Clap clap—
"Anyway, Sudbina-kun, you still haven't told me your name."
Uika clapped her hands, interrupting Anon and Rikuo's conversation.
'I originally wanted to maintain etiquette and wait for them to finish speaking before asking. But it seems they have no intention of stopping…'
Rikuo wasn't annoyed by the interruption. He was now starting to suspect that Anon was also a transmigrator (she wasn't). How could a normal person have such a perfect conversation with him?
"My name is Kamiyama Rikuo."
"Kamiyama-san, is that right? I haven't seen you online recently."
"Emm, I've been quite busy lately, but things are mostly resolved now."
"Is that so?"
'Could it be that after Saki-chan asked me, she and Kamiyama-san have made up? It seems I helped Saki-chan.'
Uika thought this, but the process was completely wrong, and the result was completely right.
"Hmm, I'll probably have time around the day after tomorrow? When that happens, come with me to form a royal team! Call Tomo-sama too! With these three carries, Faker is in danger!"
"Tomo-sama?"
Tomori heard her name and showed a confused expression.
"A gaming friend, who plays Zed… no, who plays Master Yi very well."
"Oh? Is that so?"
After hearing Rikuo's explanation, Tomori also felt she was overthinking.
"Since we've greeted each other, I should take my leave. It wouldn't be good if fans recognized me."
"Uika! Can I take a picture with you?"
"Since you're Kamiyama-san's friend, of course."
Just as Uika was about to leave, her number one fan, Anon, clung to her. Uika, of course, wouldn't refuse such a small request. After the two took a selfie together, Uika left.
"Riku, your Anomaly information channel also relies on Nyamuchi, right? I saw it when I was browsing Nyamuchi's videos. When can you let me take a photo with Nyamuchi too? It feels like all the idols I like know Riku! Riku, you wouldn't happen to know Mana too, would you?"
"As for Nyamu, there will probably be an opportunity very soon, since Anomalies are becoming more and more frequent. As for Mana, to be honest, I know her, but she doesn't know me."
"Yay! Thank you, Riku! But if Mana is a one-sided acquaintance, isn't that the same for me? Then doesn't that mean we don't know each other?"
"What you said isn't wrong. I should also make a run for it. If the old man is cooking again at home, today will be ruined again. Tomori, I had a lot of fun today. Next time, I'll invite you to the aquarium too. I remember you should like it."
Tomori: "Yes, Rikuo-kun, I want to go."
Anon: "Riku, I want to go too!"
"Alright, alright, we'll all go next time."
Rikuo responded to the two, looking at the sky outside the window. An hour ago it was sunny, but now it was suddenly pouring rain.
"Uika was right, it really is raining."
...
Near Kichijoji train station.
The rain-soaked streets reflected the damp neon lights. Sakiko held a paper bag, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the mug inside. The paper bag was bought at a nearby convenience store; carrying a strange mug around would probably make her look like a weirdo.
"It's so strange for it to suddenly pour rain and for the trains to stop! It was sunny just an hour ago!"
Sakiko looked at the mug in the paper bag. The hand-painted blue octopus on the cup glowed with an eerie light under the streetlamp, as if its round eyes were watching her.
"I just feel like it has so much malice towards me!"
Sakiko sighed, looking up at the night sky washed clean by the rain. A few stars occasionally peeked through the clouds, reminding her of the Summer Triangle she saw last night when Rikuo walked her and Mutsumi out after they finished eating fried chicken.
That idiot actually called the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl an "ancient stalker's log," which made her so angry she almost splashed coffee on his head.
"Togawa-san?"
A trembling female voice came from the alleyway. Sakiko turned her head and saw Nagasaki Soyo's mother. Although she had only met her once at the first live performance, Sakiko still remembered her. Nagasaki Soyo's mother was sitting on the ground, vegetables from her shopping bag scattered everywhere.
But that wasn't the crucial part. What made her pupils constrict was a large Doberman slowly approaching the woman. No, it couldn't be called a dog. On its neck was a middle-aged man's face, its mouth stretched to its ears, revealing jagged fangs.
"Please, please run…!"
Mrs. Nagasaki's voice trembled.
The human-faced dog slowly turned its head, its neck emitting a grating "crunch, crunch" sound. The face, which belonged to the convenience store manager, pulled into a bizarre smile.
"Miss Togawa… your delivery order… hasn't been signed for yet…"
Sakiko's hand clenched the paper bag tightly. When she resigned last week, the manager did say that "someone would be sent to collect the uniform." But she didn't expect it to be in this form… Cold sweat trickled down her back. Sakiko was very clear about her current situation:
She had no combat experience, didn't understand how the transformation system worked, and didn't even know if this mug would explode.
"Togawa-san, Soyo often talks about you. You and Soyo are friends, aren't you? After I'm gone… I hope you can comfort Soyo well. Soyo has been away from her father since she was little, so she might have a bit of a temper. I saw Soyo's previous state, and it seems you two have a bit of a conflict now, but since you're friends, you'll definitely make up, right?"
"But…"
Mrs. Nagasaki stood up, wanting to block Sakiko. Mrs. Nagasaki didn't know that Sakiko and Soyo had already made up; she only knew that the other person was a friend her daughter cared about very much.
'I couldn't run away anyway. To be able to help Soyo and Togawa-san in the end feels pretty good. I guess I'm a competent mother, right? Even though I can't always be by Soyo's side…'
Sakiko looked at Mrs. Nagasaki, who, despite her terrified expression, still thought of protecting her. Sakiko remembered what Shima Noboru had said: to help Rikuo, one must become the salvation of others.
The paper bag was roughly torn open. The moment Sakiko took out the mug, a heart emblem suddenly appeared at the bottom of the cup, oozing blood-like liquid that glowed with an eerie light under the moonlight.
"The salvation I want to become is not just for Rikuo, but for everyone I care about around me!"
[Suitable candidate detected. Chalice, activating. Fusion coefficient???]
A cold, mechanical voice came out.
Sakiko instinctively inverted the mug onto her waist.
The mug disappeared, and a red heart-shaped belt, the Chalice Rouzer, appeared at Sakiko's waist. (The Chalice Rouzer appeared directly, without any card animation).
Sakiko took out the Ace of Hearts from her skirt pocket and swiped it across the center of the Chalice Rouzer. The moment the card passed, the entire street was engulfed in a red light.
Sakiko's figure was distorted by the black mist space spreading from the belt, and as the black mist dissipated like water vapor, Kamen Rider Chalice, with a main black color, golden accents, and a mantis-like figure, appeared.
"I can't save this world like Rikuo. But I can save the people I care about. If no one can save Rikuo, then let me become a god! Rikuo's personal god!"
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To Read Advanced Chapters, and support this novel, please join me on [email protected]/geats2000
(Note: Replace "@-" with "a" on your web browser.)