I found myself in a certain place. A girl in an excessively frilly outfit led me through the establishment, heading to a private room.
I didn't come here of my own accord; I was summoned.
They must have chosen an expensive private room because there were things they didn't want others to overhear. Private rooms in places like this are convenient for secret meetings. I heard many of them have lax security cameras, so they probably factored that in, too.
To be honest, the one who called me was Riko Mine. In the original story, Riko is the Busou Tantei killer, which means she should be the culprit this time, barring any strange irregularities.
She sent me an email on my terminal, which was a complete mystery as to how she got it. It was a short message asking me to meet because she had something she wanted to ask. It even specified the location.
I was very conflicted, but since I had virtually no contact with Riko in this world, I decided to accept the offer.
Besides, Riko has probably already researched everything about me. We're in a situation where we know everything about each other on paper.
I couldn't arrest her on the spot because I had no evidence, but I thought she might have called me to eliminate me. If she did, I could arrest her in the act.
My only concern was the Zombie Gamer, but as long as their level wasn't an unknown variable, I figured ParadoX could handle it.
I checked my Gashat and my handgun in front of the door.
I took a deep breath and slowly opened the door.
I was a little wary of a bomb, but when the door didn't explode, I saw her inside and let my guard down.
She was lying on a multi-seat sofa playing a game, completely unfazed by my entrance.
She had long blonde hair tied up in two-side-up pigtails with a slight natural curl. Her uniform, while not as frilly as the staff's, still had ruffles, and her short skirt flapped as she kicked her legs, giving a clear view of her underwear.
A sickeningly sweet scent filled the room. I saw that the source was something emitting vapor like a humidifier. She must have mixed something into it.
The table was cluttered with half-eaten cakes and sweets.
"Mine-san?" I asked, trying to calm my rapidly beating heart.
"Huh? Oh, you're here! Sorry, I was so focused I didn't notice!"
She turned off her game, sat up on the sofa, and patted the spot right next to her. She was telling me to sit there.
I, of course, sat across from her. If I got that close, she could easily slit my throat with a small knife and I'd be done for.
"Huh? You're sitting over there? I was going to give you all sorts of services."
"No, you don't have to worr--"
"Then I'll just come over there!"
With surprising agility, she leaped over the table and dove at me.
Completely caught off guard, I instinctively reached for my gun, and then, "Ugh!"
I was sandwiched between Riko and the sofa.
But I wasn't hurt. I wasn't in any pain. On the contrary, something quite large for her height pressed against me, and blood rushed to my lower body.
"Hehe! What a cute reaction."
As I remained frozen, Riko giggled and settled down beside me. She picked up a spoon and scooped up some cake.
"Here, say 'ah'!" she said, bringing the cake to my mouth.
"No, I'm good--"
"Are you holding back because you have a girlfriend?"
I was about to refuse, citing the basic rule of not eating food that might be laced with drugs, but Riko cut me off again.
"...You looked into me."
"Of course! Shou Yozuki-kun. You're living with four girls right now... or is it five now? When young men and women live under one roof, it's only natural for a little romance to blossom, isn't it? And you're the only guy. What a king of a harem you are!"
Riko poked me as she spoke.
It was so ridiculous it was like she was joking, but she wasn't at all.
"So? So? Who's your type, Shou-kun?"
Riko was in high spirits, spilling all sorts of personal information about us. She didn't mention that we were from another world, but she might have kept that as a trump card.
She was really pushy.
I learned in class to be careful about alcohol, money, and women, but a guy my age can't be expected to stay calm when a beautiful girl like this is pressing in on him.
I would have been in big trouble if I hadn't known she was the Busou Tantei killer.
"Anyway, what did you want to see me about?"
"Geez! You're so impatient, Shou-kun. Guys who are too fast get disliked, you know!"
I tried to get the conversation back on track, but she easily dodged it with a dirty joke.
"Well, you see, the reason I asked you to come here today was to market myself to you."
"Market yourself?"
"That's right. I'm a detective major, and I'm an A-rank. I'm a good deal, don't you think?"
"Why me?"
I asked the question I already knew the answer to.
"Because I'm interested in the Kamen Rider you have, of course."
I knew it. Her goal today was to get information about Kamen Rider.
"I'd never seen that kind of equipment before. You were there during the bus jacking the other day, right? I read the report. I thought I'd get my claim in before anyone else gets their hands on it."
She said it so shamelessly.
Then I'll be just as blunt.
"Sorry, but I don't need it right now. And I can't say anything about this equipment."
I looked away, but I didn't let my guard down for a second. If Riko tried to attack, I was prepared to counter with the invisible bullet.
But I couldn't counter.
She pushed me down at the exact moment my guard slipped for a moment, just as I was being so careful.
It was the second time today I was sandwiched between Riko and the sofa.
I'm short for a guy, but Riko, who is even smaller, got on top of me, pressing her body against mine.
Gradually, I could feel Riko's warmth through my uniform from below.
Riko's uniform was slightly open at the chest, revealing a cleavage created by breasts that were disproportionately large for her small body.
As a man, my eyes were instantly drawn, and I quickly looked away. Then, I saw only Riko's face.
Her face was that close.
Not only that, her wavy hair separated her from the outside world. Her hands were gently cupped around my face. They weren't holding me with much force, so I could probably break free with a little struggle, but she wouldn't let me.
"Hey, what will it take for you to tell me?"
"No, I'm not going to tell you--"
"...Mmm."
"...!"
She licked the tip of my nose.
That alone was enough to make me completely rigid.
The sweet, vanilla scent of Riko's hair mixed with the sweet scent of the room, making me feel dizzy.
Blood had completely pooled in my lower abdomen, and it was getting painful. As if she knew, Riko moved her hips suggestively.
The ditzy persona from before was completely gone. She was truly a woman of two faces.
"Hey, what... will it take... for you to tell me?" she whispered, her voice husky, as she looked into my eyes from a distance where I could clearly feel her breath.
And then, her face slowly moved closer. Her lips were about to touch mine--
Just then, something in my pocket made a sound.
Riko flinched in response. In that moment, I managed to escape her hold and answered the phone.
"Oh, Shou-kun? It's me."
"Asuna? What's wrong?"
"Yeah. Aria-chan is going back to her family's home on a flight this evening."
What?!
"She sent a text saying she doesn't know when she'll be back... Shou-kun?"
"Sorry, I'll call you back."
I ended the call.
"Sorry, something came up. I'm leaving now."
The phone call saved me.
If it had kept going like that... well, yeah.
For a moment, I considered staying and keeping an eye on Riko, but if something was happening, I'd rather meet up with Aria, who should be at the airport.
I'll go to the airport.
...Looking back on it all, I wonder why I didn't ask everyone for help at that moment. Was I panicking? Well, I would regret it later.
---------
I arrived at the airport, but a problem arose.
I couldn't get on the same plane as Aria.
The tickets were sold out, and I couldn't just run onto the runway. I was stopped by security.
I even tried to show them my Busou Tantei license to at least stop the plane Aria was on from taking off, but that was also impossible. They said they had to get confirmation from their superiors.
For a regular flight, they could cancel it for an investigation (of course, I'd have to pay the costs if I was wrong), but Aria's flight had a lot of pressure from high-ranking officials, so that wouldn't work.
If I were to force my way through with ParadoX, I would have the entire airport's security force against me. By the time I dealt with them, the plane would have already taken off, and it would be game over.
After much deliberation, I decided to secretly sneak in with the checked baggage on the conveyor belt.
To do that, I transformed in an empty area and used the miniaturization energy item.
I easily evaded the two or three layers of detectors and came out into a large space. It seemed to be a cargo area.
But the area was anything but normal.
The temperature was unusually low, and there were patches of ice everywhere. Not a single airport staff member was in sight.
Feeling suspicious, I undid my miniaturization and looked around. Just then, a knife flew at me from out of nowhere.
A blade of this level wouldn't work against ParadoX. It hit me in the left chest, but I felt no pain, except for the spot turning to ice.
"Hmm. It seems this much is meaningless."
There was an impossible person there. A person who should appear much later, at the very least, not in this current arc.
"Are you Shou Yozuki?"
"...And you, are you Durandal the Demonic Blade?"
He was clad in Western-style armor, with a Western sword in his hand. His silver hair was tied up, and diamond dust danced around his body.
"I'd say you've done your research, but I'd like you to stop calling me by that name."
He narrowed his eyes in displeasure.
"I am Jeanne d'Arc--Jeanne d'Arc XXX."
Durandal the Demonic Blade, now Jeanne, narrowed her sapphire eyes and said proudly.
"I didn't expect you to show up. Nor to be waiting here so conveniently."
"If you were a simpleton who went straight to the runway, it would have been easier for me. It would be a hassle to fight the airport security force, even for me. I just considered which route you would take if a frontal assault wasn't an option."
With that, Jeanne pointed her sword at me. She was ready for battle from the start. There was no time for negotiation.
"Did the Busou Tantei killer ask you to come?"
"Yes. A proper fight seems to be too much for her to handle, so!"
Jeanne closed the distance in an instant and attacked. The cut was smooth and obviously larger than the sword's size. On top of that, ice formed on the cut.
It wasn't just a simple sword. If I got hit, even ParadoX would take damage.
How should I puzzle...
"...No, that's wrong."
It's not Perfect Puzzle I should be using now.
I turned the dial 180 degrees. By doing so, the other game on the Gashat Gear Dual started.
KNOCK OUT FIGHTER
The strongest fist Round 1 Rock & Fire!
"Henshin!"
Dual up!
Explosion Hit! KNOCK OUT FIGHTER!
I transformed into a different ParadoX than usual.
I held the shoulder parts in my hands, and my face was inverted. The blue body was now a blazing red.
It was Kamen Rider ParadoX, Fighter Gamer Level 50.
"This is the prelude to the Busou Tantei killer," I declared, raising my fiery fist.
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