The end of dimensional teleportation was a miserable return.
The light faded inside Shen Yong's apartment, and he dropped from midair like a puppet with its strings cut, crashing heavily onto the floor.
He didn't even have the strength to groan.
An unprecedented weakness seized him.
It wasn't simple muscle fatigue—it was a cold emptiness rising from the depths of his bones, like stepping out of a warm bed into winter air. His entire body felt frozen, as if the warmth of his life itself had been drained away during that journey across mountains and seas.
He tried to crawl up.
But his eyelids felt as heavy as lead.
Just before his consciousness sank into darkness, he managed to dismiss the Beta Capsule, sending it back into its unknown dimension.
Then he fell into a long, chaotic sleep.
In his dream, he was no longer the Giant of Light.
Instead, he was a consciousness tossed into a violent torrent of data.
Strange images streaked past him at impossible speed.
His body seemed to be torn apart, disassembled, and reconstructed again and again.
Sometimes expanding.
Sometimes shrinking.
The endless dizziness and weightlessness made him want to scream and vomit.
But he couldn't make a sound.
At one point, he dreamed he had become a dying star—its light fading, its core growing cold.
He didn't know how much time passed before he finally woke from the nightmare.
Night had fallen again outside the window.
He had slept for at least an entire day.
Groaning, he forced himself to his feet.
Every movement made his joints cry out in protest.
He staggered into the kitchen and devoured every high-calorie item in his refrigerator.
Only after eating did the bone-deep chill in his body begin to fade.
When he finally turned on his personal terminal, he discovered something shocking.
During the time he had been unconscious—
The entire world had exploded into chaos because of him.
He was no longer just the "mysterious giant of Yangjibang."
Global media had given him new titles:
"Guardian of the World."
"Humanity's Ultraman."
"The Phantom Giant."
His brief two-minute battle in London had been viewed billions of times across global networks.
Every detail was analyzed.
His clean shoulder throw had even been given a name:
"The London Impact."
Teenagers around the world were already trying to imitate the move.
Public opinion, however, had split completely.
In the Asian Division—especially Yangjibang—most people saw him as a true hero, humanity's only hope against monsters.
But in other regions, especially Europe where he had appeared unexpectedly, public sentiment was far more complicated.
A mixture of awe.
Gratitude.
And deep unease.
A fifty-meter-tall giant who could ignore all borders and appear anywhere on Earth in seconds…
Such an existence shattered every traditional concept of security.
One widely shared comment from the American Division read:
"He appeared in London today to save people. Tomorrow he could appear in my city and crush my house."
EUC Global Council Headquarters — Geneva
A top-level emergency conference was underway.
Around the enormous circular table sat the highest-ranking officials from every EUC division.
Mark Reyes' holographic projection flickered angrily on the screen.
"We almost had him!"
His voice thundered through the chamber.
"The European Division reacted too slowly!"
"That thing is a humanoid strategic weapon with intercontinental strike capability and instantaneous deployment!"
"And we know nothing about his identity, purpose, or motives!"
"Today he saved London. Tomorrow he could appear in Geneva and use this building as a chair!"
"We must capture him—control him—study him—at any cost!"
His tone was pure military determination.
Then another voice spoke calmly.
"General, I cannot agree with you."
Ellie Solen appeared on the opposite screen.
"You see a weapon," she said quietly.
"I see a choice."
"He chose to cross half the planet to help a city that had nothing to do with him."
"If saving Yangjibang could be explained by coincidence or personal interest, what about London?"
"A city he had no connection to. No strategic value."
"That proves something important."
"He is fighting for humanity."
She paused and scanned the room.
"And how did we respond to that goodwill?"
"With fighter jets and armored vehicles surrounding him."
Her gaze sharpened.
"Have we forgotten why the EUC was created?"
"History has shown again and again that suspicion and hostility create enemies."
"If we continue to treat him as a threat, one day he may truly become one."
"I propose that we stop hostile tracking operations and attempt to establish an open communication channel."
"Show him our goodwill."
"Communication?"
Mark scoffed.
"How exactly do you plan to do that?"
"Send a drone with a sign that says Hello, want to talk?"
"Doctor Solen, spare us the naïve idealism."
"When communication is impossible, security must come first."
The argument lasted nearly an hour.
Finally, the chairman of the EUC Council—an elderly man with silver hair and piercing eyes—raised his hand.
Silence fell across the chamber.
"Doctor Solen's concerns are valid."
"We must not push a potential ally into becoming an enemy."
"But Colonel Reyes' concerns are equally real."
"A power of this magnitude, uncontrolled and unpredictable, is a sword hanging above humanity."
"Until communication becomes possible, we must maintain the initiative."
He turned toward Mark's hologram.
"I approve your 'Siren's Net' operation."
"But remember this: our primary objective is control and dialogue."
"Elimination is the final option—only if absolutely necessary."
Shen Yong learned about this decision the next day through global news broadcasts.
The EUC had issued a public statement.
According to the announcement, scientists had already analyzed the behavioral patterns of Gesura and discovered a weakness to certain sound frequencies.
In three days, the EUC would deploy an unprecedented system in the Dover Strait, between Britain and mainland Europe.
The system included:
Siren-class sonic weapons
and a high-energy particle containment grid.
Their goal:
Destroy Gesura—or capture it alive.
The spokesperson even hinted that the mysterious giant might appear again.
They publicly thanked him for helping humanity.
It almost sounded like an invitation for him to assist in defeating Gesura.
On the news screen, massive EUC fleets gathered in the strait.
Dozens of enormous engineering ships were deploying underwater devices resembling giant buoys.
It looked like preparations for a decisive battle.
But Shen Yong felt a chill run down his spine.
This was an open trap.
A massive one.
Maybe the monster analysis was real.
Maybe the sonic weakness was real.
But fighting in the open ocean made little strategic sense.
And the EUC's new weapons could not realistically be deployed so quickly.
They were gambling.
They were betting that he would appear again to deal with Gesura.
The battlefield had been chosen deliberately:
An open sea.
Perfect for deploying a global-scale capture net.
Terrible terrain for his close-combat fighting style.
It was a trap designed specifically for him.
An invisible cage.
Go—or don't go?
If he went, he would fall directly into the EUC's net.
Not only facing the monster—
But humanity's most advanced weapons.
If he didn't go…
The EUC operation might fail.
Shen Yong had fought Gesura personally.
He didn't believe the EUC's current military strength could kill or capture it—
Especially in the ocean, where the monster had the advantage.
He had been checkmated.
Inside a dark spacecraft cockpit far above Earth, a humanoid shadow watched the news feed with amusement.
On the screen were two scenes:
The EUC fleet deployment.
And the fierce online debate about whether Ultraman would appear to help humanity.
The figure tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest.
A faint, disdainful smile appeared.
"What an interesting play."
"Weak humans always try to use fragile chains to control powers they cannot understand."
He murmured quietly.
"Go on, our little variable."
"Let me see what choice you make when you face both the monster's fangs…"
"…and humanity's cage."
"This game is becoming far more entertaining."