"Run!"
"Move, now!"
"Help—!!!"
"..."
Of the twenty-plus survivors, most scattered in all directions.
Very few people could maintain any semblance of composure when faced with a monster of this magnitude.
Those who could run, ran.
Those who were injured—crushed beneath rubble—could not.
They could only stare helplessly as the monster before them prepared to wipe out everything in its path.
Yuzhou stood calmly in place, unmoving, his eyes fixed on the MUTO.
Judging by its smaller size and the wings growing from its body, this one was clearly the male.
The surrounding area had already been largely cleared. The female appeared to be nesting some distance away—most likely laying eggs.
The MUTO was slightly surprised.
It had not expected that there would still be a "small insect" capable of withstanding the gale produced by its breath.
But as a prehistoric apex predator, nothing delighted it more than toying with such insects before killing them.
Raising one massive forelimb, the MUTO adjusted its aim slightly—
—and stomped down toward Yuzhou.
"…No way."
The talkative young man watched in disbelief, a deep sense of regret filling his heart.
The man who had just saved his life—
Was about to be crushed under a monster's foot.
Boom!
With the MUTO's foot slamming down, all that remained was a cloud of dust beneath the dim, gray sky.
There was no blood. No splatter.
In the eyes of the onlookers, Yuzhou was unquestionably dead.
However—
"What… is that?"
The young man suddenly pointed beneath the MUTO's forelimb, his voice filled with confusion.
The others followed his gaze.
As the dust gradually settled, a faint glow could be seen emanating from beneath the monster's foot.
"Why is it glowing under there?"
Someone asked hesitantly.
"Maybe… because it's a monster?"
Another replied with forced confidence, as though the appearance of monsters already made anything else plausible.
"No…"
The young man's eyes narrowed as he stared intently.
Something was wrong.
After crushing Yuzhou, the MUTO had intended to continue exterminating the remaining "insects."
But suddenly, it felt heat beneath its forelimb.
The creature lowered its triangular head, red eyes peering downward in confusion.
The glow grew brighter.
Brighter still—
Until—
BOOM!
A pillar of pure white light erupted skyward, blasting straight through the MUTO's forelimb and sending its massive body flying backward.
"What just happened?!"
The crowd stared in shock, unable to comprehend what they had just seen.
"What was that light?!"
The beam illuminated the ashen sky, tearing a hole through the blood-red clouds overhead.
A ray of light poured down through the opening—
—shining upon a colossal figure standing amid the ruins.
A giant body clad in silver, purple, and red.
"A giant…!"
"Look! A giant!!!"
Not only the survivors in Chinatown—people across the entire city stared upward, eyes wide with disbelief.
A giant had appeared.
This world had already accepted monsters.
But now giants, too?
Strangely enough… it didn't feel entirely impossible anymore.
"I am Tiga—Ultraman Tiga!"
"I bring light—and I will drive back the darkness!"
Borrowing a line once spoken by Orb, Yuzhou felt no shame whatsoever.
In a world without Ultramen—yet overrun by monsters—
This city desperately needed a light to believe in.
The MUTO had never imagined that such a being could exist.
Pain from its shattered forelimb snapped it out of its shock.
It glanced at its missing limb, then at the giant before it.
Rage overwhelmed its mind.
With a furious screech, the MUTO took flight and charged straight toward Tiga.
"How dare you?"
Yuzhou stood his ground, unmoved, watching the monster descend from the sky.
At the moment of impact—
He threw a single punch.
The MUTO was sent flying like a kite with its string cut.
Boom!
It crashed heavily beside the female MUTO, dust billowing into the air.
The female MUTO clearly hadn't expected her mate to be defeated so easily by this sudden giant.
Having finished laying her eggs, she rose and charged toward Yuzhou as well.
The male MUTO struggled back to its feet, glanced at his charging partner—
—and followed after her.
In truth, Yuzhou had initially intended to destroy them with a light beam.
But he remembered something critical.
Beneath the MUTO nest lay a nuclear warhead.
If a beam detonated it, the city's population would suffer catastrophic consequences—even if they survived.
From what Yuzhou knew, MUTOs and Godzilla were ancient enemies.
Godzilla's body contained immense radiation—exactly what MUTOs required to grow.
In ancient times, the two species were natural rivals.
Most infamously, MUTOs preferred to implant their eggs directly into Godzilla's body.
The day the hatchlings emerged was the day Godzilla would be torn apart from within.
Radiation was survivable for monsters.
For humans, it was not.
As the two MUTOs charged forward, the crystal on Yuzhou's forehead flashed.
His body shifted into a silver-and-purple form as he leapt into the sky.
"Look! The giant changed color!"
"He turned purple!"
"He's flying! No wings—no tools—he's just flying!"
"My god… is he a deity?!"
"..."
Watching Tiga battle the monsters, the people below felt only relief.
Without realizing it, they had already begun to regard the giant as a god of salvation.
After all—
In this situation, only he could stand against such monsters.
The female MUTO could not fly.
Only the male was able to pursue Tiga into the air.
Yuzhou deliberately slowed down, allowing the male MUTO to catch up.
Once the distance was just right—
He stopped.
The enraged MUTO lunged forward—
—and in the next instant—
Shhh—!!
A purple beam of light slammed into its body.
The male MUTO froze midair.
Then—
BOOM!
Its body exploded into fragments across the sky.
"What was that just now?!"
"That beam—was it from the giant?!"
"Is that magic?"
"Divine judgment?!"
"It doesn't matter—he annihilated the monster!!!"
"..."
From the ground, people watched as a fiery explosion bloomed in the sky.
The male MUTO vanished completely.
And once again—
The city erupted into stunned, disbelieving cries.