This is bad!
The Astral Express and the Stellaron Hunters have met!
The birth mother has met the adoptive mother!!
At this moment, across the infinite dimensions, if you had to ask who was panicking the most, it was undoubtedly Stelle herself.
The two factions that both cared about her had run into each other, and aside from the mascots Pom-Pom and Elio, nearly everyone was present!
Could there be anything more terrifying in the universe than this?
---o---
[Light Curtain Commentary]
[Iori Kitahara: "Masaka, could it be... this is the legendary... shuraba!!"]
[Kohei Imamura: "Da-damn it! I want two mature, beautiful women to fight over me too!!"]
[Chisa Kotegawa: "You two... act normal! What shuraba? Stelle is clearly a girl. And... besides, rather than a shuraba, isn't this more like two mothers fighting over a child?"]
[March 7th: "Exactly! What shuraba? Stelle is obviously mine... wait... two mothers fighting over a child??"]
[Firefly: "Since when was Stelle yours? She's obviously mine... I mean, she belongs to us Stellaron Hunters!"]
[Himeko of the Astral Express: "Tsk, what kind of talk is that? While it's true that Stelle is an indispensable member of the Astral Express and a dear companion, I haven't quite started thinking of her as my child yet."]
[Stellaron Hunter Kafka: "Hmm... I don't mind, really. Stelle, if you like, you can call me whatever you want."]
[Galaxy Baseballer: "No... stop talking! I'm going to die of social embarrassment..."]
The "her" in the video might be fine since she's unaware of the light curtain's existence, but the current her knows everything! With so many people across the infinite dimensions watching, the perfect image the video had built up is completely ruined!!
---o---
["What a coincidence? Or are you here to disrupt the Stellaron Hunters' conspiracy?"
Kafka's words provoked Himeko's dissatisfaction. They were the ones who found Stelle first.
And from the moment Ultraman King arrived until now, the Astral Express had been right here. It was Kafka who had completely ignored their presence!
"Conspiracy? What conspiracy? I'm just here to find that child. Is that so wrong?"
Kafka crossed her arms, her light purple pupils looking toward Stelle, who guiltily averted her gaze.
She had just been careless. Ambushed from behind by Kafka, she had accidentally blurted out the name she kept hidden in her heart.
Social suicide! Forget Kafka, she wouldn't have the face to see anyone for the rest of her life!
However, Stelle avoiding her gaze didn't cause Kafka the slightest bit of displeasure. In fact, it made the smile on her lips grow even wider.
This expression was naturally caught by Himeko, who had been watching Kafka the whole time. She stepped forward, shielding Stelle behind her, moving so close she was almost in front of Kafka.
"You went to great lengths to come here from another universe, and the first thing you do is hug Stelle and not let go. Isn't that a conspiracy?"
Himeko's face was stern, her strong-woman aura thick in the air. Most people would have backed down, but Kafka maintained her elegant posture, not the least bit suppressed by Himeko's presence.
"I haven't seen her for a long time. I couldn't help but hug her. Is there a problem? Besides... didn't she enjoy it very much?"
Kafka shifted the topic back to Stelle, and at the same time, the gazes of everyone present focused on Stelle.
This made Stelle want to transform into Zero or Nexus on the spot and run away.
"I... I... this..." Stelle hesitated for a long time, unable to form a complete sentence.
"Damn it, Zero! What should I do!?"
With no other choice, Stelle could only pin her hopes on Zero inside her. But he just scratched his head in confusion.
"Your relationships are so complicated. Isn't that purple-haired woman your mom? And shouldn't the one called Himeko be your superior? What are they arguing about? Is there anything to argue about?"
This tangled web of relationships was enough to make Zero's brain short-circuit. He had no idea what was happening and just thought the two were arguing.
"Argh, forget it! I can't explain it to you!"
Hearing Zero's reply, Stelle slapped a hand to her forehead in despair. Damn it... Zero was completely unreliable!
This kid didn't even understand the situation yet.
This wasn't an argument, it was a public execution! Stelle had no doubt that they would say something even more socially devastating next.
"Um... I..."
After racking her brain for what felt like an eternity, Stelle, with a pained expression, still couldn't organize her thoughts.
Whether it was Himeko or Kafka, both were extremely important figures to her. She didn't want to hurt either of them with her words.
"Sweetheart, if you feel wronged, it's okay not to say anything."
As expected of Kafka, she saw Stelle's predicament with a single glance.
Truthfully, at this point, there was no need to continue.
She didn't ask for much; just knowing that Stelle still cared about her was enough.
For a Stelle who had already lost her memories, this was actually a very difficult thing to ask, but... Stelle had done it.
"Wronged?" Himeko glared at Kafka.
What did she mean, wronged? It was obviously because of Kafka that Stelle had become like this in the first place.
In fact, Himeko knew that Stelle had been with Kafka before and had stayed by her side for a long time.
Otherwise, with Kafka's personality, she wouldn't care this much about Stelle, let alone cross an entire universe for her.
But this wasn't just about Kafka clinging to Stelle. There were too many people on the Astral Express with complicated pasts.
Dan Heng carried the sins of his past, the mysterious girl March 7th had amnesia, and Welt had a mysterious hometown he could never return to.
They had all boarded the Astral Express. Who among them didn't have a few secrets?
Stelle was no exception. If Kafka truly loved Stelle, the best thing to do would be to stop appearing in her growth trajectory and not let the shackles of the past bind her again.
As long as Stelle didn't actively leave the Astral Express, Himeko would always protect her. She would absolutely not let her passenger be abducted by the Stellaron Hunters!
Thinking this, Himeko's aura grew even more imposing, to the point where even Kafka felt a bit pressured.
Seeing the atmosphere between the two grow increasingly tense, Stelle could only turn her gaze to the one person present who could possibly stop them.
The one who was currently enjoying the show... Ultraman King.
Evidently, Ultraman King noticed Stelle's plea for help.
Although he didn't know much about the situation with Kafka and Himeko, he saw Stelle's cry for help.
Even though King himself wanted to see how Stelle would resolve this, she had already asked him for help. If he ignored her, wouldn't he be disrespecting Stelle?
Besides, this was a rather formal occasion. The Ultra Brothers and Father of Ultra were all here. It wasn't good to just watch the drama unfold...
Thinking this, Ultraman King waved his cape. A gentle power diffused through the area, successfully stopping the standoff between Kafka and Himeko.
The others also turned their attention to Ultraman King.]
---o---
Hiss—
Oh boy, this scene is a bit too explosive.
Across the infinite dimensions, countless viewers witnessed the exchange between Kafka and Himeko.
You have to admit, this scene of two mothers fighting over a child is really good, much better than watching them fight with light beams.
There's a reason why family dramas never go out of style.
At least for the vast majority of the audience, they hoped for more explosive scenes like this. They just loved this kind of old-fashioned drama.
But apart from the fight over the child, what the audience outside the light curtain didn't expect was that so many people on the Astral Express actually had protagonist templates.
Almost every passenger had a mysterious, unknown past.
---o---
[Light Curtain Commentary]
[Utaha Kasumigaoka: "March 7th has amnesia, Dan Heng has an unknown past, and even Welt's hometown has some mysterious elements to it. The more I think about it, the more I feel there's something wrong with this Astral Express."]
[The Uchiha Dancer: "I don't get it. What's the connection between amnesia and a protagonist template? Shouldn't a protagonist be the strongest existence in a world?"]
[All Riajū Should Explode: "Well... while a protagonist usually grows to become the strongest, the Astral Express is clearly far from that standard. They're just carrying the protagonist template."]
[Kurumi Tokisaki: "How can a normal world compare to those two? The depths of those two universes are terrifying. Just the Star Rail universe alone has the Great Black General, who is far superior to the Amber King in power. He's at least on the same level as Ultraman Noa. How could the Astral Express possibly grow enough to compare to them...?"]
[Herta: "IX... theoretically, he is undefeatable. Even if you added up all the other Aeons, they probably wouldn't be as strong as him."]
[March 7th: "Huh? You're lying, right? How could that be possible? How could he be that strong!"]
[Herta: "Do you understand Aeons, or do I? The Simulated Universe has run the research countless times. How could the results be wrong?"]
---o---
[On the light curtain, although Himeko wanted to make Kafka give up on pursuing Stelle, it was clear that Ultraman King's next words were more important.
"From the appearance of the Swarm King to the collision of the two universes, many changes have occurred in the cosmos."
"The chaos of order and the mutation of monsters have made the already disharmonious universe even more perilous."
Ultraman King's voice was gentle, like a benevolent old man, but at the same time, perhaps because he was addressing a serious matter, his words carried a trace of solemnity.
The appearance of the Swarm King had shattered the balance of the universes, and the expansion of darkness had plunged both into a quagmire.
The reason Ultraman King and the Amber King could reach a consensus was simple: form an alliance to eliminate the darkness and all beings that sought to subvert the cosmic order.
The Aeon of Destruction and the Undying Scourges of the Star Rail universe, along with the countless forces of darkness in the Ultra Universe, were all stirring restlessly, eyeing the two universes.
Although the Amber King was wary of another universe, he also knew that if things continued like this, the universes would be destroyed by internal strife long before any real danger arrived.
In the Amber King's view, after the death of the Aeon of Order, Taiyi, there was almost no one reliable left in the entire cosmos.
The Interastral Peace Corporation was a bunch of good-for-nothings, completely useless. Aha spent his days seeking amusement; it was a blessing if he didn't actively work against him. The Hunt and Abundance were locked in a deathmatch; their conflict would only end when one of them was dead.
Destruction... was a madman. Harmony was like a cult. The Great Black General was powerful, but as far as he was concerned, the destruction of the universe had nothing to do with him.
Erudition, Mystery, and Remembrance... none of them had any interest in protecting the universe.
After much deliberation, the Amber King decisively chose the Ultra Warriors as his allies.
At the very least, when there was trouble, the Ultras would genuinely step up. They wouldn't get embroiled in internal conflicts over ideals and benefits. They were simply the perfect candidates for maintaining cosmic order.
Ultraman King said a lot, relaying his entire communication with the Amber King to the Space Garrison, the Astral Express crew, and the Stellaron Hunters.
"Your Majesty, what should the Land of Light do next?" Father of Ultra asked. Although they were cooperating, he didn't possess Ultraman King's ability to traverse universes.
He wasn't the only one; very few in the entire universe could achieve such a feat.
"The Land of Light only needs to continue its previous actions," Ultraman King said, then turned his gaze to Stelle.
To be precise... to Zero, inside Stelle's body.
As if sensing Ultraman King's gaze, a ball of light flew out of Stelle's body and landed on the ground.
"That person..."
Seeing Zero appear, Kafka immediately narrowed her eyes. When she had hugged Stelle earlier, she hadn't sensed the existence of another being inside her body.
"Old man... what is it?"
"Zero!"
Seeing Zero's address to Ultraman King, the Ultra Brothers were instantly startled.
The last person who dared to be so impolite in front of Ultraman King was Zoffy. Oh, no... it wasn't impoliteness, it was insolence. Back then, Zoffy had been far more audacious than Zero.
But that was all in the past. It was fine for Zero to act like this in private, but to do so in public was not good.
So when they saw Zero address Ultraman King so casually in front of so many people, the Ultra Brothers were momentarily shocked.
However, Ultraman King didn't react. He knew this kid all too well. It was just a slip of the tongue, not a deliberate attempt to disrespect him.
So, King waved his hand, signaling for everyone not to make a fuss. "Zero, the Aegis of Palagye within your body holds a deeper power."
"What?" King's words made Zero's expression change. The Aegis of Palagye... the divine artifact given to him by Noa, the equipment that allowed him to become an Ultimate Ultra Warrior, the one that even helped him become Saga.
After all this, this thing still hadn't been fully developed?
Ignoring Zero's expression, Ultraman King continued, "It can help you cross into another universe. With the help of the Astral Express and the Amber King, you are to establish the Ultimate Zero Garrison..."]
---o---