## Story 1 ![27-1.png](/uploads/27_1_17b4978ef2.png) The high school girl and the Phantom Thieves escape the drowned space.

When they emerge, they find a city tormented by a great storm—a tsunami that
reaches up and up before blotting out the sky.

It is the city of Atlantis meeting its destruction.

"So if we really are in a Palace, it means this is how the Ruler sees her reality."

The female Phantom Thief solemnly conveys her analysis.

Yet this city is as far from the calm depths of the aquarium as
one could imagine; it is nothing short of total calamity.
If this is how the friend perceives reality, it is no wonder she seeks to embrace death.

Then, voices.
The trio looks down and sees a great number of merfolk scattered on the ground throughout the city.

They are calm. Placid.
Almost as if welcoming the oncoming wave.
The girl screams out, imploring them to seek shelter.

But the merfolk turn to her with spite and resignation in their eyes.

"You can never know our pain."
"Not everyone can be like you."
"What good can come of living in such a world?"

The voices censure the girl while belittling themselves.

If they must destroy the entire world to escape their pain, that is what they will do.

Yet the girl continues to plea.
She begs them to choose life.

The Phantom Thieves join in her cries, but the merfolk ignore them all.

Their screams reach only empty air.

The girl cannot change their despair.
She cannot fix their sadness.

Yet her friend's withdrawal from life lies at the core of all their pain.

Though they had been close, the girl never realized how much her friend was suffering.

She had seen only a small part of her heart.

She knew only a small number of the many masks she wore.

We were so close...
And yet, I had no idea.

As sadness ripples across her features, the female Phantom Thief turns to her.

"I felt the same once, you know?
I never tried to understand how my sister really felt."

The woman places a hand on the grieving girl's shoulder, slowly lifting her back to her feet. ## Story 2 ![27-2.png](/uploads/27_2_81561eb019.png) Something brilliant shines atop the highest tower in the waterlogged city.

The high school girl and Phantom Thieves gaze up at it.

The girl's eyes are empty; she has yet to recover.

She was not there for her oldest and best friend. She failed her.

How can such a person hope to save someone?
How can such a person even try?

The girl's oscillating emotions weigh on her, bringing her steps to a halt.

She recalls what the Phantom Thieves told her—the way they could save her friend.

――They have to steal the pearl before the wave swallows the city.

If they can change her mind—change her heart—her death will be prevented.

And once she's saved, they may be able to escape this world.

The Thieves have made up their minds.

But everyone involved must be on the same page if they hope to change a Ruler's heart.
One could say this is a virtue of the Phantom Thieves.

And yet, the girl is unable to shake her hesitation.

Is it okay to change someone's heart?
Do I have such a right?

Sensing her doubt, the male Phantom Thief turns to her.

"You should do what you think is right."

The girl looks into his eyes and nods.

"I...don't want to lose her."

Upon hearing her resolution, the Phantom Thieves begin their trek towards the tower.

She watches them for a moment before following in their footsteps.

There will be time to consider doubts and regrets once this is over.

For now, she must focus on getting close to her friend's heart.

"I will save you. I promise."

As the words leave the girl's mouth, she realizes her mind is made up.

And the female Phantom Thief turns to look at her with something approaching relief. ## Story 3 ![27-3.png](/uploads/27_3_e908d28d84.png) The high school girl and
the Phantom Thieves make their way to the pinnacle of
the tower⁠—the highest point in the city.

Whipping gales and flashing lightning impede their progress at every turn.

The girl's friend screams, warning them to keep away.

"My only option is to die."

Her pain is a divine voice that booms throughout the city.

The Phantom Thieves fight back desperately, covering the girl as they go.

But just as the great wave is about to swallow them...

"Arsène!"

An aberrant figure with black wings appears in response to the male Phantom Thief's voice.

Its blue flames immolate fear.
Its proud wings cut through despair.

The female Phantom Thief informs the stunned girl:

"That's a Persona. That's our power."

As she watches the duo stand face-to-face with
despair, a small seed of conviction takes root in the girl's heart.

I will never give up.

As that thought whips across her mind, she changes.
Pure white wings burst forth from her back.

Perhaps she dreams of becoming an angel.
Or perhaps an angel dreams to become her.

The wings are the girl's Rebel Soul.
A rebellion against her friend's despair.

She will acknowledge her weaknesses.

Yet she will also choose to help her—now and in the future.

The girl soars forward, and the Phantom Thieves leap after her.

"Your power is incredible!"

The girl's pure white wings propel her forward.
Arsène's pitch-black wings protect her.

Feathers of opposite colors blanket the sky.

Atop the city's highest tower, the friend continues to cradle her pearl.

The girl has made up her mind.
She will face her friend's anger. Her despair. Her sadness.

Her hatred. Her defeat. Her lament.

And she will do so with the Phantom Thieves. ## Story 4 ![27-4.png](/uploads/27_4_5d648d160c.png) The battle against the Ruler of this space ends in victory for the high school girl and Phantom Thieves.

The girl's friend returns to her human form.
The pearl slips from her hand and rolls across the floor.

Through tears, she begins her confession.

She was subject to terrible bullying.

Every part of her had been torn to pieces. Her days were shrouded in a darkness seemingly without end.

It was though she lived at the bottom of a deep and sunless sea.

This world doesn't need me.
No one would be sad if I were gone..

Hidden away in the corners of the world were other young people suffering the same agony.

She wanted society to be aware of their lives—painfully so.

In her pain, she somehow managed to find the high school girl. The one who let her in—who saved her.

But the girl was brilliant as the sun, and the friend was jealous.

Her happiness was terrifying.
The friend thought herself a burden.

And so she pushed the other girl away.

When the girl hears this, she says five words:

"Thank you for telling me."

She gives her friend a faint smile, which shocks her.

She then continues:

"The world may not need you, but I do.
The world may not treasure you, but I do.

Though you try to distance yourself, you remain precious to me.
You may come to hate me, but I will never hate you.

I know we haven't spent much time together lately...
But the time we did have is the finest I have ever known."

The girl speaks a desperate truth, one completely free of artifice.

As the friend listens, tears begin to spill from her eyes.

The female Phantom Thief smiles. "It seems she was of some use after all."

The male Phantom Thief nods and takes the pearl in hand.

"This is ours now."

The pearl shines brightly, illuminating the entirety of the waterlogged city.

Its brilliance grows so bright it is like this world's very own sun.

The warm light chases away the blanketing thunderclouds, vaporizing the great wave that once threatened all.

Pure white vapor gently envelops the city.

The thieves do not understand why they have been brought to this Palace-like place.

But seeing the girl reunited with her friend brings them a sense of accomplishment.

It is a satisfying feeling.

The Phantom Thieves nod to one another. Their time in this place is at an end.

The male Phantom Thief speaks then, his voice soft as he stares at the newly created sun.

"We don't need this anymore."

The girl and her friend look at each other and say in unison:

"We've found our light already."

The group bursts out laughing.

Leaving the man's hand, the sun rises into the sky.

The light of hope fills the world.

As the Phantom Thieves of Hearts begin to vanish in that bright light, the girl turns to them.

"My name is Hina—Hina Akagi. What are your names?"

Their silhouettes grow hazy in the light.
The girl squints, trying to hear the faint voices that emerge from it.

"Queen...and Joker? Aliases, huh? I guess you are thieves, after all..."

The fading silhouettes speak again.

"...Those are your real names? They're wonderful."

As the beautiful resonance falls silent, the girl's world becomes a brilliant wall of white.

She has returned to her own world.
To Shibuya.

The omnipresent television screens issue a heartening report:
The suicide club has disbanded, its ringleader having turned herself in.

Not a single person was harmed.

The girl crosses the busy intersection.
She has completely forgotten about her venture into
the strange world—and about meeting the Phantom Thieves.

Yet she has a faint recollection that someone helped her.
And she remembers one piece of advice:

You should do what you think is right.

So long as she continues down the path she believes to be true, she will find light within the pain.

No matter what.

With confident steps, she forges ahead.

A moment later, she vanishes into the surging crowd that
is home to the everyday hopes and struggles of young people just like her.

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