was shocked to finally realize that he's in a completely different outfit.
"What was that just now?" Ryuji asked.
"You little…" Kamoshida was angered by his men being defeated by a stupid kid in a mask. But he was knocked down by Ryuji with a shoulder tackle.
"You like that, you son of bitch?!" Ryuji cursed at the man.
"Hey, Ryuji-Senpai! Take those keys and lock him up!" Iruma pointed down at the keys that fell from one of the guards.
"You mean this?" Ryuji quickly grabbed the keys and they leave the cell.
"Okay, it's locked!" Ryuji locked the cell so that Kamoshida doesn't follow them.
"Damn you!" Kamoshida got back up in anger.
"Hey! What was that just now? And… your clothes…" Ryuji wondered did any of that happen.
"I don't know, I just felt like I wanna rebel and" Iruma was cut off when his clothes changed back to the school uniform.
"Whoa, it went back to normal?!" Ryuji felt even more confused now.
"You bastards!" Kamoshida shouted in rage while grabbing on the bars.
"Huh, now about we hold off the questions AFTER we get out of here!" Iruma suggested, not wanting to stay in this place any longer.
"Right, let's scram! You lead the way!" Ryuji nodded. He quickly threw the keys away then the two started running together away from the king.
"Goddamn thieves… After them! Don't let them escape!" Kamoshida ordered the other guards who are in the area.
"Bastards. You think you can get away with doing this to me?!" Kamoshida asked angrily.
"I don't give a shit! I ain't down for any of this!" Ryuji talked back at Kamoshida before running again.
KO a new chapter is done and hope you all enjoy it!
Things were looking really bad for Ryuji that he was about to die, but Iruma was able to find the willpower to not run away and unleash his inner rebellion demon to summon his Persona to save his first friend and locked away the king. Now they just need to escape the castle.
KO comment, favorite, and follow through of how this story will go!