As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

Lin Chen carefully removed the fragments one by one and laid them out in his palm—the remains of the Earth Emperor's phone, with traces of carbonization still remaining on the edges. It was completely destroyed and could no longer transform into an Orga. He looked at the fragments in his palm, a bitter smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, a trace of helplessness flashing in his eyes.

Looking at him, Shotaro Sakata scratched his head and said, "Judging from your appearance, you must be new to this place. You probably don't know anyone here, right? Do you have any contact information? I can help you find someone."

Lin Chen looked up and handed the fragment of the Earth Emperor in his palm directly to him. Zuo Xiangtaro was stunned, bent down to take the fragment, and frowned as his fingertips touched the cold shard: "What...is this? Why is it so badly broken?"

Lin Chen didn't explain, and reached into his other pocket with his other hand.

His fingertips first touched a cold metal coin—a touch that slightly calmed his tense heart. Then came the rough texture of paper, instantly stirring up a bittersweet feeling in his heart.

It was a crayon drawing that Xiaoxue had given him. He had carefully folded it in his pocket and was surprised to find it still intact.

He hoped that the old man and Xiaoxue would be safe and sound, and never have to go through that chaos and danger again. He thought to himself. He clenched the coin and the drawing in his hand—when he met Kadoya Tsukasa again, no matter the cost, he had to obtain the ability to cross the dimensional barrier. Only then would he have a chance to go back and see those people again.

At this moment, Akiko pulled out a stack of paper documents from her canvas bag and handed them to Shotaro Hidari, her tone serious and not at all like a joke: "Please move out immediately. Look, this is the contract!"

Shotaro, who had just picked up his mug and taken a sip of coffee, suddenly froze. The next second, the warm coffee sprayed out of his mouth, splashing onto the coffee table and the floor.

He covered his mouth, coughed several times, stood up, leaned on the table, and looked at Akiko in disbelief: "Huh? What did you say?"

Akiko blinked her clear eyes, repeating innocently yet earnestly, "I said, please move out." She gently placed the documents on the coffee table, pointing to the top page with her fingertip, "I'm the landlord here."

Shotaro froze for two seconds, then suddenly grabbed the documents and flipped through them, the papers rustling. After a few glances, he immediately frowned, threw the documents on the table, and, with a "Are you kidding me?" look on his face, stood with his hands on his hips and chest out, striking a tough-guy pose: "Stop messing around! You're just a high school student living nearby, trying to fool a tough detective like me with this dubious stuff? Aren't you being a bit too naive?"

His tone was somewhat arrogant, clearly indicating that he didn't believe Akiko's words at all, and only thought it was a prank by the little girl on a whim.

Lin Chen paid no attention to the noise and arguments around him. He sat alone on the sofa, and with a thought, a light blue system panel appeared out of thin air in front of him.

Ultimate Evolution System

[Host: Lin Chen]

[Race: Tiger-type Orphnoch (Complete Form+) - Dark Power Incomplete]

[Body Constitution 105/218]

Agility 100/214

[Mental state: 110/203]

Lifespan: 2 years

Evolution Points: 158

Ability 1: Echo Guardian? Life Anchor

Cost of Ability: Each time you reverse a fatal blow from another, it consumes your own life essence, reducing your lifespan.

Ability 2: Tiger Hunting Domain? Critical Prediction

Cost of ability: It will accelerate the consumption of life essence.

Ability 3: To be inlaid

On the panel, the power of darkness was incomplete, and even the third ability had disappeared. "The creator probably took back the power of darkness; how stingy," Lin Chen thought, wanting to complain. But a chill ran down his spine.

But that's fine too. Several times I've been killed by the power of darkness. If you can't beat the owner of something that has an owner, it's best not to touch it.

Looking at the lifespan column, he gave a bitter smile; only two years remained, the rest burned away. Fortunately, he still had over 150 evolution points, which could solve his immediate problem and allow him to add up the points.

[Body Constitution 115/228]

Agility 105/219

[Mental state: 110/203]

Lifespan: 22 years

Evolution Points: 8

With his lifespan restored to 22 years, he breathed a sigh of relief. There was no major crisis in this world, the only threat being the future Gaia Impact, but compared to the Creator's world-ending destruction, these were child's play. Moreover, in the original story, the two protagonists had already successfully resolved this.

When Lin Chen came to his senses, Akiko was pressing Shotaro for details about her father, Narumi Shokichi, and asking when he would return.

Upon hearing Akiko's question, Shotaro's expression turned somewhat somber.

He stammered and seemed unable to speak.

Lin Chen was familiar with this plot. At the very beginning of the TV series, the "tough guy" detective Shotaro and his mentor, Narumi Sokichi, infiltrated the factory to rescue Philip. Narumi Sokichi was shot and killed, handing his hat to Shotaro before he died.

The two relied on their protagonist intuition to extract the "Cyclone" and "Joker" memories, transforming into Kamen Rider W and escaping.

But Lin Chen didn't speak. First, he couldn't explain how he knew, and he could easily be mistaken for someone working for the museum, since no one else besides the museum and his two sides knew about this.

Secondly, it is also cruel to tell a daughter directly that her father is dead.

A doorbell rang, breaking the heavy atmosphere between Shotaro and Akiko.

Shotaro and Akiko went to open the door, but Lin Chen didn't move. If he remembered correctly, the person who came should be Shotaro's childhood friend, Marina Tsumura.

Sure enough, when Shotaro opened the door, a working woman was standing there.

She had delicate and gentle eyebrows and eyes, a graceful and pretty face, and a pair of clear and bright eyes that held a hint of aloofness and fragility.

She had a neat, ear-length bob, jet black with a hint of brown, the hair smooth and manageable, accentuating her delicate jawline. She possessed a slender, well-proportioned figure and a cool yet gentle demeanor.

Her simple and elegant attire accentuated her calm and serene demeanor.

She saw the door open and immediately called out Shotaro's name.

"Xiao Xiang, it's been a long time."

“Maria?!” It took Shotaro a moment to remember Marina’s name.

Chapter 108 Lin Chen's Request

A faint, gentle ambiance still lingered in the office. Marina Tsumura finished explaining her request to find her missing boyfriend, her brows furrowed with an unyielding sorrow, which made her delicate features appear even more fragile and vulnerable.

Lin Chen sat quietly to the side, taking in the woman's gentle and graceful appearance, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

It has to be said that Shotaro Zuo's luck with women is truly outrageous, especially when it comes to beauties with captivating stories and outstanding looks and temperament. They always seem to get entangled with him, and this special kind of fate is something that ordinary people can't match. But Lin Chen isn't envious at all; these women are not easy to mess with.

A moment later, Marina bowed and thanked him, then turned and left, her mind preoccupied with her own thoughts.

After the office door closed softly and the surroundings quieted down, Zuo Xiangtaro withdrew his gaze, crossed his arms, leaned against the table, turned to look at Lin Chen beside him, raised an eyebrow, and spoke with a detective's crispness:

"Alright, I've finished listening to the important matters, and the person has left. Didn't you say you had a request for me? Now, just say it."

Lin Chen withdrew his gaze from the doorway, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the fragments of the Earth Emperor's phone in his pocket.

He looked up at Shotaro: "I'm looking for someone named Sherad."

Having just gained evolution points and lost his Earth Emperor Belt, he felt a void in his heart. What started as a casual excuse about having a request now turned into a genuine matter. In this world, only the Sonozaki family could forge Rider Belts. He couldn't confront them directly, so he set his sights on Sonozaki Ayane, who had left the family—that is, Sherad. In the original story, she had created the Lost Driver for Terui Ryu in her quest for revenge. If he could find her, exchange her for a new belt, or find a way to repair the Earth Emperor Belt, there might still be a chance.

Shotaro raised an eyebrow, casually pulled over a chair and sat down, taking out a small notebook and pen from his pocket, the pen tip hovering over the paper as if ready to take notes: "Sherad? Tell me, what are his characteristics? Age, appearance, or places he frequents?"

“I don’t know many of her features, but once you find her, you’ll definitely recognize her.” Lin Chen lowered his eyes, carefully recalling Sherrard’s appearance in the original work:

"She was a slender woman who always wore a wide-brimmed black fedora and had layers of white bandages wrapped around her face, leaving only a thin slit at the corner of her mouth; she often wore an ankle-length black trench coat and had dark brown curly hair."

Zuo Xiangtaro quickly sketched a few lines and handed the sketch to Lin Chen: "Is this how it is?"

Lin Chen glanced at her and nodded precisely: "That's right, it's her."

Shotaro immediately closed his notebook, held it out to Lin Chen, and said seriously, "Very good, commission confirmed. Please pay the deposit!"

Lin Chen was taken aback, not expecting him to be so straightforward. He subconsciously made an "uh" sound and didn't know how to respond for a moment.

...

An autumn wind blew through the alleyway, swirling up a few fallen leaves.

Lin Chen watched as Zuo Xiangtaro rode his motorcycle and disappeared around the corner, leaving him standing at the entrance of the office, feeling a headache coming on.

Just now, Shotaro asked him for a deposit on the spot. He didn't have a single penny on him, so he was stumped and could only vaguely try to get through to him.

A more pressing problem loomed before them—having just arrived in Fengdu, they had no place to stay, no food, and all they had in their pockets were fragments of Didi's phone, a coin, and Xiaoxue's crayon drawing. They didn't even know where to stay for the night.

He sighed helplessly and pushed open the door to re-enter the Narumi Detective Agency.

The room remained exactly as it had been. Akiko was standing by the desk, flipping through old documents, her brows furrowed slightly, still troubled by Narumi Shokichi's whereabouts.

Hearing the door open, she turned around and blinked: "Huh? What are you still here?"

Lin Chen walked to the side and stood against the wall, his tone very calm: "I don't have anywhere to go for the time being, is it alright for me to stay here for a while?"

Akiko paused for a moment, then subconsciously shook her head: "It's alright... but you can't just let outsiders stay for a long time, they can only stay temporarily."

Lin Chen didn't intend to force anyone, so he simply nodded, leaned against the wall obediently, and stopped talking.

He looked down and stroked the fragments of the Earth Emperor in his pocket, feeling utterly helpless.

Akiko packed up the contract documents and left as well.

Lin Chen didn't stay long before leaving alone. He had thought of a good way to make money. He remembered that in the original story, there was an underground gang, and he could go there to "borrow some money".

...

"Three Kings! I won!"

Lin Chen slowly turned over the cards in his hand and presented them on the gambling table. His voice was calm, yet it drowned out the surrounding noise.

The table was covered with cigarette butts and wine stains, and a few crumpled Japanese yen bills were scattered around it. Gamblers with their necks craned out were gathered around, and gasps of astonishment filled the air.

The man in the floral shirt across from Lin Chen turned deathly pale instantly. The cards in his hand slammed onto the table with a "thud," the pair of queens so bright they made one's eyes dizzy. "Impossible! How could you win five hands in a row? You've definitely cheated!" He stood up abruptly, the chair legs scraping the floor with a screeching sound, and reached out to grab Lin Chen's collar.

Lin Chen slightly turned to the side to dodge, his eyes as cold as ice, inadvertently revealing a faint sense of oppression—it was the aura of the Tiger-type Orphnoch. Although not strong, it was enough to make the street thug in front of him freeze, his hand frozen in mid-air, no longer daring to reach forward.

The dealer was a burly man with a thick beard. The veins on his hand gripping the card dealer bulged as he stared intently at Lin Chen, his eyes full of suspicion: "Kid, you better behave yourself. This isn't a place for you to run wild. If you dare to cheat, I'll break your legs!"

Lin Chen ignored him, bent down and gathered the money on the table, stuffing it into his coat pocket. The bulging feeling made him breathe a slight sigh of relief. He glanced at the people who had gathered around him, his tone indifferent: "A bet is a bet. If you can't afford to lose, don't play."

Actually, no one knew that he wasn't relying on cheating, but on the 110 points of mental energy within him, and his unique sensory abilities. For some unknown reason, his life perception ability had mutated.

As long as he subtly mobilizes his mental energy, everything around him will slow down. He can accurately capture the dealer's subtle movements when dealing cards, the suit and rank of the cards, and even the trembling of the opponent's fingertips when holding the cards.

He's still a bit confused about why he ended up here.

Just half an hour ago, he came out of Narumi Detective Agency, and Shotaro's words were still echoing in his ears—"I can accept the case, but half of the deposit must be paid first, otherwise there's no point in talking."

Originally, I planned to borrow some money from the gangster in the original story. But I forgot that although I remembered the general plot, I'm not omnipotent. I had no idea where the gang's base was, so I could only search slowly.

But even he was targeted by a thug who planned to rob him, and the consequences were self-evident.

After subduing the thugs, he asked where there were places that offered high-interest loans, since he didn't intend to pay them back anyway.

For some reason, the thug didn't answer, but instead led him to an underground casino hidden behind a billiards hall—a place where all sorts of people mingled. The thug told him that if he wanted to make big money, he had to come here, and then he slipped away.