History Recap / Persona5

When the team meets at the school, Lavenza informs the group that Maruki had somehow acquired his power on the same day of the fight against Yaldabaoth. With the power of the false god transferred to Maruki after the former's demise, he managed to begin his plan to alter reality into a utopia of happiness, and the entire country was under his influence by the time of New Years.\\\

The discovery catches every member off guard, lamenting that they had become but another group of indolent citizens rather than the tricksters that change the world. Lavenza also warns them that if they are unable to defeat Maruki at the designated time, Maruki will continue where Yaldaobath failed and merge Mementos and reality, and leaves the team to think about their strategy. Meanwhile, Sumire overhears the entire conversation, and considers what she should do to help...\\\

Thanks to the help he received from Ren, Maruki managed to provide sufficient evidence for his essay on cognitive research, and correctly deduced that Shido was behind the cancellation of the project, hoping to hold a monopoly on cognitive psience research. On 12/24, he confronted his professor about the issue, and the professor confirmed it. Maruki then declared that with this essay, he would use the cognitive research to guide society to a better future, and prevent tragedy from happening with his preventative therapy. The professor laughed at Maruki's overconfidence, not noticing that Maruki had awoken his Persona and Yaldaobath's power was bestowed upon him. Maruki only sneered, saying that he would let the results speak for themselves.\\\

It is a total victory against a man wielding the power of Yaldaobath, and without the support of the public. The Phantom Thieves have not only come out of their false illusions, but also gained new power to turn impossible odds into success. They have not only saved themselves, but also the rest of the society once again. Moreover, their effort have finally made Maruki realize his mistakes and stop his blind pursuit of happiness; he agrees to return to the real world and start over again.\\\

As for their caper in Sae's Palace: they never actually took her Treasure, allowing the Palace to remain...and with it, the cognitive police station nearby. It is here where Sae's cognitive duplicate of Ren, beaten and being interrogated, manifested in the Metaverse. That way, when Sae showed the cell phone to Akechi, Futaba, who had wiretapped the phone, could remotely trigger the Meta-Nav, unwittingly pulling Akechi into the Metaverse. He had actually carried out an assassination on a cognitive duplicate of Ren while the real Ren sat alone, unharmed, in the interrogation room in the real world after Sae left.\\\

The team is surprised about the news of Akechi's survival, but more relieved by his attempt to protect them and redeem himself. The group celebrates Christmas in Leblanc, and Kasumi later joins them on New Year's Eve. They also receive news of Shido''s trial and the revocation of Ren’s probation. The team can't imagined a better ending for their adventure as they celebrate the upcoming New Year.\\\

Sadly, Ren would have to return back to his hometown next month. The group decides to celebrate Morgana's return and make the most of Ren’s time left in Tokyo. Morgana also decides he would stay by Ren’s side when he returns home, in the hopes that sticking by his side would help him become human.\\\

When all hope seems lost, Mishima begins cheering for the Phantom Thieves. Mishima's act inspires the people of Tokyo, including everyone whose lives Ren touched, to cheer on the Phantom Thieves. Their belief in the Phantom Thieves becomes power in the cognitive world, power that Ren harnesses.\\\