[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn":3,"chapter-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-41":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Ultraman Arbitrary Key: Dawn",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2261258,4413,"Chapter 41: 40 Aihara Ryu","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-41",41,"\u003Cp>Mingnan asked curiously: “Reward?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming pulled out a piece of paper: “Here are the key points for the upcoming pop quiz. If you memorize these, you’ll ace it and make everyone look at you differently!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To a top student like [Dr.], this would be instantly recognizable as nothing more than a summary of Qi Ming’s lecture material.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to Mingnan, the paper seemed like a secret martial arts manual, filling him with excitement and the illusion of a shortcut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just imagining his parents’ approval and his classmates’ astonishment at a high score filled him with boundless energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Go! And don’t tell the other students.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, Teacher, you can count on me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, the problem student was dealt with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………………………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other side, Nami Nishijo, on leave, arrived at a TPC detention facility to visit the Umeda siblings, whose parents had been killed by the Kaitel aliens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside, reporters thronged, all eager to get firsthand information.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One face made Nishijo frown: “Hirakawa? He’s here too?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even she had heard of this filthy, unscrupulous reporter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he got near those two children, he’d rip open their wounds for a sensational story, inflicting fresh trauma on their souls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Watch out—keep a close eye on reporter Hirakawa. Don’t let him get inside.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She instructed the guard at the entrance, who bowed in response.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Standing before the Umeda siblings’ room, Nishijo—always fearless—hesitated for the first time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a child, she had witnessed her parents murdered by a “strange figure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The specific memories were hazy, yet the fire of hatred within her burned steadily, carrying her to this day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That strange figure was either an alien or a monster disguised as a human.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s why she always charged into battle against monsters and aliens, hoping one day to avenge them herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But yesterday, due to her misjudgment, these two children lost their parents just as she once had—she bore undeniable responsibility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What could she possibly say to them now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Would they forgive her if she told the truth?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No!” The next moment, the shattering of glass and a child’s scream shattered Nishijo’s inner turmoil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She realized something was happening inside!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nishijo yanked the door open to find a man standing there—his head like a crow, dressed in a suit, holding a gun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the “Crow Man” Qi Ming’s team had mentioned!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside, a terrified little girl trembled before the Crow Man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had just watched him suck her brother away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shhh!” The Crow Man aimed his gun at six-year-old Umeda Kaori and pulled the trigger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A green beam shot out, shrinking Kaori’s body and pulling her into the gun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Son of a bitch, daring to snatch people here!” Nishijo roared, reaching for her waist—only to find nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was on leave; she couldn’t carry the Victory Hyper Gun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ji ji…” The Crow Man let out a mocking screech at Nishijo and aimed at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nishijo dropped flat, dodging the shot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing her skill and guards rushing in from afar, he chose to retreat, fleeing out the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nishijo’s face darkened as she pulled out her PDI communicator and hurried back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………………………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What? The Umeda siblings were taken by the Crow Man?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming, returning from school, stared in disbelief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Parents killed by Kaitel aliens, children snatched by the Crow Man—what a perfectly tragic family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “Let’s hope we find their nest before the Crow Man leaves Earth.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nishijo gritted her teeth: “At any cost, we must rescue those two children!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming asked: “And how exactly do we pay that cost? Kill Yamana and offer him as a sacrifice to beg the gods for guidance?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yamana nearly wet himself: “Hey!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nishijo fell silent—they had strength but no leverage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moroboshi quietly pulled Qi Ming aside, asking if his calm demeanor meant he had a plan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “None at all. I’m just good at fighting—I’m not omniscient. All we can do is wait for them to slip up and give us a trail to follow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moroboshi gasped: “Then how can you still joke around?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming paused two seconds: “Because I’m standing here talking without any skin in the game.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t Hohara from [Leoh], and to him, these two siblings were just two ordinary victims—no different from any random bystanders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moroboshi’s face turned green.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That day, not a single clue about any alien was found.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Qi Ming’s Star Grant points reached 6.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, Chief Kento’s confidante, Saeki Rika, entered the command room with a grim expression—she was here to deliver orders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The staff officer is deeply dissatisfied with the Victory Team's recent performance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why can others mount effective counterattacks while you remain helpless? Is Victory Team slacking off?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look at this report—how does this make society view TPC?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rising frequency of disappearances and traces of multiple aliens had finally drawn media attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some reporters, desperate for clicks, began fabricating stories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming picked up the newspaper: the front page reported that an officer named [Aihara Ryu] had killed a Crow Man last night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The name made Qi Ming frown; he instinctively glanced at Yamana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?” Yamana tensed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “Nothing. I just suddenly realized you’re not entirely unpleasant. You’re almost human.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yamana: “?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Are you seriously saying you only barely consider me human? Is that a compliment?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yes, it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without comparison, there’s no contrast. Though Yamana had flaws, compared to Aihara Ryu, he was tolerable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not to mention his infamous scene in [Mebius]’s first episode—his performance in every early episode was a disaster, worse than Ishida Yamato from [Digimon] at breaking up the team.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d fly into rages at new recruits just because he had seniority, driving everyone away. When Amamiya tried to mediate, he shoved him to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every time, Hino Mirai had to clean up after him, coaxing the hurt recruits back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In episode 17, Hikari asked him to watch over Mebius; in episode 18, he screamed, “That guy is unforgivable—he’s not our teammate!” because Mebius struck a meteor first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And shooting the second-generation Metz alien during peace talks? That was the ultimate classic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is this guy even in this world? Thank goodness he’s not on our side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1027,"2026-06-19T16:40:33.318Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","cc87f0c691279d450bad179c0e4116282524b63f0a4628fc63fd0daf597ae9a1","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-42","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-40",547,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-cover.jpg"]