Frank looked at the frost path left behind by Free's escape and let out a cold snort. Gripping the handles of his Driver with both hands, he transformed into his motorcycle form. The rear thrusters ignited with a roar of flames as he tore down the frozen trail in pursuit.
Free, hearing the thunderous roar of a motorcycle engine behind him, looked back to see the transformed Frank rapidly gaining ground. Terrified, he frantically swung his hands, releasing freezing air to manifest countless ice spikes, hurling them at his pursuer.
The flames at the rear of Frank's motorcycle form flared brightly, generating a massive surge of thrust. He soared into the air, leaping clean over the incoming ice spikes, and landed directly in front of Free. Without missing a beat, the rear thrusters pivoted, blasting Free with a jet of scorching fire.
Free let out a pained shriek as the fierce flames scorched him, forcing him to stumble back uncontrollably.
"What the hell do you want?! Why won't you just leave me alone?!" Free shouted, his voice cracking with a mix of fear and desperation.
Frank shifted back into human form. "I told you before: a Gaia Memory isn't a toy for a kid like you. Hand it over quietly. I don't like repeating myself a third time."
Looking at the fierce, battle-hardened aura radiating from Frank, Free took two steps back and gritted his teeth. "No way! I'm never giving this Memory to you!"
Frank shook his head, finished with talking. He raised his Engine Blade and slashed at the Dopant; in situations like this, a fist was always more useful than words. Since reasoning had failed, he would simply destroy the Memory.
Free took a heavy hit from the blade but responded by releasing a massive volume of frost. Frank, however, was prepared. His entire body glowed with a fiery red light, emitting intense heat that neutralized the freezing air, creating a dense, billowing cloud of steam.
The Engine Blade sliced through the thick mist, landing another heavy blow on Free.
Free clutched his side, staggering backward in an attempt to put distance between himself and Frank. Like a cornered animal, he desperately sprayed more frost, but it was clearly having little effect.
Just as Frank was about to deliver the finishing blow to the Ice Age Dopant, a bolt of lightning streaked down from the sky, striking Frank and interrupting his attack.
"The power a Gaia Memory can exert truly depends on the aptitude of its user. A bottom-tier thug like you can't even tap into its potential. It's a complete waste of talent," sneered Pierce, transformed as the Weather Dopant. Carried by a localized whirlwind, he descended slowly from the sky, looking down at the battered Ice Age Dopant.
"Give that Gaia Memory to me instead. Only in my hands can a Memory with freezing capabilities reach its maximum value."
"You again?!" Frank glared at Pierce, his voice dripping with hostility.
Pierce turned his head toward Frank and said dismissively, "My apologies, but I've taken a liking to the Memory in this brat's hand. You can choose to leave now, or be taken down by me."
Despite saying "apologies," there wasn't a hint of regret in his tone.
Frank didn't get angry; instead, he let out a grim laugh. "I'll pick a third option: taking both of you down."
The words had barely left his mouth when Frank blurred into a crimson shadow, charging at Pierce. Facing the sudden assault, Pierce remained unruffled. He raised a hand and casually caught the heavy downward swing of the Engine Blade.
"Compared to our last meeting, your strength has indeed improved. It seems you've made significant progress in developing the Accel Memory's power. However," Pierce remarked casually, "the improvements I've gained are far greater than yours."
"Damn you!" Infuriated, Frank poured more power into his grip. The Engine Blade glowed with a blinding red light as searing energy radiated outward.
Feeling the heat through his palm, Pierce violently shoved the blade aside. He thrust both hands forward, unleashing a dense barrage of lightning at Frank.
Frank immediately held the Engine Blade horizontally to block, but the powerful, concentrated bolts still struck various parts of his body. Sparks showered from his armor as the electricity surged through him. He was forced back, stumbling until he managed to steady himself by bracing the Engine Blade against the ground.
"How... his lightning energy has increased this much since the last time we fought!?" Frank looked at Pierce in genuine surprise.
Pierce laughed loudly at the sight of the temporarily paralyzed Frank. He turned and walked toward Free. "Now then, hand over your Memory quietly. Otherwise... die."
Free trembled violently. "D-don't come any closer!" He thrust his hands forward, releasing a blast of frost.
But the freezing air had absolutely no effect on Pierce. He stood still, allowing the intense frost to envelop him, then lightly raised a hand, commanding the freezing air to converge into his palm.
"As I thought, the compatibility between your Memory and my Weather is exceptionally high," Pierce said, his voice tinged with excitement as he watched the frost swirl in his hand.
With a flick of his wrist, he sent the frost blowing toward Frank, instantly encasing him in ice just as he tried to resume his attack.
"How can you control my frost?!" Free gasped, watching in disbelief as Pierce manipulated his own power to freeze Frank.
Pierce studied Free as if he were looking at a rare treasure. After a moment, he spoke: "My power is beyond your comprehension. All you need to do is hand over the Memory. If not, I don't mind taking your life first."
To emphasize his point, he casually released a bolt of lightning that struck Free, elicining a shriek of pain.
Free looked fearfully at the lightning dancing in Pierce's hand. Sensing that the man before him wouldn't hesitate to kill, he asked cautiously, "If I give you the Memory, you'll let me go, right?"
Pierce nodded. "Without the Gaia Memory, you are useless to me. Naturally, I won't bother with you."
Hearing this, Free deactivated his transformation and held out the Ice Age Memory to Pierce.
Pierce felt a surge of joy and reached for the device. Suddenly, a blur of light flashed past, and the Memory was gone.
"Who's there?!" Pierce scanned the surroundings, fuming at the person who had snatched the prize from right under his nose.
"This Memory is the goal for both of you, isn't it?" Genm spoke playfully, fiddling with the Ice Age Memory in his hand as he looked at Pierce—who had just broken free from the ice—and the startled Pierce.
"Who are you? What's your objective?" Pierce asked, narrowing his eyes cautiously.
"Genm. A game designer and administrator. As for why I'm here... naturally, I'm inviting you to join the game," Genm said with a shrug.
"I don't give a damn about your game. Give me that Memory, or don't blame me for being impolite," Pierce snapped, glancing briefly at Frank.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. This item is currently the prize for the winner of the game. Only the one who emerges victorious between the two of you can have it," Genm stated.
"I don't have time for games. Since you won't hand it over, I'll just kill you first," Pierce sneered, unleashing a massive bolt of lightning at Genm.
Genm pulled out a Gashat and smirked. "That's not up to you."
"GAME START!"
As Genm activated the Gashat, a Game Area expanded, swallowing both Frank and Pierce.
Free looked at the spot where the three had disappeared, wiped his glasses, scrambled to his feet, and sprinted away as fast as his legs could carry him.
(End of Chapter)