thefictionvixens Chapter 2. There's no such thing as a free lunch.
Chapter 2. There's no such thing as a free lunch.
"You despicable insect, how dare you lock me up here and steal my power! Are you prepared to atone with your death?"
The noise woke Jin Yi up again.
The universe is so vast that even at the speed of light, it would be impossible to reach the distance between two civilizations in a lifetime. Therefore, warping space as a means of movement is an essential skill for advanced life forms.
Jin Yi is not Belial, but this way of moving seems to be engraved in this body. With the help of his remaining memories, the spatial rift created by the Ultimate Battle Device took Jin Yi away from the battlefield.
The dark tunnel was too long, traversing not only space but also time. Bored, Jin Yi could only close his eyes to rest until he heard the sound he least wanted to hear.
The original voice of Belial.
Jin Yi sighed as he opened his eyes again.
"It really is you, Belial..."
The transmigrator takes over Belial's body and faces a serious problem: where did Belial's soul go?
After all, as the biggest behind-the-scenes boss of the Heisei era, Belial is no nobody. Although he has fallen into darkness, Belial's soul size is still there—he was not squeezed out by Jin Yi's soul or his personality was expelled.
The troublesome problem lies precisely here: the Ultra Brothers, who do not seek glory, even if they are ordinary soldiers of the Land of Light, or even non-combat residents of the Land of Light, are of the highest character and temperament. When faced with a strange soul from another world, they would never refuse the request to be of one mind and body, which would be a win-win situation.
But—he just happened to run into Belial, a super scoundrel who was one in 180 billion, a figure with tens of thousands of years of history in the Land of Light.
Before he could even warm up this body, Jin Yi was already prepared to be discarded after using it, but when he opened his eyes, he found that the situation wasn't as bad as he had imagined—oh no!
The Mind Space, the mental space where Ultraman communicates with his human host, is where Belial, the original owner of the body whose place has been usurped, is currently bound to a dark wall. Thousands upon thousands of countless golden chains tightly bind the limbs of this rebel. Although he has successfully escaped from the cosmic prison, this prisoner has not gained freedom.
"Finally sensed my presence, you little bug?"
Beria, bound to the stone wall like Prometheus, made a terrifying sound with the clanging of chains.
When making the meme videos of Milk Dragon and Belial, I had seen this face countless times. It was more familiar than my roommate's face; it was as if it were engraved in my DNA.
But seeing Belial in real life is like seeing Sadako crawl out of the screen – I've become desensitized, but not completely.
Belial let out a chilling laugh and shook his head. The golden chains binding Belial's neck clanged and creaked against each other. In just a few words, a considerable number of the golden chains began to deform, followed by dull snapping sounds, indicating that this prisoner had moved one step closer to freedom.
—It was restrained, but not completely restrained.
Jin Yi's heart sank.
"What's wrong? Are you too scared to speak?"
"Although I don't know which bastard did what, I will eventually gain my freedom. These weak and powerless things..."
Belial tried to extend his right hand, but his right hand, bound by multiple golden chains, only moved forward a short distance before being pulled back, leaving him extremely embarrassed.
……
Jin Yi couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
Beria, the lung fog.
You can hide your true feelings, but you can't fake your expression. As if sensing Jin Yi's contempt, Belial, like a vengeful older brother, uttered some harsh words.
"What a daring little insect! How dare you use these chains to steal my power? Do you think I can't do anything to you? How long do you think these damned chains can hold me back?"
"The more I use my power, the weaker these chains become... Just three more times, and even if I do nothing, these chains will break like straw!"
"Of course, you can do nothing... but just seven days, seven days, and my power will be enough to tear these damned things apart—closing your eyes and waiting to die is the last thing you, you insect, can do!"
"Wash your neck clean and wait. I'll let you taste the flavors of hell, and then I'll kill you!"
Belial roared out his last words, creating a shockwave like a typhoon.
Jin Yi subconsciously raised his right hand to shield his eyes, and when the gale stopped, Jin Yi moved his hand away. Belial's hideous face had disappeared, and he was lying on the grass, with the boundless blue sky in front of him.
"What a petty person."
Belial's harsh words had little effect. The life that was knocked away by the 100-ton king should have ended the moment it was sent to the morgue. Even if death would come in 7 days, there were still 7 days to enjoy life before that.
Instead of cowering in a dark corner waiting to die, why not enjoy a long-awaited sunbath first?
Jin Yi lay on the lawn, comfortably basking in the sun for a while, before finally turning over, sitting up, and looking at the bustling crowds on the road and the signs covered in Japanese.
There's always a way out. After resting and recuperating, the most urgent task is to find out exactly what kind of new world I've entered, and then...
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Then I'll go get a cup of coffee.
Maid cafes are a specialty of Tokyo. After a long day of work, the bitter and fragrant coffee, combined with the charming smiles of young girls, can heal both the body and soul of every customer.
Since things have come to this, let's have a cup of coffee first.
"Mary-chan!"
Jin Yi gazed at the energetic twin-tailed maid, his fingers tracing back and forth across the menu.
"I'd like a cute heart-shaped omelet rice, and for a drink, a strawberry milk with 120% sugar."
Looking at the hesitant Zarab alien, Jin Yi revealed a knowing expression; a good boss never ignores the feelings of his subordinates. He then added to the red and white-clad maid with sparkling cleavage.
"Give one to the gentleman across the table as well."
The twin-tailed maid, Mary-chan, full of energy, skipped away. Only then did Galabola Star awkwardly speak up:
"Lord Belial—I don't understand, this…"
Before he could finish speaking, Jin Yi made a pause gesture, and the Zarab alien immediately shut up. Even though Jin Yi appeared kind and approachable, the Zarab alien, who had seen many storms, was still somewhat trembling in the face of the mighty Belial.
"Now that things have come to this, shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"
"Zack, my name is Zach."
"Very good. Knowing each other's names is the first step to getting to know each other, Mr. Zack. First of all, I want to express my gratitude to you."
Jin Yi sighed and fiddled with the miniature ultimate combat device in his hand, as if twirling a pen.
"Not only were you able to retrieve this lost weapon from the Valley of Flames, but you were also able to enter the heavily guarded cosmic prison... You possess exceptional talent and courage, Mr. Zack."
In the original work, the Zarab aliens were only present for 3 minutes before Belial happily sent them away as cannon fodder, serving a function similar to a key. However, their courage and audacity in daring to break into the Flame Valley, which was defended by the King of Ultra, and bypass the guards of the space prison, even if it seemed like they were taking advantage of an opportunity, were undeniable.
Perhaps only Belial with Lung Mist would tear up such an SR Ironclad character card that's practically handed to him.
"You flatter me, Lord Belial. Actually, I also prepared a solid life form that I found on the black market... but fortunately, I didn't have to use it."
The Zarab alien wiped away non-existent sweat from his forehead, but a smug look was evident in his eyes, clearly pleased with his victory.
However, when facing the boss directly in front of him, that smugness was fleeting, and he quickly became serious.
"It's a pity I didn't witness the divine power of you wielding the Ultimate Battle Gear, Lord Belial. I don't understand, even though I couldn't see it, I could sense through the Battle Gear that Taro was no match for you. I don't understand why you didn't press your advantage then..."
"Heading towards the Land of Light?"
"After that—would you also have to defeat Zoffy, take care of the other Ultra Brothers, blast Ken (Father of Ultra) down, and finally step on the head of the King of Ultra—"
"To single-handedly destroy the entire Land of Light?"
Jin Yi picked up the cup in front of her and blew on the latte art on the surface of the coffee.
There is indeed such a timeline, a timeline where Belial wins decisively, successfully destroying the Land of Light, with its fragments scattering to every corner of the universe.
Half of the Ultra Brothers died, Taro disappeared, and the original Ultraman went mad and almost turned into a monster because he couldn't accept the reality. He even killed Leo, all in order to find the remaining fragments of the Land of Light and piece together his destroyed home.
Father of Ultra also had one of his horns broken off. He was traveling through space in a spaceship carrying the spirit of Mother of Ultra, who had died, searching for the missing Taro...
But the premise of that timeline is that the King of Ultra died for unknown reasons.
With each sentence Jin Yi spoke, Zach nodded incessantly, but the more Jin Yi continued speaking, the slower Zach nodded, until finally his head hung stiffly in mid-air, speechless.
"This kind of stupid thing was done once 3 years ago. I have to admit, it was a mistake made because I was too young."
"What's wrong? Are you disappointed?"
Zack nodded, then seemed to realize something and hurriedly tried to cover it up, but Jin Yi directly waved his hand and refused.
"Zack, I completely understand your disappointment."
After all, they took such a huge risk to rescue the notorious criminal Belial from the cosmic prison, hoping to make a name for themselves and achieve fame. When Belial achieves great things in the future, the Zarab aliens, who have helped him, will naturally reap great benefits.
But if Belial loses his ambition and only thinks about settling down, the huge initial investment of the Zarab aliens will be wasted.
"It's only human nature, but you're wrong about one thing—"
Jin Yi's eyes widened in surprise; he had already begun to get into character.
"Do you think I, Beria, have lost my ambition and fighting spirit, and turned into a fucking, clueless little goldfish?"
"How is this possible?!"
Jin Yi slammed his fist on the table and spoke passionately.
"The anger and pain imprisoned for 3 years—that rage could easily reduce the Land of Light to ashes! But if there is only anger, then only the same pain will be repeated!"
"Zoffy, who has mastered the power of the stars... Ken, who possesses the power of truth, Super Taro, who could defeat even the cosmic overlord Juda, and Ultraman Mebius, who even Emperor Emperor Empera lost to—and then there's the unfathomable King of Ultra—which of them is an easy enemy to deal with?"
Jin Yi was very self-aware; Belial's surprise attack on the Land of Light that day had a huge element of luck.
First, he crippled Taro to prevent the emergence of Super Taro, then he knocked Mebius out of the Land of Light, and then he happened to hit Father of Ultra's old wound, ultimately succeeding in stealing the tower.
Unfortunately, no matter how much you plan, things don't always go as planned. Zero made his grand entrance in 09, and Belial, despite his best efforts, was unable to defeat him, becoming Zero's stepping stone. From then on, he embarked on a path of causing trouble and getting humiliated.
However, Zero followed the same path as Beckham, becoming increasingly unconventional with each upgrade.
This path is too difficult; only someone like Belial, who can't see reality clearly, would stubbornly charge headlong into it.
"Wait, Lord Belial... you should have been in the space prison the whole time, so why do you know so much about what's happening outside?"
Zack sensed something was wrong. The imprisoned Belial should have been cut off from outside information, yet he was intimately familiar with the Land of Light. This confidence and composure rekindled the Zarab aliens' waning ambitions.
"Mr. Zack, do you really think that small prison can hold me, Belial? The universe will sooner or later be ours to control."
Jin Yi revealed a mysterious smile.
"In the past 30,000 years, I, Belial, have gained far more than just power! Zarab aliens, open your eyes and take a good look at the planet beneath your feet."
Could it be that my actions were already within Lord Belial's calculations?
The Zarab aliens were deeply shocked, and it wasn't until Jin Yi gave the order that they were able to recover from their shock and subconsciously use their innate abilities to investigate the planet beneath their feet.
Whether it's mental or electromagnetic fluctuations, the Zarab aliens, who specialize in this, can understand and utilize them skillfully; it's an instinct ingrained in this race.
The spirit of the Zarab aliens continued to penetrate the electromagnetic information network that enveloped the Earth's surface, wandering and roaming until they came into contact with that silver-red giant.
"Is this the original Ultraman? No, it's not!"
At this moment, news headlines throughout Japan and even the world were all focused on the mysterious extraterrestrial visitor, the crimson giant who had descended upon Earth a few days earlier. Amidst the shock, Zack keenly realized something was amiss.
"Where's the timer on his chest?"