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Elder Steven's heart dropped the moment he heard the explanation.
"No," Achilles said, shaking his head slowly, "he's the only one among the humans who's like this. If they all were, the Kaiju we created never would have invaded Earth in the first place."
"Really?" Elder Steven let out a deep breath, visibly relieved. "That's… good."
Because if every human had been like the man called Ryan, then the Precursors would have needed to seriously reconsider whether cooperation was even possible. In fact, they would have had to destroy the wormholes entirely just to protect themselves.
—
Meanwhile, after leaving the Monster Factory, Aidan went straight to see Patrick Hemitdon, Chairman of the Planetary Warfare Council. Patrick was in his office, still drafting the master negotiation plan. The plan was built using suggestions from multiple countries, and even if it passed, it couldn't take effect until world leaders formally signed it.
A knock echoed through the office.
Knock knock.
"Come in!" Patrick called, lifting his head and stretching his stiff neck. He had been working for nearly a full day and night. Ever since the proposals from all nations arrived, he had been drowning in paperwork. Negotiations with the Precursor civilization, Jaeger-unit restructuring, the space fleet, global infrastructure—everything was pressing down on him at once.
"Mr. Hemitdon, long time no see!" Aidan said, stepping in with an easy smile.
"Dr. Ryan!" Patrick jumped to his feet, clearly relieved to see him.
"I think you already know what kind of news I'm bringing today," Aidan said, shaking his hand. They moved to the seating area beside the desk.
"The representative of the Precursor civilization has arrived?" Patrick asked. He already suspected as much, but he needed to hear it confirmed.
"Yes," Aidan nodded. "He's the leader of the Anteverse Dove faction. He's genuinely interested in cooperation with humans."
Aidan poured himself a cup of tea from the set on the table.
"Hm? This tea's actually pretty good." His eyes lit up after the first sip.
"It was a gift from the UK delegation when they submitted their proposal," Patrick explained, making himself a cup of coffee. "I still prefer coffee, though."
"No wonder it tastes good," Aidan said, taking another sip. Having spent three years locked inside the Monster Factory working on Godzilla, he hadn't tasted anything normal—let alone tea—in ages.
"…How are the preparations for the negotiations going?" he asked.
Patrick set down his coffee and shook his head with a tired smile.
"Just yesterday all the countries submitted their plans. Now I have to unify them, and then schedule a full world meeting."
"It's fine," Aidan said casually. "Don't overthink it. I'll send you everything you need about the Precursor representatives. You can sort it out at your own pace."
"By the way," he added, "has the cosmic probe been launched yet?"
Patrick paused to think.
"…Not yet. Only three countries are willing to invest in building the probes. The others haven't participated at all, so progress is extremely slow."
"Mm… Forget it. If this were earlier, I might've been anxious. But at this stage, I'm not in a hurry anymore." Aidan leaned back, shaking his head with mild resignation.
"What exactly are you planning to do with the probe once it finds a neutron star?" Patrick asked curiously.
"I want to see if I can capture a neutron star and use it as an energy source for the Interstellar Wall."
"Using a neutron star as energy?" Patrick froze. He wasn't an astronomer, but even he understood how absurdly powerful a neutron star was—just below a black hole.
"I can handle the energy output," Aidan said calmly. "After that, I'll build a Dyson sphere outside of Earth using its power."
Patrick stared at him for several seconds before letting out a helpless exhale.
"Sometimes I really think you're someone sent from the future."
"It's a very rational conclusion," Aidan replied without hesitation, tilting his head lightly. "But if only three countries participate in the probe program… then only those three nations will benefit once a neutron star is found."
"That…" Patrick became speechless. "Still… after negotiations with the Precursors, the entire structure of human society might change. No one knows what the future will look like."
Maybe humanity would unite under a single goal, forming a grand civilization capable of reaching the stars. Or maybe the path would be far more chaotic. And if a neutron star was found, the three investing nations would gain an advantage so enormous it could reshape global power.
"Let's handle the negotiations first," Patrick said, shaking his head. "I might not even be in this position by the time all of that happens."
"Well, that's everything I came to tell you," Aidan said, standing up after finishing his tea. "I have plenty of time, so don't rush. The Precursors live for one or two thousand years—a few months won't matter to them at all."
Patrick nodded gratefully.
"Thank you for everything you're doing for humanity."
—
After leaving, Aidan stood alone in the center of the parliamentary hall, silently staring upward.
I… kind of have nowhere to go, don't I?
With his current identity, if he went anywhere public he'd be instantly recognized—sparking chaos, crowds, even riots. Going anywhere "normal" wasn't possible.
So, helplessly, he teleported back to the only place where people at least knew him a little:
the Hong Kong Shatterdome Base.
The moment he appeared, Marshal Stacker Pentecost spotted him and approached immediately. Stacker was now Marshal Thompson's deputy, in charge of building the Asian Jaeger unit. And he wasn't alone. Several Jaeger pilots followed him, their expressions complicated. Especially Mako Mori, who looked at Aidan with barely restrained anger in her eyes.
"Dr. Ryan, how's the other side of the wormhole?" Stacker asked first.
"The Precursor negotiator has arrived. We're waiting on humanity now," Aidan replied.
He also knew exactly why Mako looked so angry. Her home had been destroyed by Kaiju. She had trained her entire life to become a Jaeger pilot so she could kill monsters—yet now, nations were showing a faint willingness to cooperate with the Precursors. To her, it felt like the disaster had been swept under the rug.
"The earliest supporters are definitely going to die," Aidan told her bluntly. "But after that, what happens depends on what resources Earth can obtain from the Anteverse."
"And we're not just after technology," he continued. "Humanity's fighting spirit has to be directed toward the Anteverse if we want those resources in the first place."
Raleigh Becket, standing with the pilots, nodded in agreement.
"Yeah," Raleigh said. "Cooperation isn't pretty, but it's practical. If the Anteverse has what we need, then working with them is the smart move."
The other pilots murmured their agreement, uneasy but acknowledging the truth.