"I don't know him."
Raven answered indifferently.
"Bullshit! It's written right on the nameplate!" another person immediately cursed.
"Listen, kid, you think denying it will keep you safe? You owe us a ton of money, and if you can't cough it up today, I'll break your arm," the green-haired thug threatened directly.
It turned out this group was a debt collection gang. The original tenant, Yuichi Yamada, had recently accumulated a huge debt, and today was the final deadline, so the gang had come to call.
"Boss, this guy really doesn't look like Yuichi Yamada," one of the underlings, who had seen the real owner before, cautiously pointed out, noting Raven's unfamiliar face.
"Not him? Doesn't matter. Since he's living in the same room, getting him works just the same," the green-haired thug said dismissively.
Raven sighed helplessly. "Then... could we discuss this somewhere else?"
Since trouble had come knocking, he didn't want to start a fight here. If the police got involved, things would get complicated.
He just wanted to live a quiet life.
"Suits me. Starting something here is too much hassle," Green-Hair readily agreed.
He deliberately chose a secluded, perfect spot for their operation: an abandoned factory.
Little did they know, a figure observing them from the shadows quietly followed the group to this location.
This person was an Orphnoch from the Smart Brain corporation. He was acting on the orders of the new President, Murakami, to secretly attack humans and increase the Orphnoch population.
However, since Orphnochs were still at a huge disadvantage compared to the human population, he couldn't cause too much disturbance or strike in crowded areas.
Thus, his activities had always been confined to sparsely populated areas. He never expected to encounter so many targets today.
This made him extremely excited.
"Kid, I don't care what your relationship is with Yuichi Yamada. If I don't see the money today, don't expect to leave here alive."
After bringing Raven to this isolated spot, Green-Hair's tone grew increasingly arrogant.
"Actually, I can send you to see Yuichi Yamada. You can collect your debt from him personally," Raven said calmly.
"Oh? So you know where he is?" the green-haired thug asked.
"Yep. In the underworld," Raven replied.
"You little bastard, trying to play games with me!"
The green-haired thug immediately flew into a rage and swung his baseball bat at Raven's head.
Thud!
But the expected scene of a bloody head wound didn't happen. Instead, the bat was effortlessly caught by Raven's hand.
Green-Hair was momentarily stunned but quickly reacted, trying to yank the bat back.
To his astonishment, no matter how hard he pulled, the bat remained completely still in Raven's grip.
"Shit, don't think you're hot stuff just because you've got some muscle. Get him, guys!" Green-Hair finally gave up on getting the bat back and immediately stepped back, yelling at the men around him.
Just as the thugs were about to rush Raven, an uninvited guest barged in.
"Who is it?" Green-Hair asked impatiently.
"Agh! It's a monster!"
The thugs looked back and were instantly terrified.
Standing there was an Orphnoch clad in off-white armor, looking somewhat like a wild boar.
He casually lifted one of the men with one hand, hoisting him high into the air.
Then, with his other hand, which was equipped with a tusk-like weapon, he pierced the man's heart.
He then tossed the body onto the ground like trash.
"He killed him!"
The men screamed in panic.
"What are you afraid of? There are so many of us!" Green-Hair managed to stabilize the group's frantic mood.
He then led the charge forward.
The other thugs followed, intending to swarm the Orphnoch with their baseball bats.
But the result was self-evident.
The thugs were completely helpless against the Orphnoch.
One by one, they were killed and injected with Orphnoch energy. Those who could withstand the energy would evolve into Orphnochs upon revival. Those who couldn't, of course, would simply die.
With the last thug killed, the Wild Boar Orphnoch turned its attention to Raven in the distance.
It was surprised that the man hadn't taken the chance to escape.
"Interesting. You're not running?"
He slowly walked towards Raven, his shadow briefly morphing into the image of a pale, naked human male.
"Why should I run?"
Raven looked at him with interest. Then he said, "You're the one who should be running."
"Hahaha... Human, you truly are amusing."
The Wild Boar Orphnoch laughed at Raven's words. Since evolving into an Orphnoch, it had only ever seen humans flee from it.
He also enjoyed the thrill of chasing his prey.
He immediately decided he would take his time playing with and eventually killing the man in front of him.
At this moment, Raven subtly pulled his shirt aside, revealing the Driver he was already wearing.
He had put it on before leaving the apartment.
He gave the crank on the Driver a slight turn.
Sigma.
As the Driver voiced the name, the two compound eyes on it ignited with a purple glow.
Raven then stared directly at the Wild Boar Orphnoch walking toward him and uttered the transformation command flatly.
"Amazon."
Boom!
A powerful blast of fiery energy instantly erupted, centered on Raven's body.
It directly blasted the approaching Wild Boar Orphnoch away!
Bang!
His body slammed heavily into a stack of empty oil drums.
Rolling on the ground, he was filled with disbelief.
"What was that?"
The Wild Boar Orphnoch shoved the oil drums off of him and glared angrily at Raven in the distance.
As the powerful surge of fire gradually died down, Raven's transformed figure appeared.
A black and purple Rider slowly materialized.
Kamen Rider Sigma (Neo).
"What the hell are you? Are you an Orphnoch too?"
The Wild Boar Orphnoch stood up and loudly demanded.
After all, Amazon Riders were actually more biological in appearance—less like Riders and more like monsters.
"I'm not an Orphnoch. But I am here to hunt you."
Raven slowly stepped forward.
A strong sense of danger radiated from him, creating an intense pressure.
The Wild Boar Orphnoch couldn't help but feel intimidated, retreating a few steps.