Having made the round trip once before, Virt's pace was faster than Dark's.
But their destinations were different, so of course, their routes were as well.
...
Dark didn't know that Virt's group of four had also entered the secret passage. He habitually took out his notebook and began to sketch, and the outlines of two giant bear statues quickly appeared on the page.
One was a black bear wielding a great axe, and the other was a white bear holding a greatsword!
Both giant bears were clad in armor like knights, looking powerful and majestic.
Two minutes later, Dark finished his sketch.
He stuffed the notebook back into his bag, then followed the treasure map's directions and stepped into the passage guarded by the two giant bears.
In an instant.
The ground trembled slightly.
The sound of something shattering reached his ears.
"Watch out!"
DemiDevimon, flying in the air, suddenly let out a sharp cry!
Dark instinctively took two steps back.
After a delay of two seconds.
Fragments of rock flew everywhere as the great axe and greatsword suddenly chopped down from both sides!
They grazed right past his bangs, slamming heavily into the ground!
Dark hastily retreated another two steps, only to see the two giant weapons crossed, completely sealing the entrance to the passage.
Fine cracks appeared on the bodies of the black and white bears. The stone shells over their joints, in particular, were nearly shattered, revealing thick, long bear fur underneath!
"Don't tell me this is the most common type of guardian boss from video games?" Dark's expression changed slightly.
He had originally thought that with the students gone, monsters like the Minotaur from before wouldn't appear in the secret passage again.
But now, it seemed he had been far too optimistic!
"Time to fight!"
Dark's tone became excited in spite of himself!
He had to admit, after experiencing the second inter-class competition, his desire for battle had deepened!
DemiDevimon, in the air, sensed its master's will and immediately flew down.
Dark reached his fingers into his card pack. Magic power gathered at his fingertips, and with a slight swipe across the edges of his Magic Guide Cards, he sorted through the large stack and selected [Lust III]!
Then, while continuing to back away, he hooked it with his index and middle fingers, holding [Lust III] firmly in his hand!
"Card swipe, evolve!"
A brilliant pink light burst forth from the face of the [Lust III] card, shimmering against the torchlight on both sides of the secret passage.
DemiDevimon willingly flew into this light of lust, and the skull pattern on its forehead was immediately replaced by the [Lust] crest.
The moment the crest formed, all the pink light abruptly contracted, converging upon it.
DemiDevimon assimilated with the intense light, its body gradually elongating, revealing the form of a cat-girl!
When the bright light faded, a graceful black cat stretched its body and appeared!
It was [Black Gatomon]!
...
Having evolved with the new [Lust III], this Black Gatomon possessed a seductive side, but it also had a rational one.
It stood in front of Dark, staring intently at the two giant bear statues. Then, it suddenly leaped up, choosing to strike first!
"Cat Punch!"
Although Black Gatomon was a variant of Gatomon, the clawed gloves it wore were still replicas of SaberLeomon's claw data, capable of tearing through almost anything.
Dark saw only a flash of black light, and the abdomen of the white bear statue on his right was torn open!
The not-yet-fully-shattered stone shell instantly pulverized, but no blood flowed from the three claw marks that were deep enough to show bone.
This showed that the white bear inside the stone shell was not a creature of flesh and blood!
Provoked by Black Gatomon's attack, the white bear immediately rotated its shoulder joint and swung its greatsword in an upward slash.
The sword strike was powerful and heavy, as fast as lightning.
Although Black Gatomon's attack power was as high as 1900, its defense was only 900. If it were even grazed by this sword, it would surely be injured.
But it was well-versed in strategy, striking and then immediately retreating.
The powerful sword swing merely cut through the air, smashing into the ground with a loud crash!
Flipping back, Black Gatomon pushed off with its feet and burst forward again. The entire cat became a blur, leaping over the greatsword in an instant, its raised claws aimed straight for the white bear's face!
"Roar!"
Almost in the blink of an eye.
The black bear on the left moved as well!
It did nothing complicated, simply swinging its great axe from bottom to top, hacking upwards along the white bear's abdomen.
The axe's blade wasn't sharpened, but it was thick and heavy.
Black Gatomon was in mid-air and couldn't dodge in time; it was sent flying by the brutal impact!
Its magic power plummeted by a visible amount!
At this moment, however, Dark had become completely calm.
"Assessing from the damage Black Gatomon took, their attack power is in the four-star range."
"There are two of them, specializing in close combat, and they haven't shown any skills yet."
"Black Gatomon, can you handle this alone?"
...
"Of course I can!"
Black Gatomon walked back to Dark's side, casually took the [Energy Potion] from his hand, and swallowed it in one gulp.
[Magic Power +200]
Having recovered slightly, its gaze grew even sharper!
If I can't even handle two clumsy bears, how can I compete with Sylveon and Gatomon?
It held its breath, feet planted apart in a solid stance, and raised its hands into a standard fighting posture, preparing to meet the inevitable storm of battle!
"Boom!"
The two giant bears finally shattered the stone shells on their bodies!
They took a step forward simultaneously, descending from their pedestals. Then, one bear raised its stone axe and the other its stone sword, and with a single roar, they charged!
Guarding the passage and eliminating intruders was their unchanging duty since time immemorial.
Within their duty, there was no room for negotiation.
But perhaps the passage of time had eroded their bodies, or perhaps their long lives as statues had caused them to gradually assimilate.
Aside from the speed at which they swung their weapons, their movements were noticeably stiff.
Black Gatomon inhaled and lowered its stance, gathering power like a grandmaster.
As the two weapons from the left and right slammed down, it dropped its body and instantly slid forward, perfectly dodging the impact of both weapons!
Then, with a light leap, it shot into the air. Pushing off the white bear for leverage, it vaulted onto the black bear's head.
The following [Cat Punch] cleanly and decisively shattered its skull!
As the black bear collapsed with a thunderous crash,
Black Gatomon leaped up in a reverse somersault without a moment's pause. Its body stretched out in mid-air, as flexible as a sea cucumber, landing on the white bear's head in an incredibly acrobatic pose.
The white bear, dual-wielding its greatsword, didn't even know to drop its weapon and grab at it. It just swung the sword back, viciously slicing off a layer of its own scalp!
So stupid it was laughable!
Black Gatomon dodged the greatsword with another light leap, then followed up with a finishing blow to end it!
In just a few short rounds, it moved like a butterfly dancing among flowers, displaying the pinnacle of agility.
Shattering the skull, crushing the core!
As biomimetic golems, the black and white bears ceased all function.
...
Black Gatomon had easily defeated the enemy.
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