"Riku, thank you for saving me just now! If you hadn't shown up, I wouldn't have known what to do."
After the first joint practice, Taki took Tomori home, and Soyo also left in Mutsumi's car. Only Anon and Rikuo were left, walking together towards the station.
"Speaking of which, Riku, you must have left because of the Anomaly, right? Otherwise, why would you be in such a hurry?"
"Yes, this time it was to retrieve the Undead Card I encountered the day before yesterday, and to resolve the trouble with the carrier. Speaking of which, I previously thought the other party was a chuunibyou and difficult to communicate with, but when danger struck, their language system became normal."
"Is that so? But isn't Riku also a chuunibyou? Hmm, it doesn't seem like it. What Riku said seems to be true, right? So, Riku, you solved it quickly this time, didn't you? Otherwise, you wouldn't have rushed back so fast."
"It's good that you know. This is the world's prejudice against me! This opponent was indeed very weak, feeling just like Anon's guitar skill level. I solved it in less than 10 seconds, and I didn't feel many side effects."
"Is that so? That's good. What do you mean 'just like Anon's guitar skill level'?"
"...Give me the 2 of Hearts before you speak again."
As the two chatted, they soon reached their destination, signaling their impending separation.
"Riku, there's no practice tomorrow. Can you accompany me shopping?"
Anon turned around, her eyes sparkling, her hands behind her back, like a cute girl next door.
"Hmm, it seems like there's nothing much to do tomorrow. Alright then, what exactly do you want to do?"
Rikuo thought for a moment, feeling that he had been very busy these two days, and his part-time job seemed to have not contacted him.
'I can't just think about part-time jobs anymore. I need to find other ways to make money. I don't have time to continue with time-based part-time jobs now.'
"Then it's settled! As for what we'll do, hmph, hmph, when girls go shopping, of course, they just go wherever they feel like it!"
"...Can I refuse now?"
"No, you can't! Riku, girls are very willful creatures. Since we've agreed, I won't let you escape!"
"Alright, I'll see if I can find the 9 of Diamonds (its ability is to create clones)."
"Riku, I don't understand what you're saying. What is the ability of the 9 of Diamonds?"
"If you understood, I wouldn't say it. It's one of the cards Tachibana likes to use the most."
"Is it something related to your senior again? Oh, Riku, the train has arrived, so I'll go first, goodbye. Oh, and this."
Anon grabbed Rikuo's right hand and placed the 2 of Hearts in his palm.
"I'm really leaving now, bye-bye, Riku."
"Ganbatte."
Rikuo watched Anon leave, then looked at the 2 of Hearts in his hand.
'I feel like I've found a way to make money. The 2 of Hearts can control mind and body, so comatose patients and mental patients are its target audience. Although when directly using an Undead Card, one needs mental will as a key to activate it for self-use, I can transform into a Kamen Rider to control it, and the 2 of Hearts has no consumption.'
Rikuo put away the 2 of Hearts and boarded the train towards his apartment.
'The problem is with the channels. Can Soyo's Mother help? Or what about my son, Togawa Kiyotsugu? Maybe my adopted son has a channel. I'll ask him first. Maybe in the future, it will be Sakiko's marital property.'
...
Rikuo returned to his apartment.
'Speaking of which, this is the first time I've returned home normally... Let's see if my son is home.'
Rikuo knocked on the door, but there was no response.
"It seems he's not back yet. Should I go back and do homework first? Forget it, I'll just ask Tomori to send me a copy. I am Kamen Rider Blade, who saves the world! How can I waste time on such things!"
While Rikuo was still exclaiming at the door, the door opened, and Sakiko, wearing a mask, looked up at Rikuo. She seemed to have a cold.
"Is that, Rikuo-kun? Is there something you need?"
"I'm looking for my son... your father. I have something to discuss with him. Is he home now?"
"Father is not here. He hasn't been back for the past few days."
'What's wrong with my adopted son again? I thought he was pretending to be decadent before. Could he be a spy within a spy?'
"Then Sakiko, why are you sick? We just saw each other the day before yesterday."
'You know it was the day before yesterday.'
Sakiko muttered to herself.
"It's nothing."
"Sakiko, have you already reached the late stage of cancer? Sakiko, why are you hiding it from me? What will I do if you leave?"
"Oh, what is Rikuo-kun talking about again?"
"Hasn't it come to the point of hiding your illness? Sakiko, you can't give up on treatment! Even if others call you Sakiko-sensei, call you Geats, kami, or whatever... Those are all slanders against a kami!"
Seeing Rikuo's insistent desire to know the truth, Sakiko reluctantly spoke.
"Alright, alright, it's just that I worked too late, missed the train, and had to walk home."
"Sakiko, stop doing part-time jobs."
"But if I don't do part-time jobs, how will my father and I live? And my dreams."
"I can support you! Oh, no, if I say that, you'll scoff. Then, let me hire you. I'll pay you a salary."
Sakiko blinked her amber eyes, looking into Rikuo's eyes. This time, Rikuo's gaze was truly serious.
"Then, you have to tell me what you'll hire me for. Nothing excessive, alright?"
"Can I hire you to be my wife?"
"...Why do I feel like you're not joking?"
"Nothing, I just accidentally spoke my mind. It's actually like this."
Rikuo told Sakiko about his plan to use the 2 of Hearts to treat patients. Sakiko nodded repeatedly as she listened, and Rikuo became more and more excited, even starting to talk about his future plans for this venture.
"Then, we can use the 9 of Diamonds's clones and the 2 of Hearts's face-swapping ability to create fake identities and apply for a Nasdaq listing, sell all the shares, and use the 9 of Diamonds's clones to fake our deaths and exit, making one last profit before the Undead Card disappears..."
"So, Rikuo-kun's chuunibyou has deepened again? He can even imagine things to this extent."
Seeing Sakiko looking down at him, Rikuo suddenly remembered that he seemed to have never told her about his Kamen Rider identity.
"Actually, I am Kamen Rider Blade."
"That joke, having been told once, isn't funny anymore. Can I go back? I need to rest."
Rikuo looked at the closed door, clearly realizing his mistake.
'It must be that I didn't mention giving Sakiko shares when we went public, but I intended for it to be marital property with Sakiko after selling everything! Sakiko is really impatient.'
"No, when did I tell Sakiko I was Kamen Rider? And why would Sakiko be angry?"
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