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In a corner of the lab, a new machine was set up.It was a joint creation by Kurim and Dan, designed to monitor Dan's body.
Kurim looked it over, nodding in approval.
"Nice work, Dan. With this, we can finally figure out how the Drive system's affecting your body."
Dan scratched his head, eyeing the machine that looked like a giant metal can.
"Mr. Belt, I really don't think this is necessary. Look at me—I'm fine!"
"Nope. You're not the same as Shinnosuke. He and I have a… complicated history. The Drive system was tailor-made for him. I still don't know why you can use it, but I can't be sure there won't be side effects. So yeah—we need to run tests."
Kurim was stubborn. Dan had no choice but to give in.
"…Alright."
Grumbling, he stepped into the machine.
"You sure this thing's safe?" he asked.
"Dude, we built it together. If there's something wrong with it, wouldn't you know? Anyway—starting the scan."
The machine powered up, numbers and graphs lighting up Kurim's display.
"Well?" Dan asked, curious.
Kurim stared at the data, his digital expression flickering with complex emotion. After a while, he finally calmed down.
"This is… unbelievable. Maybe this is why I ended up in this world…"
"What are you even talking about?"Dan was confused. Being stuck in this tin can wasn't helping either.
"Dan… do you want to become Kamen Rider Drive?"
That question made Dan jump.
"Wait, Mr. Belt—what do you mean?!"
Kurim motioned for him to step out.
Dan sat down, looking a little nervous. Honestly, what fan didn't dream of becoming a Rider and shouting "Henshin!"? But having Kurim ask him straight-up like this—it was a bit overwhelming.
"Let me be clear," Kurim said. "Your body's fine. In fact, you're super compatible with the Drive system. That's why I asked if you wanted to become a Rider."
He paused, then added:
"Besides, you were the one who told me this world is dangerous, right?"
Dan nodded.
Sure, the Free Nation looked peaceful now, but under the surface? It was a powder keg. Soon, that flashy billionaire Stark would be off to Afghanistan, kicking off the whole Marvel saga.
And with that would come all kinds of chaos.
Loki.The Chitauri invasion.Ultron. Sokovia.And eventually—Thanos.
In a world like this, being just a regular guy? That was basically a death sentence.
Kurim suddenly made a decision.
"Alright then. It's settled. Dan—from today onward,I'm gonna train you."
"Train me?"
"That's right. From now on, I'm gonna train you to become a real, proper knight."
This summer was definitely the most eventful one Dan had ever had. Even though his teacher, Rick, had left him, he'd now gotten a new mentor.
"Phew!"
Dan was soaked in sweat after finishing his long run.
"Nice work, Dan! That was great—you beat the expected time by two minutes."
Krim was hanging from Dan's belt, keeping track of all his vitals.
"Haha, not bad, huh?"
Wiping the sweat off his hands, Dan headed to open the door.
But something felt off.
In a low voice, Dan said, "Mr. Belt... I think someone's in the garage."
Krim confirmed it too—his scans showed the garage door had been tampered with.
Back in the house, Dan grabbed a broom and carefully made his way to the garage, step by step.
"Who's there?! Show yourself!"
He flipped the light switch. Holding the broom out like a weapon, he pointed it at the corner of the garage—where a Black man was slumped over, leaning against the wall. The guy was holding his right side, clearly trying to stop the bleeding.
Dan immediately tensed up. In a country like this, break-ins weren't exactly rare.
His hand instinctively went to his belt. If that guy pulled a gun, Dan was ready to transform on the spot.
"Sorry, don't panic! I'm not here to hurt you," the man quickly said, raising his hands slightly.
"Don't move. I'll call the cops if you do."
"No—please, don't call them. I really mean no harm."
The man got a little too worked up, and his wound tore open again. He grimaced in pain, gritting his teeth.
"You're badly hurt!"
Dan hesitated, but couldn't just stand there. Yeah, he was scared, but deep down, he still had a good heart—like a true model citizen from China.
In no time, he came back with a first-aid kit. Back when he used to do experiments with his teacher, injuries were common, so the kit was a must-have.
Looking at Dan, who was carefully wrapping up his wound, the man finally let out a sigh of relief.
"Thanks a lot. My name's Erik—Erik Brooks."
Dan's hands froze mid-wrap.
"Erik... Erik Brooks? You're Blade!"
Erik's face stiffened a little too.
"You know me?"
Dan's hands started shaking from excitement. He'd imagined all sorts of superhero encounters ever since he got here, but never did he expect to meet the legendary vampire hunter—Blade.
"Well... I sorta know you. A little bit."
Dan felt a bit awkward. Honestly, he hadn't watched much of the Blade series—just read up on him a bit. Half-vampire Blade, vampire hunter, master of guns, swords, and martial arts, former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, even a Howling Commando—he only knew the basics.
But still, Dan deeply admired Blade. Fighting vampires with only half-human strength? That kind of mental strength wasn't something just anyone had.
"Did a vampire do this to you?"
Erik nodded.
"I let my guard down. Didn't expect them to use that thing's power to create a monster like that."
"Monster?" Dan was confused. He didn't remember there being monsters in the Blade series.
"Yeah. Something different from your typical vampire. It's not afraid of sunlight or silver weapons, and its strength is off the charts. I didn't have enough intel, and it caught me off guard."
"Not weak to sunlight or silver? That's not a vampire then, is it?"
Erik gave a bitter smile.
"Maybe it doesn't look like a vampire, but its scent—there's no mistake."
"....."