"Idiot, why are you such a coward?! If you're afraid to fight up close, then use Mana Burst! Do you really think a Saber is a weakling who can only fight at close range?! Mana Burst's attack range isn't huge, but it can easily reach over ten meters!" Mordred was as foul-mouthed as ever.
"There's still time. Take it slow. Gradually change your attack range with Mana Burst to create more opportunities for close combat." X, on the other hand, was constantly refuting Mordred.
After filtering out the argument in his head, Taichi glanced at his phone, which was still clean, and looked enviously at Ann, who was talking to Morgana about the app. The otherworld navigation app hadn't been forced onto his phone because when the software tried to get in, X, thinking it was a regular virus, had destroyed it. Upon learning this, Ann told him, "From now on, I'll be your otherworld navigation app!" When Ryuji and Morgana heard this, they both made sour faces.
"I'm back," Ren said, walking into the safe room as the atmosphere became tense.
"JOKER!" Ryuji's spirits immediately lifted.
"How are things out there?" Morgana asked.
"A little tricky," Ren replied with a serious expression. "The new Queen and Princess, as well as that Royal Guard Captain, are not easy to deal with. The former has an extraordinary ability to observe and judge, while the latter has an incredibly decisive nature. The Royal Guard Captain has a terrifying power that I couldn't fight on my own. There were a few times they almost cornered me."
"What? I thought the three new girls were just useless like that 'princess'," Ryuji said, scratching his head, ignoring Ann's hateful glare next to him.
"Now we have three new difficult characters, and we're even more short-handed," Morgana wailed, clutching his head. "And we just got a promising new fighter in 'KNIGHT.'"
"But you managed to escape that encirclement. You live up to your title of Joker," Taichi said, patting Ren on the shoulder.
"That's right," Ann agreed, nodding.
"But this makes finding the Treasure Room even harder," Ryuji said, frowning.
"There is a way," Taichi said, stroking his chin. "We can have two people who are good at combat distract and tie up the dangerous ones. The rest can use that chance to find the Treasure Room's location."
"I'll do it," Morgana immediately volunteered. "I'm fast, so I can tie up most of the Shadows."
"No, anyone can distract the Shadows, but you can't, Morgana," Taichi said, shaking his head. "You're the most knowledgeable about the Palace. You're the only one who can recognize the Treasure Room, so you have to be in the exploration team."
"Joker, you and I will handle the distraction. Morgana and Skull will be in charge of finding the Treasure Room," Taichi said, turning to Ren. "How does that sound?"
"I have no objections," Ren agreed.
"Wait! What about Ann? What's she going to do?" Ryuji asked, pointing at Ann.
"Huh? I don't have powers like you guys, so of course I'll be staying in the safe room," Ann said, rolling her eyes. "Even though I really want to slap that Kamoshida, I can still tell what's important."
"It's no big deal," Taichi said, placing a hand on Ann's shoulder to comfort her. Her face had darkened. "After we get back to the real world, I'll help you ambush Kamoshida. You can beat him up to your heart's content."
"But when you do, don't make a sound. It'll be bad if he recognizes you."
"Can we really do that in the real world?" Ann asked, looking at Taichi in surprise. But then she hesitated, remembering that Taichi's build wasn't much stronger than her own.
"Maybe we should just forget it. It's not too late to beat him up after he's had a change of heart." Ann was worried that Taichi would fail and get beaten up himself.
"How do you think I rescued Suzui from Kamoshida?" Taichi said, reminding her. "Don't worry. Even if he recognizes me, he won't have the guts to expose me. He'll just pretend he doesn't know anything."
After all, between a few beatings and social suicide, Kamoshida would know which one to choose.
"Okay!" Ann's face lit up with a smile again. Girls who smile are often more charming, especially a girl like Ann with a good figure and a pretty face. The boys present were all captivated by her smile.
"Ahem, Skull, when we get back to reality, let me borrow your baseball bat," Taichi said, snapping out of it. "It's so much more satisfying to beat someone with a bat."
"I'll throw in a pair of gloves, too," Ryuji said, rolling his eyes. "I want to use the bat, too."
"I have a bat. You don't need to borrow from anyone else," Ann said with a smile. "I can lend you one then."
"That'd be great," Taichi said, who was now worried about not having a weapon. He immediately nodded.
"Count me in on the ambush," Ren said, raising his hand.
All of the Phantom Thieves, except for Morgana who was just a cat in the real world, had agreed to ambush Kamoshida.