"Oh, look, JT! Come see who this is," Cash said with a hint of sarcasm. "Boss, he's Ben Tennyson! But looking at him now… maybe we should call him Grandpa Ben."
JT smirked, mocking, "Really! That's surprising, he looks like he's aged decades." Both burst into laughter.
Albedo frowned. He always felt these two were not very bright. After a moment's thought, he decided they weren't worth his attention. He attempted to bypass them to find a quiet place for his lunch, but the two stepped forward again, blocking his path.
Some people never learn from their mistakes, it seemed. These two had already been put in their place by Ben Tennyson before—shouldn't they have changed? But Albedo had no patience for fools. Unlike Ben, he had no desire to tolerate repeated provocation.
The two bullies, mistaking Albedo for Ben, continued to taunt and even attempt to fight him. Naturally, they lasted less than two minutes, easily dispatched by Albedo in a few calculated moves.
"Are you kidding? How could I, Albedo, an elite Plumber Academy graduate, allow these Earthlings to bully me?" he thought smugly.
After defeating Cash and JT, Albedo ignored the incident and found a quiet spot to enjoy his chili cheese fries and Snowcone King. Once finished, he decided to return to his spaceship.
Finding a deserted area nearby, he confirmed he was unobserved, then activated the Ultimatrix. A dazzling red light flashed, and he transformed into XLR8.
Leaping into the sky, Albedo soared at supersonic speed toward his spaceship.
But as he approached, his eyes narrowed in alarm. His spaceship, while still in place, was missing its hatch. Clearly, some powerful force had torn it away.
"What in the world? Who dared to dismantle my ship?!" Albedo exclaimed.
Landing carefully, he deactivated his transformation and approached cautiously. The spaceship was eerily silent, like a sleeping giant. Each of Albedo's steps echoed sharply in the quiet.
Inside, the interior was pitch black. With the lights off, he groped his way toward the cockpit, planning to activate the lighting system.
Finally reaching the cockpit, he pressed the control panel buttons decisively. Instantly, the ship lit up like a starry sky, bright as day.
Then, a massive long sword whistled toward him. Albedo had no time to react. The Ultimatrix automatically activated its protective function. A brilliant red light flashed, and the sword struck a crystal shield instead, producing a loud, metallic clang.
Standing before him was Diamondhead, his crystal arm acting as an indestructible shield, successfully blocking the deadly blow. The person wielding the sword staggered back under the force. Diamondhead seized the opportunity to look at his attacker—shock flashing across his features.
"Vilgax…?!" he muttered.
Indeed, the figure was Vilgax, notorious enemy of Ben Tennyson. His towering, nearly three-meter body radiated power, clad in dark, sleek armor. His left hand wore a golden glove inlaid with a glowing rhomboid crystal, while his right tightly gripped the massive greatsword that had nearly killed Albedo.
Albedo's eyes narrowed. This wasn't just a simple intrusion—someone extremely powerful had tampered with his ship. And now, Vilgax had arrived.