Ren Amamiya had already anticipated the enemy's arrival.
After all, although Fu Hua's Persona abilities were support-oriented, whether she was worthy of complete trust was still under observation.
Fu Hua's proactive contact... the possibility of a trap couldn't be ruled out.
During the phone call, Fu Hua had expressed a desire for all members of the Phantom Thieves to explore Mementos together.
However, due to concerns about a potential trap, and because Raiden Mei and Bronya were unable to continue exploring Mementos for their own reasons, Ren Amamiya had temporarily returned the Great Lightning Spiral Ring to Raiden Mei. He then quickly went alone to the meeting point agreed upon with Fu Hua.
After bringing Fu Hua to the Kaslana Palace, Ren Amamiya didn't rush to start the next round of Mementos exploration. Instead, he waited quietly in the Kaslana Palace, casually chatting with Fu Hua while patiently observing the situation's development.
Slightly different from what Ren Amamiya had originally thought, before he even received an internal report from the informant he had instructed, Fu Hua, who was potentially going to infiltrate the Phantom Thieves as an undercover agent, exposed a flaw first.
Unlike Goro Akechi, who was accustomed to putting on airs, this Miss Fu Hua, hailed as the Detective Prince, seemed extremely straightforward and completely inept at lying... she even appeared unskilled in conversing with others.
After just a few sentences, Ren Amamiya noticed Fu Hua's gaze wandering, her speech slightly distracted. Occasionally, she would even sneak glances at him with eyes filled with guilt and remorse...
Evidently, Fu Hua's invitation indeed concealed a trap. And she most likely wasn't like Goro Akechi, proactively joining the Phantom Thieves with malicious intent to act as an undercover agent. Instead, she was likely being coerced by someone behind the scenes to attempt to infiltrate the Phantom Thieves.
Although he could have exposed Fu Hua's deception on the spot, in order to follow the clues and uncover the mastermind behind Fu Hua, Ren Amamiya decided to let things take their course, waiting for the trap to draw near before reacting.
No matter how vast the power of the organization behind Fu Hua was in the real world, they were clearly helpless against Mementos, unable to set foot in this cognitive world of the mind.
Mementos was the Palace of the false god Yaldabaoth. Only those authorized and permitted by the false god, who had obtained the Metaverse Navigator app, could freely travel between the real world and Mementos.
Judging from Fu Hua's involvement with Cognitive Akechi, the organization backing Fu Hua was highly likely to be Schicksal, and the mastermind manipulating her to infiltrate the Phantom Thieves was most probably Otto Apocalypse.
But even Schicksal couldn't extend its reach into Mementos, this domain belonging to another world.
Moreover, besides Ren Amamiya, the only other person capable of using the Metaverse Navigator app, Cognitive Akechi, had been completely eliminated.
If there was still someone in Schicksal who could invade Mementos, it could only be Otto Apocalypse himself, the Overseer who had a close relationship with the evil god, Void Archives.
Calculating probabilistically, there was only a ten percent chance that Schicksal had set up an inescapable trap in Mementos, with Fu Hua guiding the Phantom Thieves into it for a clean sweep. The remaining ninety percent probability... Schicksal's true target was naturally to lure Ren Amamiya away from the real world, and then swiftly hunt down the Phantom Thieves members left alone in the real world—namely, Raiden Mei and Bronya.
If that were the case, then Ren Amamiya, Raiden Mei, and the others were likely already under strict covert surveillance by Schicksal, which was why Fu Hua could time her call so perfectly.
And the final answer was indeed as Ren Amamiya had thought.
Shadow Mei had sent him feedback.
Ever since Arsene had undergone its second awakening into Raoul, the seed of power initially given by Shadow Mei had finally blossomed due to Ren Amamiya's growth. Shadow Mei's consciousness, which had been dormant, gradually reawakened. And today, after Ren Amamiya completely mastered his Treasure, the Pícaro Power, Shadow Mei fully awakened and became one of Ren Amamiya's Personas.
With Shadow Mei, a powerful and convenient Persona, Ren Amamiya could communicate with Raiden Mei across the boundary of Mementos and the real world with zero time lag, much like how he communicated with Seele through Shadow Seele as an intermediary.
Therefore, after receiving the on-site intelligence from Shadow Mei, Ren Amamiya immediately had Hare [Seele] open a direct portal to Raiden Mei's location, stepping through the star gate to instantly arrive at the battlefield where Raiden Mei was.
With Kaslana, a false god-level collective consciousness, presiding over the Kaslana Palace, Ren Amamiya figured that even if Fu Hua attempted any tricks in front of him using her Persona power, Kaslana would see through it at a glance.
It was precisely because of Kaslana's presence that Ren Amamiya dared to confidently leave Fu Hua in Mementos, while he, the Phantom Thieves' strongest combatant, returned to the real world.
"Rita Rossweisse. So, you really aren't just an ordinary maid."
Stepping through the brilliant and magnificent purple star gate, Ren Amamiya immediately noticed the graceful figure in the distance, clad in jet-black skirt armor and wielding a giant black scythe.
Even though Rita's delicate and pretty face was mostly obscured by a gas mask, she couldn't hide the fact that Ren Amamiya had witnessed her other persona, the one beyond that of a maid. Ever since their first encounter, Ren Amamiya had suspected Rita's identity.
However, Rita, as Schicksal's most formidable "black glove" [top operative], was indeed flawless in her execution. Although Ren Amamiya found Rita somewhat suspicious, he had ultimately failed to uncover her true colors.
And looking at it now, Rita Rossweisse was highly likely an assassin sent by Schicksal to get close to him.
Fortunately, he had never let his guard down around Rita, which prevented her from finding an opportunity to strike.
"A gas mask..."
The gas mask Rita wore was exceptionally conspicuous. Since she was wearing it, it meant that Rita had already released a terrifying poison gas here, potent enough to sway the battlefield and cause both Raiden Mei and Bronya to fall.
Realizing this, Ren Amamiya intended to summon a Persona and use a Garu [Wind] skill to completely disperse the poison gas. However, before he could summon his Persona, the purple star gate behind him rippled brilliantly again. Hare's slender and light figure emerged from it. After she too arrived in the real world, the portal slowly closed and vanished.
"I sense a familiar aura. The components of this gas lingering on the battlefield... There's no mistake, this is schariac Stigmata Holy Blood!"
Hare had intended to wait in the Kaslana Palace for Ren Amamiya's return. However, the familiar aura emanating from the other side of the star gate had intrigued her greatly, so she too had come to the real world. After her blue eyes scanned the battlefield, Hare stated her judgment with absolute certainty.
Rita's mood, already terrible due to Ren Amamiya's sudden appearance when she thought she had successfully evaded him, worsened rapidly to an extreme degree when Hare identified the main component of the Spear of Destiny in the blink of an eye.
"Leave these gasified schariac Holy Blood components to me. As the crystalized form of the schariac Stigmata, I am better suited than you, Ren, to handle these gasified Holy Blood components."
Light pink fingernails gently grazed a fair wrist. Gushing purplish blood with a rich crimson hue flowed out from Hare's body like a spring. Under the control of her will, it spread towards the sky, the highly radioactive toxic blood transforming into a translucent purple crystal cluster in the heavens. In a short while, it formed a massive barrier enveloping the entire deserted street.
"————ROAR!!!"
Dreamlike purple specks of light, like stardust, slowly drifted down from the crystal cluster in the firmament. Bathed in the falling purple stardust, Persona Kurikara, which had appeared listless, instantly rallied. As if injected with a massive dose of stimulant, it raised its dragon head and let out a deafening roar.
Deep crimson demonic lightning crashed to the ground with unstoppable force. Accompanied by the thunderous drumming sound that echoed through the sky, a large number of remaining Paladin-class mechs were equally smashed into meaningless scrap metal.
"My body's condition is back to normal. You're amazing, Hare."
The golden hue in her eyes gradually faded, and Raiden Mei's pupils returned to their clear, amethyst-like color. She straightened up and tentatively moved her arms, discovering that her body had completely recovered from the previous state of weakness. A relieved expression instantly appeared on her pretty face.
"Hare's blood can actually neutralize the components of this gas?... With this, your last trump card is useless now, isn't it, Rita Rossweisse!"
Bronya's Honkai energy reserves were far less than Raiden Mei's, and her recovery speed was only one percent of Mei's. But now, this battlefield no longer required her to fight desperately; she just needed to provide support for Ren Amamiya from the sidelines.
Looking at Rita, whose face no longer held a trace of a smile and whose expression was clearly one of extreme displeasure, Bronya's mood suddenly became quite cheerful.
"To be able to decipher the secret trump card Lord Overseer left for me... Who exactly are you?"
The Spear of Destiny gas hadn't affected Rita, but Hare's toxic blood, used to neutralize its components, caused Rita, Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie, to feel an uncomfortable sense of radiation irritation.
Rita narrowed her eyes slightly, her tone extremely cautious as she questioned Hare, who had so easily neutralized the Spear of Destiny gas.
"My name is Misteln Schariac, the archetypal crystal of the Schariac Stigmata. If the gas you used is 'Schariac Holy Blood,' then the blood flowing in my veins is its complete opposite, 'Schariac Toxic Blood.' It is the only thing in the world that can perfectly neutralize it."
Slender white knuckles gently brushed the cut on her wrist. In the next instant, Hare's skin was as flawless as if it had never been injured, her delicate skin as tender and breakable as a baby's.
Hare gently placed her palm over her chest, her voice soft and gentle as she explained to the bewildered Rita, and to Ren Amamiya, who was looking at her with a slightly puzzled expression.
The origin of Schariac Holy Blood was a special product derived from the mutation of the Schariac bloodline after Otto Apocalypse compiled and adjusted Cecilia Schariac's genes. It could nullify Honkai energy, and Cecilia was even given the title "Herrscher Killer" because of it.
The power of the Schariac Stigmata could be considered two sides of the same coin.
Descendants who inherited the Schariac bloodline either specialized in neutralizing Honkai energy erosion or were extremely adept at using Honkai energy to strengthen themselves.
As the bearer of Schariac Holy Blood, the neutralizing part of Cecilia's genes was expressed by Otto in her blood, while the strengthening part was attributed to her musculoskeletal system.
And as the archetypal crystal of the Schariac Stigmata, Hare was born into the real world in Siberia from the Imaginary Space when Cecilia fully unleashed her Holy Blood. Not only was her appearance similar to Cecilia's, but her body's genetic makeup was also a mirror opposite of Cecilia's.
The power of a deathly curse flowed in her blood, while the power of strengthening acted upon her musculoskeletal system.
Therefore, Hare's blood was Schariac Toxic Blood, completely opposite in nature to Schariac Holy Blood. She didn't even need to release it from her body like Holy Blood; Hare's mere existence continuously emitted strong Honkai energy radiation.
"Surrender, Rita. Considering you once gave me a massage to relieve my fatigue, if you surrender now and honestly divulge the information, I won't do anything to you."
Raiden Mei had no injuries, merely weakened by the Schariac Holy Blood gas in the air.
Although Bronya had some minor injuries, Ren Amamiya could see that Rita had exercised considerable restraint, not inflicting any fatal or crippling wounds. A single healing skill from him would be enough for Bronya to become lively again.
"Thank you for your generosity, Mr. Ren, but I'm afraid Rita cannot comply... With Mr. Ren as my opponent, Rita must exert two hundred percent of her strength. Allow Mr. Ren to witness this power that Schicksal has perfected and developed by observing Mr. Ren!!!"
With the strength of the Argent Knight: Artemis battlesuit, it was clearly impossible to deal with Ren Amamiya, a formidable enemy who had even defeated Durandal.
Therefore, after taking a deep breath, Rita decisively sent a command to Schicksal HQ to quantum-transmit that newly developed Valkyrie battlesuit to her.
A skirt armor composed of silver, black, and blue hues traversed space and adorned Rita's graceful figure. The gauze-wing-like cape behind her billowed from the erupting airflow. Her slender hands, clad in white gloves, tightly gripped a silver-blue giant scythe that was as profound as the cold moon.
Godsbane Battlesuit—Argent Knight: Excelsis!!