I overslept.
It's all my fault from last night.
Afterward, Asuna collapsed, but since her body was covered in various fluids, I waited for her to recover before taking her to the shower and changing the equally soiled sheets. By the time I finally got to bed, it was quite late.
To make matters worse, this morning was a disaster.
Completely exhausted, the two of us just fell into bed. Since Asuna and I, who were supposed to make breakfast, were both down for the count, no one got breakfast.
Suspicious, Kuro came to check on my room. She found the two of us snuggled together in one bed.
Instead of waking us up, Kuro decided to join us in the futon.
After a while, when Kuro still hadn't returned, Yukina came to check on her.
And that's when Yukina discovered the three of us sleeping in a cuddle pile.
Yukina, utterly distraught, used Yukikazana to knock me upside the head to wake me up.
The above is a series of events from this morning that I learned through Kurumi's Zafkiel, the Tenth Bullet, which has the ability to "transmit the past memories of the target it shoots."
Seriously, Kurumi-san's a cheat. What kind of ability is that? It really made me understand why psychics are so highly valued among the Butei.
Honestly, I didn't want to waste any time, but I wanted to know why I got hit with a blow that was no joke. I guess it couldn't be helped.
In the first place, I'm the one who's going to use up the time, so isn't it fine?
"Shou-kun! Are you finished!?"
"Hmm? Oh, yeah, I'm done."
I didn't stop my hands while I was thinking. In the frying pan, bacon sizzled. I transferred the perfectly cooked pieces to a plate piled with vegetables.
We don't have much time, so breakfast this morning is a quick and simple meal of toast, salad, and bacon.
"As soon as you finish eating, we have to leave!"
When Asuna said that, everyone immediately started moving their hands and mouths.
I'm a slow eater, so I'll be the last one, won't I?
"Well, Shou-kun, we'll go on ahead. We'll leave the key to you, okay?"
See? Just as I thought, I'm the last one.
Each room has a key, so I don't need to worry, but it's a bit unsettling how the number of spare keys keeps increasing every time I "summon" a new girl.
I shoved the dishes into the sink... no, I'll just give them a quick wash.
Five minutes later, I finally left the house. I'm just barely going to make it on time.
---------
"There's a bomb on that bicycle."
Ah, was that too sudden?
A few minutes after I left the house, a bicycle speeding past me. If that were all, it would be a normal scene for anyone rushing to school.
If only there weren't a Segway with a gun attached next to it.
This situation... it's just like the very first event in the Aria the Scarlet Ammo series. Actually, it's exactly the same.
It's the exact same situation that the Butei Killer set up for the protagonist Kinji Touyama in Volume 1 of the original story. The student on the bicycle isn't Kinji, though.
"Well, whatever."
I pulled out the Gashat Gear Dual and temporarily pushed those thoughts out of my mind.
Dealing with that thing is the priority.
PERFECT PUZZLE
What's the next stage?
"Henshin."
Dual up!
Get the glory in the chain! PERFECT PUZZLE!
"Hup!"
High-speed
I accelerated with the High-speed Energy Item, closing in on the bicycle.
There's a toy in front of me trying to get in my way.
"Wh-What are you!? Don't come over here!"
The boy must have noticed me, as he raised his voice.
The reason is simple. The barrel of the gun mounted on the Segway is pointed at me.
But, it's not a problem.
I intercepted all the bullets with my Beretta using a Gunshot Billiards technique. I shot them at a precise angle so that the ricocheting bullets wouldn't hit the boy.
With that momentum, I shot through all the Segway's gun turrets.
With that, the Segways were all destroyed. I'm such a cheat.
Now, I want to disarm the bomb.
"What kind of bomb is it?"
Kamen Rider Paradox sped along next to the speeding bicycle. It's a surreal sight.
"It's a plastic explosive!! With this much, it could blow up a car!!"
"Is it a time bomb?"
"No, it seems it's rigged to explode if you slow down! The Segway said so in a synthesized voice!"
"Hmm."
Now, what to do?
Perfect Puzzle's ability is to manipulate matter within an area. Maybe I can handle the bomb as well... I wonder. Can I?
I guess I'll try it. How do I do it?
Just then,
"Hey! What are you doin'- GWEH!!!"
The moment the boy looked at me—turning his head sideways—a twin-tailed girl with pink hair came falling from the sky via a parachute and crashed into him. The boy was thrown from his bike by the impact.
The bicycle continued for a bit but lost its balance and tipped over. The bomb exploded as its speed dropped.
It's a good thing there weren't many people since it was right at the end of the commuting time. It's also a good thing that this road is one that very few people besides Butei High students use.
Also, it's a good thing the bike went to the middle of the road. If it had crashed into a building, it could have been a huge mess. I feel bad for the road, though.
"I-I'm saved..."
The boy let out a sigh of relief as he looked at the fallen bicycle.
"Are you two okay?"
"Yeah. Thanks, you saved me. Uh..."
"Who... are you?"
The boy thanked me, but the pink twin-tail girl didn't say thanks and just stared at me.
"Who am I? Just a passing-by Kamen Rider."
I'm not the Destroyer of Worlds. Don't get it twisted.
"Kamen Rider? Are you a Butei?"
"You could say that."
"Hmm... But more importantly, since it's over, isn't it polite to show your face?"
She's right. If I have nothing to hide, it's proper to show my face. If the battle were truly over, that is.
"No, it's not over yet."
"What!?"
Before I knew it, we were surrounded by 15 Segways. To let my guard down like that is a disgrace to a Butei. All three of us, actually.
"There were more!?"
The girl pulled two guns from her skirt and aimed them at the Segways. A two-gun style, and Colts, no less. With a body that small, her shoulders will get destroyed doing something like that.
"What are those? Do you know?"
"They're the Butei Killer's toys! And you better hurry up and pull yours out!!"
The girl closed in on the boy, who was still in a daze, and yelled at him.
"Y-Yes!!"
The boy pulled out his gun.
I held my Beretta in my right hand. We were in the middle of a road with no cover. It's probably best if I focus on defense using Gunshot Billiards.
Holding a gun while I'm a Kamen Rider is uncool, but I have no choice since I don't have any long-range weapons.
The boy and the pink twin-tailed girl's faces were tense. Surrounded by 15 machine guns, anyone's face would look like that.
The 15 Segways started shooting all at once.
However, none of the bullets reached us.
I was using Gunshot Billiards and my Chain-shot Cannon technique.
Chain-shot Cannon. This is a technique where you use one ricocheting bullet to ricochet another.
When you use Gunshot Billiards with bullets, the bullets don't just disappear. This technique utilizes that to create a chain reaction of Gunshot Billiards.
That said, it's still a bit iffy against 15 machine guns. I plan to use myself as a shield for the two of them if it comes to that.
But the pink twin-tailed girl was incredible.
As if she knew I would be on defense, she focused completely on her attack. The bullets fired from her two Glocks, one white and one black, didn't miss, efficiently destroying the Segways.
In less than 10 seconds, the gunfire stopped.
"It's over now."
"Looks like it."
The pink twin-tailed girl twirled her guns and put them back into the holsters inside her skirt.
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
The boy from the bike thanked me many times.
"It's nothing to worry about, right?"
"Yes, Butei Charter, Article 1: Believe in your comrades and help your comrades. I just acted according to that. I'll handle the cleanup."
She seems like a good girl. Even though she's tiny.
The boy silently bowed to the pink twin-tailed girl and headed toward the school.
Well, she said she'd easily handle the cleanup, but...
"Isn't he an important witness to this bombing? Is it okay for him to leave?"
"Huh? What are you talking about? Bombing incidents are an everyday occurrence, aren't they? We already know who the culprit is, and all we have to do is contact the contractors to fix the road."
I forgot. It's a given that the Butei students who live here handle these incidents.
And in a place where ESP and magic are commonplace, it's naive to be surprised by something like this. The boy was only surprised by my Paradox form at first, and then he immediately explained the situation.
Still,
"You know who the culprit is?"
"Yes. The culprit is the Butei Killer. There's no doubt about it."
"The Butei Killer, huh?"
Just as I thought. I would have been really flustered if she had given me any other answer. Once I understood who was in front of me, I couldn't think of anything else.
"You're doubting me? The person who was arrested before was a wrongful arrest. That person is innocent. They were framed by the real Butei Killer."
Perhaps she didn't like the tone of my voice, as the pink twin-tail girl looked a little angry.
"No, I'm not doubting you. Well, I'm gonna go now."
"Wait."
Huh? What is it? You don't have to grab my hand so tightly...
"Your name."
"Huh?"
"Your name. Kamen Rider is the name of that powered suit, right? I want your real name."
My name, huh? It's not something I'd be in trouble for revealing, so I guess it's fine. Trust is life for a Butei. It's impossible to trust someone who uses a fake name and whose face you can't even see.
Having more people in my circle of acquaintances isn't a bad thing.
It's pretty much guaranteed that I'm going to be involved with them anyway.
"...What is it? Are you not going to tell me because I haven't introduced myself?"
That's not it at all.
The girl who misunderstood me crossed her arms and introduced herself.
"I'm Kanzaki H. Aria. It's a pleasure to meet you."
I know.
"I'm Yozuki Shou. Nice to meet you, Aria-chan."
I felt bad for being silent, so I introduced myself.
Then, Aria-chan's face turned beet red.
Could she have fallen for me at first sight!? No, you can't even see my face. What's there to fall for?
Wait, is she angry?
"Aria, 'chan'? ...I want to ask you something, how old do you think I am?"
"Huh? Oh, well..."
"Don't tell me you think I'm a grade-schooler, do you?"
Don't tell me you think I'm a high schooler!
It's impossible to think she's a high schooler with that body shape at first glance, you know?
Damn it, I accidentally called her "chan."
"I am..."
Taking my silence as confirmation, Aria's arm moved toward her skirt, to the holster inside.
"A second-year in high school!!!!"
"Whoa!"
Even though bullets wouldn't work against me in my Paradox form, I instinctively took a defensive stance.
And also instinctively, I ran away from the scene.
"You! Wait for me!!"
S-She's keeping up with a Kamen Rider's physical abilities!?!?!?
By the time I finally escaped, morning homeroom was over, and the first period had already ended.
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