Love Live and Kamen Rider 35

"Huh? Uh, ahem, haha, well, uh, are you guys okay?"

Turning back toward Silver Phantom, Divine saw Sonoda Umi and the others staring at him blankly. He rubbed the back of his head, his awkward laughter echoing from beneath his mask.

Hearing Divine's voice, the three girls snapped out of their daze, and Honoka Kosaka, one of the three, asked with excitement and curiosity.

"Oh, wow, you're so cool! That monster just now really scared me, I never expected you to defeat it all by yourself! Also, what is that you're wearing? Ah, that hurts! Umi, what are you doing?"

Just as Honoka Kosaka was about to reach out and touch the armor on Divine, she was met with a sharp hand-chop from Sonoda Umi, leading her to look at her friend with an innocent expression.

"Honoka! Is that any way to treat our savior?! And how many times have I told you, a girl should have some modesty! My deepest apologies! Mr. Divine, my childhood friend has caused you trouble."

After scolding Honoka Kosaka, Sonoda Umi performed a standard ninety-degree bow toward Divine and offered her apology.

"Ah, no, no, it's fine, really. You don't need to do that, I don't mind at all, so please, stand up!"

Suddenly caught off guard by Sonoda Umi's display, Divine felt his sleepiness vanish entirely. He was startled by her ninety-degree bow and spoke in a flustered tone.

"Is that so? Then thank you, Mr. Divine."

After thanking Divine once more, Sonoda Umi straightened her posture.

"Phew~ That's good, that's good, yeah."

As Divine let out a sigh of relief, he turned his head and caught sight of Minami Kotori, one of the three. He couldn't help but freeze for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle, thinking to himself.

Heh, I didn't realize so much time had passed. The little girl from back then has grown up.

"Um, Mr. Divine, why are you staring at me?"

Minami Kotori's puzzled voice reached Divine's ears, and he snapped back to reality, speaking awkwardly.

"Uh, oh, it's nothing. I was just thinking about something else. Ah! Right, it's getting late, you should head back. Don't let your parents worry. I'll be going now too. Phantom!"

[Master, do you need something?]

Silver Phantom, having transformed into a motorcycle, spoke to Divine.

"Of course I do, I'm going home to sleep."

[...Master, why are you so lazy? (¬_¬)]

"I like it that way~"

Kotori Minami (since I don't know the name of Kotori's mother, I'll just use this) was feeling very depressed. Otonokizaka Academy was set to open in a few days, but it was facing closure. Furthermore, a teacher at Otonokizaka had been murdered just a few days ago, making it even harder to find new staff for a school already slated to shut down. Teachers were already scarce, and now this had happened.

"What am I supposed to do now?"

Kotori Minami frowned, speaking in distress.

She looked at the two photo frames on her desk. One was her graduation photo from Otonokizaka, where she stood with several close friends; right next to her was a stunning girl with white hair, smiling at the camera. The other photo showed a six or seven-year-old boy with black hair and black eyes, holding the hand of a girl a year or two younger with grayish-brown hair and amber eyes. Beside them were that same white-haired woman and herself.

People who can make the protagonist afraid.

Her eyes were filled with nostalgia as she looked at herself, her daughter, her close friend, and her friend's son in the photo, all smiling at the lens. Then, Kotori Minami looked at the little boy in the photo and recalled the back she had seen that day, causing her furrowed brow to relax instantly.

"That's right, the school happens to be missing a world history teacher. That child would definitely be suitable now. I just wonder if the person I saw the other day was really him?"

As she spoke, Kotori Minami picked up her phone, dialed a string of numbers, and held it to her ear.

"Thump."

"Mmm~ hah."

In his room at home, Senba Gari threw himself onto the bed and stretched comfortably, speaking to Silver Phantom, who had shifted into its robot form nearby.

"Phantom, tell me, if one day I were gone, what would you do?"

The dashboard on Silver Phantom's chest changed expressions, and it asked in a puzzled tone.

[Master, why would you ask such a thing? [?_??]]

Silver Phantom's question reminded Senba Gari of what Divine Fenrir had told him before he used the Divine Fenrir form.

--Flashback--

A few hours ago, while Senba Gari was transforming into Divine, Divine Fenrir's voice had suddenly cut through.

[Kid, there is one thing you must remember. What I told you that day about you becoming Mlortha was no lie.]

"Eh? But wasn't Divine created by Gaia?"

Hearing the warning, Senba Gari asked in confusion.

[That is true, but perhaps this is a curse. That day, when Gaia created the Beast God Driver for Divine, no one knew what went wrong. Once the wearer transforms into Divine, their body begins to accumulate a small amount of Original Sin Power (Original Sin Power: The source of Mlortha's power). Once the Original Sin Power overflows, you will turn into Mlortha, and it will be something you cannot control.]

"Is that so? Is there any way to save me?"

Hearing that it was uncontrollable, Senba Gari bit his lip, suppressing the anxiety in his heart, and asked Divine Fenrir.

[I don't know. After all, the first-generation Divine perished along with the Seven-HBRUTE before he could turn into Mlortha. However, you don't need to worry for now, because Gaia implanted power into your body that day to suppress the Original Sin Power. So, as long as you eliminate the Seven-HBRUTE, perhaps you won't turn into Mlortha.]

"I see."

--End of Flashback--

〖Master, what's wrong?〗

"Ah, nothing, nothing. After all, you're a robot, and I'm just an ordinary human. You know, human lifespans are quite short, and on top of that, I have to fight Mlortha. Who knows? I might die one of these days."

〖Is that so? But regardless, Master told me when we first met that I am your family. I looked up the data, and family is a very important thing to everyone. So, since Master said I am your family, I will stay by Master's side as long as Master is still here. (???ω???)〗

"Haha, is that so? Thank you, Silver Phantom."

〖You don't need to thank me, I'll get shy. (＊／ω＼＊)〗

The expression on Silver Phantom's dashboard changed, and then it covered its face with its hand, its body swaying crookedly as it spoke.

"Shy my foot! You're a robot! A robot! And your movements make me want to throw up the midnight snack I just ate! Seriously, you completely ruined the mood."

Hearing Silver Phantom's words, Senba Gari's mouth twitched as he looked at the expression on its chest and its movements, shouting at it speechlessly.

"Forget it, I'm exhausted. Time to sleep."

Saying this, he turned off the light and flopped down to sleep. But just as he was about to drift off, his phone rang. He didn't want to answer it, but the phone kept ringing incessantly, so he answered it without even looking at the caller ID, shouting angrily at the other end.

"Hello! Who is this! Do you know that calling in the middle of the night can get you reported for disturbing the peace!"

She had originally been looking for Senba Gari to ask him for a favor, but hearing his angry voice on the other end, she had never imagined this brat would dare to yell at her like that. A smile curled onto her lips—a smile that would make Senba Gari shiver—and she spoke 'gently' to him on the phone.

"Ara, little Gari, do you still remember me? It's your Aunt Minami."

Senba Gari, who had been full of rage, felt his anger instantly vanish upon hearing the voice on the other end. His sleepiness disappeared entirely, and he almost dropped the phone, stammering into the receiver.

"Ha, haha, s-so it, it, it was you, Aunt Minami. I was wondering who it was, ha, haha."

"Oh my, did Aunt Minami disturb little Gari's sleep?"

"No, no, no, not at all! I'm not sleepy anymore. Aunt Minami, tell me what you need!"

He hurriedly spoke into the phone while thinking to himself, This is a disaster, it's actually Aunt Minami. I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead.

"Oh, I do have a 'small' matter to ask of little Gari, but it's late now, so let's talk at the usual place tomorrow. Bye-bye."

"Beep, beep, beep."

"...It's finally over. You scared the life out of me."

Seeing that the other party had hung up, Senba Gari lay on the bed with the look of someone who had just survived a catastrophe. Beside him, Silver Phantom watched his state and spoke to him speechlessly.

〖Master, was that really necessary? What's with that expression like you just escaped the end of the world?〗

"Don't even start, this is a dark history I will never forget for the rest of my life!"

Senba Gari lay on the bed, wanting to cry but having no tears.

A suddenly collapsing building!

〖Master! Master! Are you okay!〗

"Cough, cough, Phantom, I'm fine. I just exhausted my spiritual power and got a little hurt. It's nothing, I'll be fine after a rest."

Inside a collapsed commercial building, Senba Gari leaned weakly against a wall that was no longer in any recognizable shape, clutching his left hand and speaking to Silver Phantom through his earpiece.

But how did it come to this? Let us return to one day ago.

---Time returns to one day ago

"Squeak-"

At 9:30 in the morning, outside a casual restaurant in Akihabara, Senba Gari had just stepped off Silver Phantom in its motorcycle form when its voice came through the earpiece.

〖Master, what are you afraid of?〗

Hearing Silver Phantom's words, Senba Gari seemed to recall something unpleasant; his body began to tremble slightly, and cold sweat broke out. (Seriously, what exactly did you experience in the past!!! (¬_¬))

"N-nothing."

〖Is that so? ━┳━　━┳━〗

"A-alright, I have to go in."

Having said that, he pushed open the door to the restaurant and walked in. A male waiter walked over and spoke to Senba Gari.

"Welcome, is there anything you need?"

"Ah, no need. I'm here because someone made an appointment."

After sending the waiter away, Senba Gari looked around and spotted a woman with striking grayish-brown hair, then walked straight toward her.

"Aunt Minami, long time no see."

He walked up to Kotori Minami, sat down in front of her without standing on ceremony, and greeted her.

"Hm? You are... little Gari!"

Kotori Minami looked at Senba Gari, who had suddenly sat down and greeted her, and asked in confusion.

"That's right, I didn't think Aunt Minami would still remember me. By the way, is Kotori doing well?"

"Ah, after you went away with your father to study archaeology, she found two good friends, and she's very happy now. If that child knew you were back, she would be so happy."

"I see. It seems that girl can find friends even without me."

"You have yourself to thank for that. When Kotori was little, she was always bullied because of a problem with her left foot. If you hadn't been by her side the whole time, she might have been bullied forever."

(Let me spoil why the protagonist knows Kotori's family: first, Kotori's mother and Senba Gari's mother were childhood sweethearts, attending the same schools from elementary through high school. Even after they both married, they lived in the same neighborhood, so, well, you know how it is. Eventually, when Senba Gari was eight, some accidents forced him to travel all over the place with his old man.)

"By the way, did you go see your mother when you got back?"

"Not yet. I plan on going once things settle down over the next few days."

At the same time, a hint of gloom flickered in Senba Gari's eyes.

"Is that so? Also, I couldn't get through to your dad's phone earlier, which is why I called yours. What's wrong? Did something happen to him?"

Kotori Minami's question made Senba Gari's hand tremble slightly. He bit his lip, suppressing the painful emotions in his heart, and spoke in a shaky voice.

"...A few months ago, we went to explore some ruins for archaeological research, and an accident occurred. Everyone died except for me, and my idiot old man went missing."

Seeing Senba Gari's emotions beginning to stir, Kotori Minami stroked his head and began to soothe him.

"Don't worry. Your dad is just missing, not dead. You should keep holding onto hope, right?"

Feeling the warmth on his head, or perhaps because Kotori Minami's comfort was starting to take effect, Senba Gari moved her hand away and spoke up.

"Geez, Aunt Minami, I'm not a kid anymore. You don't have to keep patting my head."

Seeing Senba Gari's reaction, Kotori Minami wore a smile and said to him.

"Oh my~ is little Gari being a tsundere~"

"I am not a tsundere! Uh, ahem, anyway, Aunt Minami, didn't you have something to ask me? What do you need my help with?"

He shouted at Kotori Minami, but after seeing the people around them staring at him with strange looks, he sat back down in embarrassment.

"Hehe, as for the matter, I just wanted to ask you to come be a teacher at Otonokizaka."

"Oh, a teacher, huh? Wait, no! Isn't Otonokizaka an all-girls school?!"

Suddenly realizing this, Senba Gari said to Kotori Minami in astonishment.

"That's right."

"No way! I'd rather die than do that!"