"The Magician"

On the second day after arriving in this world, Tangze successfully got the contact information for Sonoko Suzuki, Ran Mouri, and even Edogawa Conan.

Amid Conan's string of overt and subtle hints like, "Uncle Mori is a private detective," and "High school students are still minors," Tangze knowingly accepted the goodwill that said he could come to them if he had any unspeakable troubles.

Anyway, he wasn't the one whose reputation was getting wrecked.

Conan was now looking at Tooru Amuro like he was human trash, but Tangze's conscience did not hurt at all.

Fake liquor was still liquor. It was a good thing if Conan stayed far away from him for now.

Tangze remembered that early Conan had truly terrible acting skills. It felt like Ran Mouri could suspect him five times in three days.

He had better not blow his cover at Bourbon's place at lightning speed.

After seeing off the Shinigami Squad, Tangze hurriedly rehearsed the upcoming conversation in his head.

The groundwork was already complete. If Bourbon could resist coming to probe him now, then he would not be Bourbon. A grand performance was inevitable.

As it happened, Tangze also had something he needed Tooru Amuro's help testing.

"Your dinner."

Tooru Amuro set a plate of seafood pasta in front of the daydreaming Tangze, then placed a cup of hot cocoa beside his hand.

Tangze, who had not heard any footsteps at all, jumped in surprise without any guard up. After steadying himself, he thanked him. While marveling that an undercover agent's professional skills were indeed exceptional, he did not forget to decline politely. "Thank you, but I can actually do it myself..."

"The boss said the shop would cover your food and lodging. Your parents should have already paid for it, so don't worry." The double-salaried undercover agent, who claimed expenses from multiple organizations, lied with his eyes open and prepared to charge every receipt to the Organization for as much reimbursement as possible. "Also, you can use the kitchen whenever you want. Don't keep eating cold rice balls. It's not good for your health."

Tangze froze just as he poked his chopsticks into the pasta.

So you really did install surveillance equipment in a minor's room? Where was the Public Security's moral bottom line?

"Ah, sorry." Tangze slowly picked up a bundle of pasta, recalling another possibility as he lowered his voice. "Did Miss Enomoto tell you?"

Tooru Amuro, who had not actually installed any surveillance devices, had a perfectly lively conscience. He nodded. "She said she made sandwiches for you this morning, but you ate two rice balls and went to school instead. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, Tangze."

Tangze first stuffed a roll of pasta into his mouth, then answered after swallowing. "I understand."

"How does it taste? My cooking's not bad, right?" Tooru Amuro smiled as he poked Tangze's head, which was practically buried in the plate. He guessed Tangze would choke on the noodles the next second, or freeze stiff like a startled rabbit.

Why was Tangze so afraid of him? Tooru Amuro, who believed he had acted like a considerate older brother from the moment they met, could not stop speculating.

Had he been violently treated during the case interrogation? Or had someone threatened and warned him before he came to Tokyo?

Sure enough, upon learning that Tooru Amuro had made the pasta, Tangze even stopped chewing. He looked up at him in astonishment.

But what Tangze was actually grumbling about inside was: Why are you poking my head again? Does my head really look that nice to touch?

Tangze shifted his gaze away speechlessly. "It's delicious. Thank you."

To be fair, Tooru Amuro's cooking really was excellent. The pasta was tender yet springy, and with the fish roe poured over it, it was even more fragrant and delightfully chewy. The king of part-time jobs only got every job through genuine skill.

Tangze picked up another bundle of pasta.

"I'm glad you like it. Actually, you don't need to use so much polite language with me. Am I really that scary? You always seem worried about making me unhappy. My temper isn't that bad, so don't be afraid. We'll be living together for a long time." Tooru Amuro gently brought up the matter.

Of course, he had noticed Conan's wary look that said, "I've discovered you're a bad guy."

Although Bourbon was indeed not a good person, Furuya Rei was indeed not a bad person. There was no reason Tangze should be wary of his harmless approach.

Tooru Amuro decided to first rule out the possibility that Tangze had noticed the Organization's surveillance. If Tangze's restraint came from believing Tooru Amuro was dangerous, then he needed to consider the possibility that "Tang Ze Zhao clearly knows the Organization is persecuting him."

Tangze smoothly caught the hidden probing in his words and decided to blame it on the original owner's experience of being abandoned by everyone. Although Tangze did not know much about it, Tooru Amuro definitely did. So he gave a bitter laugh. "I didn't mean anything against you. I'm sorry. I just... don't know how to..."

He put on an expression of sorrow as if he had recalled something painful, hesitating to speak, then stopping after starting. Everything was left unspoken.

In short, those who understood, understood. It was up to him to fill in the blanks.

Tooru Amuro, whose imagination was highly developed, understood after a moment's thought.

After the case occurred, Tang Ze Zhao's school expulsion notice had been publicly posted, and rumors later spread that he had beaten someone into serious injury, committed manslaughter while drunk, or sexually harassed a middle school student and caused a death.

Someone had deliberately destroyed Tang Ze Zhao's former social connections, with remarkable results.

His classmates and neighbors avoided him like the plague. Insulting words were spray-painted on his front door, and his personal belongings in the school locker were maliciously destroyed.

It was precisely because Tang Ze Zhao could no longer live properly in his original environment that he had been transferred to Tokyo.

What an incredibly unlucky, pitiful child. Tooru Amuro sighed, his attitude becoming gentler. "Do you think I'll treat you badly because of your record? Someone bullied you, didn't they?"

Tangze responded with silence.

Tooru Amuro's words made him recall more memories from the original owner.

The child curled up under his blanket, covering his ears tightly, but he could not stop the phone notifications from piercing through one after another.

He knew perfectly well what they were.

At first, they had been questions and concern. Later came doubt and rejection. Now, his SNS and email contained nothing but messages like "murderer" and "go die." The friendship of classmates who had once been kind to him seemed to have been entirely forgotten.

His gradual silence had not calmed the situation. Everything only grew worse. Someone edited his photo into black and white, stamped it with the words "murderer," and posted it online. Then even strangers who had never met him began passing judgment on him.

He became like a startled bird, desperately avoiding everyone's eyes, because every person walking down the street seemed to be stabbing him with hate-filled gazes.

He had had enough.

Grabbing the noisy phone beside his pillow, Tang Ze Zhao hurled it away with all his strength.

"Wouldn't you, Mr. Amuro?"

Tangze took a deep breath and asked in an even tone, but tears were sliding down his cheeks one drop at a time.

Damn it, everyone who cyberbullies people deserves to die.

Damn it, I'm about to lose it. Suddenly bursting into tears would be embarrassing.

Because of his experiences in his previous life, Tangze was a special talent with excellent emotional control and natural acting skills. But now, his tear ducts seemed no longer to belong to him. The sorrow and pain from "Tang Ze Zhao" battered him, and even with all his strength, he could only keep himself from letting out aggrieved sobs.

This was the grievance and despair that a teenage soul found difficult to let go of. Pure emotion crashed against Tangze's heart like waves, leaving him unable to withstand it.

Tangze was fighting his collapsing emotions, but in Tooru Amuro's eyes, his suddenly lifeless gaze and the silent stream of tears were immensely convincing. He looked weak, pitiful, and helpless.

"Of course not. Wipe your face. Your tears are about to fall into the pasta." Unable to bear it, Tooru Amuro turned his head away, grabbed a towel at hand, and pressed it over Tangze's face to hide it. "I'm your guardian now. I'll protect you."

Tangze's tears were still pouring out, but his heart had already calmed down. Hearing Tooru Amuro's words, something stirred within him. It seemed there was an opening.

"Really?" Tangze said in a muffled voice, his face covered by the damp towel.

"I'm not someone who deceives children. You can trust me a little more." Tooru Amuro patted Tangze's head. "I'll fulfill my responsibilities as your guardian. That's a promise from an adult."

What did Bourbon's bad intentions have to do with Furuya Rei?

The undercover gentleman, with a clear conscience, made the promise without hesitation.

"...Okay." Tangze took the towel and roughly wiped his face, protesting in a muffled voice from behind it. "So stop touching my head whenever you feel like it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound Tangze had been waiting for arrived right on cue.

Lavenza's magnetic voice rang out beside his ear.

"I am thou... thou art I..."

"Here, thou hast obtained a new bond."

"The bond is called..."

"The wings of freedom that break shackles."

"I, born from the mask of The Magician, receive the winds of blessing."

"To lend further aid as thou soarest toward the end..."

An interface appeared before Tangze.

cooperation Tooru Amuro(?)

Arcana: The Magician rank 1

Truth and lies, illusion and reality. Beneath layer upon layer of masks, someone smiles at you, just as you do beneath your own layers of masks. To see through truth and sincerity requires wisdom, earnestness, and perhaps... a flexible moral bottom line?

The mille-feuille cooking contest is about to begin. Ready, go!

Learned ability: *Free Fighting*

The original draft had been intended to use the Justice card, but after researching for a long time, The Magician seemed more fitting. After all, The Magician was the guiding Arcana for protagonists in the Persona series, and usually represented their first male friend too, so it was best not to violate tradition.

...Also, while researching, I discovered that the Magician Arcana in the Persona series carried traits like "hopeless love." That would be a little inauspicious to give someone else, so it could go to the king of part-time jobs, whose first love was indeed gone. Very fitting.

Incidentally, P5's contract lines actually sounded pretty cool when spoken aloud. "Ware wa nanji, nanji wa ware." Sadly, the Chinese translation might not quite capture the feeling. You can look up a clip if you want; it's really cool.