MAY 27TH (FRIDAY 5/27)(AFTER SCHOOL)

We were in Madarame's Palace, as Akira told us that we would secure our infiltration route today.

"Oh yeah. We haven't decided on the new recruit's code name yet.", Mona mentioned, pointing at Yusuke.

"It has to be "Kitsune." You know, with that kitsune mask and everything.", Panther grinned.

"Hell yeah. That really leaves an impression.", Skull agreed.

"His outfit looks amazing...! The blend of traditional and samurai is so well put together, the colors compliment your skin tone a lot, and the tail! Holy crap, the tail!", I squealed in delight.

"Are... you talking about me?", Yusuke asked, a little confused.

"Don't mind her, she's having one of her rare moments.", Joker chuckled.

"Oi...", I growled.

"Did I lie~?"

"Do I have a boot to shove in your ass?"

"Alright, alright~"

"What do you want your name over here to be?", Panther asked.

"I'd say "Da Vinci.""

"Nope.", Skull shot down immediately. "Well, you've got that mask like Ann said... and there's that weird tail... All right, you're "Abura-age"!"

"... "Deep fried tofu"...?", I muttered.

"Snrk...!", Mona held back his laughter, but Yusuke seemed more then happy with the name.

"Very well."

"He's agreed to it!?"

"It's decided then: Abura-age.", Skull confirmed, but Panther wasn't having it.

"Nuh-uh! Not happening! Do you have any ideas, Joker?"

"Hm... how about "Fox"? Straight forward and quick to use.", Joker explained.

"Ohhh, just keep it literal, huh? Sounds good to me.", Skull nodded along.

"Sounds good to me.", I mumbled.

"What do you think, Fox?", Mona asked.

"It's acceptable."

"It's set then. Let's go.", with that, we began our exploration.

-TIMESKIP BECAUSE NOTHING IMPORTANT HAPPENS IN 95% OF THE PALACE, Y'ALL DON'T NEED TO READ ALL THAT STUFF AND MY FINGERS WILL DIE IF I WROTE ALL OF THAT UNNECESSARY STUFF SO I'M DOING BOTH OF US A FAVOR :3-

After much exploration, taking on shadows, collecting Personas, learning more about the complexities of Madarame from both the Palace itself and Fox, and jumping INTO paintings to get through the areas, we reached a door that led into the more distorted part of the museum, which was even worse than most of the museum; The area was colored in pure shining gold that was even worse than the entrance, flights of stairs were placed all around in the white space as if the were growing from nowhere, painting were stuck almost everywhere, and the distortion in the air was making my head have a field day.

I'm gonna need a year of rest after this.

"Shit... What the hell is up with this place!?", Skull grumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"There's so much gold...! It's hurting my eyes...", Panther whined.

"The distortion is especially bad here... It's barely holding up. Plus, it's not even on our map...", Mona mentioned.

"So we must ascertain the truth through our eyes alone...", Fox muttered. We ran on, finding copies upon copies of the "Sayuri". We had to find the original between all the fakes until we were finally able to escape. We made it to a room that lead to the foggy looking treasure. It was protected with lasers, a bunch of shadows, and Shadow Madarame himself.

"Doesn't it look a bit hazy?", Panther mumbled, referring to the Treasure.

"For the time being. Once we send the card and make Madarame aware it'll be stolen, it'll materialize like "Yoohoo!"", Mona snickered.

"I wonder what form it will take...", Fox muttered.

"Who knows? Bet it's something like a self-portrait.", Skull scoffed.

"The source of what distorted Madarame's reality this much..."

"So what now? Think it's safe to say we got our route set?"

"I don't think it's that easy this time. We know where the Treasure is supposed to be, but not how to get to it. The lasers won't disappear once we send the calling card, that's for sure. Adding the shadows, forcing our way through will be a hassle.", I explained.

"So we'll need to find a way to steal it too... This is tougher than it was with Kamoshida...", Panther huffed.

"We just have to make one final push. Let's check this floor...!", Mona suggested. We all went to check the rest of the floor out to find a control room of sorts. After pressing some buttons to see if the lasers would turn off, they wouldn't. All it did is turn off the main power for a bit before a back up generator turned it on again. Before shadows came by, we opened the shutters blocking some hallways off.

"The heck? There was no point in even comin' here then...!", Skull huffed.

"Hm,. It seems disabling the infrared lasers is not within the realm of possibility for us...", Fox mumbled. A shadow burst through the doors of the control room before we could leave. It was no trouble taking it down, thankfully.

"Phew... that was a surprise...", Panther let out a sigh of relief.

"All we really managed to do was open the shutters...", Skull grumbled.

"On top of that, we can only turn the lights off briefly, while the lasers remain unaffected.", Fox stated.

"Oh well... Guess we just gotta go see what's past those shutters.", after exploring some more, we found another room that looked like it was for machines. "Huh...? Is this some kinda security room too?"

"No, it is most likely where all the mechanisms in the exhibition hall are controlled from. Given the number of hanging works, it would make sense to have a room dedicated to controlling them."

"The observational skills of an artist are out of this world...", Panther awed. We looked around to find an area we could use to drop down to take the Treasure, a lever we could use to hang from, and a window that lead somewhere out of the room. After discussing our plan with what we had set, we decided to leave for the day.

MAY 28TH (SATURDAY 5/28)(AFTER SCHOOL)

After school, I went to Takemi's clinic. After the trial, Takemi was going to let me go...

"... All right, that's it for today. Oh, are you going home already? If you have some time, why don't you stay and enjoy an apple? It's a gift from one of my elderly patients. She gave me a lot.", out of nowhere, a man in a suit walked into the examination room.

Does no one here wait their turn?

"... Hello, Dr. Takemi."

"...Chief Oyamada."

Chief?

"There was a medical conference nearby, so I thought I'd check up on you. Who's this? She doesn't look like a patient."

None of your business.

"She's a part-time staffer. I'm having her handle some miscellaneous tasks for me. So, do you have some business with me?"

"...I hear you stole one of my patients. A girl with bronchitis. She came here with her father..."

So he's the one who was treating the little girl...

"...Bronchitis, you say? Well, I had no intention of taking her from you. I certainly didn't encourage her to visit my clinic. "

"Now there's talk that the care at a university hospital is inferior to that of a general practitioner! "Original medicine." Ha! What you're doing here is simply absurd

"...You're right."

"I would've turned a blind eye if you had just rotted away out here in this little town... But this is your final warning... Shut this place down and resign your medical license."

"Hey, this is harassement.", I growled.

"...What did you say?"

"You heard me..."

"Heh... Don't worry about it.", Takemi chuckled while smirking at the chief.

"Hmph, you seem to be quite fond of her. Perhaps I should reveal this woman's true identity. She's a monster who tortured a patient with her unregulated medicine! Terrible, isn't it? She was such a brave girl, always smiling...", the chief mumbled with an evil smirk.

"..."Was"?"

Oh no...

"She passed away."

"What...!?"

"Perhaps you'll suffer the same fate, hm? Hahaha... She is the Plague, after all."

"Don't lie to me...! She should still have some time! She was slowly recovering... Her condition couldn't have deteriorated that quickly!"

"But it did. You must've misjudged. Now, back to the reason I'm here. Don't ever take another patient away from me again. ...You don't want to make me angry.", the chief left, leaving Takemi in shock. Said woman fell to her knees, looking broken.

"T-Takemi...", I whispered.

"Miwa-chan's... dead...? No, no no... But she's all I've been working toward, all this time... Curing her was my only... There's no way..."

"Don't... Don't lose hope now. You are working on a medicine that could cure millions!"

"...... What have I been doing all this time...? What was even the point...? I can't..."

"Is there anything... I can do?"

"No...I'll be fine. I feel better now... Thanks for your help, my little guinea pig..."

"Don't thank me, it's fine..."

.'¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯'.
| ~ CONFIDANT RANK UP! ~ |
| ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ |
| |
| CONFIDENT: BACK-ALLEY DOCTOR |
| |
| DEATH ARCANA: RANK UP (RANK 7) |
| |
| NEW ABILITY: DISCOUNT |
| |
| Decreases the price for all items sold at the clinic. |
| |
'.__________________________________________________________________________.'

"Ugh. I wish I hadn't shown you that side of me..."

"I'm glad you did, I'm able to learn more about you."

"Hehe, you are? Curious little Guinea pig... Well, I suppose it's fine. As long as it's you.", Takemi chuckled lightly while ruffling my hair. I huffed with a small smile while fixing it slightly. "Go on home for today. ...We will continue this another time. Take care...", after the visit was over, I went to Leblanc and helped Sojiro out for a bit. As I was about to go to bed, Ryuji texted me to go see a movie with him. It was "The Cake Knight Rises", a spin off movie for my favorite vigilante hero, so I was eager to see it. I agreed and went to bed.

MAY 29TH (SUNDAY 5/29)(DAYTIME)

I made it to the theater and waited for Ryuji to show up. Soon, he came running with a grin. After buying our tickets, we went inside and began watching the cinematic masterpiece of "The Cake Knight Rises". For a parody, it was very serious and I was strangely invested.

"Do you wanna know why I use pies? Cakes are too quick. You can't savor all the little... taste sensations. You see, when forced to choose... cake or pie... people show you their true taste!"

"I am nothing like you. You're a psychopath who bakes for money!"

-LATER-

After the movie, Ryuji were eating the last of our snacks while we chatted.

"Damn, I might've teared up a lil' bit. These revenge movies really make me feel, y'know? How 'bout you? Don't these revenge movies make you feel somethin'?", Ryuji asked.

"Oh, I totally get you. Akira doesn't get my look into it, but I think even if you advocate taking the high road in real life, sometimes nothing satisfies quite like a merciless, unapologetic revenge movie. No matter how ridiculous the idea is, the revenge aspect just gets me! Sure, we all try to be the best person we can be, thinking of others when we make big decisions and trying to forgive and move on. But sometimes, doesn't revenge just sound a little too sweet to resist?", I went on.

"Wow, Rika, you're a lot more passionate 'bout all this..."

"O-Oh, I know it's... odd of me."

"N-No, it's actually pretty cool!", Ryuji and I kept chatting about the movies while he walked me home. After saying our goodbyes, he left to do his own thing.

That was a date~

What?

A date. I swear, you are oblivious...

As if you can pick up on this stuff from a mile away!

Actually, I remember myself being quite the Casanova as a young boy~

Whatever.

After buying some stuff from the shopping channel on TV, I went to buy some Seafood Aojiru for Akira and I. I gave it to my brother once I got home, and he wasn't really happy.

"This smells worse than the last one."

"It's seafood."

"So it'll probably taste worse too, great..."

"Just drink it, don't waste my time."

"Fine, fine...", Akira groaned, this time plugging his nose and closing his eyes as he drank. "That didn't make it any less unpleasant."

"Yet it is very pleasant for your body and soul.", I shrugged, patting his shoulder as I chugged my drink and throwing it away. I went to get changed and left to meet up with Yoshida.

After agreeing to hold the sign for him, Yoshida started his speech.

"...To make your decisions based simply on loss and gain is to act like a heartless machine. The reason so few people care about their fellow man is because so few have the energy to do so. We politicians have fallen short of our goal to change society. We need your support more than ever!", out of nowhere, a blonde man called out to Yoshida.

"That approach isn't going to work! You have to get the voters more excited! You're going to completely lose the hearts and minds of the people."

"Again, what I'd like to say is-- Councilman Matsushita!"

Councilman?

"It's been a long time since we last spoke. I wanted to stop by to see how you were doing.", Matsushita stated with a small smile. Yoshida stopped the speech early as we both went to the side to talk to the man. "Oh, you have a high schooler volunteering for you, huh? My, times of changed."

"Is that a bad thing?", I asked.

"Quite the opposite, young miss. Thank you for helping Mr. Yoshida. Do you know about the Kuramoto Children?"

"Yes, Mr. Yoshida told me about it."

"That was nearly 20 years ago. I'm impressed that you're so interested in politics. I was a member of the Kuramoto Children as well. Yoshida and I joined the same year. I made an amazing career change, going from a pro wrestler to a Diet member. I was elected easily, but I had no idea what I was doing. I realized I wasn't elected on my own merit when I failed to be re-elected for a second term. That was true for the both of us."

"You made a great comeback, though. You're truly an inspiration.", Yoshida grinned.

"As are you, old friend. You're working harder than anyone on the campaign trail."

"Oh, there's no need for false praise to impress the girl here."

"Yoshida's well-informed about the inner workings of politics, so I'm sure he'll be a great teacher. However, I suggest you only do as he says and not as he does, if you want to become a Diet member."

"... And what might you mean?"

"I'm guessing she doesn't know...? You really think you can win the election by being completely honest and making good arguments? You've got to secure votes! Or else you'll be forever known as No-Good Tora!"

"Without honesty and good arguments, there can be no political justice!"

"Heh... It's been a while since I've heard one of your grandiose speeches.", The two share a laugh.

"Koga-chan, was it? Tell me, what about Yoshida here drew you in?"

"Oh, that would be his speaking skills. Very impressive.", I stated with conviction.

"Koga-san...", Yoshida seemed surprised yet grateful.

Don't mention it, buddy.

"Well... that's quite impressive. You just may have the potential to become a Diet Member. You address matters quite directly for a young person. It seems you have been taught well."

"I intend to teach her everything I know. That's what we agreed on."

.'¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯'.
| ~ CONFIDANT RANK UP! ~ |
| ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ |
| |
| CONFIDENT: MAN OF THE PEOPLE |
| |
| SUN ARCANA: RANK UP (RANK 3) |
| |
| NEW ABILITY: FUNDRAISING |
| |
| Allows you to ask for large amounts of money during |
| negotiations. |
| |
'.__________________________________________________________________________.'

"By the way, how are things between you and old man Kuramoto?"

"We're still not on speaking terms."

"There's something I'd like to get your opinion on, so I'll be in touch."

"Very well."

"...Oh, that reminds me. You may still distrust me because of what happened with the missing party funds... But I'm not the one who pointed the finger at you. That's all I'm going to say.", Matsushita left Yoshida with that.

"Why did he have to mention that...? Ah, my apologies. That's all for today. Good job...", with a light goodbye, I went back home to rest.

MAY 30TH (MONDAY 5/30)(DAYTIME)

MAY 30TH (MONDAY 5/30)(MORNING)

Mr. Inui was rambling today... again.

"I've actually gotten into fishing lately, although it's just pond fishing from time to time. I can't go sea fishing because I get seasick easily. So much for my dream of being a sailor. Oh right. When people think of sailing the high seas, they tend to think of pirates. Even though they're ruffians who plunder other ships and coastal settlements through force... For some reason, they ended up getting romanticized. Now then, Koga-chan. Who was the pirate who said that he hid his treasure in a certain place just before he was executed?"

"Captain William Kidd.", I huffed.

"That's right. The answer is William Kidd, also known as Captain Kidd. Kidd was a merchant who had raised money from aristocrats. He should have been subduing pirates... ...But in order to turn his commission into a profit, he ended up becoming a pirate himself. The money he used for his exploits was essentially the aristocracy's. He himself wasn't considered rich. Still, several novels were written based on his legend, and people still look for his treasure today. By the way, I've heard that there's an island in Kyushu where Kidd's treasure is said to sleep..."

It might be a lie though...

A dream has just as much value as riches, maybe even more.

MAY 30TH (MONDAY 5/30)(AFTER SCHOOL)

After classes ended, I went to return the old book in favor of "The Great Thief". As I was about to leave, I ran into Akira who told me were going to send the calling card soon. Akira, Morgana and I went to our meeting area, the others waiting for us.

"A calling card, hm? Well he take it seriously? He is famous, after all... He has often received slanderous letters till now, as well.", Yusuke muttered.

"He'll know best whether the crime written on it is for real or not.", Ryuji stated with a grin.

"Wait. Are you going to write it again, Ryuji? That last one was questionable at best.", Morgana cringed.

"You should do it then, Yusuke! Make it really artistic and stuff!", Ann encouraged.

"No. It'll end with him figuring it out. He knows my drawing and writing styles all too well."

"Oh, then I'll think it up, and you make it cooler!", Ryuji suggested.

"Designing a calling card, hm... Interesting. It shall become proof that the Phantom Thieves do exist."

"It's decided then!"

"Hey Yusuke, could you design mine as well? Same as Ryuji, I'll provide the content, you make it more... dramatic.", I suggested.

"Of course, it'll be no trouble. Although... why do you use a seperate calling card?"

"The Phantom Spy never reveals their tricks~", I shrugged.

"Hm, very well. I don't mind."

"Great! All that's left is to make the Treasure ours! You guys better come fully prepared!", Morgana said with determination. We all left soon after. I wrote down my calling card, recorded what I wanted and tweaked the pitch and everything before setting it up, and then sent my designs to Yusuke through text. After an hour or so, he sent back the design. I was so happy with it, it was perfect. I thanked Yusuke and then went to check on Akira. He was busy making infiltration tools with Morgana, in which I joined as well to make myself useful. I went back to my room and began thinking.

How am I going to send the calling card and not get caught? Morgana is going to send the main calling card, but he might get caught if I make him do more work...

I can provide assistance.

Ezio...?

I am an assassin, and so are you. We are both blessed with the power of stealth, although you are still a beginner. Here is what we will do; you will teleport to the museum and prep everything. It is currently closed, and no one is there to stand guard. I will manipulate the devices you call "Cameras" to keep you out of sight. Everything else is up to you.

Wow, I would have never thought of that... But I can't choose where to teleport?

Check your mobile device.

I opened my phone to see the app now had a typing function with the words "Choose Location:" next to the empty box.

When did that get there?

It seems Igor has helped in your quest for justice...

Heh, that weird long nosed man has more tricks than I imagined. Alright, let's go.

I quickly gathered the stuff I needed, then typed the location on my phone. As soon as I pressed the OK button, a bright light flashed on my phone and sent me to the museum like I hoped. Ezio quickly manifested and sent out his small eagles to the cameras. They scratched the screens until they were practically useless. With the cameras destroyed, I got to work...

CHAPTER 28, END!