"So many fully-molted Worms? And why are they fighting each other?"
"No matter. Let me send you all packing, together."
Kagami was still in the giddy, post-purchase phase of a young boy with a new toy. He immediately launched an attack on both the Worms and the Inves simultaneously.
Quickly, the Spider Worm was the first to be eliminated by Gatack. The other Inves followed shortly after, easily taken out by Gatack as well.
Raven wasn't surprised by this development. Although he had summoned A-class Inves, monsters that would require a great deal of effort for the main cast of Gaim to defeat, Gatack's base statistics were significantly stronger than those of most primary Riders. Furthermore, Gatack only has one form throughout the entire series, and his power level is at least comparable to the later Reinforced Forms of other Riders.
Kagami immediately de-transformed, his face still alight with excitement.
"This is great! My time has finally come!"
"I should say, it's finally my turn to be the hero."
Kagami was absolutely ecstatic, gesticulating wildly, jumping around like a complete simpleton.
It was at this moment that Hiyori, who was observing secretly with Raven, noticed the Rider Belt on Kagami's waist. Unpleasant memories immediately flooded her mind, recalling the image of the young boy who had tried to kill her parents seven years ago. She quickly mistook Kagami for the culprit.
Raven, standing beside her, naturally understood what Hiyori was thinking. He was contemplating whether or not to tell her the truth, but worried that the revelation might devastate her.
"I'll take you home."
After Kagami left, Raven took Hiyori's hand. Hiyori did not let go the entire way. This was partly due to the recent monster attack, but mostly because she felt a sense of security holding his hand.
"We've arrived at my house," Hiyori said, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow," Raven told her.
"Mhm." Hiyori smiled and stood on the roadside, watching Raven's retreating back until his figure vanished.
However, she soon returned to her unhappy thoughts, her suspicion of Kagami deepening.
…
After parting ways, Raven walked alone for a bit, then suddenly headed toward a specific destination with purpose.
It was a Worm hiding in the shadows. The creature seemed to have tracked Hiyori's scent and followed her, but had yet to make its move.
"Stop hiding."
Raven walked right up to it and, caught completely off-guard, kicked the Worm over. He then proceeded to brutally attack it using only his physical strength, ultimately smashing the Worm into pieces.
After confirming that there were no other Worms in the vicinity, Raven put his hands in his pockets and leisurely headed home.
…
A few days passed.
Kagami spent his time day and night immersed in the feeling of being Gatack, hunting down and killing Worms everywhere.
Currently, ZECT's Rider System includes Kabuto, TheBee, Drake, Sasword, and Gatack. Yet, the most diligent among them was undoubtedly Kagami, who had only been Gatack for a few days. He was handling almost all the KPIs by himself.
This led Masato Mishima to directly terminate their contract with Tsurugi Kamishiro. After all, their budget was tight. They had previously hired Kamishiro due to the urgent shortage of personnel. Things were different now; they had Clock Up Rider, the War God Gatack. They didn't need any external help.
Seeing ZECT's attitude of 'use-and-discard,' the butler, Jiiya, became frantic. This was tantamount to cutting off their most important current source of income. Kamishiro still didn't know that his family had actually gone bankrupt long ago.
Left with no choice, Jiiya decided to set up a late-night ramen stall by himself just to support Kamishiro and his extravagant daily expenses.
The stall was discovered by Tendo. He and his sister were out for an evening walk when they smelled the distinctive aroma of ramen. They followed the scent to the old man's stall and ordered two bowls. Tendo then recognized the stall owner. Sympathetic to Jiiya's physical exhaustion, Tendo voluntarily took over the heavy task of selling ramen for him.
Meanwhile, Raven learned from Hiyori that Tendo had dragged her out to help, so he also went to take a look. This is where he saw the picture of the three Tendo siblings together.
It was the first time he had met Jyuka.
"You must be Jyuka, right? You're really cute."
Raven immediately focused his attention on Tendo's other sister, which immediately unsettled the King of Pride.
"Then you must be Raven-niichan. I've heard Hiyori-nee and my brother talk about you too," Jyuka said, looking at Raven excitedly. "They say your cooking is delicious."
Jyuka instantly transformed into a fangirl, her eyes practically sparkling. This was the first time she had ever met a man who was even handsomer than her brother!
"I didn't expect you to be even cooler than onii-chan!" she said directly, completely disregarding Tendo's feelings.
"Ahem, Jyuka, your brother is the Sun. Any man in my presence is merely obscured by my brilliance. However, it is true that he is slightly superior in cooking," Tendo interjected, defending himself.
"But Raven-niichan is really, really handsome," Jyuka said.
Jyuka was at that infatuated age where she had zero resistance to any top-tier handsome guy who wasn't her brother.
"Raven-niichan, when can I try your cooking?"
Jyuka, acting completely familiar, took Raven's arm. One could only say she truly was the character bound to gourmet food. Any scene she appears in is either related to eating or she is actively eating. (It is said that the actress only found out after wrapping up filming that the show was Kamen Rider, but that's just a joke).
"Well, I'm afraid that if you try my cooking, you won't be able to eat your brother's anymore," Raven said, giving Tendo a challenging look. "From that moment on, the Sun will set."
"You... you bastard..."
For the first time, Tendo felt a suffocating pressure. He was genuinely worried about this. He decided he must learn more culinary knowledge from Jiiya, absorb all his experience, and then he would surely be able to compete with Raven in the kitchen.
"Alright, serve me a bowl of ramen first," Raven said. He had come here specifically to try the ramen.
He took a seat, and shortly after, a figure walked up from a distance.
"Owner, one bowl of ramen."
This person was none other than Kagami, who had just completed an intense mission of eliminating Worms and was looking for a quick rest and a full stomach.
"Coming right up!" Jyuka said with a smile.