Chapter Text
Chapter XIV
Fury of an Artist
June 24th, 2017
The Phantom Mobile Interior - The Following Morning
Sumire yawned as her eyelids slowly fluttered open. She had the most pleasant dream last night. She dreamt that she was up on the world stage of gymnastics, at the Olympics. Through all of the sweat, blood, and tears that Sumire was forced to draw during the brutal and merciless expectations of her competition, she ended up coming out on top. She stood on the first place pedestal as she had a golden Olympics medal for gymnastics gently hung over her neck. Sumire watched as everyone amongst the crowd was clapping and cheering to the point where it nearly hurt Sumire’s eardrums. However, the claps and the cheers couldn’t possibly compare to what came next. Sumire watched as Ren ran out from amongst the crowd, onto the field, and all the way up to the podium to pull her into a tight hug. Sumire had never felt more proud of herself in her entire life; she had finally achieved the dream that she and Kasumi had made together so many years ago, and she’s now celebrating that victory with the boy she loved so dearly.
It had been so wonderful… and then she’d woken up.
When Sumire woke up, she felt that there was still someone hugging onto her. Sumire almost wanted to sink into the wonderful feeling of being embraced, thinking that it was still Ren hugging her as he did in Sumire’s dream… However, as curiosity suddenly kicked in, Sumire slowly opened up her eyes and came to realize that whoever was hugging onto her wasn’t anyone Sumire could have expected… It was Futaba.
Her face turning beet red, Sumire tried to squirm free of Futaba’s grip, only for Futaba to try pulling her back in her sleep. Eventually, after a few more tries, Sumire was able to get free of Futaba’s grasp.
It wasn’t long after Sumire had broken herself free that Futaba had started to wake up shortly after. Soon afterwards, the rest of the girls all began to wake up and stretch out their limbs in order to properly get themselves to be as awake as possible. As the girls all got dressed, Sumire didn’t dare to say anything to anyone about what transpired during the time that she and Futaba were both asleep. From what she could tell, it didn’t look like Futaba was any the wiser about what happened. It must’ve just been an impulsive reflex in her sleep that she wasn’t aware of. Eventually, all the girls were dressed and were ready to start the day.
Sendai Station - A Short While Later
The entire team of thieves all gathered together at Sendai Station, discussing the plan in regards to gathering intel on their suspected Monarch, Ango Natsume.
“All right! Let’s score us some leads on that smug bastard!” Ryuji cried out with enthusiasm.
Akechi groaned as he held onto his head. “Will you do everyone here a favor and shut your mouth?”
“Honestly, you’re bouncier than a grade-schooler on summer vacation…” Futaba added as she let out a yawn.
Ann looked over at the young, orange-haired gremlin. “Are you alright, Futaba? Are you not a morning person?”
“I didn’t get much sleep, because I just couldn’t get comfy no matter what I did…” whined Futaba, unknowingly causing Sumire’s face to flush a little. “Guess that’ll teach me to forget my usual pillow…”
Makoto gave Futaba a knowing smile, the kind a motherly figure would wear. “I’m sure you’ll adjust Futaba, just give it some time.” she said.
“Well, if we’re going to be spending most of our time gathering intel on Ango Natsume, shouldn’t we at least have some breakfast first?” Haru asked the group.
“Every minute that can be used for breakfast is a minute that should be used for actually getting this job done…” Akechi responded with a deadpan expression. “...Besides, I’m not hungry anyway.”
“You sure, Akechi?” Ren asked as he looked over at the shaggy-haired brunette. “You really don’t want anything to eat… not even some delicious pancakes?”
Akechi felt his eyes twitch viciously as veins began to come into view on his forehead. He glared venomous daggers at Ren’s direction as he held up his hand in front of Ren's neck. Akechi continuously curled the fingers of his hand in a very threatening manner, silently telling Ren that he will strangle the life out of his rival for ever daring to say the P word.
However, Ren just simply laughed at Akechi’s threatening gesture.
“Nah, you're absolutely right.” Ren said as he finished laughing. “...Waffles are better anyway.”
Akechi said nothing in response as he lowered his hand, but that didn't stop him from letting out a frustrated growl from behind his lips. If there was one thing in this world that Akechi absolutely could not stand, apart from his own father, it's how Ren was always so easily capable of getting under his skin.
“Anyways, let's first figure out how we're going to start off the investigation...” Ren said as he pulled his phone out from his pocket. “Sophia, where would you recommend we start with gathering information?”
Ren's phone pinged as Sophia’s head came up onto the screen.
“We are currently at Sendai Station, which is very close to the shopping arcade.” Sophia answered. “The shopping arcade is one of Sendai's most populated areas during the day; it's even more populated during the Tanabata Festival in August. That could be a good place for gathering some intel.”
“All right, sounds like a plan.” Ren said as he then turned his attention to the rest of his team. “Okay, so we'll do this the same way we did with Alice. Sophia, Futaba, you two scour the net, see if you can find anything suspicious outside of what we know already.” said Ren.
“No prob.” said Sophia as she popped up on Ren’s phone.
“Yeah, we got the web crawling covered, as per usual.” said Futaba.
“Good.” Ren said with a nod. “Everyone else, see what you can find out from the masses, and we’ll all reconvene within an hour.”
“Understood.” Yusuke said. “We'll surely find something worthwhile regarding Natsume if we each do our own individual investigations.”
“Agreed. That certainly sounds like the best course of action.” Sumire added.
“All right, everyone, move out and good luck!” Ren declared as the others made their way to the shopping arcade.
Porto Mall - One Hour Later
Ren and the rest of the thieves all stood loitering at the back of Ango Natsume's autograph signing panel for his book. When the whole group had reconvened to share what they had discovered from the masses, the group had shared tales not unlike that which they had learned during their investigation into Alice Hiiragi’s disdeeds: Between people no-showing, no-calling, or even ditching their jobs part way through to go and get more copies of Natsume’s book, people buying gifts for Natsume to the point where even the shopkeepers were concerned, and other authors giving up on their writing and deleting their social media accounts. There were very few people who, when talking about Ango Natsume, would actually talk about his book. They would just simply talk about how much they love and idolize him. However, for the few that actually did talk about the book, they have stated that Ango Natsume's writing style was very similar to how other authors would write their stories.
When the group figured out that Natsume was going to have an autograph signing at the mall, they decided that this would be as good of a chance as any to try and get some sort of information on if he is using EMMA to brainwash people into becoming his puppets. However, when they got to the mall, very few within the group were able to predict the huge number of people who were going to be attending the event.
“That smug bastard's bein’ promoted all over the place.” Ryuji snarled quietly as he glared daggers over at Natsume’s direction. “I feel like I'm goin’ insane.”
“Calm down, Ryuji-senpai. If Natsume-san is indeed the Monarch, then you can’t get too upset over how much attention he's getting.” Sumire said with a reassuring tone.
“Still, this is an awfully big crowd for a simple book signing.” Makoto pointed out.
Futaba couldn’t help but dart her eyes around at all of the people that were surrounding the area. Even with all the social improvements she went through over the course of last year, Futaba still wasn’t quite yet comfortable being around massive crowds; her social anxiety was already starting to kick into overdrive.
“Urrrgh… There's so many people here.” Futaba groaned as she held a hand up to her face. “...I think I'm gonna throw up.”
Suddenly, Futaba felt a hand gently patting her on the back. Futaba turned her head to see Ren looking down at her with a comforting smile.
“Relax, Futaba. We're here with you. Just try to keep that in mind.” Ren said softly.
Futaba didnt say anything in response, but she always loved how much of a doting big brother Ren has acted towards her ever since last year. Futaba simply closed her eyes and smiled weakly as she nodded her head while trying to fight back the nausea she was feeling.
“All we can do is wait and see if he is going to give out his keyword for EMMA, much like how Alice did.” Morgana said with his eyes narrowed in a serious manner. “If he does, then we'll know for certain if he's our target or not.”
As they waited patiently for the chance to see Natsume take the chance to give away his EMMA keyword, the thieves have all beared witness to some of Natsume’s fans acting very bizarre. Some of his fans had bought about fifty to a hundred copies of his book; some for reading, some for giving away, and some for the sake of collecting amongst other things.
The thieves have also heard from amongst the crowd that, apparently, Natsume started writing novels for a girl who is sick and bedridden in the hospital. Apparently, she always loved the stories he had to tell, and she continuously encouraged him to share his stories with the rest of the world. He hopes to see the success of his storytelling continue to higher and higher as the girl continues to fight for her life. The crowd just wouldn't stop going on and on about how much of a saint Natsume is, and how they're going to spread the word of Natsume and all of his good deeds.
As what felt like an eternity of waiting, the book signing had finally ended and Natsume had left the building; his crowd of fans following right behind him.
“I expected Natsume-san to be popular, but not quite this popular.” Haru said, her eyes filled with bewilderment.
“Do you think what those people said about Natsume’s story, about the girl in the hospital, is true?” Ann asked the group
“Don't be stupid.” Akechi said, bluntly. “Anyone can easily tell a sob story as basic and unbelievable as a girl being sick and bedridden in the hospital.”
“Yeah, even I'm gonna have to agree with Akechi on this one.” Ryuji added to the conversation. “The dude doesn' seem like the type to give a shit about anyone but himself.”
“Regardless, I don't think Natsume said anything resembling a keyword.” Morgana said; his voice filled with disappointment.
“Could it be that he was just being careful not to give it away?” Haru asked the group. “...Or maybe, perhaps, he isn't really a Monarch and he really is just that good of a writer.”
“I doubt it.” Ren spoke up as he shook his head. “From what I could tell, even with how some of his fans were behaving, there was a certain look in their eyes that felt really unsettling to me… It looked as if the light in their eyes were just gone, like they were all just empty inside.”
“Then if Natsume is the Monarch, it's probably more than likely that everyone here has already had their hearts changed.” Makoto spoke up.
“That has to be the case.” Ryuji said, a look of discomfort on his face. “Who the hell buys a hundred copies of a book?!”
“It would also mean that he would have no reason to give away his keyword.” Sumire added to the conversation.
As the group was pondering on what to do next, Futaba looked over to her right and noticed that Yusuke's focus has been entirely on the open pages of a small white book that he held gently in his right hand.
“Hey, Inari, what's that you've been reading?” Futaba asked the blue-haired artist.
“Ango Natsume's novel, Prince of Nightmares.” Yusuke answered.
“Inari, you actually bought that thing?!” Futaba exclaimed in disbelief.
“No, this copy was the one that Natsume had given to Sumire just last night.” Yusuke answered.
“Yusuke-senpai asked me if I could lend him the book because he personally wanted to examine the book's contents so he could determine whether or not the book truly is worthy of its current praise.” Sumire further explained.
“Well, how is it? Is it good?” asked Haru as she looked over at Yusuke.
“Hmm… how should I put it?” said Yusuke with some degree of uncertainty. “For any creative work, one should be able to feel some sense of the creator’s passion. No matter how crude or unrefined the work may be, there should always be some sort of spark present to those engaging with it. I’m not terribly well-versed in the literary arts, but when I read this book… I feel nothing.”
Everyone present couldn’t help but wince. They might not be as into the arts as much as Yusuke was, but still, saying something is good or bad is one thing, but to say that someone feels nothing when engaging with your work, that was even worse than saying the book was a dumpster fire.
“The sentences are formed well enough, but substance-wise, what’s here is shockingly hollow,” said Yusuke. “It’s as if these words have been taken from someone else and were given the most bare-minimum coat of paint possible…”
“Lemme see…” said Futaba as she made her way over to Yusuke and looked at the book he was holding.
Futaba had suspected that she would have to do some thorough investigating as she read through the sentences of Natsume’s book, but she never expected that she'd catch something so quickly.
“Oh, wow! This line here’s lifted from an anime from two years ago! The words got changed a bit, but that’s definitely it. Sneaky.” Futaba said as she continued to examine the book. “Hey, I think I’ve seen this one before too! And this one! Sheesh, this one too… Wait a minute! Is this whole book just a bunch of stuff he ripped off and strung together? If the original writers, or worse, their fans, ever saw this, there would be a freakin’ riot online, and Natsume would be canceled faster than blinking.”
“Oh my God, it’s another Plagiarism Farm!” Ren declared out loud.
The rest of the thieves couldn't help but look at Ren with the most confused expressions on their faces. It was clear to Ren that none of them understood what he was saying.
“Plagiarism Farm?” Yusuke asked.
“Senpai, what are you talking about?” Sumire asked.
Ren’s cheeks flushed a little. “Whoops. Sorry you guys, I did just kinda blurt that out with no warning… However, allow me to provide some context for my joke.”
Ren took in a deep breath as he began his explanation.
“A year ago, back when me, Ryuji, Ann, and Morgana were trying to figure out what Madarame viewed his shack as, one of the suggestions that Ryuji tried throwing out was a farm.” Ren explained to the group. “...I know it sounds pretty stupid, but I honestly just found Ryuji’s idea of Madarame’s Palace being a farm to be pretty funny at the time, hence: a Plagiarism Farm.”
“I see…” Yusuke responded as he looked back down at the “novel” in his hand. “...Regardless, I can’t possibly fathom how such a fraudulent piece of work garnered this much praise… that is… unless the fans had their desires stolen.”
“In that case, I don’t think they even qualify as fans, much like how Alice’s victims were more her simps than they were her fans.” said Ren. “There’s no mistaking it, this is the work of the power to change hearts.”
“Agreed. With all that we know now, it’s beyond certain that something is definitely going on here.” said Futaba.
“If only we knew the keyword, we could investigate the jail for ourselves.” said Haru.
“Think we should ask some of the fans?” suggested Ryuji. “They’ve all had their desires taken, right?”
“I wouldn’t bet on it.” replied Akechi. “If this is anything like the situation back in Shibuya with Alice, I doubt we’ll get anything other than inane ramblings and ravings out of them.”
“Guess we’re kinda stuck then.” said Futaba.
“I'll try calling up Zenkichi once we get back to the camper.” said Ren. “Maybe he’ll be able to get some additional intel on Natsume.”
“All right, then, I guess we should go ahead and wait for Inspector Hasegawa then.” Makoto declared.
Ren and the rest of the Phantom Thieves all began to depart from the department store, but Ren was suddenly stopped by Yusuke.
“Ren, do you have a moment?” Yusuke asked.
“What is it, Yusuke?” asked Ren.
“Why do you think Natsume wrote this novel?” Yusuke asked.
Ren hummed to himself as he thought carefully about Yusuke's question.
“The only conceivable reason that I can think of is that he cobbled that thing together for the sake of money or fame. I mean, the guy certainly seemed to enjoy being popular.” the raven-haired teen explained.
“No, somehow I don’t believe that’s the case.” said Yusuke as he shook his head.
“Really? How so?” Ren asked.
“No matter how much praise your work receives, if it was built off the backs of others… well, then, you cannot truly call that praise your own. Those compliments will surely ring empty. Anyone in the arts should know this.” Yusuke explained.
“Yusuke… I'm honestly pretty sure that's just the thing here. He doesn't really care about the art itself, but rather what the art will grant him.” Ren said to the blue-haired artist. “Remember what we went through with Madarame? It’s the same situation, from where I’m sitting. Natsume is stealing other people’s work, so he can’t truly be someone in the arts. He only cares about himself and his wallet.”
“I don’t know, Ren… something feels different about this than Madarame.” Yusuke said further. “It's true that Madarame stole several works of art and claimed them as his own for profit, but it's also because Madarame didn’t want to return to a life of poverty… Somehow, I don’t think Natsume wrote this book with fame and fortune in mind. There’s something more to it than that.”
Ren was about to speak up again when Makoto’s voice called out to them.
“What are you two doing? Let’s get going!” Makoto said.
“On our way, Makoto!” said Ren as he and Yusuke left the department store, the latter continuing to mull things over in his mind.
Mt. Aoba Park - Later That Evening
After several hours of waiting, after Ren made a phone call to the PubSec detective, Zenkichi had finally arrived at the camper to further discuss their current case of Ango Natsume. During the time of waiting, Sumire was able to get in another full hour of practice for her next upcoming competition at the end of the summer. She also made sure to follow up with a report to her coach about the progress in her training, just as Coach Hiraguchi wanted her to.
When Zenkichi arrived, he was bewildered to notice that Sumire was amongst the group of thieves, given how he was previously told that she wouldn't be joining along for the trip. However, Zenkichi quickly came to understand the whole situation after Ren and Sumire explained Sumire’s whole training program that her coach had set up for her.
Inside of the camper, Zenkichi was admiring the interior of the Phantom Thieves’ vehicle.
“Nice ride you got here.” said Zenkichi with a smile. “I also gotta say that I didn’t expect Sendai to be on the agenda. How’d you guys know there was a jail here?”
“Well… about that…” Ann said uncertainly.
Ren’s phone suddenly pinged as Sophia popped up on the screen.
“I smelled it!” Sophia said cheerfully, causing Akechi to groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose while closings his eyes.
Zenkichi looked down at Ren’s phone, a baffled expression on his face.
“...You smelled it?” Zenkichi asked, completely confused.
“Aaanyways, have you learned anything new other than what we told you?” Makoto asked, trying to avoid any awkward explanations.
“Ah, yes.” said Zenkichi as his focus returned to the matter at hand. “Ango Natsume, right? Yeah, he is certainly suspicious, all right. His book’s been selling like crazy, but get this: It’s only been selling that well here in Sendai. Everywhere else, most people say it’s worse than the Dusk Saga books… Still don’t understand what she sees in them…”
Ren couldn’t help but cock his eyebrow in both confusion and intrigue at the last thing that Zenkichi muttered.
“Anyway, outside of that, everything else lines up with what you guys told me.” Zenkichi said further. “I did some asking around with people who weren't crazy fans towards Natsume himself, and here’s what I found: Everyone in Natsume’s little fanclub becomes friends with him through EMMA. After that, they start buying his book every chance they get. Some people have even gone into debt because of it.”
“It’s just like what happened with Alice…” Ren declared with his eyes furrowed.
“Bingo.” Zenkichi responded. “He might have different methods than Alice Hiiragi, but I’m almost certain that Natsume’s using the same power.”
“In that case, we really need to get our hands on his keyword.” said Morgana.
“Can’t we just nab the shithead and make him cough it up?” said Ryuji.
Akechi sighed as his hand smacked against his forehead. “In addition to being a total moron, you also appear to have some form of memory loss, which might explain the stupid, now that I think about it. Did you learn nothing from what happened last night?”
Zenkichi tilted his head in confusion. “I'm sorry, what are you talking about?”
“Ehhh… Long story short, when we first encountered Natsume last night, he tried to put the moves on Sumire, and he was making her really uncomfortable.” Futaba cut in, providing context for Zenkichi. “Ren was about to get violent with Natsume in order to protect Sumire, but Sumire stopped him before things got ugly.”
Zenkichi nodded in understanding before speaking up. “Well, it's a good thing that things were quickly resolved… Also, Akechi-san has the right idea. Use brute force as an attempt to make Natsume spill the beans, and you will be arrested you for assault. You can ramble on and on about the Jails and the Metaverse all you want, but the best case scenario would be you getting locked up in a mental institution.”
Ryuji sighed and grumbled in defeat. “Yeah, right…”
“Well, considering that we’re Phantom Thieves, going about it via the direct approach isn’t the preferred method anyway.” said Haru.
“Ah, there goes Beauty Thief, trying to be all elegant and subtle and stuff.” said Futaba with a smirk.
“Beauty… what?” Zenkichi asked, his face plastered with levels of confusion.
“Futaba is referring to Haru.” Ren explained.
“Uh, my name is Beauty Thief!” Haru exclaimed nervously.
Akechi couldn’t resist the urge to slam his palm into his face. It was bad enough that he had to hear such a stupid catchphrase since he started properly working with the Phantom Thieves again, but to hear it twice now was just worse.
“I see… she’s really calling herself that?” asked Zenkichi.
“She was. However, it’s now more of a running gag between us friends.” said Ren.
Morgana cleared his throat. “Getting back on track… we gotta think of a way to get our hands on that keyword…” he said.
“That’s where I come in.” said Zenkichi with a confident smirk on his face. “You’d better thank me for this later.
“For what?” asked Makoto, her head tilted in curiosity.
“Natsume’s throwing a party tonight in celebration of Prince of Nightmares reaching a million in sales. And I just so happen to have enough invitations for all of you.” said Zenkichi as he pulled out a wad of envelopes from his suit coat pocket. “Which means…”
“We’re crashing a party?” said Ann in surprise.
“Hey, that sounds fun as hell! Right, RenRen?!” Ryuji said excitedly.
“Well, crashing a party is certainly a Phantom Thief thing to do.” Ren said with a smirk before it quickly faded away. “Just one problem, though… I don’t think any of us have clothes that would work for attending a party like that.”
“Nobody’s gonna care what you’re wearing.” said Zenkichi. “Just pretend you work in the industry or something… So, what do you think? Glad we struck a deal?”
“So far, I’d say it's working out rather well, Gramps.” said Ren with a smirk.
“Yeah, you did pretty good, Gramps!” said Futaba.
“Yeah, nice one Gramps!” said Ryuji.
“I must admit, I’m seeing you in a whole new light, Gramps,” said Yusuke.
“Yeah, you really came though Gramps!” said Ann with a bright smile.
“I knew we could count on you Gramps-san!” said Haru.
Zenkichi let out an exasperated sigh. “Come on, guys, at least call me by my name,” he groaned.
“Don’t feel bad, Gramps,” Sophia said as she popped up on Ren’s phone.
Zenkichi groaned in despair.
“I am terribly sorry for them, Hasegawa-san.” Sumire said as she politely bowed her head towards the detective.
Most of the Phantom Thieves couldn't help but turn their gaze towards the redheaded gymnast; looks of utter disappointment plastered on their faces.
“...You ruined it.” Futaba whined.
Party Venue - Later That Night…
Upon arriving at the designated area of where Ango Natsume's celebration for a million sales of his book, the group of thieves couldn't help but feel amazed at how well decorated the inside of the building was. There were several tables set up with with lots of hot, fresh dishes of food laid out, and a lot of servers who were giving out glasses of either champagne or water to the guests.
It wasn't long until the echos of endless chatter within the building suddenly erupted into cheers and hand claps as the man of the hour had finally arrived at the scene. He stepped up onto a small podium and looked towards the whole crowd; a champagne glass in his left hand.
“Thank you all very much for coming tonight.” Natsume addressed his audience. “This is just a small token of my appreciation. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy yourselves.”
Natsume held up his glass and boldly exclaimed “To Prince of Nightmares!”, causing almost everyone in the crowd to follow suit by raising their own glasses and repeating what Natsume said. This caused Ryuji to feel the need to gag a bit.
As the time passed by, the group of thieves had kept a respectable distance from Natsume. Lots of people had come up to him to voice their congratulations for the success of his book, and their belief in a bright future ahead of the young author. Right now, a small group of editors were surrounding the author.
“Congratulations, Natsume-san. Truly.” A tall, well dressed man with slick, brown hair said to Natsume.
“It's all thanks to everyone working so hard to push sales. All I did was write.” Natsume said with a smile.
“Oh, you are too modest.” The editor said.
Suddenly, another editor spoke up. This one looked rather chubby and had his black hair combed backwards. “It really is impressive how well you've done, considering the amount of competition there is these days. I know that we tried to promote you as the grandson of renowned writer, Sogo Natsume, but… I never would've expected you to perform this well.”
“The praise you've received is due entirely to your talent, Natsume-san.” The tall editor said. “You're a shining star to readers and authors alike.”
“My talent, you say?” Natsume asked with a smug grin on his face. “Well now, I wouldn't go as far as to say that. The words on the page matter little. If there is something worth talking about, people will always flock to it. From there, all one needs to do is craft a little story into it, and voila… For example, take that origin story about how I started writing because of some poor girl in the hospital.”
Ren and the rest of the thieves couldn't help but pay their attention more closely to the last thing that Natsume said. It seemed like this would be the precise moment where Natsume may finally cough up the truth about the story about the bedridden girl.
“Pardon me for asking, Natsume-san, but is that story really true?” The tall editor asked.
Natsume just simply laughed at the question. “I'm afraid that's purely my own business… Truth, fiction, why would anyone care when it's the success rate of the art itself that matters? Surely you can recall Ichiryusai Madarame’s confession on live TV a year ago, about how he was stealing several of his apprentices art pieces. Before he started stealing works of arts, his signature piece was… Sorry, what was it called again?”
“The ‘Sayuri’, sir.” The chubby editor explained.
“Ah, yes! That's it, the ‘Sayuri’!” Natsume exclaimed. “That piece was certainly lauded as the pinnacle of beauty at the time. However, if you ask me, there's only one rightful place that the ‘Sayuri’ belongs now… the trash.”
As soon as those last words left Natsume’s mouth, much like a pot of water being left over a burning stove, Ren, Ryuji, Ann, and Morgana all began to feel their blood boil with fury.
“That dick!” Ryuji growled under his breath.
“He has no idea what was put into that painting.” Ann whispered, angrily. “Who does he think he is?!”
“What are you imbeciles getting so upset about?” Akechi asked. “If anything, what Natsume said about the ‘Sayuri’ is ri-”
“Akechi, I'm going to say this to you in the nicest way possible…” Ren growled in a whisper. “Shut. The. Fuck. Up.”
Morgana looked over to Yusuke. Yusuke didn't say anything in response to any of what was being said, but Morgana could tell that by the way Yusuke tightly pressed his lips together, the remark that Natsume made about the ‘Sayuri’ hit really close to home.
“Are you gonna be okay, Yusuke?” Morgana asked, concern evident in his voice.
“...Yes, I'll be fine…” Yusuke replied as he turned to face the group. “However, I have a favor to ask. Would you please allow me to get the keyword from Natsume? I promise I'll get the keyword from him.”
“Are you sure that's a good idea, Yusuke-senpai?” Sumire asked
“There's a good chance that he remembers your faces from yesterday.” Yusuke explained. “However, I was toward the back of the crowd, so there's a good chance he won't recognize me.”
Ren hummed to himself. Although he didn't really like the idea of sending in Yusuke alone to get the keyword from Natsume, especially after Natsume just said about the ‘Sayuri’, he couldn’t really argue with how sound Yusuke's plan was and how little risk there'd be for him to get the keyword compared to everyone else.
Ren heaved a sigh. “Alright, you go do your thing.”
“Good luck.” Ann said.
“Thank you.” Yusuke said as he walked away from the group.
Yusuke silently walked up to Natsume as he pulled out the signed copy of Prince of Nightmares. Yusuke held the book up to his chest as he got closer to the author. Yusuke then made a loud sound by clearing his throat, officially catching the attention of Natsume and his team of editors.
“Pardon me for interrupting, Natsume-san…” Yusuke said as he formed a smile on his face.
“Who are you?” The chubby editor asked.
“Oh, please forgive me.” Yusuke said as he held the signed copy of his book higher. “I just happen to be a big fan of your work.”
Natsume laughed in response. “Why thank you. Your support means the whole world to me.”
Yusuke closed his eyes and let out a sigh. “To be in the same room and talk with the great Ango Natsume himself… This honor is truly more than I deserve.”
“Nonsense. Don't sell yourself short.” Natsume retorted. “It's readers like you who allow authors like me to keep writing.”
“I see. That's a wonderful way to look at it.” Yusuke said. “By the way, do you, by any chance, happen to use EMMA, Natsume-san?”
“Of course.” Natsume replied with gusto. “With how convenient it is, how could I not?”
“If you don't mind, could you please add me to your friends list?” Yusuke asked. “You see, I'm something of an artist myself, and it would be a privilege to be closer to one I respect so greatly.”
Natsume chuckled. “I don't mind at all. If anything, it's nice to have fans who are also a part of the art world… But you need not to ask for the keyword. For you see, the keyword is none other than the very book you hold in your hands.”
Yusuke looked down at the cover of the book.
“You mean to say that ‘Prince of Nightmares’ is your EMMA keyword?” Yusuke asked.
“Precisely.” Natsume answered. “I wanted my keyword to be something simple, something that my readers and fans could easily remember.”
“Thank you very much! Expect a request from me sometime soon.” Yusuke said as he put the book away. “Oh, and before I leave, there is one more thing… I overheard you and your entourage talking about the ‘Sayuri’ earlier. If I'm not mistaken, you said that the ‘Sayuri’ now only belongs in the trash, as if its beauty has now expired…”
“Ah, so you heard that, did you?” Natsume asked as he crossed his arms. “Well, I take it that someone of your taste agrees with me? In the end, that painting only held value because of whose name was attached to it. Now that Madarame’s name is in the mud, the value of the ‘Sayuri’ is just worthle-”
“The ‘Sayuri’ was not painted by Madarame…” Yusuke said; his smile fading from his face. “...It was painted by my mother.”
Natsume's eyes bolted wide open upon the sudden revelation that Yusuke had laid upon his feet. Natsume felt as if his breath had been caught from within his throat.
“This may be unprofessional of me, but professionalism be damned.” Yusuke proclaimed as he continued. “My mother painted the ‘Sayuri’ as a final gift to me, to help me remember that there was nothing more precious to her than the baby she held in her arms. It was her final masterpiece before she died… The love that she poured into that painting, the love she had directed towards her only child, that's the kind of beauty that can never be replicated by anyone anywhere else.”
Yusuke hardened his gaze towards Natsume as he was now glaring ice-cold daggers at the plagiaristic writer.
“Don't you DARE lump it in with that soulless drivel you cobbled together from authors far more talented than YOU!” Yusuke declared, furiously.
In that instant, the color in Natsume’s face had faded away at the sound of Yusuke insulting his precious work and calling it soulless.
Although Yusuke could not see it, Ren, Ryuji, Ann, Morgana, and some of the other thieves were smiling brightly at Yusuke's display of patience and restraint, waiting for the precise moment to strike at Natsume and hit him where it hurts just after getting the keyword.
“What the-?!” The tall editor exclaimed. “Who do you think you are?! You can't-”
“I merely speak the truth.” Yusuke spat back at the editor. “When something is created purely for the sake of money or recognition, and not for the sake of pouring your own emotions into it, your work has no right to ever be referred to as art… Now, if you'll excuse me.”
With nothing more to say Yusuke walked back up to the group, and the group as a whole had all walked towards the building's entrance. Alone with his editors and the fresh memories of Yusuke's insult towards his work, Natsume couldn’t control the irritated breathing that was coming out from his nostrils and through his teeth.
“Soulless drivel?! That little bastard…” Natsume cursed through his teeth. “What the hell does he know?!”
The tall editor quickly turned to face Natsume; his hands placed up in a soothing manner.
“I- It's all right, Natsume-san.” The tall editor said, soothingly. “He's just looking to blame you for something because he's jealous of your genius. Don't let him get to y-”
“SHUT UP!” Natsume hollered, catching most of the guests' attention.
Natsume’s editors were now stuttering, unsure of how to tame Natsume's temper in this situation. Natsume continued to breathe in irritation until he eventually got himself under control again.
“No matter…” Natsume said under his breath. “...He'll come around just like the rest.”
As the group of young thieves all finally reached the outside of the building, Yusuke stopped in the middle of his tracks and turned to face everyone.
“My apologies…” Yusuke said in a solemn tone. “I couldn’t hold myself back. I suppose I still have much to learn…”
“Yusuke, what are you talking about?” Ren asked with a tilt of his head. “You held onto to your temper just long enough for you to get what we needed, and then you struck at the right time. You have nothing to learn, you do exactly as you should have.”
“Yeah, Ren's right.” Ann added to the conversation. “I was actually pretty impressed with how long you waited until you stood up to him.”
Yusuke looked down as he took a breather.
“...Well, I can't say that my assessment of his book was entirely correct.” Yusuke said. “Whatever someone feels from a work of art, no matter what that work may be, ultimately comes down to the individual. I myself may not be able to feel anything from Natsume’s book, but that doesn't necessarily mean that nobody else feels anything.”
“But Yusuke-senpai, you saw what Natsume had been doing when writing that book.” Sumire jumped into the conversation. “He has done nothing but steal several pieces of work from other people to just simply fill up the pages in a book he had no real desire in making. He's not even trying to be original… If anything, you were right when you said that creations with no emotions put into them can ever be called real art.”
“And, for what it's worth, we all loved seeing you stick it to that creep, Inari.” Futaba added to the discussion.
Akechi didn't say anything during the whole conversation. Instead, all Akechi could do was think back to what Yusuke said about the ‘Sayuri’, about how it was made by Yusuke's own mother. The mere fact that Madarame would have the gall to steal something as personal as a mother's final gift to her child, just before she died, and use it to copy and sell to several other people for profit… It was absolutely sickening. It made Akechi’s blood boil how Madarame would dare do something like that to a dying woman. It made him think too much about his own mother… If Akechi could, he would gladly travel into the Metaverse and perform a mental shutdown on Madarame. Being allowed to continue living was just too good of fate for someone as horrible as Madarame.
“In any case, we finally got the keyword.” Morgana said to the group. “All that's left is to find our entry point.”
Ren's phone suddenly pinged. Ren pulled his phone out of his pocket as Sophia appeared on the screen.
“Sendai Station would be a good place to look.” Sophia said.
“Hm? How come?” Haru asked
“The smell isn't as strong there. The security’s probably more lax.” Sophia explained. “The station should be a safe point of entry, just like in Shibuya.”
“So, I guess we're really doing this.” Ann said.
“Yeah, we finally have everything we need.” Ren confirmed. “Starting tomorrow, we storm the Jail and pay a visit to prince himself.”
“Oh yeah.” Futaba exclaimed with a fist pump.
The group all began to walk away from the building and make their way back towards the camper at the park. However, Ren's phone suddenly pinged.
“Hey, Ren. There's something I want to ask you.” Sophia said; a troubled look plastered on her face. “Earlier, Yusuke sounded calm when he was talking to Natsume, and then he sounded angry. But now he sounds sad… Why is that?”
“...Because Yusuke himself is an artist.” Ren explained. “When someone insults an art piece that you've put your heart and soul into making, and it's something you're so genuinely proud of, t's only natural that you would feel hurt… It hurts even worse when an art piece, like the ‘Sayuri’, is insulted, because that's just simply disrespecting the last thing that Yusuke's mother ever made. For Natsume to claim that it doesn't belong anywhere other than the trash, he is essentially saying that the love that Yusuke's mother had for her only child is nothing but trash.”
“Oh, I see…” Sophia said. “So when someone disrespects something important to you, it makes you feel either sad or angry?”
“Honestly, it could also be a case of both It really all depends on the person.” Ren further explained. “In Yusuke's case, he was angry at Natsume for insulting the last art piece his mother created, and he now seems sad after calling Natsume’s book soulless drivel… Maybe Yusuke is able to sympathize with someone like Natsume because he understands the pain of being told that a work of art you really like is no good.”
“Yeah, Yusuke did seem to feel that way, too.” Sophia replied. “I think I'm starting to understand him a little better now. Thank you for explaining that to me, Ren.”
Ren felt a smile form on his face. “Anytime, Sophia.”
Ren put his phone back into his pocket as he began to hurry on over to catch up to the group as they continued on back to the camper. With nothing left to gather, the mission had finally become clear… Steal back the stolen desires from the Prince of Nightmares.