Chapter 51: A Heart Yearning for Settling Down
Nearly a week had slipped by since the devastating decisive battle against Devimon. The digital winds blowing across File Island had finally lost their edge, carrying the scent of sea salt and peaceful foliage rather than ozone and dark data.
Yet, despite the hard-won victory, neither Mizuki nor Tai felt any immediate rush to cross the ocean toward the Server Continent.
The reason was simple. The sheer, suffocating pressure Devimon had radiated after achieving his Ultimate level digivolution had left a deep, lingering mark on Tai. He had witnessed the terrifying gap in power firsthand. If a mere localized tyrant—a beginner village boss, essentially—could wield such catastrophic strength on File Island, what kind of monstrous entities were waiting for them across the sea?
Tai stared out at the rolling waves, his jaw set tight. He wanted to go home. The ache of homesickness was a constant, heavy weight in his chest. But eclipsing that desire was a far more deep fear: the paralyzing thought of being too weak to protect his precious little sister, Kari, and the rest of his friends.
He needed more power. He needed absolute certainty. Before they set foot on whatever new hellscape awaited them, Tai resolved to push his limits and properly synchronize his combat abilities alongside MetalGreymon.
A short distance away, Mizuki sat beneath the shade of a digital fern, his sharp eyes quietly analyzing his own partner. In his view, Little Bel's growth rate had been nothing short of explosive—perhaps a bit too explosive.
Back when Devimon's shadow loomed over their every waking moment, rapid power acquisition was a necessity for survival. But now, with the immediate threat reduced to scattered data, Mizuki had the luxury of stepping back and examining the finer mechanics of their strength.
The most fundamental and crucial factor determining a Digimon's true standing was their Data Volume.
There was an unspoken rule in this world: a Digimon's unique authority—their special traits and system hacks—determined the absolute ceiling of their strength, while their raw Data Volume dictated the baseline of their combat endurance.
Without a doubt, Little Bel's current state was terrifyingly potent. Fueled by the anomalous boost of her Data Rewrite ability, her offensive output completely eclipsed the vast majority of ordinary Mega-level Digimon. And that wasn't even factoring in her trump card. Once she activated Final End Mode, her system-breaking authority elevated her straight to the true pinnacle of the Digital World's hierarchy.
Yet, even a powerhouse like her harbored a hidden flaw. Because she had chained rapid, successive digivolutions in such a compressed timeframe, her maximum Data Volume—her base capacity—remained noticeably inferior to ancient, time-tested juggernauts like the Royal Knights or the Seven Great Demon Lords.
In gaming terms, her maximum MP was simply too low.
While Data Rewrite and the environmental Factory Code provided a continuous, high-speed regeneration of MP, they did absolutely nothing to expand the size of her mana pool.
Sure, relying on Final End Mode might guarantee she remained undefeated in short, explosive skirmishes. But Mizuki was a strategist who despised leaving loose ends. Eliminating a weakness was always the smartest play. They needed to train her base form, expanding her data capacity through sustained, controlled combat.
Driven by these parallel goals, Mizuki and Tai had easily reached a mutual consensus.
"Want to spar?" Tai had asked, punching his palm.
Mizuki had simply smiled. "Sure."
The location they chose was a secluded clearing in a dense forest, just a short distance from Primary Village. Sunlight filtered through the canopy, casting dappled shadows over the grassy arena.
Mizuki and Tai stood on opposite ends of the clearing, the air between them practically humming with anticipation. Their respective partners stood at the ready.
"Mizuki, sorry to keep you waiting." Tai stretched his arms, a fierce, unyielding confidence radiating from his posture. His brown eyes shone with a competitive fire. "Let me show you exactly how much Agumon and I have grown over these past few days."
"Interesting." Mizuki's lips curved into a faint, knowing smirk. He appreciated Tai's relentless fighting spirit. Turning his head slightly, he nodded to the figure standing beside him. "Little Bel, switch forms. Don't miss any chance to solidify your foundation."
"I understand, Mizu!"
Even without his verbal command, she was already preparing to shift. A blinding pillar of light erupted from her form, washing over the forest clearing. The heroic, imposing silhouette of her Mega form dissolved into streams of luminescent code.
When the light shattered like glass, an entirely different figure stood in her place. Eight pristine, feathered wings unfurled gracefully from her back. A sacred, inviolable aura pulsed outward, purifying the very air around them.
BeelStarmon Data Switch — Angewomon.
"I won't bully you, Agumon," Angewomon's clear, melodic voice echoed through the clearing. "I'll restrict myself and fight using only my Ultimate level strength!"
"Even if you didn't hold back, it wouldn't matter!" Agumon stepped forward, planting his claws firmly into the dirt. Despite his small, Rookie-level stature, the sheer density of the aura flaring around him was astonishing—it pushed back against Angewomon's holy pressure, refusing to yield an inch. "With Tai by my side, I have nothing to fear!"
"Alright, let's begin—" Tai shouted, his hand already dropping to his hip to draw his Digivice. The familiar adrenaline of digivolution was just a breath away.
But before Tai could trigger the light, Mizuki's demeanor suddenly shifted. His eyes darted toward the tree line. He raised a hand in a sharp, halting gesture.
"Wait a minute, Tai."
Tai stumbled mid-motion, blinking in confusion. "Ah?! What's wrong?"
Agumon and Angewomon both paused, turning their attention to the reincarnator. Mizuki merely pointed a finger toward a thick oak tree situated directly behind Tai's position.
"Tai, you seem to have a rather cute little shadow clinging to you."
"?"
The moment Mizuki spoke, the rustling of leaves broke the silence. To Tai's utter shock, a small, familiar figure slowly peeked out from behind the wide trunk.
It was Kari.
"So... this is what Big Brother and Brother Mizuki have been secretly doing all this time?" Kari murmured. Her cheeks were slightly puffed out in a rare pout, and her large eyes held a faint, unmistakable glimmer of grievance.
Seeing that expression on his precious sister's face, Tai's tough-guy facade instantly crumbled. Pure panic flooded his features. He scrambled over to her, waving his hands defensively.
"Um, Kari! I'm sorry, I swear I didn't mean to keep it a secret from you!"
Kari stared at his flustered, desperate attempts to explain himself for a long moment. Then, the grievance melted away, replaced by a soft, melodic giggle.
The usual gentle calmness returned to her expression, warming the atmosphere. "It's okay. I understand what Big Brother is thinking." She looked up at him, her gaze incredibly perceptive. "Ultimate level Digimon are terrifyingly strong. Kari understands why Big Brother feels so much pressure."
She reached out, lightly tugging on his sleeve. "So, I won't stop Big Brother from working hard anymore."
Tai let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"But in return," Kari continued, her tone turning serious, "please don't hide things from Kari anymore, okay? After all, if Big Brother ever overexerts himself, my strength might actually be helpful."
"Kari..."
Looking down at the incredibly well-behaved and understanding girl, Tai felt his heart completely melt into a puddle. If he hadn't been hyper-aware of Mizuki watching them with an amused smirk, he absolutely would have scooped her up into a massive bear hug right then and there.
Taking a deep breath, Tai composed himself. He turned back toward the center of the clearing, the fire in his eyes burning twice as bright as before.
"Alright! In that case, Kari, watch closely!" Tai pointed dramatically across the field. "Watch how Agumon and I beat the absolute stuffing out of that guy Mizuki! Hehe."
Over the past few days, the two boys had exchanged this exact brand of trash talk countless times. Mizuki didn't miss a beat. He simply raised a single, challenging eyebrow.
"Oh ho? You're acting quite bold today."
"Just kidding, I'm super bold!" Tai shot back, grinning fiercely.
"Then let me see if your strength development is actually up to standard," Mizuki chuckled, his tone dripping with his signature trollish humor. "Don't go crying when I pull out my trump card!"
Just as the two of them were about to devolve into another heated bickering match, Kari, who had been watching their antics with a bright smile, suddenly blinked.
"Oh, right," she chimed in, her gentle voice cutting through their posturing. "I wasn't the only one who followed you."
Tai froze. "Huh?!"
"The Bakemon are here too. They were really worried about me," Kari explained, counting on her fingers. "And not just them. Izzy and Tentomon came along. Oh, and Sister Mimi, and Palmon..."
Kari continued to list off names with complete innocence, reading them out like a waitress reciting a dinner menu.
The very next second, the surrounding bushes practically exploded.
One by one, the 'stalkers' poked their heads out from the dense foliage, realizing their cover was entirely blown. A chorus of awkward, surprised gasps filled the clearing.
Tai stared in disbelief. "Joe?! What are you doing here?"
"Mimi? Why are you following me?!"
"Big Brother?! You're here too?"
The clearing descended into absolute chaos.
"Don't look at me like that!" Joe adjusted his glasses, his face flushed red. "I was just worried about you guys... I wasn't stalking you! It was a tactical observation!"
"Me too!" Sora called out from behind a fern, before suddenly snapping at the pink bird clinging to her leg. "Wait, Biyomon, stop calling me Mom!"
"What do you mean by stalking?!" Three white, sheet-like ghosts floated out from the canopy in perfect synchronization. "We Three Bakemon Brothers are here solely to protect Lady Kari!" × 3
The previously quiet, tense sparring ground had instantly transformed into a noisy, chaotic playground, overflowing with shouting children and chattering Digimon.
Standing in the center of the madness, both Tai and Mizuki wore identical, incredibly subtle expressions of deadpan defeat. The epic tension of their rivalry had been completely shattered.
Angewomon blinked her blue eyes beneath her visor, looking around at the lively crowd. "...Mizu, are we still fighting?"
Hearing the sheer confusion in his partner's voice, Mizuki stood in silence for a long moment. He looked at Tai, who was currently being lectured by a flustered Sora, and then let out a long, helpless laugh.
"Let's... just see how things go."
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