Chapter 77: Long Live the King!
A strange, lilting melody drifted across the sun-baked expanse of the desert. The notes were soft, almost playful, yet they carried an inexplicably unsettling undertone that made the digital sand seem to vibrate. The group marched steadily toward the towering silhouette of the pyramid looming in the distance.
In this tense atmosphere, Megadramon's serpentine mechanical body hovered just above the dunes. His metallic jaws clicked as his eyes darted across the empty wasteland. The oppressive silence was getting to him.
"It feels way too quiet out here," Megadramon muttered, his voice a low, metallic rumble. "There are absolutely no remnants of Etemon's patrols in sight. This is completely different from the usual perimeter."
A heavy sigh escaped the jaws of the massive dinosaur walking beside him. Even a normally stoic and steady-tempered Digimon like Greymon found his patience wearing thin. He shot a sidelong glare at his draconic companion.
"You idiot," Greymon grumbled, his deep voice vibrating in his chest. "Aren't you technically one of Etemon's remnants yourself?"
Megadramon blinked, his mechanical eyes whirring as he looked around in mock confusion. "Wait, are there other Digimon here?"
He let out a metallic chuckle, his heavy tail swishing through the dry air. "Oh, come on, Greymon. That's not what I meant. You really have absolutely zero sense of humor."
Up ahead, leading the formation, BlackGatomon didn't even bother looking back. Her sleek, dark form moved with feline grace over the shifting sands.
"The perimeter is empty because Etemon mobilized almost all his available forces to hunt down the DigiDestined," she called back, her tone crisp and authoritative.
Greymon paused, his heavy footfalls sinking slightly into the sand. He tilted his horned head, picking up on a distinct lightness in the dark feline's usually sharp voice.
"BlackGatomon... you sound like you're in an unusually good mood."
"Does that even need to be said?" A small, genuine smile curved BlackGatomon's lips. Her tail flicked happily behind her. "Ever since the arrival of King Mizuki, I finally feel like my life actually has meaning. My existence as a Digimon has become entirely fulfilling."
She quickened her pace, her crimson eyes gleaming with fierce dedication. "Everyone else is working so hard for King Mizuki. Naturally, I have to step up my own efforts to ensure his absolute victory."
"...Ah, yes. I suppose so," Greymon replied softly.
He lowered his gaze to his own clawed hands, a deep sense of peace settling over his data core. He kept his thoughts to himself, but the sentiment connected deeply within his chest.
'Perhaps... all the brutal suffering we endured in this wasteland was simply leading up to this exact moment.'The endless battles, the desperate struggle for survival, the constant fear of deletion under Etemon's tyrannical rule—none of it had been in vain.'From now on, under the warm, guiding light of King Mizuki, as long as we keep, our path will continue to stretch out toward a real future.'
His quiet reflection was violently shattered by a sudden, thunderous crash echoing from the front of the formation.
The heavy stone doors of the pyramid burst open. Dozens of shadowy figures poured out from the dark interior, their clawed feet tearing into the sand. A suffocating wave of dark energy rolled off their bodies, thick and oppressive enough to make both BlackGatomon and Greymon instinctively recoil, even from a distance.
BlackGatomon's fur stood on end. She was a Virus-attribute Digimon herself, intimately familiar with the shadows, but this energy felt entirely wrong. It wasn't the cold, focused edge of conventional dark power. This aura was chaotic, jagged, and violently disordered—like a corrupted code threatening to tear itself apart.
But what alarmed her even more was the physical appearance of the approaching horde.
"Those are... Dobermon?!" she hissed, her claws extending instinctively.
Her sharp eyes hadn't deceived her. The beasts charging out of the pyramid were Champion-level hound Digimon—Dobermon! Their sleek, muscular bodies were covered in dark armor, their jaws slavering with corrupted data.
But why were there so many of them? According to their intel, the only guards stationed inside the pyramid were supposed to be Tyrannomon. Had the dinosaur Digimon somehow undergone a forced, corrupted digivolution?
'Regardless of what happened to them, I should at least attempt to establish communication first,' BlackGatomon thought, her tactical mind racing.
She took a cautious step forward, opening her mouth to shout a command.
She never got the chance.
Greymon's survival instincts flared. Sensing the lethal spike in the enemy's data output, the massive dinosaur lunged forward, throwing his heavy body directly at the smaller feline.
"Idiot, get down! Those guys are completely out of their minds!" Greymon roared, tackling her into the sand.
At that exact fraction of a second, blinding, corrupted light flared deep within the maws of the charging Dobermon pack.
[Schwarz Strahl!]
Dozens of voices howled in unison.
BlackGatomon's eyes widened in shock.
Greymon braced his armored skull against the impending impact.
They had absolutely zero time to evade. A dense, overwhelming barrage of black energy beams tore through the air, converging instantly on the exact spot where the two Digimon lay pinned against the dunes.
Witnessing the sudden ambush, the rest of the rebel forces snapped into action. The allied Tyrannomon and Agumon immediately unleashed a volley of searing fireballs toward the corrupted hounds.
The three Megadramon let out furious, metallic screeches, while the five Monodramon roared, their small bodies tensing as they prepared to throw themselves into the fray.
BlackGatomon and Greymon were the commanders who had guided them out of despair. They were the ones who had promised them a new, brighter future. There was no way they were going to let a pack of rabid dogs ruin everything at such a critical juncture!
However, before the enraged Digimon could even charge a few steps forward, a calm, gentle voice drifted across the chaotic battlefield. It wasn't loud, yet it carried an inexplicable, commanding weight—a pure manifestation of willpower that made any thought of resistance instantly evaporate.
"Don't worry. Greymon and BlackGatomon are perfectly fine."
The voice paused, the tone shifting into something slightly more analytical. "And more, I strongly suggest you don't approach those hounds. Their data is highly unstable."
The charging Digimon skidded to a halt, their eyes darting toward the epicenter of the explosion.
As the thick, choking clouds of black smoke and vaporized sand gradually dispersed, the Megadramon, Monodramon, and the rest of the rebel forces finally got a clear view of the blast zone.
Standing tall in the center of the scorched crater was a young man, his posture relaxed despite the raging battle. Standing faithfully by his side was a petite girl with striking blonde hair.
Without a single doubt in their digital cores, the rebel army recognized him instantly. It was their undisputed leader—King Mizuki!
The allied Digimon stared in absolute awe. Sometime during the chaos, a massive, crimson shield shaped like a snarling dragon's head had materialized on the young man's arm, radiating a brilliant, protective aura of Digi-Soul.
He had stepped directly into the line of fire, using his own manifested power to completely absorb the devastating barrage that would have otherwise torn Greymon and BlackGatomon to shreds.
"King... Mizuki?!" Greymon stammered, his massive eyes wide with disbelief as he pushed himself up from the sand.
"King Mizuki, why are you all the way out here?" BlackGatomon asked, her voice trembling slightly with a mix of shock and overwhelming relief.
Under their stunned gazes, Mizuki slowly lowered his arm. The crimson dragon shield dissolved into harmless motes of light. He turned his head, offering his two commanders a calm, reassuring smile.
"To be precise, I'm not the only one who arrived," Mizuki replied smoothly, dusting a few grains of sand off his shoulder. "The others are securing the perimeter."
Without offering any further explanation regarding his sudden appearance, Mizuki shifted his gaze toward the heavily armed reinforcements hovering nearby. He took in the sight of the three Megadramon and the five Monodramon, his eyes gleaming with genuine warmth.
"You must be the new companions BlackGatomon recently recruited, right?" he asked, his voice carrying clearly over the desert winds.
He offered them a polite, gentle smile. "Hello, everyone. Let me officially introduce myself. My name is Mizuki, and this is my partner, Belle."
At his words, the blonde girl stepped forward. Despite her cute, petite appearance, Belle crossed her arms and gave the massive dragons a curt, aloof nod, trying her absolute hardest to look intimidating and dignified.
Mizuki, however, knew her far too well. He could see the slight flush on her cheeks and the way she avoided direct eye contact. She wasn't being arrogant; she was just incredibly shy around new people.
"It's a pleasure to meet all of you," Mizuki continued, his tone welcoming. "And I want to personally welcome you to our ranks. As our companions—"
He didn't even get the chance to finish his sentence. The three Megadramon suddenly broke out into loud, frantic murmurs, completely ignoring battlefield decorum.
"Did you see that?!" the lead Megadramon hissed to his brothers, his mechanical jaws clattering in sheer disbelief. "He blocked the combined attacks of an entire pack of Champion-level Digimon without even breaking a sweat! Is this the true power of King Mizuki?!"
Mizuki's smile twitched. "Um... actually, if it's at all possible... I'd really prefer it if you didn't call me that—"
"He's so small, yet his data output is absolutely terrifying!" the second Megadramon interrupted, his eyes glowing with reverence. "As expected of the legendary King Mizuki! The very being capable of granting BlackGatomon and the others the miracle of digivolution!"
Mizuki raised a hand, trying to interject. "Seriously, guys, the title is a bit—"
"No, no, no! You two are completely missing the point!" the third Megadramon argued, his tail thrashing excitedly. "Shouldn't we be focusing on something far more important than his raw power?"
"He's right. He's absolutely right," a gruff voice chimed in.
It was the largest of the five Monodramon, stepping forward as the clear leader of his squad. He stared at Mizuki with wide, unblinking eyes. "He actually stepped into the line of fire to block an attack for his own subordinates. I've lived in this wasteland my entire life, and this is the very first time I have ever witnessed such a thing..."
The Monodramon leader's claws dug into the sand. "Even among our own specific species, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone willing to risk their own life to protect a comrade like that..."
His words carried the heavy, bitter truth of the Digital World. Infighting and cannibalism among Digimon of the same species were grimly common occurrences. After all, absorbing the data of a closely related species yielded a much higher compatibility rate for power growth.
In this brutal, unforgiving reality, powerful Digimon routinely treated their subordinates as nothing more than disposable meat shields—pawns to be sacrificed and replaced at a moment's notice. Worse still, many tyrants viewed their own armies as walking emergency rations, ready to be devoured the second they felt hungry.
In an environment governed entirely by the law of the jungle, the concept of a superior actively protecting a subordinate was not just rare; it was fundamentally unheard of.
Yet, right here, right now, the Monodramon and Megadramon were bearing witness to a scene that defied all established logic. It was nothing short of a miracle.
This human was not of their species. He was not even made of the same digital fabric. Their relationship was strictly defined as that of a supreme ruler and his lowly foot soldiers. And despite all of that, the King had willingly thrown himself into the path of destruction to shield them from harm.
'This kind of thing... this kind of absolute selflessness...' the Monodramon leader murmured in his core.
If he had heard a story about this happening anywhere else, he would have mercilessly mocked the protector as a naive, suicidal idiot.
But standing here, looking directly into Mizuki's eyes—eyes as clear and transparent as polished jewels—and seeing that gentle, unassuming smile, all his cynical instincts melted away.
At that precise moment, the battle-hardened Megadramon and the scrappy Monodramon felt something shift deep within their data cores. Their hearts, long dried up and calloused by the scorching cruelty of the desert, felt as though they were suddenly being nourished by a cool, long-lost spring breeze.
The very next second, under Mizuki's thoroughly startled gaze, the newly recruited Digimon threw their heads back and unleashed a chorus of devastating roars.
"Oooooh! BlackGatomon and Greymon didn't lie to us!"
"King Mizuki is a truly gentle and benevolent king!"
"He will protect us! He is the one who will bring us true hope!"
"Long live King Mizuki!"
"Long live King Mizuki!"
Mizuki blinked, completely taken aback by the sudden, fanatical display of loyalty. "Wait... hold on a second, you guys..."
He stood there, helplessly watching the massive, terrifying dragons and the fierce little reptiles literally bouncing up and down in the sand like an overexcited cheer squad. He opened his mouth to correct them again, pondered the sheer futility of arguing with a group of emotionally overwhelmed Digimon, and finally let out a soft, defeated sigh.
"Never mind... as long as you're all happy..." Mizuki muttered, his lips stretching into a dry, utterly emotionless smile. "Heh. Heh."
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