“To reach the main street and inner ring of the theme park, we need to go through Yggdrasil River, this vast area of a single ride,” Keiji reminded the whole team.

“Yes, but we never expected that we have to row across this area to reach the other side much faster than going around it by foot,” Nishi complained.

Shiori pats her colleague’s back, saying, “Just enjoy the ride, Nishi. Not every day we can ride in a theme park for free, right?”

Nishi didn’t respond. She just frowned and grunted.

Shiori, Nishi, Keiji, and Fuwa rowed their boats along the Yggdrasil River Ride in the Evernaland Theme Park when they heard a rustling in the bushes. So, they landed on the nearest shore to investigate it.

Suddenly, two treants and two matangoes appeared out of nowhere and charged at the team. Shiori quickly got into action, unsheathing her sword as she shouted a warning to her teammates.

“Treants, original natives of Yggdrasil Forest! How come…? Look, they’re attacking us!” Shiori yelled.

The team prepared for battle, and it was evident that the treants were formidable opponents. Nishi was panting with exhaustion, but she was still able to speak up.

“Phew! The treants sure are tough, just like in the legend!” she said.

Keiji was also amazed by the lifelike appearance of the treants. “Strangely, when we fought them and all those monsters just now, they felt so… real,” he observed.

Fuwa speculated on why the monsters felt so realistic. “Maybe someone summoned, or should I say ‘imported’ them here,” she said.

Suddenly, a mysterious voice interrupted their conversation, “You’re so right! There’s nothing like Everna’s finest monsters to destroy the GI’s finest super investigators.”

Shiori was fed up with the voice’s cowardly tactics and demanded that they reveal themselves. Suddenly, Khaos de Klown, a clown from Archelia appeared on the scene.

The clown wore a colorful, tight spandex suit from neck to toe. He wore a jester’s hat, and the makeup on his deathly white face made him look more terrifying and maniacal instead of funny.

“I see Trish the Cait Sith has failed to stop you. No problem, I, Khaos de Klown, shall take you on all at once!” Khaos said, brandishing his weapons, the throwing knives he was juggling.

Shiori was confused about Khaos’s origins and questioned his motives. “Wait, are you a foreign mercenary, just like Trish?” she asked.

Khaos confirmed that he was indeed a foreign mercenary from Archelia, and Trish was from Wardstone. Nishi pretended to be ignorant of their geography and asked for more information, which Khaos provided. However, it was clear that Nishi was trying to distract Khaos, and the killer clown became angry.

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“That’s it! You just earned yourselves a ride to hell! Suffer my full wrath, suckers!” Khaos exclaimed.

Khaos, the master of mind-bending tricks, unleashed his arsenal of illusions. Paralysis and confusion gripped the air, casting a haze of uncertainty over their senses. Keiji’s mind wavered for a split second, but he shook off the effects, his focus unyielding.

Shiori, with her unwavering determination, charged forward. Her katana sliced through the illusions with precision, cutting through the veil of confusion. Khaos, undeterred, retaliated with his unique fighting style known as savate. His nimble footwork and swift strikes tested Shiori’s agility and reflexes.

Meanwhile, Nishi, perched in a strategic position, used her sharpshooting skills to target Khaos. Bullets whizzed through the air, piercing through the deceptive mist. Khaos, his movements fluid and erratic, managed to evade some of the shots, but not without sustaining a few wounds.

Fuwa, with her guns blazing, joined the fray. Her shots echoed through the rapid river, each bullet finding its mark with deadly precision. However, Khaos’s mind-bending tricks made it difficult to aim accurately, forcing Fuwa to adjust her strategy.

The battle raged on, the clash of weapons and the cacophony of gunfire reverberating through the confined space. Despite their relentless pursuit, Khaos, realizing the odds were against him, chose to retreat.

Khaos cursed, “Huh! Gotta split from here and regroup! Just you wait, suckers!”

Like a specter fading into the mist, he vanished, leaving behind a sense of unease and unfinished business.

Fuwa’s team made no effort to chase the clown, knowing that there was a more important business in hand.

Shiori commented, “Like Trish, that was one tough clown.”

“But he can be easily provoked and become careless, that’s his weakness,” Keiji interjected.

Nishi shrugged. “Let’s hope our next opponents are as predictable as Khaos.”

“I hope so too, because we’re getting out of time,” said Fuwa. “Let’s be on our way, to the Old Daitoshi Main Street!”

As the battle subsided, the river continued its flow, its waters reflecting the weariness etched on the combatants’ faces.