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Chapter 11 - Chapter 11: What Do You Do Without the Spark Lens?

Of course. The one thing he dreaded most had to happen.

A rift opened in the air above an overgrown wilderness, and from it tumbled Yuzhou.

He landed steadily this time, backpack clutched tight in his hands. But the sight of endless scrub and bushes made his scalp tingle.

Murphy's Law strikes again. The more you worry about something, the more likely it'll happen…

Here he was, dumped in the middle of nowhere, not a soul in sight.

After a moment to breathe, he dug through his pack, pulled out a clean set of clothes, and quickly changed. If not for his foresight, he'd be stuck standing in pajamas like some lunatic ghost haunting the fields.

"Right. No one's around anyway," he muttered, tugging on his jacket.

Once dressed, he surveyed the wilderness. Nothing but weeds and shrubs. Definitely no people.

Hold on… why not just transform and fly out of here? I'm an Ultraman, aren't I? Tiga can adjust his size, too—shrink down to human height, no problem.

With that flash of inspiration, Yuzhou reached into his clothes, searching for his Spark Lens.

And froze.

His hand came up empty. His face twisted as though he'd swallowed something foul.

"…You've got to be kidding me."

Then, full volume: "DAMN YOU!!!"

The Spark Lens wasn't here. It was still tucked in the pocket of the clothes he'd left back in his dingy little apartment.

Which meant—no Spark Lens, no transformation.

And wasn't he supposed to be here to fight monsters? How the hell was he supposed to do that now?

What do you do without a Spark Lens? Urgent. Online waiting!

"The damn rift screwed me over!" he howled, stumbling through the brush like a headless chicken.

"Yuuto, don't run off too far!"

A mature woman's voice rang out not far away.

"…Wait, someone's here?" Yuzhou turned toward the sound.

There stood a woman in a gray vest, hair tied back in a ponytail, glasses perched on her nose. Beside her was a boy, maybe ten years old, wearing an orange jacket, a gray cap, and a blue backpack. He was busy scouring the ground for odd stones.

Yuzhou's relief was immediate. Thank god, I won't have to spend the night out here alone.

He strode up to them—and froze again.

"…Rena?" he blurted, staring wide-eyed at the woman.

He knew that face. He'd seen it before in Ultraman Mebius & the Ultra Brothers. Rena—Daigo's old comrade.

But the woman looked older, mature. And with a kid in tow.

"What? I'm sorry, do I know you?" The woman tilted her head, puzzled that a stranger had appeared in such a desolate place.

"Rena, don't you remember me? I'm Daigo's friend—Yuzhou!" His Japanese was rough but understandable. He'd crammed the basics over the past month, and it was finally paying off.

But the woman only smiled politely and shook her head. "I think you've mistaken me for someone else. My name is Tsukasa Tamaki. I'm a professor at East Capital University. As for this Daigo you mentioned, I don't know him."

"…Huh?" Yuzhou blinked, completely thrown. She looked exactly like Rena—but wasn't Rena. A professor, a child… and no clue who Daigo was.

So much for returning to the Ultra Brothers world. This was clearly different.

"Sorry about that. My mistake," he admitted with an awkward laugh.

"No harm done." Tamaki's tone remained polite. Then she studied him more closely. "Your Japanese… it doesn't sound native. Why are you out here in the wilderness?"

"Ah, well, I'm Chinese. I only just started learning Japanese, so… yeah, it's rough. As for why I'm here…" He scratched his head. "Honestly, you probably wouldn't believe me if I told you. I don't even know myself."

Tamaki gave him a measured look, then said, "I'm here for an archaeological survey. There's a pyramid nearby with some unusual disturbances. You should leave this area—it could be dangerous."

Yuzhou blinked again. Not at her words—but at her language.

She had just spoken fluent Mandarin.

"You… speak Chinese?"

"Yes," she said with a faint smile. "I'm a university professor and archaeologist. I've studied many languages, even some ancient scripts."

"…That's incredible." Yuzhou couldn't help but praise her. Then his ears caught a keyword. "Wait, did you say… pyramid?"

The word hit him like a bolt of lightning.

A pyramid. A disturbance. And in Ultraman lore, pyramids were rarely just pyramids.

"Yes. The site is a pyramid. It's emitting strange electromagnetic waves. I've already contacted XIO—they're sending a team to investigate."

"XIO…?" Yuzhou latched onto the name. Of course—this world had its own defense team. Which meant…

"Tell me," he asked quickly, "when was the last time a monster appeared here?"

Tamaki blinked at the odd question, but answered anyway. "Hmm… I don't quite remember. But you don't need to worry. XIO is strong, and besides—Ultraman X is here to protect us."

"Ultraman X…"

And suddenly, it clicked.

The wilderness. The Rena-lookalike professor. Her child, Yuuto. The pyramid ruins. XIO's involvement.

This wasn't the Ultra Brothers' world. This was the Ultraman X the Movie timeline.

Inside that very pyramid was Enmargo, the ancient kaiju Segmeger, sealed away. There was also a green crystal stone—one that could become Ultraman's very first host.

And most importantly of all: a stone statue of Ultraman Tiga himself.

In the movie, Tiga appeared because a young boy—this very Yuuto—pressed the transformation device inside his backpack.

Yuzhou's gaze slid toward the boy, who was still rummaging for rocks. His blue backpack bounced with each movement.

If I remember right… that's where the Spark Lens is. The one that lets Yuuto transform into Tiga.

Slowly, Yuzhou's eyes narrowed.

I may not have brought mine… but maybe I can find a new one.

 

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