No one knew how long the wait had been, but at last—under Charija's persuasion—King Guesra finally agreed to follow this so-called "monster collector."
"Come on in, King Guesra!"
The moment King Guesra gave his consent, Charija tossed out a capsule, which struck against the giant monster.
In the blink of an eye, King Guesra transformed into a stream of light and was sucked into the capsule.
"I've captured King Guesra!"
Charija raised the capsule high, shouting with unrestrained excitement.
Yu Zhou: "…"
"…The vibe here feels really off."
For some reason, Yu Zhou felt less like he was standing in the world of Ultramen and kaiju, and more like he had wandered into a place where people captured all sorts of… pocket monsters.
"Since you've secured King Guesra, let's head back," Yu Zhou said once Charija's deal was complete.
"Right, let's go!"
Charija nodded. His purpose had been to trade for a monster; now that he had succeeded, there was no reason to linger.
At the massive barrier surrounding the palace, Charija released King Guesra once more. Together with Yu Zhou, he climbed onto the monster's back.
With a wave of his staff, Charija conjured a protective light dome that enveloped them both.
"Set off, King Guesra!"
At his command, the beast obeyed, surging forward and breaking through the barrier, swimming swiftly toward the open sea.
"Farewell… King Guesra."
Inside the palace, the old man watched their fading silhouettes, murmuring softly. A tear slid down his cheek.
"Father…"
Sara and Lucia, after hearing the old man's explanation, finally understood. Their father had traded away the King Guesra he'd raised since childhood in exchange for Charija's aid, traveling across time to save them.
"It's alright."
The old man shook his head gently, signalling to his daughters not to worry. In the end, the outcome was good—his children had been saved.
Besides, Charija was both an expert and a merchant of monsters. In his care, King Guesra would surely receive better treatment.
Riding upon King Guesra, Yu Zhou and Charija sped through the water.
The monster's speed beneath the waves was far greater than Zoiger's.
In no time, they had left the deep sea behind and were nearing the surface.
When Yu Zhou looked back, he noticed countless fish carcasses littering the waters—evidence that King Guesra had devoured them in passing.
"This guy sure can eat," Yu Zhou muttered, casting a glance at Charija. How was he even planning to keep such a glutton fed?
"It's fine," Charija replied with utter confidence. "So long as it grows stronger, it can eat as much as it wants."
"The problem is—do you have that many fish?"
Yu Zhou rolled his eyes. Even if Charija could manage to feed the monster, the ocean's fish were finite. At this rate, King Guesra might eat the planet's seas empty.
"Don't worry," Charija assured him. "I know of a planet made entirely of ocean. The only creatures there are fish."
"There's such a place?"
Yu Zhou was genuinely surprised. Truly, the universe never ceased to amaze.
"Someday, I'll take you fishing there," Charija said with a sly grin.
Fishing on a planet filled with nothing but fish—that would indeed be quite the experience.
At those words, King Guesra stirred with excitement beneath them. The thought of endless fish to devour was bliss incarnate.
"Calm down, calm down!"
Charija hurriedly patted the beast's back. If it thrashed too much, their protective dome would collapse, and they'd end up choking on seawater.
Soon after, King Guesra burst out from the waves. Charija quickly threw out Zoiger's capsule, switching the monsters, and recalled King Guesra back inside.
Together, he and Yu Zhou then took to the skies, flying back toward the land.
By the time they returned to the Interstellar Grand Hotel, the time difference meant the sky was still dark.
Not wanting to disturb Dack, Yu Zhou simply returned to his own quarters. Charija, who was also lodged on the nine-hundredth floor, did the same.
The next morning, Yu Zhou contacted Dack, inviting him to explore the planet together.
"So? After a day on your own, have you gotten the feel of this world?" Yu Zhou asked as they walked.
Dack nodded. "More or less. First off, as you know, most people here are descendants of Earth's Ultra-Ancient Humans."
"Mm." Yu Zhou gestured for him to continue.
"Their upper leadership, while including some elite among the descendants, is still largely made up of those Ultra-Ancient Humans who once left Earth seeking new lands."
Dack had somehow gathered this information, and now relayed it to Yu Zhou.
"So that's why they're so desperate for the Gijera Extract," Yu Zhou realized. Without some form of life-extension, these ancient humans would soon all perish. And if that happened, this planet's ruling class would collapse entirely.
"Wouldn't it make more sense to pass the reins to their descendants?" Yu Zhou shook his head. These ancients really were stubborn—wanting to control everything themselves.
If it were him, he'd happily retire, hand over the burdens, and enjoy life.
A soft breeze brushed against his face, its simple beauty drawing Yu Zhou into thought.
So much time had passed. By now, his real age was already in the late twenties. If he couldn't find a way to extend his lifespan, things could become very troublesome.
The Gijera Extract could grant extended life, yes—but it carried heavy side effects, throwing one into hedonistic stupor for stretches of time.
Yu Zhou had considered using it before. But with Gijera already destroyed, and his own instincts warning against it, he'd decided to hold off.
If his world couldn't survive the coming crisis, he probably wouldn't last much longer anyway.
But if he did survive—then there would be countless other worlds to travel to, each with their own treasures for extending life. There was no need to cling to this one.
In fact, he had noticed that his very body seemed to be evolving with each transformation he underwent. His constitution was strengthening over time.
Though he was already in his late twenties, he looked barely older than twenty. Compared to before, his appearance hadn't changed much at all.
"What are you thinking about?"
Dack noticed Yu Zhou's silence and asked.
"I was wondering… if there really exists something that could make life eternal," Yu Zhou admitted without hesitation.
"Life eternal…" Dack mulled over the words for a moment before answering, "If such a thing exists, I believe it would be Light."
"Light?"
Yu Zhou blinked, then slowly nodded. Yes—that made sense.
The lives of the Giants of Light seemed incredibly long.
Take Camilla and her companions, for example. Though they hadn't originally been beings of light, they had survived sealed away for thirty million years.
Perhaps the seal had played a part, but still—living from thirty million years ago until now was astonishing.
What's more, none of them showed any signs of aging.
Without being told, no one would ever guess that the three of them had lived for over thirty million years.
"Dack, has your planet ever studied life-extension technologies?" Yu Zhou asked. Surely a world as advanced and peaceful as Dais would have delved into this field.
"This…" Dack thought for a moment. "There has been some research. But the results haven't been significant."
"Oh?" Yu Zhou leaned forward with interest. "And what exactly did you manage to find? Can you share?"
He hadn't expected Dais to have ventured into such studies at all. His curiosity was immediately piqued.
(To be continued…)