"Th–That is…!!!"
The lord of Fuhuo City, who had already fallen into despair, froze in utter shock.
Behind him towered a massive figure—taller than even the city's highest tower.
Not only the city lord, but also the defending soldiers, the shell-shocked commander, and the fleeing citizens—all looked up in astonishment at the giant whose body gleamed like polished obsidian.
"A… a giant?"
Some people uttered the words without realizing it, their voices trembling with awe and fear.
Melba flapped its enormous wings, sending rooftiles flying.
Its sharp beak was mere inches from the city lord's head.
But no matter how hard it struggled, Melba could not move forward.
Something was holding it back.
Feeling a strange resistance from behind, Melba turned its head—and saw a silver-and-black giant gripping its tail tightly, restraining its movements.
Melba shrieked in rage.
Moments ago, it had dominated Fuhuo City without opposition. Now, a being of similar size dared to stop it.
It screeched, twisting its body before lunging down to peck the silver arm that held its tail.
Yu Zhou quickly released his grip, avoiding the strike.
Sssk!
Melba's own beak impaled its tail instead, sparks flying from the impact.
Melba: "…"
Letting out a pained, screeching cry, the monster yanked its beak free and glared furiously at Yu Zhou.
"This stupid bird really is stupid…" Yu Zhou muttered, shaking his head slightly.
Then, with a powerful swing of his massive fist, he launched a blow straight at Melba's head.
BOOM!
The ground rippled under the force of the strike. Dust and debris burst upward, sweeping across the battlefield toward Melba.
People throughout Fuhuo City crouched and shielded their heads, afraid the gale would sweep them away.
Still, seeing the silver-black giant trading blows with the massive bird eased their fear somewhat.
At least the giant wasn't attacking the city itself.
That alone was enough to bring a glimmer of relief.
If both monsters had attacked the city together, there would have been no hope left for anyone.
"That giant… is helping us?"
From his vantage point, the city lord saw clearly what had happened.
When the bird monster had swooped toward him, the giant had grabbed its tail, stopping its advance.
Then the giant attacked it head-on.
There was no mistaking it—the giant was on Fuhuo City's side.
Yet… something about the dark sheen of its body made the light energy within the city lord's own body feel faintly repelled.
"Send the order!" the city lord shouted. "Assist the giant—attack the monster!"
"Understood!"
The commander, who had been nearly catatonic moments earlier, snapped back to life at the renewed spark of hope. He began shouting orders with renewed vigour.
Assist the giant.
Attack the bird monster.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
What remained of the city's firepower roared to life once again, unleashing a fresh wave of bombardment upon Melba.
Melba glared at Yu Zhou, still furious, but before it could act, Yu Zhou's next punch landed squarely.
With a thunderous crash, the winged monster plummeted from the sky, crushing several buildings beneath it.
Hovering down from above, Yu Zhou landed heavily on the ground.
"So strong…"
The city lord, who had returned to the rooftop, couldn't help but whisper those words in awe.
That giant bird—untouched by all the combined firepower of Fuhuo City—had been brought down by a single punch.
The sight was overwhelming.
Artillery fire from the ground continued to hammer Melba's body.
Though it hadn't been effective before, now the combined assault struck hard, leaving the monster reeling.
The fall had dazed Melba, and the continuous bombardment broke its concentration.
Every time it tried to rise, an explosion forced it back down.
Yu Zhou took the chance—he wasn't about to let the creature recover.
He lunged forward again.
Strike while it's weak—don't give it the chance to breathe!
Grabbing Melba's wing with both hands, Yu Zhou pulled hard.
Crack!
The sound of breaking bone echoed across the battlefield as one of Melba's wings snapped, falling limply to the ground.
To Melba, its wings were part of its very being.
The pain was excruciating.
The creature shrieked, writhing in agony.
"Better end this quickly," Yu Zhou murmured.
He had no taste for torturing monsters—if it could be destroyed cleanly, then that was that.
He hoisted Melba high above his head and hurled it into the sky.
Then, crossing his arms into an L-shape, he fired a condensed beam of dark energy—
a simplified version of the Dark Zeperion Ray.
The beam struck Melba squarely.
BOOM!!!
A blinding explosion filled the sky.
The sound echoed across the clouds, and the people of Fuhuo City could only stare in stunned silence.
The giant bird that had tormented them for so long—
was gone.
Destroyed.
The creature that had caused their homes to burn, their families to scatter—was finally dead.
As the smoke and flames faded, every citizen of Fuhuo City fell to their knees, bowing toward the giant.
A god.
To them, this must be a god.
Even the city lord stood frozen, gazing at the cloud of smoke where Melba had vanished.
He had only hoped the giant could drive the monster away—
but instead, the giant had completely obliterated it.
An unexpected miracle.
But… was this being truly benevolent?
Would it turn against them next?
Yu Zhou stood silently in the city ruins, looking down at the kneeling people, somewhat startled.
"So, this… is how the Ultra-Ancient humans saw the Giants?
As gods."
He had never intended to be worshipped.
In fact, he hadn't even planned to transform.
After all, the true Ultraman Tiga still existed in this world.
If Yu Zhou transformed into Tiga's dark form, misunderstandings—or even greater trouble—could easily arise.
But what was done was done.
After defeating Melba, Yu Zhou's giant form began to dissolve, his body breaking apart into black particles of light that drifted away into the sky.
"The god… the giant… it's a god!"
The city lord murmured in awe as the dark figure vanished before his eyes.
The people's prayers and chants grew louder; their foreheads pressed to the ground.
A being who could destroy a monster and vanish into the air—
If that wasn't a god, then what was?
"Just three minutes…"
The city lord clenched his fists, voice trembling with reverence.
"In only three minutes, that giant annihilated the bird monster…"
A force capable of protecting Fuhuo City—
A power to long for.