They were quickly and randomly teleported to the target location of the zombie invasion.
Not being paired with Raven made Neon instantly feel panicked. Furthermore, the second wave of zombies was far more numerous than the first, surging toward her from all directions. She quickly found herself in a perilous situation.
"Ah!"
"Yamete!"
Neon collapsed to the ground, urgently crying out for them to stop.
At that moment, Kanato Sumida suddenly appeared from a distance to support her. He helped her up and spoke with feigned apology, "Are you alright? My tone was a bit harsh earlier. Actually, I'm a big fan of yours."
The innocent Neon was easily taken in by his words. "What? So you were just being insincere before, huh?"
"I'll be your bodyguard," Kanato said. "Let's earn points together."
"Kamen Rider Da-Paan, you're so dependable," Neon replied, looking at him with newfound admiration. She thought to herself that she must still be quite charming, with so many fans supporting her wherever she went.
Raven, who had noticed the situation from afar, could only shake his head with a sigh. To trust him so easily.
Kanato had actually been bitten by a zombie in the previous round. Knowing he was infected, he intended to drag the person he disliked, Neon Kurama, down with him. That's why he feigned a collaborative effort to gain her trust. He was truly despicable.
However, Raven was not in a hurry to expose Kanato's plot. He felt Neon needed to suffer a small setback first to truly understand the darkness of the human heart.
And so, the naïve Neon began cooperating with Kanato, eventually leading them into an indoor factory. She failed to notice that the zombies' sole target was her, and they completely ignored Kanato.
When they reached the edge of a dry, large pool, Kanato shot Neon in the back.
She tumbled into the pool below.
[WARNING! Attacking another player is a violation, and the system will deduct points!]
The system's warning sounded, but Kanato ignored it. He believed that since he was already infected with the virus, he was guaranteed to be eliminated. What good were the points now? He might as well drag someone he hated down with him.
He was unaware that as long as one wasn't eliminated when the game ended, the zombie virus would disappear. Unfortunately for him, he hadn't asked, and the DGP staff certainly had no obligation to volunteer the information.
Immediately, the horde of zombies swarmed forward and jumped into the pool, attacking Neon.
"How could this happen!" Neon was completely dumbfounded.
In her distraction, she didn't notice that a Zombie Jyamato had already bitten her.
"What a socially inept Ojou-sama," Kanato scoffed, his face full of mockery. "If you think the whole world has to revolve around you, you are gravely mistaken."
"Now, be a good girl and get bitten by a zombie. Become a super celebrity zombie!"
With that, he raised the Magnum Gun in his hand and aimed at the struggling Neon.
"It's over."
Despair filled Neon's heart. A montage of images flashed through her mind. Along with her parents, Raven's figure appeared. I finally found someone I have feelings for. Is it going to end just like this before I even get to confess?
Just then...
Rumble!
A purple figure burst through a wall, crashing into the pool and swiftly killing the surrounding zombies.
It was Raven, having transformed using the Zombie Buckle.
It must be said that the Zombie Buckle was a perfect fit for his base form, which was already purple. The combination created a fearsome Zombie-Dinosaur look that was extremely brutal.
"Raven-san!"
Neon was overcome with surprise and joy.
A scenario like this—the hero rescuing the maiden—had previously only appeared in her dreams, but now it had occurred twice in as many days, and with the exact same hero. A love-struck girl like Neon couldn't help but fall for him.
"Alright, stop spacing out."
Raven stepped forward and flicked Neon's forehead. The gesture carried a hint of intimacy and affectionate indulgence. This only made Neon blush harder.
This scene made Kanato freeze in disbelief. These two are ignoring me and flirting with each other?
"Why are you interfering!" He was completely enraged. Why was it so easy for this rich girl to get everything she wanted?
He raised the Magnum Gun, preparing to attack Raven.
Raven simply parried the Magnum's attack with an effortless swing of the Zombie Chainsaw.
However, Kanato was still deducted a significant number of points for the attack.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the ferocious Raven about to close the distance, Kanato didn't dare fight him up close. He quickly pulled back, intending to flee outside.
But he hadn't run far before Raven threw the chainsaw at him from a distance, striking his right leg in an outdoor clearing.
Bang!
Kanato immediately crashed to the ground, his leg severely injured. If not for the inherent defense provided by his Henshin, his leg likely would have been severed entirely.
Due to the injury, Kanato was forced to detransform. He lay on the ground, wailing in agony.
At this point, the others, having heard the commotion, rushed over. They witnessed the aftermath of Raven's attack.
"Hey, what are you doing? Attacking a contestant means points deduction!" Michinaga, unaware of the full story, instinctively reminded him honestly.
However, Ace noticed something was wrong. He hadn't heard the system's warning sound for attacking a player.
"Could it be..."
Looking at the injury on Kanato's arm, Ace already had a suspicion.
"This guy is already infected with the zombie virus, so I won't be deducted points for attacking him," Raven calmly stated. "Conversely, he will be deducted points for attacking other players."
"You can check his current score."
At these words, everyone pulled out their phones to check the current rankings. They saw that Kanato had plummeted from fourth to sixth place, barely above the bottom-ranked Morio Kogane'ya. Coupled with his injured leg, his defeat was practically guaranteed.
If there was one person who was happiest in the entire arena, it was Morio Koganeya. He saw hope. He was certain he could surpass the injured Nago when the next wave of zombies arrived.