"Go for it, Zero-kun!"
The battle was unfolding furiously on the screen, and Rina, gripping her Digivice tightly, stared at it without blinking—as if even breathing might cause her to miss a crucial moment.
On the battlefield, MetalSeadramon unleashed River of Power from the ocean's depths, piercing straight upward like a demonic star flashing from an abyss, its aura powerful enough to merit the title "Power."
Zero instantly activated Brave Shield. The River of Power slammed directly into it, brutally forcing Zero backward…
…Zero's body shot backwards, slicing open the sea behind him, twin monstrous waves erupting on either side. Numerous sea-based Digimon from the Ocean Army were caught helplessly, screaming as they were swallowed by the tsunami… and promptly drowned in their own ocean.
Marine Digimon drowning in the ocean—ironic humor at its finest, in a way.
But Zero found no humor here. His Brave Shield remained completely unharmed—after all, it was god-tier equipment powered by idealism and protagonist buffs…
Yet, MetalSeadramon's strength was far beyond expectations. It wasn't yet impossible to handle, but it was still "surprising," to say the least.
What truly concerned Zero was another matter entirely…
…If even MetalSeadramon—basically a background extra in the original—could demonstrate this level of power, then just how terrifyingly strong would Machinedramon and Piedmon, who'd originally required plot armor to defeat, be?
That level of worry was what weighed most heavily on Zero's mind…
Of course, with the battle already underway, Zero immediately refocused. At that moment, another blue-white beam ripped through the seawater toward him: MetalSeadramon's second River of Power.
Zero lifted Brave Shield, charging head-on…
"Bring it on!"
Brave Shield burst with light, colliding directly with River of Power and pushing it back. Wherever it passed, scorching heat vaporized seawater into thick clouds of mist.
Energy gathered in Zero's hands, forming into a blazing orb of light like a miniature sun above his head. He fired a Terra Force, directly dispersing the second River of Power…
…Two Mega-level attacks collided, forcibly lowering the sea level by several meters. Tens of thousands of tons of seawater soared into the air from the impact, only to come crashing down in a torrential downpour.
This was a Mega-level battlefield—
A simple gesture could trigger tidal waves and earthquakes. Digimon lucky enough to have survived had long since fled the area, leaving the battlefield to these two calamities.
And those unfortunate enough to be caught up in the crossfire were already finished off in the previous exchange.
Just spectating a Mega-level battle had a high probability of costing your life.
Nearby, Angewomon desperately shielded the tiny boat carrying the two siblings amidst the storm. Thankfully, although the scene was terrifying, these siblings had already witnessed scenes on a grander scale.
"Hikari…are you scared?" Taichi wiped water from his face, only to notice the flames of his Crest of Courage had dried off his body.
"Um…a little bit." Hikari nodded. A battle like this was understandably overwhelming for an elementary schooler.
"But…I have you, Angewomon-san, and Zero-kun. I'm not afraid!" Her Crest of Light emitted a reassuring glow, as if responding to her declaration.
Angewomon felt the sacred power flooding endlessly through her body, driven by Hikari's strength.
Incredible… Even after using several powerful attacks in a row, my power hasn't diminished at all. Is this the strength Hikari is giving me?
With that thought, a resolution bloomed in her heart.
If only to repay this trust and expectation, she absolutely could not retreat.
She had to protect the two siblings, no matter what!
As the battle raged, Rina's breathing quickened. Meanwhile, Kamishiro was hurriedly carrying out the Firewall Plan.
"How's it going, Suedou-san?" Rina stole a glance at Akemi Suedou beside her, who nodded reassuringly.
"Better than expected. There's some interference, but it's still within an acceptable range. Thankfully, the backup machines we prepared just in case are coming in handy~"
To ensure absolute success, Kamishiro had prepared backup machines beyond the primary servers, set to activate if the main hosts were compromised.
Currently, two main servers had been affected, but thanks to these backups, the overall progress remained unaffected.
"The real issue is what happens next…"
While the battle raged on in cyberspace, strange disturbances had begun manifesting in the Real World…
"Your total is…thirty-two million yen. Will you pay by card or—uh…" At a supermarket, the cashier froze mid-sentence. The customer holding their wallet also stared blankly.
"Wait a second… Did you get that right? How can it be that expensive? I barely bought anything!"
The cashier hurriedly bowed in apology. "I'm so sorry, the system must be malfunctioning. Manager!"
At a major intersection, traffic was completely paralyzed because the signals began randomly flickering and shifting colors without pattern, rendering drivers unable to proceed.
Countless people's phones rang simultaneously, yet when answered, no voice came through, and the caller IDs displayed incomprehensible strings of corrupted text.
"What the heck is this thing? Was there ever a boss like this in the game?"
In a popular online MMORPG, a bizarrely distorted boss appeared in the wild, instantly killing players upon approach. Players hit by this boss were forcibly disconnected—and when they logged back in, their avatars had become corrupted blobs of broken graphics.
Similar chaotic events were erupting around the world. While the incidents themselves weren't numerous, the repercussions were extensive.
"And there we have it…" Akemi Suedou pulled up the various incident reports, causing Rina to groan in frustration.
"This…is because of the disruptions in cyberspace, right?"
As they had anticipated, even though the Dark Army couldn't yet fully manifest in the Real World, merely striking cyberspace was already causing massive consequences.
Rina glanced anxiously at her Digivice. Zero and the Yagami siblings clearly had no idea what was happening outside, and even if they did, they'd probably be helpless.
At this point, stopping halfway was impossible. They had to see it through—so she could only pray that the chaos outside wouldn't spiral out of control before the battle concluded.
...
"…I just need to hit it once!"
Zero had already fully entered a state of absolute concentration. He was certain of one thing…
…If he could just land a single direct hit, the anti-dragon advantage he possessed would either instantly purify MetalSeadramon or at least leave it half-dead.
The problem was, Zero knew this—and MetalSeadramon did too. Fully aware of Zero's anti-dragon specialty, MetalSeadramon refused to let him get close.
It continuously churned the ocean currents into a wall of turbulent water, hiding within and never revealing itself, leaving only a vast shadow visible through the waves.
Hidden underwater, it continued firing River of Powers, forcing Zero to keep his distance.
If only there was an opening…
…Even just one instant to break through the currents and reach its real body.
Yet, with no opening in sight, he could only continue the stalemate…
…Meanwhile, Angewomon's solo defense against the oceanic legion was gradually wearing her down.
Even fully buffed, spamming powerful attacks without restraint, and benefiting from type advantage, she struggled against the enemy's sheer numbers.
Wave after relentless wave surged forward, led by MarineDevimon and Dragomon.
Despite having most of their tentacles incinerated by her Holy Arrows, they pressed closer. Just their torsos protruding from the sea were nearly fifty meters high.
Gigantic monsters emerging slowly from an endless ocean—perfectly combining megalophobia and thalassophobia. Anyone faint-hearted might collapse dead at the mere sight.
If only I were stronger… Angewomon loosed another Holy Arrow, holding back the tide. Yet some still slipped through, lunging toward the Yagami siblings.
"Watch out!"
Taichi pulled Hikari back, flames of Courage blazing around his leg. With a fierce kick empowered by his Crest's flame, he actually sent a Digimon flying…
…He literally kicked a Digimon away, using only the Crest's buff power.
"I'm still the soccer club's ace player—I won't let any of you get near Hikari!"
The firm confidence in his voice, paired with the radiant flames of Courage, left no room to doubt his sincerity. As a fiercely protective big brother, he wasn't fighting alone—he absolutely wasn't!
The battle in cyberspace had reached a point where even their human allies were forced into action, while the chaos outside continued to escalate.
At that very moment, another hidden card placed by the Dark Army silently approached the location of the servers in the Real World…
---
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