Part 32: 5/19: Artsy Fartsy

Part 31: 5/19: Artsy Fartsy



Palace time.



Music: A Woman




You’re right, I did already know that.

Then we send the callin’ card. Yeah, yeah, we know the drill. Anyways, let’s get ready!



But first, let’s enter the Velvet Room.



Music: Aria of the Soul



You must surely be accustomed to infiltrating Palaces by now?



Regardless, you have yet to obtain a truly acceptable number of Personas. This is not the full potential of the power of the wild card. Hm, I suppose this is a prime opportunity to help further your rehabilitation along. Don’t worry… This assignment is not mandatory. Think of if almost as a test of strength.



We will have you bring us the mask we specify.
You just gotta show us the Persona we ask for!
First off… we would like for you to bring us a Jack Frost.
That’s too easy, Justine! It should be a challenge. Hmmm… I want it to have Mabufu too! You got that, Inmate? Bring us a Jack Frost with Mabufu.
Very well. We ask for a Jack Frost with Mabufu. Please speak to us again when you have it.
This will not be mandatory for your rehabilitation, but you will be handsomely rewarded for it. I encourage you to at least try your hand at this.

These requests are more-or-less identical to Margaret’s requests from P4, but with greater rewards. We won’t be attempting to fulfill this request just yet, but I just wanted to show that it was available.

Music: A Woman



We’re back inside the museum.




See those tiny red lines, barely visible through the image resize and compression? Those are the lasers.

Hold on, there wasn’t anything like this last time though!
The rumors might slowly be making Madarame become more wary of us… Joker! They’re not easy to see, but you should be able to do it with your skills. Be careful!




Note that you can just dash or hold X to totally cheese the entire system, ha.




More lasers have been added all around this area.



As for enemies, these Mokoi like to boost their own Attack.



Hua Po attacks by casting Fire.



And Apsaras uses Wall skills to guard the weaknesses of its allies.



The security will probably get a little more fierce as well. Make sure you don’t touch anything or run into any of the displays, all right?
...What’re you lookin’ at me for?



Up ahead, we come to a room with many paths and a lot of enemies.



These Koropokguru are weak to Fire, so they go down real quick and don’t get turns to show off.



Finally, these Onmoraki mainly just attack, and they’re only weak to Gun, which is annoying but easy to exploit. Occasionally, however, they cast Mudo, an instant-kill Curse spell, which suuuuuuuucks on the off-chance it actually hits.



Soon enough, we’re at the stairs to the next area.



Maaku hammers the button repeatedly, but the door doesn’t open.

Dammit, it ain’t openin’...



In this room, two areas are beyond our reach, sealed by glass walls, and we’ve also got this suspicious vase in the center.



No time for that, Panther. Let’s move.




I know it might be tough to take it with us, but don’t you think it’d sell for tons?



Hold on, you’re steppin’ on something!

Music: Run, Run, Run!

Isn’t this bad!?




Joker immediately does a sick backflip...



...dodging out of the way of the lasers that pop up.



Urgh, and you were the one makin’ us be careful too… So, whaddya wanna do? Run outta here?
No, passing through all of these lasers will draw far too many enemies to my location!
Oh, hold on! Joker’s not trapped!
Sorry Joker, but we’re going to need you to search for a way to turn off these infrared lasers! This is a museum, so there has to be some switch to let the workers avoid these lasers. Find it…!

Music: A Woman



Over in the corner, we can climb up on top of this vending machine to reach a higher level.



There’s a guard roaming around, but the fight is just a single Hua Po.



Down on the ground, we find a button.

I wonder if I should press it...
>Press the button



The glass lowers, freeing Ann.

It looks like Panther was able to get out...



By climbing back up, we can also reach the other side, and find another button. Pressing this one, however...



...spawns an enemy. Damn.



If we follow the footprints on the ground, we see a crooked portrait.



>Move the painting



>Press the button



The glass lowers, freeing Ryuji.

You did it! Let’s hurry up and get back together with him!




Welp, bye cat. I’d say it was nice knowing you, but, well...

There has to be a control room for them! I don’t know if it’s nearby though…!
...We just gotta trust him. C’mon, let’s try lookin’ for it!



We find a vent in the corner.




Conveniently, it leads into the security room.



But… it looks like we need a password to use it.



Uh, they probably ain’t gonna just leave it lyin’ around.
Then what are we supposed to do…? Look for someone who might know it?



Outside, two guards have appeared.



Hey, did you hear about those intruders?
Yeah, you mean the thieves sneaking around in here? I got a call telling me to change the password, just in case.
And? What did you change it to?
Hello.
...Huh?
I said, hello! 07734. If you read the numbers upside-down, they spell out the word hello.
...Isn’t that a little childish?
Eh, it should be fine as long as nobody else find out. It’s not like anyone’s eavesdropping on us.

BA DUM TISH

Anyway, don’t forget: when you see the code input, be sure to say hello.
Did you hear that?
Sure did. C’mon Joker, let’s go say hello to that terminal thing!



The password should be 07734...





Sweet! Let’s go grab that stupid cat and get movin’!



Sheesh… Weren’t you the one tellin’ us not to go around touchin’ shit in the exhibit?
Urgh, that is true… I can’t believe I made such a novice mistake, even for solid gold… But something was drawing me to this vase…
What do you mean…? Isn’t it just an ordinary gold vase? I wonder if there’s something special about it. Should we take a closer look just in case?



Joker swipes the vase...




...and a giant diamond appears out of nowhere!

Music: Run, Run, Run!

What is this!?
Oh, I see… So that’s why I was drawn to it! Joker, catch it! I’ll explain the rest of this later. Just get after it and attack!

Music: Last Surprise



So, now we’re fighting… a villain from a rejected episode of Courage the Cowardly Dog.



It doesn’t attack.



And for good measure, it resists almost everything.



We manage to take it down nonetheless, getting a large helping of money and experience for our troubles.



Morgana learns Lucky Punch, which is Miniscule Physical with a high chance of Critical damage, resulting in a knockdown.



Meanwhile, Ann learns Maragi, Light multi-target Fire.

Music: A Woman



What was that…?
That, Lady Ann, was a rare Shadow that occasionally resides in pricey items. I call them Treasure Demons. They’re great. Not only do they give you a lot of experience, they are useful for your Personas too. However, they run very fast, and attacks don’t deal very much damage to them.




These guys are the equivalent of the rare Gold Shadows from Personas past. They’re more frequent when the security level is higher (which is part of the reason I rarely see them), giving you an incentive to keep it high, and can also be fused into Personas if you convince one to join you. Ironically, the skill we just got for Morgana helps with that greatly, because again, they resist almost everything, so critical attacks are the best way to knock them down.



Up ahead, we run into a hallway blocked by more lasers, forcing us to climb up and around.



Wait, what!?

Calm down. Look at where the security guard is walking...



...oh, you bastards.



Anyone have to use the restroom?




Might as well check out the ladies’ room too.




Further in, we come to a large room full of more paintings.



In a shocking development, we’re barred from exiting.

Music: Tension




Crap, let’s get outta here, fast! Which way’s the exit!?

Both entrances are sealed, so we’re locked in here with these enemies until we can find a way out.



For the record, the strong Shadow fight here consists of five (!) Onmoraki. It’s rather trying on our bullet reserves.




Eventually, we find another crooked painting.

Does this painting look crooked to you?
>Let’s take it off the wall.



Who cares about that shit? Just hurry up and try pushin’ it.



The barriers deactivate.

Music: A Woman

All right! It looks like it’s unlocked now!
This should let us move forward. Nice work, Joker!




Further in, we have our progress halted to look at this shiny building.

It definitely looks like something important would be hidden away in there…
Let’s go find out!




The walls open to allow us to pass.



Are these… infrared lasers? There’s no way we can get past them…
This level of security only proves there’s something worth protecting up ahead.



Wait, there’s something written on the sign… “All personnel: This door can only be opened via the security room that lies beyond it… Please be cautious, as it is impossible to open from the outside.”
So, it’s never gonna open!? How’re we supposed to get past…!?
Wait… That door… I think I’ve seen that pattern somewhere...



Guys, let’s head back!
Huh? Why!?
I think I know what real-world door that’s based on. There may be another way to open it! In any case, I’ll explain later! Come on, let’s go!
I suppose we should listen to Morgana for the time being...




There’s a safe room nearby, so we can just check out.



>Return to the real world
Now returning to the real world from Madarame’s Palace. Thank you for your hard work.



I think we’re almost halfway through. I’m starting to get a faint sense of the Treasure near here.
That means we’re at least making some progress, right…? Hey, when do you want to come in here next? Let me know when you decide… I’ll be waiting!



I dunno… You think there’s some kinda off switch somewhere?



Music: Wicked Plan

Mona…?
I have a suspicious place in mind.



Remember? This shack is the basis for Madarame’s Palace. I actually scouted it out the last time we were here.
Whoa… So this was your plan from the start…?
Correct.
...You only went “scouting” because you were bored.



So? Where’s this suspicious place?
It’s on the second floor. I noticed an unnaturally hefty lock on a door up there.
If it’s locked, that means there’s something in there he doesn’t want people to see.
But don’t we wanna be openin’ the door in the Palace?
Yes, and we’re going to do that by opening the real one in front of Madarame’s eyes. Basically, we’re going to change his cognition that the door is unopenable.
In other words… when we open the one in Madarame’s house, that area in his Palace will open on its own?
I’m not really gettin’ it… Is that gonna work?
Trust me! There’s no chance it won’t open! ...I think! You understand, don’t you, Joker?



Well yeah, but...



But even then, there’s still that hefty lock we have to deal with in reality, right?
Oh, that’ll be a breeze. Just give me a hairpin and I’ll handle it. It will take some time though. Doing everything by myself in front of Madarame would be impossible. If only there was someone who could distract him for a while...



Oh… Ohhh! (overdramatically) Man, how are we even gonna get into his house? We’d get reported for sure if we force ourselves in...
What?
I guess the only way is… having you go nude.

Goddammit, we’ll never escape this.




Fancy you say that, Ryuji. I was just thinking the same thing.
This isn’t funny!

You’re telling me!

We’re not sayin’ you should really get naked.
It’s simply the best excuse for you to enter Madarame’s house without raising suspicions… So, we’d like for you to play the role of decoy, Lady Ann.
This is way too sudden… I mean, I don’t even know where the locked door is.
Don’t worry, I’ll accompany you.
But that’s still technically only me… Worst comes to worst, what if I get found out…?
We can run into the Palace! ...Or something?



I mean, you’re not giving me much confidence in this plan! Do I have to be the bait…?



Why can’t one of you guys go nude!?
That ain’t what he wants.
Then make it so he does!

All right, let’s go change Yusuke’s cognition!

All you gotta do is trick Yusuke, have him take you to that room, then just open the door.
You make it sound so easy…!




Urghhhh! God!



Seriously, you better pull this off!



We’ll be countin’ on you, Morgana! Don’t let Yusuke notice ya, all right?
If he tries to force my clothes off… I’ll tear that house down! I’m really gonna lose it if we do all this and the Palace door doesn’t open. Got it!?
We’re workin’ to get dirt on that guy’s crimes either way. It won’t go to waste. All right, let’s get down and dirty tomorrow.
Tomorrow!?
Earlier the better.
Um, b-but… will Kitagawa-kun agree?
I dunno, just say something like “I really need it to be tomorrow.” That should work, yeah?



Music: Beneath the Mask -Rain-

This is the rainy night theme. It’s pretty close to the normal theme, but it’s still good.



I’ll get it open right before his very eyes.



Mm-hm. He asked me to come by tomorrow.



Yeah…
Man, this is such a pain… We gotta open that door AND have Madarame see it, right?
Yeah. Morgana said that’ll change his cognition.
Oh, and one more thing. Let us know if any weird shit goes down and we’ll be there to back you up ASAP.
Kk, got it.

Shit like the “be careful” option and what Ryuji just texted make me think that they knew how weird and skeevy and scary this all was, but it’s already in the game, so it’s too little too late.

A Palace is a reflection of how its owner views the real world. So if Madarame’s cognition of reality changes, it’s only natural that his Palace would be affected. And all jokes aside, we really will need Lady Ann to strip for Yusuke. It’s the only way.

Shut up, cat.



A: Unconsenting cutting of hair; B: Using noise to cause distress; Which of the two would be considered a case of bodily harm!? You be the judge!



B seems ridiculous, so it’s probably right.

The correct answer is… B! If you drive someone crazy with noise, that’s bodily harm! If it disrupts the body’s functions, it counts as bodily harm, even if there’s no physical contact! Hair grows back, so it doesn’t count as a wound. That’d be a case of “assault,” not bodily harm.
Hey, you got it right. I’m impressed by how much you know about law.
It feels like I’ve improved my Knowledge.

Maaku gets Knowledge +1.

Occasionally there’ll be a quiz show on TV, and answering correctly will increase our Knowledge. It’s silly but helpful.

Next time, though, we’re going to open that door in Madarame’s cognition! What could possibly go wrong?