The scorching fire bullet roared from the muzzles of the Mosin-Nagant twin pistols, striking Higokumaru's massive fox head, its eyes wide with unwillingness and fury, with pinpoint accuracy. The power of the twin pistols was far less than the ultimate skills unleashed by armored Hare and Yae Sakura.
Yet, it became the final straw that broke the camel's back, completely blasting the ferocious, evil white fox head into scattering crimson-black particles of light.
"Is it over now?"
Watching Higokumaru's body completely disintegrate into tiny crimson-black light particles, which slowly swirled back into the still-open black box, Ren waited for a moment.
Finding no further strange noises coming from the box, he slowly lowered the Mosin-Nagant twin pistols and turned to face the other phantom thief present.
"Yes. Thank you for your assistance, Mr. Joker. If it were just me, I likely wouldn't have been able to defeat Higokumaru so easily and truly free Sakura."
The Oath of Judah summoned during the battle had already vanished.
Kallen dusted off the black bird-beak mask she held, retrieving it after the fight and putting it back on. However, this time, Kallen didn't wear the mask directly on her face to hide her features.
Instead, she wore the black-and-violet mask slanted beside her ear, continuing the conversation with Ren while revealing her true face.
After formally and seriously thanking Ren and Hare, Kallen began to answer Ren's earlier question.
"Higokumaru has been defeated, but she hasn't truly died. Although Sakura chose to become your power, Mr. Joker, transforming into the Stigma power you possess, as long as Sakura exists, Higokumaru cannot completely perish."
"As time passes, Higokumaru will eventually revive one day. If strong negative emotions flare up within Sakura's heart again, Higokumaru's revival might even be accelerated."
Ren completely understood Kallen's meaning.
The relationship between humans and Personas, humans and Shadows, was just that complex, a multi-faceted whole. Essentially, Shadows and Personas weren't different; Personas were simply one's own Shadow, tamed by a Persona user who had confronted and acknowledged their own heart.
Just defeating them once wasn't enough.
As long as the human lived, the Shadow within their heart would continuously return and regenerate. This wasn't just true for ordinary people's Shadows.
Even for Persona users, if overcome by intense doubt and wavering, there was a non-zero chance that their already tamed Persona could rebel once more, reverting back into a Shadow.
However...
"Yae Sakura... Sakura has already become my Persona now. Higokumaru shouldn't appear again, right?"
Ren frowned slightly, asking Kallen for clarification. Persona users didn't have Shadows because they had already faced their hearts and transformed their Shadows into Personas. Yae Sakura had directly transformed herself into a Persona; theoretically, she shouldn't be able to generate a Shadow anymore.
"...Persona?"
Faced with this completely unfamiliar term, Kallen's azure eyes showed a hint of confusion. However, she quickly understood. Yae Sakura had transformed herself into Ren's Stigma. "Persona" must be Ren's term for Yae Sakura's Stigma power, now entrusted to the white fox mask.
"Because I became Mr. Joker's Persona, this place will likely collapse after some time. But Higokumaru will follow me into Mr. Joker's heart. Please rest assured, though. Sakura will do everything possible to suppress Higokumaru, prevent her from reviving, and stop her from causing trouble within Mr. Joker's heart."
Yae Sakura stood beside Kallen, her delicate face filled with deep apology.
She bowed her head slightly towards Ren, offering both an apology and a promise. Transforming her spirit and power into a Stigma entrusted to Ren's body was a decision Yae Sakura made in her extreme weakness to defeat the Herrscher of Corruption, Higokumaru.
The decision proved effective. Higokumaru was weakened by Sakura's separation, and Sakura, relying on her resistance to corrosive power, made outstanding contributions to defeating Higokumaru. Ren, in turn, gained Yae Sakura, an exceptionally powerful Persona. It should have been a win-win situation.
But the thought that Higokumaru would also reside within Ren's body because of her made Yae Sakura feel intensely apologetic and guilty towards him.
"I see. I roughly understand the situation now... It's alright, Sakura, you don't need to blame yourself. It doesn't matter even if Higokumaru revives. Worst case, I'll just beat her again. If I can tame her into my own power too, even better."
Ren mulled it over. With Kallen and Yae Sakura's explanations, he finally grasped the current state of affairs, even starting to eye the currently dormant Higokumaru as a potential asset.
The miko spirit Yae Sakura voluntarily becoming a Persona and residing in his heart... It was natural that this method of acquiring a Persona would differ from the process in the games.
For example, Ren should normally only obtain a Yoshitsune Persona (one without Hassou Tobi) through fusion in the Velvet Room.
But in reality, Ren had directly encountered the deceased soul of Yoshitsune himself and recruited that Yoshitsune, the one skilled in Hassou Tobi, as his Persona.
It felt less like Persona and more like the mainline Shin Megami Tensei games... Having some side effects was normal. And if managed well, this side effect could potentially become an asset.
"Let's worry about Higokumaru reviving later. Since this Palace is about to collapse, we need to speed up our search for the Will Seeds! Hmm... And what about the Treasure?"
Knowing the Palace was on the verge of collapse, Ren should logically head back to the entrance at top speed to leave before being caught in the destruction.
But Hare's ability to open portals was simply too convenient. Ren didn't need to worry about entrances or exits; as long as Hare was present, he could return to the real world instantly from anywhere.
Therefore, Ren decided to find the three Will Seeds of Yae Sakura's Palace as quickly as possible before it collapsed. The Treasure itself wasn't as crucial compared to the Will Seeds.
After all, the Treasure was just a manifestation of something important from the Palace Ruler's real life; unlike Will Seeds, it couldn't directly enhance Ren's combat power.
Moreover, the Treasure in Yae Sakura's Palace hadn't even fully formed.
Yae Sakura herself was dead and had become his Persona. Ren couldn't exactly write a Calling Card and burn it at her grave, or mail it to himself, could he? Rather than waste energy on the less important Treasure, Ren felt it better to simply do Phantom Thief Violet a favor. He might need her help later.
However, Phantom Thief Violet—Kallen Kaslana—seemed to hold a different opinion.
"As for the Treasure, I'll entrust its theft to you, Joker. Since Sakura chose you, I believe you must be a righteous person with conviction, capable of using this power for the right path."
"I can see it in your eyes; you are striving to accomplish some great, almost impossible feat or mission. That's why you desperately seek power. But please remember not to lose yourself for the sake of power, lest you forget your original goal."
"Of course, I believe that if you show signs of straying, Sakura will surely stop you, becoming the bulwark against you losing control!"
A warm smile, like sunshine warming the heart, spread across Kallen's exquisite face. She offered the black box held in her hands to Ren, repeatedly reminding and cautioning him.