Kamen Rider Brave bravely swung his holy sword toward the enemy. The blade was burning with a holy flame, majestic and formidable, like a hero challenging the Final Boss.
Then, he was hammered away by Parado, with both man and sword flying from a single punch.
"What, is he really that strong?!" Exclaimed Elena in astonishment, seeing Brave's Rider Gauge instantly bottom out.
Parado raised both hands and laughed: "My level is Level 50. Right now, you are not even on the same level as me.
Not to mention, you've already been through a tough battle, and your Rider Gauge has been depleted quite a bit."
"So what if you're Level 50? This isn't a PK in a game, where a high level guarantees victory," Tony scoffed, unconvinced.
"Even in a character duel within a game, a higher level only means a certain advantage, it doesn't mean an inevitable victory."
As he spoke, he raised his hand and cranked the particle energy cannon to maximum output, firing at Parado.
Parado casually raised his right hand, easily shrugging off the energy beam. He then charged his left hand, launching an energy punch, burning like fire, towards Tony.
Tony immediately maneuvered the Iron Man suit to dodge the attack, then activated the missile system, preparing to fire live rounds.
Parado, however, picked up the Dual Gashat on his waist and rotated its cover.
"Perfect Puzzle."
"Dual Up! Get the glory in the chain! Perfect Puzzle!"
His head rotated 180 degrees, the pattern on his chest changed, and the gauntlets on his hands detached, rising to his shoulders to become shoulder pads. His entire body transformed from the previous fiery red to blue.
He waved his hands like a conductor, and a puzzle-like energy wall appeared in front of him, blocking the multitude of energy bullets Elena had seized the opportunity to fire.
It even reflected them back, destroying the missiles Tony had launched.
"What's going on? He can change into different forms and possess different abilities," Tony gasped.
"One Gashat, two games simultaneously?" Dan asked, clarifying the situation just in time.
"That's right, my Gashat has two Level 50 games: Perfect Puzzle and Knock Out Fighter," Parado stated proudly.
He waved his hand, manipulating the puzzle pieces in front of him. After forming a complete pattern, a humanoid energy body stepped out, launching a punch at Elena.
Elena opened fire with full power, but the strength difference was too great; her attacks posed no obstruction to the energy body.
She tried to evade the attack but didn't anticipate that the energy body could freely disassemble, separating its form into several parts to attack from different directions.
A series of "Hit" splash screen effects flared up.
The Shooter was directly knocked down.
"Your Rider Gauges are at rock bottom. You can't fight any further. If your Rider Gauges empty, you will both be in mortal danger," Dan Kuroto said to Elena and Li Hua, who were attempting to get back up to fight.
"That's right, you two better stay put. Kamen Riders are rare characters in the game, and if you just disappear so easily, won't the future games lose a lot of fun?" Parado commented, his tone suggesting he was not yet satisfied.
"It looks like we can only rely on Ex-Aid's special ability," Li Hua said with a grave tone.
"I didn't come here to finish you off," Parado said, waving his hand just as he was about to face Dan Kuroto, indicating he didn't want to continue the fight.
"Mr. Dan Kuroto, you are the game designer, and I truly don't want anything to happen to you, so let's call this battle off for now."
He then pulled out the Buggle Driver and fired a beam of light particles, enveloping the two Bugster hybrid bodies.
The Bugster Monsters were separated, leaving two patients infected with the Bugster Virus lying on the ground.
"Buggle Driver, how do you have that?" The surprise in Dan Kuroto's voice was audible to everyone present.
Parado raised his hand, showing off the Buggle Driver: "You do know this thing, as expected. I got this from someone who claimed to be from Foundation X. Oh, and he also gave me an interesting toy, which seems to make the game even more fun."
He then pulled out another Game Gashat.
"That is... Proto Mighty Action X!"
"Except for the color, it seems completely identical to the Gashat Dan is using," Tony concluded after comparing the Gashat in Parado's hand.
"A Driver and a Game Gashat. Does this Parado intend to transform with these two items? But hasn't he already used a Game Gashat?" Elena asked, puzzled by the speculation.
Parado smiled noncommittally at her words and pressed the button on the Gashat in his hand.
"Mighty Action X."
The Proto Mighty Action X lit up with a purple glow. The Mighty Action X Gashat in the Gamer Driver on Dan Kuroto's waist also reacted and began to glow.
Parado released the Gashat in his hand. The Proto Mighty Action X Gashat flew directly towards Dan Kuroto, like two opposing magnetic poles attracting each other, and automatically inserted itself into the Gamer Driver's Gashat Slot.
Then, two different colors of light burst forth from both sides of Ex-Aid's body, and Dan Kuroto let out a painful roar.
Finally, the Proto Mighty Action X Gashat, trailing the purple light, ejected from the Gamer Driver.
The purple light converged into a humanoid shape, which rapidly solidified, becoming a person who bore a seventy-percent resemblance to Dan Kuroto.
"What's going on? A magic trick?" Elena exclaimed in utter amazement.
Parado tossed the Buggle Driver to the figure and asked with a smile: "What should we call you? Bugster Dan Kuroto? Dan Kuroto No. 2?"
The figure, holding the Proto Mighty Action X and receiving the Buggle Driver, looked up and laughed heartily: "From now on, I am the administrator of the game, a God who controls the game. You may call me Genm."
He placed the Buggle Driver on his waist, inserted the Game Gashat into the Buggle Driver, and transformed.
"Gashat! Let's game! Metcha game! Mutcha game! What's your name? I'm a Kamen Rider!"
"Gachan! Level up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Migh~ty Actio~n X!"
Kamen Rider Genm made his appearance!
Genm was naturally an alias designed by Dan Kuroto, a clone created using the Bugster Virus, or what could be called an external avatar, used to cause trouble under a new identity.
"Well, he seems like an arrogant guy, but as long as he can create more games and bring me fun and exciting gaming experiences, nothing else matters," Parado said casually.
Genm spoke with supreme self-satisfaction: "Don't worry about that, I will certainly create the best and most interesting games. And manufacture the strongest Game Gashats."
"Then let's go. Let me witness your abilities," Parado said, de-transforming and smiling.
"It looks like things are getting more complicated. What is this Genm all about? What exactly is the goal of Foundation X? Is there any way to save these two patients?"
After Parado and Genm left, dissolving into light particles with the two Bugster hybrids, Tony examined the two infected individuals and asked Dan Kuroto.
"Generally speaking, if the separated Bugster Monster cannot be eliminated, a regular infected person will eventually be completely eroded by the virus and disappear from the world. However, Parado separated the Bugster Monsters using the Buggle Driver, so the situation might be a little different. We need a thorough examination to know for sure.
As for Foundation X, there is very little information we can find about them—almost none. Who knows what their true purpose is?" Dan spoke with a hint of helplessness.
"That guy who calls himself Genm, the one who separated from your body, doesn't seem like a good person either."
"Boss, are you alright? This Genm also seems to have been born from the Bugster Virus. Will you end up like those patients infected with the Bugster Virus?" Li Hua asked with concern.
"I'm fine. I haven't been infected with the Bugster Virus. The Gamer Driver provides a protective function," Dan Kuroto shook his head.
"We should leave here first. The military is approaching. Let's discuss everything back at the base," Elena said, observing movement in the distance.
Watching the empty ground after the light of the teleportation array faded, Tony cursed under his breath, forced to fly back to the villa on his own.
By the time the military personnel and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents arrived, all they could see was the contrail of the Iron Man suit streaking across the sky.