After learning everything he could about the source of darkness, Yu Zhou decided it was time to leave.
"I suppose you didn't really come here just to take the Earth Defence Force exam, did you?"
A gentle breeze passed between them, carrying with it a few drifting green leaves that floated down in front of Yuzare.
Thinking back to the answer Yu Zhou had written during the test, she had a sudden realization about what kind of person he truly was.
"I'm not interested in joining the Earth Defence Force," Yu Zhou replied calmly. "I only came here to ask you about those things. Now that I've got my answers, I should go."
"Wait—could you not leave just yet?" Yuzare's voice stopped him unexpectedly. "If you joined the Earth Defence Force, you'd be a powerful ally. Your strength could make a real difference."
"Sorry, but I'm not interested."
Yu Zhou shook his head and turned to go.
"I still have one more question for you."
Her voice halted his steps once again.
He turned slightly, glancing back. "What question?"
"From what you said yesterday," Yuzare began, "you're searching for someone called 'Tiga,' right?" Her expression was puzzled. "But… aren't you Tiga? Why would you be searching for yourself? Or—does it mean something deeper?"
Yu Zhou froze for a moment, then simply said, "No deeper meaning. Goodbye."
Without another word, he left, his silhouette gradually fading into the distance.
Yu Zhou might not have been the smartest person in the universe, but he wasn't a fool either.
Ever since he arrived thirty million years in the past, everything had felt like it was already predetermined.
The place he first appeared—Orion.
According to the data, that was where the Giants of Light once originated in ancient times.
He had travelled from Orion to Earth, only to find that no one on the planet had ever heard of either the Giants of Light or the Giants of Darkness.
He even witnessed the very first monster appearance in this world—Melba.
When he defeated it, the lord of Vulcan City gave him a name.
A codename.
Tiga.
And that was how the name "Tiga" was born.
Yu Zhou had never expected things to turn out this way.
The Zoiger army invaded as the vanguard of darkness.
The Earth Defence Force was formed.
Yuzare became its leader.
But the strangest thing was—Yuzare's first knowledge of Tiga had come from him.
After countless attempts to find the real Tiga, Yu Zhou was forced to face a truth he didn't want to accept.
Camearra was still waiting. Waiting for him to find the true Tiga so she could be revived.
That was why Yu Zhou had come to this era—to find the real Tiga.
The one who could do anything.
The one whom Hudra and Darramb had described as capable of resurrecting Camearra.
Camearra's husband.
The strongest Dark Giant of the ancient age.
The one powerful enough to reverse death itself—the true Ultraman Tiga.
But now—
all the clues pointed toward something he found impossible to believe.
"How could I possibly be the real Tiga?!"
Sitting inside his spacecraft, Yu Zhou stared through the open skylight at the endless night sky.
The thought that he might truly be the original Tiga… he couldn't bring himself to believe it.
If he accepted that truth, then how could he continue searching for the almighty Tiga?
How could he ever hope to gain the strength needed to bring Camearra back?
He didn't want to believe it.
He refused to believe it.
There was one last method left—
one last attempt to uncover the truth.
He would meet with the mysterious King of Darkness… or one of his followers.
"If even that last hope fails," Yu Zhou murmured, taking a deep breath,
"then let me grow stronger. Strong enough to surpass fate itself."
"Let me… become Tiga."
Moonlight spilled through the skylight, painting his simple clothes and weary face in pale silver.
The stars were faint under the bright moon's glow—
but the constellation of Orion still shone clearly in the southern sky.
Under Yu Zhou's command, the spacecraft drifted slowly southward, gliding gently through the air like a leaf on the wind.
He didn't want speed.
He wanted calm.
He hoped that when he next awoke, it would already be morning.
Time passed quietly.
As dawn broke over the horizon, the spacecraft descended onto a beach—the very same beach where Yu Zhou had first arrived in this world.
The fishermen at work glanced up at the descending ship, curious but unafraid. They didn't know what kind of being had landed before them.
Yu Zhou stepped out, stowing his ship away, and walked toward the ocean.
Yuzare had told him that the source of darkness came from the southern seas.
But she hadn't given him the exact location—it was classified information.
Unless he joined the Earth Defence Force, she wouldn't tell him.
Still, she had mentioned one useful detail—
that the Earth Defence Force would soon send their first exploration team to the ocean to find the source of darkness.
Before their mission began, they were to stop by an island near the southern continent's edge to pick up advanced technology and equipment.
That island, she had said, was a centre for research and development—its name and coordinates strictly secret.
So, Yu Zhou decided to wait along the likely route of the fleet.
According to Yuzare, the Defence Force ships followed fixed flight paths when heading to special regions, rarely straying off course.
"The launch time should be just after sunrise," Yu Zhou said to himself, "so I might as well have breakfast first."
By the time the sun fully rose, Yu Zhou was already on the southern coast.
The Defence Force's ships were reliable, not too fast and not too slow.
None of them, however, could match the speed of Yu Zhou's own vessel.
On the beach, he caught a few crab-like creatures and some small fish.
Then, taking out some cooking gear and a bag of rice from his spatial bracelet, he smiled faintly.
"Crab porridge for breakfast, then."
Before long, the aroma of freshly cooked rice and seafood filled the morning air.
After some time, several spacecraft streaked across the blue sky.
Yu Zhou quickly packed his equipment, summoned his ship, and took off after them.
Of course, flying too close would be too obvious.
He slowed down, keeping a safe distance—far enough to avoid detection, close enough not to lose them.
If the Earth Defence Force realized he was tailing them, a fight might break out.
"I'll see for myself just how advanced this 'ancient' technology really is," Yu Zhou muttered, eyes locked on the shrinking silhouettes ahead.
He had the ship's AI lock onto the targets, adjusting speed based on distance.
Before long, the Defence Force vessels began descending toward the vast ocean below—
their destination finally within sight.