True Prologue (3) | [ACCESS GRANTED]

The fog-monster brute charged toward the armored rider hero! Each step it took shook the ground and caused cracks to spiderweb across the asphalt pavement, but the hero remained standing straight, unfazed by the oncoming behemoth's charge. Even as the ground trembled wildly, he stood his ground without the slightest disorientation.

The white-haired woman was filled with dread upon seeing the lumbering fog-monster barreling toward her hero. The fog-monster closed in, raising its bulging fog-muscle arms high in an attempt to smash the armored rider hero to pieces...!

"Watch out!" she warned with a trembling voice. However, her warning seemed futile as the monster had already brought down its fists, smashing the very ground where the rider hero stood! Debris and dust blew out from where the fog-monster had smashed its fists!

"... HUH...?!"

But... as the dust cleared, it was evident that the hero had vanished from the spot where the monster had attacked...!

"Missed me," the armored rider hero taunted, now standing behind the monster, unscathed and not even a speck of dirt marring his sleek green armor.

Seeing its target still alive and hearing his taunt, the fog monster became even more enraged. "GRR... AAGGH!" It roared in anger, quickly turning around and trying to swipe the hero with one of its bulging arms.

But... the hero easily avoided its swipe, casually backstepping and allowing the attack to pass by him without harm.

The monster, however, didn't stop there. It tried another swipe with its other bulging arm, but again, the rider hero dodged effortlessly, simply backstepping away from the swing as if it were just a minor inconvenience.

"Missed me again," he taunted further, enraging the fog monster even more. The fog monster then continued its assault upon the rider hero, trying every single attack with its bulging arms.

Swipes, smashes, punches—everything it could think of, but... the hero simply dodged these attacks.

Backsteps, sidesteps, quick pivots—every attack the fog monster tried on him, he dodged without much effort.

Hiding behind the lamppost far from the confrontation, the white-haired woman was greatly astonished by the sheer agility of her hero. He had not yet received any of the attacks that the fog monster had thrown at him. It was like watching a graceful dancer evading every danger that was thrown at him.

But... she began to worry... How long could this dance of death between her hero and the fog-monster continue?

The fog monster grew more impatient with each missed attack. Each failed attempt only made it angrier... and the fog around them started to thicken...!

"GRR...! BASTARD...! STAY STILL...!" The fog monster grumbled in annoyance and anger while still trying to take down the rider hero. It was quite clear that it had not a single chance to actually hit the hero, but the rider hero kept on playing this evasive game... until...

"Alright, my turn," the rider hero muttered casually. His sudden announcement confused the fog monster but also angered it.

"DAMN YOU...! DIE!!!" The fog monster reeled back its right arm to deliver a devastating punch toward the rider hero... but this too was easily dodged.

Unfortunately for the fog monster, the hero wasn't finished! As he sidestepped to the right, avoiding the massive fist of the fog-monster, the rider hero... immediately launched a powerful kick straight to the fog monster's bulging abdomen!

The impact between the rider hero's leg and the fog monster's abdomen caused a small shockwave that blew the nearby fog away, clearing the nearby proximity around them.

"GAH...!" The fog monster roared in pain as it reeled back from the impact, clutching its abdomen in agony.

The rider hero didn't stop there. With a single step, he instantly closed the distance between him and the fog monster. He then began his assault upon the fog monster!

Fluid and relentless, he delivered a succession of punches and kicks to the fog monster's bulging body, each blow strong enough to create small shockwaves that dispersed the thick fog around them. The fog monster staggered backward under the force of the rider hero's precise attacks, with every punch and kick sending ripples through the air and clearing the cloudy fog that had once engulfed them.

Watching from afar, the white-haired woman was astonished yet again. Her hero was finally pushing back against the fog monster, his attacks as powerful and as impressive as his agility. She watched in awe as he executed each move with flawless precision, never faltering, never showing a hint of exhaustion.

"AAGHH...!!! DAMN YOU...! DAMN YOU...!!!" The fog monster roared in frustration and anger, trying to fight back against the hero's relentless assault. It tried to land a hit on the rider hero, but each attack grew more desperate and erratic. However, the rider hero remained a step ahead, dodging and countering with a grace that seemed almost supernatural.

Then, as the fog-monster staggered back from the brutal onslaught it had received... It looked back toward the rider hero with pure hatred and anger... before immediately retreating, seemingly running away from him!

"Hmm?" The rider hero tilted his helmeted head, a bit confused by the fog-monster's sudden retreat. Even more so to the white-haired woman who had been watching her rider hero fight the fog-monster with almost utter dominance.

Seeing its apparent retreat toward the fog-wall, the woman felt slightly relieved, thinking that maybe it was finally over, with the villain escaping the crime scene...

But it was not over yet...!

As the fog-monster entered the fog-wall that had entrapped them both her and her hero... said fog-wall suddenly grew thicker! Not just that, but it slowly constricted upon them... or more so toward the rider hero...!

"HEHEHE...! YOU'LL PAY FOR DISTURBING MY TEACHING...!" The fog monster's voice echoed ominously from all directions, reverberating off the dense fog wall that had entrapped them. The rider hero scanned his surroundings, trying to pinpoint the monster's location... and quickly side-stepped!

As he moved, a sudden solid-like stream of fog burst through the fog wall behind him, narrowly missing where he had just stood. But it wasn't over yet...! More fog streams shot out from the fog wall, each one aiming for the rider hero with deadly precision.

"HAHAHA! TRY EVADING NOW, BASTARD!" the fog monster taunted, its voice filled with smug confidence as it unleashed a barrage of fog stream attacks towards the hero...!

However, true to the fog monster's challenge... the hero used his unparalleled agility to dodge the multiple attacks, moving swiftly to avoid being struck by the solidified fog.

A fog stream aimed to sweep his legs, but the rider hero jumped over it. Another stream shot towards his head, and he ducked just in time. He sidestepped one attack, then quickly backstepped to dodge another, his movements fluid and precise.

As the hero skillfully dodged each attack, the fog monster's voice growled in frustration, echoing through the foggy arena. "STAY STILL...!"

To everyone's surprise... the hero suddenly paused in his spot, standing confidently in place...!

"Sure," he said casually.

Both the fog monster and the woman watching from a safe spot were baffled by the hero's sudden agreement, unsure of what to make of his unexpected compliance. The fog monster, however, snapped out of its confusion, finding the hero's casual, unthreatened demeanor insulting.

"DAMN YOU...!" it cursed, the echo reverberating around the fog arena, as it sent another barrage of fog attacks simultaneously from all around the fog-wall toward the hero...!

The woman, witnessing the onslaught aimed at her hero, gasped in terror. Time seemed to slow down for her as she saw the imminent danger, fearing that her hero would be crushed by the fog monster's relentless assault...!

But... the hero suddenly let out a short chuckle that echoed through the fog arena. He then... pushed the protruding plug-like object on the left side of his belt apparatus, triggering a sound—a robotic voice emanating from it!

[METAL. IMAGI ACCESS.]

And he pushed it again, triggering another robotic sound!

[ACCESS GRANTED. METAL ABILITY.]

"Metal Stand," the hero calmly announced... just before all the fog attacks reached and smashed into him! Dust and debris burst from the spot where the hero stood!

"NO...!" The woman gasped in horror as her hero was seemingly crushed by the fog-monster's attack...!

"HAHAHA! FINALLY!!!" The fog-monster bellowed laughter that echoed around the fog arena after finally crushing the rider hero for good. "THAT'S WHAT YOU GET FOR- WHAT!?!!"

But its celebration was cut short... because when the dust finally cleared, it revealed that the rider hero... was still standing confidently in his exact, same spot. He stood upright, seemingly unbothered and unharmed by the multiple solid fog attacks that had crushed and piled around him...!

"Is that all you've got?"

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Author Note:

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Stay tuned for more~.