Ultraman cubs begin to wreak havoc.

Meanwhile, the selection process for the first test pilot of the special mission aircraft entered its final stage. During a physical examination, a significant number of volunteers were eliminated—this was the most rigorous selection process in the Earth Defense Force. The eliminated volunteers were ruthlessly sent back to their original teams.

These were all soldiers with rich combat experience who participated in the selection because of their inner aspirations, but they all refused to be sent back to their original units. Their original unit commanders were very angry about this and protested to Deputy Commander Kuriyama, but Kuriyama ignored them.

After the first rigorous skills test in the recruitment of special air force pilots, few brave individuals remained. The second test was an interview conducted personally by Deputy Commander Kuriyama and Mr. Ye Hu, who subjected the remaining candidates to a barrage of probing questions.

"You only have a physical advantage? Is that all? Then why don't you just stay on your original team?"

"You haven't defeated a single monster in your battles so far. What have you been doing all this time?"

Even among the warriors who passed the first selection round, many of the more vulnerable individuals returned to their original teams in tears during this soul-searching ordeal.

The next person to come in for an interview was a female driver from Osaka—Yasuko.

"You're impeccable, your performance in the assessment was excellent. However, you're from Osaka, and I dislike people from Osaka, so you're eliminated. If you want to come back, then come again for the next recruitment round and be assessed again. But I believe the result will be the same."

Faced with the examiner's arrogant remarks, the female driver remained calm and said:

"Okay, I'll come back to challenge you again next year," and then he prepared to leave.

"and many more!"

At that moment, Deputy Commander Kuriyama and Ye Hujiro called her over. It turned out that this was all a psychological test set up by the two of them. And so, the first person to successfully pass the test was born: a female driver from Osaka.

However, after her, no new drivers passed the test for a long time. Kuriyama and Yehu welcomed the last interviewee, named Hebikura Shota!

Deputy Commander Kuriyama and Mr. Ye Hu welcomed the last interviewee. Although they were exhausted, they still focused their energy on their faces and put on stern expressions.

The man who entered neatly removed his hat and gave a standard salute with a "snap." Before the interviewer could even say "Please sit down," the man incredibly sat down on his own.

Kuriyama glanced at his face; it wasn't one that would leave a lasting impression. He thought to himself, "Hmm, being inconspicuous on the battlefield is also important." So Kuriyama straightened up and continued with a stern face:

"I haven't even offered you a seat yet."

Most people would probably panic and jump up immediately. But this unassuming man didn't. His serious expression vanished, replaced by a smile, and he said without hesitation, "Ah, I'm sorry," merely straightening his posture without standing up.

So, Deputy Commander Kuriyama began putting him through various pressure tests, which he managed to overcome. Finally, Deputy Commander Kuriyama turned his attention to his resume. The photo on the resume was as unremarkable as the man himself, while the information on the resume read:

"Hebikura Shota, a third-class special lieutenant, is a former mecha pilot in the ground forces."

Deputy Commander Kuriyama looked at Shota Hebikura's resume and thought, "As expected, neither he nor his photo left a deep impression, especially considering he's a newcomer who only recently took office. However, his actions were impeccable, and he has extraordinary courage. His friendly smile was neither foolish nor arrogant; it was as if he could see right through us."

Unable to bear it any longer, Ye Hujiro nudged Kuriyama with his elbow, prompting Kuriyama to ask the final question:

What are your thoughts on manned robot weapons?

Shota Hebikura replied:

"That's great!"

And so, he was hired. Only two people passed the first selection for special air force test pilots—Hebikura Shota and Yasuko.

The two then began simulated training for special operations aircraft. Although they had only flown fighter jets and tanks before, both successfully completed the conversion training course to special operations aircraft. At this point, the actual development and experimentation of the special operations aircraft officially began; however, an even more arduous journey awaited them...

The special air force development experiment officially began. Despite the constant malfunctions, they were not discouraged at all, and investigating and studying the malfunctions was also an important part of their work.

However, there is one worrying thing: the global monster threat won't wait for them. While they were developing the special operations aircraft, the monsters continued to wreak havoc. The comrades in the combat units fought against the monsters every day, and many of the comrades who went into battle never returned, passing away. This included many of their comrades who had failed in the selection process and returned to their original teams.

While our fighters are dying on the front lines, we're hiding in the mountains of Gifu all day... This can't go on; we must put the special air force aircraft into practical use as soon as possible! In this high-spirited development team, the idea of ​​focusing is also spreading.

On this day, a heated discussion ensued regarding the practical deployment of special air force aircraft, specifically how to rapidly deploy them in areas ravaged by monsters.

"Although it's called parachuting in, the specific plan hasn't been finalized yet, which is terrible."

"We can only use three or four helicopters to hoist the robot over there."

"I don't think this is a good idea; let's stick with land and sea transport."

"By the time you arrive, the city will have been reduced to ruins!"

"Let the special forces aircraft stand by in various cities."

"We don't have that kind of budget. Don't forget, the special air force aircraft has the word 'air' in it."

"Will they use transport planes to send the special operations aircraft there, and then airdrop them?"

"We do not yet have transport aircraft capable of transporting special operations aircraft."

"Then let's develop a new transport aircraft? But the budget..."

"We can only let the special operations aircraft fly there on its own!"

That's all we can do!

So everyone started researching how to make the special air force aircraft fly on its own. In battle, the special air force aircraft consumes a lot of energy, and it is not expected that wired power can be supplied on site. Therefore, everyone agreed that the built-in battery should not be used outside of battle time, otherwise there would be no energy to fight.

"Use additional rocket boosters."

Shota Hebikura's words once again brought everyone to their senses.

Although opinions differed at one point regarding whether to use rocket propulsion or jet propulsion, rockets were ultimately chosen after consideration.

The next step is the discussion of solid fuel versus liquid fuel.

Solid fuels are simple to use and can generate tremendous thrust, but once ignited, they cannot be stopped until the fuel is completely burned. Liquid fuels, on the other hand, can be reignited even if the process is stopped once, but they are more complex and their thrust is not as great as that of solid fuels.

The final conclusion was that since boosters would no longer be needed once the operational area was reached, and jettisoning them after separation would not affect the budget, it was decided to use solid-fuel rockets.

Thus, the prototype special air force aircraft was fitted with a solid-fuel rocket and was about to begin its test flight. Yasuko was in charge of piloting, while Shota Hebikura was in charge of piloting the jet training aircraft, accompanying the prototype special air force aircraft for testing.

However, with the arrival of a record-breaking cold wave, the experiment was put on hold, and the special spacecraft and its thrusters froze due to the cold. After the weather recovered, the crew planned to remove the thrusters for inspection, as there had been instances of spaceships experiencing major accidents due to negligence.

However, the Earth Defense Forces U.S. headquarters issued an order through its Japanese branch to conduct tests immediately after the weather recovered.

Although the special air force aircraft project was proposed by Vice Commander Kuriyama himself, the funding was not handled by the Japanese government or the Japan branch of the Defense Forces, but by the U.S. headquarters. Although many, including Commander Yoshimi of the Japan branch, disagreed, they had no choice but to proceed due to funding constraints. The female pilot, Yasuko, also agreed to fly the special air force aircraft because she believed in her comrades' efforts and thought that technology had improved compared to the major accidents of the past.

The test flight began, and Hebikura Shota was already piloting the training aircraft in the air, looking at the lone special air force aircraft standing in the mountains.

The countdown to takeoff began, and Shota Hebikura's anxiety started to rise. After all, if liquid fuel were used, any abnormalities detected after takeoff could be stopped in time. But now that solid fuel was being used, once takeoff was over... there was no going back...

Everything was normal at first, but the accident occurred when the special aircraft reached its cruising altitude of 30,000 feet and was preparing to enter level flight.

"Alarm! Alarm! Abnormal temperature of the back sensor."

Immediately afterward, Kangzi's wireless communication ended, and the atmosphere fell into dead silence.

Shota Hebikura, who was traveling with the group, silently witnessed everything. The special air force plane exploded and turned into countless fragments scattered across the world.

Kangzi, who was both a close friend and colleague, remained calm until the very end. There was no panic, no lamentation, and no plea for help like "I'll leave things to you from now on." "The temperature of the back sensor has risen abnormally" was the last thing this hero left for the world. She stayed at her post until the very end.

The accident occurred because of the thruster that Hebikura Shota had proposed.

Regret, sadness, remorse, anger—a whole host of emotions surged within them in an instant. Ye Hu and Li Shan, filled with regret, even considered submitting their resignations. However, led by Hebikura Shota, the members of the Special Operations Team did everything in their power to stop them—

"Kangzi wouldn't want us to give up like this!"

Kangzi's funeral was held solemnly at the base, with the ground covered with flowers sent by the team members...

Then, what happened next was that Hebikura Shota was tested and almost died.

Subaru also had good reason to believe that Jugglus Juggler replaced Shota Hebikura's identity when he failed the test and fell.

but....

Looking at the photo of Hebikura Shota, Gen Subaru thought to himself, "Well, he's actually a pretty good replacement. Compared to Jugglus-senpai, he doesn't seem out of place at all."

but....

I still can't figure out why Jugglus Juggler is acting as the team leader here. Could it be that he simply wants to experience what it's like to mentor a newbie...?

Wait, what's going on with that team member? He... has the aura of an Ultraman!

The player's name is...

夏川遥辉...

Gen Subaru stared intently at Natsukawa Haruki, but the Ultra Warrior inside him seemed to be still asleep. So, without contact or by harming the human from a distance, Gen Subaru found it difficult to determine which Ultra Warrior was hiding inside Natsukawa Haruki's body.

However, this isn't a major problem. Since he's an Ultra Warrior, he probably won't harm this human named Natsukawa Haruki. The problem now is...

Could it be that Senior Jugglus Juggler has some designs on Haruki Natsukawa and that Ultraman warrior?

Don't misunderstand, Gen Subaru isn't saying that Jugglus Juggler is trying to harm Haruki Natsukawa and that Ultra Warrior. It's just that Jugglus Juggler's actions are somewhat capricious. His plans may not necessarily be harmful, but sometimes they can cause a lot of trouble. So, if possible, Gen Subaru still hopes to find out directly from Jugglus Juggler what he really wants to do. With his current abilities, he might be able to make it happen.

but....

Gen Subaru's gaze returned to the armory, where a long-haired female team member was excitedly putting a helmet on Jugglus Juggler's head that looked like an electric shock device, with its colorful, exposed wires and constantly flashing, erratic red and green indicator lights. Gen Subaru couldn't help but worry about the reliability of this device for Jugglus Juggler.

As for the female team member's antics, Senior Jugglus simply crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and looked impatient, but made no other move. He was like an old father watching his naughty and unruly daughter happily drawing on his face. Even though he was extremely unwilling, he could only temporarily act as a canvas and let his daughter have her fun.

Meanwhile, the other team members also noticed the commotion and came over. Natsukawa Haruki was obviously frightened by the helmet, which looked quite unreliable. The somewhat simple-minded young man waved his hands in the air, as if he wanted to take the helmet down for his captain, but was worried that it would explode if he didn't handle it properly, so he stood there for a moment.

Another female team member went to help. Her name was Nakajima Yoko, the ace driver of the armory. She was a team member with superb driving skills. Why did she go to help... Don't misunderstand, she just felt that with her help, things might be more secure. If something really happened, she would be close by and could pull her captain out immediately.

As for interrupting this test now...

Yoko Nakajima had absolutely no idea she could stop Yuka, who was now completely caught up in her emotions—

Yuka Ota, the "scientific advisor" of the Armory, is also a researcher in the Biochemical Research Department of the Monster Research Center of the Earth Defense Force Japan Branch. She has a very strong interest in monsters and even knows a lot about their biology and historical legends. In order to have further contact with monsters, she joined the Armory to participate in the development of monster-fighting mechs.

As for Yoko Nakajima's kindness, Jugglus Juggler didn't show any other reaction. He just continued to sit there with a sullen face. However, Subaru could tell that when Yoko Nakajima came over, Jugglus Juggler subtly adjusted his posture. This adjustment would allow him to quickly leave his current position if things went wrong, and would also prevent the trained Yoko Nakajima from instinctively grabbing him.

All I can say is, Jugglus Juggler was incredibly thoughtful...

This doesn't seem like something they're plotting...