Chapter Summaries

Ash spent a vacation with the Pretty Cure and their companions, finding unexpected comfort in their peaceful everyday life. Nanase Yui confessed that she liked being with Ash and everyone, and Kivat later asked her directly whether she liked Ash too.

• Ash teased Haruka at the café, then tried her favorite chilled dessert and struggled with its coldness.
• Ash joined the girls’ vacation activities, while Towa enjoyed a watermelon seed-spitting contest despite Twilight’s objections.
• Ash watched the girls relax and accepted that their ordinary days together brought him happiness.
• When Ash warned the girls about being defenseless, they argued that he would protect them, and Yui told him that loving others did not make him weak.
• Yui admitted that she liked spending time with Ash and everyone, though she kept her deeper feelings to herself.
• Kivat approached Yui and bluntly asked whether she liked Ash too.

Yui and Kivat discussed their feelings for Ash, and Yui urged Kivat to confess to him. Later, Ash misunderstood Kivat’s feelings and Yui called him oblivious, before Ash comforted Towa and Twilight during the fireworks.

• Yui admitted that she admired Ash and wanted to get closer to him but worried about hurting Haruka and the others.
• Kivat wondered whether she loved Ash, and Yui told her to confess to him herself.
• Yui told Ash that Kivat had gone to find someone she had always loved, and Ash happily assumed she liked someone else.
• Yui angrily called Ash oblivious and stormed away after he failed to understand her reaction.
• During the fireworks, Towa revealed that she was no longer afraid of the dark because Ash was there.
• Ash embraced Towa and Twilight, telling Twilight she must have felt alone, and she replied that she was not alone.

Ash took Haruka, Minami, Kirara, and Towa to a private island for a beach outing, where he enjoyed watching the girls in swimsuits while they played in the water. When Towa admitted she could not swim, Ash insisted on teaching her and threw her into the sea, leaving the others alarmed.

• Minami arranged for the group to use the Kaito family's private island, and Haruka eagerly explored the beach with Puff.
• Ash watched the girls in their swimsuits from a beach chair while Minami, Haruka, and Kirara splashed each other in the water.
• Kivat served Towa grilled food and learned that she could not swim.
• Ash claimed he would teach Towa by putting her in danger, then threw her headfirst into the ocean.

Ash tried to teach Towa to swim by frightening her, but Kivat rescued her after she sank. At the beach, Ash and Minami’s teasing turned into an embarrassing swimsuit mishap, leaving Minami asking him to help retie it.

• Ash pushed Towa into the water to provoke her swimming instincts, but she sank after transforming into Twilight, and Kivat rescued her.
• Minami scolded Ash for his reckless plan and volunteered to keep him away from the others.
• Ash teased Minami about her swimsuit and tickled her, then accidentally pulled off part of its top.
• Minami screamed when she realized what had happened, and she struck Ash before ordering him not to look at her.
• Minami asked Ash to check whether she had retied her swimsuit properly, and he agreed to help.

Ash told Minami that he wanted the Precure’s love as well as their hearts, and promised to return any love they gave him. During their playful beach outing, Minami confronted him about ignoring her and admitted she had missed him, leaving Ash faced with her hurt.

• Ash said he wanted Minami and the other Princesses to love him willingly, and promised to return their affection.
• Minami complained that Ash always controlled their conversations, then buried him in sand and played watermelon splitting with him.
• Ash and Minami reflected on how their relationship had changed and talked about how he had become more open as himself.
• Minami asked whether Ash liked the Precure and pointed out that she was Cure Mermaid too.
• Minami admitted she had felt forgotten as Ash pursued Haruka, Kirara, and Towa, and said his unequal treatment hurt her.

Ash’s confession reassured Minami, but Locke turned Ash’s sunflower handkerchief into a Fortress of Despair and attacked while Minami lacked her transformation item. As Minami fled and Ash watched, Nanase Yui confronted her own wish to gain the power to help, and a little bat asked whether she was unwilling to accept her helplessness.

• Ash shouted that he loved Minami most, then named Haruka, Kirara, Towa, and Twilight among the people he loved.
• Locke ambushed Ash and Minami, corrupted Ash’s sunflower handkerchief, and transformed it into a two-headed Fortress of Despair.
• Locke revealed that he planned to seize Dysdark and become its true King, while Ash chose to let the others fight.
• Minami ran from the Fortress of Despair because she had left her transformation item behind, and Nanase Yui watched from behind a coconut tree.
• Nanase Yui stepped out from hiding, wishing she could become a Precure and help everyone, as a little bat asked if she was unwilling to accept her powerlessness.

Nanase Yui fought the Fortress of Despair with a weapon Kivat gave her and refused to surrender her dream when Locke trapped her. After Ash guided her through a transformation, she became Kamen Rider IXA and faced the enemy in armored form.

• Nanase Yui used the Ixa Knuckle Gun to knock the Fortress of Despair away from Minami and told her to find Haruka and the others.
• Yui dodged the Fortress of Despair's attacks and struck at Locke, who retaliated by trapping her inside a cage to extract her dream.
• Yui resisted Locke's power, tore apart the cage, and escaped with her dream intact.
• Kivat instructed Yui to activate the gauntlet, and Ash told her to call out her transformation.
• Yui shouted “Henshin” as Locke's lightning struck, and the crimson armor formed around her as Kamen Rider IXA.

Nanase Yui used the IXA armor to fight Locke and Fortress of Despair, then joined Cure Mermaid and the other Precure against the berserk monster. As the battle continued, Yui sensed that Fortress of Despair was connected to Ash and quietly told Kirara what she had realized, while Minami struggled to hold the monster back.

• Nanase Yui stopped Fortress of Despair’s charge and used its electricity to power IXA before striking the monster with a 500-million-volt punch.
• Encouraged by Ash, Yui fought Locke on Fortress of Despair’s back and knocked him to the ground with a series of attacks.
• Fortress of Despair pinned Yui down, but Minami arrived as Cure Mermaid and freed her; Yui introduced herself as IXA.
• Fortress of Despair went berserk as the other Precure arrived, and Locke teleported away after confirming that enough Despair energy had been collected.
• Yui sensed that Fortress of Despair was trying to keep the group from reaching Ash, then whispered her suspicions about the monster’s connection to Ash to Kirara.
• Minami called for Yui and Kirara to stop whispering and help her withstand Fortress of Despair’s attack.

Kirara helped Minami and Yui destroy the Fortress of Despair after sensing the handkerchief’s owner’s love for Ash, while Yui fulfilled her dream of fighting alongside the others as a Kamen Rider. Yui then suffered the IXA system’s deliberately restored side effect, but thanked Ash, told him others loved him too, and received a kiss on the cheek as Ash promised to answer everyone’s love.

• Kirara sensed the handkerchief’s owner’s feelings for Ash, encouraged her to love him without fear, and hurled the Fortress of Despair into the air for Minami and Yui to destroy together.
• Kirara used her Dress Up Key to open the handkerchief’s lockhole, then took the handkerchief from Ash and tucked it into her swimsuit, promising to return it with a surprise.
• Haruno Haruka learned that Yui had become a Kamen Rider and welcomed her promise to protect everyone.
• Yui collapsed in pain after Ash explained that he had manually restored the IXA transformation system’s simulated side effect, and the girls called him an idiot.
• Ash carried Yui on his back, and Yui thanked him and told him that people beyond the Pretty Cure loved him.
• Ash kissed Yui on the cheek, prompting Haruka, Kirara, and Minami to tease him before he admitted he would answer everyone’s love.

After Yui’s feelings for Ash were returned, Ash went on a date with Minami, who admitted she had come to trust and love him. Their happiness was interrupted when Locke brought Hope Kingdom’s corrupted castle through a rift and challenged Pretty Cure, leaving the team ready to fight and reclaim it.

• Yui stayed on Ash’s back after he failed to understand her feelings, while Fire reassured her that some things did not need to be said aloud.
• Ash went on a date with Minami, who explained that she once hated his selfishness but now accepted him because he had learned to consider others.
• Minami kissed Ash on the cheek and promised that she and Pretty Cure would heal him if he were hurt protecting them.
• The sky cracked open, and Locke appeared atop Hope Kingdom’s ruined castle, declaring that he would become the new King of Despair and defeat Pretty Cure.
• Nanase Yui deduced that Locke had used the despair energy he collected to awaken and control the castle, while the others prepared to confront him.
• Haruka and the other Pretty Cure transformed, determined to take back the castle and continue into Hope Kingdom.

After the Pretty Cure defeated Locke and destroyed the Castle of Despair, Towa caught a cold from pushing herself too hard. Ash arrived to care for her after Puff called for help.

• Ash let Haruka, Minami, Kirara, and Towa fight Locke themselves, promising to rescue them if they called for help.
• The Pretty Cure defeated Locke, transformed the castle into the Princess Palace, and celebrated their victory as a mysterious woman retrieved a despair-energy instrument from the ashes.
• Towa sneezed after the battle but insisted she could not catch a cold because she was the Princess of Flames and a Pretty Cure.
• Towa became bedridden with a fever, and Puff and Aroma tended to her while she worried about disturbing Kirara during a photo shoot.
• Puff contacted Ash for help, and he arrived with medicine as Towa called him her king.

Ash cared for Towa while she was sick, comforted her about her losses, and grew intimate with her until Twilight took over. Twilight then confronted Ash and offered to repay his teasing in kind, leaving him in trouble.

• Ash checked Towa's fever, gave her bitter medicine, and reassured her that she would recover.
• Towa cried about missing her family and citizens, and Ash held her and promised to protect her.
• Ash asked to see Towa's pointed ears, then stroked and licked them as she reacted with embarrassment and pleasure.
• Twilight took over Towa's body and reproached Ash for his behavior.
• Twilight turned toward Ash on his lap and threatened to return his intimate treatment, and Ash tried to stop her.

Ash cared for Twilight while she was sick, and their flirtation turned increasingly intimate until Amanogawa Kirara caught them and shut them in the room. The chapter ended with Ash left outside the closed door, confused by Kirara’s sudden intervention.

• Ash teased Twilight while combing her hair and learned that she was content sharing a body with Towa and wanted to become his Queen.
• Twilight agreed to try making friends with the other Pretty Cure, despite her reluctance to approach Ash’s rivals.
• Ash and Twilight reminisced about their earlier misunderstanding, then he tickled her and pushed their intimacy further.
• Twilight told Ash that she loved him but objected when he tried to undress her, saying they should wait until they were married.
• Amanogawa Kirara arrived in a police uniform, caught Ash and Twilight together, and shut the door on them.

Kirara confronted Twilight over Ash and warned her about his desire for new partners before returning his repaired handkerchief and asking how much he loved her. Their conversation ended unresolved when Haruka called about a Dysdark attack, while Kirara asked Ash to limit his love to the Pretty Cure.

• Kirara changed Twilight's clothes, sparred verbally with her over Ash, and warned her that he might tire of old partners and chase new ones.
• Twilight declared that she would make Ash's love belong only to her and compete with Kirara for the place of his most beautiful Princess.
• Kirara met Ash at Noble School, returned his handkerchief after repairing it with added stars, and asked whether he would keep supporting her.
• Kirara questioned Ash about his feelings for other Pretty Cure and asked how much he loved her, but Haruka called to report a Dysdark attack.
• Haruka and Minami defeated a Fortress of Despair as thorny vines appeared near Minami, while Kirara asked Ash if he could love only the Pretty Cure.

Ash and Kirara confessed their love and kissed, while Dyspear continued her plans to spread despair across Earth despite her dwindling forces. A mysterious woman named Catherine entered the Fortress of Despair, revealed she had taken Kurozu’s place, and asked Dyspear about Ash.

• Kirara told Ash she loved every part of him, and Ash kissed her after declaring his love for his Star Princess.
• Dyspear learned from Shut that the Seeds of Despair had been planted across Earth, but Shut warned that the Pretty Cure had become too powerful for the Fortress of Despair to oppose.
• Dyspear worried that Kurozu had vanished and that her plan to gather despair energy had stalled, then resolved to wait until she could grow stronger.
• Catherine stepped through Dyspear’s clairvoyant mirror into the Fortress of Despair and introduced herself.
• Catherine told Dyspear she had usurped Kurozu’s existence in this world and explained that she had been seeking Ash.

Catherine, a masked Dysdark fighter who had allied with Dyspear, used her ability to predict the Pretty Cure’s moves and overwhelm Towa, Minami, and Kirara. Ash arrived to protect the girls and confronted Catherine, leaving their fight about to begin.

• Catherine gave Dyspear Prince Kanata and the collected despair energy, then reached a deceptive agreement with the Witch of Despair.
• Catherine attacked Towa, Minami, and Kirara with a Fortress of Despair that anticipated their movements and repeatedly knocked them down.
• Catherine explained that she could see everything in the girls’ hearts and wondered at their persistence.
• Ash returned, blocked Catherine’s attack, and protected the battered Pretty Cure.
• Ash and Catherine exchanged taunts as they faced each other on the battlefield.

Ash and the Pretty Cures encountered the mysterious Catherine, who released her captives and vanished before they could learn who she was. At Noble Academy, the transfer student Saya Frederica arrived and charmed the students, though Haruka briefly sensed something artificial about her.

• Catherine asked Ash whether he liked the Pretty Cures, then freed the Fortress of Despair’s captives and disappeared, promising a better greeting next time.
• The Pretty Cures discussed Catherine’s unusual strength and their defeat, while Kirara remained confident they could win once Haruka rejoined the team.
• Saya Frederica transferred into Haruka’s class and introduced herself as a girl from overseas who loved flowers.
• Haruka suspected Saya was hiding something because her wine-red hair seemed artificial, but she dismissed the concern after Saya said she liked flowers.
• Saya welcomed the attention of Noble Academy’s students and said she hoped to meet interesting new friends.

Saya Frederica transferred to Noble Academy, befriended Haruno Haruka, and took first place on her first exam, surpassing Kaito Minami. After Haruka introduced her to the other Pretty Cure, Saya used her power to make the students forget she existed and reflected that events were proceeding smoothly.

• Saya Frederica chose the seat beside Haruno Haruka, befriended her, and asked her to introduce her to her friends.
• Saya and Haruka grew closer, and Saya said she liked Noble Academy and wanted lifelong friendships while privately observing Haruka with detached interest.
• Saya took first place on the opening exam by two points, ending Kaito Minami's streak of top rankings.
• Saya met Kaito Minami, Kirara, and Towa, saying Haruka had told her about them and that she hoped to become their friend.
• After Haruka and the others left, Saya snapped her fingers and made the surrounding students lose interest in her, then said that someone named Saya had never existed.

Haruno Haruka struggled with jealousy over Ash’s interest in her new friend Saya, while Saya met Ash and trusted him without fear. The chapter ended with Saya asking Haruka whether she liked Ash.

• Haruka told Ash that her new classmate Saya was beautiful and talented, and admitted she felt jealous when Ash asked about her.
• Haruka tasted Ash’s homemade coffee, found it awful, and wondered whether he had no sense of taste.
• Saya introduced herself to Ash as Saya Frederica and said she wanted to get to know him.
• Ash warned Saya that he might take advantage of her, but Saya insisted that he was not scary and would not hurt her.
• Haruka rushed over to interrupt them, then ran away with Saya after Ash teased her about being jealous.
• Saya stopped Haruka and asked whether she liked Ash.

Haruka admitted that she liked Ash and dreamed of becoming a Princess, but Saya dismissed her dream and asked Haruka to give Ash to her. Meanwhile, Kirara let Ash visit her, and he tried to mend their strained relationship.

• Haruka told Saya that she liked Ash and wanted to become a strong, gentle, beautiful Princess.
• Saya told Haruka she could never become a Princess or be worthy of Ash, then confessed that she liked Ash and asked Haruka to give him to her.
• Kirara ignored Ash calling from outside her window until he loudly declared his love, drawing the attention of nearby students.
• Kirara let Ash come up, and he explained that Haruka seemed angry with him and that he had come to seek comfort.
• Ash asked whether Kirara was still mad, and Kirara reminded him that she had confessed her true feelings to him.