Ultraman: I am really just a human.

Chapter 27 Frontline Base

"call!"

Hokkaido.

Several off-road vehicles were traveling through the blizzard. In the severe weather, it was almost impossible to discern directions, but fortunately, there was always an orange-yellow navigation light ahead.

"arrive."

Kondo Isami, bundled up tightly, followed the guide off the bus, shivering as he pulled his collar tighter, exhaling white breath from his mouth and nose, his glasses quickly becoming covered with a layer of white frost and ice crystals.

"Damn it, how did I get assigned to this godforsaken place?"

Kondo Isami's expression was not good.

There are only two places in the entire country of J where spacetime is warped, and they just happened to come to the place with the worst environment.

He had been here once before and never wanted to come back.

He is indeed a Level 3 Elite Knight, but his body is no different from that of an ordinary person.

You can't keep changing forms forever, can you?

He didn't know if others could do it, but he certainly didn't have the physical strength.

"Is this the front line?"

The trainees who got off the bus later were also quite cold.

"I thought we were just dealing with weirdos in the city... how did we end up here?"

"Quiet."

Kondo Isamu gave a stern look and reprimanded the students.

Because of what happened with Hei Kongwo, he became a laughing stock in the industry, but he was still an insurmountable mountain in front of these newbies.

The students from Class A behind them ignored Kondo Isami.

Throughout the journey, Kondo Isami ignored them, remaining indifferent and keeping a certain distance, without uttering a single harsh word.

In fact, since the base invasion incident a month ago, Kondo Isami has been like this, never causing any more trouble for Class A.

Soon after the snowplow cleared the snow and the road was cleared, the group walked to a fortified base.

Upon entering the base's entrance passage, one can see a giant valley outside through a glass wall, where, even amidst the wind and snow, horrific signs of battle are still visible.

"here it is……"

The voices of the students in Class B trembled, and the expressions of the students in Class A also changed.

"Scared, aren't you?" Kondo Isami chuckled, his eyes filled with apprehension. "This is one of the battlefields where Ultraman killed the monsters back then. The monsters' body tissues are long gone, but the remaining cells evolved into various monsters."

"So this is what monsters are like," many trainees swallowed hard. "No wonder they set up a frontline base here."

"But wasn't it said that the monsters had been completely wiped out?" someone asked in confusion.

After the Age of Knights arrived, monster incidents became almost nonexistent, replaced by various infected monsters.

"Where do you think those infected came from?"

Kondo Isamu snorted coldly and continued leading the group through the passage to the base gate.

"These monsters are almost impossible to eradicate, so we can only build a defensive line to prevent them from making a comeback. You said you came here for an internship, but it's really just to broaden your horizons. The chances of anything going wrong are not high."

Hearing Kondo Isami's words, the members of Class B finally felt relieved.

I almost thought they were here to be cannon fodder.

However, the expressions of the students in Class A were different.

Sakurai Keikazu knew the inside story from the beginning, and he didn't react much from start to finish, only occasionally revealing a sad look in his eyes.

Behind him, Qiao's fingers turned white, and his gaze never left the valley.

"Are you alright, Choji?" Murai Ryota asked worriedly from the side.

He sensed something was off about this classmate even before arriving at the base.

"fine."

Takumi coldly withdrew his gaze.

"Never mind him," Haruto said casually, observing the snowy valley outside as if it were scenery. "I heard his father was the first Faiz, and this is where he died."

"So that's how it is."

Ryota Murai looked at Takumi Ogami, who had walked ahead, and hesitated, unsure of what to say.

He's not feeling well right now either; he feels completely insecure ever since leaving the Knights Academy.

Especially after arriving at this base.

The power within my body seemed to become even more active.

And I don't know if it's just my imagination, but there seems to be something terrifying outside.

"call--!"

Suddenly another gust of wind blew, and a large amount of snow fell towards the base. Some people vaguely saw a white figure walking in the gray snowstorm.

"There's someone outside!"

"A person? You must be mistaken?"

"It's true! I was just standing there!"

Ryota Murai looked in the direction the students were calling out, but at first he couldn't see anything. However, as the sound of tinnitus rang in his ears, the snowy scene suddenly drew closer.

"Buzz!"

Amidst the blizzard, a young man in white with an innocent smile looked towards Ryota Murai.

"Are you looking for me, Kuuga?"

……

Tokyo.

The chameleon Gurongi saga is far from over, as the police stumble upon new Gurongi sightings, plunging the joint investigation headquarters into chaos once again.

"Based on the footage, the target is estimated to be about 2 meters long and is a Gurongi bird that flies in the air."

"We haven't received any notification of the incident yet, but the situation may not be optimistic. If it's some kind of attack from above, it will be very difficult for us to track it down..."

The atmosphere inside the meeting room was heavy.

Currently, only a little over 100 people have been reported as victims of the Gurongi massacre, but the actual number is clearly much higher.

The Gurongi have diverse methods of killing, and not all of them will kill openly.

Just like the invisible Gurongi before, if the other party hadn't actively exposed themselves, it would have been difficult to attract attention if they had been slightly concealed.

"Speaking of which," the commander asked with a hint of doubt, "any news about that invisible Grongi?"

"not yet."

Officer Kudo responded with a troubled expression.

"Yesterday we coordinated with special forces to stake out the central square, but the other side didn't make a move all day, however..."

"What's wrong?"

"The night before last, someone said there was a strange explosion near the old park. We suspect that the Gurongi has been dealt with, and now the special forces have sealed off the area," Officer Kudo speculated.

Generally, only one Grongi will act at a time. Since a new Grongi has appeared, the previous one is most likely dead.

"Well, then let's leave it to the special forces. I'll communicate with them."

The minister pondered for a moment and then ignored the invisible Gurongi, also known as the chameleon Gurongi.

"The focus now is on the Gurongi birds. Once we're down there, everyone should try to collect as many death reports as possible for today, especially those that seem like accidents but keep happening..."

"Chief!"

Before he could finish speaking, a policewoman rushed into the conference room.

"Several mysterious and sudden deaths have occurred suddenly throughout the city, and police stations in various districts have submitted reports!"

"Around 9 a.m., nine people were admitted to the emergency room at Adachi Ward Hospital. Almost all of them died at the same time shortly afterward. There were no fatal external injuries on their bodies, and the cause of death for all of them was myocardial infarction!"

The policewoman quickly reported the situation under the solemn gazes of the crowd.

"Following this, hospitals in Itabashi, Edogawa, and Arakawa districts also reported deaths with the same condition, nine people in each district!"

"It's definitely that guy!"

Officer Kudo gritted his teeth and looked at the Gurongi birds flying rapidly across the projected screen.

"These guys have developed their own rules for killing!"

……

Central Plaza.

The commemorative activities that were suspended due to the Gurongi incident ultimately had no follow-up; the photo wall was removed, and the relatives of the victims in various places did not continue to leave it.

However, this event wasn't a complete failure, since the people who were supposed to come had already been there on the first day. The only ones who were truly disappointed were the surrounding businesses.

The goods prepared in advance did not sell much at all, especially some pastry shops, which had to hold a tearful clearance sale on the last day.

Xia Chuan, who doesn't usually like sweets, benefited quite a bit from this and was surprised to find that the taste was actually pretty good.

Life is usually a bit too boring, so this is at least a source of enjoyment.

As human beings, we cannot deprive ourselves when it comes to food.

"Officer?"

Outside the dessert shop, Xia Chuan ran into an acquaintance as soon as he started queuing.

Hearing the shouts and turning around, they found it was the Tsugami mother and son from before.

The woman carried a bag of desserts, her smile radiant, seemingly having emerged from the shadows. Only the boy hid behind her, secretly observing Xia Chuan, appearing somewhat aloof and timid.

"Are you alright now?" Xia Chuan gently greeted the woman.

"Yes, it's all in the past now. What's important is the future," the woman nodded with a smile. "Is the police officer off today?"

"Uh, I guess so."

Xia Chuan calmly watched the mother and son leave, then suddenly frowned and looked up at the distant sky.

There were too many helicopters today.

"Is it the Gurongi again?"

"Buzz—!"

The sound of whistling rang in his ears again, and the image of a Grongi owl flying high in the sky appeared in Xia Chuan's mind.

(End of this chapter)