This is… rather unfortunate. I wasn't expecting someone right now. I was actually planning to rest, but since you've arrived, I guess that the least I can do is tell you a story.

The story of how the world ended… Or at least was close to.

Should I introduce myself? Being honest, I really don't want to. In fact, I don't even want to keep living, but unfortunately I can't have that. In the world I live in, dying is a privilege. If you die, you'll save yourself from the dozens of demons and monsters hunting down the last of civilization. You'll think that the survivors would actually have some sort of way of dealing with some of those problems, but the thing is that those "survivors" are just mad people screaming and crying every damn minute of the day. I can't even fully remember who I was before everything happened. Oh, sorry, I'll give you a brief explanation of what happened.

The nightmare started a few years ago. A bunch of kids were facing an evil entity that tried to destroy humanity. They managed to win, but something went wrong. Since that day, everything has gone to hell. Imagine being trapped in a world where there's nothing, only horrible creatures and mad people. Well, that's how our story begins.

The desolated streets of Sumaru City really managed to give an eerie vibe that any horror movie would envy. Now add the unsettling growl and moans of the monsters and demons, and the screams of the few people left gone mad, you start to feel more and more hopeless and scared. But I'm not feeling like that. In fact, I was enjoying every bit of it. I had lost everything, so why shouldn't I try to enjoy myself?

I was walking through the streets of the city without any worry. In fact, I'm just humming a song, not really caring about the disturbing sounds and sights of the town. I'm wearing a black suit, and in my hand I'm carrying a briefcase. Maybe I look a lot like a businessman going to his job like any normal day, but gotta always be true to myself. But I've been feeling this… sensation. Someone is following me, I know it. But I also know that nobody left in this world is sane enough to follow me and resist the urge to attack me or scream at me. I stop in the middle of the street.

"I know you're following me." I say in the calmest way possible, that it almost sound scary.

"Surprise." Someone else talks, but there's no one on the street, it's as deserted as it can be. I realized that, but I didn't really care.

"Why are you watching me?" I say.

"I need someone like you. You see, something similar happened where I'm from. The thing is, I want it to happen everywhere." Says the voice that, even though it sounds distorted, can be heard clearly.

"What do you mean by that?" I ask, with now some interest growing.

"Have you seen the demons around the city? How they don't have any worry and actually live and interact with each other."

"Yeah, only when they are not killing other people or themselves."

"You see, those are not demons or mindless monsters. They are gods. They are the incarnation of human minds and will. They are one with the sea of souls, all connected. Why shouldn't everyone enjoy that?"

"I'm not really getting what you're trying to do."

"You don't have to. You'll figure it out soon enough."

Being honest, I'm not really convinced about what the voice said. Why all of a sudden someone said all those things to me, of all "people" ? I mean, I thought I was already mad, but this was in a whole other level.

"Sorry, not interested." I give my answer without any hint of regret and start walking again down the street.

"Don't you want to see your daughter again?"

What… did he say?

"What the hell are you talking about?!" I ask demanding an answer.

"I come from another world, another dimension. There are countless of them. And in one particular dimension, THIS never happened, and your family went on to have its own path, separated from the Nanjos. And your little Mitsuru lives, unlike in here."

"What…? HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?! HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MITSURU?!"

"You know, your father was a bit of an asshole, but he also believed in what I'm telling you."

I don't understand… What is he saying? Am I really hearing this? It's just nonsense, right? I mean, everyone is dead, everyone's gone mad. Nobody knows about the Nanjos, nobody knows about my father, nobody knows about Mitsuru. Do you know why? Because everyone's dead. The Nanjos, my father, my daughter, mankind… They're all dead.

"I'm insane… That has to be it…"

"Well, to be fair you were already insane, I'm just trying to give another chance." … But only if you accept."

He knows. The son of a bitch knows. He knows who I am, who my family was. How the hell is that possible…? I just can't really process anything. This is just my mind playing tricks. Maybe it's one of those goddamn Pixies confusing me. Yeah… Yeah, that's it! Those demons finally caught me. I guess I was just prolonging the inevitable. I'll just surrender, let them have their fun, I accept it.

"So, what do you say, Takeharu Kirijo-san?"

He knows. He really knows. This is all just some kind of trick, a spell from one of those Pixies…

But, what if it's not? What if he is saying the truth? What if he's right? What if I can see Mitsuru again? Just what if…

Heh… Hah Hah… Hahaha ha hahaha… HAHAHAHAHA… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

"... So, what should I do?"

This is a man's, man's world. But it wouldn't be nothing without my precious little girl...

~I know, I know. It has been two years (I think). The first thing I want to say is: I'm sorry. When I started this story, I never really took it seriously. At the end of the day, it's just a Persona series fan fiction, right?

Well, now is not the case. First of all, english is not my mother tongue, that will explain A LOT of the mistakes throughout this thing. I wanted to step away a bit, try to practice and better my english skills. Honestly, I can't say I'm fully prepared, but I'll never be able to become great at this if I never write anything. So this is a message. I'm still here, and I haven't abandoned this fic. I can't promise I'll update weekly, but I'll do my best. I will actually modify the chapters that were already uploaded. I just wish I had this motivation two years ago before P5R was announced, because I know EVERYTHING will change after that. But oh well, when the time comes I'll make the necessary changes.

Thank you,

JRRF~