"I... I see. Then, I'll accept them."
Hikari Natsumi looked at the clothes, feeling extremely bashful. She stole a quick glance at Raven, thinking to herself that he surely wanted to see her wear them.
"So..." she asked tentatively, "Do you want to see me in these?"
"Of course," Raven replied without a second's hesitation.
Hearing that, Natsumi took a deep breath. With her cheeks flushing a deep crimson, she clutched the clothes to her chest and walked into the adjacent room. She didn't even close the door all the way—she had no guard up against him at all.
After a long while, she slowly emerged. Beneath her maid outfit, she wore provocative lingerie, her delicate feet stepping gracefully in crystal high heels.
In truth, while she was changing, she had kept an eye on the door. She wanted to see if Raven would try to peek, and a part of her was actually looking forward to it. To her slight disappointment, there hadn't been a sound from him.
I gave him such an opening, too, she thought.
What Natsumi couldn't have imagined was that just because Raven wasn't standing at the door didn't mean he wasn't watching. By applying a fraction of his divine power to his eyes, he possessed full X-ray vision.
It's about time I finally "eat" this Natsumikan, Raven thought, swallowing hard after enjoying the unobstructed view of her changing.
He was well aware of the subtle seductions she had been throwing his way lately. He had simply been playing dumb, wanting to savor the anticipation of this "delicacy" a little longer. But now, he had reached his limit.
"Well? What do you think?"
Natsumi walked up to Raven and pinched the hem of her already short maid skirt, teasingly showcasing her beautiful legs. Knowing Raven had a particular weakness for black tights, she made sure to display them perfectly.
"Perfect."
Raven's attention was entirely captivated by her legs, encased in those sleek, thigh-high black stockings. To be honest, if Hikari Natsumi actually dressed up and wore clothes that fit modern aesthetics, she would easily be the highlight of the entire series. It was a waste that the original show often put her in such bizarre, dowdy outfits and tights.
A masterpiece like her deserved to have her charm pushed to the absolute limit.
Thanks to Raven's influence, Natsumi had finally realized what she should be wearing. Seeing her in this black-stocking maid ensemble, Raven felt a primordial urge within him that he could no longer suppress.
"Is that all?"
Natsumi felt a pang of disappointment. After all that anticipation, Raven had only offered a single word. She wanted to hear more praise; after all, a woman dresses for the one she loves.
But in the next heartbeat...
Natsumi's vision blurred. Her feet left the ground.
"Ah!"
She found herself hoisted directly onto Raven's shoulder.
"Wh-what are you doing?!" Natsumi cried out, her voice a mix of shock and secret delight.
Had Raven finally... finally taken the hint?
"I'm hungry for some Natsumikan," Raven said, blunt and primal.
The moment she heard that, Natsumi understood his meaning instantly. Her face turned bright red. Eat... Natsumikan? Could he mean...
BANG!
Before she could finish the thought, the door was kicked shut with a heavy thud. She was tossed onto the large bed.
…
On the other side of town, Kazuma Kendate was on the run with the Blay Buckle. However, he was intercepted in a wasteland by Tsukasa Kadoya, who had caught wind of his movements.
"What do you want?" Kendate stopped, eyeing Tsukasa warily.
"How can I ignore someone who's interfering with my promotion and my raise?" Tsukasa approached with his usual air of detached confidence.
"What does that have to do with you?" Kendate didn't want to waste time.
"The failure of a subordinate is the failure of the superior. Now, come with me and apologize to the President," Tsukasa said, grabbing Kendate's arm.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Kendate shook him off.
"Before you do that, hand over that Blay Buckle."
A voice rang out from the distance.
"It's that guy who got away before."
Tsukasa narrowed his eyes. It was Kamata, the deputy editor from the World of Ryuki. As expected, he was an Undead.
Kamata sneered at the sight of Tsukasa. "Last time that other guy got in my way. This time, no one is coming to save you."
With those words, he transformed into the Paradoxa Undead.
"An Undead!" Kendate exclaimed in surprise.
"Well, this saves me the trouble of looking for you," Tsukasa said, shifting into a combat stance. He was ready to finish this here.
"I'll be the one to take you down!"
Kendate pulled out his cards and the Blay Buckle, charging forward to transform. However, his opponent had no sense of fair play. Kamata fired a direct energy blast, interrupting the transformation mid-sequence. Kendate took the hit head-on and collapsed miserably to the ground.
Tsukasa, meanwhile, moved with practiced speed. He inserted his card into the Driver.
"HENSHIN!"
[KAMEN RIDE: DECADE!]
As the battle commenced, the fallen Kendate scrambled to retrieve his Buckle. Just then, Sakuya Hishigata and Mutsuki Kuroha arrived on the scene.
"Kazuma! Hand over the Blay Buckle!" Hishigata shouted.
"The President said if you hand it over quietly, you won't be fired!" Mutsuki added.
The two of them noticed the Undead fighting Decade and immediately went on high alert.
"And if I refuse?" Kendate gritted out.
"Defying an A-Rank order means we have to take you down," Hishigata said coldly.
"I'll defeat the Undead and reclaim my A-Rank status myself!" Kendate stood up, his eyes filled with resolve.
"Henshin!"
[TURN UP!]
A blue holographic screen projected from the belt's core. Kendate sprinted toward it, passing through the barrier and completing his transformation into Kamen Rider Blade!
Seeing this, the other two didn't hesitate. They drew their own Buckles to transform. Kamen Rider Garren and Kamen Rider Leangle entered the fray.
The wasteland became a chaotic free-for-all: Decade faced off against the Paradoxa Undead, while Blade fought a lone battle against the two other Riders.
Such a grand performance naturally required an audience. A young man wearing a hat appeared nearby without a sound. It was Daiki Kaito, who had fled not long ago. Even now, he was still pondering a single question:
Just who exactly was that Dark Decade?