Ultraman: It turns out this is the easy mode.

The house was unusually lively in the evening, with the dining table full of people. As soon as Jujian Hui brought out the last plate of fish head stew with flatbread, everyone picked up their bowls and chopsticks, and for a moment the only sounds were the soft clinking of bowls and chopsticks and the occasional chatter.

Halfway through the meal, Megumi suddenly put down her chopsticks, her brows furrowed slightly, and said softly, "I have a feeling lately that something might be coming." Her tone carried a hint of uncertainty, yet it also revealed an undeniable seriousness.

Friedrich, who was taking small sips from a specially made "oil cup," looked up, her metallic eyes filled with confusion: "What's going on? Has an abnormal signal been detected?" As a ship girl, she was particularly sensitive to "crisis warnings."

“I don’t know, it’s just a feeling.” Megumi shook her head. “There’s no data to support it, but I just feel uneasy, like something is watching me from the shadows, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is.”

“Feelings? Then trust your feelings.” Choi Myung said, pouring more bread into his soup bowl, his tone as casual as if he were saying, “The weather is nice today.” “Your intuition has never been wrong, especially before danger arrives.”

"Is that so?" Kijima looked at Choi Myung, her unease seeming to lessen somewhat.

“That’s right, trust your instincts.” Asuka put down her juice glass and nodded vigorously. “I’ve avoided danger many times in simulation battles by relying on my instincts. Don’t doubt yourself.”

Lin put down her knife and fork and added, "Sometimes, your intuition can save your life. Especially for those of us who frequently face combat, our subconscious avoidance actions often detect danger before rational analysis." Having experienced too many life-or-death situations, she has a deep understanding of "intuitive warnings."

Looking at everyone's earnest and supportive expressions, Megumi couldn't help but smile—it was just a casual "feeling," yet everyone treated it as something important, each offering their own reasons, almost like some kind of "trusting intuition" ritual. She thought to herself: These people really are ritualistic.

"In other words, if you suddenly feel like you should fight this way, then just go with that idea." Camilla put down her water glass and added, continuing the conversation, but then suddenly changed the subject, "By the way, are we really not going to worry about that ruin?"

The ruins she spoke of were the very place where Gatanjee had sealed herself away. Occasionally, team members had mentioned sending someone to guard them, but nothing had been decided yet.

“It’s nothing.” Cui Ming picked up a piece of softened biscuit, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and said with a smile, “If Gatanothor had come out earlier, I could have beaten it up earlier.” His tone was as relaxed as if he were saying “have a meal early”, and he didn’t take “Gatanothor’s awakening” seriously at all.

A brief silence fell over the dining table. Everyone was taken aback by Cui Ming's blunt and forceful words—after all, Gatanothor was a being that had wiped out an ancient civilization, but in Cui Ming's words, it was like "a little troublemaker that could be beaten up at any time."

But no one refuted him. Everyone knew that Cui Ming had the confidence to say this—not to mention his own strength, he also had the King of Heroes GGGGG in his possession. If Gatanothor were to awaken prematurely, as long as the critical point of the "Trial of Earth Civilization" was not reached and the rules that humanity had to deal with were not triggered, then no matter how Gatanothor woke up, it would be defeated without any room for resistance.

“That’s true.” Camilla was the first to react, nodding with a smile. “If we had come out earlier, it would have saved us from worrying about it.”

Seeing everyone's relaxed expressions, the last bit of unease in her heart vanished. She picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of fish, and put it in her mouth, thinking: With everyone here, even if something really "is coming," there's nothing to be afraid of. The atmosphere at dinner became lively again, and the topic shifted from "intuitive warnings" to who would be on duty at the base tomorrow, occasionally interspersed with a few complaints about "the fish head stew with flatbread being too salty," warm and reassuring—as if the "crisis" and "Gatanga" mentioned earlier were just insignificant little episodes at the dinner table.

Dinner at Cui Ming's house continued, the aroma of fish head stew with flatbread filling the living room. Everyone chatted about their shift schedules and daily routines, occasionally letting out a few lighthearted jokes. The warm atmosphere was like a soft protective film, temporarily isolating them from the dangers and pressures of the outside world.

In stark contrast to the relaxed and comfortable atmosphere at Cui Ming's home, the rest area at the Far East base had become a "disaster zone for fatigue."

Nozue Yasumi slumped in his chair, his hair disheveled and plastered to his forehead, his face still damp with sweat. He muttered weakly, "Oh God, what terrible training." During today's Katachan simulation training, he had been attacked by both mutated vines and poisonous spores. If it weren't for the emergency antidote that Horii threw over at the end, he would have "died" in the training pod again. Just thinking about that suffocating feeling made his back go cold, and his condition was extremely poor.

Tetsuo Shinjo wasn't much better off. He slumped onto the table, propping his head up with his arm, and mumbled, "I... well..." He trailed off, clearly exhausted. As a pilot, he'd been required to fly at low altitude in the complex air currents of a simulated jungle, dodging suddenly appearing Venus flytrap leaves. He'd been on high alert the entire time, and now his eyelids felt as heavy as lead.

Horii Masami leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping weakly on the table, his face full of despair. Today, he tried to use his newly developed portable scanner to detect plant weaknesses, but the instrument was damaged by the poisonous thorns of the thorny plant as soon as it was turned on. Not only did it not help, but it almost dragged down his teammates. Now he felt tired and frustrated.

An EDF player passing by saw the three of them looking like this and couldn't help but stop, his eyes full of sympathy: "You guys are really having a tough time. The simulation training in Catachan is quite terrifying." When he was training, he was so tormented by the "baby mode" that he couldn't eat for a week, so he could understand how the Victory team members felt.

"But it's all for your survival, so... keep going." The EDF member patted Ye Rui on the shoulder, trying to encourage them.

But as soon as he finished speaking, three wailing cries filled with sobs were heard: "No!" Nori, Shinjo, and Horii cried out almost in unison, their desperate tones suggesting they were being driven to the brink of collapse by the training.

In the corner of the rest area, Zongfang Chengyi sat on the sofa with his eyes closed, his brows slightly furrowed, and even his usually upright posture became somewhat loose.

He didn't complain like the others, but he was more exhausted than anyone else. As the vice-captain, he not only had to complete his own training tasks, but also had to pay attention to the condition of the team members and coordinate them in a timely manner. By the end of the day, his mental exhaustion was greater than his physical exhaustion. Now he just wanted to stay quietly for a while and didn't even have the desire to speak.

As night deepened outside the window, the base lights illuminated the weary figures of the team members in the rest area. Unlike the relaxed conversation at Cui Mingjia's dining table, every breath of air here was heavy with the effects of "post-training syndrome"—but no one had truly given up. After all, they all knew that the more exhausted they were now, the more likely they were to survive on the battlefield in the future.

Right now, all they wanted was a good night's sleep, to temporarily and completely erase the keywords "Qatachan," "poisonous plants," and "high-intensity training" from their minds. (End of Chapter)