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So, one after another, Redstone Spark Towers were built, as were the space stations from Earth to Mars and then to Jupiter's orbit. Those towering, columnar structures replaced traditional power generation facilities, transmitting Magus Power's energy in the form of light to every place that needed it.

Walking the streets of Martian city today, you can see the top of the slowly rotating Spark Tower from almost any angle. Its light is gentle and steady, like a lighthouse that never goes out.

Kirino withdrew his gaze and continued walking. As he passed the window of a toy store, he couldn't help but glance at it a couple more times.

The shop window displays a row of Ultraman figurines, each with its own display stand and lighting.

The one in the very center is naturally Bayeri. The silver-white armor gleams with a cool luster under the light. The patterns on the shoulder and breastplates are very detailed, and even the dark silver patterns around the timer are reproduced.

Next to it was a matching weapon accessory pack, with the Holy Sword and Emperor's Blade models packaged in two small boxes, and the price tags were more expensive than other single figures.

On either side of Bayeri are Ultraman Tiga and Lucifer—these three have consistently been the best-selling models.

"I guess this can be considered a kind of popular culture?" Kirino shook his head to himself.

He thought of Masaki, his childhood friend and genius scientist, who was killed by Emperor's sword in the final battle. Although he was rescued after the battle, he missed all the big scenes that followed, and thus he had always held a grudge against him.

Later, when the GUTS team was reorganized, he left and went to the Space Development Agency as a senior researcher. I heard he's been working on a new type of space-folding engine lately... He still sends me emails occasionally.

He complained about Lucifer and Tiga being sold together.

—Some children thought Lucifer was just a recolored version of Ultraman Tiga, which made Masaki very indignant.

After walking past another block and turning a corner, a circular logo was projected onto the floating building, with "Tsuburaya Kuse" written below the outer ring, which is the publisher of these toys.

The logo made him pause, and he was quite moved:

After that war, the Kuze Group underwent a large-scale restructuring. It was still nominally called the Kuze Group, but its management structure and equity distribution were greatly adjusted, making it completely unlike a traditional family business.

Some say this is because Ye Shou has been deliberately downplaying his personal identity and gradually pushing the group towards public ownership. Others say he simply doesn't care about those things; worldly power and wealth have completely lost their meaning for him, so he is pursuing a higher level of existence that ordinary people cannot see.

However, the current Kuze Group can now be equated with the "social security and welfare department," and its jurisdiction covers the entire solar system and all surrounding areas protected by the Land of Light!

As for Ye Shou himself, who has developed this group to its current state?

He hasn't appeared in any public place for a long time...

He disappeared shortly after the war ended, without saying goodbye or explanation. There was some discussion within TPC, but no one really knew where he went—everyone guessed that the GUTS members and the director knew, but no one could get any information from them.

Looking back now, it's been such a long time... long enough that everyone has gradually gotten used to life without Bayeri.

Respect, admiration, longing... but even in his absence, people can continue to move forward.

Perhaps this is what Kuze Yoru wanted?

——Tong Ye thoughtfully.

Evening descends upon the Martian city, and artificial lights illuminate the city one by one, blending with the lingering orange glow of the setting sun to bathe the entire city in a warm amber hue.

From the perspective of atmospheric refractive index and the sun's angle, today is the most beautiful time of the year on Mars... Kirino has been looking forward to this for a long time, and now, bathed in this orange-red sea, she feels incredibly safe and comfortable~

This spectacular sight was expected to last for about half an hour, so Kirino found a café and planned to enjoy it while waiting for night to fall.

"Wait for me!"

No way!

"Ugh, don't leave me, sister!"

Kirino sensed two powerful spiritual forces appearing nearby. In the blink of an eye, two figures flew past him—literally flying.

Two little girls, who looked only seven or eight years old, chased each other, nimbly weaving through various obstacles on buildings and streets. Although they were having a good time, they did not disturb others, demonstrating their excellent maneuvering skills.

The little girl flying at the front had striking straight green hair that flowed beautifully in the wind... but she looked only about five years old, yet the eight-year-old girl behind her called her "older sister," which felt a little absurd.

"A superpowered person? To be able to control one's powers so freely at this age, one's family must have put in a lot of effort."

Kirino couldn't help but take another look, after all, even now, it's rare to see such a talented ability user.

Then he saw the younger sister who was chasing after him. Because she was always being teased by her older sister, she pouted and almost cried. Then, like a swallow returning to its nest, she flew to the open-air restaurant next door and buried herself in her mother's arms.

However, we cannot definitively conclude that she is the "mother," since judging from her appearance alone, she looks like a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl...

She has curly hair in the same emerald green as her sister, and although she is not very tall, her proportions are model-like, perfectly embodying the phrase "graceful lady".

Mother and daughter... or maybe sisters?

"...Honestly, if you keep making a fuss, Mommy will get angry~ It's all Daddy's fault for spoiling you!"

"Waaah~"

"Alright, alright, everyone will be back from shopping soon. You're practically the 'big sister' among the kids now, so crying will make you a laughingstock!"

"... um~"

The S-class hero who once refused to forgive, understand, or let go of anyone now has a gentle and loving expression in her eyes, and a maternal glow on her youthful and radiant face.

If people who know her saw this, they would be incredibly surprised, right?

Kirino could sense a chillingly powerful force emanating from the girl, so he suppressed his senses, not wanting her to think he was intentionally offending her.

'Looks like an Earthling? I've never heard of such a powerful superhuman before…'

He glanced across the table and saw a gentle-looking, ordinary-looking man sitting opposite the girl with green curly hair. He couldn't sense any powerful aura from him. This was probably the "father" the girl had mentioned who doted on his daughter.

This was probably not the first time that person had been criticized like this by their lover, and they gave a helpless yet relaxed smile.

He had a very large family, and for some reason, daughters made up the vast majority of them (for a time, a certain maid even secretly bit her handkerchief in resentment because her nemesis's noblewoman had given birth to her "eldest daughter"...).

In short, he's already quite adept at handling energetic kids.

Then he naturally turned to look at Kirino, and their eyes met for a moment.

"Ok?"

At that moment, it was as if he had been electrocuted, and a tremor ran through Kirino's entire body!

That look...that face...no doubt about it!

Why would he appear here...? No, he's just retired. Logically speaking, he could appear anywhere in the universe, and it's reasonable for him to bring his family to see the most beautiful scenery.

"Long……"

Kirino's throat moved as he was about to speak when he saw the person smile at him and nod slightly as a greeting.

Then, turning his head and reaching out, as if performing magic, another little girl who had been chasing after her sister somehow fell into his arms and was punished by having her armpits grabbed, making his daughter laugh.

"..."

Seeing this, Kirino quieted down, and then a genuine smile of joy appeared on his face.

The things that person saw were things that we humans could never fully comprehend.

He saw the light of Orion illuminate the sky, watched a great civilization collapse in darkness, and he also cleared a path through the wilderness with his own hands, allowing the dawn of a new era to rise from the horizon...

All these memories will fade with time, just as tears disappear in the rain.

But humanity cannot forget this name. Whenever we look up at the sky and venture into uncharted territories, we always remember this name, and we must never abandon it… Yes, just like the 'courage' it instilled in us!

He took off his hat, bowed to the man from afar, and then continued walking with the crowd, not glancing at the restaurant again as he passed by.

Its figure seemed to melt away, quickly disappearing into the Martian sunset...

(End of the book)