Chapter 91: 88 Hikari Appears

Qi Ming steadied himself, pulled out his PDI communicator, and sent a video call request to Sei Star Group.

Nami Nishijo: “What’s wrong?”

Qi Ming: “I think that flower is strange—ask the captain to take a look… Anyway, I’ll get it first.”

But in the original Ultraman Leo episode, this scene was full of twists.

Immediately after training, Hōgen was the first to sense something was off with the flower—he kept yelling at Umeda: “Throw it away, Little Fragrance! Get rid of that flower! Get rid of it now!”

He gave no reason, acting as if possessed, demanding the flower be discarded.

Qi Ming guessed he’d spent too much time with Sei Star Group and had been mentally warped—his communication skills were poor, even unable to tell a harmless lie.

But the white girl beside Hōgen at the time was equally bizarre.

She protected Umeda Fragrance, who wanted to keep the flower, and held back Hōgen as he tried to forcibly take it away, then said:

“How could such a beautiful, fragrant flower be dangerous? Hōgen, you’re so unromantic.”

“Girls love flowers—they can instinctively sense whether a flower is poisonous.”

“I believe a person who lacks the gentleness to appreciate roadside flowers is strong for nothing.”

Qi Ming had been utterly baffled watching this scene, frustrated by their intelligence.

If it were him…

Qi Ming stepped forward, crouching before Umeda Fragrance.

He feigned surprise: “I’ve seen this flower in books—it’s deadly poisonous!”

Umeda Fragrance: “How could such a beautiful flower be poisonous? I want to put it in front of my parents’ photos.”

Nami Nishijo also said: “The more vivid the flower, the more likely it is poisonous.”

Compared to Hōgen’s white girl back then, Nami Nishijo beside Qi Ming now seemed perfectly normal.

Qi Ming patted Umeda Fragrance’s head:

“When you learn knowledge from your teachers here, you’ll be able to tell.”

“You’re amazing, Fragrance—you found a poisonous flower and kept everyone safe.”

“You’re a role model—I’ll make sure the director and teachers praise you properly.”

Umeda Fragrance’s face lit up instantly: “Really?”

Qi Ming smiled gently: “Of course it’s true. Here—this is your reward from big brother.”

He took the flower from her hand and gave her the doll he’d bought on the way.

“Wow!” Umeda Fragrance beamed.

Her older brother Umeda Tsū said: “Hero… I want to become an Ultraman warrior who defeats aliens, so I can protect my sister!”

Qi Ming patted his head too: “Keep it up.”

He called the orphanage director over and asked her to take the Umeda siblings to a flower shop.

Nami Nishijo pulled out a ten-thousand-yen bill: “I’ll pay.”

Umeda Fragrance left happily clutching the doll; Qi Ming looked at the flower in his hand and thought, That was easy enough.

At that moment, the PDI communicator connected—Sei Star Group asked what happened, and Qi Ming showed him the flower.

Sei Star Group gasped: “That’s the Blade Grass of Kendoros!”

Nami Nishijo: “Blade Grass?”

Sei Star Group: “When it matures, it hardens like metal. It’s not poisonous, but monsters use it as a weapon.”

Qi Ming: “I knew it… I’ll dispose of it right away.”

Sei Star Group: “Yes, do it quickly.”

After ending the call, Nami Nishijo looked at Qi Ming with a strange expression: “You and the captain seem to know a lot we don’t.”

Qi Ming offered no explanation—just gave a “V” sign.

Nami Nishijo: “Still, you were surprisingly gentle just now—I thought you’d kick the child and snatch the flower.”

Qi Ming was speechless: “I don’t believe in solving problems with violence. Lately, I’ve had no choice.”

“Huh!” A surprised voice came from behind Qi Ming.

He turned and saw two familiar figures.

Zara and Lucía—the pair previously hunted by the Mokushin aliens—were here too.

They gestured with their bodies and used simple words to warn Qi Ming the flower was dangerous.

“We’re about to handle it,” Qi Ming nodded, tossing the flower into the air.

Nami Nishijo raised her Victory Hyper Gun, fired, and incinerated it with a laser.

Done!

The monster Kendoros, once deprived of its weapon, was so weak Sei Star Group believed even MAC could destroy it before it fused with the flower.

If it dares appear again, even without transforming, Victory Team could easily eliminate it.

After resolving this threat, Qi Ming began communicating with Zara and Lucía.

Though difficult, Qi Ming and Nami Nishijo grasped the gist.

After Kōtō, the strategist, promised Qi Ming he’d look after them, he outsourced the task to Tongshan, the strategist.

Tongshan, after thinking it over, placed them in this orphanage under his charity network.

They learned Earth’s writing and speech alongside the children, adapted to Earth’s environment, and helped care for the kids.

From their expressions, it was clear they loved being with children—and cherished this free life, free from constant fear.

“It’s good,” Qi Ming said. “You’re kind people—you deserve the world’s gentleness.”

He spoke without thought; she heard with meaning—and Nami Nishijo felt something hard to name stir inside her.

At that moment, the director returned with the Umeda siblings; Umeda Fragrance held a large bouquet of fragrant flowers, her face beaming.

The sister received beautiful flowers to honor her parents; Nami Nishijo’s guilt eased from having paid; Qi Ming had eliminated a major threat ahead of time.

A world without casualties—achieved.

After leaving the orphanage, Qi Ming and Nami Nishijo waved goodbye to everyone and headed home.

Half an hour later, another figure arrived at the orphanage.

The avatar of Boga—tall, pale, long-tongued woman in a white lab coat—arrived here.

She glanced at the direction Qi Ming and Nami Nishijo had driven off in, then at the orphanage, her eyes cold.

The next instant, as if realizing something, she whirled around to face behind her.

There stood a man with a stern expression and icy gaze.

If Aihara Ryū were here, he’d shout in shock: “Captain Serizawa!”

But the identity of this man was clear from the Knight's aura emanating from his right hand.

He was Ultraman Hikari, possessing the corpse of Serizawa!

Once he lived on the beautiful planet Abir, conducting research—but Boga, while he was away, exterminated every living thing on it.

Consumed by hatred, Hikari donned the Armor of Vengeance, renamed himself “Hunter Knight Sword,” and vowed to destroy Boga at any cost!

“Sword…” Boga stared at the man, voice low.

The next moment, Hikari drew the Knight's aura from his right wrist—a brilliant little blade flashed free, slashing toward Boga, its aura sharp and dazzling!

Boga refused to yield, countering with psychic force—a fierce, evenly matched battle erupted outside the orphanage.

“You don’t have many days left,” Boga finally said, then vanished using teleportation.

——————————

Two days left until release.

Five updates daily then—day one, Qi Ming kicks Hikari; day two, Qi Ming fights Agul. Just thinking about it is thrilling.

Also, for readers suffering from book drought during the New Year, I recommend my previous novel, “I Collected Attributes in the Ultraman World.”

Trust me—it’s a gem buried under a misleading title, with perfect setup and payoff.

The link is in the author’s note below—click to jump directly.

Click here click here.

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[88] (End of Chapter)