They were still lost in thought on the way to their destination.
Faced with a civilization that had weathered multiple regime changes yet remained fundamentally unaltered, they wondered just how far they needed to go.
Ordinary guidance seemed unlikely to make a difference, but if they directly intervened in the civilization's leadership, would that lead to even stranger consequences?
Figuring out the right degree of involvement was a delicate problem.
However, after they arrived at their destination, these doubts began to feel somewhat less important.
Because they could sense it—new Giants of Light had been born.
And not just one.
In the nebula before them alone, more than one crimson, flame-like Giant of Light had emerged.
Of course, Zero also knew that, based on their mothers' selection mechanism, after everything settled, over ninety percent of these Giants of Light would likely regress.
They'd shrink to thirty-meter class, ten-meter class, even lose the ability to giantize entirely.
But even if only a handful of these giants ultimately became their comrades, for the six of them, it would still be an incredibly uplifting development.
The Land of Light their mother envisioned—perhaps it wouldn't take millennia to establish after all.
--+--
Meanwhile, after transforming into the giant he had always admired, Helios unleashed power that matched, even surpassed, what he had imagined.
Radiant as a star, he single-handedly obliterated the entire lord's escort fleet within a single system day.
Even planet-destroying battleships proved utterly helpless before him.
The obese lord was literally frightened to death within his own manor.
Simultaneously, the intense light effortlessly melted away the sun-shielding panels without harming a single civilian.
In less than two days, the entire planet was freed from the lord's oppression.
But!
After using the sun's power to tear apart the dark clouds overhead, he himself fell into confusion and sorrow.
Helios had only taught him how to uphold justice, how to resist.
That dazzling radiance had taught him about hope, about light.
Yet neither had told him—how to use sunlight to dispel the shadows in the hearts of billions on a planet suddenly without a lord.
Having lost his own mother, how could he move past this grief, how could he dispel the shadows within himself?
He desperately recalled that poetic drama, even using his super-brain to binge every episode overnight.
But.
In the end, it was just a poetic drama.
It wouldn't tell a boy how to be a hero, how to adapt to this immense power.
It wasn't until the boy truly became Helios, that he suddenly realized—he'd never considered what inner force supported that always-radiant hero, enabling him to shine.
After relying on rage to destroy the enemy, after tearing apart the gloom shrouding the sky, this young child felt utterly at a loss.
He knew he wasn't the true Helios.
But fortunately, Zero and the others descended.
Helios sensed the arrival of his own kind, just as Zero and the others could sense his presence.
He transformed into a great sun and soared into the sky, meeting the Giants of Light whose colors differed completely from his own, high above the atmosphere.
"You... are you also Giants of Light?"
Zero looked at this crimson giant adorned with silver armor on his upper body, marveling inwardly.
'Yes, child. We follow the guidance of the light and have come to aid you.'
Strictly speaking, Helios was older than these Giants of Light who weren't even a full month old.
But at this moment, compared to the clearly confused and seemingly empty-headed Helios, Zero and the others—who had undergone Ruan Mei's 'memory bubble prenatal education' and Herta's basic knowledge early schooling—were far more mature.
Even if they were still mostly theorists for now.
Upon hearing this, Helios grew excited.
He began talking nonstop about the problems he faced.
As for why he trusted them? The light within him told him so.
As Zero listened, she began to understand why her mothers were reluctant to interfere.
However, this child before them—they were both the light and the people of this world.
The future of this civilization should be for them to explore.
And Zero, she only needed to be a mentor, a guide, to dispel the confusion and doubt in their hearts.
What the Giants of Light should bring isn't leadership and rules, but guidance and hope.
Looking at the young and inexperienced child before her, Zero understood this truth more clearly than ever before.
"Helios, may I call you that?"
"Mhmm! Mhmm!"
"Regarding your mother, I'm truly sorry. If we had arrived just one day earlier, perhaps she…"
Zero recalled her own hesitation in Herta City, realizing why their mothers had urged them to take action.
Had they come sooner, more people might have been saved.
"No, no, no! The fact that you seniors came to help me is already more than enough. Please don't apologize."
Seeing Helios's flustered response, Zero smiled slightly: "You've worked hard. You've done very well, excellently even. We will help you become a worthy Giant of Light."
"Thank you, Seniors! I will do my best!"
--+--
Herta City.
Caught off guard, 'Ruan Mei' was jointly apprehended by Herta and the real Ruan Mei.
After a series of events not very convenient to describe, under the combined 'tyranny' of the two geniuses, 'Ruan Mei' was forced to reveal her situation ahead of schedule.
Under their 'coercion,' she drew the Evoltruster and transformed into the Giant of Light, Nexus.
The moment the light fused with her, Ruan Mei truly saw that majestic and resplendent River of Light.
It was a new Path belonging to hope and miracles.
To be honest, whether to call this Path 'Hope' or 'Miracle' was something even 'Ruan Mei' hadn't decided yet.
And who originally came up with those Path names anyway?
That was an interesting question too.
Forget it, she'd leave it to others in the universe to decide what to call it later.
For the first time, from the perspective of a Giant of Light, Ruan Mei saw the sealed Aeon.
The purest light of hope, which was also the light of miracles.
Its radiance was warm yet vast, seemingly piercing through time itself, illuminating even the destined end.
But Ruan Mei couldn't see that far. She only faintly sensed that a glimmer of light seemed to have appeared at that inevitable terminus.
What would actually happen there, was beyond her reach.
The Aeon of Hope also sensed 'Ruan Mei's' arrival, of course.
It was delighted and grateful.
So it tried its best to scoop up the 'water' from its Path to offer to 'Ruan Mei.'
But just like before, it was currently just a little colander—unlike other Aeons who could bestow gifts directly.
It was more like it was flicking little droplets of water towards 'Ruan Mei.'
It was actually rather amusing.
'Ruan Mei' smiled and gently soothed the excited Aeon.
Speaking of which...
They still hadn't given it a name.
The Path's name was one thing, but as an individual, it really ought to have one.
After briefly consulting its opinion, 'Ruan Mei' looked over at Herta and the real Ruan Mei, who were busy studying her.
"Hey."
"What? It's a bit late for you to be telling us to stop now, isn't it?"
Herta chuckled, not pausing her work for a second.
"Who said anything about that? I'm talking about it. We still haven't given it a name."
"…"
Hearing this, both Herta and Ruan Mei paused.
It was true, they hadn't given it a name. And come to think of it, who came up with the names for Aeons anyway?
--+--