Isn't this sneak attack a little too much?
The gun-type Evokers from Persona 3 were completely fake guns. They only gave Persona users the psychological suggestion that pulling the trigger would be a real suicide, and they absolutely couldn't fire a real bullet to pierce the user's temple.
But this surprise magic bullet developed by Vill-V was different. Even with a one-in-ten-thousand chance, if the Key of the Void were to malfunction, it could genuinely take out the Persona user's brain in one go.
To not die at the hands of an enemy, but instead by one's own unreliable weapon... that way of dying was a bit too ridiculous.
Ren Amamiya raised his wrist and pointed the Key of the Void at a nearby prison cell. As he gently pulled the trigger, a ribbon-like subspace folded into the shape of a golden bullet. In the next instant, it shot out silently.
The part of the cell bars hit by the subspace bullet was as if it had been directly erased by an invisible hand, leaving not even a speck of debris or residue.
"..."
Having personally witnessed the defense-ignoring piercing property of the subspace bullet, Ren was even more reluctant to put this thing to his own temple and pull the trigger.
At least, not when he was alone.
If he were to truly use the summoning function of the Key of the Void during battle, Ren would at least have to pull Hare and Seele to his side first, so their healing skills could be applied to him instantly, ensuring he wouldn't actually die.
"No need to worry about the Key of the Void misfiring and hurting you. Trust the reputation of the Great Mechanist Vill-V! I've set up a command for the Key of the Void. When it detects a Persona user qualified to use it, the Key of the Void will automatically engage its safety mechanism. It will absolutely not harm its holder!"
Vill-V saw Ren's hesitation and confidently patted her chest as a guarantee.
"Is that so..."
Hearing Vill-V's guarantee, and after having Orpheus get ready to intercept the bullet at any moment like Star Platinum, Ren swallowed nervously. He then slowly raised the azure Key of the Void pistol, steadily aiming it at his temple.
Click.
The clear sound of mechanical gears engaging was heard. Ren instantly felt the Key of the Void in his hand become much heavier, no longer as light as a feather, but like a heavy piece of cold iron.
"Persona!!"
The heavy feel and crisp sound of the Key of the Void calmed Ren's heart considerably. He still cautiously pulled the trigger while calling out the name of his Persona.
The moment the trigger was pulled, a sound like shattering glass suddenly rang out. As if an invisible bullet had pierced Ren's brain, tiny fragments of azure space burst forth from the other side of his temple.
The image of Persona Orpheus appeared along with the shower of blue fragments, materializing behind Ren.
"Not bad, Vill-V. Although the design of the Key of the Void is a bit crooked, its effect is still excellent."
Having personally experienced the Key of the Void's Persona summoning function, Ren lowered his arm. Gazing at Persona Orpheus behind him, which was emitting a faint blue glow, he couldn't help but praise Vill-V.
Although it couldn't compare to the enhancement effect of the Pícaro Power, the amplification ability of the Key of the Void was already on par with that of Jizo Mitama.
More importantly, the enhancement effect of the Key of the Void could also be stacked on top of Jizo Mitama and the Pícaro Power, ultimately achieving the excellent effect of a triple enhancement!
Having experienced the safety mechanism of the Key of the Void, Ren no longer felt any danger, only the sweet taste of true power.
"Next, our great Trickster probably wants to fuse some more Personas, right? But the grand opening sale is over now! If you want me to personally serve you, you'll have to provide the 'currency' I demand... Go find it! I've hidden all that currency in the Elysian Realm!"
With the matter of the SELENE handgun and the Key of the Void Treasure weapon temporarily settled, the only thing left for Ren to do in the Velvet Room was the last item on his list.
Noticing Ren's gaze shifting towards the guillotine and execution tools, Vill-V took a step forward, blocking his view. She wagged a finger and then, with the impassioned tone of an opera singer, made a promise to Ren.
"As long as you can find enough 'currency,' you can ask me to do anything for you!"
"By the way, I've also set up a little easter egg in the Key of the Void. You can try to discover it in battle~~~~"
As Vill-V's final words fell, it was as if the stage curtain had finally dropped. Ren's vision suddenly went dark. Vill-V and the execution devices that had been in front of him were gone, leaving only a silent, lightless darkness.
"Time to explore the Elysian Realm, huh? Although I still have plenty of stamina today... I have a bad feeling that I'm about to start grinding a labyrinth."
Although he had entered Mementos today, Ren had been resting with Hare in the Schariac Palace the whole time. His remaining stamina was more than enough to support him in exploring the Elysian Realm, the deepest part of Mementos.
However, knowing that this was different from previous strange records, Ren was heading to the Elysian Realm with the mission of collecting currency issued by Vill-V.
He couldn't take shortcuts or brute-force his way through. He had to go through the motions step by step, just like when being restricted by the system in a game.
Just thinking about it made Ren's liver ache faintly.
But for the sake of fusing stronger Personas, a little grinding was a little grinding!
Walking slowly towards the only point of light in the darkness, Ren pushed open the heavy door in front of him, left the confines of the Velvet Room, and proactively stepped into the deep region of Mementos known as the Elysian Realm.
However, unlike before, after leaving the Velvet Room, Ren didn't enter the dream area of the painter where Griseo and Kosma were. Instead, he arrived in an unfamiliar area he had never visited before.
The sky was an ominous, dim yellow. The ground was covered only with grayish-white rocks and withered old trees that had no leaves left. As far as the eye could see, it was like the cruel scene after the end of the world.
"That thing... must be the currency Vill-V was talking about."
A brass mechanical gear was floating right in front of Ren on the ground. This kind of placement, right in front of the Velvet Room exit as if afraid people wouldn't see it, was clearly Vill-V's 'explanation' of the currency for Ren.
Ren reached out and took the brass gear in front of him. After being touched by Ren, the gear, which was originally the size of a palm, automatically shrank like a Poké Ball to a size suitable for storage, like a coin.
"This size should make collection a bit easier."
Ren took a deep breath. He adjusted his focus, and when he opened his eyes again, azure flames had enveloped his body. A white bird-like mask, a jet-black Phantom Thief phantom suit trench coat, and blood-red gloves—appeared on Ren's body.
The Phantom Thief Joker has arrived!
......
Traversing this unfamiliar plain, defeating batch after batch of Shadows blocking his way.
As Ren collected more and more currency emblems from the Shadows and from hidden corners, he felt that the scenery around him was monotonous, as if it were just copy-pasted without any novelty.
If it weren't for the lack of traces from previous battles, Ren would have even thought he was just running in circles in the same area.
"I haven't encountered any Shadows for three consecutive times now. Something feels off..."
Continuously exploring this apocalyptic wasteland, Ren had begun to gradually figure out some patterns. He could roughly judge that if he advanced a certain distance further, he would encounter the next wave of Shadow ambushes. In his previous explorations, all of Ren's judgments had been correct.
And now, he had advanced a distance sufficient to encounter three waves of Shadow attacks, yet he hadn't seen a single trace of a Shadow.
This was clearly an abnormal situation. It was even like the calm before a storm. If he went further, he might encounter a boss-level, or perhaps even a mini-boss-level, powerful Shadow.
Realization dawned in Ren's mind. He slowed his pace slightly. While conserving his stamina, he observed his surroundings with increasing caution and detail.
Sure enough, after continuing forward for a short distance, Ren finally saw the source of the abnormality.
The Shadows he had encountered before were all weak fodder. Ren didn't even need to summon his main Persona and could easily wipe them out.
But the Shadow that now appeared in Ren's line of sight looked completely like a normal human... From its appearance alone, Ren knew he was definitely a powerful mini-boss-level Shadow!
That Shadow had very white hair, wore black tight-fitting clothes, an elbow pad on his left arm, and his face was covered by a ferocious-looking black mask. He was currently standing silently under a tree, seemingly reminiscing or thinking about something.
"The pattern on that mask... a golden mechanical gear emblem? Could it be that Vill-V wants me to defeat that silver-haired Shadow?"
The silver-haired Shadow, in a daze, didn't notice Ren sneaking up on it. And before Ren observed this humanoid Shadow, his first glance had actually caught the shining mechanical gear pattern on its mask.
Having collected currency all the way, Ren had also encountered this kind of gear emblem in pictorial form. By continuously touching it for a period of time, these two-dimensional gear emblems would materialize and fall into Ren's hands.
However, this was the first time Ren had encountered a golden-grade mechanical gear emblem. At most, he had only collected about a dozen silver-grade gear emblems.
Such a rare golden gear emblem invisibly indicated the strength of this silver-haired humanoid Shadow to Ren.
Although he was alone in the team right now, Ren still decided to try and challenge this silver-haired Shadow.
With his current level of strength, even if he couldn't completely defeat this silver-haired Shadow, it shouldn't be difficult to leave with ease... Moreover, Vill-V, who had been helped by Ren's rehabilitation, wouldn't possibly set a task that Ren couldn't complete at his current stage.
"Here I go!"
After making his decision, Ren crouched and moved forward slowly. The sound of his breathing was extremely faint, and his footsteps made no sound as they landed on the ground. Just like that, he slowly and effectively snuck up behind the silver-haired humanoid Shadow.
Sneak attack!!
Ren leaped into the air. He stepped on the silver-haired Shadow's left shoulder, which wasn't covered by the black and gold spiked wheel. His red-gloved left hand swept past like a gale, forcibly tearing the ferocious black mask from the stunned silver-haired Shadow's face.
Then, he pushed off with his feet again and landed lightly on the ground far away with a backflip.
"Damn bastard!! You're courting death!!"
The shocked and enraged silver-haired Shadow covered its face with its hand. Most of its face was obscured, only its eyes, filled with blazing fury, could be seen through the gaps between its fingers, glaring menacingly at Ren, who had its mask.
"Aaaargh!! Damn little thief, I'll burn you to ashes!!!"
The silver-haired Shadow let out an enraged battle cry. The furious flames in its eyes began to materialize. As the silver-haired Shadow removed its hand from its face, a deep-red flame, like magma, covered its face, forming a mask-like shape.
And the silver-haired Shadow's body, at this moment, had turned into a molten, deep-red color, emitting a terrifying heat that violently distorted the air.
"Showing your true form, are you? As expected of a strong Shadow."
Ren lightly pressed the golden gear pattern on the black mask. A small, exquisitely shaped mechanical gear quickly slid into his hand.
Casually tossing aside the now useless black mask, Ren looked at the silver-haired flame Shadow, whose surrounding flames had suddenly surged, making it look even more terrifying. Ren felt the pressure this powerful Shadow was exerting on him, and he decided to go all out.
"Come—"
Pulling the trigger of the azure pistol pressed against his temple, and shattering the crimson Tarot card that floated down from mid-air, the white bird-like mask Ren wore began to surge with churning, azure spectral flames.
"—Persona!!"