Knights of the Digital World

It's worth mentioning that, because Poppy is a Bugster, and Taiga's body was injured due to the Prototype Gacha, his strength was actually less than Poppy's even without transforming. Therefore, Emu was carried away by Poppy, while Taiga carried Emu slowly behind.

Hime's resurrection relieved Taiga of a worry, and he was in a great mood. He was even planning to return to his base after sending Emu back and share his joy with Nishimani.

After Momose Kohime and Kagami Hiiro poured out their hearts to each other, Hiiro pulled her away. One reason was that he wanted to take Kohime back to see his father, Kagami Kaima, and make him happy.

On the other hand, it's also necessary to resolve Xiao Ji's identity issue. After all, Xiao Ji is already dead, and for the sake of her future life and to gain more control, it's necessary to let the government know about her resurrection.

In the blink of an eye, everyone who was there left.

Xiao Xing focused on processing the data collected during the previous resurrection process and had already formed a preliminary idea in her mind on how to optimize the previous program.

According to his plan, the optimization would eliminate some obviously unnecessary energy consumption. What originally required two hardcore players to revive might now only require 1.8.

Although it's far from the ideal state, this is simply because the data sample size is too small, and many unnecessary losses cannot be determined. Xiaoxing is still confident that with enough data samples, the algorithm can be optimized to its best!

After Xiaoxing finished processing the data and stretched, preparing to return to her studio to continue her research, a voice suddenly rang out:

"Oh? It's finally done? I've been waiting for you for so long. Does even the initial treatment take this long?"

Kosei was startled and turned around to see Kiriya standing casually, holding his coat in one hand, calmly looking at him.

"What? It's Kiriya-san. Everyone else has already left. Is there something you need?"

Xiao Xing patted his chest and asked.

"Hmm, I have something very important to do. Go to your studio first. The prototype cartridges are still there, right?"

Kiriya nodded and said.

"Yes, Kiriya-san. Do you have something on your mind again?"

After packing his things, Xiaoxing led the way into the office, and even made a cup of tea for Kiriya, asking, "..."

Kiriya picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said:

"Yes. But before I say anything, let me double-check that all the human data in the prototype cartridge has been extracted, right?"

“It’s completely extracted. During my three-day break, I was constantly worried about this issue and checked it dozens of times to make sure nothing was missed.”

Xiao Xing assured him.

"I see. That's good, Xiaoxing. Now, please destroy all the prototype cartridges!"

Cheche closed his eyes, remained silent for a moment, then opened them and spoke to Xiaoxing with a serious expression.

"Oh, destroy the prototype cartridge! Wait a minute! Can you just destroy this thing like that? Doesn't the government still need it?"

Xiao Xing was immediately shocked.

Cheche, however, remained calm and said without changing his expression:

"The government's coming will simply mean returning it to Dan Masamune. That's like handing over the key to the enemy. Since that's the case, it's better to destroy it beforehand. Anyway, it's common for items confiscated by the government to have problems for various reasons, so there's nothing to worry about."

"Well, that makes sense. But we can already revive humans who died from game-related illnesses. Shouldn't we use that as grounds to request the government to intercept the game cartridges? After all, so many lives have been lost; the government wouldn't just stand by and do nothing, would it?"

"It would have been possible if you hadn't produced those cartridges that could store human data. But now, resurrecting humans no longer requires prototype cartridges. What incentive would those clueless officials have to keep those cartridges?"

Rather than going to great lengths to intercept the cartridges, what those officials really wanted was to return the useless and dangerous prototype cartridges to Dan Masamune in exchange for the friendship of a large corporation's president, and to secure his financial support when necessary.

Emu and the others are too obedient. They just do whatever the officials say without considering the consequences. But I'm different; I'm much more flexible. Rather than letting the officials use the prototype cartridges to do favors, it's better to destroy it completely and cut off all hope of completing the Kamen Rider Chronicle.

There's no need to revive Dan Kuroto, that scourge. We just need to develop steadily, develop the revival machine, and final victory will be in our hands!

Cheche, with his legs crossed, explained his thoughts to Xiaoxingzuo. Seeing the change in Xiaoxingzuo's expression, Cheche knew he had been convinced. His previous seriousness vanished, and he smiled at Xiaoxingzuo:

"In short, there's no point in keeping the prototype cartridge anymore; let's destroy it as soon as possible. Five days should be enough, right?"

Xiao Xing touched his bald head and pondered:

"Yes, that's enough. The key to destroying the prototype cartridge is to first extract the data of the crucial Bugster and completely destroy it, thus disabling the prototype cartridge's functionality. Then, by destroying the cartridge's physical form, the prototype cartridge can be completely destroyed."

However, the materials used to make the cartridges have excellent physical properties: high strength, high temperature resistance, and corrosion resistance, making it take a considerable amount of time to destroy the physical form.

"Destroying the physical entity can wait; let's destroy the Bugster data first. Hurry up. The first card we'll choose is the Dragoon Z cartridge!"

The car indicated the way.

Xiao Xing nodded, opened the small box containing the prototype cartridges, took out the Ryukiman Z prototype cartridge, inserted it into the reader, and was about to operate it when the office door was kicked open. A man in a suit and tie, who looked to be in his fifties, straightened his clothes, walked into the office, and said:

"As the president of the Fantasy Dream Group, I cannot pretend I didn't hear everything you said before. The prototype cartridge is a valuable asset of our company. Even if the game is to be discontinued, it should be my decision as the president. You are not qualified!"

Chapter Thirty-Two: Incompetent Teammates

Tan Masamune did not come alone. As he spoke, two burly men in suits wearing sunglasses escorted a middle-aged man wearing glasses into the room.

The middle-aged man always had a smile on his face, and his hair and black suit were very neatly made. He looked like a well-educated elite.

He waited quietly until Dan Masamune finished speaking before apologetically addressing Kiriya and Kohoshi, who had already stood up:

"My name is Matsushita, and I currently work at the Ministry of Justice. It is rather impolite of me to enter the house in this way. However, as Mr. Dan Masamune said, neither of you has the authority to dispose of this, um, prototype cartridge."

The Ministry of Health previously gave you these cartridges for research, which was actually a violation of regulations. However, we had to give Hinata-sama face. Since no one complained, we didn't pursue the matter further.

However, Mr. Dan Masamune has now submitted his application voluntarily, and it complies with the relevant regulations. After negotiation, Mr. Dan Masamune's application has been approved. Now, these cassette tapes are his.

So, when we heard you were planning to destroy the cartridges, we used some rough methods. After all, the government's reputation is very important, and since the application had already been approved, we naturally wanted to complete it as smoothly as possible.

The man named Matsushita spoke in a gentle and soothing tone, which was very pleasant to listen to. However, the meaning behind his words made Kiriya frown:

"The application was approved? Shouldn't the final result be given in five days?"

"No, that's not true. Mr. Dan Masamune's reasons are valid and his conditions are sufficient. His application should have been approved a week ago. It's just that Mr. Hyuga Kyotaro has been opposing it, which is why it's been delayed until now."

Matsushita patiently answered Kiriya's question, then adjusted his glasses and said with a smile:

"If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask. I will answer them one by one. However, if you have no further questions, please hand over the prototype cartridge."

Xiao Xing stood there, somewhat at a loss. He was just a tech geek; he might try making cassette tapes or doing research, even if it meant going bald. But this situation was outside his area of ​​expertise.

To motivate Kosei, the CR team shared a lot of information about game addiction with him. Kosei was also well aware of the consequences if the prototype cartridge fell into the hands of Masamune Dan.

Otherwise, Xiao Xingzuo is a long-time employee of the Huanmeng Group, and a very talented one at that. If he didn't have a righteous heart, wouldn't it be easier for him to stay in the group and coast along than to work himself to the bone at CR?

Therefore, from this perspective, he had no intention of handing over the cassette tape.

However, Xiaoxing was also a law-abiding citizen. He didn't want to disobey the government's orders. For a moment, he could only stand there silently, clutching the cassette tape.

Meanwhile, Dan Masamune and Matsushita remained unperturbed. Dan Masamune crossed his arms, watching the two with a mocking smile, seemingly enjoying their torment.

Matsushita didn't share Dan Masamune's hobbies; he simply waited politely for Kiriya and the others to make their final decision.

"Little Star, take the card to them."

After an unknown amount of time in silence, Kiriya sat down dejectedly and said with his eyes closed.

“The right choice, Mr. Kujo. Now, Mr. Dan Masamune, you may retrieve your belongings. Please check immediately after retrieving them to make sure nothing is missing. We will not accept any complaints about missing items afterward.”

Matsushita looked satisfied and gestured for Dan Masamune to proceed.

Dan Masamune smiled and nodded to Matsushita, then slowly walked up to Kosei, took the prototype cartridge of Ryukijin Z, and casually fiddled with it, saying:

"I remember you, Xiao Xingzuo, right? You are a very talented person. Because of Li Dou's recklessness, the group was temporarily shut down, and you were forced to leave the group. I think this was a great loss for both you and the group."

However, I'm back now. The group is back on track, and it's truly a great time for someone as talented as you to shine. So, how about returning to Dreamland? I'll promote you to head of the development department, what do you say?

Xiao Xing swallowed hard, but shook his head without hesitation. He couldn't say anything fancy, but he knew very well what was right and wrong, and he would never do anything to aid and abet evil.

Tan Zhengzong's eyes flashed, and he gave Xiaoxingzuo a deep look. He regarded everything in the Huanmeng Group as his own, including the employees of the Huanmeng Group.

Xiao Xing, who betrayed him and rejected his goodwill, is already on Lao Tan's blacklist.

However, Dan Masamune naturally wouldn't reveal his thoughts to the government officials. He put the cassette tape in his hand into the box, quickly checked it, nodded to Matsushita, and said:

"Mr. Matsushita, the quantity is correct. Everything I requested is here."

"That's good. Well then, my mission is over. Mr. Kujo, Mr. Kohoshi, let's say goodbye. Mr. Dan Masamune, would you like to come along?"

Matsushita said with a smile.

"Of course, we haven't finished discussing what we were talking about when we arrived, have we? Let's continue our conversation."

Dan Masamune picked up the box, walked a few steps to Matsushita, and the two talked to each other as they walked out.

Not long after they left, Fei Cai rushed in and shouted:

"Kosei! Mr. Hyuga Kyotaro just called me and said that Dan Masamune's application has been approved. He'll probably be coming to pick up the prototype cartridge soon. Give me the prototype cartridge first, and we'll try to hide it for a while, at least until Dan Kuroto is resurrected and they fight amongst themselves for power."

On CR's side, Hiiro has been in contact with the Ministry of Health. After receiving the notification from Hinata Kyotaro, Hiiro immediately entrusted Hime to Poppy's care and rushed over, hoping to do something before Dan Masamune could.

However, when he saw Kiriya slumped in his chair and Kosei standing there helplessly, he realized that he might be too late.

Kiriya rubbed his face vigorously, confirming Hiiro's guess:

"You're too late. Dan Masamune has already been here. The prototype cartridge has been taken away. Those clueless officials, they were so efficient, they must have been bribed! Ha, capitalist society! What a bunch of useless teammates!"

Guiliya was there cursing the official who made the decision, his face grim.

He was almost finished with the game when these officials suddenly added new levels and increased the difficulty. No wonder Kitoshi wanted to curse.

After venting his anger, Kiriya sighed and said:

"Let's go back to CR first and call everyone over to discuss this. Our next opponent will probably be the strongest knight in the current meta, US."

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Chronicle Completed

"You seem to be in a good mood."

Tan Zhengzong pushed open the door, and the once dark and messy room was now much cleaner and tidier. The curtains that had been drawn back were opened, and warm sunlight streamed into the room, making one feel much more relaxed.

The only truly jarring sight was the series of large, meticulously edited photographs displayed throughout the room. In each photo was a somewhat greasy, overweight man in a white suit, posing provocatively with a rose in his hand.

The owner of these photos is sitting in the sunniest spot, legs crossed, looking at himself in the mirror and humming a song softly, appearing very relaxed.

"Dan Masamune? It's not time yet, is it? Why are you here again? I can tell you, if you can really get the prototype cartridge back and complete the Kamen Rider Chronicle, I'll agree to your terms. If you can't, there's nothing more to discuss between us, right?"

Upon hearing the door open, Amasaki Ren, who was admiring her own "stunning beauty," put down the mirror and frankly told Dan Masamune about her decision.

Compared to the struggle and distress he experienced last time, Amasaki Ren, having already made his decision, is now incredibly relaxed and at ease. He no longer dwells on those irrelevant thoughts, and he's too lazy to wander around like Parado anymore. He simply spends time making his living space more in line with his aesthetic preferences before patiently waiting for the results.

"Hehe, because things are going more smoothly than I expected. Japan has a great group of officials."

Dan Masamune chuckled twice, walked up to Amasaki Ren, placed the box he was carrying on the table, and casually opened it:

"The prototype cartridge is right here. I don't think we need to waste these next few days, do we?"

"Oh? You're quite efficient."

Upon hearing this, Amasaki Ren became interested, pulled her legs back, stood up, and prepared to check the cassette tape.