On the highway to Tokyo.
"Togawa-san must be joking, right? First time riding a motorcycle and all..."
Mrs. Nagasaki's voice was trembling.
"No, Nagasaki-san, it really is my first time riding a motorcycle. But I've ridden electric bikes, so it's fine! Besides, the Shadow Chaser can drive itself."
Hearing Sakiko's reply, Mrs. Nagasaki calmed down.
"Togawa-san, did you leave the band because you were going to become a Kamen Rider?"
"Ah? No, Nagasaki-san, you misunderstood. These aren't events that happened on the same timeline. Also, Soyo and I have already made up. As for becoming a Kamen Rider, I did it because I wanted to help someone I care about. Also, Nagasaki-san, you can just call me Sakiko."
"Is that so? It seems I haven't cared enough about Soyo. So, has the matter already passed?"
Mrs. Nagasaki didn't ask who Sakiko cared about; she understood a girl's feelings.
"Sakiko-chan, this request might be a bit much. But there are so many Anomalies now, could I ask you to protect Soyo a bit more? If compensation is needed, I can also..."
"Nagasaki-san, if Soyo is in danger, I will certainly protect her. However, with him around, there shouldn't be any problems."
"Him?"
Mrs. Nagasaki thought for a moment; it seemed the only male around Soyo was Rikuo.
"Is it Rikuo-kun? Could it be that he is Kamen Rider Blade?"
"It seems there really aren't any other males around Soyo. I accidentally exposed Rikuo's identity. But Nagasaki-san, please don't tell anyone our identities. It's best not to even tell Soyo."
Sakiko didn't dwell much on exposing Rikuo's identity to Mrs. Nagasaki, after all, Soyo already knew.
"Then, the person Sakiko-chan cares about must be Rikuo-kun, right?"
Mrs. Nagasaki asked tentatively. But Sakiko replied with great certainty.
"Yes, Nagasaki-san, the person I like is Rikuo."
Although Mrs. Nagasaki couldn't see Sakiko's face, she could hear the determination in the girl's voice and could imagine the smile on her face.
'Ah, it seems Soyo's first romance has already lost before it even began.'
...
Higashi-Ikebukuro Central Park.
"Nagasaki-san, I can only drop you off here. Other places might attract a crowd."
"Here is fine. The rain has also lessened now. I'll just take a taxi home. Thank you so much, Sakiko-chan, for today."
Sakiko glanced at her phone and saw it was already 19:40, with many missed calls.
"It's almost 8 PM! Rikuo must be getting suspicious! I need to get back quickly! See you next time, Nagasaki-san."
Sakiko didn't wait for Mrs. Nagasaki's response and drove away on the Shadow Chaser. Mrs. Nagasaki didn't mind, called a taxi, and returned home.
...
A duplex high-rise overlooking the sea.
"Soyo-chan, Mama's home! Mama missed you so much! I almost didn't get to see you!"
Mrs. Nagasaki opened the door and saw Soyo waiting for her in the entryway.
"Mama. What are you talking about? Didn't you say you were coming home from work today, buying groceries, and then we'd have dinner together? Why are you back so late? Did you encounter danger?"
Soyo scrutinized her mother from head to toe, noticing her mother's stockings were torn on her lower leg, with some minor scrapes.
She quickly went to the living room to get the first-aid kit, disinfected her mother's wounds, and put on a band-aid.
"Mama, what happened to you? Was it an Anomaly?"
"I did encounter an Anomaly. It was a dog Anomaly with two heads. It scared Mama so much I couldn't move."
"But today Ri... wasn't he at the planetarium? How did Mama..."
Soyo wanted to say that Rikuo was with Tomori to watch the stars today, so he shouldn't have had a chance to save her mother, but she didn't dare to speak out, fearing that all of this was false. Mama already...
"Soyo-chan, you mean Kamen Rider Blade, he's probably Rikuo-kun, right? It's true that Blade didn't save me today; it was another Kamen Rider. His name is Chalice."
To help Sakiko conceal her identity, Mrs. Nagasaki chose to use a male pronoun.
"Mama already knows? But, another Kamen Rider? Shouldn't there only be Rikuo as Kamen Rider? Anyway, we still need to thank Mr. Chalice properly."
Watching Soyo seriously and earnestly refer to her female friend as 'Mr.', Mrs. Nagasaki couldn't help but laugh.
"What are you laughing at, Mama? We really should thank Mr. Chalice properly!"
"Nothing, Chalice is indeed a good person. Let's eat first, Mama is starving, and I'm really looking forward to Soyo-chan's dinner."
"Okay, but since Mama said she was buying groceries, I haven't started preparing dinner yet."
"That's fine too. For a change, let's make dinner together tonight, mother and daughter."
Mrs. Nagasaki didn't mention anything about Sakiko again. Watching Soyo turn to prepare dinner, she quietly sighed.
'Soyo-chan also cares a lot about Rikuo-kun, but Sakiko-chan is so brave and confident... I hope Soyo-chan won't be too sad then...'
...
19:57, in front of the apartment.
Sakiko held a disposable umbrella in one hand and a mug in the other, jogging towards the apartment.
"Oh dear! Why did I tear up the paper bag then! Carrying this mug with its bad taste all the way here, I feel like I've attracted a lot of ill-intentioned stares."
Sakiko felt that carrying this mug was like inviting others to comment.
'This angry blue octopus, is it really hinting at me?'
"Yo, Sakiko-sensei, you're back quite early!"
Sakiko approached the apartment and found Rikuo and Mutsumi standing at the door.
"Saki, wet."
This was Mutsumi saying Sakiko got wet, and those who misunderstood should go stand outside as punishment.
"Rikuo, Mutsumi... are you both waiting for me?"
Sakiko put her left hand holding the mug behind her back, lowered her head slightly, and replied a little awkwardly.
"Didn't you say yourself that we should all eat together? Sakiko-sensei, your boomerang skills haven't declined."
"Saki, wipe."
'I want to wipe too.'
Mutsumi carefully wiped the rain from Sakiko's blue hair with a towel. Sakiko didn't resist, letting Mutsumi wipe.
"Anyway, let's eat first. Today, I'll let you taste the true cuisine. What Kiyotsugu made yesterday was practically raping my taste buds and brain!"
Rikuo took off his jacket, draped it over Sakiko, opened the apartment door, and gestured for them to enter.
"Okay."
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