---o---
Father of Ultra was kicked to the ground by Belial, lacking even the strength to stand back up.
Light Curtain Commentary—
[Ai Haibara: In his current state, Father of Ultra probably can't even exert a thousandth of his true power.]
[Detective Conan: Belial has no honor, launching a sneak attack while Father of Ultra is heavily injured with his Color Timer flashing red.]
[Sosuke Aizen: For Father of Ultra, who has lost the ability to transform, to appear as an Ultraman once again... what are the consequences?]
[Lord Zoffy: The Supreme Commander... is fighting Belial with his very life. The moment his timer appeared, it was already flashing red. When that timer stops flashing completely, the Supreme Commander's life... will also come to an end.]
As Zoffy's words fell, the audience across the infinite multiverse fell silent.
Perhaps an Ultraman has more than one life, but... to be willing to throw one's life away for the sake of unrelated people—no matter how you looked at it, this race was simply too righteous.
In the Land of Light, countless Ultramen clenched their fists, completely engrossed in the light curtain's projection. Their admiration for Father of Ultra had reached an irrepressible level.
[Ultraman Os: Supreme Commander, you have to win! A mere Belial could never be your match!]
[Great Filial Son Geed: No matter how you slice it, my father has gone too far.]
[Ultraman Taiga: Don't worry! With Grandpa's strength, how could he possibly lose to Belial!]
[Suicide Bomber Prince: Taiga! You are to address him as Supreme Commander in public! How many times have I told you!]
[Father of Ultra: Ah... Taro, let it be. Don't blame him. Perhaps the content of the light curtain made him a little forgetful. It's fine.]
[Ace Pilot of the Death Squad: Is Belial really going to kill Father of Ultra? This is just too...]
[The Little Golden Man Tartarus: Hmph. Perfect. This will eliminate one threat to our Absolutian race.]
[Yukino Yukinoshita: We can only watch and see what happens next. In his current state, Father of Ultra is almost certainly no match for Belial...]
---o---
[On the light curtain, Father of Ultra knelt on one knee, the indicator on his chest flashing rapidly.
Under normal circumstances, an ordinary Ultraman could fight on Earth for three minutes. But in Father of Ultra's condition, let alone fighting, he likely couldn't even maintain his Ultraman form for a single minute.
At that moment, Belial brought out his Giga Battle Nizer and declared with manic energy, "Ken, you're finished. Earth... will be your final resting place."
As he spoke, the tip of his Battle Nizer shot out a bolt of blue lightning, striking towards Father of Ultra's chest.
At the same time, the humans on the ground noticed the two Ultramen who had suddenly appeared.
They recognized Father of Ultra; he was the father of the Ultramen who had appeared on Earth before.
But Belial, who stood opposite him, was a completely unfamiliar presence.
"What's going on? What happened? Are the Ultramen... fighting each other?"
"No, that black giant isn't an Ultraman! He's trying to kill Father of Ultra!"
"Run... run for your lives!!"
As the saying goes, when gods fight, mortals suffer. Regardless of who Belial was, he showed no concern for the surrounding buildings or humans. His attack on Father of Ultra had already caused considerable harm to the populace.
Seeing this, Father of Ultra was both shocked and furious. He ignored the lightning whip Belial had unleashed and charged directly at him.
Belial, who was once the most familiar with Father of Ultra's fighting style, was caught off guard by this move. In his moment of stunned surprise, Father of Ultra closed the distance.
Then, using the last of his strength, Father of Ultra pulled both Belial and himself into a spatial barrier.
"Dida... dida..."
Inside the spatial barrier, the timer on Father of Ultra's chest flickered, its pace accelerating until it was on the verge of stopping completely.
He struggled to support his body, trying to rise to his feet again, but he failed.
Seeing Father of Ultra in such a state, Belial couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow for his own kind.
He didn't make a move against Father of Ultra. There was no need. Father of Ultra would die from energy depletion on his own.
"Using the last of your strength to pull me in here instead of fighting me... Ken, do you really love humans that much?" Belial asked, lowering his Battle Nizer.
"If this were any other planet, I would have done the same thing."
As he answered Belial, Father of Ultra puffed out his chest, with an air of one ready to face death. "Belial, in your current state... you could never understand such an action."
"Couldn't understand?" As if hearing a hilarious joke, Belial sneered, "It's that nauseating 'Ultra Spirit' again, isn't it?"
"Ken, no one in this world understands you better than I do."
"You created this barrier simply to stall me for a little longer. After you die, Marie and those children of yours can just revive you again, right?"
Belial raised his Giga Battle Nizer once more, pointing its tip at Father of Ultra.
Death was nothing. He had died in past battles, too. But with the Land of Light's technology, resurrection was mere child's play.
"Is that what you think, Belial?" Father of Ultra's voice was steady and resolute, not at all like that of a dying man.
"Indeed, the Land of Light does possess the technology to revive fallen Ultramen. However... that is not the reason we Ultra Warriors fight."
"The reason Ultra Warriors fight is to protect peace and justice throughout the universe, to protect the ones we love! This is something you, in your current state, will never understand, Belial!"
As Father of Ultra spoke, perhaps buoyed by sheer willpower, he managed to push his dying body to its feet.
The flashing timer could no longer be heard. Even its light had dimmed. And yet, despite all this, Father of Ultra remained standing.
"All the warriors of our Space Garrison will continue to fight against darkness and evil to the very end, until darkness and evil have been completely eradicated from the universe."
"Come, Belial... I will never let you leave this place!"
He once again assumed the fighting stance that Belial knew so well. Father of Ultra's light had vanished, but it shone more brilliantly than ever before.
Witnessing this, Belial was utterly shaken. He craned his neck forward, frozen in place.
"How is this possible? The timer on his chest has already gone out... Ken... you bastard, why are you..."
Incomprehensible. Unbelievable. Belial racked his brain but couldn't fathom why Father of Ultra, who was already dead, could rise to his feet again.
Had the Land of Light developed some new technology during the tens of thousands of years he was imprisoned? Or had Father of Ultra achieved a breakthrough at the moment of his death, becoming even stronger?
Whatever the case, Belial was destined never to know the answer.]
---o---
Light Curtain Commentary—
Seeing Father of Ultra stand up again after his timer had extinguished, even the audience from across the infinite multiverse was stunned by the scene.
They stared intently at the screen, unable to believe their eyes.
[The Uchiha Dancer: What's going on? Didn't they say an Ultraman dies when their timer goes out? Was the information wrong?]
[Alien Temperor: Impossible! How can an Ultraman stand up again after his light has gone out?!]
[The Great Emperor of the Dark Universe: Ken! Father of Ultra! The greatest obstacle to my conquest of the Land of Light... why... why do you never admit defeat!]
[Ayanokoji the Uncaring: Perhaps it's as Belial thought. The Land of Light has technology to resurrect Ultramen, and they've also developed technology that allows an Ultraman to stand again after their timer goes out.]
[Tianming Bishop: The power of technology? No, no, no... rather than technology... I am more inclined to believe it was Father of Ultra's conviction that supported him to stand once more. You must know... the power of emotions can sometimes be far greater than that of technology.]
[St. Freya's Principal: Grandpa... I can't believe even someone like you would believe in emotions?]
[Ultraman Taiga: S-Supreme Commander... Grandpa! You... you are the true hero! The strongest and most righteous hero in the entire universe!!]
[Jun Himeya: ...A hero, huh? How admirable, Father of Ultra. When will I ever be able to become a hero like that... No, after what I've done, I probably don't have what it takes to be a hero...]
---o---
[On the light curtain, while Belial was still in shock, Father of Ultra took the offensive.
He charged toward Belial, the very ground of the barrier trembling with his steps.
Seeing this, Belial, whose mind had been rendered blank by shock, didn't dare to meet the attack head-on. Instead, he instinctively leaped backward, dodging the blow.
"Why, Ken... Why must you go to such lengths?"
Belial asked again and again, but the only response he received was a deathly silence.
As he continued to dodge Father of Ultra's attacks, Belial understood that even though he had stood up after his light went out, Father of Ultra was still nothing more than a spent force.
Even if he didn't dodge, these attacks wouldn't cause him much damage.
It was just that seeing Ken like this had struck a chord deep within him.
This strange feeling made him afraid to face Father of Ultra's assault directly, forcing him to dodge unconsciously.
"Thud..."
Forced into a corner, Belial finally caught an incoming attack from Father of Ultra.
He gripped Father of Ultra's left wrist tightly with his claws. The icy cold sensation was completely unlike the body of an Ultraman.
Suppressing the fear in his heart, Belial's voice trembled, "Ken, if I apply just a little force right now, your entire arm will shatter! Even so, you're going to keep fighting?!"
"..."
Father of Ultra didn't speak, merely staring at his old friend with dull, lifeless eyes.
His other hand was clenched into a fist, swinging toward Belial's left cheek.
But its speed was so slow that not even a common, insignificant monster would fail to dodge it, let alone Belial.
"Why won't you answer me, Ken!!"
Facing the silent Father of Ultra, Belial roared in fury. The resentment in his eyes seemed to solidify, glowing with a crimson light.
He brought his face close to Father of Ultra's, trying to use this intimidation to suppress the doubt and fear in his own heart.
However, Father of Ultra still gave no answer. Gradually, he froze, motionless in his fighting stance.
"..." Belial stared at Father of Ultra's body, silent for a long moment. Then... he slowly took a few steps back. "...Is he dead?"
"Ken... you bastard. You died in the end after all..."
Gazing at the body that still remained standing, a whirlwind of emotions churned within Belial, an indescribable feeling.
The relief and satisfaction he had anticipated were absent. All that remained was a deep sense of melancholy and a strange sorrow.
He placed his sharp claws on Father of Ultra's chest, intending to deliver the final blow to the legendary warrior.
If the body was destroyed, even the Land of Light's resurrection technology would find it nearly impossible to restore him.
But for some reason, Belial hesitated, unable to strike.
Perhaps it was due to the lingering remnants of their friendship, or perhaps he couldn't bear to let such a powerful warrior perish forever.
After a long moment of contemplation, Belial finally lowered his claws.
"Forget it... Ken. The Land of Light is already in ruins anyway. Your pitiful children can't even save themselves right now. I'll let you remain in this state forever."
"Hmph... fine. In a few tens of thousands of years, after I've become the ruler of the universe, perhaps I'll revive you then, just to see the look on your face."
As if he had found an excuse for himself, Belial gripped his Giga Battle Nizer and unleashed a bolt of lightning from its tip powerful enough to easily obliterate a monster.
A continuous stream of power from the Battle Nizer shot toward the edge of the barrier, creating a deafening roar.
However... even after using all his strength, Belial still couldn't break through the barrier Father of Ultra had erected.
"An ability I've never seen before? It looks like a technique from that old geezer, King."
"Hmph, Ken... it must have taken you a lot of time to learn this move. For the sake of your so-called Ultra Spirit, you really... went to great lengths."
Glancing over at Father of Ultra's position, Belial didn't hide his praise.
After all, no one in this universe knew Father of Ultra better than he did, and no one knew his strength more clearly.
"It seems... I'll just have to wait for this barrier to dissipate on its own. Phantylia... I'll let you live for a few more days."
After his moment of reflection, Belial took one last, deep look at the figure of Father of Ultra, who had now completely turned to stone. Then, without looking back, he walked toward the other side of the barrier.]
---o---