Knights of the Digital World

The Dark Train also tacitly accepted Nanako's nickname, placing a thick screen in the center of the carriage.

Nanako clapped her hands, and golden light flowed around her. The originally black screen flickered and gradually displayed a blurry scene. Then the scene gradually stabilized and became clear.

"Wow, Nanako, you're amazing! We really owe you a lot this time!"

Emu rushed to the screen, thanking Nanako profusely. Although he also had World Tree cards, he had never used them and was unaware that World Tree possessed such abilities.

Nanako wore a smug smile but did not reply.

Observing the world is not difficult, but it takes a lot of effort to penetrate the broken world barrier.

For Nanako, who is still an immature World Tree, it would be even more difficult to make such an observation and reproduce it. She no longer has the strength to reply.

…………

"Atomic explosion!"

The Great Guramon roared and spread its arms, unleashing intense flames from the twin cannons on its chest, crashing into the massive mountain of flesh before it.

The Boarmon was forced to pause by the attack from the Giant Groudon, letting out a low, pitiful cry. But once the Giant Groudon's attack ended, it resumed its rampage in West Shinjuku as if nothing had happened.

"Damn it! MegaGromon, stop him!"

Qi Ren stood on the street not far away, watching the wild boar beast's behavior, and stomped his foot in anger, shouting loudly.

The Great Gura also let out a howl, responding to its tamer's expectations, and pounced on the Boarmon, trying to stop him.

"Takato, can you still hold on? It might not be over for Lavimon... That guy called Dragonmon is so strong..."

Beside Takato, Kenjiro's forehead was beaded with sweat, his eyes following a rapidly moving green figure across the sky. That was Rabimon's path.

Fighting Ravimon was a strange dragon-beast, entirely green with long, thin white hair, whiskers, a tail, and a pair of long arms, standing upright. It was none other than Celestial Dragonmon, the Emperor Demon representing "Dragon" among the Twelve Emperor Demons.

While Dragonmon's speed was far inferior to that of Lavimon, its offense and defense were both very strong. Although Lavimon gained the upper hand in the battle due to its speed, it was unable to gain any advantage and the battle remained deadlocked.

"Granulamon is still holding on, Kenryo, don't worry. Ruki, how are things on your end?"

Qi Ren asked loudly.

"I'm alright. With Asuna's help, Inugami won't be able to defeat Priestmon so easily. However, our attacks are a bit weak, and we don't know how long it will take to defeat Inugami."

Ruki's voice sounded somewhat helpless. She held a thick stack of cards in her hand, but none of them were suitable, leaving her feeling anxious and powerless.

Not far from her, a giant hammer was smashing down from mid-air, knocking down a fox-faced, humanoid Digimon dressed in Onmyoji attire.

Then, the hammer transformed into a blue, canine-shaped Digimon with fangs, which opened its mouth wide and bit at a magenta knight.

This is the battle between Inugamimon, Priestmon, and Asuna Kino.

"We're tied up on all three sides... I don't know how much longer we can hold out like this... Hmm? What's that over there?"

As Keito gritted his teeth, pondering what to do, his attention was suddenly drawn to the twin towers in the heart of Nishi-Shinjuku.

"This feeling...it's so familiar...This is...an annihilation plan?!"

Chapter Three, The Meeting (II)

"Gentlemen, we can't just stand by and watch! Are we going to put all the pressure on a few children?!"

Yamaki slammed his sunglasses on the table and roared angrily at the screen in front of him.

"Chief Yamaki, calm down. Didn't we send out troops, even tanks and planes before? It's not that we're unwilling to help, it's just that we're powerless to do anything about it."

A calm and steady voice rang out.

"Yes. We can only trust these kids now, can't we? They handled those previous incidents very well. Chief Yamaki, you should change your perspective. They're not just innocent kids anymore. Now that they've mastered such powerful Digimon, they also have to bear the corresponding responsibilities!"

The stern-sounding male voice spoke.

"Bullshit! This is just an excuse for our incompetence! No matter what, they're just children! Children!!! Don't you have any conscience at all about dragging them into danger?! Huh!"

Yamaki was so angry that his eyes turned red, and he couldn't help but swear:

"Besides, can things be the same as before? In the past, the Digimon came one by one, and their strength varied. But this time, three of them appeared together, and none of them should be underestimated. The children are in a tough battle, can't you see that?!"

"Chief Yamaki, please calm down. We really have no conventional methods left. We can't exactly use nuclear weapons to clean up the mess, can we? And frankly, seeing the performance of these behemoths, I really can't believe the effectiveness of nuclear weapons..."

In short, you must have been prepared for this, since you're saying this to us. Tell us your plan. If it's reasonable, we won't object. After all, letting them cause destruction everywhere is a huge loss.

A gentle male voice offered words of advice.

Yamaki calmed down a bit, glanced down at the sunglasses that had fallen under the table, found they weren't badly damaged, picked them up and put them on to conceal his expression, let out a soft breath, and said:

"I propose that we restart the annihilation plan."

"An annihilation plan... Won't that affect the children's Digimon? They're still fighting to protect this city. Is this really a good thing?"

This time, it was a gentle female voice that spoke, with a hint of hesitation in it.

"We can't worry about that now. Compared to emotional issues, we should consider the children's safety first."

This time, I will restrict the equipment used for the annihilation plan. After weakening these Digimon to a level where they can be eliminated by the military, it will remain in its current state. Once these three threats are resolved, I will shut down the equipment.

There's no time to hesitate; this is the best solution right now.

Chief Yamaki quickly explained his thoughts.

The four beings pondered for a moment, then quickly made a decision and approved Yamaki's plan.

Just as Yamaki said, they had no time to hesitate. It was clear to everyone that the children's Digimon were at a disadvantage and it was unclear how much longer they could hold out.

If they waste too much time, giving the three invading Digimon more room to maneuver, who knows how many buildings they might destroy, or even harm humans. That's unacceptable to them.

With the unanimous permission of the four, Yamaki adjusted his sunglasses and said seriously:

"Then, I'll go restart the annihilation plan now. Please, all four of you, be prepared. This time it might go smoothly, or something else might happen. If possible, evacuate the civilians first. Send them as far away as possible!"

"Don't worry, Chief Yamaki, we know what to do. Best of luck in your military campaigns!"

He said in a calm voice.

Yamaki didn't say anything more, gave a perfect 90-degree bow to the screen, and quickly left to restart the annihilation plan.

…………

In the park where Emu and the others used to train, Wizardmon stood in the middle of the park avenue, looking up at the Digimon that were fighting.

The location isn't far from the battleground, so you can see it clearly, but it's not very close either, making it unlikely you'll be affected. However, there's still some danger, as there are already few people around, and now there's practically no one else.

"Gurgle... Takato and the others look so tired... Wizardmon, let's go help them!"

Gullmon sat on Wizardmon's hat, looking worriedly at the three battlefields where battles were taking place. Her ears were tucked in, showing her low spirits.

"Gule Beast, my current strength is not enough to participate in such a battle. Even if I force myself to participate, I will only cause trouble for them. Let's just stay here and watch."

Wizardmon reached out and tugged at his wizard hat, his tone filled with resentment and frustration.

Although he has tried his best and sensed the threshold of the complete form, he still hasn't stepped into this new level so quickly. Now, he can only watch from here.

Fortunately, after Emu's guidance, Wizardmon did not develop a morbid pursuit of power like in the original story. Although he was unwilling, Wizardmon maintained his clear-headed rationality and made the most reasonable judgment.

"Sigh, if only Master were still here. I wonder how he and the lion cub are doing now?"

Wizardmon couldn't help but sigh. He had a good relationship with these children, and his relationship with Guilmon and the others had become even better because of their training together. Seeing them in danger now filled him with anxiety, and he couldn't help but think of Emu.

"Gurgle... Oh yeah, Emu hasn't come back yet..."

As Gulemon listened to Wizardmon's words, his mood became even more depressed.

"Guramon, don't be sad. Don't worry, I'll protect you. Right now, we still need to have more faith in Takato and Guilmon! They're only at a disadvantage right now; they still have hope of winning!"

Wizardmon noticed that Gullmon was upset, so it hugged her and comforted her.

"Oh, I have finally discovered the light of evolution."

Just then, a sharp sound rang in the wizard beast's ears.

Wizardmon suddenly turned its head and saw a human child with a blank stare and wearing a hat.

He frowned, scrutinizing the child as he muttered to himself:

"Human children? How can there be human children here?! No, that's not right! They're not human children! This feeling... you're a Digimon?!"

Wizardmon recognized the child's identity, roared loudly, and retreated quickly to one side, gripping his staff tightly.

A strange Digimon disguised as a human—no matter how you look at it, it's quite intriguing!

The child made no attempt to conceal it; with a flick of his hand, he transformed into a monkey-like Digimon, dressed in a small ponytail, white bell-bottoms, and a small hat.

—The Monkey Beast, representing the "monkey" among the Twelve Demon Emperors!

Chapter 4, Guardian of Archemon, Wizardmon's Mega Evolution

"Wizardmon... hand over the Light of Evolution."

Monkeymon twisted its head, extended its right hand towards Wizardmon, its expressionless face appearing somewhat frightening.

"The Light of Evolution has even caused headaches for the gods by wandering into the human world. Anyway, hand it over now, and I might spare your life."

"The Light of Evolution? What are you talking about? I don't have anything like that!"

Wizardmon was on high alert, its eyes darting around, already preparing to flee.

He wasn't afraid of the Spirit Monkey Beast. Although he was still a little short of evolving, he was no weaker than a typical Perfect level beast.

The Spirit Monkey Beast is not a combat-oriented type among the Twelve Demon Emperors. He possesses a strong curiosity and enjoys collecting items he likes by storing them in precious gems. His role leans more towards reconnaissance; his combat skills are only average.

However, Wizardmon now needs to protect Ancientmon. Their opponent is an Ultimate-level being, and while Wizardmon is confident in defeating them, they lack the confidence to protect Ancientmon under these circumstances.

Monkeymon was dissatisfied with Wizardmon's answer, but he remained expressionless, even appearing somewhat dazed. He withdrew his right hand, jumped a few times on the spot, waved his hands to express his anger and impatience, and said:

"Isn't that the Light of Evolution you're holding? Oh, or what it's called now is... Ancient Beast?"

Wizardmon, who had been surveying his surroundings, abruptly stopped. He stiffly turned his head, looking at the expressionless Monkeymon with a growing sense of danger in his eyes.

"You just mentioned... the Ancient Music Beast? You want to take her away?!"

"Yes! Yes! It's Gulemon. She's the light of evolution, the hope for Digimon evolution. She ran off to the human world, already giving the gods a headache. Now, quickly hand her over to me, let me take her back to the Digital World!"

The monkey beast did a somersault to express its excitement.

Perhaps because he was also interacting with a Digimon, Monkeymon talked much more and made more gestures than in the original story.

"If... if you brought Guremon back to the Digital World, what would you do to her?"

Wizardmon felt the trembling of the Ancientmon in his arms, so he gently patted the Ancientmon and continued to ask.

He needs to get to the bottom of things before he can make a judgment.