Knights of the Digital World

"Where is that sound coming from? What is that tram beast?" Huiyi asked loudly.

"How rude of me. Aren't you inside my body right now?" Electric Carmon said displeasedly. "I am Electric Carmon - Leafy!"

"It seems we've arrived in an extraordinary world, Kouichi." Emu, who already knew about this, stepped forward and patted Kouichi on the shoulder, comforting him.

"Ah...yes..." Hui nodded, having recovered his strength.

Speaking of which, the kids in the Digimon world are really carefree; they're incredibly open-minded when faced with these bizarre Digimon. Aside from being initially scared, they quickly become familiar with them without any worries. Perhaps that's why children are so favored by the Digital World.

At this moment, Emu and Midori started chatting casually, while Kouichi occasionally asked questions from the side.

"Hmm... So if we go back, we absolutely must find that fighting spirit?"

"That's right. A fighting spirit is very important!"

"Leafgreen, do all of you Electric Carmon have different destinations? My... my little brother has also come to the Digital World. Do you know where he is?"

"I don't know. Although we have a destination, we follow the passengers' wishes more. For example, if you want me to stop with the Worm next to it, then I will grant your request. Besides, you don't know which tram beast your brother is on, so there's nothing I can do."

"It's alright, Kouichi, we'll definitely find your brother!" Emu patted Kouichi on the shoulder, comforting him. He knew perfectly well that the main characters were on the Worm ship next to them. After defeating the initial enemy, Salubimon, the main characters encountered Kouji not long after starting their journey. As long as they followed the main characters, reuniting with the brothers would be a piece of cake.

"Flame's final destination, we've arrived!"

At this moment, the Green Ship announced the station name. It seemed that the destination had been reached.

"Thank you, Leafy Green! I hope we'll have the chance to travel together again in the future!" Having obtained sufficient information, Emu and Huiyi didn't delay. They got off the train directly and said goodbye to Leafy Green.

"There will be opportunities. I also wish you all the best in finding your fighting spirit soon. Well then, goodbye!" The Leaf Green emitted a long "whoosh" and left the Flame Terminal.

Meanwhile, the Worm was also preparing to leave, and its voice came over: "If you want to go home, go find the Fighter Spirit!" With that, the Worm quickly left.

On the opposite platform, a child wearing a large orange hat stood up crying, shouting, "No, I want to go back!" As he shouted, the child jumped off the platform and ran towards the tracks he had come from. However, the rear section of the tracks had jutted out onto the land and was suspended in mid-air. If he ran onto it, he could easily fall.

"Hey, hey, you can't just stand there! That's too dangerous!" Without saying a word, Emu immediately chased after the child—Himi Yuuki—to stop him. On the opposite platform, Takuya also jumped down and anxiously chased after Yuuki.

Chapter 5, Kamen Rider Ex-Aid joins!

"Phew, kid... do you know how dangerous this is? If you fall, you might not be saved." Finally, years of training paid off, and Emu successfully caught up with Yuuki, grabbed his wrist, pulled him back, and scolded him with dissatisfaction.

"Waaah, I want to go home..." Yuki cried again.

"Thank you! Thank you for your help! My name is Kanbara Takuya! You can call me Takuya!" Takuya caught up and shouted his thanks from afar. He also had a younger brother, and facing the young Yuuki, he unconsciously put himself in the older brother's position. Seeing that Yuuki had almost run to such a dangerous place, he was truly terrified. Fortunately, Emu stopped Yuuki, otherwise, who knows what might have happened.

"I am Hosho Emu. Just call me Emu. What's this kid's name? I'm sure you can handle him, right?" Emu waved his hand and said calmly.

"Ah, this is Himi Yuuki. Please leave him to me. Sorry, let me talk to him first," Takuya said apologetically to Emu. Then he squatted down, grabbed Yuuki's shoulders with both hands, and made Yuuki look at him: "Yuuki, don't be afraid, I'll take you back!"

“…Really?” Yuki stopped crying and asked, her voice choked with emotion.

"Really! You heard it from the Train Beast, right? Finding the Fighter Spirit will take us back! I will definitely find the Fighter Spirit and bring you back!" Takuya said firmly.

"Takuya-nii... I'm sorry..." Yuki hugged Takuya, and Emu released his arms at the right moment.

Suddenly, a loud explosion erupted nearby. A green flame scorched the earth and buildings. The burning objects transformed into streams of data and were absorbed.

"Help! Help!" A short, stocky figure and a tall, thin figure shouted as they rushed out of the flames. It was none other than the main characters' personal AI assistants, Bogomon and Questionmon.

Seeing that they were completely out of control, Emu quickly went over and lifted them up, one in each hand. Pokomon was greatly surprised, pulling a magnifying glass from its crotch and scrutinizing Emu closely, saying, "Ah, a human? These are human children!"

The question-and-answer beast blankly repeated, "Human?"

"Um...were you the ones who were yelling for help just now? What happened?" Takuya put Yuuki down and stood up to ask. Yuuki remained silent, holding Takuya's hand, looking at the two Digimon with a mixture of curiosity and fear.

"Oh dear, I almost forgot! It's Salubimon!" Pokomon exclaimed.

From the flames emerged a large, black dog, which loudly proclaimed, "Where is the spirit of the fighter?!"

“Didn’t we say we didn’t know?!” Bogomon replied, mustering his courage.

"Hmph...you're lying. This town is filled with the legendary spirit of warriors!" Salubimon said angrily.

"Takuya, take them to the platform first. It's too close to the cliff here, it's dangerous," Emu suddenly said.

"Hmm? Emu, aren't you coming along?" Takuya keenly sensed the meaning behind Emu's words.

"Heh, it's rare to find an opponent. Let me test my skills!" Emu put down Bokomon and Quizmon, took a few steps forward, and said, "Come on, let me see how strong you are. And how strong I am!"

"Human children? Hmph, are you tired of living? I don't have time to play games with you right now," Salubimon said disdainfully, the flames behind him suddenly expanding. "I'll give you one last chance, where is your fighting spirit!"

"You've been underestimated... Well, let's give it a try!" Emu took out his cartridge and pressed it lightly. The cartridge flashed with light and transformed into the Extraordinary Action X Spinning Cartridge.

“Well then, let’s begin!” Emu smirked and pressed the cartridge in his hand again. The Player Driver appeared on his waist. “Henshin!” With that, Emu inserted the cartridge into the driver.

"gashat! let gautcha ga a kar!"

Accompanied by a sound effect that resounded throughout the venue, a pink, chubby boy with a non-mainstream, flamboyant hairstyle appeared before everyone—this is Action Player Level 1!

"What? What kind of Digimon is that? I've never seen one before. Can humans become Digimon?" Salubimon exclaimed in surprise. Takuya and the others, who had already run back to the platform, were equally astonished: "How did Emu become like this?"

"What is this? It's not recorded in my books!" Bogomon pulled a large green book out of his shorts and frantically flipped through it, but couldn't find any relevant information. Frustrated, he tapped his head.

The question-and-answer beast stared blankly to the side, then said, "I can't find it~"

"Don't you dare upset me! I'll flick you!" Bogomon angrily pulled open Questionmon's red stretch pants, and when he let go, the stretch pants bounced back, causing Questionmon to fall to the ground in pain.

"I am—Kar Ex-Aid! Come on, Salubimon! Try this!" Emu pressed the button, unfolding the Game Realm. Game blocks appeared in the space.

"Don't treat me like an idiot! Take this! Hellfire!" Salubimon shouted angrily, opening its mouth and spewing out a mouthful of green flame.

"Useless! Your speed is inferior to mine!" Emu slammed his hand on a brick beside him, causing a badge to pop out, depicting a person running at high speed. "Item - Speed ​​Boost!"

The High Speed ​​Badge merged into Emu's body, instantly increasing his speed to a level imperceptible to the naked eye. Despite still being a chubby little guy, he dodged Salammon's Hellfire in a flash, stood in front of Salammon, and kicked it away, sending it flying with a golden, glittering hit.

"You've angered me!" Salubimon roared angrily. He had indeed been caught off guard and had been kicked by Emu. But that kick was nothing to him. After all, he was a Perfect-level Digimon, a form only below Ultimate-level, and considered a mid-to-high-level fighter in the Digital World. He wasn't so easily defeated.

"Is that so? Then let's try this form! Great Transformation!" Emu pulled his Player Driver, and the sound effects rang out again: "Gachan! Level U! Eighty Kick! Eighty Action X!"

In a burst of light, Emu transformed into Action Gamer Level 2. Apart from his familiar pink punk hairstyle and big, watery eyes, Level 2 Ex-Aid finally showed a coolness that was different from the chubby little knight!

“gashan

eaker!

A sound effect rang out, and Ex-Aid's weapon, Gashan Destroyer, appeared in Emu's hand. After switching it to Holy Sword Mode, Emu charged towards the Salamander. His previous Speed ​​Boost buff was still active, and with the level increase, his speed rose again, making his movement even more swift this time.

However, this time Salammon was prepared. It nimbly jumped back and unleashed its ultimate move, "Hellfire," once again. Green flames covered the space in front of Salammon, forcing Emu to turn and dodge, causing his movements to falter slightly.

Salubimon seized the opportunity, its claws, made of low-purity digital alloy, slashing forward and striking Emu in the chest, sending Emu rolling several times on the ground, while several bright hits were released.

"Human brat, battles aren't as easy as you think!" Salubimon mocked. At the same time, its two heads on its shoulders continued to spew flames, giving Emu no chance to catch her breath.

"Hmph. I'm not going to give up so easily!" Emu quickly stood up, dodging the flames from the Salubimon, and retorted defiantly.

Chapter Six, The Flame God Beast!

"Is Emu alright? That big dog is so fierce!" The children watching from the sidelines were also on tenterhooks, worried as Emu didn't seem to be gaining any advantage. Even Koizumi and Junpei, who hadn't yet introduced themselves to Emu, were no exception. After all, they both had kind hearts.

"That's not a big dog! It's Salubimon! It's a very powerful and evil Digimon!" Pokomon emphasized from the side.

"To be honest, we didn't know who you were." The children looked at the two strange Digimon pair with some curiosity.

"I am Pokomon! This is Questionmon!" Pokomon replied, still flipping through its encyclopedia. "How strange! There's absolutely no record of that mysterious Digimon in my encyclopedia. Are you companions? Do you know what that mysterious Digimon is called?"

"I don't know, we only came to this world today. We've never heard of Digimon before." The children looked at each other and shook their heads in unison.

"Oh, right... On the way here with Emu, the female voice that guided us here commented on Emu's power, saying it was a 'mysterious and powerful force'," Huiyi said, thinking about what happened on the way here.

"Since that's what they've said, I can only trust Emu. Damn it, I can only watch from the sidelines, it's so frustrating!" Takuya clenched his fists. He was a gentle person at heart, and watching his new friend face danger alone while he could only watch from the sidelines filled him with a deep sense of resentment.

As Takuya felt frustrated by his own powerlessness, the Digimon in his pocket gradually lit up, seemingly resonating with something...

Meanwhile, Emu and Salubimon continued their battle.

"Let me show you this!" Relying on his speed, Emu dodged Salubimon's flames and claw attacks while rapidly tapping the scattered bricks. With his speed buff active, and focused solely on dodging, Salubimon couldn't catch him.

After rapidly striking more than ten bricks, Emu obtained his second energy item: Steel Transformation!

A metallic glint flashed across Emu's body. Emu twisted his body, dodging the flames of the Salamander, and suddenly thrust in front of the Salamander, slashing at the middle of its head with his sword.

"You human brat, you're really quite amusing. If you were just running around like before, I might have gotten annoyed, but now you dare to attack me head-on? Who do you think you are!" Salubimon grinned, mocking him. Its two ornamental heads on its shoulders suddenly sprang forward, biting Emu's hands. Salubimon's two front claws also reached for Emu's chest.

"You're the funny one!" Emu remained unmoved. His Steel Transformation greatly increased his defense, making him almost immune to physical attacks. An Ultimate-level Pokémon might be able to forcefully break through Emu's defenses, but Salubimon didn't have that ability.

As expected, Salamence's claws gripped Emu's chest, creating several flashes of fire, but no hit marks appeared. This proved that Salamence's attack had failed. However, Emu's hands were also restrained by Salamence, preventing him from striking down.

Emu remained calm and composed. He lightly pressed his finger on the Gashan Destroyer, converting it into hammer mode. With a deft flick of his wrist, he released his fingers, causing the Gashan Destroyer to fall and smash into the nose of the Sandmon.

"Ouch! You wretched brat!" Salubimon cried out in pain, sparks flying from its mouth, preparing to give Emu a good beating with its ultimate attack.

Emu seized the opportunity. Although his hands were restrained, it provided him with a foothold. Emu raised his feet and forcefully kicked Salapimon's jaws, directly slamming Salapimon's special attack back down. The powerful force sent Salapimon flying, and the dog heads on its shoulders couldn't help but release their grip.

Emu used his foot to lift his Gashan Destroyer, then switched back to sword mode and went forward to slash wildly at the floating Salubimon, unleashing a series of beautiful hits.

However, Salubimon, having fought its way to the Ultimate level, seized an opportunity, met Emu's sword strike with its claws, and used the force to retreat, avoiding Emu's subsequent attacks.

"You brat! You've really angered me! Gates of Hell!" The battered and bruised Salamander roared, unleashing its signature move. It had realized that this brick-filled space was Emu's domain, and the endless stream of items greatly enhanced him. Since that was the case, it would change its domain! Its Gates of Hell led to the Dark Realm! Once inside, Emu would be completely at its mercy!

However, something unexpected happened: the effect of the Gates of Hell tearing through space clashed with the Game Realm. A tearing sound rang out, the Gates of Hell gradually vanished, and the Game Realm shattered into pieces. Everyone returned to the Flame Terminus. The aftershocks of the battle also shook the area, creating numerous cracks.

"boom!"

Suddenly, a raging flame erupted from the ground, and something resembling armor floated within the flame.

"This is! The Soul of the Warrior! That's mine!" The Salubimon's eyes widened as it roared and charged toward the Soul of the Warrior.

"Don't even think about it!" Even Emu hadn't expected the Fighter's Soul to stubbornly escape even after his intervention. Was this some kind of plot correction? Well, it was fine; he didn't need to worry about how to guide Takuya to retrieve the Fighter's Soul later. Now, all he had to do was stop Salapimon!

Emu abandoned Gashan Destroyer and swiftly appeared in front of Sandpig, pressing his hands firmly onto Sandpig's shoulders and head, shoving it down. Sandpig clawed at the ground, green sparks flying from its mouth once more. Emu reacted quickly, kicking Sandpig in the jaw, creating a momentary stalemate.

Meanwhile, the children on the other side watched the emerging warrior's spirit with curiosity, discussing among themselves: "Is this the warrior's spirit?"

"It looks like a smaller version of armor!"

"With him, can we go back?"

"Isn't this too easy? I thought it would take a long time to find, but it turned out to be right under our feet."

Only Takuya, gazing at the warrior's spirit, felt as if something was calling to him. He seemed to see a tall, fiery red figure gradually approaching him, merging with him. The Digimon in his pocket grew even hotter, prompting him to pull it out and hold it in his hand.

As if by instinct, Takuya shouted, "Fighter Spirit!" and aimed his Digivice at the Fighter Spirit in the flames. As if he had heard a summons, the Fighter Spirit rushed towards Takuya and disappeared into the Digivice.

"Soul - Evolution!"

Without any instruction, Takuya began his Soul Evolution. A stream of data enveloped him and then dissipated, revealing a tall humanoid figure with long golden hair flowing in the wind. He wore fiery red armor, and his sky-blue eyes were fixed on Emu and Salubimon in the midst of their battle. "Vulcanmon!"

"This is!" Bokomon flipped through its encyclopedia again. "This is the legendary Ten Warriors, Flame God Beast!"

Chapter 7, Salubimon Gadget