Ultraman Legend of the Light Chaser

"Enough with the nonsense!" The short man glared. "The Manonians have been captured. Who knows how much information they'll spill? They'll find this place sooner or later. Have you thought of a plan yet?"

“Didn’t I tell you to abandon Kamimura and bring in Fujisawa Sousuke? Paradia has a natural affinity for people; whatever she says will make people believe it, even if she says the sun actually rises in the west,” the man in the wool coat said, pen in hand, writing non-stop. “You didn’t actually inject him with ‘Samuel’s’ serum, did you?”

"Of course not! We just made some bruises to scare him!" the short man said. "We'll lure him in and then gradually proceed under the guise of treatment. Injecting him with that monster's serum right away would be unbearable even for us, let alone humans with ancient genes! Do you think I'm an idiot?"

“I think you do have a tendency to become an idiot,” the wool coat said. “Now that he’s in the Demon Realm, are we afraid he’ll run away? He’ll only hate the Naga for taking away his beloved girl, while hiding from his friends, hiding in the shadows as a non-human… As for Samuel finding this base, so what? We have Paradia, the team members that monster cares about, and the merciful ‘tomb guardian’ who is angry even at the death of an ordinary person. Can we get past them?”

The short man crunched the candy and mumbled, "That's for the best. I hope this Fujisawa Sosuke is worth more than Kamimura Zao... To make him believe in that Naga bastard, I had Kamimura Zao chopped up. He has so many companies, all of them are money!"

“Kamimura Aya, no, Tsukigami Ayasa has completely betrayed us. Even without all this, you would have dealt with him sooner or later,” the wool coat said. “As for the company under his name, it was originally managed by someone else. I have already arranged for someone to take over his shares—our wealth will not be reduced by a penny, and we have sufficient funds. You can continue to work outside with peace of mind.”

“Alright, you know advertising is expensive,” the short man said, holding out his hand. “Give me 100 million, no Japanese yen, no Zimbabwean dollars, and definitely no ghost money.”

Chapter 108 The Researcher's Passion

“I can give you the money,” the man in the wool coat said, pausing his pen and glancing indifferently at the short man’s outstretched arm. “Extra funding means extra tasks.”

"What burden are you trying to burden me with this time?" the short man asked in a hostile tone. Their usual way of getting along was like a big fish eating a small fish: the wool coat oppressed the short man, and the short man oppressed his "workers," such as Kamimura Zao.

“It was originally your job, and we just asked you to speed things up,” the wool coat said. “We need more excellent test subjects with a sufficient concentration of ultra-ancient genes.”

The short man seemed to feel a little relieved. He let out a breath, rummaged in his pocket for a while, and pulled out a piece of chewing gum.

The man in the wool coat paused for a moment: "Sooner or later you'll ruin your teeth and have to change bodies because of toothaches. That kind of joke can make the other groups laugh so hard their spaceships crash. At least by using a human body from Earth, they can understand their functions."

"Xylitol, it's refreshing! You're getting more and more fussy now that you've used the body of an old scholar!" The short man finally seized the opportunity to retort: ​​"So what if I'm an excellent experimental subject? I've been working hard!"

"This body is forty years old, in the prime of life for an Earthling," the woolen coat corrected. "According to our research department's analysis, the best experimental subjects are highly concentrated in the TPC Executive Department, and if you want to find the most elite part, you have to join the best team."

"...Why don't you just tell me that the great god Kirieloid instructed me to take on the entire TPC single-handedly? Will you build me the best coffin? I'd like to try one made of Phoebe zhennan wood."

“No, I’m just pointing you in the right direction,” the man in the wool coat said, capping his pen, blowing on the paper, stamping it with a “snap,” and handing it to the short man: “Letter of appointment. From now on, I am the major shareholder of the largest entertainment company under Kamimura Zao. You should be aware of that.”

"Why you?! Kamimura is one of my men! What about my 100 million?!" The short man wanted to tear up the paper on the spot, but he didn't dare.

The man in the wool coat said, "Because I'm going to take over your publicity work. We've assessed that you're suited for jobs that don't require too much brainpower, like arresting people and killing hostages."

……

At the TPC Far East headquarters, a former, spirited, and idle team leader named Yuecheng has found a new research direction.

"I never expected such a thing to happen, it's simply a biological miracle!" He shook the crystal-clear liquid in the test tube, which in Yuki Tsukishiro's eyes shone like the most precious ruby, not to mention the tiny particles that floated up and down like gold dust inside.

The structure of the blood was slowly "evaporating," and the rising golden particles were sealed in the test tube. It was conceivable that in another day or two, the blood sample in this test tube would turn into a cloud of brilliant mist. Yuuki Tsukishiro looked at the test tube, then turned her gaze to Yuu Aiba, completely puzzled as to why the person in front of her hadn't evaporated like the blood in the test tube.

"So beautiful!" he exclaimed sincerely.

Aiba Yu knew he was praising the sample in the test tube, but she still got goosebumps: "When will the comparison results be available?"

"I was just going to take a quick look for you... but now I'm fully motivated!" Yuuki Tsukishiro held up two fingers, then curled one up, leaving her index finger firmly pointing upwards: "Two days, no, one day! I'll give you the most detailed results tomorrow night!"

Just as Aiba Yu was about to thank her, Tsukishiro Yuuki suddenly leaned her entire body forward, her figure suddenly enlarged.

Yuu Aizawa moved his face back slightly. Yuuki Tsukishiro reached out and grabbed him, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“If you’d give me more samples, like staying here tonight, and help me decipher—no, I could be more efficient!” The researcher’s DNA stirred, dancing and tapping in his heart and every fold of his brain: “Peeling… ah, I mean, more hair, nails, and… you’re asking if I’m referring to yourself when I say goldfish losing scales?”

"No!!!" Aiba Yu denied it outright.

"It's okay, I understand. People in middle age always have some normal troubles, like hair loss. In your case, it's losing scales?" Yuuki Tsukishiro recalled the night Hizoma escaped from the cultivation tank, the pitch-black monster she saw... The tail felt so good! I really want to take it apart and see!

He muttered to himself, "I have many friends in the medical field, including several dermatology experts, although your situation may be similar to ours..."

"Then I'll come again tomorrow night!" Aiba Yu pulled his arm away and ran away as if fleeing.

Yuki Tsukishiro's hand hovered in mid-air. He tried to chase after her, but Aiba Yu was too fast, even leaving afterimages.

He thought for a moment and muttered to himself, "Oh dear, the monster's age can't be calculated the same as ours. Maybe it's an old man, or maybe it's still a child? Did I scare him away?"

Immediately, he put this minor speculation out of his mind, grabbed the test tube, and rushed to the freezer, his mind racing: "Tomorrow, when he's a bit more composed, I'll get some scales; the next time, more blood samples; and the time after that, should I pull out some hair or scrape some skin tissue... If I could get a tooth, that would be great too. He looks like a marine reptile, and I remember marine reptiles don't lose their baby teeth?"

Finally, he expressed the desire of every researcher to unleash their full potential and get to work: "I really want to dissect things..."

Aiba Yu sneezed, wondering if he was too weak from the nuclear radiation. When he returned to his office, he happened to run into Daigo, who had been lingering outside the door for a long time.

“I thought you were resting and was just about to go back,” Daigo greeted first. “Sorry to bother you at this hour.”

Aiba Yu didn't think his pacing back and forth made him seem like he was about to leave. She figured he must have something urgent to tell her at this hour, so she opened the door and asked, "What is it?"

Daigo followed him into the office. After not seeing him for many days, the usually unchanging interior had changed a bit: for example, the fish tank on the windowsill. Daigo recognized it as Reilos, which had returned to its normal sea fish form.

Reilos probably recognized him too. The fish, which had once been a monster, possessed extraordinary vitality. It leaped out of the fish tank and crashed off the windowsill with a "thud," splashing around at Daigo in disbelief.

Aiba Yu wasn't surprised. He pinched the fish's tail and tossed Reilos back into the tank, then poured in some freshly molted mealworms. Reilos calmed down a bit and chased after the worms, eating them one by one.

"Ah, that..." Daigo, whose train of thought had been interrupted by Reilos, sorted out his words: "Well, when Bizomo caused trouble, Horii and I went to the new development zone because of the monsters that appeared there."

Aiba Yu was pleased to see that he had come to seek advice: "Tiga defeated it. You had seriously analyzed your own shortcomings before, right?"

Daigo choked for a moment, then forced himself to say, "Actually, I didn't have time to summarize... it's just that the monster seemed to be holding back against me."

"Keep it?"

"Yes, that's why I came here."

Chapter 109 Rendezvous Point

Daigo's account is quite perplexing.

A monster never seen before appeared in the waters near the newly developed area. At first, it had a clear goal; Daigo and Horii observed it rushing headlong into the densely populated town. Then, it inexplicably turned a corner and headed back towards the sea, presumably having spotted the Flying Swallow.

The monster bared its teeth at the Flying Swallow, unleashing a fireball that caught everyone off guard. When Daigo transformed into Ultraman Tiga and extinguished the fire on the Flying Swallow, he looked with heartache at the charred and deformed wings and the cockpit structure that was now beyond repair. Horii frantically pounded on the melted hatch while giving Ultraman Tiga a thumbs-up, before being overcome by the black smoke and passing out.

Daigo breathed a sigh of relief, but the monster's performance quickly made him anxious again.

“I felt its behavior was very chaotic,” Daigo recalled of the experience, summarizing: “It really wanted to go to town, but it didn’t seem to want to; it really wanted to beat me, but… it always hesitated at crucial moments.”

"How to say?"

"For example, when I was about to switch to the aerial mode, it grabbed my foot but didn't take any further action until I broke free. At first, I thought it just didn't have time. Later, it could have knocked me away again, but it chose to stay still."

Aiba Yu lowered his head and didn't speak. Daigo thought for a moment and continued, "I feel... it doesn't seem like a monster that likes to play around."

Hesitant enemies do not linger on the battlefield for long; the monster slowly moves toward the sea, as if there were some more terrifying flood or beast on land.

After several failed attacks, it retreated completely into the sea. The red light on Tiga's chest began to flash, but the monster suddenly pushed him away and soared into the sky. Tiga immediately switched forms to give chase. They made a wide turn in the sea, and the monster flew lower and lower until it was almost gliding close to the water's surface.

A gust of air whipped up a white spray of water. The monster, its head bowed, glanced back at Tiga one last time, its throat bobbing up and down.

It emitted a sharp sound that was both crying and laughing. Then it lowered its angle completely and plunged itself into the sea.

Daigo could not forget that screech. He found it somewhat absurd, but just as he could hear Yuzare's words while his teammates could not understand them, Daigo realized that his intuition might be closest to the truth: "I felt it was crying. When it looked at me for the last time, it seemed to be saying... 'I envy you.'"

“Soruka is a very good and powerful warrior,” Aiba Yu suddenly said.

"Huh?" Daigo was puzzled as to why he suddenly changed the subject.

Then, Aiba Yu continued, "Back then, before I mastered the ancient language and could not use my psychic powers, no one could understand what I was saying. If I raised my voice, it was considered a warning; if I lowered my voice, it was considered a threat... I found a cave very close to the village to hide in, not wanting to go out and cause misunderstandings and chaos, but hoping that someone who could communicate with me would appear nearby."

“That person has arrived. His name is Solka, the first ancient word I learned, the name of an Ultra Warrior,” Aiba Yu’s words gradually calmed Daigo’s hesitant thoughts: “His power is within you, isn’t it? Then don’t doubt yourself, what you ‘intuitively’ is definitely true.”

“Ah, right…” The next sentence stirred up a tidal wave in Daigo’s calm mind!

"After reviewing the last summary, it's about time for practical training. I've been quite busy lately." Aiba Yu flipped through the calendar and circled the 25th of the month. Daigo looked at it as a circle of hellfire, the kind you could never get past once you went through it.

"I'll be a bit free after the 25th, so come find me when you have time."

……

After seeing Daigo off, who left the office with an even heavier heart, Aiba Yu changed out of his uniform and, under the cover of darkness, quietly headed towards the "Kirieloid base" that the Manon alien had told him about.

The Manonian was a trustworthy alien who kept his promises. He described the base address in great detail, almost to the point of telling him the house number and whether he should use the excuse of "checking gas pressure," "selling insurance," or "selling discounted household products" if he wanted to visit.

Located in Shinjuku Ward, to prevent any accidents from affecting nearby residents, Aiba Yu chose the time between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m., when people are sleeping the most. He decided to observe carefully for a while before deciding whether to go in.

As it turns out, he was sometimes overly cautious.

The Manonians do not trust the Kirieloids, so how could the Kirieloids possibly entertain the Manonians in a real base?

The "base" that Manon Star people referred to was actually just a meeting point between the Kirieloids and them, hidden in an apartment building with a seal on the door, and the place was long gone.

The nameplate reads "Hojo," which was the surname of its former owner.

This surname immediately reminded Aiba Yu of the dry cleaner employee who died tragically in the dry cleaner's shop. He also had the surname Hojo. Could this be that employee's home? The Kirieloids not only use people for experiments, but they also squeeze every last bit of value out of them?

The apartment was a mess, with footprints all over the floor and scratches all over the walls. Aiba Yu also found traces of repair on the sunlit wall—it had been re-plastered, and the newly painted wall was much cleaner and more conspicuous than the surrounding area.

The furnishings inside the apartment suggest that only one person lived there. That person must have left in a great hurry, even leaving behind his clothes, which were still hanging behind the window and were now faded from the sun.

Aiba Yu continued walking inside, and in the bedside table of the master bedroom, he found a thick leather notebook. It was tucked away at the bottom of the third shelf of the cabinet, separated by a wooden board.

Clearly, it was the owner's secret.

"November 3rd, low-grade fever, but I don't want to buy medicine, I can't go out, and I have no money," it was written in the leather notebook. "A charity organization visited in the afternoon. Which kind neighbor told them about my situation?"

“The charity is called the ‘Family Medical Assistance Foundation.’ It was originally mainly for missionary work. I thanked their God verbally, and they were very happy and willing to provide me with treatment.”

Turning to the next page of the leather-bound notebook, the author's tone shifted: "Besides having faith in the god Kirieloid, there's another condition: regular medical checkups are allowed, so I can be a medical observation sample—it doesn't matter, I just want to control my condition as soon as possible, I'm already running out of money for food."

What followed was a nightmare that lasted for months.

The diary's owner agreed to receive medical assistance from a "charitable organization," but things only got worse. The organization claimed they were providing the latest medical treatments free of charge and taking care of the diary's owner's life. They gave Hojo an advance payment as living expenses and provided him with some painkillers, instructing him to use them sparingly to avoid developing a dependency.

The words of the "charitable organization" were always high-sounding, but by the time the diarist realized he really needed to see another doctor, he was already unable to leave the room.

With just the simple action of standing up from the sofa, Hojo heard a cracking sound as if bones were breaking. He was shocked to find that his entire knee was bent backward, with bone even protruding from his skin.

But he felt no pain. In his diary, he wrote in a panic: "From today onwards, I can only crawl around the house... They never thought of saving me. I don't even know what kind of drugs I was given."