I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

“Very good... Saori’s [Personality Summoner] is ready.”

"Then, next up is Ajinko's..."

After reviewing Akiko's personal style and the impressions she left on him, Amamiya ultimately chose [Aldabait] as the prototype.

[Psona-Yaldabait (Arcana: Eternal Calamity)]

[Introduction: Also known as 'Demiurge'. He is the master creator in Gnosticism, responsible for shaping and maintaining the material world.]

However, He is not the true 'creator god'.

He was born of Sophia, the goddess of wisdom, and is said to be a two-faced, evil god.

Some pseudo-dualistic texts of the Gnostic school have also mentioned that the creator of the world was actually one of Yaldabit's henchmen. This henchman is recorded in the texts as 'Satanyal'.

[In different versions of Gnostic doctrine, this evil god also goes by names such as Satanyal, Adam Camon, Samael (the lion-like beast in the first phase of the Lion Child's righteous boss battle), and Krenzo.]

"Let's choose the classic Glock-18 as the prototype for the weapon."

"Then the next step is the manufacture and modification of firearms..."

An hour later, a brand new and special Persona Summoner appeared in Amamiya's hand.

[False Sin Creation: A persona refined from the body of the 'two-faced evil god,' the 'creator of evil,' a summoning device. Only special individuals can use it.]

[Type: Summoner/Weapon (When used as a weapon, the magazine capacity is 15 rounds)]

[Skill: Sin of Counterfeits / Luck +10]

[The Sin of Falsehood: 'The two-faced evil god grants mankind a false sense of security, attempting to immerse them in a so-called Garden of Eden where no thought is required—this falsehood symbolizes the great sin of pride.']

['To give others false peace is the great sin of pride...']

Is the desire for peace and the pursuit of hope also a sin?

[Within three rounds, inflict the 'Sin of Pride' status on a single enemy target, making all of the target's attributes weak.]

[Luck +10: Greatly increases luck. Luck increases your critical hit rate and the probability of inflicting abnormal statuses on enemies. It also reduces your chance of becoming a target and the probability of being inflicted with abnormal statuses by enemies.]

The gun body is made of obsidian and pale bone china, both elegant and luxurious, symbolizing two 'extreme' materials.

The grip is inlaid with the Eye of Adam Cammon; the sides of the slide are etched with a triple-nested ouroboros, corresponding to the three states of Satan: Yar, Samael, and Krenzo.

The gorgeous yet understated design is sure to be irresistible to most Kivotos students.

"So, next up are the weapons prepared for Hiyori..."

For the prototype of the firearm, Amemiya chose the Desert Eagle, known for its gorgeous design and high caliber and damage.

[The Last Legacy of Sin: A Persona summoner refined from the angelic body of the 'Abandoned Angel'. Only a select few can use it.]

[Type: Summoner/Weapon (When used as a weapon, capacity is 7 shots)]

[Skill: Remnant of the Dead / Magic +10]

[The Remnant: A bullet born from the vision of 'not wanting to be abandoned,' carrying a burning will. Upon hitting its target, it marks the target forever until the target dies.]

[For three rounds, inflicts a 'guaranteed critical hit' effect on a single target, reducing the target's attack power, defense power, hit rate, and evasion rate (Witch's Curse)]

[Magic +10: Greatly increases the user's mental fortitude. Reduces the probability of the user entering a mental abnormal state. Increases the damage dealt by magic when the user uses magic.]

The gun, resembling the Desert Eagle, appeared on the assembly table. The gun body was wrapped in charred shrouds and the obsidian, which was not yet completely cooled and still had the scorching heat of magma.

The gun's grip is almost entirely made from the remains of the fallen angel judged by Uriel, and is inlaid with seven angel ribs that grow in reverse, each rib having an original, erased chapter of the Book of Enoch etched on its surface.

Between the gaps in the reverse-growing bones, one can even see bullets that have been soaked in the "sulfur fire of judgment" and are burning like the "holy light of Uriel".

The base of the gun barrel is inscribed with "Our blood is original sin" in angelic language, and is etched with the black wings of a fallen angel. At the moment of firing, the fallen angel's wings will materialize and shake off translucent black feathers.

"Very good... Now everyone's weapons are ready."

After completing the series of Persona Summoners for Saori and the other two, Amamiya immediately headed to the vicinity of the meeting point he had arranged with Saori.

To facilitate the meeting, the meeting point was not set in Charlene, but on the edge of the Trinity's self-governing territory.

When Amamiya arrived by car, Saori and the other three were already ready.

After glancing at the well-prepared girls, Amamiya hesitated for a moment.

He did not immediately hand over the completed Persona Summoner to Saori and her group.

Let's see how things go and when the time is right to hand it over to them...

Turning his gaze away, Amamiya spoke seriously: "Well then... let's not delay any longer, let's set off."

Chapter Six: Saori's [Personality]

"Well then... let's not delay, let's set off immediately."

As she spoke, Amamiya took out the phone that Sophia had transformed into, and under the slightly nervous yet expectant gazes of Saori and the other three, she opened the otherworld app.

'Om—'

As the otherworld app was opened, a black and red wave emanated from Amamiya's hand and spread outwards.

Saori and her group of four were already quite familiar with this familiar dizziness they felt when entering another world.

Just as Saori instinctively tried to squint slightly to combat the dizziness, she suddenly witnessed a rather "strange" scene—

The phone in Amamiya's hand shattered instantly into a kaleidoscope that seemed to display countless colors.

Then, the rainbow-like particles quickly reformed into a red-haired girl wearing a white gothic-style dress.

"I'm about to explore another world... I can't wait...!"

This scene, which was somewhat beyond what people would expect, left Saori stunned.

……what's the situation?

As this thought flashed through her mind, Saori then saw the red-haired girl, who had been transformed from Amamiya's phone, jog up to them, tilting her head back and standing on tiptoe, looking at them with curiosity through her cyan-green eyes covered by a halo.

"Seniors, I'm Sophia, nice to meet you all!"

As an AI girl with rich emotions but lacking common sense, Sophia has a considerable degree of curiosity about most things she has never known before.

Her natural, sun-like aura of hope left Saori momentarily dazed.

She couldn't help but look at Ajinko from her own team.

The similar yet different sense of resonance gave Saori the feeling that she was seeing a more lively and cheerful princess, even in her 'ideal state'...

After Sofia greeted Saori and her group of four, Amamiya began to say the key words.

“Arios’ (location) Beatrice (target) has mistaken the Trinity’s Arios branch campus (location) for a ‘Great Cathedral’ that can make her a god (cognitive distortion).”

That's right, the keywords are different now.

This is different from the keyword set I used when I infiltrated the Hall of Eden last time—[The location of the number occultist Beatrice (the controller), who regards the entire Trinity and Ariane branch area (the controlled area) as the fallen Eden (cognitive distortion)].

That's because the last time the otherworld app's "anchor target" was the Garden of Eden.

This time, the target is the 'Rose City' temple.

[...Navigation begins.]

The black and red fluctuations completely subsided, and feeling the dizziness fade away, Saori and her group opened their eyes.

Before them stood a dilapidated church.

From time to time, this church would transform into the campus buildings of the Arius branch campus due to 'cognitive distortion'—the leaden 'sky', enhanced by the filter of another world, had never been so repulsive.

On the church walls, black thorns, like ivy, densely covered every inch of visible space, and through the gaps in the thorns, blood-red roses quietly bloomed.

The thorns symbolize despair and Beatrice's control over the entire Arios branch campus.

So, following this basic line of reasoning... what does the rose symbolize? The answer is self-evident.

—The lives of students at the Arius branch campus.

Such a chilling scene sent shivers down Saori's spine.

So that's how "Madam" views the entire Arius branch campus.

With a complicated expression, Saori glanced over the 'Rose Palace' and sighed deeply in her heart.

After walking a few steps, the interior of the church came into view.

Inside the church, the scene was even more desolate. Fragments of clothing, broken firearms, pieces of unidentified armor, worn-out gas masks…

These items, like the last possessions left behind by a life, lie quietly among the thorny vines of roses.

Watching this scene, Amamiya sighed softly in his heart.

'...I really don't know how much suffering the Arius branch school endured.'

"Today's goal is simple... to find the 'core area' of this sanctuary, or in other words, to find the 'treasure storage area'."

Accompanied by Saori and her group, as well as Sophia, Amamiya quietly sneaked into the interior of the hall.

As expected...

Perhaps because Beatrice was gradually becoming preoccupied with her own problems, the temple's defenses had been significantly weakened.

Although the individual strength of the guards has been improved, their overall number has been greatly reduced—which is undoubtedly good news for Amamiya and his group who infiltrated as 'phantom thieves'.

'Hmm...this is...'

As the exploration deepened, Amamiya's Persona, Prometheus, sensed a powerful shadow reaction.

After slowing down, Amamiya turned her gaze to Saori, whose mood was somewhat complicated.

"Shaori."

The blue-haired girl, who was carefully observing her surroundings, suddenly stopped what she was doing and cautiously looked around: "Hmm?"

"Sensei... is there anything I can do for you?"

Amamiya didn't say much, and tossed the exquisite revolver that had been specially prepared for Saori to her.

"This is your Persona Summoner. Its name is 'Atonement Saint'."

Saori took the Persona Summoner, which still seemed to be warm and looked as exquisite as some kind of precious work of art, and subconsciously played with it in her hand for a moment.

Suddenly, she understood why she felt the gun burning when she touched Misaki's "Scapegoat Angel".

This peculiar 'exclusive weapon' is said to be usable only by specific individuals—and that is indeed the case.

The moment she received it, Saori felt as if she had established a connection with the summoning device in her hand.

That feeling is hard to describe in words—to sum it up simply in four words: "It has to be me."

After wandering through the buildings covered in roses for a while, Amamiya found the 'topographical map' of the church's interior.

Beatrice was extremely vigilant; she deliberately placed the topographical map in a corner of a bookshelf in an indoor room that resembled a small library.

After a brief look at the map, Amamiya, drawing on his extensive experience as a phantom thief, made a deduction about the location of the hidden treasure.

After marking some spots on the map, he finally focused on the exit of the [Underground Labyrinth]: "Judging from the location of this sanctuary, the treasure should be located in the hidden chamber marked on this map."

Once the topographic map is confirmed, the subsequent "following the map" becomes simple.

After leading Saori and her group through the underground passage, Amamiya and her companions soon encountered their first battle.

The person blocking their way was none other than Amamiya, someone whom everyone in Arius's group knew.

"Finally... I've found you."

Pointing the cold muzzle of her gun at Amamiya, the shadowy Saori, wearing a helmet, spoke in a muffled, lifeless voice through the helmet: "The 'rebels' who have invaded this place... and 'another me'."

The first obstacle they encountered was actually their own shadowy version—

This surprised Saori, and she felt somewhat indignant at the same time.

She had heard Zi mention it not long ago...

If you encounter your shadow self in another world and are able to reconcile with that shadow self, you can transform that shadow self into a Persona.

Of course, this has a major premise—that the 'shadow self' is capable of communication and still harbors a rebellious will.

In that "madam's" eyes, was he just... a spineless dog with no will to resist?

Saori gritted her teeth secretly, while simultaneously aiming the "Saint of Atonement" at 'herself'.

"Heh... Foolish fellow, even now, you still want to grasp at that last straw?"

This action, which looked like a child's last stand, made Kagami Saori laugh.