Chapter 35: Toy Town in Ruins, Monzaemon Devoured, the Situation Grows Dire
File Island, the domain of Toy Town—
When LadyDevimon brought Mizuki here, the scene that greeted them was nothing like the whimsical, childlike paradise from his memories.
Instead, they found themselves standing before a cruel tableau of ruins and debris, a landscape painted in shades of desolation and shrouded in a dead, unnerving silence. Shattered plastic bricks and splintered wood lay scattered across the ground, the skeletal remains of what were once joyous playthings. The air, thick with the dust of destruction, was utterly still.
Clearly, Mizuki was too late.
"..."
Judging by the state of the wreckage, the battle that had erupted here was long over. The earth had reclaimed its silence, and only a sorrowful wind lingered, a ghost haunting the fallen city.
"Mizu, Monzaemon… he—" LadyDevimon began, her voice trailing off as she took in the devastation.
"He's gone," Mizuki confirmed, his voice low and heavy. After a brief investigation of the area, he had reluctantly come to the only possible conclusion. "Devimon already got to him."
He let out a slow breath. "He must have made his move on Monzaemon while we were searching for Andromon."
Considering the power gap between Monzaemon and the heavily fortified Andromon, Devimon's strategy was brutally efficient. Absorbing Monzaemon's data first to bolster his own strength before confronting Andromon was, without a doubt, the correct tactical decision.
A flicker of emotion crossed Mizuki's face. He couldn't help but wonder. If he and LadyDevimon hadn't intervened, would Andromon have eventually revealed his hidden Ultimate-level power and dealt with Devimon himself?
The thought had barely formed before he dismissed it.
If Andromon truly wanted to eliminate Devimon, he wouldn't have waited this long. Combined with his deliberate act of being 'controlled' by a Black Gear, it was more likely that he viewed Devimon's existence as a trial—one he intentionally left for himself, or perhaps, for the DigiDestined.
'Speaking of the DigiDestined,' Mizuki mused, his gaze sweeping over the horizon, 'I wonder how strong Tai and the others are now?'
Although only two or three days had passed, he knew the potential those children held. By now, more than half of their partners should have reached the Champion level. But with the original plot having clearly spiraled out of control, he had to wonder if they could possibly handle this new, terrifyingly enhanced version of Devimon.
At his side, LadyDevimon seemed to sense the direction of his thoughts. "Mizu," she asked tentatively, "are you worried about those children?"
"A little," Mizuki admitted, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes as he turned back to the ruins. "After all, the situation has already escalated far beyond what it should have been."
He held up a hand, his expression grim. "The Devimon of the original story could, at most, push himself to the brink of the Ultimate level. An ordinary Ultimate, at best."
"But now," he continued, his voice dropping, "after devouring Monzaemon's data, he has already met the conditions to evolve into an Ultimate at the very apex of its power."
"The apex of the Ultimate level?" Hearing this, LadyDevimon's expression grew serious.
"Exactly." Mizuki raised a single finger. "It's just like the relationship between Gatomon and BlackGatomon. When Monzaemon is corrupted by virus-type data, it transforms from a Vaccine-type into a Virus-type subspecies: WaruMonzaemon."
"And the fusion of Devimon's and WaruMonzaemon's data can give rise to an immensely powerful Ultimate that bears the title of 'Demon Lord'… a Digimon known as Daemon."
"Daemon…" LadyDevimon repeated the name, the word feeling heavy and dangerous on her tongue.
Even though she had never encountered this Digimon, simply speaking its name caused the holy digicore within her to thrum with a primal sense of dread.
"Alright, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Mizuki's voice cut through the tension, pulling her back. "Daemon or whatever, it's just a guess for now. We don't even know if Devimon can actually corrupt Monzaemon's data into a perfect WaruMonzaemon."
He offered a small, reassuring smile. "And even if he succeeds, the evolutionary path to becoming a true Demon Lord isn't that simple. Judging by his evolution into NeoDevimon, if he does reach the Ultimate level, it's far more likely he'll become something like DanteDevimon rather than the legendary Daemon."
"Is that so…" LadyDevimon studied Mizuki's face.
Though his tone was light and optimistic, she knew him too well. She could see the deep-seated seriousness hidden just beneath the surface. It was clear he didn't truly believe Devimon was incapable of such a feat.
'Daemon…' LadyDevimon's eyes narrowed instinctively.
She didn't know the true extent of this Demon Lord's power, but to face the challenges that lay ahead, she knew she had to become stronger. The power of the Ultimate level. The 'Data Rewrite' ability of the Ancient Species.
'I have to master them all!'
A fierce fighting spirit ignited within her. But before anything else, she had to fully grasp the fundamental binary code of the Digital World—the concept of "0s and 1s." After Andromon's guidance, the frequent shifts between her forms, and deciphering the encrypted data in the Factory Town, she felt she was on the verge of a breakthrough, just one final step away.
Her gaze instinctively drifted to Mizuki.
'Mizu… rest assured,' she vowed silently. 'I won't let you down.'
By the time LadyDevimon and Mizuki returned to the Village of Beginnings, evening had cast long shadows across the land.
The familiar scenery brought back memories of their battle with Devimon just a few days prior. This time, however, there was no good news waiting for them.
"So many Digimon?!" LadyDevimon whispered, momentarily stunned.
The clearing was filled with them, dozens of Digimon of all shapes and sizes, their bodies wrapped in makeshift bandages.
"Why are they all so injured?" she wondered aloud.
"Devimon did it!"
A familiar voice cut through the somber atmosphere. Mizuki and LadyDevimon turned to see Elecmon approaching. But this wasn't the same energetic, battle-ready guardian they had met before. His fur was matted, his posture was slumped, and his eyes were filled with exhaustion.
"Elecmon, what happened?" Mizuki asked, his voice sharp with concern. "What's been going on since we left?"
Elecmon didn't bother with pleasantries, his words spilling out in a rush of truth. "That monster, Devimon… in his quest for more power, he's started attacking Digimon all over File Island indiscriminately. He's using those Black Gears, and most of them were caught completely off guard. The losses have been devastating."
"What?" Mizuki's brow furrowed. "But I warned them. Didn't I tell them what was coming?"
"You did," Elecmon said, a look of indignation on his face. "But only the Digimon here in the Village of Beginnings actually believed you. Nothing like this has ever happened before, so no one was willing to accept that Devimon had a way to control other Digimon."
"Tsk…" Mizuki clicked his tongue in frustration.
'They were all too careless.'
Did they assume that since most of them were Champions, the power difference wouldn't be that significant? These Digimon had lived in the peaceful, comfortable environment of File Island for so long that their perspective had narrowed. They had grown soft.
Mizuki took a moment to calm the frustration welling inside him.
Then again, perhaps this wasn't entirely a bad thing.
At the very least, after suffering such a heavy blow, the remaining Digimon on File Island would finally learn that they had to unite if they wanted to stand against the encroaching darkness.
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