Well in any case Kouga decide to transform into Kamen rider Ghost and using this power to phase himself downward.
As Kouga phased down through layers of rock and earth using the power of Kamen Rider Ghost, he eventually emerged into a vast underground cavern.
Before him stretched an entire city.
Warm orange lights illuminated rows of buildings carved into the subterranean landscape. Metal walkways connected different levels of the settlement, while pipes and Geomarrow-powered machinery ran throughout the cavern. The ceiling was so high that it vanished into darkness, making the place feel like a hidden world buried beneath Belobog itself.
Kouga blinked.
"Huh. Neat."
That was honestly all he could think of.
Welp.
Time to find Caelus and the others.
Meanwhile...
Caelus found himself dreaming once more.
The familiar golden glow radiated from the Stellaron sealed within his chest.
Another vision.
Another fragment of the past.
Before him stood a still-young Cocolia.
Her fists were clenched tightly.
Young Cocolia: "...They will suffer, sacrifice, and die because of my order."
Voice of the Stellaron: "It is not death which greets them... They will be swept into the infancy of a new world."
Young Cocolia: "What about the Underworlders? They will lose the protection of the Architects. They will see me... as a tyrant."
Voice of the Stellaron: "You have witnessed... the world we have promised."
Voice of the Stellaron: "A temporary misunderstanding... for an eternity of prosperity."
Voice of the Stellaron: "We will honor... your decision."
Young Cocolia remained silent for a long moment.
Young Cocolia: "I understand."
Caelus watched the scene unfold quietly.
He rubbed his chin.
So she genuinely wanted to help people.
The Stellaron just kept whispering into her ear for years.
That's messed up.
Caelus frowned.
Honestly... she's kind of a victim too.
Then another thought crossed his mind.
Though if Mr. Hayata were here, he'd probably just walk up to the Stellaron, punch it once, and somehow solve the entire problem.
Actually... knowing him, that's not even impossible.
Caelus sighed.
Poor Cocolia.
Deciding he had seen enough, he turned and walked away from the vision.
A haze filled his vision.
Slowly, Caelus opened his eyes.
Voices.
Someone was talking nearby.
A woman with purple eyes and blue-gray hair stood beside Sampo.
The woman: "sigh ... Come on, those toys of yours aren't that dangerous."
Sampo: "Uh, then why hasn't he woken up yet?"
The woman: "Because he's sound asleep — didn't you hear him sleep talking?... Poor child, sounded like a bad nightmare."
The woman: "Tell me the truth Sampo — what are you gonna do about the Overworld girl?"
Sampo: "What am I gonna do about her? Why, wait for the opportunity and send her back together with the rest of them of course, I... Hey come on, what's with the—"
The woman: "You're a bad liar, Sampo Koski."
Sampo: "Wha—... I didn't mean to bring her along! The smoke was too dense, I was in a daze! Before I knew it, I'd somehow dragged her down here too."
The woman: "What are you up to, Sampo? Why do you insist on getting caught up in Overworld affairs that have nothing to do with you? If it's a whole lot more attention from Wildfire you want, you're going about it the right way."
Sampo: "Hey now! Sampo Koski's primary concern is taking care of his friends. These guys scratched my back. How could I live with myself if I didn't scratch theirs?"
Sampo: "And another thing! Where does Wildfire get off... assuming that these fine folks won't come in useful to them, huh? I mean, you never know."
The woman: "Which is why you've set them loose in the underground?"
Sampo: "Come on, accidents happen! I'll have them rounded up in no time."
The woman: "sigh That girl... get her back as soon as possible, then don't let her out of your sight. The underground has been sealed off for over ten years now — the children won't even remember what overgrounders look like. If a girl in a Silvermane Guard uniform suddenly shows up..."
The woman: "...what would Wildfire do with her? What would they do with you?"
Sampo: "Alright, I get it! I'm setting off right now. I'll have to trouble you to look after them while I'm gone, ma'am."
Sampo hurried out of the room.
The woman turned toward Caelus.
The woman: "...Hey sleepyhead, looks like you're awake."
Since he'd already been noticed, Caelus sat up.
The woman approached.
The woman: "How are you feeling? Any aches or pains?"
Caelus: "I had a weird dream..."
The woman: "I bet. You were mumbling something about 'Stellarons' and 'wishes'... I couldn't make sense of it."
Caelus immediately covered his mouth.
New problem added to the list.
Fix sleep talking.
The woman smiled slightly.
The woman: "Well, now that you're awake, you should probably try moving your limbs. I'm Natasha — a doctor in the underground. You've already spent a day in my clinic."
The woman introduced herself as Natasha.
Caelus: "Nice to meet you, I'm Caelus."
Natasha: "Nice to meet you too... Hehe, you're very polite."
Natasha: "Sampo's gone to clear up a mess of his own making, so I'm looking after you in the meantime. Based on your current state, I don't think there's any cause for alarm — you seem perfectly healthy."
Natasha: "So if you don't mind, I'll go and take a look at the other patients?"
Caelus looked around.
Caelus: "Where are my friends?"
Natasha: "They've been up for a while already. The young guy with the dark hair left first — he went with Sampo."
Dan Heng.
Natasha: "Your rowdier friend took off soon after waking up. I imagine she'll be taking a stroll nearby."
Yep. That's definitely March.
Natasha: "As for the girl in the Silvermane Guard uniform, I told Sampo to watch her... but it seems that he left his post and she made a run for it."
Caelus blinked.
Only one person matched that description.
Bronya Rand.
Caelus: "Who is this Sampo anyway?"
Natasha: "Good question... he's a man of mystery. He claims to be a simple cross-border businessman — not that there's much to interest an Overworlder down here. Either way, he's got a surprising number of connections."
Natasha: "I've managed to secure more than a few urgent medical supplies through him, and he's been a big help to Wildfire... In any case, I don't think his intentions are sinister."
Caelus: "Wildfire?"
Natasha: "It's a grassroots organization. Think of it as the Silvermane Guards of the underground, but less stone-hearted."
With his questions answered, Caelus got out of bed.
Caelus: "I can't thank you enough. Bye for now."
Natasha smiled warmly.
Natasha: "No need to thank me. It's a doctor's duty to heal."
After leaving the clinic, Caelus almost immediately spotted March 7th.
She was playing with three children.
The apparent leader was a young blonde girl wearing an oversized ushanka and thick winter clothes.
As Caelus approached, he overheard their conversation.
March 7th: "...So you promise that if I win hide-and-seek, you'll tell big sister March all the ins and outs."
Hook: "Yep! All the ins and outs, hehe!... What does that mean?"
March 7th: "It just means you'll tell me all the details. No hiding anything, and no telling fibs."
Hook: "Hmph, Hook isn't an overgrounder y'know! Hook never tells fibs!"
Julian: "Yeah, never!"
March 7th: "Well, that's settled then— Okay, let's play... Huh?"
She finally noticed Caelus.
March 7th: "You... When did you get here?"
Caelus: "I've been here a while."
March visibly panicked.
March 7th: "Uh... th-this isn't just hide-and-seek, okay? Let me explain..."
She immediately launched into an explanation.
March 7th: "It's like this: After I woke up, that doctor said Sampo had taken Dan Heng with him. I went around in circles trying to find the blue-haired scoundrel, and bumped into these kids. They say they know where he is!"
March 7th: "But they said I had to join 'The Moles' or something if I wanted to find out... and to do that, I had to prove my strength by winning a game of hide-and-seek... do you get it?"
Caelus couldn't help chuckling.
March 7th.
Astral Express member.
Heroic Trailblazer.
Currently being bullied by children.
Caelus: "I get it. Need a teammate?"
March blinked.
March 7th: "Huh. Caelus, when did you start being so nice?"
Caelus simply rolled his eyes.
Hook: "Hey! Are you done with your secret talk!? The Moles' time is precious!"
Julian: "Yeah, precious!"
March 7th: "Okay, okay, we're done. Pitch-Dark Hook the Great, this is my friend, Caelus. He also wants to join The Moles. Can he play too?"
Hook: "Ummmm... sure. I guess so. Then... you guys are seeking!"
Julian: "...Boss! They don't seem very smart. Why don't we do a practice one first?"
Hook: "Hmm... you're right Julian. Okay, let's do a practice one. I'll hide, you two have to find me!"
March 7th: "So you kids think you're better than us, huh? Just you wait and see!"
The game began.
After counting, Hook vanished.
March explained the rules.
March 7th: "Caelus, it's simple. When you see one of them, you just have to catch them!"
Caelus slowly turned toward her.
His stare clearly said:
"March."
"Do you think I'm five?"
March immediately laughed awkwardly.
March 7th: "R-Right. Forget I said anything."
Shaking his head, Caelus closed his eyes.
The brutal dream training Kouga had subjected him to wasn't completely useless.
One exercise had involved tracking targets using only sound.
After several minutes of being run over by dream vehicles.
Repeatedly.
He'd learned.
Focusing, he listened.
Tiny footsteps.
Quiet breathing.
Rustling fabric.
There.
He followed the sounds.
March followed behind.
Soon they found Hook hiding behind a building.
March 7th: "Ha! Gotcha!"
Hook: "S-So what, it's just a practice! Wait until we're playing for real — you'll see!"
March 7th: "Hehe, bring it on!"
The real round began.
And ended very quickly.
Caelus found all three children one after another using sound alone.
Though he had to admit...
He was genuinely impressed that one of them had somehow disguised himself as a fully-grown adult.
Eventually everyone regrouped.
Julian: "I... sigh I'm sorry boss! I failed..."
Hook: "Darn! How did you see through Julian's disguise? What villainy is this?"
March 7th: "Hehehe... 'Those with keen eyes see the dust between the stars!' I came up with that, by the way."
Caelus: "I did most of the work though."
WHACK.
March immediately elbowed him.
March 7th: "So, Pitch-Dark Hook the Great, you can tell us now, right?"
Hook: "Ummmm... Yes. The boss of The Moles is true to her word!"
Hook: "Hook saw the blue-haired guy take your dark-haired friend to the Fight Club."
March 7th: "The Fight Club?"
Caelus: "That doesn't sound good!"
March 7th: "No kidding, they didn't exactly get off on the right foot."
March turned back to Hook.
March 7th: "Uh, Pitch-Dark Hook the Great, where is the Fight Club? Can you show us the way?"
Hook: "Hmm— But it's an obvious building, grown-ups are just useless—"
Hook: "Come with Hook, I'll take you over."
March 7th: "Thanks, o great one."
Hook immediately puffed up.
Hook: "That's Pitch-Dark Hook the Great, to you! Who said you could shorten my title!?"
With that, March and Caelus followed the children.
As they walked through Boulder Town, March continued commenting on everything she saw.
March 7th: "A club just for fighting... who knew undergrounders had such brutal hobbies."
Hook: "Mm-hmm, in fact, it's awesome!"
Caelus and March stared at her in horror.
March 7th: "They let YOU take part!? When did this place last have an inspection!?"
Hook: "Loads of kids take part."
March froze.
March 7th: "...Despicable. My 'criminal activity' senses are tingling."
After a while, they finally arrived at the Fight Club.
Even before entering, March and Caelus could hear the deafening roar of the crowd through the thick walls. Cheers, shouting, stomping feet, and excited yelling echoed throughout the entire district.
Whatever was happening inside, the people here were clearly enjoying it.
Hook grinned proudly.
Hook: "We're here! This is it."
Hook: "Hook's gonna go fight. See ya later!"
March and Caelus froze.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
They turned to look at Hook.
March 7th: "Who's in charge here? How can they just let kids attack each other...?"
Hook puffed out her chest.
Hook: "The Moles are in charge, that's who!...But only of the kids. Wildfire is in charge of grown-up business."
A visible sweatdrop appeared on Caelus' face.
Caelus : "So The Moles control this whole area?"
Hook nodded confidently.
Hook: "Umm, The Moles control everything underground!"
Hook: "Ooh! They need one more player there! I-I gotta go! If you ever wanna fight, come find me!"
Before either of them could protest, Hook dashed away toward the building.
Caelus watched her disappear.
Then sighed.
Deeply.
Very deeply.
With nothing else to do, March and Caelus headed toward the entrance.
Only for both of them to suddenly feel a tap on their shoulders.
They turned around.
And immediately recognized the person standing behind them.
Caelus & March : "Mr. Hayata !!!"
Kouga simply smiled and waved.
Kouga: "Yo."
Caelus : "How are you here Mr. Hayata ?"
Kouga answered as though it were the most normal thing in the world.
Kouga : "Oh i just phased down here."
Caelus nodded.
Yep.
That sounded about right.
No questions.
No confusion.
Just another day with Mr. Hayata.
Kouga then looked between them.
Kouga : "So what happen ? Why did the Silvermane Guard decide to go and arrest us ?"
March and Caelus quickly explained everything that had happened since they woke up.
The arrest.
The chase.
The Fragmentum.
The underground.
Everything.
Kouga listened quietly and nodded.
Then he asked a single question.
Kouga : "Just one question."
Caelus & March : "Yes ?"
Kouga : "Why do they allow Kids to fight here ?"
March immediately pointed at him.
March : "That's what i'm saying ..."
Kouga sighed.
Kouga : "Welp let's go get Dan Heng."
Caelus and March nodded.
The three entered the Fight Club together.
The interior was packed.
Rows upon rows of spectators surrounded a massive octagonal cage at the center of the arena.
The crowd roared with excitement.
People waved banners.
Others placed bets.
Some were already arguing over the results.
March, Caelus, and Kouga pushed through the audience until they reached the front.
And immediately froze.
Inside the cage stood Dan Heng.
Opposite him were two robots.
Not humanoid robots.
Just giant metal fists with four mechanical legs attached underneath them.
They looked ridiculous.
A man standing near the arena dramatically pointed toward the fighters.
Dr. Dig:" ... Brothers and sisters! Are you ready for today's most spectacular, spine-tingling, earth-shattering contest!?"
The crowd erupted.
Dr. Dig: "On one side - recommended by Tall, Blue, and Handsome - the unsmiling pulverizing power of the new kid on the block: Cold Dragon Young!"
More cheers.
Dan Heng looked completely unimpressed.
Dr. Dig: "And his opponent is... none other than the unfeeling, incendiary, explosive might of Team Robomatic! All praise to Boss Svarog!"
The robots raised their metal fists.
The audience cheered even louder.
Dr. Dig: "Given that no other fighter was willing to take on the strength of Team Robomatic, Cold Dragon Young will face off against these opponents alone! On learning his fate, the brave young fighter had one thing to say: 'Whatever!'"
Dan Heng sighed.
Dr. Dig: "And so, let the semifinals of the 1758th Fighting King Challenge... begin!"
March turn to Caelus and Kouga.
March 7th: "Caelus, Mr.Hayata, quick! Let's help him!"
March and Caelus run over and jumped over the barrier.
Kouga try to stop them.
Kouga : "Wait trust your friend..."
Unfortunately, neither March nor Caelus listened.
The two immediately leapt into the octagon.
Kouga watched them go.
Then sighed and decide to watch how this turn out.
Dr. Dig: "Oh-ho? Brothers and sisters, an unexpected turn of events... Two members of the audience have charged into the octagon! It looks like they want to team up with Cold Dragon Young!"
Dan Heng glanced over.
Dan Heng: "...So you're awake?"
Caelus nodded.
March 7th: "Yeah! The first thing Caelus and I did was go look for you! And now that we've found you, we're trying to make sure you don't get your butt kicked! You're welcome-"
Dr. Dig: "Brothers and sisters, you can feel their passion! The magnetic pull of this electric sport is undeniable! But let me reiterate: These competitions are for professionals only! Whatever you do kids, don't try this at home!"
Dr. Dig: "And Cold Dragon Young is signaling that the contest will go ahead! He's just itching to get into it! And so are we! It's the iron fists of Cold Dragon Young - and friends - versus the iron skin of Team Robomatic!"
Dan Heng: "I can take them on my own, you know."
March 7th: "...sigh We need to work on your emotional intelligence."
Caelus : "Destroy them all."
Then Caelus charged.
Everyone expected an exciting battle.
A dramatic clash.
A hard-fought struggle.
What happened instead was...
Caelus punched one robot.
The machine immediately launched across the arena.
Straight through the steel cage.
Straight through a wall.
And disappeared into the distance.
Silence.
Complete silence.
Caelus stared at his fist.
'Huh ? The training with Mr. Hayata was worth it.'
The second robot slowly turned toward him.
Caelus turned toward it.
Then kicked.
The robot achieved flight.
The exact same thing happened.
Wall destroyed.
Robot gone.
Arena silent.
The crowd stared.
The fighters stared.
Dan Heng stared.
March stared.
Even Dr. Dig forgot how to speak for several seconds.
Then—
The entire arena exploded into cheers.
Dr. Dig : "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I DON'T THINK THOSE ROBOTS EVEN REALIZED THE MATCH HAD STARTED! COLD DRAGON YOUNG'S ADMIRERS HAVE JUST SHATTERED THE RECORD FOR THE FASTEST VICTORY IN FIGHT CLUB HISTORY!"
The audience went wild.
March crossed her arms.
March 7th: "Admirers... How come we don't get cool nicknames!"
Caelus shrugged.
Caelus: "Cooler than Cold Dragon Young...?"
March 7th: "sigh Forget it. I think our taste in nicknames is different."
Then March suddenly spotted someone sneaking toward an exit.
March 7th: "Hey! Look! It's Sampo!"
Caelus immediately narrowed his eyes.
Caelus : "We've got an explanation to demand."
Dan Heng: "Let's get after him."
Meanwhile.
Sampo was making what he believed to be a flawless escape.
One step.
Two steps.
Three—
BONK.
His face slammed directly into something.
Or rather...
Someone.
Clutching his nose, Sampo looked up.
Standing in front of him was Kouga Hayata.
Arms folded.
Expression completely unimpressed.
The look of a man who had already heard enough excuses before they were even spoken.
Sampo stared.
Kouga stared back.
Sampo immediately realized something important.
He was in so much trouble.