Morning light pierced through the dense clouds of dust, illuminating the city that had just been ravaged by Neronga—Yangjibang.
The coastal new district, once the economic lifeline of this Pacific megacity, had dazzled the world with its glass curtain walls and towering holographic billboards.
Now it looked like a painting that had been violently torn apart by a giant hand.
Neronga—the forty-thousand-ton electric monster—had turned the district into an apocalyptic wasteland during the four hours of destruction the previous night.
Every step it took cracked the ground like an earthquake. Asphalt roads shattered like eggshells, exposing twisted steel reinforcement and ruptured underground pipelines.
Leaking natural gas triggered chain explosions.
Flames shot skyward while thick smoke twisted through the air like black dragons.
The collapse of the cross-river bridge had merely been the opening act of the disaster.
The monster's tail swept across the entire coastal avenue, crushing dozens of autonomous cargo trucks. Their shattered debris flew like artillery shells, punching through the outer walls of high-rise apartments.
Hundred-meter glass domes collapsed like dominoes.
Fragments rained down upon the streets below.
Green spaces and public parks vanished beneath mountains of rubble.
The air was thick with the burnt stench of melted plastic, the salty tang of seawater, and a strange odor left behind after the monster's body dissolved.
The smell was so pungent it made breathing difficult.
The scale of the disaster defied imagination.
The EUC Asian Division released preliminary statistics.
The death toll had already reached 987.
More than 2,500 people were critically injured.
Nearly ten thousand suffered lighter injuries or burns.
Many victims had been thrown through the air by explosive shockwaves, while others were buried beneath collapsing buildings.
Rescue teams digging through the ruins often uncovered blood-soaked fragments of clothing—but no intact bodies.
The number of missing persons was estimated to exceed 2,000, many likely trapped in collapsed subway tunnels or residential towers.
The first major blow was the power outage.
Neronga had destroyed three main substations in the district.
Four million residents were plunged into darkness.
Hospitals ran on backup generators that lasted only a few hours. When the generators failed, operating rooms were plunged into darkness.
Hundreds of patients died during emergency transfers.
Water failure followed shortly afterward.
Several underground main water lines had been destroyed, while the number of damaged secondary supply and sewage pipelines was impossible to estimate.
Water pressure in the district dropped drastically.
Shortages of drinking water triggered panic buying and unrest.
The structural damage was staggering.
One-third of the coastal district's buildings—covering nearly 500 square kilometers—had collapsed or suffered severe structural damage.
The economic losses were impossible to calculate.
The EUC rescue operation had mobilized at full capacity.
But even such a massive effort seemed powerless before a disaster of this magnitude.
At the EUC Asian Division Headquarters, located inside an underground fortress, Mark Reyes had arrived overnight from Geneva.
He stood at the center of the temporary command hall, staring at a holographic projection of the disaster zone.
The three-dimensional map displayed the devastated city.
Red markers indicated severely damaged zones.
Yellow lines showed areas without electricity.
Blue arrows traced rescue routes.
Mark's rugged face looked even harsher from exhaustion.
"Deploy search-and-rescue drones across the entire zone," he ordered.
"Prioritize the critically injured areas. Double the number of medical robots deployed."
"Mobilize rescue teams from surrounding cities. Use aerial transport to evacuate critical patients."
Inside the hall, officers worked rapidly at complex control stations.
The screens showed helicopter fleets deploying modular medical pods.
The pods unfolded across the ground like honeycomb structures.
Each unit contained AI diagnostic systems and medical robots capable of performing emergency treatment and stabilizing severe injuries.
Tracked rescue robots crawled across the rubble, scanning for signs of life with extended mechanical arms.
But Mark's focus was not limited to rescue operations.
He turned toward the scientific team.
"What's the progress on the monster sample analysis?"
"I'm talking about the foam residue. Don't tell me it completely dissolved."
Ellie Solen adjusted her rimless glasses.
After staying awake all night, she looked visibly exhausted.
Her tablet projected a molecular structure diagram into the air.
"Commander, we managed to collect small samples of the residue."
"Preliminary analysis shows that the foam contains no remaining organic material."
However, she paused before continuing.
"There is a clear presence of excessive unknown energy radiation."
She tapped the screen again.
"The same radiation signature was also detected near the river estuary where the monster first appeared."
"We're currently analyzing the origin of this energy."
Mark nodded slowly.
Then his eyes shifted toward the holographic footage of the giant.
Drone scans taken during the battle had gathered some preliminary data.
Height: approximately 40 meters.
Estimated weight: over 35,000 tons.
"And then there's this 'giant,'" Mark muttered.
"Infrared scans show heat distribution identical to a human."
He exhaled slowly.
"At this point, monsters have already appeared in the world. A human turning into Ultraman doesn't sound that crazy anymore."
"For now, we'll assume he has what the shows call a 'human host.'"
The previous night, Mark had even reviewed the official background settings for Ultraman from Tsuburaya Productions.
The EUC had essentially "invited" several of the company's executives for questioning.
Unfortunately, they looked completely bewildered.
They showed nothing but shock and confusion when confronted with the real appearance of monsters and Ultraman.
In the end, the EUC had temporarily stationed personnel at Tsuburaya Productions to access all of their Ultraman lore, production notes, and related materials.
"Intelligence Division," Mark continued.
"Analyze every piece of witness footage."
"Use iris registration to log every survivor."
"If there really is a human host behind that giant, we must identify him."
"Deploy ground patrol robots equipped with biosensors. Track any traces of abnormal energy residue."
"From his actions, he appears likely to be an ally. But even so, we must know exactly who he is."
With the order given, the EUC's powerful intelligence network began operating at full capacity.
AI algorithms scanned countless blurry videos uploaded to social media.
Potential eyewitnesses were identified.
Patrol robots searched the ruins for traces of unknown energy signatures.
Mark took a deep breath.
"Our weapons are outdated," he declared.
"They were designed for human wars."
"Against a forty-thousand-ton monster, they can barely scratch the surface."
"Decades of peace have made us complacent."
"We need larger kinetic weapons. Higher-powered laser systems. Missiles with greater payloads."
He paused for a moment.
Then announced:
"I am officially launching the Titan Project."
"Our objective is the full development of weapons designed specifically for giant biological threats."
"We need weapons capable of penetrating monster-level defenses."
"The current research priorities include: cluster laser cannons, high-energy particle weapons, liquid nitrogen freezing bombs, high-explosive bunker-penetrating missiles…"
"And the reactivation of thermonuclear weapons."
"EUC headquarters has approved unlimited funding."
"Engineering teams will operate twenty-four hours a day in rotating shifts."
"We cannot stop moving forward."
"Our objective is simple."
"Kill every monster that appears."
Ellie frowned slightly.
"Commander, force alone treats the symptoms, not the cause. We should also research the monsters themselves."
"Perhaps communication with them is possible."
Mark let out a cold laugh.
"Let's survive first before discussing diplomacy."
He continued:
"The Monster Countermeasure Division (MCD) will be established immediately."
"I'll serve as director."
"You handle the research division."
"All global branches will coordinate."
"This isn't just an Asian crisis."
"It's a crisis for all humanity."
Rescue operations continued amid the ruins.
Robot arms dug survivors from collapsed structures.
Medical robots injected painkillers and stabilized victims.
AI coordination systems matched blood types and organized emergency organ donations.
Restoring electricity proved extremely difficult.
Temporary generators could only supply hospitals and command centers.
Entire residential districts remained in darkness.
Water shortages were even worse.
Water purification equipment was severely limited.
The EUC Asian Division had begun emergency redistribution, but even the fastest transport would take several days to arrive.
Mark stared silently at the screens.
Fatigue weighed heavily on him.
The EUC had been founded as a guardian of peace.
Now it was being forced to rebuild the machinery of war.
He murmured quietly to himself:
"If there's a next time…"
"We'd better be ready."