Seven thousand Japanese Yen was nowhere near enough to live on. It was barely enough for food.
She could only buy cheap bread to last a few days, let alone afford lodging. Sleeping outdoors was manageable when the weather was clear, but rainy days were truly difficult.
As Firefly crouched there, struggling over whether to cast aside her inner hesitation and find some way to get money so she could survive, no matter the method, or keep going like this...
A familiar female voice sounded beside her.
"Are you okay? Do you need help?"
"..."
Hearing the voice, Firefly looked up... and found Nene Arakawa, the young lady of the Arakawa Zaibatsu, standing before her with a streaming device in one hand and an umbrella in the other.
Was this young lady playing her runaway game again, not even taking a break on a rainy day?
Still, it was clear that she had forgotten everything that had happened during the DGP Grand Prix and returned to normal.
That was not strange. The affairs of the DGP were never known to the public. Even those who had experienced them could have their related memories easily erased by DGP personnel.
Unless they touched the ID Core of a Kamen Rider Driver. Only then could they recall those memories.
Speaking of which, the Arakawa Zaibatsu was also a DGP sponsor. Nene Arakawa's parents knew quite a lot about the DGP Grand Prix.
Although becoming a DGP sponsor had not been his wish.
"Huh? Huh!! It's you!"
The moment Firefly raised her head, Nene Arakawa recognized her at once. She was the kind person who had helped her hide from the bodyguards that time.
"I never properly thanked you for helping me shake off their tail last time."
"Even though they still caught me in the end."
"But I'm still really grateful."
Meeting Firefly, someone she had encountered before, Nene Arakawa immediately smiled, looking delighted.
"You're... running away from home again?"
Firefly stood up. She did not greet her with a cold face, nor did she mention saving her before. She simply spoke to her amicably.
How should she put it? Out of the entire Kamen Rider Geats series, Nene was actually somewhat better, more normal.
Mainly because she was not too closely tied to the main plot, so her characterization had not collapsed to an utterly ridiculous extent.
The only thing that annoyed Firefly a little was what she had said to Panda, who had nearly killed her mother.
Although Firefly had been utterly speechless at the time, compared to the even more absurd people like Geats, Buffa, and Tycoon, the Creation Goddess who was crazily hypocritical with her double standards, Nene was already quite good.
And now, Firefly was much calmer as well.
"That's right. Nene's Great Escape Operation will never stop."
Nene Arakawa answered as though it were only natural.
Then, as though she sensed something, she turned to look behind her. Sure enough, those bodyguards had caught up again. Nene Arakawa immediately became nervous.
"Oh no, they caught up again!"
With that, Nene Arakawa spread her legs and prepared to keep running.
Firefly had not cared at first, but in the next moment, she found her wrist seized as Nene dragged her along.
She even threw away the umbrella and kept running through the rain, though it was not raining heavily.
Firefly was caught a little off guard by that.
Run if you want. Why drag me along...
But seeing the nervous look on Nene Arakawa's face, she hesitated and said nothing more.
Having seen the story, Firefly naturally knew why Nene Arakawa was so determined to escape her family.
Her mother's suffocating desire to control every aspect of her life had made it impossible for her to breathe, which was why she longed to escape. Firefly could actually understand her feelings very well.
Sometimes parents were unreasonable, yet believed it was love for you. It was truly painful and tormenting.
Because she had experienced it herself.
"Do you want to get rid of them completely?"
As Firefly was dragged along running, Nene Arakawa was already panting heavily, while Firefly looked as though nothing had happened.
"O-of course."
Nene Arakawa answered between heavy breaths. That family only made her want to flee now.
"I understand. Then come with me!"
At that moment, Firefly grabbed Nene Arakawa's wrist in return and led her into an alley, then directly blocked all the trackers on her.
After twisting and turning through countless streets for an unknown amount of time, Nene Arakawa finally could not hold on any longer. She weakly leaned against a wall and slumped down.
"I... I really can't run anymore."
Her legs no longer felt like her own. She ran often in the past, but never like this.
"They probably won't be able to find us here for the time being."
Firefly swept her gaze around and confirmed that those people would not catch up again.
As for what came next, Nene Arakawa alone naturally could not escape the Arakawa Zaibatsu's watchful eye as long as she remained in this world.
But with Firefly's help, things were different.
With the system's abilities, even the DGP organizers and the Creation Goddess could not lock onto her location, let alone the Arakawa Zaibatsu.
Unless Nene got herself killed.
"Turn off your streaming device. If you're only trying to make an entertainment program and want them to find you, then pretend I never said anything."
Noticing the streaming device in Nene Arakawa's hand, Firefly could not help thinking that even after all that running, she still had not given it up. She really was persistent.
But using a streaming device to expose her own location was far too foolish.
Sparkle's Mask
"Oh, right, right!"
"I was running too urgently and forgot! I'll turn it off now."
Hearing Firefly's words, Nene Arakawa came to her senses. Though her runaway-from-home program looked like some childish game...
She truly wanted to escape her family, so naturally it was not as Firefly had said.
"Then, everyone on Nene TV, that's all for today. Wish me luck in successfully getting away from them and running away from home this time!"
"Bye-bye! See you next time!"
Nene Arakawa pointed the camera at herself and cutely greeted her viewers as she explained the situation, only then turning off the streaming device in her hand.
For her, the encouragement and support from her channel's fans were also crucial to filling her with confidence.
Making money was secondary. She did not need to rely on this to earn money. She simply liked the motivation she got from her fans supporting and cheering her on. At home, she felt like she was good for nothing. Only with her streaming fans could she regain her confidence.
After setting down the device, Nene Arakawa completely collapsed against the wall like a lump of soft mud, sitting on the ground without caring about maintaining her young lady image.
She was truly exhausted!
"Um... aren't you tired? We've run so far?"
Panting, Nene Arakawa noticed Firefly beside her. She herself was completely exhausted, but Firefly seemed perfectly fine.
"I'm okay."
The girl shook her head.
Even without transforming into Sam, her physical abilities exceeded those of ordinary people, especially after being strengthened by the power of the Destruction Path.
"I'm really sorry about earlier! I dragged you along without thinking. You didn't need to run away with me..."
Nene Arakawa had now realized that dragging Firefly along had seemed rather wrong. She was the only one being chased by the bodyguards.
It had nothing to do with this silver-haired girl.
Realizing that made Nene Arakawa feel somewhat awkward.
She had made Firefly run so far.
Though afterward, Firefly had been the one dragging her all over the place, and she did not even know where they were now.
"It's fine."
Firefly shook her head. She had not cared at all.
She had not even decided where to live yet, so she could go anywhere. It did not affect her.
On the other hand, since she had promised to help Nene Arakawa gain freedom and stop being troubled by her family, she would keep her word, even if only temporarily.
"If you've rested enough, let's keep going. This place might not be completely safe."
After a little while, seeing that Nene Arakawa had rested enough, Firefly spoke again.
Nene had streamed while running all the way here. Even though Firefly had helped block the signal, nothing was absolutely foolproof. They still needed to leave.
"Ah, we still have to run?"
Nene Arakawa slowly got to her feet, feeling a little numb.
"You don't need to rush like before. We can just walk slowly."
"But the same thing still applies. If you really want to escape, keep going. Otherwise, forget it. Pretend I never said anything."
Nene Arakawa still had the mindset of a zaibatsu young lady. Although she was much better than many spoiled and willful heiresses, she still retained some delicate habits.
But it was fine.
Hearing Firefly's words, she suppressed her physical discomfort for the sake of leaving her family and gaining that precious freedom, then continued fleeing.
"By the way, I still don't know your name."
"I'm Nene Arakawa. You probably already know that, right?"
Nene Arakawa followed Firefly without knowing where they were headed, yet for some reason, she believed Firefly would not harm her.
And along the way, it truly seemed that they had not seen those bodyguards again.
Looking at the girl before her, who was even cuter than herself, she became deeply curious about her.
"Firefly."
"My name."
Firefly's voice was sweet, making people feel as though they had eaten a piece of honey candy. Even Nene Arakawa could not help becoming slightly absent-minded upon hearing it.
"Firefly? That's such a lovely name..."
"That should be far enough. Those people probably won't come looking for us again."
When they reached the outskirts, Firefly stopped walking.
As long as Firefly was with her, it would be difficult for the Kurama Family to find Nene Arakawa. Without her, however, with the Arakawa Zaibatsu's power, Nene Arakawa would be caught and brought back no matter how far she ran.
So there was no point in running too far. This was far enough.
"They really didn't find us."
"Did this runaway adventure actually succeed?"
Nene Arakawa finally reacted, looking around at everything. So much time had passed, yet the bodyguards still had not caught up!
Had the Runaway Adventure she had failed at countless times finally succeeded just like that?
It even felt unreal to her!
"It has succeeded for now."
"But you understand the Arakawa Zaibatsu's power yourself. As long as you remain within their sphere of influence, it is almost impossible to completely escape their sight."
This was a modern world. As long as one left traces behind, it was easy to be noticed.
After all, it was impossible not to live.
Before you continue