Lying on his bed, Hideo stared at the so-called Lockseed in his hands. His gaze lingered on the orange one as he tossed it into the air and caught it again with ease.
His thoughts drifted back to the man who had given it to him earlier. Apple—that was what he called himself. Without warning, the man had handed over that thing he calls the Sengoku Driver and Lockseeds, along with something he referred to as a Lock Vehicle, then vanished the moment Hideo blinked.
"How in the world would these things help me in any way?" Hideo muttered, doubt heavy in his voice.
Apple had offered no real explanation, only names for the strange items now in his possession. And then there was Zawame City—the place he claimed as his former hometown. Hideo had searched for it, digging through every source he could find, but there was no trace of its existence anywhere in the world.
"Maybe he's from another world, some jumper crossing space just to hand this to me… or something like that."
Hideo snorted at himself, amused by the thought. Too many isekai light novels and anime had clearly gotten into his head.
"Like hell he is."
He placed the Lockseed back into its container, pulled the blanket over himself, and closed his eyes. Thinking about it any longer would only make him spiral into pointless speculation. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and with it, answers—or at least distractions.
========
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"Sleep well, kid."
Apple chuckled to himself as he sat alone in an empty park. The quiet night wrapped around him, broken only by the faint rustle of leaves.
"Because from now on, your life's going to be a nonstop roller coaster."
He pulled out a small booklet and tapped the cover with his red pen before biting its cap. Flipping through the pages, he stopped at a certain image and circled it with a slow, deliberate motion. Satisfied, he snapped the booklet shut.
Pushing himself up from the pavement, Apple reached into his coat and took out a Vehicle Lock, identical to the one he had given Hideo. With a practiced motion, he opened it and tossed it onto the ground.
In an instant, it transformed into a motorcycle.
"The first Armored Rider has been found," Apple said with a smirk, flicking the brim of his fedora. "One down, five to go."
He swung onto the bike and revved the engine. The machine roared to life as he shot forward in a straight line, speed climbing to something almost unnatural. Light began to gather around him, bending and warping until a glowing, oval-shaped portal tore open ahead.
Without slowing down, Apple drove straight into it.
The portal snapped shut the moment he passed through, leaving the empty park behind as if nothing had ever happened.
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Waking groggily, Hideo forced himself to sit up. A yawn escaped him as he scratched his stomach and reached for his phone on the desk. The screen lit up—nearly eight o'clock.
"What was I supposed to do today again?" he muttered, rubbing his head as if that might jog his memory.
He paused, thinking it through, but nothing came to mind. No plans, no responsibilities. Just an empty day stretching ahead of him.
"Or I could…"
His gaze drifted behind him. Slowly, he turned and opened his wooden closet. Inside sat the familiar black box. He pulled it out, set it on his desk, and took a seat.
Carefully unboxing it, he lifted the Sengoku Driver from its container.
Standing up, he examined it more closely, turning it over in his hands as he paced around the room.
"So how do I even use this?" Hideo frowned.
Still thinking, he absentmindedly moved his arm—and without realizing it, pressed the Sengoku Driver against his waist.
In an instant, the device reacted.
A belt materialized around him, locking into place with a sharp click. The sound of a war trumpet blared through the room, loud and commanding. Lights flared along the sides of the Driver, and a glowing outline began to form—a stylized samurai helmet taking shape.
Speechless, Hideo could only blink.
"EHHHHHHHHHHHH???"
The shout tore out of him as he frantically tapped the belt, trying to make sense of what had just happened. His fingers traced along its surface, half-expecting it to disappear.
…
…
…
After a few long moments, he finally managed to calm himself down.
Unbuckling the belt, Hideo stared at the Sengoku Driver in his hands. It looked mostly the same, except now there was a faint design etched into it, as if something had awakened within.
"Okay… so this thing turns into a belt. What's next?" he muttered, still shaken by how absurd everything felt.
His eyes drifted to the center of the device. The slot. The shape.
He squinted—and then it clicked.
"THOSE can fit in this."
Moving too quickly, he nearly tripped over himself before catching his balance. He rushed back to the box and grabbed the Lockseeds, his hands already moving on instinct.
But just before inserting one, he froze.
"…No. Wait."
He shook his head and pulled his hand back.
If he was going to test something like this, doing it in his room was a terrible idea. Maybe he was overthinking it, but better that than blowing up his own house. Apple mentioned these things were weapons after all.
Yeah. No way he was risking that here.
========
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Making his way to the hidden hangout he shared with Konomi in the nearby woods, Hideo scanned the area before giving a small nod of approval. The place was quiet, just as he remembered. No one was around. Good.
He set his bag against a tree and crouched down, unzipping it. From inside, he pulled out the Sengoku Driver and the Orange Lockseed. Holding one in each hand, he glanced between them, his grip tightening as he slowly stood.
The wind picked up, rustling the leaves around him. Branches swayed, their shadows shifting along the ground as if the forest itself had turned its attention toward him.
"I don't even know why I'm doing this," Hideo muttered under his breath. "But… whatever. Too late to back out now."
Resolute, he strapped the Sengoku Driver onto his waist. The belt formed instantly, wrapping around him with a firm click.
He raised the Lockseed, staring at it for a brief moment before taking a deep breath.
"Moment of truth."
He pressed it.
With a sharp click, the Lockseed sprang open like a real lock—and a voice rang out from within.
[𝕆𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖]
Hideo blinked, caught off guard—but what he didn't notice was the glowing circle forming above his head. Not until—
ZIIIIP.
The sound of something unsealing tore through the air.
He looked up.
His jaw dropped.
Floating above him was a massive, metallic object—an orange… but forged from steel, segmented and gleaming under the light.
"…What the hell…?"
He rubbed his eyes, as if that might fix what he was seeing.
"Fucking hell—what kind of messed-up crap did Apple give me?!" he burst out, half-laughing in disbelief, half on the edge of panic.
The orange construct hovered silently, as if waiting.
Hideo exhaled sharply, forcing himself to steady.
"Screw it. Whatever happens, happens."
With that, he slammed the Lockseed into the Sengoku Driver and locked it in place.
[𝕃𝕠𝕔𝕜 𝕆𝕟]
A war trumpet blared, echoing through the trees—not deafening, but powerful enough to make his chest tighten.
"…Now what?" Hideo muttered.
Hesitating for only a second, he grabbed the blade-like switch on the Driver and used it.
The reaction was immediate.
The belt flared with a bright orange glow. An emblem resembling a blade carved from citrus light burst forth from the Lockseed. Above him, the metallic orange dropped without warning.
"WAIT—!"
It crashed down over him.
A flash of bluish light engulfed his body. Armor began forming in layers—metal gauntlets locking around his arms, boots sealing over his legs.
Inside the hollow structure, Hideo could only move his head, panic rising again.
"Am I supposed to be something now?!"
Before he could process anything further, a helmet snapped into place over his head. The orange shell around him split apart, segments shifting and locking onto his body like pieces of a living machine.
With a final metallic clash, everything settled.
An orange-shaped blade materialized in his right hand, while another weapon secured itself at his left side.
Then the voice rang out once more.
[𝕆𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖 𝔸𝕣𝕞𝕤!]
[ℍ𝕒𝕟𝕒𝕞𝕚𝕔𝕙𝕚 𝕠𝕟 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕘𝕖!]
Silence followed.
Hideo stood there, fully armored, breath unsteady inside the helmet.
"…Okay."
A pause.
"…What the hell did I just turn into?"
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Author's Note:
The next chapter will continue the main story. I'm going to pause this what-if route here and probably won't come back to it for a while.