10 A shady doctor

Shin had just arrived at Cafe LeBlanc and was thinking what to say to Sojiro about Morgana.

"...Thanks. I'll see you later." said a woman's voice.

"Come back again." was Sojiro's reply.

The woman passed by Shin on the way out. Once he could see her, he realized she had a punk style that weirdly fitted her.

"You're back, huh?" said Sojiro.

"Who was that... interestingly-clothed woman?" asked Shin.

"Oh? She's the head doctor over at that clinic down the streets. Rumour has it she gives pretty crappy examinations, and sells some weird homemade medicine on top of that. At least, that's what I've heard. I haven't been there myself. They should really just leave her alone. It's not like she's getting in the way of their lives..."

"Hey, are we there yet?" asked Morgana, impatiently.

"..."

"Well, I gotta get home and start making dinner..."

Shin nodded in response and went up the stairs. He placed his bag on the bed so that Morgana could get out.

"What the...!? What is this place!? Is this some kind of abandoned house...!?" he exclaimed.

At that moment, Sojiro came up the stairs.

"Hey, are you-" he started, but stopped as he saw Morgana.

"I was wondering why I heard meowing... What did you bring it here for!?" asked the older man.

"It doesn't have a home." replied Shin.

"Nowhere, huh...? Look, this place is a restaurant. Animals are a no-go. Though I guess you might stay on good behavior if you have a pet to take care of... Fine... But keep it quiet when we're open for business. And don't let it roam downstairs, or I'll toss it out. Also, I'm not gonna take care of it. That's all on you."

Seeing Shin nod in response, Sojiro took his leave.

"Was that the ruler of this place? He seemed pretty understanding for someone who keeps you cramped up in this dump. Then again, I suppose I sound like a normal cat to others." said Morgana.

Sojiro returned with a plate on his hand.

"Seriously, it had to call out with that cute little voice..."

The bearded man turned to face Shin.

"Make sure you wash that dish. By the way, have you decided on a name?" asked Sojiro, hopefully.

"Morgana." replied Shin.

"Huh... I was hoping I'd get to name it..." he said as he walked away.

"Looks like the chief likes me better than you. And to be honest, this place's heaven compared to Kamoshida's cells." said Morgana.

The cat stood up and looked at Shin.

"...Remember how you guys asked me before about what I am? To be honest... I don't remember anything about my birth. I think the Metaverse's distortions made me lose both my memories and true form." said Morgana, grimly.

"Is that form even human, to begin with?" asked Shin.

"It has to be! I mean, why else would a cat be able to talk like this? There's no other possible explanation. There's no doubt that the distortions were what caused me to lose my real self. I'm sure that once they're purged, I'll finally be able to get that self back. And I have a pretty good idea on how to do it too. That's why I was in the castle in the first place."

Morgana looked at the plate.

"Come to think of it, I didn't get hungry over in that world..."

Within mere moments, the place was emptied.

"Let me make myself clear. Your taking care of me won't be for nothing. It'll be give and take. Due to my knowledgeable and dexterous nature, I have a lot of intel on infiltration tools." said Morgana.

"I see."

"In exchange for you keeping me here, I'll teach you about these tools. How does that sound?" he asked.

"It's alright."

"I like that answer. Hehehe... Then it's a deal."

'It's the 4th time already and this feeling still surprises me.'

"By the way, that power you used in the Palace was seriously amazing! The stronger that power gets, the more reliable it'll be as a trump card. Anyway, I'm gonna stick with you wherever you go from today on. I expect great things from you. Don't let me down, OK?"

Shin's phone vibrated, so he took it out to check it. He saw he had some new messages.

Ann: Thanks for everything today.

Ann: You saved me, and I didn't even thank you properly.

Shin: You should thank Ryuji too.

Ann: I did a moment ago.

Ann: Anyway, I wanted to let you know at least.

Ann: See you tomorrow.

Shin put his phone away as Morgana said.

"You guys send messages to each other with that thing, right? I want in too, so I'll ask you to type for me. Tomorrow's gonna be a busy day, so you should rest up."

"Don't worry. I just need to do a few things first."

-INTERMISSION-

Next day, during class.

'Why do I have school? It's Saturday!' mentally whined Shin.

Ryuji: Hey, we're meeting up at the hideout after school, right?

Ann: Don't text now. We're in class.

Ryuji: Whoa! You mean you're actually listening to all this crap?

Ann: Yeah, but none of it is really sticking today...

Ryuji: I know right?

Ryuji: Anyway, hideout after school?

Ann: Where exactly is this "hideout"?

Ryuji: The school roof.

Ann: Wait, we can still go up there?

Ryuji: Yeah, I'll let you in.

Ryuji: Just come on up once school's over.

Shin: Got it.

Ryuji: I'm gonna fine you if you're late!

Suddenly, the teacher shouted at Shin.

"Hey, Yuuta!"

Startled, Shin hurriedly put his phone back in his pants.

"Pay attention! Is that how you listen when someone's talking to you!?" he said.

Shin felt a murderous intent aimed towards him. It came from the teacher who threw a piece of chalk at him. The teen managed to dodge the projectile, much to the surprise of the class.

"Whoa! Did you see that!?"

"Is he a ninja?"

"That poor piece of chalk..."

The professor only clicked his tongue in response. The rest of the classes went like usual. After school ended, Ann, Shin and Morgana went to meet with Ryuji on the rooftop. The 3 had to wait some time before the blonde returned with Shiho in tow.

"Sorry for being late. I just had to fetch Shiho."

"Couldn't you text her?" asked Shin.

"Well, I didn't get her number yesterday since she left in a hurry, so... Anyway, we're all here now. Let's get going!"

"Hold on. Didn't we decide that we won't take Shiho in the Metaverse?" asked Shin with a frown.

"Please reconsider. I... I can't just let you go with Kamoshida while I do nothing!" she said.

"Shiho..." muttered Ann.

"You're really stubborn sometimes, you know?" said Shin.

Shiho didn't say anything and just gripped her fists.

The two stared at each other for a few more seconds, before the boy gave in.

"...Fine. You can come with us. BUT, you need to stay close to us. Never go to far away."

In truth, he let her come with them because he was curious about what she'll do. Also, although he doubted she'd put herself in danger like that, but as she too has the navigation app, she can enter the Palaces by herself.

"Of course!" said Shiho, joyfully.

"Now that's settled, let's go into the Palace." said Ryuji.

"Hold on, it's still too early for us to head to the Palace." said Morgana.

"But why? Don't we just gotta steal that Treasure thing?" asked the blond boy.

"Don't underestimate the dangers of that place. We need to prepare."

"Ain't that Persona shit we have enough to deal with it?"

"That's exactly what I mean when I say don't underestimate it. You'll definitely die if you mess up in there. So again, we need to prepare before we head in." said the cat.

"But, how exactly are we supposed to do that?" asked Ann.

"I suppose we could start with better equipment. I for one am tired of swinging a knife at Shadows." said Shin.

"You talking about weapons? I know a kick-ass place!" said Ryuji.

"In that case, you can handle that side of things. The only other thing would be stocking up on medicine. Fatigue is unavoidable in a Palace..."

"And where can we get the medicine?" asked Ann.

"Don't worry, I know just the place. I hope you look forward to it, Lady Ann. Now then, Shin and I have some business in Yongen, so let's head off for today!"

-INTERMISSION-

"Did you realize who we're going to meet with?" asked Morgana.

Shin hummed in response and headed towards the clinic. He already knew where it was since he familiarized himself with the neighborhood the first day he came here.

"This is the clinic that the chief mentioned. Now, how can we get them to give us some medicine...?"

"Don't worry, I'll make something up." replied Shin.

"Well, I guess that's the only choice we have. We'll just have to go for it."

He entered a small, cramped hallway. To his left he could see the woman he encountered yesterday evening. This time however, instead of wearing punk clothes, she had a lab coat on. The woman noticed him enter and asked.

"Is this your first visit?"

"Yes."

"Hm? I feel like I've seen you before." she said.

"At LeBlanc."

"Well, whatever... So what are you here for today?"

"I've been having nightmares."

"..."

"Please head to the exam room."

In said room, Shin had to bullshit for 10 minutes straight before the doctor could reach a conclusion and wrote him a prescription.

"In a case like yours, it's usually just due to stress. I'm going to prescribe you some pain relievers, OK?"

She checked a paper on her desk.

"Actually, I still need to restock those..." she muttered.

She crossed out what she had written earlier and wrote something else.

"So let's go with sleeping pills instead. Sleep is the best medicine anyway. Which type of pill do you want? A sweet-tasting one or a bitter one?" she asked.

"Is that all you have?" said Shin.

"Huh...? You're the patient here, you know. Do you think you should be telling me how to do my job?" the woman was annoyed.

"...So it's just like I thought."

"Hm?"

"You're not sick at all, are you? I'm not as dumb as I look, you know. I'm guessing you're here because you heard the rumours about me, huh?"

"That's right." he admitted.

"You're one of those patients with an ulterior motive, huh? What's the world coming to?" she said, shaking her head.

"Though I guess high school kids have it tough nowadays too, huh? Well, fine. I'll prescribe you some medication. But only medication that'll help you recover your health. This is my private practice. All the medicine I dispense is original. I have a license to make my own formulas. You've likely seen them being sold at various hospitals. It's your responsability to take care of yourself. So if that's OK with you, stop by anytime."

"That'll really help." said Shin.

"Great, It's nice that you're so quick on the uptake... Saves me the hassle."

She put the papers she held in her hands on the desk.

"You're a pretty weird kid, you know? I wonder what you're going to use the medicine for... Well, as long as you don't cause me any trouble, it's not my problem..."

In the end, Shin bought a few medications. With what money, you might ask. You see, defeated Shadows occasionally drop coins, and with all the Shadows he had defeated, Shin accumulated more than 4 thousand Yen.

Outside of the examination room, Shin encountered a middle-aged man with glasses, dressed in a suit and carrying a suitcase. He stepped aside so the man could walk in the room he just left.

"What's the reason for your visit? Do you have a cold? Stomachache? Athlete's foot? Whatever it is, you'll need to take a number..." he could hear the doctor talk.

"Enough of this! You're the only one who could've developed that kind of medicine." said the man in the suit.

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about..."

"Don't play dumb with me. Rumour has it, it's a drug so potent it can give a person unlimited power."

"Really? That's news to me." said the doctor.

"Developing experimental drugs, medicine, and herbal remedies violates all health regulations. Are you attempting to create a super-stimulant? A drug like that will only become a social issue." continued the man.

"You're really persistent, you know that? I'm just a quack..."

"The police may not be taking action, but I imagine the media will soon pick up on it. You intend to ruin my reputation again? You really are a disgrace to the medical community."

'The hypocrisy of this bastard...' thought Shin.

He could feel the doctor's frustration from there.

"What's with the look? It was your mistake, was it not? I won't be responsible for your criminal actions. Dispose of that "medicine" immediately and resign. The name "Tae Takemi" will never-"

Whatever the man wanted to say, he didn't finish it as he noticed someone standing before the door.

"Hey! Is someone there!?" he shouted.

Shin hurriedly walked out of the clinic.

"It sounded like they were talking about something dangerous... Could that woman be hiding some extra strong medicine...? What do you think?"

"Sounds sketchy, but it might come in handy in the Palace. I'll come back later."

"Anyway, good work! That went really well!"

At that moment, Shin's phone vibrated. He saw Ryuji sent a few messages.

Ryuji: You know there's a shop in Shibuya that sells model guns.

Ryuji: I'd be glad to take you there if you want.

Shin: Sounds good.

Ryuji: Sweet.

Ryuji: Welp, let's figure out where to meet.

Ryuji: You at least know how to get to Shibuya Station, yeah?

Ann: Hey, I can't make it. Can I trust you guys to check the place for me?

Ryuji: You can't come?

Ann: Not tomorrow.

Ann: I have a photoshoot that I really can't miss. I've already postponed it several times now.

Ryuji: I see.

Ryuji: Don't worry, we got this.

Ryuji: Seeya in Shibuya, Shin! I'll be in front of the station!

With the conversation ended, Shin put his phone in his pocket.

"We might be able to get our hands on some really decent stuff if that store really has model guns. Well, we can leave that for tomorrow. Let's go home!"

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This chapter's additional info is on... Social Stats!

The social stats in Persona 5 are five different stats (Knowledge, Guts, Proficiency, Kindness, and Charm) that dictate the accessibility and skill in different parts of the game's social features. Increasing them will help open up new Confidants and accomplish different tasks.

Each of the stats have 5 ranks. For Knowledge, it starts at Oblivious, going through Learned, Scholarly, Encyclopedic and maxing at Erudite.

For Guts, it starts at Milquetoast, going through Bold, Staunch, Dauntless and maxing at Lion-hearted.

For Proficiency, it starts at Bumbling, going through Decent, Skilled, Masterful and maxing at Transcendent.

For Kindness, it starts at Inoffensive, going through Considerate, Empathetic, Selfless and maxing at Angelic.

For Charm, it starts at Existent, going through Head-turning, Suave, Charismatic and maxing at Debonair.

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Confidants:

Igor (The Fool) - Rank 1

Morgana (The Magician) - Rank 1

Ann Takamaki (The Lovers) - Rank 1

Ryuji Sakamoto (The Chariot) - Rank 1