Tokyo Psychic

Page 113

Because the enemy already knew that Akira Kurusu could use multiple [Sin Armor-Piercing Bullets], they were trying to evade it in this way.

In the final 'time rewind', An and Subaru, who finally managed to probe all the enemy's information, also learned for the first time about the usage limits of Akira Kurusu's various Personas... In the ever-changing battle, she had no chance to exchange information with Akira Kurusu, and could only use her own experience of 'time rewind' to help Akira Kurusu predict Vishnu's every move.

With complete trust, the phantom thief followed An and Subaru's instructions throughout the battle, and then had his first opportunity to obtain the most complete information from her.

Unfortunately, An and Subaru's information about Akira Kurusu was incomplete. They were essentially using a flawed "Kurusu Akira User Manual" and relying on their experience with "time reversal" to command him in battle, which prevented him from unleashing his full potential.

So, the instant the battle ended, besides the surging anger, the guilt of "negligence," the frustration of actively choosing "time reversal," and the helplessness of missing his punch, all these emotions combined made him want to crush the [World] card on the spot, recklessly smashing through the entire Impression Space, wiping out everything hidden in its various corners...

When this thought arose, Akira Kurusu understood why An and Subaru had made him choose to "save memories" at that point.

Combining this with how "Tōdō Shōya" suddenly appeared in Shinma Hōryō's mental palace, he realized the most crucial piece of information... Perhaps the evil gods didn't use those powers to hide themselves deep within the space of impressions, but instead hid in the mental palaces of various sinners in society.

This was the most important information that An and Subaru wanted him to know after the battle.

Akira Kurusu tightened the accelerator, carrying Shoko Toyokawa towards the Impression Space where "Fujiki-ju" was located.

Now, facing Vishnu again, with the addition of Toyokawa Shoko as a variable who can help him minimize mental energy consumption... Regardless of how the first savior obtained this power far beyond human capabilities, Akira Kurusu will take out the World card after destroying his four clones, crush it, storm into Ren Amamiya's velvet room, and overturn the entire chessboard.

Since the evil gods have hidden themselves in the hearts of sinners, Akira Kurusu no longer has any concerns, nor does he need to hide any counterattack plans.

Compared to the monsters of my past life who could overturn the world with their individual abilities, these guys nowadays are nothing to fear.

We are getting closer and closer to the location of "Fujiki-ju".

I thought of that girl who was forced to "go back in time" time and time again.

Akira Kurusu gripped the handlebars with such force that it was as if he were about to break them, and even Shoko Toyokawa behind him could feel the overwhelming emotions swirling within him.

If the strength of one's persona is influenced by various psychological factors such as emotions, beliefs, and willpower...

So now, Akira Kurusu has undoubtedly returned to his full potential.

The locomotive roared into the deepest part of the tunnel.

......

at the same time.

The other side of Tokyo.

A tall, upright man with short, silver-gray hair and dark pupils was slicing a cucumber in the kitchen.

As if sensing something, he looked up and gazed toward the Shibuya area.

Immediately afterwards, his eyes suddenly turned sharp, and almost instantly he raised the kitchen knife and threw it behind him.

Space was distorted dramatically.

A boy with the same face as him, but who looked somewhat immature, raised his hand and caught the kitchen knife. A rainbow-colored light flashed, and the kitchen knife vanished instantly.

The boy pushed up his glasses, his dark golden pupils fixed on the man opposite him, and said in a tone that seemed to burst with anger, "Naraka Yu, just be a good older brother and stop trying to get involved in things that will disrupt your life."

The man known as "Narukami Yu" looked at his high school self and asked, "How were you so sure that our juniors would lose if I didn't participate in the war?"

Narukami Yu didn't answer, but instead produced a World card in his hand. "I hate the word 'we' you used."

Narukami Yu looked at the other person with a frightening calmness. "So, how should I address you?"

“You can call me… ‘Izanagi-no-Okami’.”

As the boy finished speaking, a massive naginata wrapped in lightning flew out from behind him, piercing straight towards Narukami Yu, who had been dragged into the space of impressions.

at the same time.

The Impression Space of "Fujikiju".

Vishnu looked at the two phantom thieves blocking An and Subaru's path, and especially when he saw Akira Kurusu, his expression showed intense embarrassment and shock.

He is not "Ren Amamiya"!

In the perception of the Supreme God, Akira Kurusu's presence was skyrocketing, almost to the point where his true form was obscured. His entire body was entangled by the tangible original sin, until he became a twisted, deep black phantom.

Driven by a persistent sense of crisis, He chose to take the initiative.

At this moment, four "Vishnu" appeared from all directions of the Impression Space, wielding conch shells, the wheel of divine vision, the hammer of the gatha, and a lotus, and simultaneously attacked the assembled Phantom Thieves of the Mind.

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(The original plan was to finish writing all five chapters in one before releasing them... but the disjointed nature of the super-casual chapters does lead to misunderstandings... so I'm releasing this next chapter first.)

(There will be another "four-in-one" chapter tonight. I'll try to finish writing the entire content of the first palace by tomorrow.)

102. Toyokawa Shoko: I've had enough of red tape (two parts combined)

[7:20 AM.]

Wearing pajamas, An and Subaru could barely stand without Toyokawa Shoko's support. She looked up at "Vishnu" tearing apart the tram in the tunnel, and everything that happened was almost exactly the same as her previous dozens of death experiences.

"Arsène." As the phantom thief called out, the crimson demon spread its wings behind him, then raised its shadow-woven smoothbore musket and aimed it at the Hindu god.

At this moment, the other three "Vishnu" appeared from various directions in the space of perception, each wielding a conch shell, a wheel of divine vision, a hammer of gatha, and a lotus, respectively, and attacked the assembled Phantom Thieves of the Mind.

"【Supreme Magic Bullet】." The pitch-black bullet flew out, dispersing into a mist in mid-air, instantly covering "Vishnu" who was charging head-on on the railway tracks, wielding a bronze hammer.

Immediately afterwards, the smoothbore musket was turned around, and the trigger was pulled one after another towards "Vishnu" in different positions.

Their yellow silk robes immediately crumbled, and the flesh beneath them was torn apart in an instant, revealing their stark white bones.

The next moment, Vishnu's body was completely healed.

But the phantom thief had already achieved his goal, and the enemies' approach speed had visibly decreased.

What's going on with this guy?! ... Vishnu stared at Akira Kurusu in disbelief. The same Persona, the same moves, but the power was far greater than when they first met in the Mind Palace.

At that moment, Persona "Arsène" had already raised the scorching hot barrel of his gun and pointed it at his jaw.

"【The Gun That Reverses the World】." Akira Kurusu twisted the throttle of his motorcycle, sending it hurtling straight toward the nearly wrecked tram like an arrow.

Vishnu, who was blocking the tram, immediately swung his Gada hammer at him.

The next moment, Arsen's body was torn apart from the inside by some enormous force, and a giant marble spear, parallel to Akira Kurusu, smashed into Vishnu, with iridescent light flashing in the muzzle.

He would die... In that instant, Vishnu, whose perception of time was still stuck on "the third time he saw An and Subaru," immediately realized the seriousness of the situation.

He immediately urged the other three incarnations to kill An and Subaru and rewind time, but Akira Kurusu at the other end of the giant spear had already pulled the trigger.

The [Great Sin Armor-Piercing Bullet] transformed into a beam of light, instantly shattering the "Vishnu" in front of it, and then fell towards Anwa Subaru and Toyokawa Shoko without stopping.

Without any verbal communication or prior instructions, Toyokawa Shoko immediately summoned her Persona "Ninjaku," and following the unspoken understanding in her heart, played the "Change of Direction" melody, perfectly catching the [Great Sin Armor-Piercing Bullet]—the next moment, the "Vishnu" holding the "Myoken Shinja" that was close to them was instantly shattered.

The other two Vishnu didn't even have time to think before the armor-piercing bullets rapidly magnified in their field of vision, and they couldn't even dodge instinctively.

Despite only one gunshot, all four incarnations of Vishnu died simultaneously while that persona was playing the piano.

Even the damage to the Impression Space was minimized, with only a portion of the walls and platforms being destroyed.

The tacit cooperation between the two phantom thieves has achieved results far beyond addition or multiplication; it's almost exponential.

This is the correct "Kurasu Akira User Manual," which, in short, means giving him more control and letting him choose the timing of battle based on his intuition.

To an onlooker, the normal course of the battle was simply a series of gunshots and piano music, followed by a rainbow-colored beam of light that instantly dispersed in four different directions in the darkness, hitting all the enemies simultaneously.

This outcome far exceeded An and Subaru's expectations.

The plan should have required two armor-piercing rounds... She had even prepared for the possibility that Toyokawa Shoko would fail to catch the bullets, causing the plan to fail, and then she would have to perform "time rewind" again.

They have such great teamwork...

An and Subaru put their arms around Toyokawa Shoko's shoulders, their gaze shifting back and forth between her and Kurusu Akira, a hint of envy in their eyes.

At this moment, Akira Kurusu had already ridden back to the girls' side on his motorcycle.

He retrieved "Satanyal" hidden in the darkness, and his rage was greatly relieved after instantly killing "Vishnu".

The motorcycle's fuel tank was almost empty, but in the public's subconscious perception, unless the motorcycle clearly showed signs of being "unable to run," it could still be used normally.

Shoko Toyokawa, dressed as a phantom thief, smiled at the boy in front of her and said, "As expected of the Joker."

Akira Kurusu nodded, then addressed Toyokawa Shoko by her code name. "You did very well too, Oblivionis."

Finally, as if sensing the turbulent emotions surging within An and Subaru's hearts, he looked earnestly at the girl who had exchanged death time and time again for precious information, and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Pleia."

An and Subaru immediately avoided Akira Kurusu's gaze, saying, "Isn't it a bit strange to address each other by code names...?"

The code name "Pleia" is actually An and Subaru's online name, and it's also the nickname she uses in all her games. At first glance, it seems a bit unconventional and trendy, but when pronounced in Japanese, it's the English word "Player".

“Since it’s a collective action, it’s better to get familiar with it as soon as possible,” Akira Lai explained. “Whether it’s the Impression Space or the Palace of the Mind, they are essentially worlds made up of people’s subconscious. If we frequently call each other by our real names, our real names might get mixed into their subconscious one day.”

As he said this, he reached out to take An and Subaru from Toyokawa Shoko's arms, but unexpectedly, Toyokawa Shoko took a few steps back while holding An and Subaru, and then said to Kurusu Akira in a lecturing tone, "You can't take advantage of someone in distress."

"Protecting the members of the Phantom Thieves is my duty!" Akira Kurusu said righteously.

Shoko Toyokawa blinked. "But as long as I stand with Pleia, my Persona can protect her to the greatest extent possible."

Under Anwa Subaru's disappointed and regretful gaze, Akira withdrew his hand. "According to the intelligence we have compiled so far, the true form of this Hindu god should be in the deepest part of the spiritual palace of Xinma Xiaolian."

Akira Kurusu continued, "Pleia and I first met him in the treasure vault where the Singapore-Malaysia Scholars Association kept its secret treasures..."

"So... we have to infiltrate Shinma Hsiao-lien's mental palace to truly kill Him?" Toyokawa Shoko was somewhat puzzled by this.

An and Subaru seemed to suddenly become interested. "I know this. It's the classic boss map-changing mechanism in RPG games. Maybe it will even open a second phase!"

After a period of recovery, she finally escaped the pain caused by the series of deaths. Although she still needed Toyokawa Shoko's help to support her, her complexion had improved considerably.

Seeing that she was getting better, Lai Xixiao breathed a sigh of relief. "None of us can be sure of the specific situation, but the only guess we can believe is that... 'Vishnu' may have combined with the twisted desires of Xinma Xiaolian, which is why His incarnation can have such extraordinary defensive capabilities."

Even his all-out [Supreme Demon Bullet] could not inflict any real damage on Vishnu; only the trump card [Great Sin Armor-Piercing Bullet] could kill him in one hit.

An and Subaru asked Akira, "There's still an hour before school starts. Should we rest a bit before we go?"

Akira looked at her with concern, "You're not planning to sneak into the Mind Palace after your exams, are you?"

An and Subaru were actually a little embarrassed as they looked down at the tips of their shoes. However, their figures were far more beautiful than those of Izanagi Rina, and when they looked down, their vision was first partially obscured by the beautiful rise and fall of her chest. "After all, once that guy changes his mind, he will definitely turn himself in. The new principal might not necessarily give us scholarships then."

What she actually needed more than the "scholarships" was the honor they symbolized, but she said it on purpose, hoping to attract the attention of another Persona member in the Phantom Thieves.

Sure enough, upon hearing the word "scholarship," Toyokawa Shoko's ears immediately perked up, and her expression turned serious. "I see. Is it related to the scholarship exam? Then we must take it seriously."

As Akira Kurusu watched the two girls working together to finalize the plan, she couldn't help but sigh, "Are we going to wait until after school to do it? Oblivionis still has class, right?"

Toyokawa Shoko raised her hand, "I can ask for leave!"

She explained to Akira Kurusu and Subaru An, who were in the middle of exam week, "I'm a first-year student now, so the academic pressure is light and the exam schedule is very spread out... It just so happens that my school is currently promoting student band activities. If I use that as a reason, and since I'm considered a top student, I can easily get a vacation of up to three days."

Akira Kurusu thought about it seriously for a while, "Then, I'll ask Oblivionis to take care of Pleia and take her to school. We can meet up at the public restroom in Aoyama Ichome Park during our lunch break."

The girls were momentarily at a loss as to where to begin their criticism of his statement.

Shoko Toyokawa and Subaru Anwa looked at each other, then asked him together, "Where are you going now?"

The phantom thief steadied the motorcycle, "Back to reality to refuel the bike, and..."

He gave an enigmatic smile, saying, "Drive away these usurpers and take back what belongs to 'me'."

"Is it dangerous?" Toyokawa Shoko immediately asked Kurusu Akira.

Akira Kurusu looked down at the pistol tucked into her waistband. "There's no danger."

“Really? Then I’m relieved,” Toyokawa Shoko smiled sweetly at him. “I wish you good luck in your military campaign.”

Feeling the unwavering trust emanating from the girl, the phantom thief raised his hand and reached out.

Toyokawa Shoko raised her hand and gave him a high five.

"Um... what about me?" An and Subaru also raised their hands.

Lai Xixiao gave her a high-five, and after looking at her for a while to make sure that the girl had entered a state where she was about to awaken her Persona, he rode his bike away from the Impression Space first.

The oppressive atmosphere of the waiting hall was filled with a deep, blood-red light.

Anhe Subaru looked at Toyokawa Shoko, who had been supporting him all the way, and his eyes became particularly complicated.

"Xiaoxiang...Oblivionis?"

"Please speak," Toyokawa Shoko said, her tone becoming somewhat reserved.

Anhe Mao pursed her lips, looking hesitant. After hesitating for a while, she finally mustered up the courage to ask, while pretending to be casually curious.

"Um... I've noticed you two seem to get along quite well outside of the band, so what's your relationship with the Joker?"