Tokyo Psychic

Page 321

"dawn!!"

The girl's clear voice immediately came through the receiver, her tone excited and cheerful.

She seemed eager to convey some intense emotion to Akira Kurusu, but her phone was quickly snatched away by someone else.

"Joker?!"

"Commander!"

"..."

The members of the Phantom Thieves scrambled for the phone, pushing Izanagi Jinrai to the very edge.

Akira Kurusu stood in the bathroom, facing the blurry, swaying figure in the pale white tiles. Suddenly, she turned her head to look out the window at the night sky on the west coast, where the first rays of dawn were gradually appearing. Her senses and memories of time and space began to surface.

After the war that ended, the cognitive memes that the last evil god had implanted in the phenomenal universe in the form of "rumors" were completely erased, along with the concept of "Nyarlathotep" itself.

Those worlds destroyed because of "Nyarlathotep" are all repaired by the reconstruction of phenomena—this reconstruction takes the existing, anchored, and unique timeline as its starting point, like seeds sprouting branches and leaves, growing countless twigs, and bearing abundant fruit.

Then the people who had mistakenly traveled back to the destroyed time and space where they should have appeared, but all the cognitive information they had experienced, such as "bonds" and "memories," were integrated into that desolate soil, giving birth to a brand new world.

In short, Akira Kurusu is now the hidden ace of the "Shadow Patrol," a Velvet Room contractor who single-handedly saved the world, and the leader of the "Mind Thieves," having forged a life-and-death bond with a group of boys and girls.

At this point, the phone had already fallen into the hands of those young ladies.

Tsurumaki Kokoro loudly proclaimed that she wanted to send the family's private jet to the airport to pick up Akira Lai.

Shoko Toyokawa seems to have acted even faster. As one of the many sponsors of "Shadow Patrol," the Toyokawa family had obtained Akira Kurusu's activity records in advance and had already arranged a private plane to fly directly to Tokyo from the west coast.

Although Okumura Haru owns an airplane, he is clearly not wealthy enough to "direct traffic" as casually as Genmaki Shin and Toyokawa Shoko.

In short, Akira Kurusu's plan to sweep up the "treasure" on the west coast was temporarily canceled.

Due to the impact of the "world reshaping," numerous shadowy riots have emerged globally.

This is the mechanism by which the "world" self-regulates and corrects itself.

Therefore, his immediate priority is to return to Tokyo and discuss with his fellow members of the Phantom Thieves how to deal with the dangers that could affect people's livelihoods at any time.

The phantom thief quickly left the bathroom, his figure disappearing into the twilight.

The evening breeze swept through the deserted barbecue stalls on the street, and a few hours later, a plane painted with the full-body image of "Tsurumaki Shin" drifted towards distant Tokyo.

It's spring again.

A whole year has passed since the Personas actively participated in the event to eliminate the shadows. The boys and girls have spent their ordinary school days gradually switching between different identities.

The school entrance exams and competitions were held as usual, without the urgency and danger of world destruction, or the long-planned conspiracies and attacks of evil gods. The Mind Monsters were no longer active on the streets of Tokyo. With the support of many sponsors and the "Shadow Patrol," the superpowered organization composed of Persona users quickly broke free from the constraints of daily life.

With the upgrading of equipment, the improvement of intelligence technology, and the standardization of the operating system, they gradually became an urban legend that seemed unattainable to the general public.

On an ordinary morning, Sakura Sojiro was wiping the precious bottles and jars behind the counter of "LeBlanc" when the store door was suddenly pushed open, accompanied by a melodious and crisp sound of wind chimes.

"Long time no see, Xiao."

"Long time no see, Mr. Monojiro. Business at the shop doesn't seem to be doing so well since I left." Akira Kurusu walked into the coffee shop carrying his schoolbag and sat down opposite the counter.

Sakura Sojiro looked at the boy before him with a mixture of pride and satisfaction. "You'll be graduating high school soon, right? Have you considered which school to attend?"

“Tokyo University, right?” Akira Kurusu looked around the familiar decor and interior of the coffee shop with great nostalgia.

"Hmm, the answer was as expected." Sakura Sojiro nodded, then asked, "Would you like a cup of coffee?"

"Thanks, but I've been drinking too much coffee lately."

"That's true. I heard from Izayoi that you recently opened a coffee shop." Sakura Sojiro didn't ask where Kurusu Akira got the money to open the shop. After all, he had met all the girls who had close relationships with Kurusu Akira, such as Toyokawa Shoko, Genmaki Kokoro, and Okumura Haru.

However, while young people are full of energy and drinking too many cups of coffee at once is generally considered bad, it's best to think about tomorrow. After all, drinking too much coffee can disrupt one's normal life." His words were loaded with meaning, revealing a hint of hesitation and doubt.

Akira Kurusu showed no embarrassment whatsoever. “I am already an outstanding barista, so Mr. Sojiro, please rest assured that I will cherish the coffee I make myself.”

Seeing that Akira Kurusu was determined, Sakura Sojiro could only smile helplessly. "Oh, right, today is Valentine's Day."

"Mr. Sojiro specifically mentioned this..."

Sakura Sojiro looked down and saw the huge gift box next to the drawer. Remembering his daughter's serious instructions that morning, he hesitated for a while before picking it up.

Akira Kurusu opened his schoolbag and took out several of his friends' workbooks. He was about to help them highlight the key points for review when Sakura Sojiro immediately stopped him.

"Xiao, put down the workbook you're holding for now. Futaba asked me to give this to you."

The first thing you see is a gift box decorated with colorful ribbons, and inside you can see an exaggeratedly shaped chocolate Gundam model.

Akira Kurusu was shocked.

Although he had expected it, since the girls he was living with had been acting unusually mysterious since yesterday, and the girls who were temporarily separated from him had been sending messages through social media to test his reaction.

However, upon actually seeing the chocolate that Sakura Futaba had prepared, Akira Kurusu couldn't help but feel moved.

However, this feeling of being moved was quickly replaced by fear.

A faint conversation suddenly came from outside the "LeBron" store. The conversation, accompanied by the girls' footsteps, quickly turned into an argument.

Suddenly someone pushed open the shop door.

Shiomi Kotone held up a box of chocolates and glared angrily at Tsurumaki Kokoro, who was blocking her way.

Just as Inori, carrying a gift box, was about to use her petite figure to squeeze past Kokoro Tsurumaki into the coffee shop, she was immediately blocked by Futaba Sakura, who was peeking at Akira Kurusu's reaction after receiving the chocolates.

Yoshizawa Sumire pulled Yoshizawa Kasumi along, trying to force her way into the coffee shop. Meanwhile, the other girls from the "End Band" were having a heated discussion with the members of the "Red Ginger" band about whether they should draw lots to determine the order of entry.

Shoko Toyokawa and Mutsuko Wakaba were squeezed out of the crowd and could only helplessly watch the chaotic scene with An and Subaru.

Whether it was the Persona users of the Phantom Thieves or the ordinary girls in the support team, they were all arguing fiercely at this moment.

In the end, only Morgana, carrying two gift boxes, swaggered into the coffee shop and walked up to Akira Kurusu.

The gift box behind it contains Valentine's Day chocolates that Layoda and Congyu made together in the Velvet Room.

Looking at the chaotic situation behind the shojita, and then at Akira Kurusu, who was caught in a dilemma, Sakura Sojiro immediately knew that the sound of the cow in Muten Store was completely finished. He could only shake his head helplessly and walk back to the kitchen, but suddenly a mischievous idea came to him.

The middle-aged man wearing an apron quietly tapped his phone, connected it to a Bluetooth speaker, and then played the famous "Cvil War" by Guns N' Roses.

The energetic rock music echoed in the quiet coffee shop, creating a rare lively atmosphere in the morning at Shigenchaya.

Perhaps, the story of Akira Kurusu as the "savior" has come to an end with the conclusion of the second semester.

But his story as the leader of the "Mind Thieves" is only just beginning.

309. Author's Closing Remarks & Chapter/Bonus Files

It's finally finished after some time.

This book ultimately achieved an average subscription rate of 11,000, making it the only crossover anime/manga fanfiction work on the entire internet to reach 10,000 subscriptions, primarily based on Persona.

Although many of the later daily events seemed disjointed and incomplete because they involved CCB and were rejected or given serious warnings, at least the final battle and ending were given an explanation.

I would like to express my gratitude to everyone for your subscriptions and votes from the beginning to the end, and I sincerely apologize again for the mistakes that occurred a year ago and for the sluggish updates that started in the middle of the book.

Perhaps my inspiration and passion were exhausted in the collapse of Mother Hen's character, and perhaps some of the plot twists and battles were written roughly and hastily... but at least the main story is over.

I will add epilogues as they come, to fill in the favorability plots that were not explained in detail in the main text.

310. Extra Chapter 1: Christmas Eve at the Moonlight Pavilion

Also known as: Hamko's Copper Smelting Diary, and "In Memory of 'Shiomi Kotone' - The White Moonlight That Illuminated Akira Kurusu for Thirteen Years".

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December 24, 2009.

【Christmas Eve.】

The cafeteria of the elementary school at the private Moonlight Academy was decorated with LED strips of light, and a Christmas tree stood in the center of the open space, with LED strips of light converging from all around and hanging down onto the branches.

It was already very late, and there were no students in the cafeteria. Only two windows were still lit, and the place was quiet and empty.

Twelve-year-old Akira Kurusu sat alone in the corner of the cafeteria, holding her plate, idly poking at the egg tarts on her plate with her chopsticks.

Although it's a little embarrassing to say, Lai Qixiao, who is in the sixth grade of elementary school, does not participate in clubs or extracurricular study tours, and often skips school or stays out all night, is indeed a rare problem child in the class who is "friendless" and "unpopular".

Perhaps because he had mastered a persona, or perhaps because he had been exposed to far more extraordinary knowledge than his age, he gradually began to resent interacting with his peers...

After finishing today's training in the "Special Extracurricular Practice Department," it was almost 10 p.m., and Lai Qixiao would have to spend Christmas Eve alone.

We must thank the private Moonlight Academy for its deep pockets; almost all of the school's public facilities operate until late at night during holidays.

It seems I don't need to go to Tartarus today... My seniors all told me to get some rest.

He looked up at the empty space, and immediately thousands of colorful rays of light surged from the desolate space like a waterfall, washing over his entire body. It was a lively and festive feeling, but there was a bone-chilling cold, an avalanche-like sensation, as if he were being pushed backward by this invisible and immense loneliness, until he fell off some unseen cliff.

The bamboo chopsticks pierced the crispy dough, accompanied by a soft crunching sound.

Akira Kurusu gazed at the grape tart torn apart by bamboo chopsticks on her plate, then tore open a piece of ketchup and squeezed it onto the tart. The bright red liquid refracted the light, much like the eyes of that reliable and beautiful girl holding a naginata.

As he was imagining this, the colors of the light reflected onto the plate were mixed together, making it look so messy and somewhat nauseating.

Suddenly, a large black shadow fell down, covering Akira Kurusu's vision.

Suddenly, a large black shadow fell down, covering Akira Kurusu's vision.

The girl in the high school uniform rested her hands on the table, looking down at him. "Why are you here all alone?"

Akira Kurusu instinctively shrank back while holding the plate. "Shiomi-senpai, this is my dinner."

The girl in front of me is named "Shiomi Kotone". She is a member of the "Special Extracurricular Practice Club" in the high school. She is a Persona user with extremely high talent and combat ability. She once saved Kurusu Akira during a Shadow Disaster and taught him the technique of releasing and operating Personas.

Kotone Shiomi leaned closer, staring intently into Akira Kurusu's eyes with an almost aggressive gaze, repeating her earlier question, "Alone?"

"......one person."

Kotone Shiomi suddenly smiled, a cunning smile like that of a devil, but she was so beautiful that even her sinister smile was endearing. "How about we go to my sister's to celebrate Christmas Eve together?"

Twelve-year-old Akira Kurusu looked at his most trusted and respected senior, vaguely sensing that something was amiss, but he couldn't bring himself to refuse.

He stood up in a daze, watching as Shiomi Kotone picked up the plate and led him out of the cafeteria.

"Senior, where are we going?"

"Of course it's my dorm room!"

Spending Christmas Eve in the dorm...

Elementary school students often feel ashamed and uneasy as if they have done something wrong whenever they stay out all night.

Kotone Shiomi coaxed gently, "Wouldn't it be nice to play games with your older sister?"

She looked at Akira Kurusu's delicate face, which made her heart flutter a little, and said, "I just bought a new cartridge of Modern Combat 2. There's a new machine in the room, so we can play together."

In the cold winter of Tokyo, Akira Kurusu felt the warmth emanating from Kotone Shiomi's hands and suddenly realized that not having friends wasn't so hard to accept.

Loneliness is a strange feeling. You feel lonely when you can't hear a single sound around you. You also feel lonely when there is constant noise around you, but it has nothing to do with you.

But Akira Kurusu is not afraid of being alone.

After all, Shiomi-senpai always seems to appear when he happens to need company.

It's as if we have a telepathic connection.

Wherever Akira Kurusu is, whenever he feels down, this always energetic and enthusiastic girl will quietly approach him and gently pat his shoulder.

Then, in a playful tone, she said, "Want to come to my dorm and play games together?"

......

Akira Kurusu was listening to music on the balcony of her single dormitory room when she suddenly felt as if someone had patted her on the shoulder.

He turned around and saw only the dark night scene, the bright moon generously showering him with its gentle light.

Date displayed on the phone screen:

December 24, 2014.

It's Christmas Eve again.

He reached out and touched his shoulder. Although there was nothing there, he could clearly feel a warm sensation.

This feeling of warmth becomes even more pronounced during Tokyo's coldest times.

Akira Lai remained stunned for a long time, unable to think of what expression she should make. Even when she talked to herself, she seemed lost and aimless.

Even though he knew that no matter how many times he looked back, whether he laughed, was angry, or felt disgusted, the girl who would always come close to him and chatter when he felt lonely would never come back.