"Celebro?"
Tartarus paused slightly upon hearing the name. He then released his grip on Kaburagi Shinya and strode toward Yuzhou.
It was true that the Celebro aliens specialized in parasitizing humans—but Tartarus had not expected Celebro to switch hosts.
No wonder this human had seemed completely clueless earlier. Tartarus had even suspected that Celebro might have betrayed him.
To sell the act, Yuzhou unleashed acting skills he had not used in a long time. His body began to tremble violently with a crackling motion, his expression twisting into manic madness.
Kaburagi Shinya, already knocked unconscious earlier by Celebro's actions, lay motionless at the side, unable to cry out even if he wanted to.
Seeing how convincingly "possessed" Yuzhou looked, Tartarus nodded slightly and spoke:
"How is the task I assigned you progressing?"
"The task?"
Yuzhou froze for a brief instant.
He had absolutely no idea what mission Tartarus had given the real Celebro.
"Hm?"
Tartarus's tone darkened immediately.
From the way this so-called "Celebro" spoke, it sounded as if he had paid no attention whatsoever to the task assigned to him.
"Ahem…"
Yuzhou quickly gathered his thoughts and spoke.
"Recently, I've continued my game—attempting to bring about the destruction of this civilization. But those Ultramen have been interfering nonstop."
Fishing for information was easy—even without knowing the original assignment.
"Well done."
Tartarus nodded. The anger he had been about to unleash dissipated.
He was well aware of Celebro's so-called "game." Destroying a civilization through madness meant nothing to Tartarus—after all, he was an Ultimate Lifeform. He had seen far worse.
As long as Celebro continued his antics, the Ultramen's attention—including Ultraman Tiga's—would be drawn here.
And that alone satisfied Tartarus's expectations.
"As long as you can keep Tiga occupied," Tartarus said coldly, "I don't care what you do."
"Really? Anything at all?"
Yuzhou's face lit up with manic excitement, perfectly imitating Celebro during one of his breakdowns.
"Yes."
Tartarus looked at him uneasily. For some reason, he felt a creeping sense of discomfort—as though this Celebro had designs on him.
"Then…"
Yuzhou said slowly, eyes blazing, "I want to hug you, respected Lord Tartarus."
The words nearly knocked Tartarus's jaw loose.
A hug?
Celebro wanted to hug him?
Was this some kind of joke?
"Hug me? Why?"
"My lord," Yuzhou explained hurriedly, taking advantage of Tartarus's momentary confusion, "you saved my life. Perhaps because I've parasitized a human, I've developed… emotions."
"Emotions?"
Tartarus sneered.
"That troublesome complexity unique to humans. Still, it can't be helped. Aside from your brain, parasitism is the only thing you're good at."
"So, respected Ultimate Lifeform—glorious warrior of the Absolutians—Lord Tartarus…"
Yuzhou pressed on, "may I embrace you?"
"…Fine."
No one disliked flattery. Tartarus was no exception.
After hearing that long string of praise, he found it quite acceptable. Celebro remembering his full titles alone was impressive enough.
"And besides," Tartarus thought, "with Celebro's deranged personality, any request is normal."
"I'm coming, my lord!"
Yuzhou wore a crazed grin as he stepped forward. One arm slipped behind Tartarus's knees—
—and he lifted him straight up.
A princess carry.
Tartarus's mind went blank.
Before he could react, Yuzhou's other arm slid around his neck, his hand pressing firmly against Tartarus's massive chest.
Tartarus was even more confused now.
That sensation…
He had felt it somewhere before.
Yulian?
No—wait—
"You're not Celebro!!!"
Tartarus roared at last, struggling to break free.
Too late.
A sharp pain exploded from his thigh.
His entire body was hurled violently into the wall behind him.
Bang!
The wall nearly shattered.
Looking down, Tartarus saw a horrifying sight—
A chunk of flesh had been sliced cleanly from his thigh.
In Yuzhou's hand, a blade of light extended outward. In his other hand was a silver fragment, glowing intensely with golden radiance.
Suppressing the pain, Tartarus gathered golden energy over the wound. Before long, the severed flesh regenerated at a visible speed.
"Did that feel good, Lord Tartarus?"
Yuzhou casually stored the golden-glowing flesh into his spatial ring.
Light particles surged around him.
Moments later, a silver–purple–red giant stood before Tartarus.
"TIGA!!!"
Tartarus was utterly shocked.
If Tiga was here, then Celebro should have already been eliminated long ago.
And worse—
He had just been outplayed and injured.
An unforgivable humiliation.
"Surprised?"
"Shocked?"
Yuzhou spoke lightly as more light gathered around his body. In an instant, his entire form erupted with brilliance, illuminating the room.
Against Tartarus, carelessness meant death.
Even Zero's Shining Ultimate Form had failed to defeat him outright.
Even as Glitter Tiga, Yuzhou could not guarantee victory.
"Damn it!"
Wounded by a sneak attack, Tartarus had never anticipated such a turn.
Facing Glitter Tiga now, he wasted no time.
Golden energy burst forth, forming a golden wormhole, and Tartarus dove straight into it.
Yuzhou instinctively took a step forward, intending to pursue him—
—but then stopped.
In the original timeline, Zero had lost precisely because he fought Tartarus inside that warped space, where energy consumption was catastrophic.
Chasing him would be reckless.
Letting Tartarus escape was regrettable—
But then, in the very next moment—
A silver-and-red figure stepped out from the golden wormhole.
"…Belial?"
Yuzhou frowned.
He could tell immediately—this was not the Belial of this world.
This was a Belial from another timeline; one Tartarus had retrieved from a parallel universe.
Judging by the timeline, this Belial had been taken after attempting to seize the Plasma Spark, but before being possessed by Reiblood.
"Let me have a go at you!"
Belial cracked his neck, clenched his fists—
—and charged straight at Yuzhou.