The fog-shrouded arena pulsed with crimson light. The air shimmered as Kouga as RyusoulRed , tightened his grip around the Ryusoul Ken. Across from him, three spectral forms of Himeko materialized—each wreathed in red, blue, and violet .
Kouga's visor flashed.The blue specter stepped forward first, sword drawn in a graceful yet deadly stance. Without hesitation, Kouga charged, Ryusoul Ken clashing against the phantom's blade in a burst of energy. The shockwave split the mist apart.
Their swords collided again and again—each strike a streak of red and azure light. Kouga roared, pushing through the clash, and with a powerful swing, he knocked the blue specter backward, its form flickering and destabilizing.
Meanwhile, Mei and Kiana faced the crimson apparition. Mei's katana blazed with lightning as she met the specter's fiery slashes, while Kiana darted around the battlefield, firing precise bursts from her dual guns to cover her partner. Sparks and bullets danced through the air, their teamwork seamless under pressure.
On the other side, Bronya faced the violet spirit. She deployed Project Bunny, the mech whirring to life beside her."Engaging hostile unit," Bronya intoned. Energy blasts fired from Bunny's cannons, colliding with the phantom's attacks in bursts of purple flame. Then she switched to offensive mode—Project Bunny summoned its massive lance, lunging forward in a surge of power.
The spear struck true. The violet Himeko let out a silent scream before shattering into shards of ethereal glass.
Kouga, Mei, and Kiana each finished their duels in near-perfect synchronization. The blue and red specters faltered, their bodies splitting into brilliant fragments that faded into the fog.
For a moment, silence returned. The team regrouped, breathing heavily.
Then the crystal prison that held Himeko began to glow. Cracks spread across its surface, red light spilling out from within.
"Wait… something's happening," Mei warned.
With a thunderous shatter, the crystal exploded, releasing a shockwave that sent everyone back a step.
When the dust cleared—Himeko stood in the center of the arena. But she was… different.
She was wrapped in a gown of crimson and black, silk and steel intertwined like the marriage of beauty and destruction. The red of her attire burned like rose petals drenched in fire, every fold edged with shadow. A high collar framed her neck, crowned by a scarlet rose, while a small black top hat tilted elegantly to one side. Her bodice was daring—black fabric tracing her form with lethal precision, revealing glimpses of pale skin beneath thornlike patterns. One arm was cloaked in red, the other bare, her asymmetrical skirt fluttering with a predatory grace. Long black stockings marked with crimson motifs completed the look.
It was the Blood Rose—but this time, her eyes glowed with an unnatural hue.
Kouga, Mei, Bronya, and Kiana froze, stunned by the transformation.
Kouga exhaled, shaking his head slightly."Not gonna lie, whoever is controlling Himeko truly has style."
The girls, despite the tension, nodded in reluctant agreement.
Then, without warning, the controlled Himeko dashed forward, her XuanYuan Sword cutting through the air like lightning. Kiana, Mei, and Bronya dove aside just in time, but Kouga met her head-on. Their blades collided, sparks flying in a violent arc.
Kouga held his ground, boots digging into the cracked surface as he locked swords with her. "Himeko… hang in there!"
Bronya and Kiana used the opening—Project Bunny unleashed an energy barrage while Kiana fired precise rounds from her pistols. The combined impact forced Himeko to leap away, the ground beneath her exploding.
But Mei was already waiting above, descending with her katana drawn. "Now!" she shouted, slashing downward.
Himeko blocked with supernatural speed, countering with a sweeping kick that sent Mei crashing across the ground.
Kouga dashed in again, switching his stance as Ryusoul energy surged around him. He swung his sword, matching Himeko strike for strike, while Bronya directed Project Bunny to strike from the flank. The three attackers pressed in unison, sparks and fire erupting with every blow.
The possessed Himeko deflected Kouga's sword, spun, and blocked Bronya's lance—but that left her open.
"Got you!"
Kiana rushed in, closing the distance and delivering a solid punch to Himeko's stomach. The impact cracked the air like thunder. The XuanYuan Sword slipped from her grasp and clattered against the ground.
The glow faded from her eyes. Himeko fell backward, her Blood Rose attire dissolving in streaks of red light, leaving her once again in her Scarlet Fusion battlesuit.
The cavern fell silent once more.
Everyone exhaled, the tension finally lifting.
Kiana knelt beside her teacher, worry filling her voice. "What happened? Why did Himeko attack us?"
Mei shook her head, concern etched across her face. "I have no idea why she would do that."
Kouga stepped forward, pointing toward the fallen XuanYuan Sword. "I believe the sword is the cause of what had happened."
Bronya checked her sensors, eyes narrowing. "Bronya could only pick up very weak vital readings from Major Himeko. Her body will not last for another twelve hours. Recommend immediate evac."
Kouga nodded. "Leave that to me."
Light flared around him as he transformed once again—Kamen Rider Fourze. He flicked a switch on his belt."Medical On!"
The Medical Module materialized on his left arm, glowing with cosmic blue energy. He extended it over Himeko's body, and gentle waves of starlight flowed into her, mending unseen wounds.
Bronya's visor blinked. "Major Himeko's vitals have stabilized. Confirmed."
Kouga lowered his arm. "Good. Let's go."
Kiana nodded, hoisting Himeko gently over her shoulder. "Yeah. We should get out of here. We'll let Himeko regain her consciousness."
Just as they began to move, the communicator on Kiana's wrist crackled."Bad news, Kiana!"
It was Theresa, her voice sharp with urgency.
Kiana tapped her comm. "Theresa? What happened?"
"The satellite has picked up a large contingent of Anti-Entropy in the seas above you."
Kiana's eyes widened. "Anti-Entropy troops?"
Theresa's tone grew dire. "I think they're going after the XuanYuan Sword. Leave the Nine Realms, now. I'm leading reinforcements and coming your way. TBA in two hours. Hang in there."
The line went dead.
Kiana and Kouga crutched under Himeko's weight, carefully carrying her unconscious form. Mei held the XuanYuan Blade tight against her chest.
The tunnels of the Nine Realms trembled as the group ran. Jagged stone corridors flashed with the glow of emergency lights from Bronya's Project Bunny.
Every step echoed through the underground halls. The once-quiet ruins now roared with mechanical thunder.
"Contacts ahead!" Bronya called out as her visor flared. From the shadows, several Anti-Entropy mechas lumbered into view — hulking Titan-class machines and a few Ancient Mech units bristling with cannons. Their eyes glowed menacing red.
Kiana cursed. "You've got to be kidding me!"
Before the enemy could fire, Project Bunny leapt forward, its massive arms splitting into cannons."Engaging suppression fire," Bronya announced, her tone calm but deadly.Beams of energy tore through the passage, melting metal and scattering debris. The group pressed onward under her cover fire, moving fast before more enemies could arrive.
The cave ahead widened — faint light shimmered from the exit. Freedom was close.
But then their comms crackled with static."—Alright trash! Don't bother trying to escape."
The voice was cold, mocking, dripping with arrogance.
"We got this place surrounded. I'm Sin Mal, and I'm in charge here. Hand over the blade like the good obedient girls you are."
Kiana froze mid-step, her temper flaring instantly."Trash? Did that brat just call us trash?"
"Kiana, calm down," Mei urged, glancing warily around. "They have surrounded us."
Kiana clenched her teeth, glaring into the darkness as if she could see Sin Mal through sheer fury."Alright. Sin? You'll let us go if we hand over the blade, right? I ain't afraid of brats like you, but my friend is wounded. I'll give up a crappy sword to ensure her safety."
Sin Mal's laughter echoed through the comm — a low, cruel chuckle that made the air feel colder."Did I say that I'll let you go if you hand over the blade?" she sneered. "And I kill trash who call me a brat."
Kiana turned to Mei, fire in her eyes."Heard that, Mei? We'll handle lunatics like these with brute force."
But Mei didn't answer. Neither did Bronya. Both of them were staring beside Kiana — eyes wide, faces pale.
"W-what?" Kiana asked, glancing at them.
Then she saw it.
Kouga, who had been walking silently beside her while helping carry Himeko, was now emanating a dark aura.
His head tilted slightly downward, eyes burning with cold intensity.
Kiana instinctively took a step back, startled.
Kouga's voice cut through the tension, low and sharp:"Let's see if I could still discipline a child like her."
As he raised his right hand, blue lightning flared across his arm. A faint silhouette of DekaMaster appeared behind him .
Kiana's eyes widened. Even she couldn't suppress a shiver.
The group pressed onward through the winding cavern, their footsteps echoing against the cold stone walls. The faint hum of mecha activity still lingered behind them, urging them to move faster. Himeko was still unconscious, her breathing shallow but stable as Kiana and Kouga helped carry her weight.
Eventually, the narrow passage opened into a fork — two tunnels stretching out ahead into darkness.
Kiana tilted her head. "Hm. Two paths up ahead, which is the way out?"
Bronya's visor flickered as she scanned both tunnels. "A cool wind is blowing from the right. That should be the way out. Bronya detects heat emanating from the left passage. That would be a dead end."
Kiana crossed her arms. "You have a point, Bronya. But I think the left path leads to the exit."
Bronya looked at her, unimpressed. "Why?"
Kiana grinned, tapping her temple. "How do I explain this? Let's call it the Kaslana hunch."
Bronya sighed. "Kiana's hunch is a baseless claim. She never defeated Bronya in Old Maid. Her intuition is counter-intuition."
Kiana spun toward her, indignant. "…That's 'cuz I let you win on purpose! Mei, what do you think? You believe me, right?"
Bronya, without missing a beat, added: "Bronya thinks Mei-nee-sama will trust in Bronya's judgment. Mei-nee-sama, Mei-nee-sama."
Mei found herself caught between two stubborn teammates, both glaring at her with hopeful eyes. She blinked, sighed softly, then turned toward the only calm one in the group."Kouga-kun, why don't you help too?"
All eyes — except Himeko's, who was still out cold — turned to him.
Kouga exhaled slowly, shaking his head. "You girls really like making things complicated," he muttered. Then, with a flick of his wrist, light engulfed him.
In a flash of fiery red aura, Kouga transformed into ShishiRed of the Kyurangers. His armor gleamed under the dim light, the lion crest on his chest pulsing like a heartbeat.
Kiana blinked in surprise. "Kouga-senpai, why did you transform into this?"
Kouga crossed his arms, his voice steady but amused. "In this form, you could say my luck stats being increased to the max. That if I got thrown out of space, I could catch a ride with the meteor to ride back."
The three girls stared at him in utter disbelief. Mei's mouth hung open slightly, Bronya's eyebrow twitched, and Kiana's eyes sparkled — clearly thinking about something else entirely.
"Wow," she muttered under her breath. "Maybe I should ask him to help with my gacha rolls when we get back."
Kouga pointed ahead. "Alright, let's start with Kiana's route."
And so, they moved into the left tunnel.
The group jogged through the dim corridor, their footsteps echoing through the silence. After several minutes, a faint breeze began to brush against their faces — carrying with it the scent of the open air.
Bronya's visor blinked. "Strange. Bronya detects convergence ahead."
Soon enough, both the left and right tunnels merged into a single passage that sloped upward toward the surface.
Kiana's eyes lit up. "That's the exit!" she cheered, running ahead.
Mei sighed, shaking her head. "Turns out both tunnels lead to the same exit. Bronya versus Kiana thing is so stupid."
Kouga let out a weary breath. "Babysitting is so tiring."
But just as they were about to step into the light, a mysterious voice echoed through the cavern — soft, fading, ancient.
"Brave boy and girls. The seal is undone. The monster will wake. I am giving up my last powers to you. Please… you must seal her…"
Kiana froze, looking around. "Huh? What was that voice?"Mei frowned. "I heard it too."Bronya added, "Bronya heard it as well."
Kouga narrowed his eyes. "It spoke about some sort of seal being undone."
Kiana shrugged. "Seal? What was that? Forget it. We should escape from Anti-Entropy first."
The group rushed out — only to find themselves immediately surrounded by Anti-Entropy mechas on all sides. Giant mechanical silhouettes closed in, their red optics glowing like eyes of predators in the night.
Kiana clenched her fists. "Where… are we?"
Then came that same laugh — sharp, mocking, and all too familiar.
As the mechas parted, a girl stepped forward. Her appearance was strikingly inconsistent — her short two-tone hair split between pink and lilac, one eye golden, the other lavender. A sharp-toothed grin spread across her face as she twirled her weapon.
Kouga recognized the voice instantly. "I'm guessing you're Sin Mal."
Sin Mal threw her head back and laughed. "Muahaha! None of you scumbags is getting out alive. Oh right! I might just kill Bronya by accident too this time!"
Kiana gritted her teeth and readied her stance. Mei and Bronya did the same while Kouga stepped forward, the air around him still charged with faint cosmic energy.
But before any of them could move, the sky above split open.
Small meteors suddenly came raining down — one after another — striking the ground and crushing several Anti-Entropy mechas in explosions of light and debris. Missiles misfired, colliding midair and detonating into fiery chaos.
When the dust settled, only four figures stood amid the smoke: Kiana, Mei, Bronya… and a very annoyed Sin Mal.
Kiana blinked, staring at Kouga. "Wow, you weren't kidding about how lucky you are."
Sin Mal's face twisted in rage. "NO MATTER! I COULD HANDLE YOU ALL—"
Before she could finish, her foot caught a loose stone. She tripped forward, her scythe flying from her hands and spinning wildly before landing neatly at Kouga's feet.
Kouga didn't even flinch. He bent down, picked it up, crushed it into a small ball of twisted metal, and began walking toward her.
Sin Mal scrambled back, fear flickering in her eyes. "What are you going to do to me?"
Kouga's tone was calm, almost teacher-like. "Oh, that's simple. I'm just going to discipline a bad child, that's all."
And what followed was a truly bizarre sight — Kiana, Mei, and Bronya all standing frozen in shock (and mild horror), as Kouga proceeded to spank Sin Mal with inhuman precision.
Bronya's stoic face twitched, her lips quivering as she tried — and failed — to suppress laughter. Kiana was holding her stomach, while Mei covered her face, muttering, "This is absurd…"
Sin Mal's furious screams turned into yelps of surrender."Okay, okay! I'm sorry! Forgive me!"
The echoes of her pleas bounced off the cavern walls
After a few seconds, Sin Mal was seen kneeling on the ground, clutching her sore backside and sniffling in defeat. The once-proud Anti-Entropy commander now looked more like a scolded schoolgirl than a threat.
Kouga calmly brushed the dust off his gloves, the faint shimmer of his transformation fading away. He turned back to the girls, his expression composed as if nothing unusual had just occurred.
"Alright," he said, straightening his jacket. "With that done, let's—"
He didn't get to finish.
A sudden flash of golden light erupted from Mei's hands, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. The XuanYuan Sword, which she had been carrying since Himeko's rescue, began to tremble violently. The air around it crackled with raw energy, humming like the heartbeat of something ancient and angry.
Kouga's eyes widened. "Mei—what's happening…?"
Mei grit her teeth, struggling to hold the weapon steady. "Ugh—there's a force pulling the sword!" she shouted, her voice strained as arcs of energy lashed around her arms.
Then, before anyone could react, a golden light emerge from the sword.
From the golden light, a figure began to emerge—first a silhouette, then the delicate outline of a woman. The energy dispersed like petals in the wind, revealing a short young woman hovering gracefully above the ground.
She wore a detailed orange dress, intricate and regal, every fold embroidered with faint golden threads that shimmered like sunlight. Her dark hair was arranged in an elaborate style, adorned with ornate ornaments that clicked softly as she moved. Her amber eyes gleamed with ancient intelligence and quiet power.
As her feet touched the ground, a faint smile curved her lips. Her voice carried the weight of centuries, both proud and relieved.
"After all these years in the seal," she said softly, "I'm finally free."