As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

Mayu squatted down, hugged her knees tightly with both hands, and buried her head in her hands, crying bitterly.

Joy and sorrow overwhelmed her at the same time.

The joy was that her brother was still alive and hadn't left her; he was always by her side. The sorrow was that the siblings were so close, yet it was as if they were separated by an insurmountable wall. He couldn't stop, she couldn't touch him, and they couldn't even have a normal conversation. It was no different from being separated by death.

Lin Chen looked at the girl who was squatting on the ground and crying uncontrollably, and then at Kabuto King who was moving around at high speed in circles, full of anxiety and helplessness. A complex sense of empathy rose in his heart.

Having traversed fifteen years, he had long since grown accustomed to loneliness and to struggling to survive alone. Yet, looking at the brother and sister before him, forced to separate, he could still clearly feel the profound weight of their familial bond.

That was the warmth he once had, but could never return to.

"Let's go back first."

Tsukasa Kadoya's voice broke the silence, his tone still nonchalant.

Lin Chen nodded, stepped forward, gently patted Mayu's shoulder, and said nothing.

The two of them, along with Mayu, headed towards the Paradise House Oden shop.

Behind them, the red afterimage disappeared, but all three knew that he must be nearby.

Back at the oden shop, Mayu wiped away her tears, mustered her strength, and told her grandmother that her brother was still alive.

The old man was taken aback at first, then tears welled up in his cloudy eyes. His wrinkled hands trembled slightly, but he simply nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

She probably had a vague idea of ​​the truth long ago, but she was unwilling to reveal it. She kept guarding the small shop and the unchanging soup base, waiting for the person who would come back one day.

"Thank you all for today."

Mayu raised her head and bowed deeply to Tsukasa Kadoya and Lin Chen, her eyes filled with gratitude. "If it weren't for you, I might never have known the truth in my entire life."

"It's nothing." Tsukasa Kadoya waved his hand dismissively.

"To thank you all, and to celebrate that my brother is still alive, I'm treating you all to dinner today. You must stay and eat." Mayu's tone was firm and brooked no refusal.

Before the two could respond, she had already turned and run into the kitchen to help her grandmother.

A rich aroma quickly filled the small shop. The iron pot bubbled and boiled, with radishes, eggs, and tofu puffs simmering slowly in the broth. The warm fragrance permeated the air, dispelling the previous heaviness and sorrow.

A simple bowl of oden was served, and Mayu and her grandmother sat opposite them, watching Tsukasa Kadoya and Chen Lin pick up their chopsticks.

"I'm starting to eat."

Lin Chen ate silently, the warm soup sliding down his throat, the warmth spreading from his esophagus to his limbs.

A simple dinner was eaten in an exceptionally quiet manner.

When they finished eating and left, Mayu saw them to the door, her eyes still filled with worry: "Can my brother... really come back?"

Lin Chen did not speak.

Tsukasa Kadoya raised an eyebrow: "Who knows?"

As soon as she finished speaking, a gentle breeze blew by, swirling a fallen leaf around Mayu's feet.

The two said goodbye and turned to walk towards the Guangzhao Photo Studio.

Back at the photo studio.

Mitsu Natsumi, Onodera, and Mitsujiro were all sitting in the living room. When they saw the two return, they immediately surrounded them.

"Shi, Mr. Lin, why are you back so late?" Hikari asked with a worried expression.

Tsukasa Kadoya shrugged and recounted everything that had just happened, along with his own speculations.

"So Kabuto is Mayu's brother... This is so unexpected." Hikari Natsumi covered her mouth, her eyes full of surprise, then a look of heartache appeared on her face. "But... he's trapped in the Accelerated World, unable to stop, and unable to go home. This is so pitiful."

"They are so close, yet they cannot recognize each other. It's no different from being separated by death..." Onodera sighed, his face full of sympathy.

Kōei Jirō, leaning on his cane, nodded gently: "What a pair of unfortunate siblings."

Hikari Natsumi raised her head, her eyes bright and determined, and looked at Tsukasa Kadoya and Tatsumi Lin: "Tsukasa, Tatsumi-kun, let's help them!"

She didn't want to see the brother and sister separated forever, didn't want to see Mayu living in waiting and sorrow, and even less did she want to see Kabuto forever trapped in the lonely Accelerated World, bearing everything alone.

Lin Chen nodded gently: "Mm."

He could empathize with Mayu's longing and understand Kabuto's helplessness. Moreover, he gradually remembered the dream he had abandoned and why he had once loved Kamen Rider.

Tsukasa Kadoya looked at Hikari Natsumi's expectant face, then at Lin Chen who was nodding, and sighed helplessly. His expression was one of utter exasperation, but he still lazily said, "Honestly, she always has to meddle in other people's business..."

Despite saying that, he showed no sign of refusing.

Chapter 49 The Zerg's Identity Exposed

Inside the ZECT base command center, a cold, metallic sheen filled the entire space.

Various precision instruments are operating at high speed, emitting regular "beep beep" sounds.

Several researchers dressed in white lab coats gathered around the core control console, their fingers flying across the keyboard, their faces filled with barely suppressed excitement.

The lead researcher turned around abruptly and bowed deeply to Captain Jet, who was standing not far away.

His voice trembled with excitement: "Captain! The time-lapse system is fully debugged!"

"All parameters have met expectations. As long as the system is activated, all Rider System acceleration states can be forcibly stopped—even Kabuto King can be instantly suppressed!"

Captain Jet stood at the boundary between shadow and light, a sinister ecstasy flashing in his one-eyed eye.

His previously taut jawline relaxed slightly, and a ferocious yet gleeful smile slowly crept onto the corners of his mouth.

He raised his hand to stroke his single eye, and the hatred that had been building up for years became even clearer.

"Good! Great!"

His voice carried a long-suppressed obsession and resentment.

"After so much preparation, the plan to capture Kabuto King can finally begin! This time, I will definitely not let him go!"

Shin, standing to the side, clenched his fists. Looking at Captain Jet's ferocious expression, images of Kabuto protecting the citizens and fighting against the Zerg kept flashing through his mind. His lips moved, but the words of advice that were about to come out were swallowed back down.

He knew his captain's temper all too well. At this moment, the captain was already blinded by hatred, and any rebuttal would only provoke a more terrible rage.

Xin lowered her eyelids, concealing the resentment and helplessness in her eyes, and stood silently in place, saying no more.

Captain Jet glanced at him, a hint of impatience flashing in his eyes, but he didn't ask any more questions. He raised his hand and gave a deep order into the communicator: "All Jet team members assemble! Move out! Target—King Kabuto!"

A unified response came immediately from the other end of the communicator, and hurried footsteps echoed throughout the base as the team members quickly assembled, ready to go.

Meanwhile, inside the Paradise House Oden shop on the street corner.

Wearing a clean apron, Mayu skillfully served bowls of steaming oden to the guests, a gentle smile on her face.

Grandma was behind the counter, slowly wiping the dishes and chopsticks, watching her busy granddaughter with eyes full of doting affection.

The shop is filled with the delicious aroma of radish, eggs and tofu buns.

The unexpected happened without warning.

"boom!"

The glass door of the small shop was smashed open, shards flying everywhere. Two dark green figures darted in, their hard shells gleaming coldly, and thick saliva dripping from their mouthparts—they were two strange insects that had not yet molted.

The customers screamed in fright and jumped up to flee, plunging the once bustling shop into chaos.

"Mayu, hide quickly!" Grandma's expression changed, and she quickly got up, wanting to protect Mayu behind her.

The two alien insects had a clear target; their sharp claws whistled through the air as they pounced on the unsuspecting grandmother.

Mayu's pupils constricted, her heart pounded wildly, and a shrill scream burst from her throat.

At this critical moment, a green light suddenly exploded from her body, her body twisted violently, and her original delicate girlish appearance vanished instantly.

Instead, there was a strange insect that was entirely green with transparent wings, its wings flapping with a sharp wind.

Before the two alien insects could react, Zhenyou flapped his wings, and two streams of green energy shot out, accurately striking the two alien insects.

"Boom! Boom!"

With two muffled thuds, the two unmolted alien insects were instantly blown to pieces.

Mayu hovered in mid-air, looking down at her monstrous hands and transparent wings, and froze instantly.

She could clearly feel the changes in her body, that unfamiliar power surging within her, but this monstrous appearance plunged her into extreme fear.

"no, do not want……"

Mayu let out a desperate scream and subconsciously activated Time Ascension. Her figure instantly became illusory, turning into a green afterimage. She rushed out of Paradise House in a panic and disappeared into the depths of the streets and alleys.

"Mayu! Mayu!"

Grandma reached out and desperately called out in the direction where Mayu had disappeared, her voice choked with sobs and anxiety, but the green afterimage did not stop at all and had already vanished without a trace.

The old man stood there, looking at the empty doorway, tears welling up in his cloudy eyes, but he didn't say anything more. He simply turned around slowly and began to silently tidy up the mess inside the shop.

Just then, Lin Chen, Tsukasa Kadoya, and Hikari Natsumi rushed over.

The three of them had agreed last night to come and visit Mayu and her grandmother today, and to discuss how to help Kabuto escape the Accelerated World. However, they did not expect to witness the scene just now when they arrived at the door.

They clearly witnessed Mayu transform into a Worm and flee in panic, and Tsukasa Kadoya instinctively wanted to chase after her.

"Wait a minute." Guang Xiahai reached out and grabbed him, looking at his grandmother who was tidying up the shop by herself. "Let's check on Grandma first. She can't manage to tidy up by herself."

Lin Chen nodded without saying a word and walked into the messy little shop first.

Upon hearing Hikari Natsumi's words, Tsukasa Kadoya stopped and followed the two into the store to help tidy up the scattered dishes and clean up the broken pieces on the floor.

The shop was quiet except for the rustling sound of things being packed up.

As Hikari wiped the table, she couldn't help but exclaim in disbelief, "I never imagined... that Mayu was also an alien insect."

Hearing her words, Grandma paused in her actions, slowly raised her head, looked at her calmly, and said indifferently, "So what if it's a strange insect?"

Tsukasa Kadoya stopped what he was doing, raised an eyebrow, and said, "You knew she was a Worm all along, didn't you?"

He felt something was wrong with the old woman from the beginning. His granddaughter suddenly turning into a strange insect would have caused anyone to panic and search everywhere, but the grandmother was unusually calm and even had the mood to clean up the mess.

Lin Chen squatted on the ground, cleaning up the glass shards, still without saying a word.

Grandma picked up a clean rag and continued wiping the counter, her voice gentle yet firm: "Whether she's an alien insect or not, she's still my granddaughter."

"Just like our family's oden, it's filled with the aroma of broth."

One sentence silenced all three of them.

Yes, identity is never the standard for defining a person; family ties and love are the most touching bonds.