Marimo/Synopsis

## Plot

### The Rankers

After responding to Riho's request for high-ranking Grimzelia players, Marimo goes to the Grizel Cafe along with her assistant Rin Mei where she meets Daigo, Yurina, Ami and the other Rankers who responded. Ami explains the situation and their plan for getting stronger to defeat Lamia and the other invading Grimzelia monsters. During the meeting, Marimo starts a feud with Karasu, another one of the Rankers, due to him apparently hacking the game to get an advantage.

When Marimo does not show up for subsequent training sessions, she is visited by Daigo, Yurina, and Honoka. After an awkward initial meeting in which Marimo attempts to seduce Daigo while in "Girls Magazine Mode", she invites them into her home has them assist her in finishing her manuscripts (due to Daigo insulting her breast size earlier). However, one of Marimo's assistants is revealed to be possessed by a sludge monster, which attacks. When Yurina and Honoka are incapacitated by the monster, Marimo and Rin Mei volunteer to defeat the monster. Marimo quickly finds that her SS Rare Satellite Linker does not fit her bust size and so she equips her S Rare Colichemarde as a backup. When the monster creates a barrier, Marimo suggests Honoka transform and Rin Mei use her own S Rare to break the barrier. Unfortunately, after being sprayed by the monster's acid, Marimo is caught and force fed the monster's sludge, which begins to destroy her organs from the inside out. Marimo is saved when Rin Mei copies Honoka's skill, per her suggestion, and breaks the barrier. Marimo then finishes off the monster with her Colichemarde's "Etoile Philant" skill. Afterwards, Marimo agrees to attend future training sessions with Daigo and Yurina.

Marimo later accompanies Daigo and Yurina when they go to Karasu's house, though Marimo still has some hostility towards him for being a "Tooler". Unfortunately, their meeting goes poorly as Karasu refuses to participate in training and expresses his disdain for the Grimzelia app. Marimo and the others leave, but are then attacked by the monster Ghoulganger. Marimo teams up with Yurina and manages to deliver a significant blow to the monster. But when Marimo enters "Girls Magazine Mode" following a call from her editor, Marimo becomes helpless and she and Yurina succumb to the monster's "Black Bacteria". Marimo and Yurina are then rescued by Karasu who defeats the monster with his SS Rare Scorn. Afterwards, it is revealed that Karasu is actually a girl and that she has been looking after her younger siblings after their parents, who worked on Grimzelia, went missing. The day concludes peacably with Marimo and the others enjoying a dinner with Karasu and her siblings. Marimo also acknowledges that Karasu is not a Toole since she was just using a code left behind by her parents.

Later, at the Grizel Cafe, Marimo and the others discuss Haruka's situation as she has still not been able to obtain a powerful weapon on Grimzelia. Marimo suggests that Daigo perform a draw for Haruka, which results in him drawing the incredibly powerful Agateram, which Haruka accepts as her new weapon. Though Marimo and the other Rankers are doubtful of Haruka's capabilities due to her presumed lack of experience, Haruka tests her new weapon out in a battle with Mechanical Death Bee from which she prevails. Thus, Marimo and the others are convinced of her capabilities.

After several more training sessions, Marimo and the others receive word from Riho that Ami has located Ea and thus the invasion of Lamia's base can begin.

### Rescuing Ea

On the day of the invasion, Marimo rides the train with everyone else to Jinbo-Chou Station and they prepare for the upcoming battle. After arriving at the station, they go to the Shogakukan building where Lamia and the other monsters are located.After some initial difficulty with Daigo's phone reception, Marimo and the others enter Shogakukan. However, they are quickly caught off guard by Nightshade and fall through a trap door, which separates them.

Separated from the others, Marimo explores the building and encounters the group-quest monster Cantarella who attempts to force her to breath in poison gas. Marimo holds her breath, refraining from breathing in the poison, and Cantarella explains that the poison was unimplemented in Grimzelia and is impossible to recover from. Cantarella taunts Marimo with the knowledge that the manga she produces is being used to help the monsters, but Marimo maintains her resolve and continues to hold her breath. However, Marimo ultimately does breathe in the gas after Cantarealla gropes her chest, and she is poisoned. Marimo holds out hope that Cantarella may have an antidote on her. Marimo retaliates with her "Etoile Filante" skill, seemingly missing, and is then attacked by Cantarella who injects her with dissolving liquid from a large syringe. Cantarella then carries the weakened Marimo to an operating table and begins to torture her. At first stating she will give her breast implants, Cantarella proceeds to dissect Marimo and plans on implanting a chimera heart into her. However, Marimo suddenly vanishes and Cantarella is attacked from behind, losing her gas mask and poison canister. As Cantarella breathes in her poison gas, she seemingly pulls out an antidote, but Marimo suddenly appears and grabs it. Marimo reveals that everything Cantarella had done after Marimo used her "Etoile Filante" had been an illusion as "Etoile Filante" causes opponents to hallucinate. Marimo further explains that she has switched to her Satellite Linker gear because she gained access to Shogakukan's Wi-Fi password. Marimo consumes the antidote, but then hacks up blood and Cantarella reveals that there is no antidote. Undeterred, Marimo activates her "Satellite Linker" skill, locking the attack onto Cantarella. A laser beam shoots down from space and strikes Cantarella in a devastating blow, defeating her in an instant. Once Cantarella's body disappears, Marimo sees that she has left an unimplemented drop item behind and assumes it must be the antidote.

Although she is weakened and poisoned from the battle, Marimo refrains from using the drop item, not wanting to waste it. As she continues to explore the building, she finally discovers the room that Ea is being held in and informs her that she is an ally of Daigo. However, Nightshade, Puppeteer, and Medusa appear, and, although she is weakened, Marimo tries to fight against. Unfortunately, Marimo is quickly overwhelmed as Puppeteer links Marimo's body to one of her puppets and breaks her arm. Seeing she has little chance of winning, Marimo sneaks her phone next to Ea, but is then attacked by Nightshade who shifts her organs around and nearly crushes her heart. However, Medusa intervenes, wanting to add Marimo to her "collection". Marimo is then shot by Medusa's pet Catoplepas's eye beam and her body is completely turned to stone.

Later, Marimo's petrified body is discovered by Rin Mei, Karasu, and Honoka when they discover Medusa's room and attempt to rescue her and the other petrified girls. Unfortunately, Marimo's body is shattered by Medusa (along with Honoka who was also petrified) and Rin Mei and Karasu lose the battle against Medusa, becoming petrified themselves. Marimo's body is later reassembled when Lamia consumes her and Honoka's remains and reconstitutes them in her stomach.

### The Final Battle

Marimo is eventually revived by Ea who uses the special item Marimo obtained earlier to heal her and everyone else who was turned to stone. However, Lamia and several other monster girls have arrived and make clear their intention to mate with Daigo to start a new generation of monsters. Although Marimo and the others do all they can to fight off the monsters, Daigo is ultimately caught and, to everyone's surprise, devoured by Lamia.

Lamia transforms and begins to inject eggs into Marimo and the other Rankers. Although Marimo is weakened, she joins the Rankers in invading Lamia's body so they can rescue Daigo. After traversing Lamia's stomach, Marimo and the others find themselves transported into a large void inside of Lamia where everyone she has devoured are encased in crystal. They find Daigo who is being held by a seemingly immobile crystal princess. Marimo and the others manage to rescue Daigo, but the crystal princess comes to life and encases them in crystal, leaving them trapped inside Lamia who absorbs their powers.

Marimo and the others are freed when Yurina finally defeats Lamia. Afterwards, the monsters return to the world of Grimzelia, leaving Marimo and the others free to continue their normal lives.

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 24
2. ↑ Chapter 26
3. ↑ Chapter 27
4. ↑ Chapter 28
5. ↑ Chapter 29
6. ↑ Chapter 30
7. ↑ Chapter 34
8. ↑ Chapter 35
9. ↑ Chapter 36
10. ↑ Chapter 38
11. ↑ Chapter 39
12. ↑ Chapter 40
13. ↑ Chapter 44
14. ↑ Chapter 45
15. ↑ Chapter 50