KS: Hey, I'm back quickly. I'm making some good progress here. (sighs) If only this site could fix the notification issues it's been having. Anyway, I got more of this for you fine folks, as well as a little clue on who Ichiko's mother is in this fic. Enjoy.

The bus trip to the mine was an uneventful one. Ichiko sat while listening to some music on her MP3. It served as a great way to pass the time, and as a great distraction for her unwanted tagalong.

She noticed Momiji follow her while in a small wisp-like form, invisible to everyone else. Honestly, she had no clue as to why the so-called poverty god was on her case lately, and didn't really care. Right now, there was a job she needed to do.

"Must keep on movin' ahead

No time for guessin', follow my plan instead

Trusting in what you can't see

Take my lead, I'll set you free

Follow me, set me free

Trust me and we will escape from the city

I'll make it through, follow me

Follow me, set me free

Trust me and we will escape from the city

I'll make it through, prove it to you

Follow me~"

Momiji watched as the girl sang to herself, probably to the song she was listening to.

"Enjoy your voice while it lasts, girlie," she said with a sinister tone. "By the time I've drained you of your good fortune, you'll be croaking from here on out."

She took a moment to register what she just said.

"Probably could have worded that better. Oh, well."

Ichiko got off the bus stop and walked along the road that lead to the mines. She hoped to get this done with maximum effort and efficiency.

"What kind of monster could cause a tremor, anyway?" she wondered. "Probably a golem, but I'll withold speculation until I get a better idea of what I'm up against."

"Yeah, I agree," a familiar, yet annoying voice said. "After all, those who assume automatically make asses out of themselves."

Ichiko felt a tick mark as she slowly turned towards the one who was following her.

"Why are you here?"

Momiji, who had her finger up her nose, followed Ichiko.

"I'm just following you," the poverty god said. "Gonna see you in action and whatnot. Maybe see what's with all the hype surrounding you."

"Hype?" Ichiko repeated in confusion. "What hype are you talking about?"

Momiji groaned as she took her finger out of her nose. "Look, why don't you show me what you're capable of and maybe I'll clue you in as to why you're a person of interest."

"Well, hopefully the info you've got is a lot more bountiful than that cutting board you've got," Ichiko said smugly, lifting up her own hefty chest. "Maybe it's as full-bodied as mine~"

Now Momiji grew her own tick mark. "I'll rip those off, I swear it."

"Try me," Ichiko said while sticking out her tongue.

They continued bickering back and forth as they walked.

"Here we are!" Ichiko said enthusiastically, standing in front of the entrance to the mine. "This is where the distubances have been occurring."

"What, it's in there?" Momiji asked, pointing at the entrance. "What is it?"

"I'm gonna find out," Ichiko replied while stretching her arms. "Feel free to wait around here while I sort things out."

Ichiko walks forward, only to feel a hand grasping her shoulder.

"Slow your roll there, sweetheart," Momiji said. "I gotta keep an eye on you."

Ichiko scoffed. "What are you, my parole officer?"

Momiji suddenly got into a police uniform, completely with sunglasses and a cigarette in her mouth.

"Alright, you little punk. We'll see how your smart mouth will help you when we take a little trip down to the precinct," she said a gruff tone.

Ichiko looked unimpressed. "You got a warrant, officer?"

Momiji slightly falter. "W-Well, not at the moment, but-"

"Later~!" Ichiko sang as she walked into the mine.

"…I'm finding that chick more annoying with each passing moment."

Ichiko travelled down the tunnels, looking around with a calm gaze.

"It's too quiet," she mused. "They're probably up ahead, waiting to ambush me. Well, I'll make them regret that decision when I get to them."

She left the tunnel and reached a wide open area. There was plenty of mining equipment that was laying around, implying that the miners left it behind when they evacuated.

"Good to know that they set their priorities," Ichiko mused. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if some of the miners decided to hand in their resignation forms afterwards."

She made her way to the center, and immediately, black pools formed on the floor. Emerging from them were small creatures with rock-like shells covering their bodies.

Rockhopper

Tough shell, soft center.

"Ah, how cute," Ichiko cooed. "I almost feel bad that I have to kill all of you."

The monsters let out a screech as they charge at Ichiko, who merely smirked.

"Keyword being 'almost'."

She drew her sword and activated the electric generator, causing electricity to form on the blade. One of the monsters got close, and she swung at it, knocking it back. The rest did the same, but she knock them all away with little effort.

"Come on, this is getting boring. Give me a challenge."

One of the Rockhoppers rolled towards Ichiko and lept at her.

"We're really doing this, huh?"

She raised her hand and clenched her fist. In an instant, black scales formed around her fist, and she slammed it against the Rockhopper, instantly shattering its shell and leaving its body exposed. Not missing a beat, she used one of her pistols and shot it dead.

"Man, I am just awesome," she said, kissing her scaly fist. Her gaze quickly fell towards the remaining Rockhoppers, who were itching for a fight. "Oh, you want some of this? Well, come get some."

Provoked, the monsters charge at Ichiko, but she made quick work of all of them by punching them with her scaled fist, leaving their bodies exposed and cutting them down with her sword.

"Pretty good warm-up, if I do say so myself," she said.

"Yeah, give yourself a pat on the back for beating some mobs," a tired voice said. "You're living the dream of every low-level JRPG protag out there."

Ichiko's mood soured upon hearing the familiar voice of an annoying deity.

"Hey, who are you calling annoying, you prick?" Momiji snapped.

"No, I agree with him," Ichiko interjected. "You're a lot like a rash: gone one moment and back the next."

Momiji snorted. "Cute. I'll have you know that I'm much more persistent than some old rash." She got closer to Ichiko. "But enough about me, let's talk about you."

"What exactly do you want to talk about?" Ichiko asked, feeling very unnerved at how close the poverty god was.

"Well, I caught up and spotted you playing Pong against those Pokemon rejects, then my eye caught something amazing," Momiji said, grabbing Ichiko's scaled hand. "This broke up their shells like it was ceramic. What's the dealio with it?"

Ichiko wrest her hand from Momiji's grasp. "What, never saw dragon scales before?"

Momiji blinked, registering what she just heard. "…D-Did you just say dragon?"

"Yes, I did say that," Ichiko said with a little bit of pride. "Not only am I daughter of a power demon hunter, who himself is the son of one of the strongest demons who has ever lived, but I am also the daughter of one of the strongest dragons who has ever lived. Feeling intimidated yet?"

"Moderately so," Momiji said, her knees shaking again.

"Figured as much," Ichiko replied, turning around to walk ahead. "Don't wait up now, I got a disturbance to take care of."

She happily went on her way, leaving Momiji alone.

"Well, that's just freakin' perfect," she grumbled. "Not only is she quarter demon, but she's three quarters dragon. How the sweet and sour hell does that even work?! I-I mean, what was her father into? Better question, what have I gotten into? This is the chick who's causing a imbalance in the world? This has got to be someone's idea of a sick joke."

She sighed and rubbed the back of her head. "But if I back out now, Yamabuki will have my ass for not doing my job. How much does she know about Ichiko, anyway? I'll have to pump her for information when this is all over. Also, I need to find methods in extracting her fortune energy.

Beneath her, Kumagai pulled out a sign that read: "What do you have planned?"

Momiji hummed for a moment before answering.

"Well… maybe I can hire some extra help," she said. "They'd have to soften her up a bit before I can extra the good stuff." She smirked to herself. "Yeah, this will do. It's the perfect plan."

Kumagai turned the sign around, and it read: "Isn't that the kind of plan you'd see in those Kamen Rider shows?"

Momiji shot a dirty look at the bear. "Don't judge me."

KS: Ah, so Momiji plans using the Tokusatsu villain method: throw numerous high-level mooks on Ichiko in hopes that fighting them will either wear her down or distract her long enough so that she can get the fortune energy out of her. Not bad for a slacker.