Lilith woke to the pale gray light of early morning slipping through half-drawn curtains. For a few seconds, she lay still, staring at the ceiling, listening to the city breathe outside her apartment—distant traffic, a siren far away, the hum of Tokyo never fully asleep.
Her black hair was a mess, strands falling across her eyes as she sat up with a groan. Muscles protested quietly. Another day. Another weight pressing behind her ribs.
She swung her legs over the bed and padded toward the bathroom.
Steam filled the small space as the shower started. Warm water cascaded down her shoulders, tracing over old scars she never talked about. She leaned her forehead against the tiled wall, eyes closed, letting the heat loosen tension she carried like a second spine. Soap, steam, skin flushed pink under the water—brief, human moments she allowed herself before the world demanded the detective again.
When she stepped out, towel wrapped around her, the mirror reflected tired eyes that still burned with resolve. She dressed quickly: dark slacks, fitted shirt, coat hanging neatly by the door. Coffee brewed while she tied her hair back, the rich smell grounding her. She drank in silence, ate a simple breakfast, methodical, disciplined.
Before leaving, she paused, fingers brushing the brim of her hat.
"Alright," she murmured. "Let's do this."
Outside, the morning air was sharp. Lilith walked past the police department without slowing, footsteps echoing down a side street most people ignored. She stopped at a narrow alley—graffiti-stained, cluttered with trash bags and flickering neon reflections.
She knocked.
Not on a door.
On the wall.
Three knocks. Pause. Two more.
Stone shifted. A seam appeared where none should exist.
Inside the hidden base, tension snapped instantly.
Haruto was the first to speak. "How could someone know our location?"
Kenta crossed his arms, jaw tight. "We might've been followed. Or tracked. Maybe during the Ghidorah fight."
Elyra didn't even look up from the console. "You're both idiots," she said flatly. "That was always a possibility."
Miles shifted uneasily. "Uh… should we… answer it?"
Saskia shrugged, palms up. "If it's bad, we're already exposed."
Mr. Yoshida tapped at a control pad, eyes narrowing as camera feeds popped up. The alley view stabilized, zoomed in.
Lilith's face filled the screen.
He sighed. "That explains it. She's been here before."
Haruto and Kenta nodded almost in unison.
"Oh," Elyra added casually, "that was the time I almost vaporized her with a tank blast while saving these two idiots."
"That was one time," Kenta protested.
Haruto scratched his cheek. "You did aim really close."
The hidden door hissed open.
Lilith stepped inside, coat swaying slightly as the door sealed behind her. She scanned the room instinctively—exits, tech, people—then locked eyes with Haruto.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
She didn't hesitate. "Nebula Industries."
The room stilled.
"I tried handling it alone," Lilith continued, voice low. "Surveillance, infiltration, warrants, pressure from the inside. It didn't work. Every time I got close, the trail vanished. Dr. Verax isn't just clean—he's untouchable."
Mr. Yoshida folded his arms. "And now you want help."
She exhaled sharply. "I don't like asking. But yes."
He studied her for a long moment. Then nodded. "You can stay. On one condition."
Lilith raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"
"You join us," he said. "Fully."
She closed her eyes briefly, then sighed. "Fine. Deal."
One of the hovering drones drifted over to Elyra and tapped her shoulder lightly. It emitted a rapid stream of mechanical chirps and coded tones. Elyra's eyes flickered blue as she processed it.
She straightened. "Alert. Something has appeared in the eastern cave systems."
The central monitor lit up.
A massive object filled the screen.
A giant egg.
Its surface was cracked like cooled magma, veins glowing a soft, pulsing red from within, as if something inside was breathing. The light throbbed slowly, rhythmically.
Silence swallowed the room.
Miles whispered, "That's… not normal."
Saskia swallowed. "That's not alive, right?"
Everyone stared—everyone except Elyra, Mr. Yoshida… and Lilith.
They were already moving.
The caves were enormous, ancient stone corridors carved by time and pressure. Their footsteps echoed unnaturally as they entered, lights cutting thin beams through thick darkness. The air smelled metallic, heavy, like ozone and wet earth.
Haruto slowed, instincts screaming.
He looked at Kenta.
"Kenta," he said quietly. "It doesn't feel safe."
The red glow pulsed deeper within the cave.
And something, somewhere in the dark, shifted.
The red glow inside the cavern pulsed faster.
Once…
Twice…
Then the egg jerked violently, small cracks spiderwebbing across its surface.
Haruto stepped back, hand already hovering over his belt. "That's moving way too much…"
Kenta's stance lowered. "On my mark we transform."
Lilith's hand hovered near her own belt, eyes sharp beneath her hat. Miles instinctively lifted a handful of LEGO bricks from his pouch. Saskia adjusted the Printer belt at her waist, scanning the shell with a projected HUD.
Elyra didn't move.
The egg gave one final THUMP — then split open with a wet crack.
Something small tumbled out onto the cave floor.
Everyone froze.
It… blinked.
The creature was about the size of a large dog, round and chubby with stubby legs. Its skin was a soft, pale gray with faint glowing lines running like circuitry beneath the surface. A tiny beak — long and narrow like a goblin shark's — twitched as it sniffed the air. On its head sat a short, spiraled drill horn, dull and smooth rather than sharp. Its tail wiggled clumsily behind it.
It sneezed.
A tiny puff of dust shot out of its beak.
Silence filled the cavern.
"…That's it?" Kenta muttered.
Haruto blinked. "…That's the giant threat?"
The little monster wobbled forward, tripped over its own feet, and rolled onto its back with a squeaky chirp.
Elyra suddenly sprinted past them.
"Elyra— WAIT—!" Haruto hissed.
Too late.
She slid on her knees across the cave floor and scooped the creature up like it was a puppy. "OH MY GOD IT'S ADORABLE."
The monster made a happy clicking noise, tiny legs kicking.
Kenta and Haruto just stared.
"…We almost transformed for that," Kenta said flatly.
Miles hurried over, eyes sparkling. "It's so round!" He gently poked its belly. The creature grabbed his finger with surprising gentleness and gnawed on his glove.
Saskia stayed back, arms folded, observing. "Energy readings are… strange. Not aggressive. But not normal either."
The creature's drill horn began spinning slowly with a soft whrrrr, like a content cat purring.
Elyra scratched under its chin. "You are not a kaiju. You are a baby. A dumb, precious baby."
Lilith lowered her guard but didn't step closer. "You sure that thing isn't going to explode?"
"It just hatched," Elyra said. "Even world-ending horrors start small."
"That's not comforting," Haruto replied.
The creature suddenly wriggled free, plopped onto the ground, and toddled toward Kenta. It sniffed his shoe… then bonked its drill lightly against his shin.
Tap.
Kenta stiffened. "…Did it just headbutt me?"
The monster chirped proudly.
Miles laughed. "It likes you!"
"I don't want it to like me," Kenta said, but he crouched down anyway. The creature immediately climbed onto his knee and tried to chew the zipper on his jacket.
Haruto rubbed the back of his neck. "So… what now? We just… take it home?"
Saskia finally stepped forward and scanned again. A small holographic window popped up. "Its core energy signature matches the egg's radiation. But it's… stable. Almost… imprinted?"
"Imprinted on who?" Haruto asked.
The baby monster turned its head slowly.
And stared directly at Elyra.
Its tail thumped happily against the cave floor.
Elyra froze. "…Oh no."
Kenta smirked. "Congratulations. You're a mom."
"I AM NOT RAISING A DRILL GOBLIN."
The creature toddled back to her and clung to her leg.
Lilith pinched the bridge of her nose. "We are not bringing a mystery alien into headquarters without containment."
"Too late," Elyra said as the creature started happily chewing on her sleeve. "It has chosen me."
From the comms, Mr. Yoshida's voice crackled in.
"I'm watching this live and I don't know whether to be relieved or deeply concerned."
Haruto looked up toward the small cam-drone hovering near the cave ceiling. "Sensei… what is it?"
A pause.
"…I don't know," Mr. Yoshida admitted. "But that egg was not natural. And things that hatch from unknown cosmic eggs rarely stay harmless."
The baby monster rolled onto its back again, paws in the air.
Miles immediately rubbed its belly. "Look at it! It can't even stand properly!"
"Neither could Godzilla when it was born," Lilith muttered.
Elyra gently picked it up again. The creature curled against her chest, drill slowing to a soft idle spin.
Haruto exhaled slowly. "So… we have a baby… space… drill thing."
Kenta nodded. "And somehow that's still not the weirdest thing this month."
Saskia adjusted her glasses, still watching carefully. "We should move. If that egg was here, something may have put it here."
The cave suddenly felt colder.
The red glow from the broken shell faded completely, leaving only darkness and the soft whirring of the tiny drill horn.
Mr. Yoshida spoke quietly through the comms.
"Bring it back. Carefully. I want full scans."
Elyra hugged the creature protectively. "Hear that? You're coming home, little chaos gremlin."
The baby monster chirped happily.
Mr. Yoshida's voice suddenly blasted through their earpieces.
"EMERGENCY! Multiple casualties reported downtown! Large unidentified lifeform — drill-type — is rampaging through the financial district. Nebula Industries units are already engaging!"
Every belt on their waists lit up red at the same time. A 3D map spun into view, highlighting a blinking hotspot in the middle of the city.
Haruto's stomach dropped. "Another one…?"
Kenta was already moving. "No time to think!" He sprinted toward the cave exit. "We go NOW!"
Elyra adjusted her grip on the baby creature. "Great. Field trip already." She glanced at it. "You are NOT allowed to grow into that, okay?"
The little monster chirped, oblivious.
Lilith pulled her coat tighter and followed. "If there's a second one, this wasn't an accident."
Miles scrambled after them, LEGO bricks clinking. "I'll build evac routes!"
Saskia activated a drone projection from her belt. "I'll scan structural integrity when we arrive."
They burst out of the cave entrance into daylight and didn't slow down.
By the time they reached the city outskirts, the sky was filled with smoke.
Sirens wailed. Helicopters circled. Buildings in the distance shook as something massive roared.
They turned the final corner—
—and saw it.
A gigantic drill-headed monster, easily ten stories tall, rampaging through the streets. Its body was bulky and armored in dark, rock-like plating. A massive rotating drill horn tore through concrete as it smashed its head into a skyscraper, sending glass raining down like deadly confetti.
Around it, sleek white Nebula Industries combat robots hovered and strafed, firing blue plasma rounds.
"SOL units engaging target," a robotic voice echoed from their loudspeakers. "Civilian casualties minimized. Masked Charger assistance not required."
One robot got too close.
The monster's tail whipped out and crushed it midair, metal fragments scattering like fireworks.
Haruto clenched his fists. "They're going to make it worse…"
A bus lay tipped over nearby, people trapped inside screaming.
Haruto turned to the team. His voice snapped into leader mode instantly.
"We save people first. Monster comes second."
Kenta skidded to a stop, revving energy already humming through his belt. "…Yeah. Yeah, you're right."
Elyra passed the baby creature to Miles. "Hold the child."
"I'm WHAT?!" Miles barely caught it.
"Don't drop it," she said, already running.
Haruto pointed. "Kenta, bus! Elyra, collapsing building left side! Saskia, drones for crowd control! Lilith, rooftops — watch for falling debris!"
"And you?" Kenta shouted.
Haruto was already sprinting toward a group of civilians frozen in the street as rubble fell behind them.
"I'll clear the road!"
Concrete exploded nearby as the giant drill monster slammed its head into the pavement, sending a shockwave down the block.
People screamed.
Haruto slid between them and the falling debris, bracing himself as a streetlight pole crashed down. He caught it on his shoulder and shoved it aside.
"MOVE! THIS WAY!" he shouted, guiding them into an underground parking entrance.
Kenta ripped the bus doors off their hinges with a grunt. "Okay, okay, everyone out! One at a time — don't push!" He lifted the entire side of the bus so trapped passengers could crawl free.
A child tripped.
Kenta caught him with one hand. "Whoa, little dude. I got you."
Above, Elyra leapt between crumbling balconies with mechanical precision. She kicked a falling chunk of concrete away from a woman on a fire escape.
"Go down the stairs, not the elevator!" she ordered.
A Nebula drone zipped past her and fired a missile at the kaiju.
It hit.
Smoke cleared.
The monster didn't even flinch.
It turned — and charged directly toward the evacuation zone.
Haruto saw it coming.
"…No, no, no— EVERYONE DOWN!" he shouted.
The massive drill slammed into the street, tearing up asphalt like paper. Cars flipped. Shockwaves shattered windows for blocks.
Lilith dropped from a rooftop, grabbing two civilians and rolling behind a concrete barrier as debris rained down.
Saskia's holographic drones projected bright arrows. "Evacuation route updated! This way!"
Miles, still holding the baby creature under one arm, frantically built a LEGO barrier wall to shield fleeing people.
"This is insane!" he yelled.
The baby monster peeked over the wall and chirped excitedly.
"THIS IS NOT PLAYTIME!"
A Nebula Industries dropship descended overhead. Loudspeakers boomed:
"Citizens, remain calm. SOL-01 and SOL-02 will neutralize the threat."
Two massive humanoid combat robots slammed into the street, sleek and polished, glowing cores bright.
They fired coordinated beams at the drill kaiju.
The explosion rocked the block.
When the smoke cleared…
The kaiju roared and burst through the blast, barely scratched.
It swung its drill head sideways—
—and tore SOL-02 in half.
Metal screeched. Civilians screamed louder.
Haruto watched, breathing hard.
"They can't handle it…"
Kenta joined him, soot-covered. "Everyone nearby's clear!"
Elyra landed beside them. "Left sector evacuated."
Lilith stepped up, calm but tense. "So now we hit it?"
Haruto looked at the chaos. Burning cars. Cracked streets. Robots retreating.
His hand hovered over his belt.
"…Now we fight."
The drill monster roared again, locking onto them.
Its drill began to spin faster.
The ground started to shake as it lowered its head to charge.
Behind them, the last group of civilians disappeared into the shelter entrance.
Haruto took a steady breath.
"Alright… let's bring it down."
A thunderous boom split the sky.
Everyone looked up as clouds parted and a familiar silhouette descended through smoke and sunlight — the mech.
Its metal frame gleamed despite the battle scars from previous fights. Thrusters burned bright blue as it dropped like a falling star, slamming into the street between the kaiju and a row of high-rise buildings.
The impact cratered the road.
Inside their earpieces, Mr. Yoshida's voice came through, calm but urgent.
"Board immediately! We cannot let that creature reach the dense sectors!"
Panels along the mech's torso opened with a hiss.
"MOVE!" Haruto shouted.
Kenta grabbed a fallen street sign and pole-vaulted onto the mech's arm as an entry hatch slid open. Elyra boosted herself with a burst from her leg thrusters. Lilith grappled upward with cartoonish elasticity. Saskia projected a hard-light ramp while Miles built a staircase of snapping bricks mid-air.
They dove inside just as the kaiju lunged.
The drill horn scraped across the mech's chest plating, sparks screaming as metal groaned.
"ALL PILOTS SYNCHRONIZING!" Yoshida called out.
Systems roared to life.
Haruto dropped into the head control harness, holographic samurai crests forming around his interface.
Kenta slammed into the right arm rig, chainsaw energy revving to life around the mech's forearms.
Elyra locked into the leg thruster controls, Dante-styled boosters humming.
Miles synced with the core chassis, LEGO armor plating layering over critical joints.
Saskia took the back artillery system, Printer Belt projecting rotating weapon schematics.
Lilith integrated into the tactical assist feed, cartoon physics overlays predicting impact arcs.
The mech's eyes flashed on.
"TARGET LOCKED."
The kaiju roared and charged.
"Push it out of downtown!" Haruto commanded.
Elyra fired the leg thrusters. The mech dashed forward with shocking speed and shoulder-checked the monster mid-charge. The collision sounded like two trains crashing.
Concrete exploded under their feet as both titans skidded across the street.
"LEFT FLANK CLEAR — BOOST!" Elyra called.
They drove the kaiju through a line of empty vehicles and straight out of the commercial district. Buildings gave way to a construction zone and then to a wide riverside reclamation field.
"Good, good — less civilians," Saskia muttered, fingers flying across holographic keys.
The kaiju dug its claws into the ground and stopped their momentum. Its drill spun faster — glowing red.
"Brace!" Kenta yelled.
The monster head-butted the mech.
BOOOOM.
Warning lights flooded the cockpit.
DURABILITY: 91%
The mech staggered back, heels carving trenches through dirt.
"Arm weapons online!" Kenta roared, slamming both control levers forward.
Twin chainsaw energy blades erupted along the mech's forearms. He swung hard, carving sparks across the monster's armored shoulder. Blackened chunks of rocky hide flew.
The kaiju shrieked and backhanded them.
They crashed through a half-built steel framework, beams collapsing like pick-up sticks.
Miles reinforced the chest plating mid-fall. "Armor holding! Mostly!"
Haruto steadied the head controls. "We keep it focused on us — don't let it burrow!"
As if understanding, the kaiju slammed its drill into the ground.
The earth exploded.
A shockwave launched the mech skyward in a spray of soil and shattered stone.
"Thrusters!" Haruto barked.
Elyra fired the leg boosters, flipping them mid-air. They landed hard, knees denting the ground.
But the monster was already gone.
"…Underground," Lilith said quietly.
The ground bulged.
"MOVE!" Yoshida shouted.
The kaiju erupted beneath them, drill first, slamming into the mech's torso and launching them across the field. They skipped like a stone across dirt before smashing into a riverside embankment.
DURABILITY: 78%
Inside, alarms wailed.
Kenta spat, gripping controls tighter. "Okay, I officially hate this thing!"
The monster didn't give them time. It barreled forward on all fours, faster than something that size should move.
"Artillery, fire!" Haruto called.
Saskia rotated weapon profiles. "Switching to laser spread!"
Shoulder cannons unfolded and unleashed a barrage of crimson beams. Explosions rippled across the kaiju's chest, slowing it — but not stopping it.
It leapt.
"BLOCK!" Haruto shouted.
The mech crossed its chainsaw arms. The kaiju's drill slammed between them, grinding, shrieking, pushing closer to the cockpit.
Metal screamed.
Kenta roared back, revving power. "NOT — TODAY!"
He forced the arms outward, diverting the drill just enough for Elyra to fire full thrusters.
They kicked the monster square in the chest, launching it backward across the field.
It hit the riverbank and rolled, tearing a trench through mud and water.
Everyone panted inside the cockpit.
Miles whispered, "Why is it so tanky…"
Because the fight wasn't close to over.
The kaiju slowly stood again, water cascading off its armor. Its drill glowed brighter — molten lines forming across its body like lava veins.
Lilith's voice went tight. "Energy spike. It's adapting."
The monster opened its mouth.
A beam of compressed, spiraling energy blasted out, carving a canyon through the field and slamming into the mech.
Everything went white.
Systems flickered.
DURABILITY: 61%
Smoke filled the cockpit displays.
Haruto wiped blood from his lip. "Status!"
"Arms still attached!" Kenta yelled. "That's the good news!"
"Thrusters overheating," Elyra said through gritted teeth.
"Armor integrity dropping but stable," Miles added.
The kaiju lowered its head again, preparing another charge.
Haruto tightened his grip.
"…Round two."
The mech straightened, battered but standing, steam rising from its frame as it faced the roaring drill titan across the ruined field.
And then they ran at each other again.
The charge never came.
A thunderclap split the sky — not from the storm clouds above, but from somewhere beyond the skyline.
A scarlet beam tore across the horizon.
It struck the kaiju's head mid-roar.
For a fraction of a second everything froze — the monster's drill still spinning, claws mid-step, the mech braced for impact.
Then the beam punched clean through.
A perfect, smoking hole burned from one side of its skull to the other. Molten edges glowed white-hot before cooling to black. The massive body staggered forward two steps… then collapsed like a falling mountain.
The ground quaked as it hit.
Silence followed. No roar. No movement.
Inside the cockpit, no one spoke.
"…What just happened?" Kenta finally whispered.
Lilith rerouted an external camera feed. "Source… northeast."
All visual feeds turned.
Far beyond the ruined field, past the river, past the distant blocks of the financial district, a towering industrial complex loomed. Metal spires. Satellite dishes. Energy coils glowing red.
On its highest platform, a colossal cannon smoked.
And standing in front of it, hands in his lab coat pockets, hair perfectly in place despite the wind…
Dr. Verax.
Even from kilometers away, the zoom caught it — his calm, satisfied smirk.
"Of course…" Saskia muttered.
"He waited," Elyra said flatly. "He let us fight it."
Miles' voice shook. "He used us to stall it…"
Before anyone could respond, a small shape wriggled out from behind the mech's internal chassis.
"Wait— MILES!" Haruto shouted.
The baby drill creature — the one they had found in the cave — had slipped free from Miles' LEGO harness. It squeezed through a maintenance gap and leapt out of the mech's open shoulder plating before anyone could stop it.
It hit the ground and ran.
Fast.
"NO—!" Kenta yelled.
The tiny creature skittered across rubble and scorched earth, ignoring the steam and debris. It reached the fallen giant and slowed, making soft, chirping sounds.
It nudged the massive claw.
Rubbed its small head against the lifeless paw.
Again.
And again.
Waiting for a response that never came.
Inside the cockpit, something broke.
Haruto's breathing turned shaky.
"…Open the hatch," he said quietly.
"Haruto—" Lilith started.
"Open it."
The mech powered down partially as the chest hatch slid open. Haruto climbed out onto the metal plating, the wind whipping his coat.
He pressed the release on his belt.
The samurai armor dissolved into light.
He stood there in his torn clothes, staring at the scene below — the baby creature curling against its mother's claw, letting out small, confused whines.
His voice trembled.
"…It wasn't attacking cities," he said.
Everyone listened in silence.
"It was following the signal from the cave… looking for its baby."
Below, the tiny creature pawed at the still, cooling armor of the dead kaiju's face, nudging it like it might wake up.
Haruto's fists shook at his sides.
"…We pushed it here."
No one argued.
In the distance, Verax turned away from the cannon, coat fluttering as he walked back into the facility like he'd just completed a routine test.
A test that ended a life.
The baby let out a soft, broken sound and curled up against the massive body.
And for the first time since becoming Masked Chargers…
No one felt like heroes.
Kenta's hands were shaking.
Not from fear.
From rage.
"I'm going to kill him," he snapped, voice cracking as he stared toward the distant skyline where Nebula Industries stood like a metal god. "I don't care what it takes — I'm going to rip that smug look off Dr. Verax's face."
Elyra didn't joke. Didn't tease. She just watched him quietly.
Haruto still stood on the mech's shoulder, eyes locked on the baby creature curled beside its mother's body.
"…Kenta," he said softly. Not a command. Not a lecture.
Just his name.
Kenta looked at him, jaw tight… then looked away, breathing hard.
The wind carried ash across the ruined field.
None of them felt like they'd won anything.
Later — Base
The lab felt quieter than usual.
No one celebrated.
No one argued.
They just sat around the main table, still in their civilian clothes, dust and dried sweat marking where armor used to be.
Mr. Yoshida stood in front of the central monitor, arms folded. His glasses reflected the light of multiple news channels playing at once.
"…You all did well," he said at last, though even he sounded unsure.
Elyra glanced at him. "You don't sound convinced."
"I'm not," he admitted.
He switched the main screen to a live broadcast.
Crowds filled city streets.
Protest signs.
Shouting.
Divided voices.
"NEBULA SAVES LIVES!"
"STOP CORPORATE WEAPON TESTING!"
"MASKED CHARGERS PROTECT THE PEOPLE!"
"WE TRUST SOL UNITS!"
Footage rolled of Verax's cannon firing — edited to look heroic. Clean. Necessary.
Then clips of Masked Chargers fighting across the globe.
Different angles. Different narratives.
Different truths.
"They're controlling the story," Lilith said quietly.
"Public trust is splitting," Saskia added. "Fifty-two percent approval for Nebula response units after today."
Kenta scoffed. "Yeah, because they didn't show the part where he used a kaiju as target practice."
Miles looked down. "People only see what's on screen…"
Mr. Yoshida muted the TV.
"For now, go home. Rest. We think clearer tomorrow."
No one argued.
They dispersed slowly.
Evening — Neighborhood Streets
Streetlights flickered on as Haruto and Kenta walked side by side.
Neither had transformed back into heroes. Just two tired high school boys with messy hair and heavy thoughts.
A group of middle schoolers passed them, excitedly talking.
"BRO did you SEE the 7th Blade Bearer today?? That helmet was SICK!"
"Nah nah, Revving Storm is way cooler — chainsaws, man!"
"And that Copy of Masks one?? The laser cannons?? INSANE."
"The Caster of Imaginations armor was kinda cute though, not gonna lie."
"Game Charger's voice was adorable."
"And the Cartoon Strider?? The way she moved was hilarious!"
They walked past, still buzzing with excitement.
Haruto and Kenta stopped.
Looked at each other.
Then both burst out laughing — tired, quiet, but real.
"Cute armor, huh?" Kenta nudged him.
"At least they didn't call Seven Samurai cute," Haruto replied.
They started walking again, shoulders a little lighter.
No one around them knew.
The heroes they were praising…
Lived right there.
Shared those sidewalks
Worried about homework.
Missed people they couldn't save.
"…We'll stop him," Haruto said quietly.
Kenta nodded. "Yeah. Next time."
They split at the corner like always.
"Night, hero."
"Night, idiot."
Back at the Lab
Most lights were off.
Elyra lay in her charging pod, soft blue power lines pulsing along her arms. Her expression was peaceful, systems running low-power cycles.
In the main lab, only one lamp remained on.
Mr. Yoshida sat cross-legged on the floor.
In front of him, the baby drill creature wobbled around on unsteady legs, sniffing wires and gently headbutting a toolbox.
He reached out slowly.
The creature chirped and bumped its head against his hand.
He froze… then carefully scratched behind its small ear ridge.
It made a soft, rumbling sound.
"…You're not a weapon," he murmured.
No cameras. No team. No expectations.
Just a tired old engineer… and a baby that didn't understand why the world hurt.
The creature curled into his lap.
And for a moment…
Mr. Yoshida let himself smile.