April 16
Saturday
Early Morning
Sunny
"I can't believe that you're able to read such dense text…"
"It's quite a good read. An in-depth analysis on superluminal motion."
"…I guess I won't have to worry about your studies."
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Walking through the now-familiar streets of Aoyama-Itchome, Akira overheard a conversation between two Shujin students on the topic of health.
"…Hey, wasn't that one customer back at Leblanc a doctor?"
"Maybe a quick visit could prove useful."
"Hehehe, great minds think alike."
Continuing forward, Akira was unsurprised when Ryuji tapped him on the shoulders.
"Mornin'. Let's head to school together. I guess it's right there, but whatever."
"How's your day been going so far."
"Dude, you couldn't imagine what I saw on the news…"
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Afternoon
Sunny
During Mr. Ushimaru's lecture, Akira's phone buzzed with a message from Ryuji. Part of him was glad that he remembered to use the cipher but was troubled that his headstrong teammate enjoyed sending messages during class time.
[Ryuji: Hey, we're meeting up at the hideout after school, right?]
[Ann: Don't text now. We're in class.]
[Ryuji: Whoa! You mean you're actually listening to all this crap?]
[Ann: Yeah, but none of it is really sticking today…]
[Ryuji: I know, right? Anyways, hideout after school?]
[Ann: Where exactly is this 'hideout'?]
[Ryuji: The school roof.]
[Ann: Wait, we can still go up there?]
[Ryuji: Yeah, I'll let you in. Welp, I'll be waiting. Just come on up once school's over.]
[Akira: Later.]
[Ryuji: I'm gonna fine you if you're late!]
As Akira finished reading the last text, he heard Mr. Ushimaru reprimanding him. He could strangely feel a murderous intent from the social studies teacher, and with surprising speed and accuracy, a piece of chalk was rifled toward Akira's forehead.
In a display of agility and dexterity, Akira firmly caught the flying projectile in between his index and thumb. A feat that amazed his classmates, and irked Mr. Ushimaru.
"Tch…Well, whatever. Moving on…"
Akira lightly twirled the piece of chalk before putting it in his desk drawer.
"Whoa! You're pretty skilled. Guess teaching you infiltration skills should be easy."
Humming in acquiescence, Akira turned his focus back to the class.
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After School
Sunny
"You caught the chalk? Are you a freaking ninja dude?"
"Right!? It looked like a scene from a manga."
"Damn…I wish I had seen it. Anyways, let's head for the Palace."
"Hold on, it's still too early for us to head to the Palace."
"Why? Don't we just need to steal the Treasure? That is what you said."
"I know what I said! It's more complicated than that. There are countless dangers within a ruler's Palace, which means that we need to prepare."
"Aren't Personas enough?"
"It's way more complicated than that. You'll die if you mess up in there. So again, we need to prepare before we head in."
With Ryuji a bit annoyed and confused Ann took the role of active student during Professor Morgana's lecture.
"But…how exactly are we supposed to do that!?"
"I'm glad you asked Lady Ann. First, we'll need to find better equipment for all of you."
"You talkin' about weapons," interjected Ryuji. "I know a kick-ass place!"
"In that case, Ryuji, you can handle that side of things. The only other thing would be stocking up on medicine. Fatigue is unavoidable in a Palace…Physical attacks drain stamina while special abilities drain the spirit.
"So where can we get medicine?"
"Don't worry. Akira and I know the place. I hope you look forward to it, Lady Ann!"
"…Seems like that's everything."
The smooth baritone of Akira's voice turned everyone's focus upon himself.
"Since we're here, we need to establish a few important rules. First, since Morgana still sounds like a cat to everyone apart from us, we should avoid talking loudly with him in open or public places. Even when we may believe we're alone, we need to be incredibly vigilant."
Getting a nod from the group, Akira continued.
"Second, while meeting up occasionally is fine, we should enter and exit the Metaverse in staggered time slots. This way, we don't all disappear from an alleyway. Additionally, we should carefully consider our entry points. Ann was pulled in from near the front of the school, while we were easily half a block away. Judging on the surrounding environment, apart from the Palace, the rest of the world stays relatively the same. In theory, we should be able to enter from just about anywhere in Tokyo, but I'll need to further test the idea. Anyway, does everyone understand?"
"Uhh…so don't talk to the cat in public and enter the Palace from different places?"
"That's about right. How about you, Ann?"
"Sounds good to me, Akira."
"Good. Let's leave the rooftop every five minutes to avoid suspicion."
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"Those were some pretty good suggestions back there…Oh right."
Akira pulled out his phone and pretended to be on a call as he responded to Morgana.
"It was based on what I observed. It wasn't anything special."
"…Still, it's incredible how capable you are. It'll make my plans much easier…Ok, let's head over to that clinic."
The clinic was right next to the cinema and the exterior was slightly rundown, but otherwise clean. With a general plan in mind, Akira walked in.
- - -
At the window was the customer from yesterday. Still dressed in punk rock clothes, but now wearing a lab coat she barely flinched when Akira entered and seemed to only react when he approached the consultation window.
"…Is this your first visit? Hm? I feel like I've seen you somewhere before…"
"At Leblanc."
"Hmmm…Well, whatever…So, what are you here for today?"
"A checkup, my body has been feeling lethargic."
"…Hmmm…Fine. Please head to the exam room."
- - -
Akira calmly described his symptoms to the doctor but was faintly aware that she was suspicious. Truth be told, Akira would rather meet her for a cup of coffee than for a check-up, but priorities.
"…In a case like yours, it's usually just due to stress. I'm gonna prescribe you some pain relievers, okay?"
"You're the professional."
"Right…Actually, I still need to restock those…So let's go with sleeping pills instead. Sleep is the best medicine anyway. Which type of pill do you want, a sweet-tasting one or a bitter one."
"…I can wait for you to restock the painkillers and come back for them."
"So, you're more than a pretty face. Let's stop beating around the bush. You're not sick at all, are you? I'm not as dumb as I look you know…I'm guessing you're here because you heard the rumors about me, huh?"
"There are many words that come to mind when I look at you…dumb has yet to make an appearance on that list…You're right, I came because of the rumors."
"…Handsome, smart, and a charmer. I wonder what you could need those pills for. Whatever, I guess even high school kids have it tough nowadays too? Fine, I'll prescribe you some medication. But only medication that will help you recover your health. It should be fine. You seem pretty earnest, and you don't look like you'll be any trouble."
Akira was glad that he had manipulated his Pneuma to exude a sense of trust and honesty. As Kippōshi had said, when the power's intended target was himself, the cost was minimal. The effect it had on others was a byproduct. It would be different if he specifically wanted the doctor to trust him, compared to exuding the aura of a trustworthy person in general.
"This is my private practice. All the medicine I dispense is original. I have a license to make my own formulas. You've likely seen them being sold at various hospitals. It's your responsibility to take care of yourself. So, if that's okay with you, stop by anytime."
"Sure."
"Great…You're a strange kid, you know? I wonder what you're going to use the medicine for…Well as long as you don't cause me any trouble, it's not my problem. I guess it's pretty late for introductions, but I'm Doctor Tae Takemi."
"Pleasure to meet you doc. I'm Akira Kurusu."
"So…Akira-kun, what would you like?"
Sticking true to her easygoing nature, the doctor used Akira's first name while presenting a list of medications she sold along with their effects.
The grey-eyed teen took a careful look at the effects. Using nearly ¥50,000, Akira bought at least five of every item. While the impact of the medication would likely alter in the Metaverse, he doubted that they would completely change.
"That's quite a lot…Let me get you a bag."
Soon enough, Tae brought out a neatly packed bag and handed it to Akira.
"Take care."
"See you later."
Akira tucked the medicines into his book bag. He would place it in the pocket space once he left the clinic and in a more secure location. He nearly ran into a well-dressed man on his way out of the examination room. The man's stern expression did little to intimidate Akira. Nonetheless, Akira stepped aside and let the man enter the examination room. Initially, he wanted to stay to make sure that something 'unsavory' wouldn't happen, but the conversation between the two piqued his interest. Pneuma dulled his presence as he eavesdropped on the conversation.
He silently left with two key pieces of information. Dr. Takemi has an incredibly potent medicine, and the man's name was Oyamada.
"Very, very interesting."
"I agree. We should come back and try and procure some of that medication for exploring the Palace. I know I don't have to say it, but it's important to keep the Phantom Thieves a secret."
"That goes without saying. What kind of thief would expose themselves."
"Nyahhaha!"
Akira was halfway to Leblanc when Ryuji sent a message about getting the guns in Shibuya. Ann would be visiting Shiho tomorrow, so she wouldn't be able to come, which meant it was up to Akira, Ryuji, and Morgana to procure the weapons. Akira considered asking Ann where Shiho was hospitalized, but the surge of emotions he felt as the image of her sprawled body warned him that visiting the poor girl would be risky, at least for the time being. This meant there was only one more thing to do today…
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Akira had waited nearly an hour after Sojiro left before starting his plan.
"I guess we should talk."
Morgana was confused and was about to ask, but Akira continued.
"I thought at first that it was Sojiro-san who set these up…Then I considered that someone from the police. Yet, both ideas felt off."
Morgana watched with amazement as Akira maneuvered around the room and grabbed small, almost negligible devices.
"I know you're listening. You've been doing it since I got here. You have two options. Either A, I crush these along with all the rest in the café and keep crushing every new bug that I see. Or B, you and I have a thorough discussion about privacy that ends with you getting your bugs and me getting my space. You have 10 minutes."
It took only a minute before Akira's phone, the non-Pneuma one, started buzzing.
[Please, don't break those. They're expensive.]
"This is ridiculous."
The foresight to buy a new phone and make it untraceable with Pneuma paid off.
[So, I'm guessing that you've decided to stop surveilling me.]
[…They were meant to protect Sojiro.]
[From me?]
[…]
[No, from someone…someone who could potentially accuse him of something.]
It seemed that his guardian had his own fair share of troubles.
[That doesn't matter. You can remove the devices from the attic but leave the ones in the café area. The speakers shouldn't be able to hear what happens upstairs.]
[Doesn't matter. I bought a jammer.]
[…Aren't you a bit too clever for a delinquent?]
[Aren't you a bit too young to be able to hack my device?]
[I never…how did you know?]
[Didn't you just tell me.]
[( ﾟДﾟ)＜!!]
[You're definitely a teen, maybe even a kid. Junior high, maybe?]
[Stop doing that!]
[One last question.]
[(¬､¬) Fine…]
[Do you live with Sojiro?]
[…]
The texts stopped, but Akira was satisfied. The person who wiretapped the room was excessively curious and cared little for other's privacy, but they didn't feel like a malicious individual. While thinking about his new acquaintance, Akira enhanced his senses with Pneuma and easily removed every listening device in the attic. He placed them all in a box and planned to drop them off tomorrow when Sojiro was at the café.
He pulled the jammer he bought from an out-of-the-way electronics shop and Pneuma-modified on the train ride back to be undetectable. He hid them in key spots and with confirmation from Kippōshi, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he could relax his body when he went home.
Naturally, he had to answer Morgana's questions, and while the cat was impressed with how he handled it, acknowledged how easy it would be for someone to learn about the Phantom Thieves. This conversation only reinforced the importance of caution and secrecy.
Of course, before talking with Morgana, Akira had used the Pneuma mark on his old phone to completely shut off so that not only could it not listen to their conversation, but it could not be forcefully turned on by an outside party. His worries continuously proven true, only solidified the idea to Akira that he was being watched, not only by other humans but by something else, something…