The Real Shadow Chizuru

It's just that due to various constraints in the real world, these dark aspects are not exposed to the world, and when those depressive emotions arise, they can be suppressed.

Even when alone, one can deceive oneself through certain self-suggestions.

Only in places like Impression Space, which directly and intuitively reveal people's hearts, can one truly feel what their deepest desires are.

Awakening one's Persona does not mean that one will no longer experience these pessimistic and self-destructive emotions and desires.

It can only be said that people who have awakened their Persona can confront their inner desires and are better able to control them than the average person.

For example, Sudo Ayami's personality actually has a rather strong self-destructive tendency.

If it weren't for the diary being obtained and the problem with her parents not being resolved, who knows what kind of ending this girl would have faced in the future.

However, because of the appearance of the diary and the change in her parents' hearts by the Impression Space, she was able to let go of her previous burdens and accept her own desires, thus awakening her Persona.

Ai Kisugi has always longed for her father's love and genuinely wants to find traces of him, and has been taking action to achieve this.

Or perhaps the Cat's Eye were all given certain settings when they were created, Ai Kisugi was also very clear about her own desires. After recognizing these desires, it was only natural that her Persona would awaken.

As for Chizuru Ichinose now.

Although Miyauchi Hiyage felt that the outfit must have some exaggerated elements, perhaps Chizuru Ichinose, dressed so provocatively, was indeed part of the other person's desires.

Moreover, within Miyauchi Hiyage's line of sight, this was not the only Chizuru Ichinose in the theater.

Seeing that Chizuru Ichinose was reluctant to admit that this shadow was a desire in her heart, Miyauchi Hiyage did not refute it.

He wanted to see if the theater and the maid Chizuru Ichinose would react in any way if Chizuru Ichinose said the key phrase from Persona Awakening in P4, "You are not me."

Unfortunately, even though Chizuru Ichinose clearly expressed this attitude, the scantily clad Shadow Chizuru did not make any special moves. Instead, she continued to enthusiastically introduce the situation inside the theater to the people who entered the theater.

"This is Chizuru's Mirror Theater. The performance tonight is about to begin. Please follow me to the stage, distinguished guests."

Despite having the ability to communicate, the Maid Chizuru's speech always sounds strangely stiff.

Chizuru Ichinose originally wanted to continue to extract some useful information from him, but whenever it came to information about the theater, he seemed to deliberately avoid talking about these issues, only wanting to take them to the stage.

"Why does this feel so strange?" Kasumigaoka Utaha frowned as she looked at the scantily clad Maid Chizuru, feeling that there was something incongruous about her.

The Maid Chizuru, who hadn't reacted much to the words "you are not me," seemed to react much more strongly to Kasumigaoka Utaha's words.

She quickly gave Kasumigaoka Utaha a somewhat polite smile, "Do you have any objections to my work? You are welcome to give me your guidance, and I will work harder to serve you."

Seeing the other party's reaction, Miyauchi Hiyage blinked, as if he had thought of some possibilities.

As expected, this Shadow Maid Chizuru isn't the real Shadow Chizuru.

Or rather, she was at most a part of the Shadow Chizuru, not the main body of the other party.

That's probably why the other person didn't change after hearing that keyword.

However, some of his ideas still need further verification.

So he nodded to the girls and said, "This Mirror Theater is obviously closely related to you, Ms. Ichinose. And since this Maid Chizuru, asked us to go to the stage, there's no point in us staying here any longer. Let's go with her and take a look."

As Miyauchi Hiyage said this, he looked at Kasumigaoka Utaha and Shinomiya Kaguya.

"If you're worried, you can wait for me here. After all, this place has nothing to do with you. I'm just interested in the reason for the existence of this world. If I can figure it out, it might be of great help to me in creating my own domain."

Before Shinomiya Kaguya could even speak after hearing Kasumigaoka Utaha Miyauchi Hiyage's words, Shinomiya Kaguya was the first to express her opinion.

"Then I'll continue to follow them."

Shinomiya Kaguya nodded. "After all, this is the first time we've come into contact with our own shadows. We don't know what the outcome will be, but if something like this happens again, we need to have some experience in dealing with it."

What if this "Temporary Palace" is a test for them to awaken their Persona, and they have to pass this test to awaken their Persona?

Shinomiya Kaguya's statement of her opinion spurred Kasumigaoka Utaha, who had been somewhat hesitant, to make up her mind.

Although her own water affinity is quite useful, Sudo Ayami Tomoe Gozen, is indeed quite charming, with all sorts of flashy abilities that make her somewhat looking forward to her own Persona.

Furthermore, Kasumigaoka Utaha is still struggling with the reason for the change in the attitude of the shadowy Maid Chizuru.

"Since it's a theater and there's a performance, this should be the best opportunity if that Shadow Chizuru is going to do something to us. I don't want to miss such a rare opportunity to experience it."

Although Kasumigaoka Utaha and Kishibe Rohan are not the same type of creators, this Temporary Palace is indeed a rare creative experience for her.

As for Chizuru Ichinose, she never had the right to refuse from the beginning.

After all, this palace was created because of her.

In the end, the five of them followed the scantily clad Maid Chizuru, deeper into the theater.

The theater's decor is not much different from the exterior; it is still full of various mirrors.

Without the guidance of the Maid Chizuru, they wouldn't have found their way forward so easily.

As for Miyauchi Hiyage, because of the strict guarding of the other girls, her gaze only swept over the Maid Chizuru a few times at the beginning, and then she kept her eyes on the mirrors in the theater.

After walking for about three or four minutes, they entered a more spacious area.

Although the area is still surrounded by various mirrors, it is clear that this should be the audience seating area below the stage.

"Alright, esteemed guests, I have brought you to the stage, and my mission is now complete. If you are satisfied with my service, please remember to write a positive review in the questionnaire later!"

This kind of behavior of asking for good reviews is not unusual, but Miyauchi Hiyage suddenly asked, "If I am not satisfied with your service and give you a bad review, what kind of punishment will you give me?"

As expected, the Maid Chizuru's expression wavered again at this moment.

She forced a smile and shook her head at Miyauchi Hiyage: "Guest, why would you think that way? If there's anything you're not satisfied with, please tell me now, and I'll correct it immediately."

"Or perhaps, would you like to enjoy some other service?"

Judging from her appearance, it seemed as if she would readily agree to any special request that Miyauchi Hiyage made to her.

Seeing the other person's obviously nervous appearance, Miyauchi Hiyage waved his hand, his suspicions becoming even more certain.

"Okay, I was just joking with you. Don't be so nervous. I'll give you a good review."

Upon receiving this reply, the Maid Chizuru breathed a sigh of relief, then respectfully bowed to the others before quietly leaving the theater.

However, this conversation between the other girl and Miyauchi Hiyage finally made the other girls notice the problem.

"Why does it seem like that 'Chizuru' is particularly concerned about our opinions of her? Is she really a shadow?"

Kasumigaoka Utaha said with a frown.

However, since the girls had not experienced much of the Mahito trauma, and this was their first time in a palace, they naturally did not know how to describe the situation of the Maid Chizuru.

Shinomiya Kaguya Kasumigaoka Utaha.

"That 'Chizuru' gave me the impression of being a waitress with little say. Is she really Chizuru's inner shadow? Such a humble shadow is a bit too strange."

In reality, it's one thing for most people to be submissive and hesitant, after all, it's for survival.

But deep down, they probably show a more assertive side.

But Chizuru wore revealing clothes, worked a lowly waitress job, and seemed willing to do anything just for a few good reviews.

"It's like... she'll lose her job if she doesn't do it."

Shinomiya Kaguya heiress of a wealthy family, offered this assessment.

Miyauchi Hiyage added, "It might not just be her job, but rather her perception of her own 'life'."

Seeing the girl's gaze directed at him, Miyauchi Hiyage gestured towards the stage.

"After all, there are quite a few different kinds of 'Chizuru' in this theater."

As Miyauchi Hiyage finished speaking, several figures of Chizuru Ichinose, dressed in completely different outfits, seemed to appear in the mirrors that served as the backdrop on the stage.

Several people, including Miyauchi Hiyage, didn't have any particular thoughts when they saw these decorations that looked like they were popular in the last century.

However, Chizuru Ichinose showed a shocked expression at the costumes and her appearance on stage.

"That's the outfit from 'A Thousand Cranes'!"

She could recognize the show they were performing on stage just by looking at their costumes.

That was her grandmother, an actress who was active in the 1970s and 80s and was best known for her films.

Even her name was influenced to some extent by this movie.

Similarly, it was because she accidentally saw her grandmother's work and learned the origin of her name that she, who was only in middle school at the time, decided that she would become an actress in the future.

Perhaps this idea was just a momentary impulse at the time, and maybe if she let it go for a while, she would gradually come to her senses.

But just as she shared her thoughts with her grandparents and received strong support from her grandfather, he was involved in a car accident and died shortly afterward.

It was from that time onward that the idea of becoming an actress truly became her greatest obsession.

For her sick and hospitalized grandmother, and for her grandfather who still held onto hope for her future before he died, she was determined to become a real actress no matter what!

Chapter 309: The True Shadow Chizuru

Chizuru Ichinose is indeed very familiar with the old film "A Thousand Cranes" which is half a century old.

Because she and her grandmother looked very similar when they were young, she had privately imitated and learned her grandmother's acting style more than once.

Under her grandmother's tutelage, Chizuru Ichinose quickly noticed her talent for acting.

Unfortunately, his grandmother had retired from the entertainment industry more than 40 years ago, so her connections from back then were obviously no longer of any use, leaving Chizuru Ichinose to find audition opportunities on her own.

In short, Chizuru Ichinose didn't need the performances of the "selves" on stage to recreate more than 80% of the lines and actions in this movie on her own.

She memorized every line and every action of her grandmother's scenes.

However, as the drama on stage began, the girls offstage quickly noticed the problems with "Chizuru Ichinose" in these performances.

"Apart from the actress who plays the female lead, 'Chizuru,' the acting of the other actresses who play Chizuru doesn't seem very good, does it?"

Akimi Sudo expressed her opinion frankly.

The actress who played the female lead, Chizuru, did have pretty good acting skills. Although she was a bit green, her performance didn't feel too awkward.

However, the performances of the other roles seemed rather stiff. Even the laymen in the audience could sense how rushed the actors' acting was.

Chizuru Ichinose to the side, also expressed her embarrassment, suggesting that perhaps it was her fault.

She aspired to be an actress like her grandmother, so naturally she focused more of her energy on the role of her grandmother.

Although I am quite familiar with the lines of other characters, and I also study other types of roles when I am taking extra classes at drama school, my performance is naturally not as natural as that of the female lead.

Even if she did inherit her grandmother's good genes and acting talent, with little experience, if she were to stand on stage now and play other roles in A Thousand Cranes, she would probably only be worse than those "herself" on stage.

"So, are all these 'me's' just my own shadows? Can one person create so many shadows?" Chizuru Ichinose couldn't help but have this thought as she watched herself on stage and saw that the habits she displayed during the performance were exactly the same as her own.

At this point, Miyauchi Hiyage shook his head and expressed his opinion.

"These are indeed shadows, but they are definitely not the shadow in your heart."

Several girls focused their attention on Miyauchi Hiyage.

Chizuru Ichinose then pointed out the similarities between her acting habits and these "shadows," suggesting that she has some authority to speak on these habits.

"You mean, only one of the shadows here is real, and the rest are illusions?"

If that's the case, then she'd rather her real shadow be the leading lady who gave the best performance.

Miyauchi Hiyage was referring to the Chizuru Ichinose, who were dressed in different costumes and postures and were putting on a great performance on stage.

"What I mean is, these should all be characters created by that Shadow Chizuru based on her own self-perception. When the Maid Chizuru introduced this place, didn't she mention the name 'Lady Chizuru'? I think the owner of this theater should be your true shadow, and these 'you' are just fragments she created according to her own ideas."

"Look at them, they're all doing what they've been assigned. That maid seems very concerned about whether her performance will gain our approval. If we show dissatisfaction with Chizuru, who is a maid, perhaps her fate is to be sent back to the furnace and reworked by the real Chizuru Shadow."

As she said this, Miyauchi Hiyage pointed to the mirrors scattered around the Mirror Space, then turned to look at Chizuru Ichinose.

"Kaguya has told me about you in a simple way. Your original dream was to follow in your grandmother's footsteps and fulfill your grandfather's wish to become an actress."

He then pointed to his eyes.

"I can also see some revelations about the future through my eyes. Although they may not be accurate, I think it is your obsession and inner turmoil that led to the creation of this Mirror Theater."

Listening to Miyauchi Hiyage's explanation, Ichinose Chi rubbed her hair.

It's clear that she's unwilling to admit that her dream of becoming an actress is turning into an obsession.

However, her grandfather's support and death became a burden on her, preventing her from thinking about any other future after being admitted to university.

"No, you must have considered other possibilities," Miyauchi Hiyage shook his head, pointing out the contradictions in Chizuru Ichinose's daily life.

If she really wanted to debut as an actress, then why did she hide her best side in college and even sneak away to drama school tutoring, as if she was afraid that others would discover her dream of becoming an actress?

She hasn't yet become a rented girlfriend, a secret identity that sounds a bit ambiguous and isn't suitable to be revealed.

It can only be said that Chizuru Ichinose herself hasn't decided how to take the first step yet.