Chapter 164 Red Sphere

“You actually know who I am? But we’re from completely different timelines!”

Ibuki Mitsuishi stared at the girl standing before him, who was a full head shorter than he was. His voice was filled with surprise.

“That’s because I’ve seen your story before,” Eiko replied with a smile. “Ultraman Teo, the one searching for happiness. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you in person.”

“Hey, you two.”

Vane interrupted their conversation and gestured toward the living room behind Eiko.

“How about letting us inside first?”

“Having this many people crowd around a young girl’s front door isn’t exactly a good look.”

“Oh, sorry!”

Realizing how awkward the situation was, Eiko quickly apologized and invited everyone inside, where they settled onto the tatami mats in the living room.

The apartment wasn’t particularly large. Its furnishings were simple, consisting of a single bedroom, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom.

“I’m really sorry, but I don’t have anything to offer you. All I’ve got is some hot water.”

“I hope you don’t mind.”

Eiko retrieved some disposable cups and a kettle from a cabinet, poured everyone a cup of water, and apologized again.

“You really don’t have to keep apologizing. Besides, we didn’t come here expecting you to entertain us.”

With a casual wave of Vane’s hand, the table was suddenly covered with all kinds of delicious food.

Some of the dishes were still steaming, clearly fresh out of the oven.

“Whoa! That’s amazing!”

Eiko’s eyes widened when she spotted the roasted chicken.

“Are you some kind of god??”

“No…” Vane shook his head. “I’m just an ordinary human.”

The Emperor: “…”

Daigo: “…”

Zero: “…”

“You don’t look anything like an ordinary human to me.”

Eiko puffed out her cheeks, clearly not buying his explanation.

“Anyway, why did you all come looking for me?” she asked, steering the conversation back on track.

“Have you seen a red sphere?” Vane asked directly, not bothering to beat around the bush.

“Yes.” Eiko nodded. “A few days ago, it suddenly appeared in my apartment and asked me what I wished for.”

“I wished for a bowl of ramen, and a piping-hot bowl appeared right in front of me.”

“The strange thing was, after granting my wish, the sphere grew a little bigger.”

“And then?” Vane asked, grabbing a guava and taking a bite.

Eiko thought for a moment.

“After that… I… I wished for happiness.”

“The red sphere told me that granting a wish for happiness was extremely difficult because happiness means something different to everyone.”

“It asked me what kind of happiness I wanted. Apparently, I had to be specific before it could grant my wish.”

“But I told it I didn’t really know what kind of happiness I wanted. So it showed me the story of Ultraman Teo.”

“Me?”

Ibuki pointed at himself.

“It showed you my story?”

“That’s right.” Eiko nodded. “It said your story might help me understand what happiness really means.”

“Then it definitely picked the wrong person.”

Ibuki gave a bitter smile, his voice filled with self-mockery.

“I’m just an unlucky guy whose home planet was destroyed.”

“I’m sure it had a reason for showing me your story. And I believe you’ll find your own happiness someday, Ultraman Teo!”

Eiko gave him an encouraging smile.

“Do you really want your wish for happiness to come true?” Vane asked with interest.

“Who wouldn’t want to be happy?”

Eiko gave him a puzzled look.

“Everyone wants to find happiness, don’t they?”

Rather than answering, Vane reached into his inventory, pulled out an invitation to the Desire Grand Prix, and handed it to her.

“I happen to know another way. The risks are pretty high, but so are the rewards.”

“If you manage to become the champion of the Desire Grand Prix, you can make any wish you want, with no price to pay.”

“You could even wish to become a Creator God. Maybe then you’d finally discover what true happiness means.”

“Really?”

Eiko stared at the invitation in her hands.

“If I win, I can even become a Creator God?”

“As long as you win the Desire Grand Prix, you can wish for absolutely anything,” Vane repeated. “Even becoming a Creator God is perfectly fine.”

What’s so difficult about becoming a Creator God anyway?

Just create an empty universe and make a staff that gives its wielder administrator privileges.

Whoever holds that staff can rewrite the laws of the universe and create or reshape anything they want.

At that point, they can play god however they please.

Zero, who had been listening from the sidelines, was completely dumbfounded.

What the hell does he mean the champion can make any wish they want? Even becoming a Creator God?

If this competition is really that incredible, I want to enter too!

“In that case, I think I’ll give it a shot and see if I can win the championship.”

Eiko carefully put away the invitation, her expression serious.

“Maybe I’ll find true happiness there.”

Vane nodded.

“That depends on how hard you work. Once the tournament officially begins, the invitation will teleport you directly to the venue.”

“Now, back to what we were talking about earlier. We’re looking for that red sphere.”

Eiko looked troubled.

“But I’ve only seen it once. I have no idea where to find it.”

The moment she finished speaking, the space directly in front of her began to distort.

A perfectly smooth red sphere materialized out of thin air, appearing before everyone.

“Huh?!”

Eiko gasped in surprise.

“Why is it back?”

“Wait… Why are there so many people here?”

The red sphere sounded equally astonished.

I only went away to recharge for a bit! How did this many people suddenly show up in Eiko’s apartment?

“So you’re the wish-granting Red Sphere that created the King of Mons?”

Vane studied the sphere, his voice calm.

“You are…?”

The sphere sounded confused, but there was also a hint of guilt in its voice.

Wait, is this someone coming to settle an old grudge?

“I’m just a traveler passing through this world. Unfortunately for you, Mr. Red Sphere, you’re under arrest.”

Vane continued with a perfectly straight face.

“You’ve violated child protection laws by deliberately encouraging children to act on their darkest desires. You’ve also attempted to destroy entire timelines.”

“Those things had nothing to do with me!” the sphere protested.

“My purpose is to grant other people’s wishes. By human standards, I’m nothing more than a tool.”

“If someone commits a crime, you should arrest the person responsible, not the tool they used.”

“Besides, after traveling for all these years, I’ve realized the mistakes I made. That’s why I’ve been guiding Eiko toward understanding what happiness really means.”

“Sorry, but we’re still taking you into custody,” Vane replied. “Letting something as dangerous as you wander around freely is just asking for trouble.”

“Then I’m afraid I can’t go with you.”

The Red Sphere’s body began turning transparent as it attempted to escape into another timeline.

The Emperor extended his hand, spread his fingers, and closed them around the sphere from a distance.

Time stopped.

All sound vanished.

The entire world fell into absolute silence.

The apartment curtains froze mid-sway. Steam rising from the food hung motionless in the air. Even the tiny dust particles stopped drifting.

“How can you do this?!”

Although it could no longer move, the Red Sphere could still protest.

“I’m just a tool! Every single wish was made by you humans! And now you’re blaming everything on me!”

“This isn’t fair! It isn’t fair!”

Vane had his Stand, Steve, grab the Red Sphere and stuff it into a specially designed prison block.

“Life isn’t always fair. Dangerous tools need to be kept under control.”

The instant he finished speaking, a notification appeared before his eyes.

[Quest: Capture the Mysterious Red Sphere — Completed]

[Quest Rewards: Godzilla Stellar Form, The Ultima Blade ×1, Flawless Suit ×1, One-Shot Axe ×1, Quest Progress +15%, EMC Points +3,500]

“Godzilla Stellar Form…”

Vane muttered under his breath.

“Now that’s something I like. I’ll have to test it out against the King of the Absolutians.”

As for the The Ultima Blade and the Flawless Suit, Vane knew those two items all too well.

Back when he was fighting his way through different dimensions of the Minecraft universe, he’d encountered plenty of final bosses with special mechanics that were an absolute nightmare to deal with.

Some could resurrect themselves. Others could rewind time. And then there were all sorts of ridiculous abilities that made them nearly impossible to kill.

To deal with those infuriating bosses, Vane had practically mastered every ultimate weapon and enchantment he could get his hands on.

So The Ultima Blade and Flawless Suit were old friends by now.

Skipping past the two pieces of ultimate equipment, Vane turned his attention to the One-Shot Axe.

Now, this was a god-tier item he rarely encountered.

He could only remember using it once or twice before.

—

OR