"This guy is truly narcissistic," Raven muttered, shaking his head.
When the passersby weren't paying attention, he forcefully used his divine power to replace Ace Ukiyo's promotional poster with an advertisement for his own café.
It wasn't long after he returned to the shop.
As Raven was still tinkering with the coffee machine, a graceful figure suddenly appeared.
"I'm sorry, but we're closed today," Raven immediately dismissed her.
"I have good news for you," said the young, beautiful woman in black and white attire. She walked up to Raven, holding a small box in her hands.
"After our rigorous review, you have officially been selected. Starting today, you are a Kamen Rider."
Raven naturally knew who the visitor was, but he maintained an expression and tone of impatience.
"Miss, if you're here to sell something, please leave. I'm not short on anything."
He deliberately teased her, his gaze extremely aggressive, scrutinizing Tsumuri from head to toe.
Tsumuri frowned slightly, but still managed to say, "Congratulations on becoming a Kamen Rider."
How is this man completely unaffected? she wondered silently.
When she informed other selected participants, their attention would instantly be drawn to the Desire Driver. They would then dutifully accept the item without asking any questions. The only person unaffected by the Desire Driver was the previous Desire God, who retained his memories.
But why was Raven like this?
After just a few extra glances from Raven, Tsumuri felt an inexplicable tension.
"I'll just leave the Driver here."
She quickly put down the box and hurried away. As the game navigator, her heart was always meant to be as still as water, undisturbed by external factors. Yet, she had been thrown into such a panic in front of Raven today.
"Oh, dear... Why did I react like that?"
After walking a considerable distance, Tsumuri patted her chest. The feeling of being watched by Raven finally faded away.
Inside the café.
Seeing Tsumuri leave in such a fluster, Raven felt a slight regret. He had intended to flirt with her a little longer.
He then opened the box before him.
Inside lay a Desire Driver and an ID Core. The ID Core bore the image of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
"A dinosaur, huh?"
Raven was quite curious. He figured it was likely due to the system, which had prepared something unique for him. Honestly, he found the designs of most animal Riders in Geats to be a bit awkward and lacking gravitas. The dinosaur ID Core, however, was a perfect fit, given that he himself was an Amazon Dinosaur.
According to the time written on the slip of paper in the box, the official assembly time for the Desire Grand Prix would be at 9 PM.
Raven put the items aside for now. He wanted to try something: communicating with the Helheim Forest while in the Geats world.
The result came quickly after he attempted it. Even across parallel dimensions, the rift could be opened successfully. Raven easily entered the Helheim Forest and arrived at his own palace.
Mai, after becoming the Woman of the Beginning, spent most of her time living there. Sensing Raven's return, she rushed out to greet him immediately.
"Raven-nii, you were gone when I woke up this morning, and I couldn't even sense your presence!" Mai, in her golden-haired, white-saintly garment, threw herself into Raven's embrace.
As the Woman of the Beginning, she shared a psychic link with the Man of the Beginning. The loss of that link today had naturally caused her alarm.
Seeing her state, Raven placed a hand on her back to soothe her. "My oversight. I'll be sure to tell you next time I leave."
He found a place to sit, settled Mai on his lap, and slowly explained to her about traveling to another dimension and told her some details about the DGP.
"I see," Mai nodded understandingly after learning the cause of his disappearance. There was actually a show where people from the future came to the present to secretly hold a Rider reality competition.
"Alright, enough about that. Let's create life today, Mai."
Raven wrapped his arms around her waist and spoke.
"Mhm."
Hearing his words, Mai's pretty face flushed with shyness. However, this was the duty between her and Raven as the Woman of the Beginning. It was her very reason for existence. She proactively closed the distance between them.
Several hours later.
"Ah, it seems this attempt at creating life was unsuccessful," Raven said with a note of regret.
Mai nodded, her expression disappointed.
Seeing her mood, Raven smiled faintly and comforted her: "Don't be discouraged. We'll keep trying next time."
Encouraged, Mai soon recovered from her disappointment. Raven also detached himself from their close embrace.
It was then that he suddenly noticed a change occurring in the Helheim Forest. His figure instantly blurred and reappeared deep within the woods.
There was a giant ancient tree here. On one of its branches, a tiny, golden fruit was growing. It was a Golden Fruit that had just begun to form, though it wasn't ripe yet.
It turned out that ever since Raven appeared in the Geats world, the power of the Helheim Forest had also permeated that dimension. It secretly drew power from that world, allowing the Golden Fruit to grow.
A surge of joy filled Raven's heart at the sight. This meant that every new world he traveled to would potentially yield another Golden Fruit, didn't it?
Furthermore, he could now perfectly solve the lifespan problem for the women in his life. He only needed to let them merge with a Golden Fruit and become Women of the Beginning like Mai. At the same time, he could consume the Golden Fruit himself to enhance his divine power. It was truly killing two birds with one stone.
Soon after, Mai followed Raven to the spot. Because she had rushed, her clothing wasn't fully fastened. The white stockings on her legs had even become "battle-damaged" from being torn in a few places earlier. Fortunately, there were no outsiders here.
"Raven-nii, what is this..." Mai was also surprised to see the Golden Fruit born on the tree.
Raven simply smiled, embraced the following Mai, and explained the situation to her.
"So, the Helheim Forest is eroding that world..." Mai said with deep concern.
"Don't worry. I control the Helheim Forest now. We can stop the erosion as soon as the Golden Fruit finishes growing," Raven said calmly.
Mai had no further doubts after hearing his explanation.
For the next while, Raven returned to the café in the Gaim world. He spent some affectionate time with his newly married wife, Akira Kazuraba, and then informed her about traveling to the next world.
"It's a shame I'm too busy here. Otherwise, I'd genuinely love to go with you and see what other worlds are like," Akira said with regret.
Although Raven could easily solve all material concerns and let Akira live the best life without ever working, she was unwilling to do so. Over time, she felt life would lose its goal and meaning. She had decided to do something she loved, which was to help Raven manage the café and be self-sufficient.
Raven naturally had no objection. On the contrary, he greatly admired Akira for her resolve and outlook. She truly was the woman he had chosen.
"Actually, you can visit anytime you want. The entrance is right in the courtyard, and even though we're in different worlds, we can still see each other every day," Raven explained to her.
"In that case, let's find a rest day and all go together," Akira suggested, glancing at Yoko and Touka.
With such an emotionally intelligent and generous mistress of the house in Akira, the women under Raven's care got along very well. They were even as close as sisters.
....
Geats world.
After settling things with Akira, Raven appeared with Mai, planning to show her around first.
When the time for the game assembly arrived, he put on the Desire Driver.
"Desire Driver," a sound effect rang out.
He then inserted the ID Core.
"Set."
The next second, Raven's figure vanished, reappearing directly in the Game Lobby.
This was a polygon-shaped large platform suspended high in the air. Several uniquely shaped pillars floated at the edges, giving the space a very imposing feel.
Dozens of people who had donned the Driver and logged in their ID Cores were already gathered there. Unlike most, who appeared flustered, a few individuals were remarkably calm.
These included the previous Desire Grand Prix winner, Ace Ukiyo, and the "Buffalo," Michinaga Azuma, who had just returned from working construction.
Raven's appearance immediately caught Michinaga's attention.
This guy was selected as a contestant after all, Michinaga thought to himself. He had witnessed Raven's strength and knew he would be a formidable opponent if he joined.
———————
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over here ——— pa-tre-on.c-om/AlexandrusTL [remove the hyphen for normal access]