Aha's voice echoed in the ears of the audience across the infinite dimensions.
The Amber King was one of the oldest known Aeons, his true power unfathomable.
And as the Aeon of Preservation, Klipoth was undoubtedly the most dedicated and responsible of them all.
The cosmic walls he built were certainly not just for show.
During the Swarm Disaster alone, the walls of the Aeon of Preservation had protected countless sentient beings in populated regions of the cosmos.
From this perspective, the Amber King's merits needed no praise from the IPC.
To dare say the Amber King didn't understand humanity... in the entire universe, only Aha would make such a claim.
---o---
[Light Curtain Commentary]
"The Aeon of Elation, Aha. He really has been watching the Stellaron Hunters' movements all along."
In the world of Honkai, the Overseer of Schicksal, Otto, thought for a moment, a contemplative look appearing on his face.
"Granting dignity to life? When did Aha become so noble?"
This doesn't seem like something the Aeon of Elation would do, does it? It just doesn't add up.
To many viewers across the infinite dimensions, Aha was a pure fun-seeker. If there was fun to be had, he couldn't care less about life or dignity.
But now, the light curtain claimed that Aha was an Aeon who granted dignity to life, directly shattering the preconceived notions some held.
No one would doubt the accuracy of the light curtain, so they could only try to understand Aha's purpose in granting dignity to life.
[Sampo Koski: "The God of Fun is reborn! Suddenly, Lord Aha's clown mask doesn't seem so clownish anymore. It seems so much greater!"]
[Sparkle: "Granting dignity to life... hehehe... hahahaha! Truly worthy of Lord Aha, the God of Fun! If that's the case, then I can find my fun without any restraint~~"]
[Yukino Yukinoshita: "Granting dignity to life. What could have happened to make Aha adopt such a view?"]
[Acheron: "The Aeon of Elation. His antics cause many to underestimate him. In reality, his contributions to the cosmos are no less than the Amber King's."]
It was just that the common perception of Aha was stuck on his mischievousness and the trouble-stirring image created by the Masked Fools. That was why almost no one knew of Aha's actual contributions.
The fact that he could come and go freely among a host of Aeons without provoking too much hostility was surely for a reason.
---o---
[On the light curtain, although Aha had not yet appeared, his intentions could be discerned from his words.]
[He was going to help the Stellaron Hunters.]
[This caused the head of the IPC's Strategic Investment Department, a provisional member of the Board of Directors and an Emanator of Preservation, Aventurine, to break out in a cold sweat.]
[Who could have guessed that the unrestrained Aeon would appear in this place? If he was determined to help the Stellaron Hunters, then even as an Emanator of Preservation, he would likely be toyed with by Aha for his amusement.]
[But... when did the Stellaron Hunters get involved with Aha?]
[They were from completely different circles. Could it be because of Elio?]
[Countless questions plagued Aventurine, leaving him utterly bewildered.]
[Then again, with his mindset, he could never hope to understand Aha. Among all the Aeons, Aha was the most difficult to comprehend.]
"Klipoth, didn't you already have a talk with that person? Are you going back on your word?"
Without dwelling further on the topic of humanity, Aha guided the conversation toward Ultraman King.
Evidently... Ultraman King had said a lot to Klipoth. Otherwise, he wouldn't have broken the very wall he had worked so hard to build.
As for what the Amber King and Ultraman King specifically discussed, Aha wasn't interested.
It was just a bunch of rigid rules, the kind that no universe could escape. But to him, such things were made to be broken.
The Amber King couldn't find Aha's presence. If he was determined to hide, then even the Amber King could do nothing about it.
"...As you wish."
With those words, the Amber King vanished from the deck of the Stellaron Hunters' warship.
He didn't pursue the matter of the Stellaron Hunters provoking him. After all, why would a grown adult care about an infant's attack?
At most, he would chuckle and then sigh at their courage.
If not for Aha, the Stellaron Hunters would never have caught the Amber King's attention from beginning to end.
Their fates would have come to an abrupt end at Aventurine's hands.
Perhaps the Stellaron Hunters had many secrets, but at least for the four present, none of them could survive a single blow from Aventurine.
---o---
Similarly, the IPC had dispatched a massive fleet, but very few within it could capture the Amber King's notice. Perhaps only Aha was truly worthy of his attention among all those present.
"He's gone..."
After Aha and the Amber King finished their exchange, Aventurine also departed.
He had no reason to stick around and make a fool of himself, especially with Aha on the bridge. While the God of Fun's power level was always erratic, he was absolutely not an existence Aventurine could handle.
"So, what do we do next? Continue?"
After a moment of silence, Silver Wolf spoke up slowly. She had now lost control of the warship.
The genius was indeed formidable. Herta, using just a puppet, had managed to reclaim control of the thousand-ship fleet that had been stolen from the IPC.
"Lord Aha, Aeon of Elation, you know what we want to do now, don't you? I wonder if we mortals might have the honor of meeting you?" Kafka's voice was very cautious. When dealing with an Aeon, especially one who was paying close attention to them, no mortal could remain indifferent.
However, Kafka's wish was not to be granted. Aha gave no reply, as if he had never been there at all.
"He left?" Blade's face was impassive. He didn't think Aha would leave so easily.
But it was clear that Aha had no intention of speaking.
"What's this, are we just his entertainment?" Sam's voice carried a trace of dissatisfaction. He didn't think the Stellaron Hunters were worthy of an Aeon's attention.
Even if that Aeon was Aha of Elation.
As if in response to Sam's discontent, Aha's revelation followed: "Want to know where that little gray-hair is? Then follow that glowing thing."
Little gray-hair?
Hearing Aha's name for Stelle, the Stellaron Hunters were momentarily stunned.
But they quickly realized the person Aha was referring to was Stelle. Of course... Elation knew their objective from the very beginning.
Kafka turned her impassive face to the sky. "Thank you for your guidance, Aeon of Elation."
Not dwelling on the matter, she was already pleasantly surprised that the Aeon of Elation had offered to help. Given his unique nature, Kafka had no desire to become too entangled with him.
Today, Aha might be a friend; tomorrow, he could be an enemy.
"Silver Wolf, Blade, Sam, let's go. This warship is too big of a target, and there are too many uninvolved people on board. Let's take a ship from the warship, just the few of us."
As Kafka spoke, she began walking toward the exit.
"Follow that glowing thing."
What Aha was referring to was the being who had spoken with the Amber King earlier.
A god from another universe? Or some other lifeform? In any case, it was an existence whose power and status were no weaker than the Amber King's.
Overall, it was an extremely dangerous individual.
The light it radiated felt very warm, but... the Stellaron Hunters had always lived in the darkness; they couldn't bear the light.
Following an unknown god, they might be crushed like ants, but... they had no other choice now.
For Stelle, and for themselves.]
---o---
[Light Curtain Commentary]
[Father of Ultra: "Kafka and her group... their path is truly fraught with hardship. But fortunately, the King will not ignore them."]
As a fellow elder, Father of Ultra deeply understood Kafka's feelings.
If one of his own kids was disobedient, if Taro were to disappear without a word, Father of Ultra would absolutely not let a single clue slip by.
[Wants to Drink Mei's Sister Juice: "The Aeons are one more abstract than the next. Looking at it this way, Ultraman King is much more normal, just like an old grandpa."]
Compared to the Amber King, Ultraman King was just too approachable, to the point where it felt surreal.
[Stellaron Hunter Kafka: "After watching for so long, has our luck finally turned? Ultraman King... he's much easier to communicate with than all the other Aeons, and much easier to interact with."]
[Ruan Mei: "Ultraman King... an existence on par with the Aeons. Interacting with him will surely yield some brand-new insights."]
An Ultra who had existed for an unknown amount of time, the knowledge he had accumulated was enough to make any genius salivate.
[Universal Emperor Belial: "Hmph, an old, undying thing who knows a few things. Just seeing him makes me sick."]
[Detective Conan: "Wait... don't you have any scenes right now? You got your heart pierced by Father of Ultra. Are you telling me you can still come back from the dead?"]
[Yukino Yukinoshita: "Perhaps he can't bear to see Ultraman King being revered. After all, he was the one sealed away by Ultraman King back then, wasn't he?"]
[Super Scientist Ah Guang: "Belial... as a war hero, the King gave you more than one chance, but you..."]
The more Belial acted this way, the more disgusted Ultraman Hikari felt.
Had this guy's brain been fried after being locked up in the Space Prison for so long?
---o---
[On the light curtain, the figure of Ultraman King materialized in the video.]
[He had clearly witnessed the events that had just transpired, but he didn't know the full story, so it wasn't his place to intervene.]
[At this moment, Ultraman King hadn't expected that the Stellaron Hunters were already closing in on him under Aha's guidance.]
"Hm?"
Ultraman King looked with a puzzled gaze at the approaching ship.
Weren't those the same humans who had confronted the Amber King?
How did they get here?
Could it be... Thinking of a possibility, Ultraman King transformed into a streak of golden light and flew directly into the ship.
"You carry her scent on you."
Ultraman King's guess was correct. For someone to be audacious enough to directly confront the Amber King and even cross universes to do so...
Aside from a madman, there was only one other possibility.
They, like the Astral Express, had come for Stelle. And for some reason, Ultraman King sensed an aura on these four that was identical to Stelle's.
This was something that not even the people on the Astral Express had.
"Her?" Kafka frowned. She had already guessed who the "her" Ultraman King spoke of was.
But how did Stelle get involved with such a powerful monster? Did something terrible happen to her?
The more Kafka thought, the more worried she became. Following Elio's script, Stelle's growth should have required no intervention from her.
But now... Stelle's growth trajectory had completely deviated from the original path. She had undergone a new change. In that case, the likelihood of her returning to follow Elio's script was slim.
"Sigh, this child... what exactly happened to her... is she doing okay?"
The closer she got to Stelle, the more worried Kafka became, like a helpless mother, concerned about everything.
Ultraman King seemed to see through Kafka's worries. He stroked his beard and chuckled, "No need to worry. Stelle is doing very well in the Land of Light, with those children from that train."
This guy... a smiling tiger?
Forgive Blade, but his past experiences made him highly vigilant towards everything. The kindness emanating from Ultraman King only heightened his wariness.
But...
Blade stared at Ultraman King for a while but saw no other emotions.
Ultraman King was like a benevolent old man, without a hint of pretense.
Besides, with Ultraman King's power, there was absolutely no need for him to hide any hostility.
"Sir, excuse me... can we go with you to find Stelle? She is very important to us... Please!" Sam asked politely.
Her mind wasn't filled with so many twists and turns. Right now, she just wanted to see Stelle standing before her, safe and sound.
"Of course you can..." Ultraman King looked at Sam with a kind expression.
With his power, he could naturally see through to Sam's true form. But regardless of what that was, a polite child like this would always win an old man's affection.
And Ultraman King was precisely that kind of old man.
As he grew older, he had a soft spot for young people like this. Coupled with the connection to Stelle, Ultraman King quickly accepted the Stellaron Hunters' request.
With his power, crossing the sea of stars with a mere four people was a trivial matter.
Moreover, as time went on, the passage between the two universes would become even simpler.
"Really? Thank you so much, old sir."
Sam hadn't expected Ultraman King to agree so readily, and she certainly wasn't foolish enough to doubt the sincerity of his words.
After all, Ultraman King had no reason to deceive them.
"Stelle... I can finally see you..."
Sam murmured, and then, a gentle, warm golden light enveloped the Stellaron Hunters, flying toward a distant star.]
---o---