Tokyo Heart Thief's Daily Life

"You must really want revenge on him, right? After all, it was he who prevented you from continuing in the art world and kicked you out, leaving you with a life of confusion."

""......Yes!""

The man in the surveillance camera suppressed his anger and clenched his fists tightly.

He suppressed his voice, almost crying:

"'As expected of you, your investigation has made it very clear... Madarame is a devil full of sin, not worthy of being called a painter!'"

"'He has destroyed the lives of many of my disciples, including me. Some even took their own lives, unable to bear the humiliation of having their work plagiarized by him... But even such a major incident was suppressed by his influence. Please make him repent. Please!'"

"I will, I promise."

Futaba seriously agreed to Nakanohara Natsuhiko.

This is a villain who is in a different direction from Kamoshida, and makes both An and Shiho hate him to the core.

The biggest problem now is that Luo Zhen and the others don’t know the location of Madarame’s palace.

The palace master's twisted desire must be that he subconsciously perceives something in reality as something else.

This is something that can only be known by exploring the thoughts and psychology of the person involved, so it is necessary to understand it through the people around them.

"You've been with Madarame for many years, so you probably know a lot of his secrets. I want you to tell me as much as you can, just pick out the ones that impressed you."

"'Okay. ...Let me think, where should I start...'"

Nakanohara Natsuhiko pondered for a moment:

"'Madame has taken in many students in his shabby old house. Most of them, like me, were winners of elementary school drawing competitions and were chosen by him in advance.'"

"'He often compares that shabby house to a thatched cottage, saying that only under difficult material conditions can creative inspiration sprout... But I see he's clearly using it as a gallery for plagiarism! We, his disciples, are the works of art he pockets, each and every one of them drained of its value!'"

——That’s it!

Luo Zhen glanced around, and everyone present immediately understood.

Xing opened the navigation of the other world and entered the three keywords: [Madarame Ichiryusai], [thatched cottage] and [art gallery].

"[Target found.]"

A cold prompt tone immediately sounded, indicating that the initial goal had been perfectly achieved.

On the other end of the phone, Nakanohara Natsuhiko hadn't finished speaking yet:

"'If anything else... there's a single room in Madarame's hut that's locked with multiple locks, and he strictly forbids other students from entering. I think it must contain some of his most profound secrets, possibly evidence of his guilt.'"

"'That's pretty much all I can recall... and here's my personal request, I hope you'll listen to it.'"

The humble middle-aged man cried, sounding very pitiful:

"'Of all Madarame's disciples, there is only one, a junior fellow apprentice of mine, who was adopted by him when he was three years old. He has no father or mother, and worships Madarame as his adoptive father. He is the one who has been exploited the most of all the disciples.'"

"'To this day, he's the only one left with Madarame, his last disciple. He's also the most talented of all our disciples, and I couldn't bear to see him ruined by Madarame... and he knows all about his evil deeds. I once asked him if he wanted to escape, and he answered me sincerely: "If I could, I would."'"

"His name is Kitagawa Yusuke. Several of the paintings in Madarame's upcoming art exhibition are actually his own, but Madarame is publishing them under his own name. Please, if possible, please kill Madarame before he breaks down... We have no hope, but that child might still have a future in the art world. Please."

The middle-aged civil servant said everything he could say and hung up the phone at Futaba's instruction.

In the surveillance camera, the man faithfully followed Futaba's orders, took out a disposable phone card, crushed it, and threw the phone into the trash can.

This is the perfect preparation that Futaba has made.

She turned off the computer and took off her headset:

"The Madarame Palace has been identified. We can start the operation anytime, right? Captain~! When are we going to fight the bad guys?"

Luo Zhen: "Yeah. Yes, you can go. Let's go tonight."

It is better to do it today than to wait for a day, Luo Zhen did not hesitate.

Madarame Ichiryusai is undoubtedly a powerful figure suitable for the Phantom Thieves to target, as his crimes and reputation are impeccable.

Moreover, he was supposed to hold a large art exhibition tomorrow, and asking him to repent during this period would only increase the impact further.

This can also serve as Shiho's first team-building activity after joining the team, which is pretty good.

-------------------------------------

That night, everyone started the navigation to the other world as planned.

The group was automatically teleported to the location of Madarame's house in reality, which had been transformed into a magnificent art gallery.

In Madarame's opinion, the entrance of this art museum is still crowded with tourists who come here to admire its reputation, all shouting their crazy admiration for Madarame himself.

This made Fang Zexia very disgusted:

"What a vulgar self-proclaimed painter! Someone like that is a leader in the art world. The industry is doomed."

"After all, it's difficult to assess the value of fine art."

Yoshizawa Sumire sighed:

"The most elusive aspect of my gymnastics routines is the 'artistic score.' My coach says my movements are spot on, but the artistic expression isn't good enough. I'm like a dancing robot... But what exactly is artistic expression? How can I dance as beautifully as my sister?"

Yoshizawa Kasumi: "Huhuhuhu~? So, Sumire, you're just under too much pressure and overthinking."

This gymnastics queen sister is very confident with her chest out:

"All you need to do is be more honest with gymnastics, just like I am! I've always thought, 'Worship me!', 'Everyone, please kneel at my feet!' I imagine the audiences and judges around the world bowing down to me! That will naturally give you confidence, and then your dances will become even more beautiful, right?"

Everyone: "So confident!!!"

Let alone Yoshizawa Sumire.

Even Anne Takamaki, who is a model, and Shiho, who has always been very introverted, are extremely envious.

This gymnastics queen really has an unparalleled big heart, which makes people feel that she deserves her success.

Even Momoka, who was participating in the Phantom Thief activity this time, was gritting her teeth with envy and jealousy:

"I was incredibly confident, and it actually paid off. Without much setbacks, I became the nation's top gymnastics queen... What kind of Dragon Aotian plot is this? Even suspenseful novels wouldn't dare to use this kind of setting. You should be ashamed of yourself!"

Rencai smiled as if it had nothing to do with her: "Momoka-sister, forget it. The more jealous you are, the uglier you will look~"

It's really hard to be a rocker at the bottom who's enjoying himself... Renai's Tin Woodcutter is immediately bitten by Momoka's Cowardly Lion, who tries to leave a few tooth marks on her armor.

Xiao Jin sighed softly:

"I really can't be as confident as my sister, and I don't think I can impress everyone...Rather than being admired by everyone, I hope to receive praise from my seniors and be the best in their hearts..."

Fang Zexia: "Then let's do this. Next time, let Luo Zhen come and watch us train, okay?"

Huh? (???)

This was truly an unimaginable path, and Yoshizawa Sumire was completely stunned.

Her sister clapped her hands happily:

"I've been wanting Luo Zhen to come watch us practice for a while now, and this is the perfect opportunity! I like to imagine the whole world bowing down to me, so why not, Sumire, imagine Luo Zhen bowing down to you? ...We're in the middle of practice, so let's find a chance to do this and that in the locker room...Keep your excitement going, and maybe your results will be great~?"

When she said the second half of the sentence, Fang Zexia whispered in her sister's ear, and the hot words made her blush.

But what can I say...it's really tempting.

Yoshizawa Sumire glanced at Luo Zhen with a hot and charming look in her eyes.

Luo Zhen, who was concentrating on observing the route to the art museum palace, felt Xiao Jin's gaze.

He turned around and showed a super harmless smile:

"What's the matter, Sumire? Just tell me what you want me to do."

"..............Brother Luo Zhen, can you recharge~?"

Xiao Jin let out a whimper and threw herself directly into Luo Zhen's arms, asking him to hug her.

She couldn't bear it anymore.

I really want Luo Zhen to come and watch my daily training soon, then do bad things in an environment I'm already familiar with, and continue dancing with his love...?

She couldn't even imagine how excited she would be! She might even float to the sky!

And among all the people present.

Only Luo Zhen's only good brother, Sakamoto Ryuji, is still completely unaware:

"The relationship between our eldest brother and the junior is really good... They are like real siblings. It's so tiring to be so clingy."

Xing: "...Ryuji, it's good that you stay like this. The Phantom Thieves really need backbones like you."

Xing couldn't even imagine how chaotic the Phantom Thieves would be right now if Ryuji, an outsider, didn't exist in the group.

That's not normal action.

I'm afraid they've been spending all day in another world doing team building, and they can't even move a step...

-------------------------------------

After that, the group that had sneaked into the art museum from the rooftop did indeed begin to take action.

Madarame's hall is more open than Kamoshida's, and the concept of "art museum" is inherently designed to welcome guests.

Moreover, even if Madarame was rotten, he was still an artist, and his appreciation for distinguishing good from bad was not wrong. Therefore, the structure of the palace was much more beautiful than that of Kamoshida.

But the only problem with this art museum is the artworks themselves.

"Are all the works here... portraits?"

Xing was a little stunned and speechless looking at the dazzling array of paintings.

The works in Madarame's art museum are all portraits of young people, and the oldest person is only in his twenties.

There are both men and women among them.

But everyone looks as serious as if they were taking an ID photo, and the weird use of colors also makes people feel instinctively uncomfortable.

"This must be the artwork in Madarame's subconscious."

Luo Zhen understood and agreed:

"I'm afraid these people are all his former disciples, the ones he exploited."

The real work of art is not the painting, but the painter himself who can paint excellent paintings.

Madarame, who has been able to make profits by selling fake paintings for a long time, has no respect for art at all. It is natural for him to regard the hen that can continuously lay golden eggs as his real property.

Momoka, who's also considered a bit of an artist, quipped, "This kind of absurd scene does inspire me to write lyrics and music... though what I end up writing is probably going to be cynical."

This is the world created by the subconscious mind, and it is so explicit.

While moving forward, Luo Zhen cared more about another little girl.

Among this huge group of phantom thieves, there is only one person who wears private clothes that have nothing to do with the phantom thief costume.

Luo Zhen pulled out Futaba who was hiding behind him, and was a little speechless:

"Ms. Futaba, are you sure it's necessary for you to come with us? You haven't awakened your personality mask yet, so it's very dangerous to stay here, okay?"

"Huh? But I'm also a member of the Phantom Thieves! I'm the logistics manager!"

Futaba argued with reason and held Luo Zhen's waist tightly.

This girl doesn't have a personality mask yet, she enters the other world as a mortal.

What's even more terrifying is that although she hasn't awakened, she has already copied a different world navigation software through operations on her mobile phone, so she can enter and exit freely.

This is very dangerous, and Luo Zhen also wants to stop her.

But although this girl looks shy, she is actually a female devil who never gives up.

She was afraid of this absurd alien world, but at the same time she argued:

"Captain Tuantuan, you promised me that you would help me awaken! The so-called Persona is the psychological control that allows you to come to terms with your subconscious, right? Then I can definitely do it! ...Probably."

Luo Zhen: "From the moment you feel guilty, it's already impossible."

Luo Zhen sighed and decided to protect the girl well.

So far, all the awakened people Luo Zhen has seen fall into two categories.

Or, like An and Ryuji, they are stimulated by high pressure and their rebellious spirit is awakened by the desire to rebel against the adults who oppress them.

Shiho also belongs to this type, a reactionary who has been oppressed to the limit.

Another possibility is to come to terms with one's own subconscious shadows and face the awakening that is achieved within.

Taoxiang, Rencai, Yoshizawa Kasumi and Yoshizawa Sumire all belong to this type.