Next, every time someone came near Shiraishi Shin, they would be scared out of their wits.
Either Shiraishi Shin would use the Weather Memory to strike lightning in front of them, use the Heat Memory's ability to manipulate flames into ghost fires, or control the wind to blow people into the air.
Anyway, Shiraishi Shin was having a blast playing around, completely ignoring the people behind him who were also playing ghosts and Monsters.
Moreover, they had all found their own spots to scare people, so with so many scary setups, no one would ever suspect Shiraishi Shin.
However, while Shiraishi Shin had his fun, he seemed to have broken the rules of the game, ending the test of courage activity early.
"Teacher, I really saw it! Ice suddenly started freezing toward me on the path ahead. It was terrifying!"
"Yeah, Teacher, I also saw an Eastern dragon made entirely of condensed flames."
"I was even blown up by the wind!"
"Teacher, I saw the night turn into day!"
When Shiraishi Shin returned to the site wearing his Kappa costume, he heard the students' clamoring voices.
Shiraishi Shin chuckled inwardly; this was a real test of courage. However, it seemed like not a single person had passed; they had all been scared away by him.
"Could there really be something in this place?"
"I heard there are Kappa deep in these back mountains. Maybe we should leave quickly."
"Alright, everyone, check your classes to see if all the students are here."
After some discussion, the teachers decided to leave.
With so many students claiming to have encountered strange things, and the legends of Kappa in this town, there might really be something out there. It was better to leave quickly.
"What about Kirisaki-san? Is she not back yet?"
When Shiraishi Shin, Shiina Mahiru, and Alya met up, they realized someone was missing from their group.
A look of worry appeared on Alya's face.
"She couldn't have gotten lost in the mountain forest, could she?"
Shiina Mahiru also worriedly said, "She's wearing a Monster costume and doesn't have her phone on her. What should we do?"
Shiraishi Shin had already changed back into his own clothes.
He stepped forward and said, "I'll go look for her."
"Alright, but Shin-nii, you must be careful too."
Shiina Mahiru couldn't help but nod. Shiraishi Shin was a Kamen Rider and possessed extraordinary physical abilities; he would definitely be able to find her.
Immediately, Shiraishi Shin found Okada Yuriko and explained the situation to her.
Okada Yuriko agreed without hesitation.
"Very well, Shin. I believe that with your abilities, you will definitely find Kirisaki-san. We'll wait for you here."
"Wait for me to get back."
When it came to finding people, Shiraishi Shin was the most skilled because he had the Key Memory.
This memory possessed the ability to nullify powers and search for targets.
The nullification ability could not only force a Kamen Rider to cancel their Henshin but also nullify an enemy's finishing move, while searching for targets was exactly what it sounded like.
"Henshin."
[Eternal!]
With Shiraishi Shin's casual declaration of Henshin and the push of the lost driver's right-side movable slot, a large number of white fragments emerged, quickly wrapping around him from his feet up.
Whoosh~
The cape behind him flapped loudly before slowly settling down.
[Key!]
After activating the Key Memory, Shiraishi Shin set Chitoge Kirisaki as his target.
Instantly, a red dot appeared in his mind like a map, and he headed toward the location of that red dot.
"One hundred and forty-eight sheep, one hundred and forty-nine sheep, one hundred and fifty sheep..."
"No, no, counting sheep is useless. It's still so scary. Why hasn't anyone come yet?"
Five meters away from a lake, Chitoge Kirisaki had drawn the lot to play a Monster.
When she was a child, she had been trapped in a washing machine for five hours, which left her with a fear of the dark and thunder.
Because of her stubborn personality, she hadn't spoken up to trade with anyone; after all, it was a rare event for everyone, and surely no one would want to play a ghost.
Now, being alone in this pitch-black place for so long without anyone coming by made her feel terrified and helpless.
Her eyes were even starting to well up with tears from the fright.
Listening to the chirping of insects nearby gave her a slight sense of comfort; what she feared most was the kind of silence where even the air felt still.
She sat on the ground hugging her knees, looked around, and muttered to herself, "Since counting sheep is useless, I'll count something else. One Shiraishi Shin, two Shiraishi Shins, three Shiraishi Shins..."
Tap... tap... tap...
Just as Chitoge was counting Shiraishi Shins, a clear set of footsteps came from her right.
Her heart leapt with joy—was someone finally coming?
But after the initial surprise, she immediately felt something was wrong, because she remembered that to her right was a lake.
To avoid accidentally falling into the water, she had intentionally stayed several meters away.
"Oh my god! A Kappa!"
When Chitoge turned to look, she saw a Monster covered in green fur, over two meters tall.
Recalling the legends of Kappa in this area, she scrambled to her feet in terror, but before she could take two steps, she fell to the ground.
Her legs had gone weak from fear, causing her to stumble.
"No, don't come any closer!"
However, the Kappa wouldn't listen to Chitoge.
It reached her and grabbed her calf with its green hand, throwing her into the lake, intending to drown her.
"Hahaha!"
The green Kappa let out a cruel laugh.
He was a Kappa, but not the legendary Monster—he was a Makamou Kappa.
(Image Makamou Kappa)
However, before he could laugh for more than a few seconds, a white figure with glowing golden compound eyes jumped up behind him.
With a foot clad in blue flames, the figure kicked the Kappa in the back, blowing it apart.
Then, without a moment's hesitation, the white figure plunged into the lake with a loud splash.
Glub glub...
After falling into the water, Chitoge's body continued to sink.
Because she had been thrown in completely unprepared, and since this wasn't a swimming pool, the combination of shock, leg cramps, and rapid breathing caused water to rush into her nose and mouth.
Her consciousness blurred, feeling as though she would drown in the next second.
Am I going to die?
I'm really unwilling... to be drowned before my prime years have even passed.
When I'm fished out later, I'll surely be all bloated and ugly.
Mom, Dad, and Class Rep... goodbye~
Just as Chitoge's consciousness faded and her eyelids were about to close, she vaguely saw a white Kamen Rider diving down rapidly from above.
In the next second, she lost consciousness.
Boom!
The surface of the lake exploded as Shiraishi Shin, clad in the Kamen Rider Eternal armor, jumped out and landed on the shore.
"Hey, Chitoge, wake up! Wake up!"
Shiraishi Shin canceled his Henshin and patted Chitoge's face, shaking her a few times, but there was no response.
He immediately laid her flat on the ground.
Fortunately, Shiraishi Shin knew first aid.
At a time like this, he couldn't worry about propriety between men and women; he placed his hands on her chest to perform CPR.
"Ugh..."
As Shiraishi Shin continued the compressions, water began to flow out of Chitoge's mouth and nose.