Osada Yuka

"STANDING BY"

"COMPLETE"

A flash of crimson light erupted, and Takumi Inui was once again forced to Henshin into Kamen Rider Faiz, immediately charging at the Voi Orphnoch.

The two sides exchanged powerful blows. After only a few rounds, Takumi Inui gained the upper hand, sending the Voi Orphnoch flying.

Lowering himself again, Takumi Inui charged, a side kick sending the Voi Orphnoch crashing into a pile of debris.

The pile of debris collapsed, burying the Voi Orphnoch.

Takumi Inui, seeing this, thought he had dealt with it. He turned to take out his phone to de-Henshin.

But unexpectedly, the Voi Orphnoch furiously threw off the debris on its body, roared, and directly transformed into its gigantic berserk form.

At this moment, the Voi Orphnoch's upper body retained its original shape, but its lower body transformed into a four-legged elephant, looking extremely disproportionate, yet its strength remained undiminished. It charged and sent Takumi Inui flying, pinning him against a nearby warehouse.

Then, the Voi Orphnoch charged towards Sonoda Mari.

"Ah!"

Sonoda Mari screamed, took a step back, then immediately opened her briefcase.

Hozer, seeing this, frowned. Although he knew that in the original timeline, Sonoda Mari and Takumi Inui were supposed to safely overcome this ordeal, in the current situation, he would not take a chance.

"I thought I could hide it for a bit longer."

Drawing his Sasword short sword, Hozer placed the Sasword Zecter into the slot on the sword.

"Henshin."

"Hozer!"

A shockwave sent Sonoda Mari flying, causing her to fall to the ground. Hozer rushed forward, striking the Voi Orphnoch with a single blow.

Hozer glanced over, saw Takumi Inui emerge from the hole, then turned to Sonoda Mari and said, "Hurry up and give him the equipment."

"Huh? Oh."

Sonoda Mari's mind was in a whirl at this moment. Without time to think, she stood up, grabbed the Faiz Pointer, went to Takumi Inui's side, and inserted the Memory Chip from the flip phone cover into the Pointer.

"What are you doing?"

Sonoda Mari didn't answer. After inserting the Memory Chip, she attached the Faiz Pointer to the slot on Takumi Inui's right thigh.

"Later, press the Enter button on the phone, then kick it!"

With that said, Sonoda Mari fled with all her might. Before Takumi Inui, a howling wind rushed past; it was the Voi Orphnoch, sent flying by Hozer's kick to its side.

Takumi Inui quickly rolled to dodge, then stood up, looking at this monster that had suddenly appeared. He hadn't seen Hozer Henshin earlier, so he didn't know who it was.

"Who is that?"

Sonoda Mari had run some distance away and shouted, "That's Hozer! Kick it quickly!"

Takumi Inui turned to face the Voi Orphnoch, which was lying on the ground, flipped open his phone, and pressed the Enter button.

"EXCEED CHARGE"

Immediately, a surge of energy transmitted from his waist, following the light of the photon bloodline, to the Faiz Pointer on his right thigh.

"Ah!"

Takumi Inui leaped high, a red drill bit shot out from the sole of his right foot towards the Voi Orphnoch, then he followed up with a kick.

The red drill bit pierced the Voi Orphnoch and burrowed inside. Takumi Inui's figure appeared behind it, and the red light on his body receded.

An explosion rang out, and the Voi Orphnoch's entire body erupted in blue flames, then turned to dust.

The battle ended, and Hozer and Takumi Inui de-Henshined.

Takumi Inui tossed his belt to Sonoda Mari with one hand, glanced at the Sasword Zecter automatically retracting into its sheath in Hozer's hand, curled his lip, then picked up his bag, intending to get in his car and leave.

He didn't want to get involved in this anymore.

"Wait, Inui."

"You can protect her."

"I have something to do. Please temporarily help me protect Mari for a bit."

"No, I refuse."

Seeing Takumi Inui was difficult to deal with, Hozer pulled Sonoda Mari closer, covering her right hand with his left, and said urgently, "Inui, I truly have something I must do and cannot leave. Mari just got injured."

Sonoda Mari was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood. She crouched down, saying in a sobbing voice, "My hand hurts so much. I probably can't be a hairdresser anymore."

Takumi Inui frowned, looking at Sonoda Mari.

"Becoming a hairdresser is my dream. This time, it's ruined."

"How did you get injured?"

Hozer sighed and said, "I didn't have time to Henshin just now. As a result, Mari was sent flying and injured her hand."

"Then you should take her to the hospital."

"No, I can't. I must immediately go save another girl. Her name is Osada Yuka, a girl I promised a friend I would definitely protect."

Hozer's expression was serious. Takumi Inui looked at him several times, half-believing, half-doubting.

"Alright, I'll take her to the hospital."

"No, I'm scared."

Going to the hospital would expose her, so how could Sonoda Mari agree?

"Are you still a child?"

"I'm not going."

"Then what do you want?"

"...Stay with me until my injury heals. I'll be scared alone."

Takumi Inui looked suspiciously at Sonoda Mari. It wasn't until she started complaining about the pain again that he glanced over and said helplessly, "Fine, I agree."

A flicker of joy appeared in Hozer's eyes. Then the three exchanged phone numbers, and Hozer got on his bike and left, preparing to find Osada Yuka.

According to the timeline Kiba Yuji provided, there weren't many days left until Osada Yuka would slip and fall to her death, transforming into an Orphnoch.

Seeing that Takumi Inui and Sonoda Mari were getting along... reasonably well, Hozer placed an energy mark on Takumi Inui, then got on his bike and left.

Watching Hozer leave, Sonoda Mari looked towards Takumi Inui.

"Who exactly is he?"

"Don't you know?"

"How would I know? Besides, he can also Henshin. That sword and that mechanical bug..."

Seeing Sonoda Mari about to start chattering non-stop again, Takumi Inui quickly interrupted her.

"Aren't you injured? Aren't you going to treat it?"

"I'll treat it myself."

"Let me see."

"No, a boy shouldn't casually look at a girl's hand."

Sonoda Mari hid her right hand behind her back. Takumi Inui grew even more suspicious about the authenticity of her injury.

However, having just agreed to stay with her, it was inconvenient to change his mind now. He could just sneak away tonight.

Having decided, and with time running late, the two went to find a place to stay for the night.

Elsewhere, Hozer left and headed straight for Osada Yuka's address that Kiba Yuji had provided. He was currently in Miyazaki Prefecture, about fourteen hundred kilometers away, and had to cross the sea along the way.

To avoid causing a sensation, even though the Heavenly Steed Mobility could reach such speeds, Hozer still took nearly sixteen hours to arrive.

A sleepless night had no effect on Hozer whatsoever. At the same time, his particle control ability kept his body perfectly clean, not a speck of dust.

Looking at the apartment building before him, Hozer waited downstairs.

Not long after, a young girl in a high school girl uniform (JK) came downstairs. When she saw Hozer in the hallway, her eyes lit up.

Hozer's appearance remained that of a twenty-two-year-old when he descended into the Kuuga world. Many years had passed, yet his looks were still as handsome as ever, and his aura had become even more calm and profound. His charm towards young girls was imaginable.

Just as that girl was tiptoeing towards Hozer, another long-haired JK girl came downstairs.

That was Osada Yuka. At this moment, she looked younger than the image Hozer had seen in the future, still beautiful, but her aura was extremely gloomy.