"Ah!"Sawa clutched her ears. "I told you, I never want to hear that word again!"
"But I did get the shortest infiltration route and the password to the secure vault," she added, trying to redeem herself.
War Rabbit gave her a thumbs-up, then turned to Misora."Misora, this is the twentieth Full Bottle—the last one. Please purify it."
The Next Morning — Outside Namba Heavy Industries' Storage Facility
Standing on a ridge overlooking the facility, Ryuga and War Rabbit observed the heavily guarded compound.
"That's it. Now how do we sneak in?" War Rabbit asked.
Ryuga's lips curled into a grin. "You ever heard the assassin hierarchy?"
"Huh? What does that have to do with—"
"Third-rate assassin: kills the target.Second-rate assassin: kills everyone who sees the target.First-rate assassin: kills everyone he sees."
"So we kill everyone we see—it's foolproof infiltration!"
"…How long would that even take? By then, Pandora's Box will already be on a bullet train to god-knows-where!" War Rabbit deadpanned.
Without another word, he transformed and walked straight toward the front gate.
Ryuga stared. "Oi! You have no idea what sneak means, do you?! And how is the front gate 'shortest route'?!"
"I… found it!" War Rabbit suddenly exclaimed.
"You just changed the subject!!"
War Rabbit began entering the password at the vault door.
Beep! ERROR!
"What?! It's wrong?" He frowned and tried again, but before he could press another key, the door opened—on its own.
Inside, they saw a familiar figure leaning casually on the pedestal that held Pandora's Box.
"Did that so-called spy not tell you the code changes every three hours?" Stalk grinned beneath his mask.
"…You opened the door just to mock us?" Ryuga muttered.
"No thanks needed. Playing with you two is part of my job," Stalk replied, tapping Pandora's Box affectionately.
"Zhantu, go!" Ryuga said with a wave.
"On it!" War Rabbit charged forward, but after a few steps, turned around and glared. "Why aren't you helping?!"
"I thought you wanted to test your theory? If I joined, you wouldn't get the chance," Ryuga said with a shrug.
"…Every time! I feel like I'm always being played!"
To which Ryuga—if he could read minds—would have shouted, "Bro, it's the villain who's trolling you!"
Stalk, for his part, looked mildly annoyed.Why do these clowns keep underestimating me? Have I been going too easy on them?
"You're wasting time. I've already seen through all your moves," Stalk taunted. "Why not come at me together?"
"No need!" War Rabbit grinned and pulled out two brand-new Full Bottles.
[Octopus! Light!][Best Match!][Are you ready?]"Build up!"[Lightning Technician! Octopus-Light!]"YEAH~!"
Stalk's face twitched. "Octopus?!"
Unbeknownst to most, due to a certain villain from the K franchise, he absolutely hated anything with too many legs.
A blinding flash erupted from War Rabbit's left shoulder, stunning Stalk's titanium-alloy snake eyes. Rabbit took the opening and began hammering him with relentless strikes.
Every time Stalk showed signs of recovery, FLASH!—more light.
Just as he began adjusting, War Rabbit switched tactics.Several tentacles extended from his armor and slammed Stalk back and forth against the walls like a ragdoll.
[Ready? Go!][Vortex Finish!]"YEAH~!"
War Rabbit landed a finishing blow, sending Stalk sprawling to the ground. Smoke hissed from his armor. It looked like a win…
…but the transformation remained.
In the world of Riders, that meant only one thing: the damage hadn't breached the threshold to break his form.
Stalk chuckled, leaning against the wall. "Didn't expect you to hide a trick like that."
He stood up slowly. "But thanks. Now that the Full Bottles are all fully purified… my goal is complete."
And with that, he vanished in a puff of smoke.
Back at Nascita Café – That Evening
"Oh? Pandora's Box is back?! That's incredible!"The café owner, returning from his "job," wore a perfect expression of surprise.
The rest? Busy devouring a luxurious meal.
Misora ignored him—busy chewing.
War Rabbit and Ryuga exchanged silent thoughts:Let's just watch you pretend.
"What's going on with this extravagant dinner?!" the boss asked, stunned at the high-end spread on the table.
"Bought it with store funds~" Ryuga grinned.
War Rabbit and Misora chimed in: "Thanks for the treat!"
"YOU WHAT?!" the boss exploded. "I slave over bitter coffee, and you rob me blind?! I should just destroy the earth already!"
"Come now, don't be salty. We're celebrating," Ryuga said, pulling out bottles of beer. "We drink till we drop tonight!"
The alcohol wasn't strong—but it didn't need to be. Ryuga's real plan was simple:Get Misora drunk enough to not wake up when the scheming starts later.
The boss—unable to resist a drink—joined in. Soon, Misora fell asleep, War Rabbit pretended to pass out, and Ryuga followed suit after his third drink.
What happened next… was textbook Evolto.
He didn't strike immediately. First, he gently carried Misora to bed, then laid out blankets for the "drunk" War Rabbit and Ryuga. Finally, he cleaned up the entire dinner mess.
Only when everything was in order… did he act.
Quietly, he retrieved the silver Full Bottle and Pandora's Box, then slipped out into the night without a sound.
From his "bed," Ryuga sighed internally.Mr. E really is committed to his role. Cleaning up before betrayal? No wonder people like him, even knowing he's a sociopathic alien. Half of his redemption arc wrote itself…
Meanwhile, War Rabbit had already stirred and was following at a distance—slowly, carefully, purposefully.
As for Ryuga?
Midnight chase? Shadowing an alien overlord? No thanks.
He turned on his side, hugging his pillow.
Rather dream of my 2D waifu than deal with boss-level nonsense.