As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

"boom--!"

A deafening explosion rang out, and flames shot skyward. The Catherine yacht was instantly blasted into pieces, and raging fire burned on the sea. Akutsu didn't even have time to scream before he was engulfed in flames, his body never to be found.

At Sonozaki Manor.

Philip jolted awake from his nightmare, drenched in cold sweat. He had dreamt again of his childhood, of falling into that icy spring, of his consciousness slowly detaching from his body.

"you're awake?"

A voice rang in his ears. Philip turned his head and saw Sonozaki Wakana sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at him with a worried expression.

"Wakana... Sister," Philip called softly, his voice a little hoarse.

Wakana looked at him with a complicated expression: "You remembered everything? Someone come here."

"Yes, I remember everything." Philip's face was very somber. He finally understood why Lin Chen had said those inexplicable things before;

Philip's thoughts drifted back to a few days ago, when Lin Chen approached him alone: ​​"Hey, Philip, it seems you really like Sonozaki Wakana!"

Philip, who had just hung up the call with Sonozaki Wakana, replied, "Of course!"

"Don't you care that Sonozaki Wakana is an executive in the organization?"

"I don't care. Even if Princess Wakana is already trapped in darkness, I will definitely pull her back. Besides, there's Shotaro, he will help me too."

"Sometimes things aren't as simple as they seem!" Lin Chen suddenly said something cryptic, leaving him somewhat bewildered, but now he understood everything.

And no wonder that Shotaro and Akiko kept saying strange things to him a while ago. It seems that they already knew about this back then. He doesn't blame them for keeping it from him. If he had known back then, he would have been devastated.

"Someone come here." Wakana suddenly grabbed Philip's hand and said with a firm look in her eyes, "Let's leave here. Leave Fuuto, leave this country, and go somewhere where no one knows us."

After learning Philip's true identity, Wakana did indeed break down for a long time. But after calming down, she came to terms with it. In this cold Sonozaki house, she had never felt a shred of warmth.

She only felt at ease when she was with Philip. Since this family couldn't accept them, they might as well leave together.

Philip looked into Wakana's eyes, remained silent for a long time, and then slowly nodded.

In the manor's main hall, Ryūbei had personally arranged the dinner. The long table was laden with exquisite dishes. Saeko entered, sat down in her seat, and said, "Father seems especially happy today."

"Of course I'm happy," Ryūbei said with a smile. "My most precious treasure has returned, and today is the first time in so many years that our family has truly reunited."

After saying this, he instructed the maid to call Philip and Ruocai down for dinner.

Not long after, Philip and Wakana came down together. Philip looked at Ryubei sitting in the main seat, then at Saeko beside him, and called out with a complicated expression, "Father, Saeko-neechan."

“It seems your memory has been fully restored.” Saeko nodded. “Sit down.”

“Now that everyone is here, let’s begin, Father,” Saeko said.

Ryūbei waved his hand, "No rush, there's still one person who hasn't arrived yet."

The words had barely left her lips when the hall door was pushed open. A woman dressed in a black trench coat and wrapped in bandages walked in. Without saying a word, she went straight to the empty seat at the back of the table and sat down.

"You've come, Ayane." Ryūbei looked at her with a gentle smile. "Why are you so cold? It's been a long time since our family has been all together like this."

"Wen Yin? Mom?!"

The Sonozaki sisters and Philip stood up simultaneously, their faces filled with shock. They had always believed that their mother, Sonozaki Ayane, was long dead. They never imagined she was still alive. Most importantly, it was Philip who was surprised; no wonder Lin Chen had always created opportunities for the two of them to spend time together when he and Sherrard were helping Lin Chen repair the belt.

Ryūbei said nothing more, but simply announced the start of the banquet.

The atmosphere at the table was oppressive; no one spoke, only the clinking of cutlery could be heard. Ryūbei ate slowly, recounting their past with a tone full of nostalgia.

At the end of dinner, Philip looked at Ryubei and made a final effort: "Father, give up on the Gaia Memory. Don't continue down this wrong path."

“Wrong? I’ve never been wrong.” Ryūbei put down his chopsticks, his eyes turning fervent. “Gaia Memory is the ultimate direction for human evolution. I am leading humanity towards a new future!”

Philip looked at him, the last glimmer of light in his eyes extinguished. He sighed softly and said, "It's not easy for the family to be reunited, let's take a picture together."

Ryūbei paused for a moment, then smiled and nodded. He thought to himself, "The final plan will begin tomorrow, and this photograph might be my last keepsake."

The butler brought the camera and adjusted the angle. Philip had Wakana and Sonozaki Ayane each hold one of him, while he held Mick in his arms. With a "click," the shutter was pressed, capturing this eerie and sorrowful family portrait.

"Alright, stop hugging," Ryūbei said with a smile. "We'll have many more days to spend together in the future."

But no one responded to him. Wakana and Philip exchanged a glance, then looked at Ryuhei. Wakana took out her clay doll memory from her pocket and threw it in front of Ryuhei.

“Goodbye, Father. And goodbye, Sister Saeko,” Philip said.

Ryūbei frowned, about to ask them what they were up to. Suddenly, a gray sphere emerged from Philip's chest, rapidly growing larger and instantly enveloping Philip, Wakana, and Sonozaki Ayane.

With a flash of light, the three of them, along with the gray sphere, disappeared from the hall.

"What?!" Saeko jumped to her feet, her face filled with shock.

Ryūbei slowly picked up the golden clay doll memory from the ground, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

Unexpectedly, he was outmaneuvered by his own youngest son.

Chapter 164 Another World of W

The four people at the Narumi Detective Agency are all doing their own thing, creating a somewhat bizarre atmosphere.

Lin Chen leaned against the sofa by the window, reading a book. Tsukasa Kadoya was holding a camera, snapping away at Akiko, muttering, "Yes, like that, make the expression more natural. I didn't expect there would be anyone in Fuuto who appreciates my photography skills. They're much better than that Onodera who only knows how to make sarcastic remarks."

Akiko cooperated well, striking various poses and smiling broadly.

The worst off was Shotaro. He was tightly bound to a chair, his mouth taped shut, only able to make muffled noises, his face flushed red. The reason was simple: he was so worried about Philip that he was practically in a daze, constantly checking on Lin Chen every three minutes, asking, "Are you sure Philip is really alright?" "Will he suffer?" "Will Ryubei harm him?"

Tired of being questioned, Lin Chen finally lost his temper and tied him up with a rope, gagging him as well. The world was finally quiet. Akiko, always eager for drama, even dragged Tsukasa Kadoya along and took several close-up photos of Shotaro's disheveled state, saying she wanted to keep them as souvenirs.

Just as Tsukasa Kadoya was about to press the shutter again, a gray sphere appeared out of thin air between him and Akiko, startling them both.

"What is that!" Akiko screamed and jumped back a step.

The sphere quickly dissipated, revealing three people inside—Philip, Wakana Sonozaki, and Sherrard, who was wrapped in bandages.

Lin Chen closed the book, stood up and walked over, a faint smile on his face: "Not bad, although it was a little different from my original plan, at least you came back safely."

He had originally hidden a dimensional barrier inside Philip's body, which would have teleported him and Wakana out as soon as they made contact. Unexpectedly, Philip stopped him and tried to persuade Ryubei. Although he didn't succeed in the end, he also managed to bring Sherrard out with him.

As soon as he saw Philip, Shotaro, who was tied to the chair, began to struggle desperately, making the chair creak.

Sonozaki Wakana had just regained her footing and was still a little dazed. She looked down at her hands, then looked up at her surroundings, her face full of disbelief: "We...we really escaped? This is...Narumi Detective Agency?"

When her gaze fell on Lin Chen, her expression instantly changed. She instinctively shielded Philip behind her and said warily, "You're Wu Yan's brother-in-law's subordinate! Men, run!"

"Don't be nervous, Sister Ruocai." Philip quickly pulled her back and patiently explained, "Lin Chenjun is not an enemy. He has been helping us in secret. We were able to escape from the manor this time thanks to his prior preparations."

After hearing Philip's explanation, Wakana was relieved, but she still looked at Lin Chen with some wariness.

Akiko quickly ran over, untied the ropes binding Shotaro Hidari, and tore off the tape from his mouth.

"Philip!" Shotaro ripped off the tape, and before he could even catch his breath, he rushed to Philip's side, checking him over anxiously. "Are you alright? Are you hurt? Did Ryubei do anything to you?"

"I'm fine, Shotaro."

Seeing the worried look on his face, Philip suddenly raised his hand and punched Shotaro squarely in the face.

With a crisp "snap," everyone present was stunned.

Shotaro covered his face, looking at Philip with a bewildered expression: "Why...why did you hit me?"

"This is the price you pay for keeping it from me." Philip looked at him, his eyes serious. "Why didn't you tell me sooner that Wakana is my biological sister? Why did everyone else know, but I was the only one kept in the dark?"

Before Shotaro could retort, he suddenly opened his arms and hugged him tightly: "Thank you, partner. Thank you for taking care of me, a guy who doesn't know anything, all these years."

Shotaro was stunned for a while before he reacted, gently patted his back, and said with a smile, "Why are you being so polite with me? You're my other half."

Next, Philip recounted everything from his memory, supplemented by Wakana's additions, to everyone. Sherrard walked up to Akiko and bowed deeply.

“I’m sorry, Akiko.” Sherrard’s voice was filled with guilt. “Back then, I asked Zhuang Ji to rescue Philip. I never imagined that he would never come back. It’s all my fault.”

"Don't say that, Sherad," Shotaro quickly interjected, taking the blame upon himself. "If I hadn't held him back, Master wouldn't have..."

"Alright, alright, stop talking." Akiko wiped away her tears and said with a smile, "That's just how my dad is. Once he decides to do something, no one can stop him. He certainly doesn't want us to blame ourselves for this."

Philip stood in the middle, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something but then swallowed it back. Lin Chen glanced at him, knowing full well that he had originally planned to leave Fudo with Ruocai and start anew in a place where no one knew them.

But Lin Chen couldn't let him leave; the final plan still required Philip's involvement.

Lin Chen glanced at his watch and said to Tsukasa Kadoya, "It's almost time. Ryubei lost the Earth Priestess and the Earth Child, his entire plan has been disrupted, and he must be insane now. We should also set off and carry out our plan."

"Honestly, all you do is order me around." Tsukasa Kadoya pouted, looking unwilling, but still raised his hand and waved it in front of him, and a purple dimensional wall slowly unfolded. "Let's go, let's go, everyone keep up, don't fall behind."

Philip, holding Wakana's hand, led the others through the dimensional barrier. As the last person disappeared, the entire office was suddenly covered by blue grid lines.

The figure of the Fear Doppelganger slowly emerged, followed by the Beast Doppelganger and the Spatial Doppelganger. He looked at the empty office: "Are we too late again? It's alright, someone come here, Wakana, you can't escape."

After a dizzying spin, the group appeared in a certain place.

Everyone was stunned by what they saw.

The entire city was bathed in a soft, pale blue light. Skyscrapers rose as far as the eye could see, their surfaces flowing with silvery-white holographic data streams, like luminous rivers. Low-flying aircraft trailed silvery-white contrails as they weaved between the buildings, creating a dynamic net of light in the air.

The smart streetlights along the roadside automatically adjust their brightness according to pedestrians' footsteps, and the fluorescent guide strips embedded in the road surface extend all the way to the horizon. In the distance, a familiar tower stands in the center of the city, its body constantly flashing with pulsed light, tiny specks of light floating in the evening breeze.

"Welcome to the future, everyone," Tsukasa Kadoya said proudly, spreading his arms wide.

Shotaro pointed to the distant tower, his voice trembling, "That...that's Fuuto Tower! That means this is..."

“That’s right, this is Fuuto.” Tsukasa Kadoya nodded and dropped a bombshell that shocked everyone: “Fuuto 100,000 years in the future.”

"One hundred thousand years?!" Sherrard looked up sharply, carefully sensing the aura around him, his expression turning solemn. "This feeling... could it be that Ryūbei's ultimate ideal has truly come true? All humanity has been transformed into data, existing forever?"

"More or less," Tsukasa Kadoya shrugged. "But you'll find out the specifics when you meet them. Come on, I'll take you to meet some people."

the next day.

Terui Ryu rode his motorcycle to the entrance of Narumi Detective Agency. Yesterday, the Triceratops dopant sank the yacht and killed Akutsu, and the trail went cold. He wanted to ask Shotaro for help to find out who this mysterious Triceratops dopant really was.

He pushed open the door, but the office was empty. The tables and chairs were crooked, and there were several ropes scattered on the floor, as if something had just happened.

"Strange, where did everyone go?" Terui Ryu frowned, took out his phone to call Shotaro, but found that he couldn't get through.

With no other option, he turned and left, intending to go back to the police station to check the information himself.

I had just gotten on my motorcycle when my phone suddenly rang. It was an unfamiliar number.

Teruji hesitated for a moment before answering the phone.

He suddenly received a phone call from someone claiming to be the owner of the W memory, but he clearly sensed something was wrong: he already knew the murderer was Isaka Shinkuro, but now the person on the phone was a woman, which was very suspicious.

But he still decided to keep the appointment. He started the car and drove towards the abandoned alley in the west of the city.

The alley was dark and damp, piled with garbage, and filled with a stench of decay. Terui Ryu walked in, warily surveying his surroundings, his hand already on the Accel Driver at his waist.