Chapter Ten: A Heart of Ice

“In fact, I do not agree with the term you use for Ultraman’s human hosts, labeling them as non-human with such obvious contempt,” Tetsuya said, sitting in the passenger seat and gazing at Sara Mizuhara, clad in her special combat uniform. As he voiced his protest, his eyes unabashedly lingered on her. The allure of this woman was undeniable, especially when she donned her professional attire—the contrast between her gentle beauty and the crisp uniform created a captivating charm that made it impossible for him to look away.

Used to Tetsuya’s unruly demeanor in everyday life, Sara tried her best to ignore his gaze. She focused on driving, asking, “Are you still considered human? I’ve never met a human who could transform.”

Tetsuya shrugged. “Yet that doesn’t mean you can define me as non-human, does it?”

“Oh?” Sara glanced at him, her eyes inquisitive. “Then what would you call yourself?”

“A super-evolved human,” Tetsuya snapped his fingers, smiling. “Normally, I’m no different from any other person, but unlike them, I can harness the power of light. At certain moments, I undergo super-evolution and fight in Ultraman’s form.”

Sara looked at him in silence.

“You’ve tested me with equipment. The results were clear—I’m no different from an ordinary human, perhaps just a bit stronger physically. My genetic chain hasn’t changed, my consciousness remains intact. From the perspective of biology, I am still human.”

Clearly, Sara could find no argument against his reasoning. She shifted the topic. “From the fragments of the monster’s severed tail, I’ve developed special bullets with even stronger toxicity.”

She glanced at the box in the back seat, but was rather annoyed to see that Tetsuya showed no interest at all; he hadn’t even looked back, his eyes never leaving her face.

Sara blushed, slightly flustered, but quickly regained her composure. “I can’t guarantee they’ll outpace The One’s rate of evolution, but it’s worth a try.”

Tetsuya was silent for a moment. “What if I choose not to accompany you?”

Sara looked at him, her expression unchanged but her tone a little colder. “Even without you, I plan to confront The One myself—even if it means going down together.”

Tetsuya was quiet for a while, saying nothing, but placed his hand over Sara’s. The sudden gesture startled her, and she hurried to pull her hand away. But since she was driving, the movement caused the car to swerve sharply. Thankfully, Sara quickly regained control.

“Non-human, take your hand off!” Sara, shaken by the incident, furrowed her delicate brows and voiced her protest in a cold tone.

Tetsuya shrugged, not responding. After a moment, as Sara freed her right hand to reach for her pistol, Tetsuya spoke.

“I won’t. I have no duty to protect this world, but I will protect you, no matter what.”

It was as if his words struck something soft and vulnerable inside her. Sara felt a surge of emotion, her nose tingling, unable to speak. Her hand, poised to draw her pistol, hesitated.

The atmosphere in the car became awkward, almost like two young people who secretly like each other, trapped in a room together—both wanting to say something, but falling quiet at the same time.

During that moment, Tetsuya glanced at the system interface showing his current status. On the Next’s skill subpage, both the Elbow Cutter and Blade of Light were now activated, each with a brief description.

Elbow Cutter (C): A blade-shaped structure on the upper arm. When focus is concentrated, it glows yellow and can cut through anything. Used to sever The One’s tail (in crawling form) when it was wrapped around his neck.

Blade of Light (B-): A blade of light emitted from the upper arm’s blade, temporarily repelled The One.

These two innate skills made Tetsuya cringe. The C and B- ratings revealed just how weak Next’s juvenile form was. He glanced at the system shop, filled with skills rated A and A+. Suddenly, he realized that the young Next might indeed be one of the weakest Ultramen.

No, at least it was better than the young Zero, Boy Ultraman, or Pikect Ultraman…

While he was inwardly lamenting, the car stopped and Sara’s cold voice sounded, “We’re here.”

“Mm…” Tetsuya replied, but didn’t move.

Sara grew more impatient. “Let go already!”

Realizing his mistake, Tetsuya smiled awkwardly and withdrew his hand.

Ahead, a group of soldiers stood in the road with submachine guns. The captain, who had once led his men in battle against The One, looked grimly at the pair as they got out of the car.

“You’re late!” It was obvious that Sara’s underestimation of The One’s evolutionary speed had led to the death of many subordinates. His face was dark and his gaze coldly fixed on her, full of resentment.

Sara saw the white bandages under his helmet and felt a pang of guilt, but now was not the time for apologies. They had already located The One in the Shinjuku underground tunnels. Any delay might bring about unforeseen disasters.

“Let’s go!” Sara called back to Tetsuya and prepared to enter.

“Stop!” The captain’s face was cold as he drew his pistol; behind him, four soldiers aimed their guns in turn.

“Your plan’s failure cost me a great number of men! Do you think I’ll just let you go in?”

Tetsuya’s expression became strange. It was as if something valuable lay inside, but the threat seemed both absurd and laughable.

Sara was about to speak, but Tetsuya intervened. So many men pointing their guns at a woman—especially one he’d promised to protect—he found it revolting.

“Do you have the ability to destroy the monster?”

Before Sara could answer, Tetsuya asked his question.

Sure enough, the captain’s face stiffened under his white bandages. How could he possibly destroy the monster? If he had the power, he’d have led his troops into the tunnels long ago, instead of standing guard here, constantly fearing the creature’s sudden emergence.

“Since you lack the power to destroy the monster,” Tetsuya’s eyes swept over him with a mocking gaze, “and you don’t have the courage to go underground and fight it…”

Suddenly, his voice rose:

“Then what right do you have to stop others from risking their lives to do what you cannot—destroy the monster?”

Sara felt a warmth in her heart at Tetsuya’s defense. Ever since The One appeared, she had to endure her grief while plotting its destruction—destroying her former lover. Who could possibly understand her pain? Now, faced with the captain’s doubts, she felt even more aggrieved. But Tetsuya’s words were like a beam of light piercing the darkness, warming her frozen heart.

His promise echoed in her mind: “I have no duty to protect this world, but I will protect you, no matter what.”

Sara lowered her head, swiftly composing herself, then looked up at the captain and said firmly, “Please, trust us one more time!”

The captain’s gaze flickered between the two. Finally, he holstered his pistol and spoke with grim resolve, “I’ll go with you.”