Kuriyama Rintaro is twenty-six years old. He graduated from the 49^th Generation of the Hero School at the top of his class. Every year, there are two major patterns among those who won this prestigious seat.

The former are those who specialize in and master a single art, such as unparalleled marksmanship or athletic ability that overwhelms others, and these account for 90% of the top ranks of all successive generations.

The latter, which is less than 10% of the total, is characterized by being “jack of all trades and master of none”.

Rintaro Kuriyama was definitely the latter.

Rintaro’s driving licenses are not limited to automobiles, but also include aviation, marine, and railroad licenses. He is also a certified mechanic and a certified driving school instructor. He is also a certified tuna dismantler, a certified castle builder in Japan, and a certified chicken breeder.

“A guy who doesn’t need to be there, but is extremely useful when he is.” That was Kuriyama Rintaro’s objective evaluation as a hero.

Of particular note is the wide variety of driving qualifications, both land, sea, and air. Even in the Victor Rangers, driving special vehicles was always the job of Kuriyama Rintaro, a.k.a. Victor Green.

By no means had he ever been conveniently used as a replacement for feet, at least that’s what he thought.

………………

…………

……

There is a mountain pass in Gunma Prefecture. Not many cars pass by during the day, but at night, it is a mecca for races where many daredevil drivers gather.

Gyagyagyagyagya! ! Gyuwaaan! !

The bright red sports car, leaving tire tracks as it hurtles down steep corners like a bolt of lightning, eliciting sighs of admiration from the galleries who watch on, their hands sweating.

「What speed!　That son of a bitch has a couple of screws in his head!」

「Amazing… it’s so fast that I can barely follow it with my eyes…!」

「Fuuh, as expected of Maezaki… There’s nothing wrong with calling himself “Gunma’s fastest”.」

The man behind the wheel, Maesaki, was bored.

「The guys in this mountain pass are too low level……」

The title of “Gunma’s fastest,” as he had come to be called, meant nothing more to him than the absence of a rival with whom he could compete. Maezaki glanced in his rearview mirror and saw headlights approaching from behind.

「Hoo, so you can keep up with my 50%、It seems there are still some guy with a little backbone…… However……」

Gunma’s fastest man, Maezaki, put a faint smile on his lips and stepped on the gas pedal as hard as he could.

「I am sorry but this is a hard place for insects to live. If you are gonna come at me, I’m going to go all out. On that five consecutive hairpin curves ahead!!」

Almost as soon as Maesaki shouted, a pitch-black van passed Maesaki’s red sports car in an instant at bullet-like speed.

「Impossible……!? Kansei…… Dri…… No, What was that just now…… Was that really a car!?」

The former fastest man in Gunma was stunned by the tail lights of a single van that quickly disappeared into the darkness of the night.

…………

「Damn it, don’t underestimate meeeee!!!!!」

Late at night, a black van drove down a mountain road in Gunma Prefecture.

The interior of the car is packed with thirty-six passengers, a condition that would make a slave ship look like a sushi restaurant, and the seized brakes have become almost unusable. The steep inclines and technical corners of Gunma are relentlessly assaulting the vehicle, which is accelerating under its own weight.

Beyond the guardrail was a precipitous cliff, perhaps 100 meters high. The four wheels were still treading on the asphalt because Kuriyama Rintaro was at the wheel of the car.

Rintaro’s skillful use of the gas pedal and steering wheel allowed him to control the out-of-control car just in time.

「Hawawawawawa, Samecchi, is starting to feel sick, ssu」

「I am begging you, endure it, Samecchi!　If you throw up now, it would be really terrible!」

「I am so vexed, I am going to become, Gunma’s dust…… wan」

「It’s forbidden to compose a farewell poem as well! ……Shit, Minato, zoom in on the car navigation system! ……Minato?」

When Rintaro glanced at the passenger seat, Minato had long since passed out and her eyes were white.

The next moment, Rintaro’s profile is illuminated by a strong light from the front.

「!!??」

As soon as Rintaro realized that it was the headlights of an oncoming car, he swerved reflexively. The black and white vehicles crossed each other at a distance of only a few centimeters between them.

Although they managed to avoid a head-on collision, their overly hasty evasive maneuver proved too deadly for Rintaro and his team. With the guardrail looming in front of him, Rintaro’s mind was filled with thoughts of a desperate situation and the worst possible outcome.

There was no escape from the consequences of falling down a cliff, exploding in flames, and killing all thirty-six people.

――If it had not been Kuriyama Rintaro at the wheel.

Rintaro’s mind instantly organized and calculated all the information about the speed, angle, and strength of the guardrail. As time passed slowly, like a frame-by-frame movie, he gave up on the foot brake, which had already become a dead weight, and reached for the side brake, the last brake on the car.

（Live……! We can barely make it……! I can do it……!）

The most important skill in driving a car is the ability to make split-second decisions. With the lives of 35 passengers on his shoulders, Rintaro squeezed the side brake as hard as he could.

「Turn back, you little shiiiiiiiiiiiit!!」

Gyumumuuun!!

「Hauu!! You, what are you doing with my tail!!」

「T- Taiiiiill!!!??」

What Rintaro pulled with all his might was not the side brake but Colonel Usanyi-chan’s cute tail.

The black van crashed through the guardrail and all four tires were finally freed from the earth.

「「「「「Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!」」」」」

Pipipipopopopi.

Rintaro’s “Victory Transformation Gear” flickered green amidst the echoing cries of despair.

『Rintaro!　Sound the horn four times quickly, noja!』

The familiar voice of a little girl reached his ears, and before he could think, Rintaro honked the horn four times as instructed.

With a chirpy sound, the “hidden command” causes large, glider-like wings to unfurl from both sides of the van. At the same time, blue flames erupt from the rocket engines attached to the tips of the wings.

At the very moment when it looked as if it was about to hit the hard earth, the vehicle, which was still being pulled by gravity, gained momentum and soared into the sky.

「Th- This is……!」

「Amazing, ssu! We are flying, ssuyo, aniki!」

『Uhahahaha! How is it, ja, This is Ark Dominion’s technological prowess, ja!!』

The van in which Rintaro rode was borrowed from the Burning Maebashi Branch. Rintaro later learned that all vehicles used in Arc Dominion were provided by “Tagaden Automobile,” a company under the control of General Tagaraak.

「Kuuu, To think that I would be saved by Tagaraak……」

『Uhyahyahyahya! With this, both Heinous Legion and Hundred Beasts Legion will owe me one, jano.』

「Could it be, General Tagaraak, you deliberately wait until the last moment before taking action to aim for that.」

『Kurara-chan is 1〇 years old, so she doesn’t understand difficult things, noja.』

He wondered if she might have been responsible for the fact that the brake malfunctioned. Rintarō thought General Tagaraak could do it, but he decided to just be grateful that he survived. The experience of flying in a beautiful night view and starry sky is not something you can do that often, though he doesn’t think he wanted to do it again.

「Hey aniki, Samecchi had just realized, ssu.」

In the crowded car, Samecchi, with her head on Rintaro’s thigh, tugged on his sleeve.

「I’ve also realized, but let me ask. What is it, Samecchi?」

「It’s been falling steadily since a while ago, ssu」

『Umu, as expected, the number of people is over capacity, jana.』

「Obviously!!」

The black van, flying in the sky, crash-landed on the Tone River in midwinter.

…………

At the same time, a white van was parked beside a destroyed guardrail at a mountain pass in Gunma.

「……A- Asaka-san…… Just now, it did fall right……?」

A man in short sleeves in the middle of winter, Kurenai Retto was pointing his flashlight toward the bottom of the dark cliff. It was only a few minutes ago that they passed by a black van driving at a high speed.

The black van crashed through the guardrail and plunged down a cliff right before their eyes.

……The car that should have fallen was nowhere to be seen.

「……Could it be that we just saw a ghost.」

「Impossible, spirits don’t exist in this world」

「Then why don’t you come down! If it’s not a ghost, Asaka-san, please look for it together!」

「I will never get off, it is very dangerous outside the car. it’s safe to stay inside the car.」

Asaka Samejima stubbornly refused to get out of the driver’s seat, putting her hands together and making a sign of the cross with an expressionless expression.

「What are you trying to protect yourself from, hey!?　What’s that thing you’re sprinkling on your body?　Salt?」

「This is in no way a protection against evil spirits. It is just a wrestling entrance ceremony.」

「It’s a Shinto ritual!?  Asaka-san, what are you trying to do in the mountains of Gunma in the middle of the night??」

Asaka raised her glasses with a quick flick, sprinkling salt on the wild animals that filled the backseat as well. The animals seemed preoccupied with licking the precious mineral that had fallen on them.

「We have contacted emergency services. Let them take care of the rest and we’ll move on. We’ve lost contact with Blue-san since a few minutes ago.」

「That’s true, but…… If that wasn’t a ghost……!」

「Enough of that, just get on. Hurry!」

Pushed by Asaka’s determination, Retto reluctantly got into the passenger seat. Retto, who had a whole bag of salt poured towards his head, left the scene of the accident while being licked by the animals.

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<111: The Bump Is Inevitable
113: From The Depths of The Dark and Cold Water>