In his defense, "what the hell, kid" seemed largely rhetorical. Where did this guy want him to begin? ... Likely with the Evoker, but the jury was out where this Persona-user had come from, and what his intentions were. It's better to avoid answering questions that would expose his friends until he knew better what his motives were. That's a lesson hard earned.

Even if he was supposed to be dead. Honestly, it's Shinjiro who felt like he's owed an explanation.

"Phantom Thieves?" Shinjiro muttered, less a question, more confirming they weren't just not on the same page - they seemed to be reading from entirely different books. He confirmed with a nod, "Yeah. Nothing like what I know."

"You want to know what year it is," Shinjiro said bluntly. Like they're in a time travel film? He snorted. "Sure. It's 2009."

And he should be dead. Maybe time travel didn't seem to far fetched. "There's no getting out - we just got to wait until the Dark Hour ends. You - from the past, or the future? You've got a Persona - you'd be aware of the Dark Hour already if you've been around the last ten years."

Well, since he was awakened to it. Before then, he might not have, or barely remembered it.