Thanks for the invitation. I'm in Type-Moon, inheriting the legacy of Zi-O.

"Huh!?" Mordred raised an eyebrow at the cryptic remark.

At the other entrance, the enemy had formed a huge, densely packed group, completely blocking the road, as if they were going to trap them here and kill them.

And... it seems they'll be fully assembled soon.

"This is... a bit tricky..." Ritsuka bit her lip. Even she, who was always confident, was starting to have second thoughts when faced with so many enemies that just looking at them was enough to make her dizzy.

"It's alright, because I'm here, we're here." Patting Ritsuka on the shoulder, Nianzhuo walked to the front. "Andersen, and Jekyll. You two just focus on gathering the relevant information."

"Regarding time... we have as much as you need."

With a sharp metallic clang, Nian Zhuo grasped the blade of his sword.

"Well, I can't let you steal the spotlight all by yourself." Ruffling his tousled hair, Mordred also stepped to the front, gazing at the densely packed enemies. "What a magnificent sight, but that's precisely why it's worth defeating!"

"...Please believe me, everyone." Mashu didn't say much, but gripping her shield tightly showed just how firm the girl's determination was.

"Everyone—" Ritsuka rubbed her eyes and nodded vigorously, "Yes! Andersen, and Mr. Jekyll! You two just go ahead and investigate! Leave the outside to us!"

"...Be careful, Ritsuka. If necessary, I'll give you the time to decide when to use your Command Seals." This time, even Mary was slightly moved. After she finished speaking, she put down the communication device so as not to disturb them.

"Ah... what a magnificent sight!" Shakespeare, the only one who hadn't entered the room, roared excitedly, opening his book wide. "On one side, they are immersed in the sea of ​​knowledge deep within the secret garden! On the other, they are defending the entrance to the death against countless powerful enemies!"

"On one side, it is a battle of wits! On the other side, it is a battle of force!" Shakespeare did not complain at all, but instead wrote something on the paper with great enthusiasm: "How...how exciting the situation is!!" However, his gaze moved back and forth between the room and Nianzhuo and the others, looking hesitant.

"Ah! Which side should we follow!" Shakespeare sighed, a rare look of difficulty on his face. "Which side's glory should we imprint on our eyes and record in our books?"

"That's enough!" Mordred urged him dismissively, pointing to the enemies who were already stirring. "Hurry up! The enemy is attacking!"

"This is a rare defensive battle—Master, please give your instructions!" All eyes turned to Ritsuka once again.

"Then, everyone, let's buy Andersen and his team enough time!" She raised her hand, the three bright red runes on it standing out prominently.

As Ritsuka finished speaking, Shakespeare finally made up his mind and stood behind Nencho and the others.

"I...I still prefer this kind of bloody scene!" Shakespeare tore the paper off his notebook and threw it into the sky again...or rather, onto the top of the tunnel.

Having already witnessed such a sight, Nianzhuo and the others were no longer as surprised as they had been at the beginning by the enormous bright red magic circle that instantly unfolded on the paper.

Sensing the improvement in their abilities and various stats, Nian Zhuo and the others gradually began to look serious.

This time, it's not a small-scale skirmish, because when the number of enemies reaches a certain level, quantitative change can indeed lead to qualitative change.

Therefore, Ritsuka and Shakespeare wisely hid at the very back of the group, keeping a certain distance from Nencho and the others to avoid being caught in the crossfire.

Shortly after Nianzhuo and his group took their fighting stances, a certain sound came from the group of dark enemies opposite them.

Then, like locusts, the monsters took steps and charged towards Nianzhuo and the others!

The battle has finally begun!

"Hey, Mordred." Suddenly, Nian Zhuo looked at the enemy rushing towards them and suddenly spoke to Mordred, who was standing to the side, "In a moment, don't forget that this is an underground building, so be careful."

"Huh...?" Mordred was taken aback at first, then realized what she meant, and shook her head with a slightly flushed face. "Who do you think you are! I'm not that stupid!"

Finally, the first wave of enemies arrived: automatons and those artificial life forms!

Extending its sticky tentacles, the monster slammed directly into Mash's raised shield.

"Hmm..." However, the strength of just one was not enough to make Mashu feel strained, and it easily pushed him aside. Mashu raised her shield and cleaved the writhing white body in two.

But there was no time to rest. The mechanical sounds of the automatons whirring came from behind. The mechanical soldiers, as if wound up, spun around like tops and pounced on Mashu.

"How could I let you succeed!" Immediately afterward, Mordred charged into the battlefield with her Crimson Lightning sword, smashing the automaton that tried to ambush Mash to pieces, and then swung her sword to smash all the automatons around her.

However, although several enemies were eliminated in this short period of time, it was only a small amount that could be replenished in an instant in this seemingly endless sea of ​​monsters.

Nianzhuo's situation wasn't much better. Although he was equipped with the Zi-O basic armor and the amplification from Shakespeare's abilities, dealing with these monsters was a piece of cake.

Clang—This time, another punch shattered the enemy. Before Nian Zhuo could even catch his breath, he suddenly felt several sharp pains in his back.

Turning around, I saw that the automatons were following the program. The monsters went directly behind me, and the result was pleasing: they successfully hit Nian Zhuo once.

“This can’t go on…” Nian Zhuo gritted his teeth, looked at Andersen and Jekyll who were still not moving, and then looked at the monsters crowding the street in front of him.

Finally, he put his hand in his pocket and began to fumble around.

Immediately afterwards, he held the orange watch face in his hand, along with the slender magenta watch face.

"Kouta... and Shi! Lend me your power!" Nencho placed the two watch faces in his hands on the driver at his waist and flipped it over.

"Gaim—!" "Decade—!"

With a loud boom, a beam of light shot up from beneath Nian Zhuo's feet and spread rapidly in all directions.

Buzz... A zipper appeared in the sky, and from the zipper, a round orange emerged, then suddenly fell onto Nianzhuo's head.

The clicking sound continued as his body was constantly strengthened by the power originating from Gaim after merging with Nencho's basic armor.

He held the two large orange pills in his hands, and as time went by, they never faded.

"Rider Time! Kamen Rider Zi-O!! Armor Time! Soiya! Gaim~!"

But it's far from over...

Buzzing—the crystalline virtual card passed through Nian Zhuo's body layer by layer, transforming his original form, Gaim, into something else entirely.

Magenta and black and white stripes gradually climbed onto Nian Zhuo's body.

"Armor Time! KamenRide! Wow! Deca! Deca! Decade~!"

Even so, it's far from over.

As the pillar of light rose, it blasted away all the monsters around Nian Zhuo, and the cracking sounds of shattering continued to ring out. That must have been Mordred.

Suddenly, four orange-yellow flags appeared behind Nianzhuo.

"What—?!" After a moment of surprise, Nian Zhuo smiled slightly. "You've been a great help!"

With the enhancement of the Decade watch face, the original Gaim watch face evolved into the watch face of Gaim Kachiko form.

"Next, it's our (my) stage!" Holding the two now-slender Ootengu in his hands, Nian Zhuo's banners fluttered as he charged into the enemy ranks.

"Immediately, we're in battle! Ei Ei Oh!"

Gaim Kakuzu, the stage you created for me!

Bearing orange banners and clad in orange-yellow armor, the knight, resembling a warrior from the Warring States period, slightly raised his head.

“This is…” Mash, Ritsuka… and everyone in Chaldea stared at the figure on the screen.

“…Nianzhuo, who exactly are you?—” Romani stared at Nianzhuo on the screen. The orange armor and the pair of banners behind him did not look like something that could be easily forged.

"The Far East, the Warring States period... a general?" Shakespeare was also somewhat surprised, but then walked even more enthusiastically to Nianzhuo's side. "What an honor! I never thought that my play would one day appear on a daimyo of the Warring States period! My... my inspiration has flown!"

Ignoring everything else, Shakespeare gripped his pen and began writing something in his notebook.

"Ha, you're quite interesting, Nianzhuo." Mordred, sensing the aura emanating from the warrior beside him, grinned menacingly. "You really... ignite my fighting spirit!"

"Hoo..." A familiar sound came from behind the armor. Nian Zhuo moved his limbs, and a continuous stream of power was surging within his body.

Looking around at his companions who were staring at him, Nian Zhuo held two large orange pills in his hands, the banners behind him fluttering.

"Ha—!" With a sudden shout, the general, wielding two blades, charged into the enemy ranks.

He wielded his greatsword with dazzling skill, swiftly and deadly slicing through every enemy around him.

Automata, artificial life forms, and drifting magic books. Any enemy is nothing more than a single slash.

The enemy's first wave of attacks ended with Nian Zhuo fighting alone...

Of course, this is not the end...

Within the enemy ranks, the numerous Chaos mechanical soldiers had not yet made a move.

"So...so strong..." Even though she was used to seeing this kind of scene, Mashu was still moved when she saw Nencho easily cut dozens of enemies of all kinds in half and escape unscathed.

"Indeed... very strong." Mordred sighed deeply, but his words were full of fighting spirit. "I'll have another chance to fight him when I have time, but right now—the other side is getting serious."

Lightning crackled on the blade, and crimson lightning, carrying a long, slender sword aura, hurtled towards the enemies gathered not far away.

Just as it was about to collide with the outermost doll, several long saw blades suddenly blocked the lightning.

A piercing, ear-splitting crash resounded as several saw blades struck the lightning, severing it and causing it to dissipate before the automaton.

It was a Chaos Mech Soldier... Several mech soldiers rushed to the front and blocked Mordred's slash.

Nian Zhuo and the others did not believe that the other party possessed the intelligence to protect its companions, after all, the guy was still standing on the shattered automaton from before.

So... this means that the other side has finally started to get serious.

"The real battle is about to begin, everyone, are you ready?" With a crisp swishing sound, Nian Zhuo gripped the Great Orange Pill in his hand, and white steam billowed from the connection between the banner on his back and the thick armor.

"Hmph, do you even need to tell me that?" Mordred gripped the blade with both hands. Facing numerous enemies, she dared not be careless in the slightest, and even put her helmet back on after taking it off.

“Then, please let me go first—” A terrifying sound of machinery whirring rang out from the enemy on the other side, and Mash immediately charged to the front with her shield in hand.

"Hah—ah—!" Mash raised the shield in her hand, and a faint barrier of silver magic formed on it.

Surrounded by automatons, several enemy mechanical soldiers charged at full speed, brandishing their saw blades. They were the first to reach Mash's shield and almost simultaneously raised their saw blades.

Behind them, the artificial life form, dragging its writhing body, stretched out white tentacles to stab at Mash, who was actively drawing fire.

The automaton's arms moved, the cracking sounds of its joints sending shivers down one's spine, as attacks rained down on Mash's shield like a storm.

The pale silver barrier dimmed slightly, but it was clear that Mashu was still holding on.

But the three Chaos Machine Soldiers who arrived first and raised their saw blades are another story!

"Don't even think about succeeding—!" As if he had been waiting for this, Nian Zhuo swung the two large orange pills in his hands and threw them at the Chaos Mechanical Soldier.

The semi-circular blade shot out like an arrow, piercing directly into the heads of two of the Chaos Machine Soldiers, causing sparks to fly.

Two Chaos Machine Soldiers suddenly fell to the ground, their saw blades naturally ceasing their movements... but one Chaos Machine Soldier remained.

Just as Mash was resisting the attacks from the artificial lifeforms and the automatons, the Chaos Machine Soldier had already swung down the long blade in its hand.

Almost simultaneously, a silver-red figure darted out from behind Mash, its boots, encased in heavy armor, stomping on an automaton on the periphery and crushing it.

The helmet was adorned with a pair of terrifying horns, and the sword in the knight's hand, whose true form was unrecognizable, crackled with lightning.

It collided with the swinging saw.

But it was only for a moment. The next instant, the saw blade was cut in half by the crimson lightning, and the knight in the silver-red heavy armor turned his sword and directly cleaved the last mechanical soldier horizontally, emitting puffs of black smoke.

...Who else could this heavily armored knight be but Mordred?