Masachika POV
I let out a long sigh as I leaned back in my dining chair.
For some reason, I couldn't stop worrying about Yuki.
After learning that aliens were actually real, I felt like I had to be more vigilant. Especially when it came to Yuki's and Alya's safety...
Wait, Why did Alya get included too?
Earlier this afternoon, she told me she was staying over at Lala's house. But I knew Lala's house was also Ace's house, which made me a little concerned.
I knew that being near Ace was probably one of the safest places in existence, but I still couldn't help worrying.
What kind of older brother wouldn't worry about his little sister staying at another guy's house?
Even if that guy, Ace, was my best friend And Yuki wasn't alone either. She told me Yotsuya-san would be there too.
...I'll call her.
I picked up my phone and called Yuki.
"..."
No answer.
I tried again.
"..."
Still nothing.
In that case, I'd call Ace.
"...Hello? Masachika? What's up?"
At least Ace answered, His voice sounded slightly out of breath, Was he training?
"Ah, I'm just worried about Yuki."
"Oh, that. Don't worry. She's perfectly fine."
Whew, Even though I already knew Yuki was probably fine, hearing confirmation made me feel much better.
Just as I was about to continue talking, I heard Yuki's voice through the phone.
"Ah♡... Ah♡... softer... Ace♡"
...Huh? W-Was that Yuki's voice? A-Are they...? No, wait, They weren't alone.
Lala-san and Yotsuya-san were there too, So Yuki was probably just messing around.
"...Um, Masa-"
"No, Ace, it's fine. I know Yuki is joking, so relax."
I cut him off before he could explain.
"..."
Why was Ace silent? Was he unsure how to respond in a situation like this? Well, this was probably his first time dealing with one of Yuki's pranks.
"Hey, like I said, I know Yuki's joking. You don't need to worry."
"...No, it's not that... Sorry, Masachika."
Huh?
The call ended immediately afterward.
Why was he apologizing? Shouldn't I be the one apologizing for Yuki's behavior?
...Wait, Were they actually doing it?! Was that why Yuki hadn't answered my calls?!
But they were with Lala-san and Yotsuya-san... D-Did they...?! N-No Yotsuya-san would definitely stop them.
But this was Ace we were talking about.
More importantly... Three at once...
Ace, you're incredibly manly.
No, wait, Why am I praising him?! My sister is over there!
Alright, calm down, Maybe Ace was just playing along with Yuki's prank.
Ace could be pretty mischievous sometimes too.
Yeah, That had to be it.
Fine, I'll sleep now and ask tomorrow...I couldn't sleep.
---
Zastin POV
"Zastin-sama, we've arrived at our destination."
I folded my arms and observed the holographic display before me.
According to Ace-sama, all we had to do was stay near a boy named Boboiboy, and Tengkotak would eventually appear on their own.
I didn't know why Tengkotak was targeting this child, Although he possessed a Power Sphere, it wasn't the one they were after.
"Zastin-sama, we're detecting a fairly strong Power Sphere signal from one of the houses," Jaja reported.
"Show me." The holographic screen changed, displaying a house with a bright light shining from one of its windows.
"Is this the Power Sphere they're after?" Kaja asked.
"I don't think so. There are two Power Sphere signals. One is inside that house. The other is coming from the middle of the ocean." I narrowed my eyes.
"No... it's an island floating above the sea. It appears they're attempting teleportation."
"It seems so. Ah, the signal from the floating island just disappeared. Looks like the teleportation failed," Kaja said.
"Should we investigate the floating island, Zastin-sama?" Jaja asked.
"Hmm. No. We're here to capture Power Sphere Hunters, not Power Spheres."
"I see." Jaja looked back at the data.
"Then the signal from the floating island is probably the hunters' actual target?"
"Most likely."
"Then instead of locating their target directly, they accidentally found this Power Sphere because it once came into contact with their target. They're probably planning to use it to track the one they're really after."
"That makes sense," Kaja said. "But teleportation technology is already fairly common, isn't it? Why would they want teleportation powers so badly?"
"Because most teleportation systems only move one or two individuals at a time," Jaja explained. "Imagine if you could teleport an entire fleet anywhere you wanted."
"...Alright, that's extremely useful."
Indeed it was.
Especially if His Majesty Gid continued expanding the kingdom's territory.
Still, that wasn't our concern right now.
Our priority was securing Tengkotak's members.
"Alright. We'll rest tonight. The real mission begins tomorrow."
"Understood!"
"Yes, sir!"
TIME SKIP
It was currently around seven-thirty in the morning.
My two subordinates and I were disguised as ordinary civilians as we headed toward the shop where the Power Sphere signal connected to the boy called Boboiboy had been detected.
Since it was still early, the shop was relatively quiet.
I sat down at one of the tables in front of the store.
"Oh? What can this old man serve you fine gentlemen today?" the elderly shop owner asked.
He wore glasses, a blue shirt, and a traditional cap. His back was slightly bent with age.
"We arrived here last night, so we'll take whatever you recommend, sir," Jaja answered.
"Oh? Tourists? And no need for all that 'sir' business. This old man is already ancient. Just call me Tok Aba."
Tok Aba began preparing our order.
Besides Tok Aba, a small round yellow robot was helping around the shop.
That had to be the Power Sphere.
Did every active Power Sphere end up helping cook food?
Ace-sama's power sphere also spent most of its time helping in the kitchen.
I suddenly wondered whether my Strengthbot would be able to cook if it were activated.
"Tok, that's a very advanced robot," I commented.
"Oh, yes. His name is Ochobot. He actually belongs to my grandson, but he often helps me around the shop."
Tok Aba brought our food over.
Not long afterward, several people began arriving.
Most noticeable was a boy dressed entirely in orange, with his cap worn backward.
He tried talking to Ochobot but was completely ignored, Apparently they were arguing.
His friends soon arrived as well.
A boy wearing a yellow shirt with red stripes. He was unusually large for his age and wore a red bandana.
A girl dressed entirely in pink and wearing a hijab.
And another girl wearing a blue, yellow, and white long-sleeved outfit with a yellow fur hat.
They also appeared to be arguing with Boboiboy.
"Oooh, morning drama." The man sitting beside Jaja commented.
From what I could gather from the conversation, Boboiboy had repeatedly broken promises to spend time with his friends.
To make up for it, he was apparently planning to take them squid fishing.
"According to what I've read, squid fishing is most effective at night," Jaja remarked.
"Eh? Really, Mister? But this pamphlet says daytime works too." Boboiboy held up a pamphlet.
"If not at night, then dawn or dusk. During the day, there's a high chance you won't catch anything."
The boy with bandana looked frustrated.
"Ah, forget it! Let's just go ho—?!"
Before he could finish speaking, thunder suddenly rumbled across the sky, The daylight vanished.
A massive spaceship emerged from the clouds.
Tengkotak.
At least, that was my assumption.
"Get ready," I whispered so only Jaja and Kaja could hear.
Both nodded and prepared themselves.
The spaceship slowly descended.
"Forward... forward... forward..." I noticed a tiny robot below seemingly guiding the spacecraft as though it were helping someone park a vehicle.
When the ship was about to collide with a nearby hut, the small robot suddenly transformed into a larger form and flew upward.
It knocked against the side of the spaceship several times.
The spacecraft finally stopped just before impact.
After the spaceship came to a halt, its underside slowly opened, revealing the figures who were our targets.
All of our intelligence matched perfectly.
Now all that remained was to capture them.
As I was organizing my thoughts, a red carpet suddenly rolled out toward the members of Tengkotak.
"Welcome! welcome, the great Tengkotak Gang! Welcome to Earth!"
Another Kubulus alien greeted them enthusiastically while tossing flower petals into the air.
"Should we attack now, Zastin-sama?" Kaja whispered.
"Later. We'll wait until they're off guard," I replied.
"Who are you?! What business do you have on Earth?!" Boboiboy demanded cautiously.
"Y-You don't know who they are, Boboiboy?!" the Kubulus who had welcomed Tengkotak exclaimed.
He immediately began introducing the members of Tengkotak with great enthusiasm.
"That must be Adudu," Jaja whispered.
"And the robot is Probe," Kaja added.
Adudu and Probe.
According to Ace-sama's reports, they were Kubulus aliens who had been living on Earth for quite some time with the goal of obtaining chocolate.
"If they only wanted chocolate, couldn't they just buy a large amount and go home? Why have they stayed on Earth for so long? Also... what do 'Season 1,' 'Season 2,' and 'Season 3' mean, Zastin-sama?" Jaja asked.
"I... I have no idea."
"And this one as well. Actually, let's skip this one. She's not important."
Adudu stopped himself while trying to introduce Ciciko.
Afterward, he handed Bora Ra a sheet of paper, It appeared to be a job application.
(A/N:Horror)
"If you want to join us, give me a Power Sphere," Bora Ra said.
"That! That's a Power Sphere!"
Adudu pointed toward Ochobot, who was hiding behind the counter with Tok Aba.
Frightened, Ochobot flew toward Boboiboy and hid behind him.
"Tok Aba, you should find somewhere safer to hide. It's dangerous here. Hey, take Tok Aba somewhere safe."
I ordered the man who had been sitting beside Jaja earlier.
"O-Okay! Come on, Tok!"
"That's a Power Sphere! Not that one!" Bora Ra shouted angrily at Yoyo Oo.
"I-Isn't it, Captain? They look the same to me. They're both round," Yoyo Oo defended himself.
Bora Ra yelled at him before Yoyo Oo quickly explained why they needed to capture Ochobot.
"Power Sphere?" Boboiboy asked, confused.
Apparently, he knew nothing about Power Spheres.
Bora Ra approached him and bent down slightly.
"Can we borrow him for a moment?" Bora Ra asked politely.
"Borrow?"
"Yes. Borrow by force!"
Bora Ra immediately snatched Ochobot away and threw him toward Yoyo Oo.
Boboiboy retaliated using his elemental powers, but Gaga Naz intercepted him.
Moments later, Boboiboy split into three separate versions of himself.
"Whew. I didn't know elemental powers could do that," Kaja remarked in amazement.
"Prepare to attack. Remember, if they realize we're from Deviluke, they might escape."
"Understood!"
Third Person POV
After splitting into three, the Boboiboys attacked Gaga Naz simultaneously.
Unfortunately, they were overpowered and swatted away due to the difference in physical strength.
Boboiboy Cyclone soared through the air on his hoverboard and launched several tornado spheres.
Gaga Naz blocked every single one.
In response, Gaga Naz fired twin laser beams from the massive mechanical claws mounted on his back.
Boboiboy Cyclone tried to evade them, but the lasers tracked his movements.
The beams struck him directly and destroyed his hoverboard.
Meanwhile, another clone, Boboiboy Thunderstorm, attempted a surprise attack from behind.
A giant claw immediately caught him.
Gaga Naz raised him up and prepared to fire point-blank at his face.
However, the blast suddenly struck Gaga Naz himself instead.
Boboiboy Thunderstorm slipped free.
"W-What?! What happened?!" Gaga Naz exclaimed.
"I didn't know you enjoyed bullying children."
Kaja appeared beside him and delivered a powerful punch that sent the giant alien flying.
Bora Ra, who had been watching everything, frowned.
"Who are you people?!"
"We're just tourists passing through," Zastin replied as he drew his sword.
"You two capture the others. I'll handle their leader."
"Understood!"
Jaja immediately rushed toward Yoyo Oo, who was carrying Ochobot.
Bora Ra intercepted him.
At the same moment, Zastin charged forward.
"Your opponent is me!"
His blade slashed toward Bora Ra's arm, but Bora Ra narrowly dodged.
"Yoyo Oo, get inside the ship! You're only getting in the way!" Bora Ra ordered.
"Y-Yes, Captain!"
Yoyo Oo ran toward the spaceship.
"You think I'll let you escape?!"
Jaja pursued him.
Suddenly, a laser shot came flying toward him.
"A sniper?"
Jaja raised his energy shield and deflected the attack.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, Gaga Naz climbed back to his feet after being launched by Kaja's surprise punch.
He glared furiously at his opponent.
"How dare you interfere in our business!"
CLANK! CLANK!
The two massive mechanical claws attached to his back opened and closed repeatedly with terrifying metallic sounds.
Without hesitation, Gaga Naz lunged forward.
Despite his size, his speed generated a powerful gust of wind that scattered dust throughout the area around Tok Aba's shop.
SHREEET!
One of the giant claws descended from above, aiming to crush Kaja's head, Kaja activated the shield built into his gauntlet and blocked the attack.
BOOM!
The collision between the enormous steel claw and Kaja's solid-light shield produced a shower of sparks, The ground beneath Kaja's feet cracked slightly from the force.
"Is this all you've got?" Kaja mocked with a grin.
"Don't get cocky!"
Gaga Naz immediately swung his second claw horizontally from the side, attempting to cut Kaja in half.
Recognizing the follow-up attack, Kaja leaped backward with impressive agility.
Before he could land properly, Gaga Naz fired two high-energy crimson laser beams from the center of his back-mounted claws.
The distance between them was too short,
Kaja had no time to dodge completely.
BZZZZT!!
He crossed both arms in front of his chest and endured the blast head-on.
The force pushed him several meters backward, carving two long trenches into the ground behind him.
"Not bad." Kaja praised mockingly.
Meanwhile, Jaja remained in a defensive position behind a roadside barrier.
A red flash appeared once again and slammed into the wall.
BOOM!
The concrete barrier near Jaja exploded into pieces, leaving behind a cloud of smoke.
"An annoying sniper," Jaja muttered as he brushed dust off his shoulder.
Kiki Ta, positioned at the ventral hatch, had already locked onto Jaja's location with her long-barreled sniper rifle.
Seeing that her target had disappeared from view, she redirected her scope toward Gaga Naz to provide support. However, a shot from another direction nearly struck her.
Realizing she had to deal with Jaja first before helping her allies, she focused on tracking him down and resumed firing.
While Jaja kept Kiki Ta occupied, the main battle in the center of the battlefield between Zastin and Bora Ra reached its climax.
CLANG! CLANG! BANG!
Zastin's energy sword flashed through the air, clashing repeatedly against Bora Ra's massive war hammer.
Every collision between the two heavy weapons sent powerful shockwaves rippling across the battlefield.
"You're pretty good!" Bora Ra growled as he swung his hammer horizontally with all his strength.
Zastin swiftly ducked, allowing the giant hammer to pass only inches above his head.
Without wasting the momentum, he spun his body and launched a counterattack aimed at a gap in Bora Ra's shoulder armor.
SHREEEET!
Sparks flew as Zastin's blade scraped across the metal surface of Bora Ra's armor.
The captain of Tengkotak was forced to retreat several steps to create distance, glaring sharply at his opponent.
As Deviluke's greatest swordsman, Zastin completely dominated the close-range battle through sheer technique.
However, as always, Zastin had one greatest enemy.
That enemy was...His own terrible luck.
Just as Zastin stepped forward to deliver what should have been the decisive blow that would defeat Bora Ra, his foot suddenly landed on something soft and slippery.
A banana peel.
No one knew where it had come from.
SHREEEEEEET!
"Ah-?!" Zastin stiffened as his balance vanished completely in an instant.
Both of his feet flew into the air And in an extremely undignified fashion, he fell backward.
Bora Ra stared at the absurd scene in shock for a moment before his vicious grin widened.
"Hahaha! What an idiot! Black Hole Power!"
Bora Ra gathered energy into his hand, creating a miniature black hole.
He hurled it forward.
The black hole rapidly expanded and began pulling everything toward it.
"Everyone, hold your ground!"
Zastin shouted as he drove his sword into the ground.
The other members of Tengkotak immediately took the opportunity to retreat and board their spaceship.
For several seconds, the black hole continued to rage Then it vanished.
What remained behind was a field of debris and destruction.
The entire area had been reduced to ruins.