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"Damn it! You're not getting away!"
Erik tried to chase after the fleeing vampire, but a sudden surge of electricity hit him, making him fall flat on the ground.
"Argh!"
He quickly yanked off the knuckle gun and canceled his transformation.
"You okay?" Dan asked as he walked over.
Erik shook his head, panting.
"I'm fine. Damn it—I didn't expect them to make a new kind of Fangire. That thing's stronger than anything I've faced before!"
Dan looked out the broken window at the moon.
"Yeah… that one's different. But this isn't the time to chat. Let's go. I already cleared out the vampires outside."
When Erik's Ixa signal activated, Dan and Krim had rushed over right away. But instead of helping Erik directly, Dan handled the surrounding vampires first. Since they rarely gathered in one place, it was the best opportunity to thin them out.
Dan helped Erik out of the castle.
"…You're still here?"
Right outside, Stark was crouched next to the Tridoron, poking around like a kid with a new toy.
Seeing Dan in his Drive suit and Erik now out of Ixa form, Stark lit up.
"Hey there, Mr. Kamen Rider!"
He rubbed his hands together excitedly, staring at Dan like he was trying to figure out how to take him apart.
"You guys didn't just save my life once. Running off without thanking my saviors? That's not my style. So I waited here. By the way—is this your car? Sweet ride. Some seriously advanced tech in there."
Typical Stark—he could tell the Tridoron was high-tech just by looking at it from outside.
"Mr. Stark, we really should get going. The vampires aren't done yet. They could regroup and come back any minute."
As he said that, Dan opened the car door. Erik silently got in the passenger seat.
Dan glanced between the Tridoron and Stark.
"You've got your own car, right, Mr. Stark?"
"Of course…" he started, then immediately changed his tune. "Actually, nope. The vampires wrecked mine."
Behind his mask, Dan twitched a little. This Stark was… not quite like the one from the movies.
"Hop in, Mr. Stark."
He didn't say it out loud, but he was definitely thinking it.
On the way back, Dan kept his transformation on. He didn't want to reveal his real identity in front of Stark—after all, this was the guy who publicly announced he was Iron Man in front of a dozen cameras. Who knew if he'd hold a press conference later to tell the world about "Kamen Rider Drive."
Knowing Stark, he totally would.
"So… let me formally introduce myself again. Tony Stark—CEO of Stark Industries. Genius inventor."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Stark. Now, please buckle your seatbelt."
Without waiting, Dan gunned the engine and sped off.
In no time, they pulled up to the front gate of Stark Industries.
Dan had purposely avoided letting Stark ask too many questions during the ride—he didn't want this genius analyzing his every word and figuring out something he shouldn't.
"Thanks for the lift. Wanna come in? I've got some top-shelf French wine."
"No thanks, Mr. Stark," Erik cut in immediately.
"Listen, Mr. Stark. I hope you won't tell anyone about what happened tonight."
Stark raised an eyebrow, not committing either way.
"Look, the public isn't ready to know about vampires yet. If word gets out, it'll cause panic. And worse—it could tip off them. The chain reaction would be catastrophic. So I'm asking you not to tell anyone—especially about the two of us."
Erik repeated the last part for emphasis.
Stark was quiet for a second, then nodded.
"Alright. I'll keep my mouth shut. You guys saved my life—Tony Stark doesn't forget favors."
Erik nodded in return.
"Glad to hear it. Goodbye, Mr. Stark."
Dan hit the gas and drove off.
"Jarvis."
"Yes, sir?"
A screen popped up from Stark's watch.
"Keep an eye on that car."
"Understood, sir."
Stark stretched and yawned.
"Humanoid armor, huh… Looks like I've got work to do."
Back in the garage, Dan and Erik didn't get out of the car.
"Alright," Erik started, "now we can talk."
"Why were you following me?"
That's right—Dan had been tracking Erik, because Erik hadn't told him anything about this operation tonight, and yet Dan had shown up anyway.
"Whoa, whoa, 'following you' sounds kinda harsh. I wasn't stalking you or anything. I just… added a tracker to the Ixa Driver in case it got lost or fell into the wrong hands."
Dan shrugged casually.
"But what about you? Weren't you supposed to be investigating the vampires? Why'd you end up fighting not one but two Fangires?"
Erik paused for a moment.
"Yeah, I was investigating. Turns out, the vampires are targeting a major player in the energy and weapons scene—Tony Stark."
Dan nodded. Yeah, in the Marvel universe, Stark was the big-name weapons dealer, and he also had the Arc Reactor tech.
"I just didn't expect Crawlen to show up as a Fangire."
"Crawlen? That jellyfish-looking dude? You know him?"
Erik nodded again.
"I've fought him a bunch of times before. He's a crafty vampire."
"Oh, and I found out something else."
Erik explained how Crawlen had transformed into a Fangire using a small device. Dan frowned.
"They used a gadget to transform? Tch… Their tech's evolving."
His expression darkened. This was getting serious.
"So, what now?" Erik asked. For the first time, he felt truly powerless. He'd never felt this way when hunting vampires before.
"What else? We find their base and wipe them out all at once."
Erik burst out laughing.
"Easier said than done. You think I don't wanna find their base and blow it up? The problem is—how?"
Dan sighed and shrugged.
The two sat in silence for a while. Eventually, Erik opened the door.
"Alright. No use overthinking it. We'll just take it one step at a time. For now, we focus on getting stronger."
"....."