Akane Shinjo was originally a regular high school girl from the real world. For some unknown reason, she created a world centered on "Tsutsujidai" and connected with Alexis Kerib, a former galactic police officer who was now the final boss. Although the story ended with Alexis being sealed and taken away by Gridman and Akane waking up in the real world... why did this girl, who should have woken up in the real world as a long-haired beauty with a heart of atonement and who clearly showed gratitude for Gridman's help in the anime's ending, appear here in the form of "Akane Shinjo"?
Taichi thought of this and asked her. After all, the Akane from the end of the series was a remorseful girl, weighed down by guilt, who had willingly exiled herself from the world she created. She was no longer the "God Akane" who could laugh while monsters destroyed buildings and killed people.
"I don't know either," Akane replied, stretching her arms. "Two years have passed since I left Tsutsujidai. I was supposed to be in the real world, studying for my university entrance exams. But I closed my eyes, opened them, and found myself here in this 'form I created.' It just so happened that I saw that negative energy monster, Jigjil, who came from space."
"Then Ultraman X suddenly appeared and led the monster away from Tokyo."
"I tried to find someone who was still leisurely walking on the street to trick them into revealing Ultraman X's host, but I never expected you to recognize me first."
Akane stuck out her tongue as she spoke.
Taichi studied her and narrowed his eyes. "Two years later... so your Ultraman series has already reached Ultraman Z."
Taichi suspected that this world might have been created by "God Akane." Otherwise, the "inevitable" occurrences were happening too quickly. Just after he began to doubt his own identity, a major figure like Akane Shinjo appeared.
"Oh, are you testing me with a lie?" Akane tilted her head, annoyingly scratching her earlobe with her finger. "It's Ultraman Z, or maybe I should call it Ultraman Zero and His Zetta's Saga? Does that prove that I'm really from the year 2020?"
Taichi felt a slight sense of relief.
"I'm sorry for testing you like that. It's just that this world is so troublesome, it's making me paranoid."
"Troublesome? Can you elaborate?" Akane asked, blinking.
"Let's go sit over there first," Taichi said, pointing to a bench on the side of the road.
"Before I start explaining how troublesome this world is, I need to confirm something with you." Taichi crossed his hands, resting his chin on them, and turned his head slightly to look at Akane. "How long have you been in this world?"
"Less than half an hour, I think," Akane replied, tapping her cheek as she thought. "I don't have a phone on me, so I can only guess."
"I see. No wonder you don't know anything yet," Taichi said, licking his lips. "The troubles of this world might be beyond what you can imagine."
"First, Ultraman X and I were inexplicably stranded in this world."
"Huh? You're not from this world either?" Akane asked, looking surprised.
"No, I'm a human, but not from this world's Earth," Taichi replied. "Please don't interrupt me. I'll explain everything after I finish telling you what I know so far."
Akane covered her mouth and nodded.
"The origin of the monsters is a mystery. I don't know if they're native to this world or if they're like us and came from other worlds."
"The Ultraman series in this world only went up to Ultraman Leo before it was completely put on hold due to funding issues."
"There are people named 'Shinichi Kudo' and 'Kogoro Mori' in the newspapers. I also checked the map and found that places like Beika and Haido exist."
Akane's eyes widened.
"Besides that, I'm also a Phantom Thief of Hearts, with the codename Knight, but my Persona has nothing to do with that series. It's... ah, she won't let me say her real name. She says it's a secret." Taichi paused and shrugged. "By the way, the Shinomya Group also exists in this world, and I even met the Yukinoshita sisters, who originally lived in Chiba."
"What the hell is this? Even for a stitched-together world, this is too ridiculous!" As soon as Taichi signaled she could speak, Akane immediately complained. "Is it possible that the detective's timeline made this world even more absurd? A Phantom Thieves of Hearts? Oh, great, another troublesome series. If I remember correctly, the third, fourth, and fifth ones share the same worldview, right? If the final boss crashes humanity's cognitive world, wouldn't the psychological corruption of the people from these two worlds be enough to strengthen a negative energy monster to the level of Hyper Zetton from that movie? Is there a Saga to save us?"
"And what's the deal with the Shinomya Group and the Yukinoshita sisters? Can't a stitched-together world at least be a normal one? It even includes a school life romantic comedy..."
"With all due respect, this world is probably doomed."
Taichi nodded in agreement.
"So, do you have a place to live in this world?" Taichi asked suddenly.
"...None at all!" Akane replied, enunciating each word. "I don't even have a phone. I'm homeless and penniless."
Wow, this girl was even more miserable than he was. Taichi silently shed a tear of pity for her.
"I can ask the owner of the place where I'm staying to let you stay for a while," Taichi said, looking at Akane. "But you should be prepared to live from meal to meal for a while."
"After all, even though I have gold bars, I don't have any cash, so I probably can't support you much for now."
"Thank you so much for taking me in, Naruto-kun," Akane said with a slight smile.
Taking in a freeloader wasn't a problem, since Akane, as a monster fan, was an expert on monster weaknesses and could be a very useful assistant for Taichi in his future battles.
But Taichi was reluctant to sell his gold bars at a loss. So, should he find a way to get in touch with Sonoko Suzuki and use her family's wealth to get a little more?
But... Taichi pulled out his phone and looked at his reflection in the screen. He wasn't ugly, but he definitely wasn't handsome enough for a lovesick girl to proactively ask for his contact information.