71 The Older Sister.

(I got that 4 hour sleep writing brain right now, lol.)

The subsequent hour passed in a haze, a side effect of the lingering headache Ren couldn't shake off.

Fortunately, the school day had finished before they met with the principal, so the school hallways were practically empty.

Haru, who was one of the few students who stayed late because she was taking care of her garden, was the first person to spot Ren carrying Makoto. After explaining that she had "collapsed of exhaustion" while working, Haru quickly made a phone call. Within minutes, a luxurious car arrived to transport them to Makoto's residence.

During the ride to her house, he had some time to think about what had happened to Makoto, who was currently holding onto him like a Koala as she slept.

Thinking back to the familiar healing warmth he felt before, he could probably guess that Makoto had somehow used Johanna in the real world. It would probably explain her current state, and it probably meant that she would recover with some rest.

Using a persona, even in the Metaverse, was straining. Every time one used a skill or called forth a persona, it would sap away at their mental energy. If overdone, they would end up leaving the Metaverse completely exhausted. 

However, as he continued to try to wake Makoto up without any success, he became slightly worried and decided to call Takemi as a precaution. If things turned out to be worse than he thought, he didn't want to accidentally risk her health because he played it safe and simply dropped her off at home.

Once he got to her house, Ren carried Makoto to her bedroom.

As he would have expected of Makoto, her bedroom was practically perfectly organized. Completely covering one of the walls of her room was a gigantic bookshelf filled to the brim with books, and next to it was a small desk with a computer that she would use to study and research. 

However, Ren also discovered an aspect of Makoto he couldn't have imagined before, her surprising love for Pandas. The carpet, her computer, her pencil case, and her notebooks were all either shaped like a panda or were covered in stickers of the same panda. To top it all off, there was a gigantic plushy of the panda in her bed.

As Ren placed Makoto on her bed, she let go of him and instinctively went to hug the massive panda plush. A small smile appeared on her face as she snuggled up against it. Almost as if she was having a great dream.

"AhfnsRenhehe."

Makoto's murmurs, a jumble of sleepy gibberish, filled the room. Yet, before Ren could decipher her mumbled words, a knock at the door diverted his attention.

As he opened the door, he saw Takemi holding a duffle bag filled with medical supplies that she might need. Once she saw Ren, her eyes looked him up and down before her expression changed to that of a slight concern.

"Wow, you look like shit. Are you ok?"

Letting out a tired chuckle

"I'm fine. Makoto is in the bedroom to the left." Ren directed Takemi, his voice steady despite the fatigue he felt. "She passed out about an hour ago out of nowhere. She appears to just be sleeping, but when I tried to shake her awake, she didn't wake up." 

Acknowledging with a nod, Takemi began making her way over to her room.

"Alright, but you're up for examination next. I can tell whenever my guinea pig isn't feeling well." she joked with a smirk, her gaze sharp. "Take a seat; I'll be back in a bit."

Settling into the couch, Ren allowed himself a moment of rest. His eyes fluttered shut, almost falling asleep immediately. Letting out a tired breath he was finally able to focus and shake off the slight haze that was still present until now.

A few minutes passed, and just before he could allow himself a moment of sleep, his eyes suddenly opened. Stirred to attention by the sound of someone trying to open the door.

"Of course…" he mumbled to himself, recognizing the impending complication as the door swung open to reveal Sae Nijima, her heels clicking authoritatively against the floor.

"Makoto, I'm back..." Sae announced, her stride halting abruptly at the sight of Ren lounging in her living room. Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion and slight irritation.

"I had made it clear to Makoto about not having guests without my permission, Amamiya," she stated with a cold tone of voice, her gaze unwavering and filled with disapproval.

Ren turned to look at Sae's stern look, almost letting out an involuntary sigh. If he was being honest, he was too tired to deal with this crap. 

At that moment, Takemi emerged from Makoto's room, inadvertently stepping into the tense atmosphere. Her arrival offered Ren a brief rest from Sae's eyes.

"Ah, you must be Nijima's mother." Takemi said as she walked out and greeted Sae.

"I'm her sister, and also her legal guardian. Has something happened to Makoto?" Sae asked with concern and fear, her eyes instantly noticing Takemi's robe and the stethoscope she was currently wearing around her neck.

Shaking her head slightly with a reassuring smile, Takemi answered.

"There's nothing to worry about right now. However, I believe Makoto must be pushing herself too hard at the moment and not sleeping properly. From what I heard, she collapsed at school and has been unconscious-"

"She what!?" Sae interrupted with a mix of panic and disbelief, her immediate instinct to rush to Makoto's side. But before she could move, Takemi gently grabbed her by the shoulder.

"She needs rest now more than anything. I would recommend not interrupting her until she wakes up, which will probably be tomorrow," Takemi advised, her tone firm yet sympathetic.

Sae's face was filled with worry and reluctance, but she slowly nodded her understanding. The doctor's confident demeanor easing some of her anxiety.

"Her vitals are stable, but she does seem to have exhausted herself both mentally and physically," Takemi continued, her voice softer now. "It's crucial she gets uninterrupted sleep to recover. I've administered some vitamins and electrolytes to help with her recovery. Would you be able to ensure she stays hydrated and eats something light when she wakes up?"

Sae, now slightly calmer, absorbed every word. 

"Yes, of course. Anything else I should be aware of?"

"There's nothing else for now. Just make sure she understands the importance of pacing herself and getting enough rest. If she shows any signs of distress or if you have any concerns, don't hesitate to call me." Takemi concluded, offering a warm, supportive smile as she handed Sae a business card

Sae paused to absorb the information on the card, her demeanor reflecting a mix of worry.

"I will. Thank you, Dr. Takemi." Sae replied, her voice laced with gratitude.

As Takemi walked past her towards Ren, he spoke up.

"We can deal with my checkup tomorrow. I'll be fine today."

Takemi hesitated slightly but acknowledged his decision with a nod.

"Alright, but I expect you to show up to the clinic as soon as you can. It would be bad if my gui- my patient's health suffered because of their negligence." Takemi said, correcting herself mid-sentence as she remembered Sae was right behind her.

With a few final parting words to Sae, Takemi left the house.

There was a moment of awkward silence in the Nijima household until Ren heard Sae's footsteps approach before she, too, collapsed onto the couch. Taking one final deep breath, Ren pushed back his exhaustion as he prepared for the confrontation. However, as he opened his eyes, he couldn't help but be momentarily dazed.

He saw Sae, who was now on the couch next to him, holding her head between her hands in exhaustion. However, the more surprising thing was the mask of distortion she wore. Every time he had seen it, it looked almost unbreakable. A solid iron mask with large spikes that protected her face. However, that impenetrable mask of hers now had a few small cracks.

There was a brief moment of silence in which Sae continued to hold her head with exhaustion before she raised it and looked at Ren.

"You were the one who brought Makoto here and contacted the doctor, weren't you?"

Her voice had a hint of vulnerability, unlike the stoic and analytic expression she wore most of the time. As Ren nodded his head in response, she let out a tired sigh before a hint of a smile appeared on her face.

"Thank you for looking out for her... Makoto is all the family I have left. I can't bear the thought of losing her, too."

Ren's mind briefly flashed between their infiltration into Kaneshiro's bank and the recent interrogation against Kobayakawa that had landed her unconscious before letting out a small, awkward, and tired chuckle.

"You know… I try." Ren answered, which prompted a soft smile from Sae. 

However, her smile quickly drifted away as she thought back to her sister.

"This is my fault… I have been pushing her too hard. Just a few days ago, I called her useless… I told her that all she did was eat away at my life." Sae admitted. "Makoto tried to connect with me, and all I did was berate her and tell her to grow up."

Ren listened to her confession in silence. He could see clearly that the idea that something might have happened to Makoto had shaken her. The guilt that it might have been her own fault that her sister was currently sick had made her unconsciously drop the walls she kept up, even if just for a moment.

He had been looking for a chance to bring Sae over to their side, to work as a spy right under the nose of the SIU director, and it was clear that the time was now. The small cracks in her distortion were enough proof that this was the best chance he would get.

However, he couldn't help but curse internally at his exhaustion. If he was at the top of his game, he would probably be able to maneuver his way around the conversation, but right now, he couldn't think properly.

As his mind raced for the best way to approach the conversation, he felt the static in the back of his head intensify. Almost as if Tartuffe was trying to communicate with him.

"T̵̛̛̪̬̠̲̯̲͇̪̠̣̜̱͚͎̖̘̣͔̯͍̋͑̐̋̄̈̅͗͐͛͛̎͊̇̄̽̅͜ͅḧ̴̨̟͚̝̲͈̙̫̤̹͙͚̠̯̪͓̠́̽͋̓̾̓̄ͅe̶͇͉̪͈̥̓ ̴̨̨̨̛̺̗̙͕̲̲̼̙͎͖̈́̀̈́͗͐̓͐͋͐͗͑̚͜ͅä̷̧̛̛̻̜̤̞̘̤̞͖̯̔̀͑̋̀̿̐̀̅͝ͅr̷̝̺̺̣̠̊́c̷̡̩̦̝̯͖͍͚̦̥̜̰̞̲͔͓̿͒̉̌̓͒̍̾͊̈́͊̕͜͝a̸̧̨̨̛̬̹̩̠̖̳̘͓͙͓͎̘̞̳͔̱̩̙̓͋̎̽͂̄̐̊̀̕͝͝ṅ̴̨̛͚͎̝̯̗̻̣͖͇̼̪̰͓̙̊͐̋̌̈́̌́͆͒̈́́̀̇͗̒̽́͠͝a̵̧̡̺͔̳͉͈̮̦͔̟̟̻͇͐̾̊́̋́̓͐̎́̄̒̂͒̈ ̷̢̢̢͖̠͈̞͙̘͕̬͔̣̹̇i̵̡̲̟̻̜͖̝̫̺͉̗͕̲̻̬̘̭͍͇̳̍͋̂͐͋̈̄̒͊͂̽͋̈́̅̇s̷͕̤͔̹̜̮͙̱̩͇̉̓͐̑̇̓͛̈̐̐͐̚ͅ ̴̻͎̝͕̲̺͓͚͖͖̥͖̯͉̗̣̮̥̟̈́̀̌̕͠t̵̛͉̱̝̖̘͓̼̬̼͙͑͑͛͆͛̏̀̃̈́̍̏̿̍̅̀͜͠͝h̸̨̡̻̝̬̯̞̼̘̣͔̣̲̱̩͈̱̣̱̄̇͘͜͠͠͠ͅĕ̶̢̠̪̻̼͙̦̰̹̉̉́̋̅̅́̀̆̈̈̕͝ ̵̪̘̳̺̦̘̒̂̾̎͗̔̑̏͜͜m̶̢̤̞͓̖̝̩͒̔̅͑̑̆́̓͋̓̆ë̸̲̩͚͊̕a̴̡̨̧̛̙̤̤̣͓͉̱͖͓̥͍̰͉͒̾͑͛̅̀̾̈́̍̓͝n̴̢̨̧̧̡̫̖̬̼͔͚̜̲̫̻͎̪̙͂s̴̺͑̀̓̎͊͋̓̄̅̓͐̕ͅ ̵̧̧̢̧̫͇̥͍̳̜͖̰̠̳̞̝̺̙̱̙̤̅̃̌͛̃̓͛̑̊̿͆́̈́̇͐̿͆͝͠ͅb̷̧͙̜͚̰̫͓̻̺͖̩̺̳̈y̶̡̝͍̖̖̘͎̟̣̼̜͛̎͐͂̆̋ ̴̱̯͎͉̹̘̳̯̭̺̻͚̳̝̟͍̮̬́̋̆̇̐͒͒̈̿͂̏͌̿̌͌͆́̚͜͝w̸̧̢̢͓̞̙̪̼̤̙͂̅͒̓̌́͊͆͐͂̅͋͝ͅh̵̹̑́̅̋̌̕͘͝i̸̛͙̣̟̭̼̣͂̂̓̀̅̾̄ç̸̯̝͙̦̬̞͇͓͚͈̭̙͇̼̺̹̇̔̓̿̈̊̚͝h̸̡̝͈̱̺͍͉̻̙͍̪͙͓͖̜͕̃̅̊̀͊̆͗͂̈̄͑̑͐́̍̕͘͠ͅ ̸̡̢̡̪̙̖̭̮͕̮̺̜͈̖̬̝̩̎͂̿͆̆̅̀͌̍̔͐͋͑̈̐̍̈́̃̓̕͝͝i̵̢̦̥̩͕̩̤̮͇͚̒̀̉̎̈́̽͐̚͘ș̵̨͖̺̹̰͉͖̌́̏͐́̆̒̇̽̄̑͊͂̋͌͌͝͝͝͝ ̴̢̻͔̫͇̏̀̈̅̾̄̊̽͐̋͗͆́̒͛̏͘̚͝ạ̵̺͉̟͍̤̭̫̝̣̹̖͇̱͓͓̹̣̥͈̳͊̈́̀̀̋͋̿̍̔̀̈́͘͘̚ͅļ̴̢̛̛͎̟̗̼̳̞͎̙̤̜̟̲̮̺̼̦̑͗͌͐̅̈͋̊̈̀͜ͅļ̵̛̤̹͓̲̫̥̳̬͓͇̐͆̓͗̏́̾̈́̈́̽́̌̃͠ ̷̡̛̟̳̙͇̮̯̮̗̞̄̐̀̿̽͆͐͋͌͌͌̕̕͜ȓ̷̨̜̫͍̩̫̼͚͎͇̮͓̲̙͙͇̩̘̲͓̂̊e̴̹͛͂͠v̷̨̻̜͚͇͕͙̘͔͔͍̭̠͈͇̄͊̾͒̈́̈́͑͂̇̀͐͑̏̑̾͘̕͠ę̶̨̡̛̖̫̹̖̺̘̹̻͎̣̮̮̻̥̮̞̠͆͗͋͌͒͛̿̑̊͛̓̂̋̕͠͝á̶̞̙̩̘͈̆͂̀͆̎l̸̡̨̝̻̗͎̪̰̙͐̈́̾͑̾̈́͛̋̕̚͝ȅ̶̛̳͙͐͒͊d̵̙͖̗̟̫̼̣̪̦̍̽͆̈́̽́̌̅̈́̀̏̄͐̀̃̒̅̇̕͘

From within the static, he could only pick up one singular word: Arcana. That singular word was the answer Ren needed at the moment. As he looked at Sae, he could clearly see the Arcana she represented. Judgement, the final step in the Fool's Journey.

The Judgement represented the need to analyze your past in order to move with a better sense of direction. To forgive and be forgiven in order to start anew. Most importantly, we should heed the call to fulfill our true purpose.

Ren's eyes flickered to life as he focused on the meanings of the Arcana.

"I can't imagine waking up one day and suddenly realizing that you are the only person who can take care of someone else." Ren said, causing Sae's eyes to open in surprise. 

"Yeah…" Sae muttered. "It's hard enough trying to deal with things at work… only to come home and see Makoto… She wants to become a police officer too, you know? Just like dad…"

Ren's pupils focused as he saw the smallest of the cracks on her distortion suddenly tremble. His ears focused as he heard the slight quiver that had barely slipped near the end of her sentence.

"The same job that took his life." Ren finished her sentence, causing her to nod subconsciously.

"I'll admit, it's a bit hard for me to fully understand, but I can at least tell you what Makoto has told me. The reason she wants to become a police officer is to try to make the world a better, safer place."

A small smile crept onto Sae's face as she looked in the direction of Makoto's room.

"A world where safety isn't a privilege but a given." She finished, completing her father's phrase with a nostalgic.

However, her optimism soon waned, replaced by a harsh realism. 

"Both of you are too young to understand, but the world doesn't work that way. But the reality is harsher. The game is rigged. The moment you try to make a difference, you will be crushed under everyone else."

"The nail that sticks out gets hammered down." Ren muttered, earning a knowing chuckle from Sae.

"Exactly. Making a difference requires playing by the rules, at least to some extent. It's a game of wins and losses, and without a willingness to adapt, you're setting yourself up for failure. Sometimes, you have to bend the rules a little to win." Sae mused, her tone laced with cynicism.

A slight smirk appeared on Ren's face as he asked.

"Is that so? I've heard quite a bit about you from Makoto. You're not quite what I expected."

"Oh? And how so?" she inquired, leaning in with a mix of curiosity and caution.

"It's hard to explain. But you kind of got lost in the game, no? You got so distracted with it that you forgot why you even started playing at all."

As she heard him, Sae's face slightly frowned. Standing up from the couch, she shook her head a few times.

"It's not something you would understand." She remarked. "I'm making tea. Would you like some? It's getting late, and a cup might be good before you head home."

Ren couldn't help but chuckle slightly as he saw her try to walk away from the conversation, but he could at least rest easy knowing he had done his part. Accepting the offer with a smile, he allowed himself to finally relax as he laid down on the couch, awaiting the drink.

Minutes later, Sae returned to find Ren, completely overcome by exhaustion, sleeping on the couch. The sight of his peaceful sleeping face made her let out a sigh. Barely suppressing a slight smirk, she placed the drink on the table near the couch.

"Makoto... You sure have an interesting choice of friends." she mused out loud.

~Confidants~

Sae Nijima (The Judgement) Rank 3