Emu feels like his whole world turned upside down. Having Hiiro as an instructor provides him an intense training to pass the incoming examination. He collapses on the table once the door opens. "That was intense..." He moaned and wanted Ophelia to comfort him.
Poppy saw his state and came out from the screen. "Emu, are you alright? Are you suffering because of your Game Syndrome?" She asked worriedly.
"No." Emu assured the pink-haired Bugster. "Hiiro-san was extremely hard on me during surgery training today." He explained his situation.
"Oh? That's it?" Poppy stared at him with a deadpan look and worried for nothing. She kicked the chair just when Emu sat down but fell instead.
"Ow!" Emu whimpered and Poppy apologized for her actions.
"As I thought, you're only suitable for carrying out game treatments." Hiiro explained after observing his training. "You had better thank Poppy Pipopapo for scouting you into CR."
Poppy looked confused at the compliment. "That wasn't me." They looked at her curiously. "It was Kuroto who recommended Genius Gamer M. Originally it was meant for Ophie-chan but he changed his mind to choose him instead." She explained.
"Eh?" Emu looked surprised hearing it. "Fee-chan was also recommended but didn't become one of us." He pointed out and knows Ophelia isn't much of a gamer like him.
"It was Genm?" Hiiro muttered and looked shocked hearing. "Why would he also pick Ophelia first before the intern?" He sips his coffee and wonders why Kuroto has been obsessed with her lately.
"He said he was creating an ultimate game." The genius gamer pointed out and took the chair to sit on it. "What could that be? Does he know Ophelia is the descendant of Alita and chose me instead?" It's hard for him to grasp his childhood friend who was given a third chance to live. To be reborn here in this world as Barron Ophelia Selene.
"Don't think about unnecessary details." Hiiro warned Emu and didn't want to jump to conclusions if Kuroto found out about their origins. "Our job as doctors and nurses is to save the patients. Not to solve mysteries."
Their game scope blared and found the location of the Bugster.
————————————————————
Ophelia and Zilar are waiting for the others to arrive at the prison. They received a call from Asuna as they found a patient with Game Syndrome.
"Fee-chan?" Ophelia turned around to see their arrival. "I'm glad you could make it and Zilar-san too." Emu smiled softly at her and she returned the gesture.
Zilar silently nodded his head as a sign of greeting and Ophelia shook her head. "We're all in this together and we never back down our words." She assures the genius gamer.
Asuna noticed the red-haired woman wasn't with them. "Where's Kanade-chan?" She asked them curiously.
"She's trying to find an excuse to escape her photoshoot and come here fast." Zilar answered and Asuna nodded her head in understanding.
"Who are you all?" The unknown man asked them coldly while shivering in the cold.
"We're CR doctors and nurses." Emu introduced themselves.
"CR?" He never heard of the name before.
"I will do a checkup." Hiiro volunteered to check his condition by using the game scope. They saw a Bugster inside of him. "It is Game Syndrome." He took off his game scope.
"Game Syndrome..." He muttered weakly.
Asuna approached the man with Zilar to help her. "We'll transport you to CR." She spoke softly and tried to carry him with Zilar's help.
He shoved them away. "Get lost! Leave me alone!" The man yelled at them angrily while removing the covers and tried to sit up but fell.
The male knight held him to sit comfortably. "Stop being stubborn or you'll hurt yourself." Zilar commented bluntly and was tempted to knock him out.
"I said leave me alone!" He shoved Zilar away from him.
"Hey!" He grabs the necktie from the police officer. "Let me meet Dan Masamune again." Grunted and wanted to interview the prisoner which caught Ophelia and Zilar's interest at the name that shares the surname of Kuroto. The man grunted in pain as the Bugster began to control his body.
"Dan Masamune?" Emu muttered.
"The former CEO of GENM Corporation, the one who caused Zero Day." Asuna answered while Ophelia and Emu looked at her. "He's Kuroto's father."
"I didn't know Dan's father was in prison." Ophelia is surprised to find out the real culprit who's behind Zero Day 5 years ago.
"I will reveal the truth..." The man stood up and ignored the pain all over his body. He cried out in pain and the Bugster successfully took over his body.
The police officers jumped back at the Bugster in front of them. "Run, everyone!" Asuna yelled at them worriedly about their safety.
Hiiro and Emu readied their Gashat and driver while Ophelia and Zilar's bodies glowed.
"Skill Level 5." Hiiro announced while holding his Taddle Quest and Drago Knight Hunter Z. "Henshin!" He activated it to transform.
"Henshin!" Emu grabs his Mighty Brothers XX Gashat and activates it to transform.
"𝑲𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏, 𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓!" Ophelia chants to transform into Moon Knight.
"𝑰'𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎." Zilar chants to transform into Silver Knight.
"Stage Select!"
They're transported to the game world of the feudal era place.
"My name is Kaiden." The Bugster introduced himself. "My grade is 30-dan." He grips his twin swords.
The four of them summon their swords. "Let's have a sword battle then!" Emu declared.
"Going forth." He declared and they all clashed their weapons together.
Emu noticed Kuroto showed up. "You came!? Don't get in the way of the operation!" He yelled at the former CEO and dodged Kaiden's sword.
"My opponent isn't you." Kuroto answered and sensed someone joining them as he turned around to shoot at the two newcomers.
It revealed Taiga and Kanade as the red-haired woman stopped the attack with her spear.
"Su-paan!" Kuroto splits his sparrow in half.
"Snipe, I'll be taking your Gashat back." The former CEO declared.
"That's my line." Taiga retorted back while looking at Kanade. "Don't slow me down Red."
"Trust me, he's in a world of pain of hurting my friends." Kanade spoke up in a stern tone as they fought against Kuroto.
The six of them are busy dealing with their respective enemies. Zilar decided to join Taiga and Kanade so they could even their groups of 3 to fight against Kuroto or Kaiden.
"Such splendid swordsmanship, but still too weak!" Kaiden commented on their poor workmanship skills as he pushed their weapons away. His sword glowed red and tried to slice them but Ophelia activated her defense move.
𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑨𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒔
The sword didn't break the barrier but only pushed him away from them. "Get back, intern and Ophelia." Hiiro informed them before activating his final attack.
"Gashuun! Gashatto! Finisher!"
"That won't happen!" Emu yelled and threw his breaker away. "I'll finish him!"
"Seriously you guys?" Ophelia groaned and gave them a pointed look while her sword glowed. "Men, these days!" She grumbled about their ego and pride.
"Gacchaan! Finisher!"
𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒉!
"Drago Knight Mighty Double Critical Strike!"
All their attacks are attacking in sync while Kaiden sliced it down to cancel their attacks. "Is that all you've got!?" He missed the attack from Ophelia's move while Emu's legs were glowing and continuing to kick him six times to make Kaiden explode.
"I've run out of power?" Kaiden muttered and his body smoked from their attacks. "I shall retreat into the shadows for now." He goes back inside of the man's body to let him control his body back.
"Get out of my sight." Kuroto growled and activated his final attack.
"Gashatto! Finisher!"
"No, you." Taiga commented and activated his final attack while Kanade and Zilar copied him.
"Gacchaan! Finisher! Gacchaan! Bang Bang Critical Fire!"
"Bang Bang Critical Finish!"
Kanade throws her spear towards Kuroto.
𝘚𝘈𝘎𝘐𝘛𝘛𝘈𝘙𝘐𝘜𝘚∞𝘈𝘙𝘙𝘖𝘞
Zilar points his sword at Kuroto and summons his attack.
𝑺𝒊𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔
Their attacks merge as one and Kuroto struggles to push it back because it's powerful for him to stop. The former CEO takes the hit and releases one of the Gashats he'd taken from them.
Zilar caught it to reveal Bang Bang Shooting Gashat before silently handing it over to Taiga. The unlicensed doctor silently nodded his head and accepted it. Kanade shook her head in amusement at their silent actions.
"That was easy." Taiga commented watching Kuroto struggle. "Do you think you could defeat a Level 50, Symphogear and Knight as a Level 10?"
Kuroto healed himself from the pain and stood up. "Enjoy gloating for now, as it will not last very long. You guys had better not poke your noses into strange matters..." He warned them and walked away from them. "...if you don't wish to end up like Kujou Kiriya." He left the game world.
"Hey!" Emu yelled and Kanade grabbed his shoulder to stop him.
"No point in chasing him, Emu." Kanade spoke up while staring at the place where Kuroto disappeared. "Despite he has a lower level Gashat, we shouldn't underestimate him."
"The calm before the storm, huh?" Ophelia muttered and Zilar nodded his head silently.
"He's plotting and collecting the essence of the Bugster for a reason." Zilar spoke up and the doctors looked at him. "I have no solid proof yet and I'll investigate it more."
"I almost forgot about you working as a detective." Kanade commented while laughing nervously.
"Please tell us whatever you found so far, Zilar." Ophelia looked at Zilar while he nodded his head.
Zilar would investigate further and find out Kuroto's true agenda.
————————————————————
Asuna and Emu are going to talk to their new patient name Uesugi Heiji. He's a detective like Zilar but works in different police stations.
Zilar left to investigate Dan Masamune and Dan Kuroto while Kanade, Ophelia and Hiiro were in the office room to hear their conversation.
"My son caught the Bugster virus and vanished!" Heiji yelled while Ophelia flinched at his pain.
Kanade holds Ophelia's hand for comfort. "It's not your fault, Lena-chan. You did everything you could to save them." She whispered and hugged her side. The red-haired woman noticed Hiiro's silent grateful look for comforting his girlfriend while she smiled lightly.
"Thanks, Kanade." Ophelia thanked the red-haired woman.
"The incident became a matter for the Ministry of Health... and I investigated it privately." Heiji explained and leaned against the wall. "I want to reveal the truth of Zero Day and avenge my son. He was one of the unlucky ones who didn't get saved by the miracle."
"But wasn't the incident resolved when the culprit, Dan Masamune, was arrested?" Asuna asked curiously.
"It's not solved yet but I manage to catch the pretty boy's attention about it." He remembered the man who tried to help back then and recognized the young man's face. Emu and Asuna stared at him curiously. "Argent Zilar. He's one of the best detectives and I managed to catch his attention when mentioning his name. Dan Masamune admitted that it was an accident... but never confessed the reason why he created the Bugster virus."
"I didn't know that Zilar is one of the best detectives." Ophelia commented while crossing her arms. She knows Zilar is known to excel at gathering information but didn't know he's well-known due to his achievements.
"He doesn't boast about it and just wanted to get the job done." Kanade spoke up after knowing him for the past few years. "Zilar would choose depending on the rate of the case."
"I see..." She glanced out the window to look at Heiji. "I wonder why his dad refused to tell them about the Bugster virus."
"Furthermore, two men disappeared last Christmas." Heiji explained and showed Emu the two pictures of Kuroto and Kiriya. "Dan Masamune's son, Dan Kuroto... and Kujou Kiriya, a coroner who met Dan Masamune."
"Do you think Kiriya met Masamune-san before he was defeated by Kuroto?" Ophelia asked Hiiro curiously.
"Possibly as he was the first one who discovered his secrets." Hiiro answered and crossed his arms.
"That incident five years ago isn't over yet!" Heiji exclaimed and stood up but only felt pain.
"Uesugi-san!" Emu caught him before he could fall. "Well... I'll investigate for you." He declared and wanted to investigate his case.
"Eh?" Ophelia gaped in surprise. "No offense on Emu but he's not a great interrogator." She pointed out and wondered how he could interrogate the ex-founder of GENM.
"Wait... what are you talking about? You're a doctor, Emu." Asuna reminded him of his job.
Heiji looked at him. "As a detective, it's my job to investigate." He didn't want him to get involved in the investigation.
"No." Heiji looked at him surprised. "It's part of my job too. I want to cure you, and retrieve your smile." Emu assured him.
Hiiro heard it enough and looked at the females to give them a silent look to follow him. The three of them go down to meet up with Emu and Asuna. "Where are you going?" The genius surgeon asked them.
Emu exhaled softly. "Kiriya-san must have been killed by Genm..." The genius gamer explained. "...for something he learned when he met Dan Masamune in the prison. I have to find out what that is."
"You mean we, Emu." Kanade referred herself and him. "We wanted to join the investigation too so we can exchange notes with Zilar."
Hiiro glares at the red-haired woman and she raises her right eyebrow back at him. "I thought I told you solving mysteries isn't a doctor's job." He reminded Emu in the morning.
Emu remembered it but he couldn't break the promise for Heiji. "Hiiro-san and Fee-chan? Can you look after the patient?" The former goddess blinks her eyes in surprise.
"I thought I was coming with you guys." Ophelia muttered and wanted to join in the investigation too.
Emu shook his head. "You'll be needed here. Besides, I have Poppy and Kanade-san to join me." He assured Ophelia knowing she tends to get worried about them.
"It's going to be okay, Lena-chan!" Kanade patted her shoulder with a smile. "Focus on your job and leave everything to us! I'll call Zilar if he can join us for it."
"Do you want to end up like the coroner!?" Hiiro asked angrily and shoved Emu on the wall.
"Hiiro!" Ophelia separates them and gives the genius surgeon a look to stop. "I know that you're worried once we find out the truth of Zero Day and would bring them in danger. Think about it... why did he kill Kiriya-san on the day when he was about to tell us something?"
"Fee-chan is right. I want to know... the reason behind this and I'm not alone." The genius gamer assured him and he walked away.
"Be careful!" Ophelia yelled and Emu waved.
"We'll contact one of you if something happens. Please take care of the patient." Asuna leaves Hiiro and Ophelia to look after the detective.
"Zilar and I will watch over them." Kanade assured them with a soft smile and waves. "See ya!" She follows the others.
Ophelia looks at Hiiro worriedly before holding his hand. "Hiiro, they're going to be fine." She assured him while sensing his anxiety and worry for them.
"How much do you have that faith for them?" Hiiro muttered and she's the only one who has always been an optimistic woman.
"I just know it and trust them, Hiiro."
————————————————————
Zilar, Asuna, Emu and Kanade are waiting for Masamune to arrive from the other room so they can talk through the window. The police officer shows up with Masamune with him.
"Pleased to meet you." Emu greeted Masamune and bowed his head politely. "I'm Hojou Emu from Seitou University Hospital." He introduced himself.
"Emu?" Masamune muttered and recognized the name somewhere. "It's you?" He turned around to face him and his other three companions.
"You know about me?" He asked and couldn't remember their encounter before.
Masamune sits down on the chair. "What do you want?" He changed the subject.
"Kujou Kiriya, the coroner who came to meet you last Christmas has vanished." Emu explained and gulped nervously while glancing at Zilar for support.
"Your son, Dan Kuroto is responsible for his disappearance." Zilar pointed out bluntly.
"I see." He showed no sympathy or pity for Kiriya's death while Kanade masked her anger. "I had high hopes for him."
"Hopes?" Asuna muttered.
Emu leans closer. "What did you tell Kiriya-san that day?"
"So you're saying that you can stop my son?" Masamune asked back.
"Whatever it takes." Zilar answered and looked at Masamune with an intense look.
————————————————————
"What do we do now?" Asuna asked them curiously after they finished interrogating Masamune.
"Let's go to the hospital. We have to let Uesugi-san know." Emu answered and looked at Zilar. "Zilar-san, are you going to join us?"
Zilar nodded his head. "I have to give Ophelia a hand to upgrade Luna about her battle skills." He answered. "She hasn't been on a battlefield before despite having one of her abilities and skills."
"Lu-chan can join when we need her?" Asuna asked and the Knight nodded his head.
"Only for emergency purposes." Kanade reminded them. "It's up to Luna's decision if she wants it."
"Don't poke your nose into strange matters." They looked up to see Kuroto show up from the bridge. "I thought I warned you."
"Kuroto..." Emu muttered his name. "We heard all about you from your father. Everything began..."
~𝗙𝗹𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸~
"...𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝟮𝗞 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺." 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗿.
"𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝟮𝗞 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺?" 𝗔𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗮 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆.
"𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝟮𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗔𝗗." 𝗘𝗺𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱. "𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗱, 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗱."
"𝗬𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴, 𝗘𝗺𝘂." 𝗔𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗮, 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗺𝘂 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲. "𝗜 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗠 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁. 𝗔𝗺 𝗜 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗗𝗮𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗲?" 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗹𝘆.
𝗠𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗺𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. "𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵, 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗮𝗻." 𝗛𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗱. "𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆'𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗴𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀." 𝗛𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱.
"𝗘𝗵?" 𝗔𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗮 𝗴𝗮𝘀𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗰𝗸.
"𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁." 𝗛𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗴𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗭𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗗𝗮𝘆.
"𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗲𝘀?" 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗹𝘆. "𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗳𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂!?" 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆. "𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝗴𝗼, 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿! 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀!?" 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗹𝘆.
"𝗬𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝘄𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲!" 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿.
"𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲." 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝘀 𝗽𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗭𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻. "𝗛𝗲'𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲. 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗳 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁." 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼'𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘃𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿.
"𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗙𝗲𝗲-𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗲." 𝗘𝗺𝘂 𝗺𝘂𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲. 𝗛𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻'𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗺. 𝗜𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗢𝗽𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗮 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹.
~𝗙𝗹𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗘𝗻𝗱~
"You made use of the virus to cause Zero Day five years ago..." Emu finished his explanation. "...and pushed all the blame onto your father."
Kuroto laughs loudly and finds it amusing. "That was the only way!" He yelled leaning on the rail. "To complete the ultimate game... there's no way I'd let myself get caught." The former CEO had a lot of plans to succeed and refused to get caught by the police.
"Unbelieve!" Asuna muttered and couldn't believe what she was hearing right now. "Who would sacrifice his father!?"
"He would do anything if it means throwing innocent people to take the blame for it." Zilar whispered angrily and his eyes flashed silver in anger.
————————————————————
Ophelia silently hums and checks that Heiji's vitals are stable. "I'm sorry." Heiji spoke up softly to apologize to her and Hiiro.
"You don't have to apologize for anything, sir." Ophelia assured him softly. "You just wanted to unveil the truth and get justice for your loved ones." She could understand Heiji's motive to investigate the past despite it would lead him to a dangerous situation.
Hiiro looked away. "Is there a meaning... in investigating the past?" He asked. "Even if you do... you cannot bring back someone who has been lost."
Ophelia silently rubs Hiiro's shoulder to comfort him. He may move on from Saki but Hiiro still blames for her death and not saving her on time.
"I couldn't protect my son." Heiji spoke up and they glanced at him. "And I can't find even a shred of the truth. I'm a worthless detective." He felt hopeless as his investigation wasn't progressing to find out the truth.
"You're not worthless at all, sir." Ophelia assured him with a smile. "If anything— I find it admirable for your dedication to solving the case despite it's been close."
"Nurse Barron, I—" Heiji grunted in pain and felt like the Bugster was trying to take his body. Kaiden finally takes Heiji's body to control it.
Hiiro readied his two Gashats. "Taddle Quest! Drago Knight Hunter!" He activated it.
Ophelia's body glowed. "𝑲𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏, 𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓!" She chants and transforms into Moon Knight.
————————————————————
Kuroto continues to laugh and Emu's game scope blares as they detect the Bugster is on the move. "Uesugi-san's virus has propagated!" Emu informed them with a worried look.
Kuroto jumps off from the bridge and lands right in front of Emu. Zilar moves Emu behind to protect him while glaring at the former CEO. "Hold it." Kuroto stops them from chasing the Bugster. "Can you save him?" He asked and smirked darkly while holding the Gashat then activated it.
"Dangerous Zombie!"
Emu stands right next to Zilar and holds his Gashat. "Mighty Brothers XX!"
"Henshin!"
"Henshin!"
Zilar and Kanade shared a look as they followed to transform their respective forms.
"𝑰'𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎."
"𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘪𝘵𝘻𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘻𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘎𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘳 𝘻𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘭~"
————————————————————
Hiiro and Ophelia are clashing their swords against Kaiden as he pushes them away successfully. They looked up to see Double Emu, Kanade, Zilar and Kuroto are joining in
"You're in the way, intern. Let us operate." Hiiro pointed out and referred himself and Ophelia.
"Yes, please do." The blue Emu bowed his head politely at them.
"We'll stop Genm." The orange Emu declared and referred to his other half, Kanade and Zilar.
Ophelia raises her sword to stop Kaiden's attack and pushes him away. "Hiiro, are you ready?" She asked the genius surgeon.
Hiiro nodded his head. "Whatever your plan is, I trust you, Ophelia." He's going to agree with whatever she's plotting.
"Increase our disadvantage against them." She backflips to dodge the attack while Hiiro slashes Kaiden.
"Sakebi tsuzukero
Mayoi no nai negai wo nando demo
Kowaresou datte koko ni irun datte
Shinji tsuzukero"
The six of them glowed and felt their abilities and skills were increasing thanks to Ophelia's song.
"Aimai darake no kono genjistu ni
Sarasare nagara tamesarete irun da hora
Itsuwari no beeru matottatte
Okubyou na jibun tsukuroe ya shinai"
Ophelia summons one of her offensive attacks.
𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔
"Kanashimi kurushimi wa itsu datte
Tsuyosa wo umidasu mahou mitai da
Tomadoi mo tamerai sae mo
Kitto imi wo motsu hazu sa"
The orange Emu glanced at blue Emu, Kanade and Zilar. "Alright! Finish him!" He declared.
"Yeah. Let's use the finisher!" The blue Emu commented and grabbed their Gashats.
"Gashatto! Zu-Kyu-Kyu-Kyuun! Finisher!"
Kanade nodded her head. "Let's do this!" She used her arm gear to summon her spear.
"Sakebi tsuzukero
Mayoi no nai negai wo nando demo
Kowaresou datte nakushisou datte woah woah!
Hitori janai daro"
Zilar silently points his sword at Kuroto.
𝑺𝒊𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔
Kanade throws her spear with all her strength.
𝘚𝘈𝘎𝘐𝘛𝘛𝘈𝘙𝘐𝘜𝘚∞𝘈𝘙𝘙𝘖𝘞
"Action Robots Critical Finish!" Both Emu hold their slasher and blast him together with Kanade and Zilar's attack. It forced Kuroto to revert to normal.
"Gashuun!" Kuroto wheezed in pain after taking heavy attacks from them.
The four of them glanced to see Ophelia and Hiiro are in sync while battling Kaiden.
"There is nothing I cannot cut!" Hiiro declared and shoved Kaiden. Ophelia gives him a silent look to use his final attack. "Trap him, Ophelia."
Ophelia summons a small needle to scatter around Kaiden's surroundings.
𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔!
Hiiro activates his final attack once Kaiden is trapped by Ophelia's strings. "Gashuun!" He obtains one of the coin items. "Muscle up! Gashatto! Finisher! Drago Knight Critical Strike!"
"Kazoekirenai itami datte kono kizuato datte
Dakishimeru kara itoshiku naru kara woah, woah
Shinjiteru yo
Unmei no sono saki e susumi tsuzukero!"
The whole sky turned dark as the full moon shone brightly. Ophelia swings her sword as a multiple of purple slashes headed toward him.
𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒉!
"How impertinent!" Kaiden yelled and was about to cancel their attack.
Both of their attacks merge as they grow bigger and difficult for Kaiden to cut it as they finally land a hit. It caused a huge explosion once they defeated Kaiden.
"Game clear!" It declared Hiiro and Ophelia as the winners.
"Good job, guys!" Kanade hugged Ophelia behind while she stumbled a bit and regained her balance. "It's been a long time to hear your singing, Lena-chan~!"
Ophelia laughs nervously. "Shouldn't I say the same thing to you too?" She asked and patted her hand.
Zilar noticed Kuroto absorbed the essence of the Bugster while narrowing his gaze. 'He's been doing that recently after defeating the Bugster. What is his agenda here?' He thoughts while Emu reverts to normal.
"Please take cover, Uesugi-san." Ophelia pleads and Heiji moves far away from them without getting into crossfire.
"Hey! What did you just do?" Emu asked Kuroto in a stern tone.
"Kamen Riders... Bugsters... Knights... Symphogear." Kuroto called each one of their codenames while they were being tense and stood up. "They are all just a part of the ultimate game."
"What's this ultimate game you're talking about?" Ophelia asked hesitantly and didn't notice Taiga showed up but remained silent.
"Kamen Rider Chronicle." Kuroto answered and showed them the screen the name of the game with their pictures on it, including Zilar, Kanade and Ophelia. It didn't make sense to them since they weren't Kamen Riders. "Ordinary people will transform into Kamen Riders and fight monsters in the real world. It's a survival game with lives at stake!" He shut down the screen.
"You're a monster, Dan." The former goddess muttered and cried in anger for creating a game that would involve innocent people.
"A game?" Emu whispered and approached Kuroto. "How could you make a game that puts other's lives in danger?" He couldn't believe Kuroto would put everyone's life at risk for the sake of the game. The genius gamer grabs his jacket to pull him. "You killed Kiriya-san for something like that!?"
Kuroto chuckled in amusement while the others didn't find it funny at all. "A few sacrifices can't be helped." He shrugged his shoulders.
"You fiend—" Hiiro stops Ophelia from beating Kuroto.
"I know you're angry but we don't need to make Kuroto entertain our emotions, Ophelia." He whispered and she stopped marching towards the former CEO.
Kuroto slaps Emu's hand and kicks his stomach. Kanade caught Emu before he could hurt himself more. The others tried to approach them but Kuroto stopped them by pointing his driver at them. "I'll give dreams and adventures to unsatisfied people." Kuroto declared and approached Emu and Kanade but stopped by her spear pointing at him with a deadly look. "That's the purpose of games! That's entertainment! And I have the god-like talent to make that happen!"
"Because of you... a great number of people lost their lives." Emu reminded him coldly and Ophelia nearly lost her life because of saving half of their lives. "Uesugi-san's family... Hiiro-san's... girlfriend... and... Sakura-san's fiancé, Kiriya-san. I'll avenge them all!"
Kanade's spear glowed and glared at Kuroto before he could kick Emu. "One more step and I won't hesitate to hurt you." She grips Emu gently in her free hand.
"Kanade-san..." Emu whispered and stared at her surprised. 'Usually, it's Fee-chan would help me but this time... it's different.' He thoughts.
"Interesting for someone who isn't a Kamen Rider." Kuroto smirked at the way Kanade protected Emu. "None of you cannot stop me when I'm immortal... "
"Gachoon!"
"... and when I've obtained the power of Level X." Kuroto grabbed his Gashat and smirked darkly while activating it.
"Dangerous Zombie! Gashatto!" Kanade carries Emu in bridal style and moves back to distance themselves away from him. Kuroto yelled in pain and the black smoke pushed everyone away. "Buggle up! Danger! Danger! Genocide! Death the crisis! Dangerous Zombie!" He transforms while they're struggling to stand.
"Level X!" Taiga muttered.
Ophelia uses her hologram sword as a support and breathes heavily. "We didn't see this coming." She whispered.
"X means an unknown number." Hiiro pointed out while his eyes widened in surprise. "So that means it's immeasurable!?"
"Wrong." Zilar grunted and rolled over to look at the sky. "No matter how strong your enemy is, there's always been a loophole. I don't accept him for being so-called immortal." Kuroto isn't worthy to be an immortal human like him.
Ophelia stood up and faced Kuroto with an intense look. "I've faced Gods and Goddesses before and your skills are no match for them." She commented and pointed her hologram sword at him. "I won't let you hurt innocent people! In the name of the Knight!" Her whole body glowed.
Emu stood up before grabbing his Gashat. "We'll stop you!" He declared and activated his Mighty Brothers XX Gashat.
"Mighty Brothers XX!"
"Henshin!
"𝑪𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌, 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆" Ophelia chants and transform into Dark Moon.
"Double Gashat! Gacchaan! Level up! Mighty Brothers X! Gacchaan!"
"Dai! Henshin!"
"Gacchaan! Double up! Mighty, Mighty Brothers XX! Gashacon Key slasher!" Double Emu summoned his weapon.
"Gaschacon Sparrow!" Kuroto summons his weapon.
Orange Emu grabs his Gashat to summon his final attack. "Gashuun! Double Gashat! Finisher!" The key slasher made a replica to let blue Emu have it. "Su-pa-papaan!"
Ophelia silently slashed forward to reveal dark purple lightning appearing from the sky.
𝒁𝒆𝒖𝒔 𝑾𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒉!
It landed a hit on Kuroto as Double Emu bashed him after Ophelia's attack. "Jaja Ja Kiin! Mighty Brothers Critical Finish!" They slashed the attack together and Kuroto stopped it using his final attack.
Ophelia notices Double Emu's attack won't last long to hit Kuroto and points her sword at the former CEO.
𝑵𝒆𝒘 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝑶𝒓𝒃𝒊𝒕
A black sphere appeared and rushed forward to help Double Emu's final attack to push Kuroto's final attack. Both attacks overcome Kuroto's attack as it lands a hit on him to cause a huge explosion.
Zilar created a shield to protect them from the explosion. He lowered down once the explosion stopped and smoke disappeared to see Kuroto was gone.
"Where did he go?" The blue Emu muttered.
Ophelia tapped blue Emu's shoulder and looked at her. She shook her head and no longer felt his presence. The former goddess reverts to normal. "He used the explosion as a distraction to escape, Emu."
Zilar approached them and looked where Kuroto disappeared. "He's asking for a death wish no matter how much we defeated him." He commented and reverted to normal.
Kanade reverted to normal and placed her both hands on the waist. "I'm still struggling to understand Kuroto's crazy mind." She commented and sighed heavily.
"He's crazy to think he's an immortal due to his Gashat." He pointed out bluntly. "No matter what happens, we'll face it."
————————————————————
"It's not just about saving the patient in front of you." Poppy spoke up after seeing Emu bringing the good news of Heiji's condition. "Emu also carries the wishes of people who've passed away."
Hiiro sighs softly while holding his knife and fork. "I might have underestimated him." He commented and Emu kept giving him a surprise to catch him off guard.
Ophelia smiles softly and sips her tea. "Emu has always been a heart of gold. That's one of the reasons why we're best friends and I treat him like a brother." She commented.
The former goddess joined them in the office room and wanted to tell them something important.
"I heard you~!" Poppy yelled happily and rare for Hiiro to compliment someone other than Ophelia. "Itadakimasu." She bites the cake from Hiiro's plate.
"H-hey!" Hiiro yelled in shock while Ophelia laughed softly at his bewildered look.
"Delicious!" Poppy moaned at the cake and realized something. "Where did you get it from?"
"I baked it." Ophelia answered with a smile and Poppy's eyes widened in surprise. "I have something to tell you guys while Emu and Haima-san knew this."
"What is it!?" Poppy asked eagerly to learn the news then gasped in shock. "Are you and Hiiro are back together!?" She glances between them while Hiiro glares at her.
"Haha..." Ophelia laughs nervously and it's no surprise most of them knew their history. Hiiro decided to keep their relationship a secret but someone found out they're back together. "It's not that, Poppy. I've been thinking a lot lately for the past few months and nonstop pestering from Haima-san." She strokes her cup nervously. "Luna and I decided to work with you guys both CR and hospital. If you guys are okay with it?"
"More than okay!" Poppy answered happily and hugged Ophelia. She's happy to hear the good news and looking forward to spending more time with them. "Ophie-chan and Lu-chan are more than welcome to join~! Speaking of Lu-chan, where is she?" She asked curiously while noticing the female android's absence.
"Luna is with Zilar at the moment to help me upgrade her." She explained Luna's absence and looked at Hiiro. "Are you fine with this, Hiiro?"
Hiiro nodded and there was no doubt Ophelia was dedicated to her work and a diligent person. "It's more convenient and no making excuses at your work or using Luna to disguise herself as you." He pointed out and was secretly glad she was working with them from now on.
Poppy hums. "It's a miracle no one can tell the difference between you or Lu-chan unless one of your friends did." She commented.
"Sakura did and she understands why I need to move my job here." Ophelia explained and bowed her head at them. "I'm looking forward to working with you guys." She looked up with a gentle smile.
"Us too!"
Ophelia smiled and looked forward to working in her new surroundings. 'I hope I'm not going to gain fanboys here like my previous work.' She thoughts.