At the top level of the Time-Space Fortress, Etelgar looked visibly surprised.
He hadn't expected Yu Zhou and the others to break through his puppet defences so quickly.
Still, he wasn't worried.
Even if there were three Ultramen, sealing them again would be no problem.
After all, he had done it once before — there was no reason he couldn't do it again.
Even Ultraman Tiga had once been sealed inside the Magic Mirror.
And if one could be sealed, then two could be as well.
"Etelgar," Yu Zhou said calmly, walking toward him step by step,
"I suggest you release the other Ultra Warriors trapped inside the Magic Mirror—"
"Otherwise…"
"Otherwise, what?" Etelgar sneered. "You think you can rescue them?"
Yu Zhou raised a finger and pointed straight at him.
"Otherwise, our fastest and strongest Ultraman, Max, will smash your ugly head in!"
"???"
Max froze, three question marks practically floating over his head.
Meanwhile, Gaia stepped forward, his voice ringing with conviction.
"You'll never defeat us, Etelgar! You're no match for Ultra Warriors!"
"Max," Yu Zhou said sharply, "Etelgar is yours!"
Max: "…"
"Hmph! Pathetic losers."
Etelgar curled a finger at them in open mockery.
"Come on then, show me what you've got."
"Etelgar — you're dead today!"
Max had had enough.
Sure, the compliments from Yu Zhou and Gaia were nice… but that arrogant tone coming from Etelgar? Unforgivable.
Today, no matter what, he'd make sure his 900-meter sword took Etelgar's head clean off.
"Take this—!!"
Roaring, Max charged forward, summoning the Galactic Light Sword, pushing it to maximum power —
its blade extended, growing longer and longer until it reached an unbelievable 900 meters.
Then, with one powerful swing, he slashed toward the distant Etelgar.
"What?!"
Even Etelgar looked shocked —
Max was barely 50 meters tall, yet the sword in his hands stretched almost a kilometre long, tearing through the sky itself!
"Etelgar!" Yu Zhou shouted beside Max, grinning.
"On behalf of Max, I'll let you run eight hundred and ninety-nine meters first!"
Not that Etelgar needed to be told — he was already turning tail.
No one could stand against a 900-meter light sword!
"Max is way too strong!" Gaia said in awe.
He had never seen anything like this — a sword that pierced the heavens!
Even his partner Agul's light blade wasn't anywhere near that long.
Sparks burst across Etelgar's armour as he fled through space —
but after flying exactly eight hundred and ninety-nine meters, the very tip of Max's Galactic Light Sword caught up to him, slicing straight across his body.
"It's over."
Max exhaled, dismissing the sword and turning away.
Far off in the starry void, Etelgar's body erupted with violent sparks —
then, with a deafening boom, burst into a wave of searing flame.
"Actually," Gaia spoke up suddenly, "I've always wondered… why do you turn your back when it explodes?"
Max: "…"
So much for maintaining a cool atmosphere.
Yu Zhou chuckled.
"Because real men never look back at explosions," he explained matter-of-factly.
"Gaia, don't tell me you stare at monsters while they're blowing up?"
"…Now that you mention it," Gaia said thoughtfully, "I guess I usually turn away too. It's kind of instinct."
But then—
as the flames in space slowly faded, the three Ultras realized something was wrong.
They had assumed Max's strike had finished Etelgar for good… but the figure still stood there, unmoving amid the smoke and embers.
His red cloak had burned away completely,
and the red faceplate on his helmet had shattered —
revealing a savage, fanged face underneath, far more terrifying than before.
"H–How is that possible?!"
Max stared, unable to believe his eyes.
Etelgar had taken that massive hit head-on and was still alive — barely even injured!
Now, with his true face exposed, Etelgar's rage surged to the breaking point.
"ETELGAR TERMINATION!"
He bellowed furiously.
In an instant, countless red energy orbs formed around him,
then rained down like a meteor shower upon the three Ultras below.
Yu Zhou shot straight upward, avoiding the barrage with a burst of flight.
Gaia and Max quickly split apart, each dodging in a different direction.
The light bullets filled the area, but with their formation spread wide, Etelgar couldn't cover them all.
Frustrated, he redirected all his firepower toward one target — Max.
Max retreated rapidly, but seeing every single shot lock onto him, he quickly raised an Ultra Barrier.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Each crimson projectile slammed into his shield, one after another.
Cracks began to form — spiderwebbing across the glowing surface.
"Man, Etelgar really holds a grudge," Yu Zhou muttered from above.
He remembered sucking Etelgar into a black hole outside the fortress earlier —
the guy must've realized Yu Zhou was too fast to hit now,
so he turned his attention to Max instead.
But Yu Zhou wasn't about to let Max take all the heat.
A Freezing Beam burst from the sky, exploding above Etelgar's head —
and in the next second, frost spread rapidly across his body.
"What—?!"
Etelgar realized too late.
His entire body froze solid, encased in glacial ice, unable to move.
The light-bullet assault ceased instantly.
Max lowered his trembling hands, letting his cracked Ultra Barrier fade.
He was breathing heavily — those blasts had been relentless, dozens per second.
Before he could recover, Gaia had already acted.
"Now's our chance!" he shouted, firing a Quantum Stream directly at the frozen Etelgar.
The beam hit perfectly.
Crack!
The ice shattered into glittering shards — exploding outward.
But within the fragments, Etelgar twisted his neck, unharmed, his expression mocking.
Like the blast meant nothing.
Gaia: "…"
Yu Zhou was already in motion.
His body glowed silver-blue as he switched into his Sky Type,
then fired the Runboldt Light Stream straight at Etelgar.
A black hole silently opened behind the villain, its gravity immediately pulling at him.
No matter how he struggled, Etelgar couldn't resist.
With a roar, he was dragged helplessly into the darkness — and vanished.
"Quick, now!" Yu Zhou shouted to the others.
"Find Arena — fast!"
He knew Etelgar could escape the black hole eventually.
They had to use this brief window to free all the Ultra Warriors still sealed inside the Magic Mirror.