The long, almost lazy and weary after-school bell echoed over the campus. The homeroom teacher, unusually, specifically reminded the students to pay attention to their personal safety both inside and outside the campus...
Her gaze fell on the girl in the front row of the classroom, who seemed to be making some important decision, with a hint of worry and veiled concern.
The girl looked at the trees outside the window, her face filled with stubborn defiance.
When the homeroom teacher left, the classroom instantly became noisy. Those who had been passing notes during class could now finally speak loudly. Students rushing to participate in club activities stood up one after another, calling their friends and leaving the classroom. The classroom quickly became deserted. Then, the honor students who had signed up for cram school got up with their backpacks full of exercise books, and finally, the 'go-home club' members who had no club activities and planned to find a place to play games or read comics.
The surrounding lively atmosphere continuously diminished as students left in batches.
Everyone was gone, and the only ones left in the classroom were today's 'duty students'.
The girl on duty wiped the blackboard clean and hesitantly approached Iseri Nina, who was slowly packing her textbooks and stationery at her desk.
"Nina… um… can you listen to me for a bit?"
She looked at Iseri Nina's eyes very nervously.
Iseri Nina froze for a moment, then happily revealed an innocent and childish smile, "Are you going to the coffee shop to do homework together after school? We can!"
The duty student looked at her smile, which seemed indifferent to pain, but her mood instantly plummeted. Born from that deep low point was a determination to protect the other person.
"Nina, listen to me."
"What's wrong?" Iseri Nina, with her backpack on, stood still and looked back at her most trusted best friend with some confusion.
"Not coffee or homework… I want to say…" The girl took a deep breath, staring intently at Iseri Nina, "Don't get involved in those things anymore."
The smile on Iseri Nina's face instantly vanished, "Those things mean…?"
The girl said nothing, only looking at her seriously.
Until Iseri Nina felt an almost suffocating disbelief in the silence.
She had only stepped in to help a classmate who was being bullied at school, and for this, her intentions to stand up for her classmates had been met with much ridicule from bystanders.
But even so, she firmly believed that she was on the side of justice and doing the right thing.
Iseri Nina looked at the girl in front of her, and a haze like thick fog seemed to spread in her heart.
"Haven't you realized yet?" The other person suddenly took a step forward, almost pleadingly grabbing Iseri Nina's hands, "Their behavior is getting lower and lower, and they are about to make irreversible mistakes! If you intervene in these matters now, you will only get deeply involved and be treated even worse!"
In an instant, distorted, tyrannical, and hideous faces filled with twisted desires seemed to sneer contemptuously at Iseri Nina from the darkness.
And the delicate face of the girl in front of her seemed to merge with those hateful visages.
Iseri Nina shook off her hand as if electrocuted, stepping back two paces and bumping into a desk.
The desk leg scraped against the floor, making a harsh sound.
Iseri Nina looked at her with an incomprehensible gaze, "Because of this reason… so you should stand by and do nothing?"
Iseri Nina received no answer.
Or rather, silence was the best answer.
It turned out that the misunderstanding, or even betrayal, from her best friend was like grit in rice or an unremoved bone in a deboned fish fillet, becoming an unexpected pain.
After that, they broke off their friendship.
...
Wispy and vibrant clouds, like flames, floated above the city's buildings, and the blurred reflections of passersby were faintly visible in the nearby glass walls.
On the way back to STARRY.
Kurusu Akira listened as Iseri Nina finished recounting the past she had kept tightly hidden in her heart, then suddenly patted her head.
"We're not going back."
Iseri Nina covered her head, looking up at Kurusu Akira with some confusion.
The Phantom Thief said calmly, "When you were being bullied, you probably didn't resist, did you?"
Iseri Nina shrank her neck. "…No."
The thing she regretted most in her entire school experience was probably not being able to muster the courage to resist when those people bullied her—at first, she wanted to resist, but when their various behaviors seemed to be pulled by some invisible force, even gradually crossing the boundary of 'student', it made the then 16-year-old Iseri Nina feel fear.
But after leaving school, she vaguely felt some regret from the lingering fear, and at the same time, she also felt a little lucky and frustrated...
Kurusu Akira sensed Iseri Nina's complex emotions at that moment and pulled her wrist, walking towards the station. "Let's go back to LeBlanc."
Iseri Nina stood rooted to the spot, refusing to go with him, and angrily looked up at him, "Why?"
"Because right now you probably need a hot latte even more, and then you need to finish today's homework."
Iseri Nina's eyes widened instantly, and then she stopped making a sound, obediently following Kurusu Akira towards the station.
Only a faint dissatisfaction, like fine ice cracks on a glazed surface, inadvertently and lightly spread throughout her body.
It wasn't until half an hour later that the steam, carrying the rich aroma of coffee, wafted over her face like mist and then dispersed, melting away her worries and confusion.
"What about the band?"
At the corner table of LeBlanc, Iseri Nina stared at the coffee in her teacup and quietly asked Kurusu Akira, who was sitting opposite her.
Kurusu Akira opened her backpack, took out an exercise book and a scratchpad, and placed them on the table. "Rehearsal ended a long time ago."
"Then your part-time job…"
"It's irrelevant," the Phantom Thief replied nonchalantly.
This made Iseri Nina bury her face even lower.
After a while, she stared blankly at the light brown liquid in her cup, her expression showing a hint of frustration and shame. "I'm sorry."
"Why apologize?" Kurusu Akira retorted, mimicking her earlier tone.
Iseri Nina clenched her fists and forcefully hit her knee, "Anyway, I'm just sorry!"
Saying that, she turned her face away, not daring to look at Kurusu Akira, and said even more quietly, "Because… um… I made you worry."
Kurusu Akira unscrewed a glass jar on the table and used the small spoon inside to scoop a sugar cube into the coffee cup in front of her. "It's somewhat unbelievable that Nina gets shy."
Being called by her given name, Iseri Nina immediately blushed. "Why did you suddenly become… so direct…"
"I thought we were already close friends," Kurusu Akira couldn't help but continue to tease, finding her reaction quite amusing. "Everyone in the band calls you 'Nina-chan' after all."
"Wah! Th-that's different!" Iseri Nina quickly waved her hands, then, suppressing the shyness in her heart, she tried hard to stiffen her neck and look at Kurusu Akira, "I'm very grateful, and I'm sincerely apologizing to you!"
In the warm, cozy glow of LeBlanc, the girl's still childish face wore a look of satisfaction, as if some regret had been mended. She seemed a little afraid, then bravely extended her hand across the table towards Kurusu Akira's nearby palm.
The next moment, a pen was placed in Iseri Nina's palm.
The cool, hard touch of the smooth pen barrel instantly cleared her muddled thoughts.
Kurusu Akira was as reliable and trustworthy as ever. "It's the leader's duty to take care of every member of the Phantom Thieves."
He turned the exercise book around and placed it in front of Iseri Nina as well. "Alright, Iseri, it's time for our 'tutoring session' today."
Iseri Nina held the pen, staring at the blank space in the exercise book, her mind preoccupied, unable to bring herself to write.
After a long while, she cautiously raised her face and looked at Kurusu Akira.
"…Call me 'Nina'."
The Phantom Thief narrowed his eyes, not refusing the girl's very shallow little wish. "Alright, Nina."
Iseri Nina immediately beamed with joy, but then quickly pursed her lips, trying her best not to appear so happy.
----------------
At the same time.
Shimokitazawa STARRY.
Kawaragi Momoka watched the "Diamond Dust" approaching her, her expression fluctuating for a moment, but ultimately she said nothing, leaning against the wall to clear the way for their departure.
The girls of "Diamond Dust" also looked at their former vocalist, exchanged glances for a moment, and likewise did not initiate conversation with her, but instead walked to the counter and sincerely thanked Ijichi Seika.
Togawa Sakiko, who was working behind the cash register, secretly observed them many times. When "Diamond Dust" left the Livehouse, she left her post and handed a pre-made milkshake to Kawaragi Momoka.
"You've worked hard."
Kawaragi Momoka sighed almost imperceptibly. "It's really hard to face."
Togawa Sakiko nodded in strong agreement. "I don't know why, but I feel an inexplicable sense of guilt and indebtedness."
Kawaragi Momoka chuckled somewhat heartily, then put her arm around her shoulder, "Sakiko-chan and I are actually different, aren't we? A band formed in middle school should be full of pure ideals and sincere emotions, not as realistic and worldly as adults."
"So, even if you leave your old band, of course you can go back and get along with your old friends as usual."
Togawa Sakiko was momentarily speechless, trying to change the subject, "Well, of course… that's how it is, right?"
"But speaking of that," Kawaragi Momoka looked at the counter behind Togawa Sakiko, "Where's Amamiya?"
"He went to find Nina."
Kawaragi Momoka returned her gaze to Togawa Sakiko's face, as if trying to find some clue there, but in the end, she found nothing. "Well then, I'm going home now… See you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
Togawa Sakiko said goodbye to Kawaragi Momoka, and only after watching her walk away did she let out a sigh of relief and return to her work station.
At this moment, a brightly dressed high school girl came up to the counter, straining to look inside. Not seeing Kurusu Akira, she disappointedly withdrew her gaze.
"Two ice cream cones, please!"
"Alright."
Togawa Sakiko picked up two cones and skillfully operated the ice cream machine.
Her old band… She watched the white solid slowly fill the space in the cone, her pupils seemed to unfocus for a moment, but quickly refocused.
Togawa Sakiko was indeed different from Kawaragi Momoka.
She lived in the present, with no extra energy or thoughts to reminisce about middle school memories.
Having mastered the power of Persona, witnessed the truth of that world, and personally experienced the cruel battles of Persona users. In contrast, the various unpleasant incidents that occurred unexpectedly at Tsukinomori seemed less important.
She had to diligently train her Persona power; only then could she better protect the things she cherished.
Togawa Sakiko actively and enthusiastically greeted customers, seemingly full of various beautiful expectations for her life.
Ever since her father completely reformed, he found several part-time jobs near home, and then in the evening, he would rush back to the apartment in time to clean the kitchen and living room, preparing dinner for Togawa Sakiko after she finished her part-time work.
Although their living conditions could be considered poor, it was clear that the man was diligently fulfilling his duties as a father, doing his utmost to make his daughter happy.
After dinner, he would go to the twenty-four-hour convenience store near the apartment building to continue working until one in the morning before returning home to sleep.
Let alone asking Togawa Sakiko for money to buy alcohol.
Almost every morning, he would ask if Togawa Sakiko had enough living expenses, and then he would give her most of his part-time income, as if to compensate his daughter for the grievances and setbacks she had endured during this time. This man clumsily and wholeheartedly poured all his patience and tenderness into every moment of his life.
Many times, Togawa Sakiko would inadvertently feel as if time had returned to a long time ago, to a happy and harmonious family, living fulfilling and warm days in the Togawa Family yard.
Only, the woman who used to tie her hair and organize her school bag could never come back.
Togawa Sakiko handed the finished ice cream cones to the customer in front of her. "Here's your ice cream."
She counted her admiration and gratitude for the Phantom Thief in her heart, then diligently cherished the hard-won "present."
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