Chapter 4
“You have a Persona?!”
After the Reaper dissolved into experience points, Mona eagerly questioned Yu.
Yu crouched down, meeting the cat’s gaze. His expression was calm and serious. Just as Mona expected some profound words of wisdom, Yu nodded. “Yes, I do.”
Mona: …
“That’s it?!”
“What else did you want to hear?” Yu looked at him, puzzled. “You only asked that one question.”
“But you didn’t change clothes!”
Yu looked even more confused. “Change into what?”
“Like Joker’s clothes!” Mona pointed at Ren, who seemed lost in thought. “Like a Phantom Thief, a Phantom Thief!”
Yu was silent for a few seconds. “So it’s a dress-up game?”
“It’s not a dress-up game!!”
Mona felt he couldn’t communicate with this person. He couldn’t comprehend his train of thought.
“The Reaper’s gone, and another one won’t appear for a while. I’ll go scout ahead.” With that, Mona dashed off, calling back to Ren, “Ren, make sure you get all the information out of him!”
A max-level, taciturn Ren, who wasn’t accustomed to communicating: …
Watching the cat vanish before their eyes, Yu turned to Ren.
“So, do you really change clothes?”
Ren: …
After a moment, he nodded. “Yes. Don’t listen to Mona. It’s definitely a dress-up game.”
If Mona were here, he might have given Ren a swift punch, but unfortunately, he wasn’t present to prevent Ren from ruining his image.
Ren had a mischievous streak. He enjoyed watching things unfold, even if he was part of the spectacle.
He wanted to see how Yu would react.
As expected, after a few seconds of silence, Yu said, “So Tokyo’s other world also doubles as a dress-up game.”
“…You believed that?”
“No,” Yu replied calmly. “It doesn’t make sense.”
Ren suddenly felt like laughing.
But a stoic protagonist doesn’t laugh. Absolutely not!
With Mona gone and their cat bus transportation vanished, they had to walk out of Mementos, chatting idly along the way.
“When did you awaken your Persona? Your Izanagi is very high level.”
“A year ago,” Yu answered, his demeanor now perfectly normal and his tone gentle, a stark contrast to his previous eccentric responses. “Last year, due to some circumstances, I was staying with my uncle in a small town. I accidentally entered the other world through a television and awakened my Persona there.”
“…So you weren’t lying when you said you came in through a TV?”
“No, I don’t lie,” Yu shook his head. “I just felt something was off about Tokyo, so I wanted to see if the other world still existed.”
“Then I fell in through the TV and landed right in front of you.”
Ren nodded, then suddenly realized something.
“So you’re a transfer student?”
“Yes,” Yu genuinely smiled this time, his eyes fixed on Ren. “Today was my first day at my new school. I didn’t expect to run into you, Amamiya-kun.”
“We can say it’s a coincidence, then?”
“Indeed.”
So it had nothing to do with Akechi.
He was a transfer student, just starting at his new school today. He hadn’t even been in Tokyo for the past year and probably didn’t even know who Akechi was. That’s right, when Ren mentioned Akechi earlier, Yu had looked bewildered, clearly unfamiliar with the name.
Ren felt a surge of inexplicable joy.
“Yes,” Ren replied. “What a coincidence.”
“So, can I ask you a question, Amamiya-kun?” Yu inquired. “Are the mental shutdown incidents related to the Phantom Thieves of Hearts?”
Ren was momentarily taken aback. He hadn’t expected Yu to connect the mental shutdowns and the Phantom Thieves so quickly.
This person was incredibly good-looking, yet his personality was so naive and eccentric that it made people overlook his appearance.
Considering this, he probably wasn’t easily fooled.
Ren didn’t hesitate. “We only dealt with Kamoshida’s change of heart. The mental shutdowns have nothing to do with us.”
Yu tilted his head, then replied, “You’re separating the ‘Kamoshida repentance incident’ from the mental shutdown incidents. Do you believe there’s a fundamental difference between them?”
So perceptive. He had gleaned so much from a single statement.
Ren glanced at Yu in surprise.
Was his naive, eccentric demeanor all an act?
“When a person’s desires spiral out of control, a Palace is born. Those who possess Palaces are already out of control. We steal the treasure within their Palaces, and by losing their treasure, they lose the desires driving them to excess, leading to their repentance, or what we call a ‘change of heart.’ That’s what happened with Kamoshida.”
“As for the mental shutdown incidents, someone is killing people’s cognitions in the other world. When a cognition is killed, the person in the real world goes insane and dies.”
Yu nodded. “I understand. You’re making evildoers lose their out-of-control desires, which isn’t fatal; but an unknown person is indiscriminately killing innocent people.”
There was no need for further explanation. Ren fully understood why Lavenza had said Yu was someone who had completed his rehabilitation. He accepted everything too quickly and naturally.
“So you’re investigating who’s causing the mental shutdowns?” Yu asked again.
Just as they had sought to find the culprit behind throwing people into the other world during the fog, were the Phantom Thieves also investigating a crime?
Ren: …
No, not really. In fact, Ren already knew who the culprit was in this second playthrough.
However, the main antagonist wasn’t Goro Akechi, and he and his friends were still too low-level to challenge Akechi and the false god, let alone the looming threat of Maruki. The enemies were too powerful, and he hadn’t yet broken free from the constraints of his past life.
Yu noticed the complex look in Ren’s eyes, seemingly sensing his dilemma.
He smiled, dropping the subject.
“Tokyo’s other world is different from the one I experienced,” Yu said. “In Inaba… at my uncle’s place, someone who awakened their Persona before me was throwing people into the other world whenever there was fog. After entering the other world, they would manifest their Shadows, or what you call cognitions, right?”
“Their cognitions are their inner selves, their deepest desires and insecurities. If they deny them, they transform into Shadows.”
“The Shadows will kill them.”
Ren was surprised. “What if they accept them?”
“If they accept them, the cognition becomes their Persona.” Yu opened his hand, the Fool Arcana emitting a faint white light. “Thou art I, and I am thou.”
Ren, who had never experienced this, looked hesitantly at the Arcana in Yu’s hand.
He had heard those words when he awakened his Persona, and now twice in his second playthrough.
But this was the first time he learned that some people awakened their Personas by accepting their inner insecurities.
“Sounds interesting.”
No need to rip off a mask… Ren, who had ripped off his mask twice, didn’t want to recall that experience. The theatrics were fake, the pain was real.
“Do you know about the Velvet Room?” Ren suddenly asked.
“The Velvet Room?” Yu was surprised. “You know about it?”
“So you really do know?!”
“Yes, Mr. Igor and Ms. Margaret of the Velvet Room.” Yu showed Ren his phone. “Ms. Margaret even recommended Leblanc to me. So, Amamiya-kun, are you also a guest of the Velvet Room? Are Mr. Igor and Ms. Margaret doing well?”
Ren: …
Igor wasn’t doing so well, considering he had been impersonated by a false god. As for Margaret… he didn’t recognize her at all.
Ah, right, Lavenza had mentioned her sister’s return.
Yu didn’t seem to notice Ren’s silence, or perhaps he did but didn’t dwell on it. In their short time together, he had determined that Ren was a quiet person, silence being his trademark, his words always concise.
“Every time I enter the Velvet Room, my friends ask me what I’m doing standing there. They can’t see the door at all. Sometimes I wonder if the Velvet Room even exists.”
“It’s great, Amamiya-kun. You’ve confirmed for me that the Velvet Room isn’t my imagination.”
Ren sighed softly, taking out his phone. “In that case, let’s exchange contact information.”
“Sure.” Yu readily opened his messaging app.
It had to be said, Yu was incredibly easy to get along with.
He rarely refused others, naturally complying with Ren’s requests. Even with strangers, it was difficult to sense any distance from him. Even Ren, who was quiet and not good at communicating, felt comfortable around him.
Unlike the boisterous Ryuji, Yu was like water, gently and subtly becoming his friend.
To some extent, Ren even saw a bit of Goro Akechi in him, the Akechi who outwardly presented himself as gentle and polite. Of course, there were differences. Akechi’s true nature was malicious, while Yu’s was naive, but this naiveté didn’t detract from his kindness.
“Do you want to join the group chat?” Ren asked after adding Yu’s contact, then added, “The Phantom Thieves’ group chat.”
“Is that alright?” Yu was surprised. “Are you asking me to join the Phantom Thieves?”
Ren nodded. “Yes, because you’re strong.”
“I’ll pass,” Yu declined with a smile. “I’m not interested in ‘changing hearts.’ I’m more concerned with finding the culprit behind the mental shutdown incidents.”
Looking up at the strange, massive pipes in Mementos, he added, “…I’m worried that if this continues, it could lead to uncontrollable disaster.”
Ren observed the boy’s cool gaze. He wasn’t surprised by Yu’s refusal. In fact, he had anticipated it.
He understood Yu’s choice. He was genuine, his rehabilitation likely different from Ren’s. That’s why he was kind yet principled, tolerant and understanding of everyone, but not inclined to participate in their growth.
He had already completed his growth, solidified his character, and become his strongest self.
“It’s okay,” Ren smiled. “You don’t have to participate. Making friends doesn’t require you to ‘be in cahoots.'”
He began to imagine the new world after successfully completing his rehabilitation and stopping Maruki in this second playthrough.
Would he also be like Yu then, possessing a completely new, near-perfect self?
“The term ‘in cahoots’ doesn’t seem quite right.”
“What’s wrong with it? We’re Phantom Thieves. Phantom Thieves aren’t good people to begin with.”
“…Is that so? I think you’re a good person, Amamiya-kun.”
Ren silently closed his mouth.
This person’s words made it seem like he was being deliberately provocative, but his eyes held no trace of malice.
Was this just natural talent?
