Ultraman cubs begin to wreak havoc.

—Can he still walk?—

Jing Tianjinglong lifted his foot to take a step forward. But suddenly, his vision blurred.

Jing Tianjinglong immediately collapsed to the ground, and his clothes were visibly swallowed up little by little by the blood.

It turned out that a long, thin fingernail was deeply embedded in the chest of Jingtian Jinglong. It was the masterpiece left by the evil spirit.

—A lose-lose situation, just as expected!—

The leaves of the trees rustled again, a joyful expression of their happiness.

Iida Iryu's consciousness grew increasingly faint, and he felt death approaching him.

So this is what death feels like.

Just then, the sound of the trees suddenly stopped.

Jingtian Jinglong saw a figure in front of him.

"Is it a person? Or..."

In his daze, Jing Tianjinglong saw a long black head, snow-white skin, and a lonely face.

It was a woman?

The woman slowly walked towards Jing Tian Jinglong, but Jing Tian Jinglong was already unable to move. She reached out her hand to touch Jing Tian Jinglong's cheek, and Jing Tian Jinglong felt the coolness of the woman's hand and smelled a sweet woman's fragrance.

The woman spoke something to Jing Tian Jinglong, but he didn't hear her; he was unconscious, the trees swaying even without wind.

But at that moment, a pure white light flashed, and time abruptly shifted from ancient times to the modern era in which TPC was founded. In the middle of the night, two people named 'Nomiya Tetsuji' and 'Sumi Yuki' wandered heavily through the forest.

"Is this okay?"

After Miyuki finished speaking, Nomiya thought for a moment and then shook his head. Seeing Nomiya's reaction, Miyuki became a little impatient, but she could only continue walking. They had been walking for about fifteen minutes since entering the forest. Fatigue was already creeping over Nomiya.

During his student days, Nonomiya was a member of the judo club and even participated in the National Sports Games. However, a hero doesn't dwell on past glories. Nonomiya has been out of school for over a decade now, and he's quite overweight and increasingly concerned about his pants size. He feels the burden on his back becoming increasingly heavy.

The spiritual realm is no exception...

After all, the bag he was carrying was his wife just half a day ago, and it was Nomiya herself who strangled her to death.

"Ah, I think this place is quite nice."

Miyuki's voice came from ahead again. Nomiya still couldn't understand. No matter what, they had killed someone. He was extremely... no, he should say terrified.

However, despite the tragic strangulation that happened right before his eyes, his young lover, who was a full decade younger than Nomiya, remained completely unmoved.

"We still need to find a place to bury her."

Her tone was calm, as if it were no big deal. The murder was obviously a conspiracy between the two of them, but Nomiya really hadn't expected Miyuki to be so composed. This made him admire the unfathomable terror that women could possess.

Nonomiya dragged his heavy steps to the place Miyuki had described. Upon inspection, it was indeed quite suitable; it was an incredible space. In this depression, a ring of trees grew, forming a huge circle that resembled the Colosseum of ancient Rome.

"Hey, how about this side? This should work, right?"

Nomiya carefully examined the surroundings and concluded that this place was definitely not a man-made space, nor was it a park or rest area.

Suddenly, the trees swayed even without wind.

Nomiya felt a chill run down his spine.

"Hey, can you hurry up!"

Miyuki kept urging him on, and Nomiya finally made up his mind, putting down the bag containing the body. Nomiya took the shovel that Miyuki handed him and started working.

The soil in the forest is hard and heavy.

Miyuki is right, it'll be dawn soon if we don't hurry.

Nomiya had no time to think anymore and could only focus on digging.

The trees in the forest looked down at us, and from time to time they made some noises, as if they were particularly happy.

the other side....

With a clang, a small stone hit the window.

"Haruna, it's time to go."

After seeing what was happening outside the window, Fukuro Yumeko urged Haruna to leave quickly.

"Um....."

Although she verbally agreed, Matsushita Haruna didn't want to go out for this expedition in the middle of the night. The reason stemmed from an argument between Yumeko and Kentaro at breakfast that morning. Kentaro believed there were ghosts lurking in the 'forest.' However, Yumeko scoffed at this view, and that's where their disagreement began.

At Moriki Academy, Yumeko is considered the older sister figure. Kentaro is a year younger than her and a fifth-grader. She often mocks Kentaro in front of others at school. On the day of the argument, the teachers were present, and Kentaro eventually gave in. However, later, Kentaro still approached Yumeko and said to her:

"If you don't believe me, how about we go walk onto the stage in the forest together at three o'clock tonight and see?"

Legend has it that around 3 AM every night, the ghosts of the dead wander in the "forest." The legend says that in ancient times, a wicked demon lived in the "forest," surviving by abducting and eating villagers. This demon was subdued by a warrior passing through the village. However, even after the demon was subdued, the souls of those it had devoured remained unpunished, and every night they would wander around a circular depression in the center of the forest. The locals called this circular depression the "stage."

Yumeko initially found Kentaro's suggestion troublesome and ignored it. But this time, Kentaro did not back down.

"All you do is talk big, but you're actually scared, aren't you?"

Having said that, Yumeko, naturally unwilling to admit defeat, immediately agreed to the adventure. However, the participation of only the two of them might lack impartiality, so they needed another witness besides the parties involved. Haruna was ultimately chosen as the witness. The reason was simple: Haruna and Yumeko were roommates in the same dormitory. Haruna, like Yumeko, believed that the idea of ​​the dead's ghosts wandering the forest at night was merely superstition.

However, the "forest" was dark and had a sinister atmosphere even during the day. Haruna felt a little reluctant to go to such a forest at midnight.

"Mengmeng, I think we shouldn't go, right?"

Upon hearing Haruna's words, Yumeko's expression turned stern.

"How can you say that now!"

"But the day after tomorrow is a special day! What if something goes wrong and the teacher won't let us participate?"

When Haruna mentioned it, Yumeko finally understood that two GUTS members would be visiting Moriki Academy to comfort the students the day after tomorrow, and Yumeko and Haruna had been eagerly anticipating that day.

Yumeko's father originally worked in the bioengineering team of the Earth Peace Union (TPC).

One day, Yumeko's father's remains were suddenly delivered to her home. Her father was always busy with his research and rarely showed up at home. Because of this, Yumeko didn't really know how to face her father's death.

On the day of the funeral, Yumeko's mother cried her eyes out.

Those attending the funeral were also sobbing.

But Yumeko did not shed a tear.

After the funeral, Yumeko was told that her father had died of oxygen poisoning while investigating an alien creature discovered in Antarctica. This alien creature eventually became a monster and was subdued by GUTS and Ultraman Tiga.

Even now, Yumeko still showed no emotional fluctuation.

Later, another event finally brought Yumeko to her senses.

She realized that her father was dead.

That was the mother's suicide.

Yumeko Fukudome.

People often joke with her, saying that her name is auspicious and full of dreams.

But now, both her parents have left her, leaving her only with this somewhat ironic name. On the bus to Moriki Academy, Yumeko's tears finally streamed down her face. She didn't know why she was crying, but everything around her seemed to be permeated with an atmosphere of sadness.

After arriving at Moriki Academy, Yumeko met Haruna.

Haruna has a pretty face and is a very cute little girl.

Her parents were also killed by the monster.

As the days went by, their relationship grew closer. They made a promise to be GUTS team members together when they grew up.

"It was the monsters that caused us to lose our loved ones, and we must take revenge on them with our own hands."

They could usually see or hear reports about GUTS members in newspapers and news, but neither of them knew what the daily life of GUTS members was like, or how to study to join GUTS as a member. Coincidentally, two GUTS members were confirmed to come to Moriki Academy to offer their support.

Yumeko and Haruna both jumped up excitedly.

They had so many questions they wanted to ask and so many things they wanted to know. They thought about it over and over again, and decided early on what they would ask the team members.

'Clang.'

But then, another small pebble hit the window, accompanied by a hurried voice.

"It'll be okay."

Yumeko said to Haruna.

"The teachers always knew how much we looked forward to participating in this activity. Even if something went wrong and the teachers got angry, they wouldn't stop us from seeing our teammates."

Yumeko's explanation didn't seem to convince Haruna, who still looked skeptical. As Yumeko grew anxious, her tone became stern.

"Heh heh, looks like you're a coward!"

"Ok?"

“Someone as timid as you will never be able to become a GUTS member.”

"I...I'm not a coward."

"If you're not afraid, then stop talking and let's go!"

“…”

"Hmph, you're just a coward. Fine, I'll go by myself."

After finishing her sentence, Yumeko flipped over from the window and jumped onto the balcony. After lowering the escape rope ladder, Yumeko saw Kentaro below, who was only moving his mouth without making a sound, saying "So slow" to urge her on. Yumeko grabbed the rope ladder and prepared to go downstairs.