Chapter Thirteen: That Belongs to Me

In the TPC command room, the screen was displaying scenes of Tiga’s first appearance and battle—footage that was highly classified within TPC. As the energy indicator on the screen lit up in red on Tiga’s chest, Norie spoke up: “From the moment that red light started flashing on his chest to when he defeated Melba, it was only a matter of seconds.”

He paused, then repeated with conviction, “The giant can only remain active on Earth for about three minutes.”

Daigu turned around, a little surprised. “You’re that certain?”

Norie smiled, rewinding the footage back to the moment Golza retreated. He said, “Notice that after Golza fled, the giant didn’t give chase. To be exact, he couldn’t.”

Daigu nodded slightly in understanding, but just then, a voice sounded behind them: “Perhaps, between chasing Golza or Melba, the giant had to make a choice?”

Norie turned to see Tetsuya, who was twisting a Rubik’s Cube in his hands as he strolled over.

“For something like this—”

Tetsuya waved his hand and sat down beside Daigu, chuckling. “I’m not challenging your point. On the contrary, I think you make a lot of sense. I just wanted to offer another possibility.”

Daigu, noticing Tetsuya’s uniform, asked in surprise, “Captain Gale, your—?”

Tetsuya tugged at his uniform and smiled. “The uniform at Caro Base is blue, but I prefer the Victory Team’s, so I applied to join them. That’s why I look like this now.”

He paused, then reached out to Daigu. “We might be fighting side by side from now on. I hope we’ll get along.”

Daigu shook his hand in a daze, followed by Norie, who asked in astonishment while shaking hands, “You resigned as head of Caro Base to join the Victory Team?!”

Tetsuya nodded with a smile. Norie regarded him with a strange expression, at a loss for words.

“Compared to managing the endless chores of building up Caro Base on the moon, I’d much rather be here in the Victory Team, fighting monsters. So, there’s no need to be too surprised.”

Norie shook his head. “I still can’t understand your choice, Captain Gale…”

Tetsuya shrugged, fiddling with the Rubik’s Cube again. Calmly, he said, “Perhaps it’s just that, as a human, I have a desire to protect the Earth. That’s what led me to this decision.”

He pointed to the screen. “Let’s continue the analysis. I’m very interested in seeing the giant’s true strength.”

Norie nodded, tapped a few keys, and the large screen switched to a comparative analysis of Tiga’s three forms.

“At first, his body is colored red and purple. When he turns completely red, he can unleash his full power!”

Daigu turned to ask, “Then why not just use the red form from the start?”

Norie smiled, as if he’d been waiting for that question. “That’s what I thought at first too. But when he’s in the red form, his speed decreases—and vice versa.”

“When he’s purple, he becomes more agile, but his strength is reduced.”

He watched footage on the screen of Tiga using the two forms against different enemies. “The form that inflicts the greatest damage is the red one; for agile monsters like Melba, he switches to purple to deal with them.”

Daigu suddenly understood and nodded. “I get it! The giant can adjust his abilities according to the enemy’s characteristics!”

Tetsuya listened silently, not interrupting. Norie then had someone bring the Time Machine into the command room. He stood and walked over to it, voicing his doubt: “But there’s still one question—why was only that one giant revived?”

As he spoke, he activated the Time Machine. Amid the red glow, Yurine’s figure appeared once more.

“My descendants, you…”

Norie rubbed his temples in frustration. “I can get it running again, but there’s still too much static at the end.”

“And yet, there’s only one way to awaken the giant…”

“That is… Daigu must become light!”

The last words rang out clear as day in Daigu and Tetsuya’s ears. Daigu was startled, and Tetsuya’s attention was fully drawn; he put down the Rubik’s Cube and stared fixedly at the hazy figure of Yurine.

“You see—right at the crucial moment, the message is always garbled…”

Daigu turned back to Yurine, but the phrase kept ringing in his ears, as if it were being repeated over and over.

Norie sighed, crouched down, and tinkered with the Time Machine again.

“So… Daigu becomes light?” Daigu murmured, lost in thought.

“Thai curry?” Norie turned and laughed. “Speaking of curry, I’m hungry too. How about I treat you today?”

Without waiting for Daigu’s reply, he headed for the door. Tetsuya, too, put down the Rubik’s Cube and got up. “I’ll come with you…”

Soon, Daigu was left alone in the command room. At that moment, Yurine’s presence was nothing like a machine. She looked at Daigu and spoke clearly: “Daigu… your name is Ultraman Tiga!”

“Aren’t you the Time Machine?”

“This is a Time Machine, but it’s equipped with highly advanced artificial intelligence!”

Daigu asked, “Why am I the only one who can hear your voice?”

“Because you are Ultraman Tiga!”

“No!” Daigu seemed agitated, even angry. “No! I’m me—I’m not this Ultraman Tiga!”

“Within your DNA lies the gene of a great ancient warrior… You possess a Spark Lance, don’t you? That proves you really are Ultraman Tiga!”

Hearing this, Daigu pulled the Spark Lance from his pocket and looked at it. Then, in a burst of anger, he hurled it forcefully to the ground. “Who wants this thing?!”

He looked at Yurine and demanded, “If you created such an advanced civilization, where did you all end up?”

“Some died… some went elsewhere.”

“But… you had so many giants! Couldn’t they protect you?”

“Ultramen don’t interfere with human choices, for they are all light… But you are different, because you are both light and human!”

With that, Yurine’s figure vanished. Just then, Norie and Tetsuya entered, each carrying a plate of curry.

“What… what’s this?” Tetsuya picked up the Spark Lance, struggling to get the words out. This was the thing he had dreamed of possessing… Yet… why wasn’t it his!?

“Give it back…” Daigu rushed over, snatching the Spark Lance from Tetsuya’s hands. Turning away, he paused and said,

“This is mine!”

At that moment, the alarm sounded again. Chief Zejing appeared on the screen, his tone grave: “Victory Team, prepare to depart at once!”

At those words, Daigu was the first to react, dashing out the door. Norie, still holding his tray, followed, leaving Tetsuya alone to savor his curry.

Now, only Tetsuya remained in the command room.