Chapter 14: False Hero, True Resolve
Back at the alley, as the rain continued to pour, Ryuga sat calmly atop the Pandora's Box, turning it over with keen interest.
He wasn't foolish enough to try and open it. That would require sixty Full Bottles, and only twenty were in the Eastern Capital. The other forty? Securely locked away in the Northern and Western territories.
Even President E—Evolto himself—couldn't open it directly. Naturally, neither could Ryuga. His objective wasn't the box itself… but the metal panel attached to it.
These black and white metal panels were more than just ornaments—they were late-game power cores, essential for unlocking advanced forms for both heroes and villains.
The one Ryuga now studied was black, the same one hidden in the base prior to the boss's betrayal. Its white counterpart, also hidden away, had a counterpart purpose: countering Evolto's transformation.
And ironically, both had been concealed by a father and son duo—BloodStalk and Evolt's host, Banjou's biological father. It seemed deception and manipulation really did run in the family.
These metal panels weren't just one-time-use devices. Even if consumed or destroyed, they could be regenerated by anyone carrying the Evolto gene or the Blood family's DNA, using two specialized tools:
The Evolution Trigger (black)
The Dangerous Trigger (white)
Together nicknamed the Black Hole Trigger and Danger Trigger, they were the key to unlocking newer, deadlier forms. Ryuga realized just how valuable the panel was—and just how risky it was to hold it.
He couldn't risk using Evolt's method—direct absorption—lest it expose him or attract Evolt's attention prematurely.
He couldn't imitate War Rabbit's tech-based booster approach either. He wasn't a scientist. Hell, he barely knew how to turn on a lab computer without causing a small fire.
So, Ryuga chose the one path left: raw instinct.
He placed his palm on the metal plate. Instantly, a red mist—the blood energy of the Evolto gene—rose from his skin and met the surface. A surge of energy flowed through his body.
It wasn't much. But it was clean, stable, and real.
"Feasible," he whispered, eyes lighting up."I can do this…"
And with that, he began to draw more energy from the plate—before either War Rabbit or Evolt returned.
Meanwhile, back in the abandoned factory, War Rabbit was not doing well.
He lay on the cold, cracked floor, soaked in rain and regret. His armor had deactivated; his transformation had failed.
But it wasn't because he lacked power.
It was because he couldn't bring himself to fight Soichi, the man who had acted like a father. The man who once saved him. The man who helped him become Build.
"I… I can't do it…" he muttered, fists clenched against the concrete. "You were the one who gave me a second chance… how can I fight you?!"
He trembled as memories overwhelmed him—the coffee shop, the training, the countless battles, the laughter…
"YOU were the one who made me who I am! If I hadn't lost my memory, if I hadn't met you… I'd never have learned how to be human again!"
Above him, Stalk—now fully transformed into BloodStalk—sighed.
"…This isn't what I wanted, Sento."
His voice softened.
"Have you ever wondered why, as a Faust executive, I ran away with Misora?"
"Why I helped you become Build, even though it meant turning on my own?"
He stepped forward, his voice low and grave.
"It was all for her. To make her purify the Full Bottles."
"She wouldn't do it. Not once she realized Faust was using them for evil."
"Because the purification process relies entirely on her will. No threat could coerce her."
"So, I made you a hero. A false hero, to give her hope. To convince her it was right."
"You weren't chosen, Sento. You were used."
"You're not a symbol of justice. You're a lie we told her so she'd keep making weapons."
War Rabbit was silent.
Then, slowly, he rose to his feet. Rain poured down his face, obscuring his expression.
"…So that's it."
He stood taller.
"…You manipulated me. Lied to me. Used me."
He raised his head. Fire blazed behind his soaked eyes.
"But the beliefs we fought for—those were real."
"Whether it's me, or Banjou, or Misora… We fought to protect people. To save what mattered."
"Even if we were lied to—we still chose to fight!"
He pulled out a bottle that was larger than any before—shimmering red and blue, a swirling mix of fury and hope.
Stalk's eyes widened.
"What… what is that?!"
"The Tutan Bubble Bottle," War Rabbit replied. "Built from the energy you left behind."
He slammed it into the Build Driver.
[Rabbit-Tank-Sparkling!][Are you ready?]"Transform!"[POP THE CAN!][Rabbit-Tank-Sparkling!]"YEAH! YEAH~!"
An explosion of bubbles, lightning, and fury. Kamen Rider Build Sparkling emerged, covered in glistening armor that pulsed with kinetic energy.
Without hesitation, War Rabbit launched forward.
FWOOSH—
The first blow sent Stalk flying into a wall like a speeding vehicle had collided with him. Then came the flurry of attacks—palm strikes, knees, footwork like a blur.
Stalk barely managed to counter with his smoke saber and gun—but War Rabbit overpowered him with sheer pressure, knocking him into debris.
"You've got some tricks, huh?" Stalk sneered, staggering.
"I'm just getting started."
Stalk summoned twin energy cobras from his armor—coiling monsters that lunged forward and ensnared Build in their crushing grip.
"Let's see you get out of this!"
But Build's armor suddenly bristled, like a rabbit shedding sparks. The cobras bounced off in recoil.
Without missing a beat, War Rabbit grabbed their tails, swung them in wide arcs, and slammed them against the ground—once, twice, again.
Then, with a mighty twist, he flung them through the ceiling, into the sky above.
"No…!" Stalk gasped, running after them.
He looked up just in time to see War Rabbit soar after them, belt joystick already primed.
A glowing vortex of formulaic energy opened—a wormhole—and sucked the cobras in.
[Sparkling Finish!]
War Rabbit dived through the wormhole and unleashed a finishing Rider Kick, detonating the cobras mid-air in a cascade of bubbles and shockwaves.
The energy rebounded through the wormhole—spilling out and pelting Stalk with a barrage of glowing bubbles, slamming him into a wall and finally disrupting his transformation.
For the first time, BloodStalk was forced to de-transform. He hit the ground hard, coughing, soaked, and defeated.
And far below, watching from the shadows, Ryuga Banjou finally looked up from Pandora's Box.
"…Guess he didn't need my help after all."
He smiled faintly.
But he didn't move.
There was still one more battle to come—and it wouldn't be won with fists alone.