NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9: This is convenient (9).
As everyone in the long room looked at the screen showcasing the final score, Aaron lay on the couch, seemingly occupied with something on his phone. He glanced at the screen and noticed that Daichi had everyone vote without any exemptions.
"You're standing on a precipice, Daichi-chan~" the game master said, looking like the happiest person alive. He started acting like a child on crack, bouncing around the room. Aaron, however, tuned him out. He didn't want to have to deal with this man for long.
He then told Keiwa that someone was asking for him and to not mess it up. While everyone in the room went off to do their own thing, Aaron stood up and entered his tent. He looked at his broken watch and began to fix it with utmost care, treating it as if it were the most precious item on the planet.
Then, he looked at his buckle, and a puzzled expression appeared on his face. He wanted to try something out, so he pulled out his creation buckle and used his watch to scan it.
[Creation Buckle]
- Allows the user to create or destroy structures
- Provides the user with more armor and versatility without sacrificing power
- A futuristic item made in the year ##### that Kamen Riders use to transform, utilizing technology from that time
Aaron looked at the screen and felt puzzled by the fact that he couldn't see the exact year. It definitely meant that it was from somewhere far into the future. The question now was how far exactly? He had questions but no answers. This wasn't his first time as a Kamen Rider, and it probably wouldn't be his last.
Aaron then decided to do what he had initially planned once he got the buckle. He knew that his memory would have been erased every time a game was over, leaving him back where he started. However, he also knew that touching a Kamen Rider buckle could restore those memories, and so he had a goal.
He wanted to create a material similar enough to the buckle that it would serve the same purpose. He didn't like people messing around with his memory.
While Aaron was thinking about this, somewhere else in the city, Ace met Michinaga and they were currently having a conversation.
"How are you alive, even after the Jamato got you?" Ace asked, leaning against a support beam.
"It's laughable that we went through these absurd games because our ideal worlds were dangled in front of us," Michinaga replied, looking into the distance.
"Acting like a sore loser now?" Ace said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You're clueless," Michinaga responded. "You don't even know where these Jamato things have come from." His expression indicated that he had seen something he shouldn't have.
"Ah, so you're on Team Jamato now, is that it?" Ace said in a calm voice that seemed to mock Michinaga.
"Get bent. I'm alive and human," Michinaga shot back, looking at Ace.
"But I am an exception," Michinaga said, his expression indicating he was lost in a flashback.
"So everyone else aside from you..." Ace said, realization dawning on his face.
"I'm different. I won't let the Jamato use me," Michinaga declared, his determination evident. "I have a dream that I'll achieve my own way, and anyone who gets in my way will be crushed." He showed his id core, emphasizing his resolve.
Meanwhile, somewhere else, Aaron sneezed out of nowhere and put his hand on his nose. Was someone speaking ill of his name while he was not there? Whoever was doing that would pay the price for making him mess up the pile of cards he was making. He watched with a complicated look as all the cards fell down without any support, and three hours of work vanished just like that.
Before he had time to swear, though, he heard the sound of "Scanning data has been completed" through his watch. He raised his watch and looked at the information displayed before a smile appeared on his face.
"So there is a way," Aaron muttered to himself, smiling. He then got up and left his tent, walking outside the building. There was no Tsumuri to stop him this time, so he stepped outside the facility in search of something useful, something that could be found here in Japan.
It felt too convenient for him, almost as if some sort of magical force was pushing everything in the right direction. He could already sense that something would eventually go wrong.
A/N extra and early chapter because why not