บท 213: The Phantom Muse

Fumiko and Taichi caught up with Koji and Koi. They were sitting around a campfire late at night, with Yukio fast asleep and Kosuke's corpse lying off to the side. His body was gray. It cracked up and turned into a pile of ashes.

Fumiko was curled up near the fire. She seemed sad. "I'm sorry guys... I'm the one who started this. If I hadn't rushed into it..."

"Stop." Koi said sternly. "It's not your fault. We came here looking for a fight. It just so happened we were caught off guard."

Fumiko balled up tighter.

Taichi, back to his regular self, sighed slowly. He nudged Koji. "Tell... her."

Koji cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah. Fumiko. You're probably the second strongest in the Elite 12 now, behind Anzu. So by default, you're leading this mission. It's your call."

Fumiko buried her face in her arms even more. "We'll finish the mission. I'll kill the Phantom even if it kills me."