With a sharp whoosh, Zoiger carried Charija and Yu Zhou as it soared after the mysterious alien spacecraft.
But Zoiger's small frame and limited speed made it impossible to keep up. Halfway through the chase, Charija sighed helplessly and ordered Zoiger to descend back to the ground.
At the same time, the old man came running down the mountainside, frantically searching for any trace of his children.
"How is it? Did you find them?"
After recalling Zoiger into its capsule, Yu Zhou and Charija approached the old man and asked.
"No… not a shadow," the old man shook his head with worry.
"Look! The spaceship's circling back again!" Charija pointed upward, then turned to Yu Zhou. "Why don't you just transform and blast it down?"
"No."
Yu Zhou shook his head firmly. If his guess was correct, the Victory Team would appear in this mountain region very soon. At this time, there couldn't be two Tigas present. Acting recklessly could disrupt history itself—and that was far too dangerous.
"Then let Zoiger take it down!" Charija fumed. The last time he had been humiliated by anyone was when he encountered Ultraman Belial. Now some petty alien dared to provoke him again and again?
"Still no."
As Charija reached for Zoiger's capsule again, Yu Zhou stopped him once more.
"Why not!?" Charija snapped, clearly frustrated. He had been targeted, suffered losses, and now Yu Zhou wouldn't even let him retaliate. How was that fair?
"Calm down," Yu Zhou reassured him softly. "That alien will be taken care of—by another Tiga."
"Another… Tiga?" Charija froze, then understood. Yu Zhou meant the Tiga who once defeated his Yanakargie.
Above them, the spacecraft hovered, then suddenly fired a beam downward. The blast struck the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
When the dust cleared, a young man in strange attire was revealed, his wrist shackled with a metal band.
"Zara!" the old man cried out in recognition and rushed toward him.
Just as Yu Zhou predicted, one of the old man's missing children, Zara, had appeared at the mountain's foot. Which meant the other—Rucia—might soon appear as well.
But before Zara could even catch his breath, the alien craft unleashed another barrage of azure beams, desperate to obliterate him.
Charija, unwilling to stand idle, brandished his staff and loosed two glowing blasts at the ship. Inside, the alien pilot—a Muzan—staggered as the vessel rocked violently. When it tried to re-aim its cannons, it realized its prey had already been pulled back to safety by the old man, standing now with Yu Zhou and Charija.
"These two… they summoned a bird-like monster earlier. They're not ordinary humans. Perhaps other aliens?" the Muzan thought nervously.
Just as he hesitated, the ship jolted again under heavy fire.
"What now!? They didn't even attack me!"
But when he checked his sensors, the truth was clear: two yellow Earth fighter jets were blasting his ship.
"Damn humans!"
Snarling, the Muzan pulled his craft into the clouds and vanished from sight.
"Victory Swallows," Yu Zhou muttered as he spotted the jets. Indeed, they were none other than the Victory Team's Victory Swallow Fighters.
Thinking quickly, Yu Zhou pulled out the transformation badge he had once obtained in Geed's world. With a flash, his appearance changed—he now looked like the red-haired warrior, Riku. He couldn't risk appearing as Daigo; if Daigo saw another version of himself, it would cause chaos.
"Whoa! Handsome guy—who are you?!" Charija nearly jumped when Yu Zhou's new face turned toward him.
"It's me, Yu Zhou. Just a disguise," Yu Zhou explained.
Then he frowned. "Charija, you should change too. Daigo has seen your real face before. If we want to prevent altering the future, you'll need a new look."
"Why me too?" Charija pouted, baffled.
"Just do it. It's a simple thing," Yu Zhou insisted.
"Fine…"
With a sigh, Charija brushed a hand across his face. In an instant, his appearance shifted into someone even more striking than Yu Zhou's disguise.
"Why did you make yourself that handsome?" Yu Zhou deadpanned.
"What? Being handsome is bad?" Charija shot back smugly.
Meanwhile, the old man hadn't needed to change; after all, he was never part of the original events.
Zara, still in shock from being saved, turned to his father. "Father… how did you find me here?!"
For so long, Zara had believed his exile meant he would never see his family again. Yet here, on the brink of death, his father had rescued him.
"That can wait," the old man said, steadying his son. "Where's Rucia? Where is she?"
Two children—yet only one had been found. He grew anxious.
"I can feel her presence. She's coming toward us now!" Zara closed his eyes briefly, then nodded.
"Hey! Who are you people? It's dangerous here!"
A sharp voice called out. Yu Zhou and the others turned to see the Victory Team approaching.
"Sir, it's not safe. Please leave this area at once," Horii urged the old man.
"You… are Rucia's companions?" Daigo's gaze fell on Zara and widened in surprise.
Indeed—Rucia had been rescued by the Victory Team earlier, though she later slipped away in secret, determined to save Zara. That explained why the team had hurried here.
"She's my daughter. I must save her!" the old man said firmly.
"Rucia's… father?!" Daigo and the team were stunned. None had expected her parent to suddenly appear on Earth.
Daigo's eyes then shifted to Yu Zhou and Charija. Something about them felt… out of place, as if they didn't belong to this world.
"And these two gentlemen are…?" Rena asked curiously, eyeing their unfamiliar faces.
Charija opened his mouth—"I'm Cha—"
But Yu Zhou quickly cut him off. "He's Chahu, and I'm Chashui."
"Chahu and Chashui?" Rena tilted her head. "Strange names…"
"We're bodyguards," Yu Zhou added smoothly. "Hired to protect this gentleman and his children."
"Ah, I see." The team nodded, satisfied with the explanation.
"Rucia!"
Suddenly, Zara pointed into the distance and shouted.
Everyone's eyes followed—and there she was. A young woman in blue-and-black attire, sprinting toward them.
But hot on her heels was a grotesque alien, its antenna glowing ominously as it prepared to unleash another deadly blast.
To be continued…