Chapter: Whispered Truths – Into the Depths of Desire

The strange dreams had passed, but the tension hadn't.

That morning at Leblanc was just the beginning. A spark lit in silence—one they couldn't ignore. And like the flicker of flame in a dry forest, it spread.

They all felt it.

Makoto was the one to suggest they investigate it together. As usual, she did it under the pretense of strategy.

"We need to know what's influencing us," she said, arms crossed, standing in the shadowed corner of the hideout. "We're Phantom Thieves. This can't just be coincidence."

No one argued. Not this time.

They began gathering clues—past Metaverse anomalies, irregularities in cognition readings, fragments from their strange dreams—and most importantly, the symbols that had started appearing in the background of their minds. Spirals. Glowing marks. Silken voices whispering just before waking.

Ren had noticed the pull strongest in himself. Not just desire—but gravity. People were being drawn to him… and he could feel something inside stirring in return.

"It's like there's… something beneath the Metaverse," Morgana murmured. "Older. Deeper. Feeding off emotion, maybe even reshaping it."

Ryuji paced restlessly. "Tch… figures. Just when I get a handle on being a girl, I'm also part of some supernatural experiment?"

Ann tried to smile, but her heart wasn't in it. "It doesn't feel like we're being controlled. Just… unlocked."

Yusuke nodded slowly. "Desire is an art in itself. Perhaps the true distortion is the fear of feeling."

Makoto shot him a glance. "That's poetic. Doesn't make it safer."

They followed the leads—back into the Metaverse, diving deeper than they had dared since Shido. But what they found wasn't another palace. It wasn't even a place.

It was a presence.

It lurked in forgotten corridors, echoing through glitching data and ruined memory—an anomaly hidden in a void, waiting. A soft whisper passed through them all when they stepped too close. Not threatening.

Welcoming.

"Ren," it had whispered, reaching for him alone. "You are the key."

Back in the real world, Ren stood apart from the group, eyes unfocused. He could feel the others watching him differently now. Their dreams had changed them. Their bodies were shifting, yes, but their hearts even more.

He was the center of a storm—and it wasn't by choice.

Makoto touched his arm. "You've changed too, haven't you?"

"I don't know what I'm becoming," he admitted.

"You're becoming someone we trust," she said, voice quiet but certain. "But that trust has… feelings behind it. We all feel it. Ann. Ryuji. Me."

Ren met her gaze, and the silence between them was charged, warm, and full of something unsaid.

Ann stepped up next, her voice soft. "We should face this together, right? Whatever it is. Even if it's scary. Even if it's…" she trailed off.

Yusuke folded his arms, unusually introspective. "If our bonds are the medium, then we must understand them intimately. Desire is not inherently distortion."

"Still doesn't explain why we're all changing," Ryuji muttered. She looked at her hands—slender, unfamiliar. "Or why everything feels so damn intense now."

Morgana finally spoke. "We need to go deeper. Past the distortion. Into the dream space."

Ren nodded. "Not just one at a time. All of us. Together."

It was a risk. But they'd shared hearts before. They'd faced Shadows. Now… they would face their own desires.

The next plan wasn't a heist. It was a plunge inward—to a dream realm that might show them the truth behind these changes.

Together, they closed their eyes.

Together, they stepped through.

And somewhere far below, the presence smiled.