Love Live and Kamen Rider 17

Eri, Nozomi, and Nico: "Though the cold rain falls, let us open our umbrellas; so when the cold rain descends, we shall open our umbrellas."

Honoka, Umi, and Kotori: "There is no map to guide our way of life, but because of that, we possess freedom; a life of freedom has no map to guide us, so we are free."

"We can go anywhere, you too; follow your heart and go wherever you wish."

Wind-Fire Flame Burst! The spirit, wielding the Steel Fang Blade, surrounded itself with flames and a hurricane to form a fire tornado, striking at Hastur. Divine gathered energy in both hands, formed a fireball at his chest, and hurled it at Hastur. (Referencing the ultimate move of Tiga Power Type). Facing the onslaught, Hastur could no longer remain relaxed and was forced to defend. After the attack, Hastur's body was covered in scorch marks, and many of his tentacles had been blown apart.

"Damn it!" Facing Hastur's angry roar, the only response was...

Wind-Water Ice Blade! The original flames transformed into ice crystals, gathering on the blade to form an ice edge. As the attack landed, a layer of ice condensed over Hastur's body. Divine leaped down from the sky, the friction of the air creating flames within his sharp claws, tearing down at Hastur (much like WereGarurumon's move in Digimon). Subsequently, several massive flaming claw marks were carved into his body.

Armor Change—Armed—Azure Dragon

Weapon Finisher—Power of Wood and Fire—Candle Dragon Devours the Sun

The spirit switched to the Azure Dragon form, removed the red and cyan crystals from the belt, inserted them into the Beast Soul Driver, and then inserted the Finisher card. As the Finisher activated, massive wood elements combined with fire elements to form the shape of an Eastern dragon. The colossal dragon spat flames to scorch Hastur, then roared at the sky and soared upward to collide with him. The massive explosion left Hastur collapsed on the ground, struggling to rise.

Everyone: "Run! Faster than the wind; sprint!! At a speed faster than the wind."

"Aim! Further than the sky; go!! To a place further than the sky."

"You will meet a brand new self."

"If you notice the unknown courage sleeping in your heart, it is like a breath of air accumulating."

"The downpour in your heart,"

"Will surely stop."

"Show me your Brave Heart."

"The time for the end has come!" Divine and the spirit nodded to each other. Divine leaped up, grabbed Hastur, and flew high into the air. Then, in mid-air, Divine clenched his right fist, the intense flames compressing rapidly, and struck Hastur heavily. Hastur plummeted from the sky like a meteor, hitting the ground at high speed.

Everyone: "Grab! The dazzling tomorrow; seize it!! The dazzling tomorrow."

"Protect! The person you love; guard it!! The one you love."

"You can become a strong self."

"Break! The weak you; let go of that!! Weak you."

"Destroy! The wall that blocks you; break through that!! The wall that closes you in."

"Because the hot heartbeat will become your weapon."

"Believe in your heart."

Armor Change—White Tiger

Weapon Manifestation—Steel Fang Blade

Weapon Finisher—Mystery of Gold—Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain

Weapon Finisher—Mystery of Wood—Dragon Fights in the Wild

The golden crystal was embedded into the Beast Soul Driver, and the cyan crystal was embedded into the Steel Fang Blade. As the Finisher activated, the roars of a tiger and a dragon echoed. Then, a massive Azure Dragon and White Tiger appeared in the surroundings. The spirit plunged the Steel Fang Blade into the ground, and streaks of cyan lightning coiled around the blade. The spirit took several steps back, assuming a charging stance. As Hastur fell, the spirit lunged, swinging the lightning-entwined Steel Fang Blade at him. As the spirit's figure vanished, several slashes appeared around Hastur. (Just like Kenshin's Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki in 300 Heroes). Simultaneously, the White Tiger and Azure Dragon pounced on Hastur with thunder and hurricanes. As everything dissipated, Hastur's body exploded and vanished.

"Great, we won!"

"That's wonderful!"

People cheered, celebrating the joy of being alive with one another.

"Did we succeed?"

"It should be." Divine said uncertainly.

"Even if he revives, we will defeat him again," the spirit said firmly.

"You two alone cannot kill me." The sudden voice caused the cheering crowd to fall silent. Violent black winds gathered in the air to form a massive Hastur, and a terrifying aura washed over them.

"Struggle! Fear! Despair!" The terrifying aura conveyed this message.

"We will not give up hope. How can we know if we will fail if we haven't tried with all our might?" Seeing Hastur reappear, Honoka said loudly.

"We once became idols to stop our school from closing, and no one acknowledged us at first, but we succeeded through our own efforts. We worked hard, and we succeeded, so I believe the future will be even better! We will not give up!"

"That's right, everything we have now was earned through our own hard work. I worked my way up from a small server to the manager I am today. I have an even more colorful future waiting for me, how could I just give up like this! Do your best! Kamen Rider! Defeat him once more!"

"That's right, we won't give up, so! Do your best! Defeat him once more!"

Facing Hastur, the people around did not abandon hope. They shouted and cheered for their heroes. Beams of spiritual light shone brightly.

"If we can defeat you once, we can defeat you many more times."

Divine and the spirit stood up again and unleashed their Finishers at Hastur, but this time, the effect was minimal.

"Weak and powerless attacks."

"What about with us?" The sudden voice attracted everyone's attention. At this moment, figure after figure leaped onto the scene from all directions. It was 33 Riders, from Number One of the Showa era to Kamen Rider Drive of the Heisei era. (Approximately this many; if there are more, assume some were absent, and if fewer, assume secondary riders filled the gaps). At the same time, Phantom and Cangqiong also arrived.

"Master, with the help of the senior Riders, the monsters everywhere have been eliminated."

"Seniors." Seeing the arrival of the seniors, Divine and the spirit were stirred with excitement.

"Seeing how hard you worked to protect everyone, it would be a disgrace to our identity if we didn't come." The elder Number One looked at Divine and said.

"Everyone, carry the expectations of the people, and in the name of protection, eliminate him completely."

The knights then leaped into mid-air, unleashing their strongest Rider Kicks, their combined power forming a massive force to confront Hastur.

"Go for it! Kamen Riders!" Following the people's fervent hopes, a brilliant white light formed within their collective consciousness. This light took physical form, surging out from their bodies and rushing toward the Kamen Riders, carrying with it hope and the promise of a brighter future.

With the addition of this light, the previously evenly matched clash turned into an overwhelming assault that struck Hastur. The sheer power of the attack tore open spatial rifts, and Hastur, his body shattered by the blow, was sucked into the rift and vanished from this world.

"It's finally over." Sunlight spilled across the earth, illuminating the faces of the cheering crowd.

"We have our own missions to attend to, so we must take our leave."

"Let's fight together again if the chance arises!"

The knights bid each other farewell and departed!

"It's really over this time," Divine and spirit said with a sense of relief.

They looked toward the stage, where nine young girls stood, looking slightly disheveled amidst the cheers of the crowd.

"They really are full of charm, aren't they?" spirit remarked with emotion.

"Yeah, they are! Even though they aren't exactly cute girls, we still have to cheer for them! Don't you think?" The two of them burst into laughter.

"Help! Someone save me! I don't want to be tentacle-played!" A cry for help rang out, and a plump, chubby man came running toward them. Behind him, two Ithaqua were in hot pursuit, constantly whipping his backside with their tentacles. It was none other than Bored Weather, the author of this book.

"Looks like there's still some cleanup to do. Geki, let's take one each."

"No way, I'm taking both of them!"

"What? You're not getting either of them!"

"Ahhh! Ahhh!"

The two bickering men charged toward the two Ithaqua!

Deep within the folds of space, Hastur slowly gathered his body, and a voice echoed out.

"I will definitely return!"

As the words fell, a streak of light shot over at superluminal speeds. With a massive impact, Hastur was completely obliterated. The streak of light came to a halt, revealing a giant figure with a crest on his head and a body of blue, red, and silver: Zero.

"Did I hit something? Whatever, I have more important things to do."

Muttering to himself, Zero transformed back into a streak of light and vanished. And just like that, our big boss Hastur died from Zero's high-speed flight, leaving absolutely no possibility of resurrection. Meanwhile, the monsters remaining in the Kamen Rider world lost their power source with Hastur's death and collapsed one by one.

The songs in the book: "You gave wings to me who couldn't fly" is from the second ending theme of the Nexus TV series.

"Flower of Hope."

"Brave Heart" is the evolution anthem from Digimon.

And so, the side story concludes here.

A Hunter of Riders? The end of the Kamen Riders!

--Boom!

"Ugh..."

Inside an abandoned factory, a figure clad in red armor, with a black tire slung diagonally across his upper body and a design reminiscent of a car, lay on the ground, incredibly weak. Yet, his gaze remained fixed on the path ahead.

--Thud--thud--thud--thud

A dull sound of footsteps began to echo, growing steadily closer. Soon, a figure appeared, wielding a blood-red double-edged sword with sharp, jagged teeth, clad in dark red armor that looked like raw flesh, approaching at a leisurely pace.

But the next second, he stopped and raised the blood-red jagged sword. Then, something unexpected happened: the sword in his hand began to writhe like living flesh, and in the next moment, it transformed into a blood-red Gatling gun.

--Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!!

He raised the Gatling gun with both hands, aiming at the 'prey' before him. The rotating barrels, composed of several gun tubes, spun rapidly, and countless streams of gunfire erupted from the muzzle. The deafening roar of the gun sounded like the howl of a beast.

"Ughhhhhhh!!!"

--Boom!--Boom!--Boom!...

Each burst of gunfire mercilessly rained down upon the figure. The light of the explosions obscured his form. The 'beast' continued its roar, accompanied by the rhythmic flashes of fire, while the 'hunter' remained expressionless, relentlessly continuing his barrage with the blood-red 'beast.'

After a moment, he lowered the Gatling gun. The light of the explosions dissipated, and all that remained of his 'prey' was a red fragment still emitting white smoke.

Then, countless lines of green data flashed across his green compound eyes.

[Life signs at zero. Kamen Rider Drive, confirmed eliminated!]

The cold, emotionless voice echoed through the abandoned factory that had just witnessed a fierce battle.

Finally, the 'hunter' turned and left, for he had his next 'prey' to hunt!

However, seconds after he departed, a silver barrier, shimmering like the surface of water, appeared before the red fragment still emitting white smoke.

A figure emerged from the barrier, supporting another person covered in wounds of various sizes.

He looked thoughtfully in the direction the 'hunter' had left, then at his severely injured companion, feeling a lingering sense of fear in his heart. If he hadn't arrived in time, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

"I never imagined those guys could create something so terrifying. It seems I must warn the others to be careful."

As he finished speaking, he and his companion vanished once more into the silver barrier.

--Time Divider--

One month ago--

[This is the 'bargaining chip' the leader asked me to give you.]

In a dim chemical factory, Medusa in her human form handed a blood-red Seed of Original Sin to a man dressed in white, then quickly pulled her hand back. She seemed terrified of the Seed of Original Sin, as if she feared it might do something horrific to her.

"Oh? So this is the Seed of Original Sin from Shub-Niggurath, what a beautiful color, hehehe..."

The man did not share Medusa's wariness toward the Seed of Original Sin; instead, he held it in his palm and examined it closely as if it were a rare treasure, occasionally letting out particularly chilling laughs.

[What a nauseating laugh.] Medusa frowned slightly, making no effort to hide the disgust in her heart.

"Nauseating? Perhaps."

The man did not feel angry at Medusa's words; instead, he maintained the smile that Medusa found so repulsive with calm composure and said, "In my memory, the way others view me is nothing more than crazy, disgusting, selfish, greedy, and so on, but they could never possibly know that these are the true inner hearts of humanity.

Humans wantonly research biochemical weapons. Even if an accident occurs during research and they ban it publicly, who knows who is secretly researching biochemical weapons behind the scenes? This is madness.

To improve their reputation, humans will spare no effort to wash away their past 'stains' and establish a great image for themselves in the outside world, but who knows how much blood of their own kind stains their hands in the shadows? This is disgusting.

To ensure a perfect living environment for themselves, humans will wantonly destroy ecosystems and drive away the original inhabitants of those lands. They think only of their own survival while ignoring other lives. This is selfishness.

But only greed is something humans will never be able to change. Every human is greedy; there is not one who is not. Greed is the most primitive sin of humanity, and now..."

Looking at the Seed of Original Sin radiating blood-red energy in his hand and the mechanical roulette-style belt in front of him, a trace of greed flashed in the man's eyes, and then he slowly placed the Seed of Original Sin into the central roulette of the belt.

"All I am doing is revealing the most primitive inner hearts of humanity. I will break the order of this world and then re-establish an order that belongs only to me! And those damned Kamen Riders are nothing more than stepping stones for me to build my new order."

--Click

With a closing sound, the Seed of Original Sin was placed deep inside the belt, and then tiny blood-red filaments of flesh emerged from within the belt, bit by bit wrapping around and modifying it.

In just a moment, the belt had completely transformed into a blood-red roulette-style belt with a surface that looked like raw flesh.

"Finally..." The man then lifted the belt with both hands, his face full of excitement, his eyes filled with madness, "It is finally complete! Hahahahahaha..."

Laughing like a madman, the man tremblingly fastened the belt around his waist. Immediately after, hideous, disgusting chunks of bloody flesh continuously squirmed out from the belt, gradually wrapping around the man's body.