Chapter 15 – The Mystery of Merus
When the Galactic Patrol Chief, Zoffy, heard the number one million being declared as a battle power, he was utterly stunned.
But moments later, his expression gradually settled. Suspicion flickered in his eyes as he wondered whether the young man before him was simply bragging…
"Do you even understand what a Power Level of one million means?" Zoffy asked in a stern tone, staring directly at Tachibana Kyūjō.
Kyūjō merely nodded calmly, then replied, "If you don't believe me, feel free to scan my body with a high-grade Power Level detector. The truth will reveal itself instantly."
The moment he finished speaking, Kyūjō stabilized his Ki right at the one-million mark—and at the same time, he released a faint wave of pressure, the kind that only a true warrior possessed…
In the very next second—
Zoffy, whose own Power Level was only around 150,000, was immediately struck by that overwhelming aura.
His body froze on the spot. A heavy weight pressed against his chest, making it difficult to breathe. When he lifted his gaze again to look at Kyūjō…
What he saw was a young man who looked as though he could kill him with a single glance.
— — —
Once Kyūjō realized he had achieved his purpose, he withdrew his entire aura, returning to the calm and neutral presence he had before.
Zoffy needed several moments to steady his breathing before he finally gave a slow nod toward Tachibana.
Without saying a word, he hurried out of the office, only to return moments later carrying the latest-generation combat power detector.
— — —
Three minutes later, the office door swung open from within.
This time, Zoffy's expression was glowing with excitement. He grabbed Kyūjō's arm enthusiastically, ready to escort him directly through every recruitment procedure.
Kyūjō's origins might have been unclear. His recruitment process might have violated countless protocols. And even though there were… well, a long list of "even thoughs"…
None of that mattered—not compared to a Power Level of one million!
Besides, Kyūjō wasn't a wanted criminal. Why shouldn't they recruit him?
If they rejected someone this strong, and someday he turned into a criminal, wouldn't the headquarters regret missing their chance?
More importantly, the Galactic Patrol had desperately lacked powerful fighters for far too long!
Just think—an organization this massive didn't even have a single warrior whose Power Level reached one million. Wasn't that embarrassing?
To Zoffy, the arrival of Tachibana Kyūjō felt like the legendary moment when General Dong acquired Lu Bu—like fastening wings onto a tiger!
Even the Galactic King himself would probably make the same decision, Zoffy thought proudly.
— — —
Around the same time, a standard Galactic Patrol spacecraft descended back into the headquarters.
A young man with short blue hair, a clean and handsome face, and a striking presence stepped out from the ship. His popularity was obvious—his mere appearance caused his colleagues to immediately cheer:
"Look! Our ace is back! Number one—Merus has returned!"
"Merus, how many fugitives did you capture this time?"
"He was gone forever on this mission… I bet at least five!"
"I say seven!"
Merus offered a gentle smile at their teasing. He walked toward the underside of his ship and pulled a lever with a smooth, practiced motion…
In an instant, more than a dozen vicious-looking aliens—tightly bound from head to toe—dropped heavily onto the ground from the opening cargo hatch.
While signaling his comrades to take the prisoners to the detention block, Merus turned toward the ship parked not far away—an eye-catching vessel of brilliant gold.
"Where did that ship come from? Its design is incredible. Is it a new model from headquarters?" he asked one of the patrol members with genuine curiosity.
His question was quickly answered by a colleague standing nearby.
"Oh, Merus, you mean that golden ship? Oh man, that's the biggest news of the day. You've got to hear this…"
— — —
Meanwhile, Tachibana Kyūjō—still inside the Galactic Patrol Headquarters—suddenly narrowed his eyes.
Who exactly is this Merus?
Why was there someone here whose strength he couldn't comprehend at all?
And more than that… in all his time watching Dragon Ball, he had never once heard the name Merus.
What confused him even further was that Merus's power didn't come from raw combat energy. Instead, it was because Kyūjō's analytical ability—the Infinity Prediction System—had completely failed to evaluate the man.
The only time the system had ever failed before was when facing entities like God from One Punch Man's world, Saitama, and Ōtsutsuki Shibai from the world of Naruto.
But… how could Merus possibly be on the same level as those beings?
Up until now, Tachibana had no answer.
For the moment, he could only classify Merus as a "Hidden Master" concealed somewhere within Universe 7.
And no wonder the Galactic Patrol—whose members were mostly of average strength—was still capable of hunting dangerous criminals across the universe.
There was an incredible existence supporting them from behind the scenes.
— — —
What Kyūjō didn't know… was that Merus was actually a trainee Angel.
Merus appeared in Dragon Ball only after the Tournament of Power—during the Moro arc. Unfortunately, Kyūjō had never gotten around to watching that part of the series.
As an Angel, Merus's strength couldn't be measured by ordinary battle power. Based on information from the original story, his level was comparable to Goku's Perfect Ultra Instinct.
In other words, even if Kyūjō multiplied his power ten-thousandfold, he still wouldn't be a match for Merus.
In the original story, Merus wasn't allowed to use his angelic power in combat against Moro, as it would violate cosmic laws.
If he did, his very existence would vanish instantly under the laws of the universe.
Because of that, Merus chose instead to secretly train Goku, guiding him toward complete mastery of Ultra Instinct.
— — —
After completing the recruitment process, Kyūjō chose not to wear the official Galactic Patrol uniform. Instead, he simply attached the organization's emblem to the chest of his combat attire.
To him, the uniform was just… ugly.
Zoffy did not complain. What else could he do? For someone this powerful, forcing him to follow a dress code was ridiculous.
However, Kyūjō's Golden Flash ship was still outfitted with the official Galactic Patrol logo on Zoffy's orders.
After hearing Kyūjō's explanation, Zoffy realized that the ship was built using technology infused by Porunga, the Dragon of Namek.
Though he fantasized for a moment about how amazing it would be if every patrol member had a ship like that… reality quickly reminded him that they couldn't replicate a single piece of its technology.
Thus, the Golden Flash remained Tachibana's private ship. No other vessel was assigned to him.
As for his crew—dozens of individuals who had accompanied Kyūjō—Zoffy gladly "adopted" them as unofficial members, without any obligation for salary.
After that, Kyūjō began a one-week emergency training program, and the Golden Flash's system was integrated with the Galactic Patrol's intelligence network.
With this, half of Kyūjō's purpose had already been achieved.
From now on, within Universe 7, he could travel anywhere in an instant.
Although the training didn't include much combat instruction, Galactic Patrol members were required to master various other skills. And within a week, Kyūjō had already covered enough.
And so, Tachibana Kyūjō's career as an official member of the Galactic Patrol began.
— — —
Fugitives of Universe 7… are you prepared?
Inside the Golden Flash control room, Kyūjō stared at the holographic screen showing the universe's 98th most wanted criminal.
He locked onto the target with a single tap.
"You'll be the first. My official debut as a Galactic Patrol officer."
— — —
Name: Demon Star
Race: Primordial Demon Race
Power Level: 1,980,000 points
Intelligence Notes:
The Primordial Demon Race naturally possesses extremely high power levels. Even as infants, their strength exceeds 10,000 points. They are bloodthirsty beings with overwhelming desires, treating life-bearing planets as nourishment for their growth.
Upon reaching adulthood, their power levels typically surpass one million. Once they achieve their perfect form, they awaken a special, unidentified ability and adapt completely to life in space.
Due to their very small population, the race remains largely unknown.
Currently, only nine individuals of this race have been identified across the entire universe.
All of them are ranked within the higher tiers of the galactic most-wanted list. The strongest among them, Demon Abyss, holds the fourth rank.
— — —
As for the top three positions—those were occupied by the Frieza family themselves.
Frieza was ranked third, his brother Cooler second, and their father King Cold stood at the very top.
Although the rankings didn't perfectly reflect actual battle power, the family remained an existence feared by virtually every being in Universe 7…
Based on existing data, the Galactic Patrol estimated that Demon Abyss—the Primordial Demon leader—had a battle power exceeding 15 million points.
Meanwhile, Demon Star, being relatively young, was ranked at 98.
But today, Tachibana Kyūjō had chosen his first target—Demon Star.
For Kyūjō, this wasn't just a routine mission. The Primordial Demon Race, which never appeared in the original Dragon Ball story, now served as a crucial side-quest line for him…
Starting with Demon Star, he planned to take them down one by one—until he could finally defeat the minor boss, Demon Abyss. And even if he discovered a way to travel to another universe, he wouldn't leave until that goal was achieved.
— — —
Once Kyūjō accepted the Demon Star capture mission through the Golden Flash's intelligence system, it took only minutes for headquarters to send him all relevant data.
However, along with that data came an unexpected visitor—someone who walked directly into the control chamber.
That person was none other than Merus—the mysterious man from the Galactic Patrol, and the one who had quietly captured Kyūjō's attention.
— — —
Inside the Golden Flash control room, Kyūjō stared at his visitor with surprise.
"Mr. Merus… what brings you here?"
Merus nodded lightly, his expression serious. "Hello, Tachibana Kyūjō. I spoke with Lance at the mission center just now. Is it true you've taken the Demon Star capture mission?"
Tachibana didn't deny it. He nodded. "Yes. One of my main reasons for joining the Galactic Patrol was to face strong opponents. And Demon Star seems like the perfect first match."
Upon hearing this, Merus looked more closely at Kyūjō. But as soon as his gaze brushed over Kyūjō's body, something unexpected happened.
As an Angel, Merus possessed the ability to see into the very core of a being's existence—but right now, he couldn't read anything at all from Kyūjō.
What he saw was merely an ordinary human with Ki fluctuations so faint they were nearly nonexistent.
Yet according to official records, Tachibana Kyūjō possessed a battle power of one million points.
That number was certainly impressive for ordinary creatures, but to Merus, it was no different from an ant. And even so, a power level of one million shouldn't have Ki that weak.
There were indeed many techniques in the universe to conceal Ki, but who could possibly hide their essence from an Angel?
Merus grew even more confused.
Was this man truly capable of hiding his power from an Angel?
Or… was he really just a normal human?
But if he were an ordinary human, how could he have accomplished everything he had so far?
And more importantly—how could he possibly fight Demon Star, whose estimated battle power neared two million points?
Not satisfied with mere speculation, Merus suddenly threw a punch toward Kyūjō's abdomen—a surprise attack meant to test the man's reflexes.
But… before the punch could land, Merus halted mid-motion.
His eyes widened, his pupils trembling.
In a whisper barely audible, he muttered,
"…That just now… was that… Ultra Instinct…?"
The words shocked Kyūjō.
What?! He knows about Ultra Instinct?!
In that instant, Kyūjō realized the man before him was far stronger than he had assumed.
But he didn't answer immediately. With an innocent, confused expression, he replied:
"…Ultra Instinct? What's that?"
Merus gently shook his head. "It's nothing. But answer this—how did you know I was about to strike you? And how could you choose the perfect response to my punch?"
Kyūjō answered calmly, "I didn't know beforehand. I simply… reacted naturally based on your movement."
Inwardly, Kyūjō added mockingly:
…That's because it was you. If it were anyone else, I would've predicted it long before they even moved.
But despite the simplicity of the answer, Merus only became more astonished.
From his perspective, Kyūjō was a True Genius—a rare talent within all of Universe 7.
With a human's body, he had already begun to tap into the realm of the gods—the realm of Ultra Instinct, something even Angels did not casually teach.
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