Chapter 16: Round Two!
NeoDevimon was a truly pathetic sight.
He was a ruin of his former self. Not only was a leg entirely missing, but the mask fused to his face was spiderwebbed with cracks, revealing the raw, glitching data beneath. His body was a canvas of deep wounds, and the once-majestic wings on his back were reduced to little more than charred, skeletal spars clinging to his shoulders.
All of this was a proof of the power of the Digimon standing before him: LadyDevimon.
However, after the initial, blinding burst of rage, NeoDevimon forced a cold calm to settle over him. He appeared grievously injured, but for a being of pure data like a Digimon, such wounds were superficial. As long as his DigiCore remained intact, any damage could be repaired. Conveniently, the vast reserves of data Devimon had harvested before his evolution were more than enough for the task.
The only sting of regret was the cost. Before, his power had far surpassed that of a typical Ultimate Level. Now, after expending a colossal amount of data to survive and regenerate, he was left with the strength of a common Ultimate.
The difference, he mused bitterly, was like that between a certain vampiric nobleman and a self-proclaimed king of apes on the Server Continent.
At the thought, a fresh wave of bitterness washed over him. He had planned to use his overwhelming power to invade the Server Continent, seize that monkey's territory, and challenge Myotismon for supremacy. Now, it seemed that grand ambition would have to be postponed.
Tsk… What an infuriating failure.
…
As NeoDevimon wrestled to suppress the storm of emotions brewing within his core, LadyDevimon slowly descended, her tattered wings carrying her to Mizuki's side.
"LadyDevimon, what's your status?" Mizuki asked, his eyes never leaving their enemy.
"Aside from my Holy-type power being temporarily sealed, I'm fine," she replied, her breathing evening out. The previous onslaught had clearly taken its toll, draining not just her sacred energy but her physical stamina as well.
"I see…"
After confirming her condition, Mizuki nodded, his gaze flicking back to NeoDevimon. He noted that the demon man had already used data reconstruction to restore his severed leg. Curiously, however, he hadn't chosen to repair his wings.
'He thinks aerial combat is a waste of resources,' Mizuki deduced, a sharp glint in his eyes. He understood the logic perfectly.
First, since LadyDevimon was a Virus-type Digimon of the dark element, just like him, purely dark-based attacks would have a heavily reduced effect unless there was an overwhelming power gap. A stamina-draining ranged attack like Darkness Wave would be a waste of energy. In contrast, her ability to manifest a physical weapon for close-quarters combat was far more threatening.
NeoDevimon had clearly reached the same conclusion. That was why he was conserving the data needed to repair his wings, opting for a ground battle.
His analysis complete, Mizuki nodded to himself and turned back to his partner.
"LadyDevimon, you know what to do, right?"
"Yes." Her sharp claws flowed like liquid shadow, coalescing into the familiar form of a long, wicked spear. "I'll engage him with this."
She hefted the dark spear, its point aimed at their foe. "After all, this monster already has a high resistance to darkness itself."
Everything was unfolding exactly as both Mizuki and NeoDevimon had predicted.
"In that case," Mizuki said, his voice low and steady, "let's begin."
Staring down her enemy, LadyDevimon lowered her stance, her body coiling like a panther. A moment later, she exploded forward, a black arrow aimed at NeoDevimon's heart.
"Round two starts now!"
"...Evil Claw!"
Facing the aggressive charge, NeoDevimon met her head-on, raising his own formidable claws to intercept the dark spear.
As the two Ultimates clashed in a screech of metal on metal, Mizuki glanced toward Leomon and Elecmon, who were shifting anxiously nearby.
"I'd advise you two to stay out of this for now," he said calmly. "Even weakened, the gap between you and an Ultimate Level is not one you can bridge."
Seeing Elecmon open his mouth to protest, Mizuki held up a hand, his expression softening. "I know what you're thinking, Elecmon, and I'm not looking down on you. I just believe you have a more important job to do right now."
Mizuki gestured toward the center of the Village of Beginnings. "You had the other children hide in there, didn't you? NeoDevimon might appear to be alone, but we can't rule out the possibility that he ordered his other minions to launch a sneak attack. Your priority should be protecting them."
After hearing Mizuki's reasoning, Elecmon and Leomon exchanged a look, finally nodding in reluctant agreement.
"We understand."
"But LadyDevimon—" Leomon began, his voice laced with concern.
"LadyDevimon has me," Mizuki stated, his tone leaving no room for argument. With that, he slowly shrugged off his jacket. His usually gentle features hardened, his expression sharpening with an intense, unwavering focus.
"After all, we're partners. We fight side-by-side."
----
----
"What's wrong, LadyDevimon? Is this all you have?" NeoDevimon taunted, his voice a low growl.
The battle raged on. Though initially caught off guard by LadyDevimon's ferocious speed, NeoDevimon had gradually adapted. Drawing upon a deep well of combat experience, he began to turn the tide, his parries becoming more precise, his counters more brutal. He was slowly but surely gaining the upper hand.
Realizing this, LadyDevimon felt a flicker of urgency, a dangerous emotion she fought to suppress. This was the chasm of experience. The longer the fight dragged on, the wider that chasm would become.
As she frantically searched for a new strategy, NeoDevimon saw his chance. A powerful blow sent her dark spear flying from her grasp. In the same fluid motion, his other claw slashed through the air, aimed directly for her vitals.
"Checkmate!" he snarled.
"Oh, is that so?"
The unexpected voice sent a jolt of alarm through NeoDevimon's processors. A split-second later, his entire world became a blur of white.
'A jacket?'he thought, momentarily stunned.'Who threw a jacket? That brat!'
In the same instant the realization struck, Mizuki was already there, having closed the distance in a stunning burst of speed.
His hands were balled into tight fists. Air hissed through his nostrils with each sharp breath. His eyes, burning with conviction, locked onto his target, seeming to pierce straight through NeoDevimon's corrupted data. The power of his Digi-Soul surged, coiling within him like a spring.
"Break!"
BOOM!
Empowered by his will, Mizuki's fist slammed solidly into NeoDevimon's side. An attack on this level wouldn't inflict serious damage on an Ultimate, but creating an opening was all he needed.
"LadyDevimon!"
"I know, Mizu!"
She didn't let the opportunity he had created go to waste. Tilting her head, she ignored the searing pain as NeoDevimon's claw, unable to be fully dodged, left a deep scratch across her cheek. Her movements never faltered.
Her hand shot out, reforming the dark spear in a flash and plunging it deep into NeoDevimon's body.
A spray of dark data erupted from the wound.
"Damn you! You two bastards!" NeoDevimon roared, pain and fury finally overwhelming his cold logic. He began swinging his claws wildly, a frantic, desperate assault.
But Mizuki had already anticipated this. He broke off his own attack, grabbing LadyDevimon and pulling her back, creating distance between them and the enraged Digimon.
And, with a deft movement, he snatched his white jacket out of the air.
[Akarin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/AkarinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/AkarinTL
🔗 All My Links: linktr[.]ee/AkarinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]