Bighorn Bull is in charge of leading, and I, Beria, am in charge of raising it.

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“…Ace, Uncle Bay must be talking about you, you loser.”

"Huh? Brother Seven, I just got here! And what Uncle Bei said was clearly...!"

"Whoever it is, since we've been discovered, let's just walk out openly."

After Beria finished speaking, a faint arguing sound came from behind the rock wall.

Then, Hikari, Ace, and Seven emerged one by one from behind the rock wall where they were hiding.

However, Seven, who was just publicly named and used as a negative example, obviously had his childhood memories of being "loved" by Belial when he was naughty and caused trouble.

As a result, Seven was not only the last of the three to dawdle and come out.

Even after they came out, Seven didn't dare make any eye contact with Belial. Instead, he rushed to Zero's side, helped Zero up from the ground, and asked him gently.

"Sorry, it took us quite a bit of time to deal with that mobile fortress that hadn't been activated yet... Are you alright, Zero? I'll take you back to the Silver Cross Army for treatment right away."

While offering words of concern, Seven was also frequently giving Zero meaningful glances. He was preparing to use this plausible excuse to leave with Zero ahead of him, avoiding giving Belial an opportunity to cause trouble.

The words Seven mentioned also resolved a question in Belial's mind.

After all, upon seeing Kaiser Geed, and vaguely recalling this plot from a stage play by Zeta, Belial vaguely remembered that the Baltan alien, disguised as Belial, lured Geed and the others step by step to a castle containing a large amount of dark energy, thus suppressing the Ultra Warriors' mobility. This allowed Kaiser Geed to easily defeat everyone after his birth.

More importantly, Seven was also present during this process.

But after Belial appeared, not only was there no sign of the castle, but Seven had also disappeared. Belial even thought that he might be getting old and had simply misremembered.

Even now, based on the few words Seven mentioned, Belial has pieced together the truth...

It must have been during the investigation that Seven discovered the mobile fortress that was supposed to appear in the second half of the stage play—or, to put it another way, after the Zeta TV series ended.

It was created by the Baltan aliens and was touted as the ultimate weapon capable of destroying the universe. It was also the vessel chosen to house the Baltan aliens after their deaths.

As for why it wasn't used in the first half...

That's because, although this mobile fortress can continuously create monsters, the creatures it cultivates only act on instinct, destroying everything in their path and never obeying anyone's orders.

This clearly conflicts with the Baltans' original plan: either Rageid joins their ranks, or they cultivate a Kaiser Geed, thus choosing one to inherit Belial's Dark Emperor throne and once again dominate the universe.

Therefore, it wasn't until Kaiser Geed was defeated by Geed himself, and his own body perished in the battle, that the Baltan aliens, knowing that the revival of their empire was hopeless, finally decided to activate this mobile fortress in desperation.

Furthermore, with the immense power of their mobile fortresses, they destroyed countless planets, once again drawing the attention of the Land of Light.

That's how the second half of the stage play came about.

Well, I have to say, the Baltan aliens are truly loyal retainers comparable to Fukuide Kei!

Putting aside whether their actions are right or wrong, they are truly impeccable in terms of loyalty and righteousness!

Even after his physical body was destroyed, he still relentlessly continued to cause trouble. At one point, he even shouted the fanatical slogan, "Since it's already a world without His Majesty Belial, it doesn't matter what it becomes!"

It was precisely because of this that Belial changed his mind at the last minute and chose to save the Baltan aliens' lives from Kaiser Geed's sudden attack.

In retrospect, Seven's absence may have been a result of the Fate Line anticipating Belial's potential intervention and taking steps to repair itself. Through Seven and others, it averted the crisis before it even began.

It can't be some lazy author who's been burning the midnight oil writing novels, like before when they forgot the Giga Battle Device had already exploded in the Monster Graveyard. They'd already finished writing that part of the story before belatedly realizing something was wrong, and because it was too long to completely rewrite it, they could only put up a temporary patch here, right?

Haha, how could there be such a stupid person!

...Probably not...?

"Huh? Stinky old man, why are you suddenly being so nice to me? I'm getting goosebumps all over... Wait! Stinky old man would never talk like that! You must be an alien in disguise! Quickly reveal your true form!"

At the same time, after hearing Seven's words of concern and care.

It's unclear whether Zero failed to understand his father's unspoken meaning, or whether, possessing the potential of a "filial son," he deliberately went against his father after seeing Seven's predicament and Belial's "elderly suppression special attack" on Seven.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Zero made a choice entirely out of instinct without the slightest hesitation!

He suddenly jumped three feet high and took several steps back, putting distance between himself and Seven.

Then, under Seven's puzzled gaze, Zero, who happened to stop right next to Belial, put on a righteous and indignant look and pointed at Seven, questioning him sharply!

“Tell me! Where did you hide my real father?! How could my father ever talk to me like that?! He usually just scolds me and urges me to write all sorts of mission reports! Even when I'm injured, he only says things like, ‘This little injury won’t affect training,’ or ‘What are your tears?! Can they protect the peace of the universe?!’ and tells me to get up and keep training!”

"What...! Zero, what are you doing...!"

When Zero, seemingly maintaining a high level of vigilance, reasonably questioned Seven, who appeared to have been impersonated, he actually realized his mistake and openly accused Seven of his actions to Belial. Seven, who had been somewhat taken aback by Zero's sudden reaction, felt a chill run down his spine!

Before he could refute Zero, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Then, with stiff movements, he twisted his neck and slowly turned his head to look. He saw Belial standing with his arms crossed, looking at him with a smile. Seven couldn't help but swallow hard.

Even when he spoke shakily, he involuntarily took a step back.

"Um... Uncle Bei, don't listen to Zero's nonsense, I can actually explain...!"

"It's okay, no rush, take your time, I'm listening."

At the same time, when Belial heard that even though the child was injured, he forced himself to stand up and continue training, his smile gradually softened. He then raised his hand and used Ultra Telekinesis to retrieve the Giga Battle Device that Geed had dropped not far away.

Then, while striking Seven's palm with the stick from above and below, Belial, under Zero's gloating gaze, slowly approached Seven step by step.

"Your Uncle Bei is a very reasonable person..."

Chapter 74 Belial: Huh? What a small world!

[Three chapters combined into one 6,000-word text, satisfying all your needs at once~]

There should be an extra chapter with a gift later.

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The Giga Battle Device tapped up and down in Belial's palm. The dull thud of the staff colliding with his palm was exceptionally clear on the quiet battlefield.

For every step he took forward, Seven took a step back.

Clearly, Seven is no longer as weak as he was as a child. He was even able to briefly fight Belial when Belial invaded the Land of Light.

Even so, the natural sense of pressure from his elders still made Seven, who knew he was in the wrong, feel somewhat suffocated.

He couldn't even muster the courage to glare at his rebellious son, who was hiding behind Belial and making faces at him. Cold sweat poured down his back as he frantically racked his brains, stammering out a defense.

"Well, Uncle Bell, let me explain. The training Zero mentioned was actually Leo's responsibility. I only went to K76 occasionally to check on his training progress, really only occasionally. And every time I went, I reminded Leo to go easy on him, but you know Leo, he never holds back when teaching his apprentices."

Even when facing the Magma aliens and the twin monsters back then, Seven never showed the slightest fear in his words, but now, as he explained, a palpable panic could be heard between the lines. Furthermore, as he retreated, he subconsciously took half a step behind Ace.

Unexpectedly, the moment Ace moved over, he casually stepped aside, exposing him once again to Belial's view.

Then, as Seven turned around in disbelief, he strode towards Zeta, using the plausible excuse of caring for his younger brother to completely absolve himself of any involvement in the whole affair.

Sorry, Seven, I wouldn't be loyal to my younger brother if I weren't...

Given Uncle Bei's temper, who would dare to speak up for you right now? They'd definitely be dragged over and scolded along with you!

Moreover, Uncle Bei still has the Giga Combat Device in his hands.

Ace, having experienced Belial's invasion, knew all too well how powerful this thing was. He certainly wouldn't dare step forward to shield Seven from this calamity!

"Just occasionally?"

Watching Ace run off to the stands, Belial's eyes flashed with satisfaction as he slammed the Giga Battle Device to his side. The end of the device struck the ground, creating a ring of fine cracks. His eyes fixed on Seven, he followed up on Seven's earlier explanation, enunciating each word as "amiably" in response.

"Can I understand that even though you know Zero had a miserable childhood and that you personally sent him to K76 for arduous training, you still don't repent and are too lazy to even look at him a few more times?"

"Huh? What...no, that's not what I meant...?!"

Seven was so stunned by those words that he froze on the spot.

When he tried to explain himself, his face was filled with a kind of despair that seemed to say, "That's not what I meant at all, but why does Uncle Bei's words sound like they actually make some sense?!"

Unfortunately, Belial, who had already given Seven a chance to explain, confirmed that the Seven in front of him was just like the Seven he had encountered in the previous timeline—a stubborn, inflexible guy who wouldn't admit his mistakes until he suffered a loss.

So, before Seven could continue speaking, Belial, who was only making things worse, swung his Giga Battle Device and smashed it across Seven's mouth.

The blow wasn't heavy, but it was enough to force Seven's words back down from his lips. Caught off guard by the sudden attack, he lost his balance and fell heavily to the ground, face up.

Then, Belial planted the Giga Battle Device diagonally in the ground, grabbed Seven by the neck with one hand and forcibly lifted him off the ground, while clenching his other hand into a fist and hitting Seven repeatedly.

His eyes, which were usually full of love and doting when facing younger people, were now filled with only anger and disappointment.

"You're afraid that Zero will hate you after he finds out the truth, hate you for abandoning him all these years without a care. Hate you for flying over him every time you patrol, yet not daring to even land and say a word to him. Hate you for being a coward, using the guise of doing what's best for the child, but never asking him if he even wanted to!"

"So you hid for thousands of years! It wasn't until you were in the Monster Graveyard, thinking you were about to die, that you finally mustered the courage to tell him that he was your son!"

"Seven, do you think that as long as you risk your life once, you can make up for everything you owe him over the years?"

"You think I want to hear your explanations? Are you deaf?! Can't you understand what Zero meant just now?! Idiot!!!"

As the questioning voice faded, Seven was grabbed by the neck and swung over Belial's head before being slammed heavily to the ground. His back hit the cracked ground with a dull thud.

But before Seven could even groan in pain, Belial's fists rained down on him, striking his shoulders, chest, and arms one after another.

Each punch landed with just the right amount of force—not fatal, and not even leaving any serious injury, but the subtle power contained within was enough to make Seven tremble slightly with pain.

Belial continued speaking between beatings, his speech becoming increasingly rapid, clearly showing he was genuinely enraged.

"The fact that he has never held a grudge against you and still calls you 'Dad' is the best proof of that!"

What he really cares about is the feeling that you never care about him!

"So, use your brain, Seven! Don't be like Ken, leaving your brain sitting there, waiting for it to rust! Only realizing your mistake when it's completely too late to make amends!"

"Zero just wants you to care about him occasionally, like a normal father! Even just a simple verbal compliment, acknowledging his hard work and effort! Instead of being absent from his childhood and then acting like a father! To be honest, you're just suffering for the sake of saving face! If one day Zero gets pushed to the limit and completely loses faith in you, then you brought it on yourself, and you deserve it!"

As he spoke, Belial grabbed Seven's breastplate and pulled him closer. His voice suddenly lowered, so low that only Seven could hear it. But every word carried a force far heavier than his previous roars.

"He even waited until I arrived, to make sure I was willing to stand up for him, before he dared to say these things in public! You still don't realize how wronged this kid is, thinking he's just being mischievous!"

After he finished speaking, Seven, who had initially felt somewhat wronged, fell into a long silence.

Of course, with Ultraman's hearing, even though Belial deliberately lowered his voice when he said the last sentence, Zero was still able to hear every single word.

So much so that Zero, who had been all smiles as he watched his father being taught a lesson by Belial, suddenly froze, his eyes fixed on Belial's retreating figure with a complicated expression.

Then he turned his head slightly to look at his father, who had completely given up struggling and didn't even dare to lift his head. He opened his mouth, as if to say something.

In the end, Zero simply turned his head to the side and muttered something in a tone that was feigned indifference but couldn't hide the tremor in his voice.

"Tch, stop talking nonsense. I never thought that way... Also, stop fighting. I was just joking. If you keep fighting, you'll only cause trouble for the Silver Cross."

Belial glanced at Zero, a hint of a smile appearing in his eyes, before withdrawing his hand and taking a step back.

"Alright, I'll let you off the hook for Zero's sake today. But you're a father now, you should use your brain a bit, Seven... what you owe Zero isn't something you can repay with just a few hits. When we get back to the Land of Light, you'll see what you're going to do."

Seven stood up from the ground, raising his hand to rub his shoulder, which was still sore from being hit. After a brief silence, he responded solemnly.

"I understand."

It was at this moment that a silver-white Ultra Sign flew rapidly from the distant end of the starry sky and hovered above the battlefield.

That was Zoffy's Ultra Signature. The message was simple, but it was enough to make everyone present tense up and put aside their intention to just watch the show.

"Mold and Juda have been spotted! Seven, Ace, proceed to the coordinates immediately to meet them and prepare for battle!"

"Mold and Juda? How is that possible! X and Victory just dealt with them not long ago! How could they be back so quickly!"

When Seven saw the signature, he instantly switched from the image of a guilty father who was passively taking a beating and not fighting back to the posture of a battle-hardened warrior.

He spoke solemnly, exchanging a brief glance with Ace before striding forward. He was preparing to follow Zoffy's instructions and reunite with the other brothers.

But he stopped abruptly after taking a step. He turned back to look at Beria, his lips moving twice as if he wanted to say something.

They had already experienced Mold's formidable nature during their last battle. Now that Judas had also been resurrected, dealing with him would only be more troublesome.

If Belial could be invited to join, even if it was just to borrow his Darklops legion for assistance, the difficulty of this battle would undoubtedly decrease by several levels.

But he knew very well that Belial did not belong to this universe and had no obligation to deal with such a troublesome enemy for them.

Given Belial's previous actions, Seven naturally assumed that Belial genuinely loathed and despised him, and would never offer him any help.

So after a brief hesitation, Seven turned his head back. After exchanging a glance with Ace, he prepared to transform into a red ball and head to the designated location to meet up.

But at that moment, Belial suddenly spoke up.

"Mold and Juda? Ha, what a small world... Hey kid, you guys don't mind if I join in the fun, do you?"

"Oh? Uncle Bei, you want to... I mean! Sure! Of course! It would be my honor!"

At first, Seven thought he was hallucinating and instinctively asked incredulously.

But when he turned around and saw that Belial, who used to always have a smiling face even when beating him up, had completely stopped smiling and was now exuding an almost tangible killing intent, his heart suddenly skipped a beat.