Chapter 11: Trial by fire.
No one understood what had just happened.
Not Takuya.
Not the Hunters.
No one.
From the Hunters’ perspective, it was one of the most bizarre events they had ever witnessed.
Double Dungeons existed, yes.
They were extraordinarily rare, but everyone knew they could happen.
However...
They didn’t just swallow a single person.
That had never been part of the phenomenon.
One moment, Takuya had been standing beside them.
The next...
The dungeon itself had dragged him inside.
As if the Gate had reached out and claimed only him.
The worst part was that they couldn’t do anything.
The boss had already been defeated, and the Gate had begun collapsing. If they stayed any longer, they would all be trapped inside forever.
There wasn’t even time to think.
Or to search.
Or to help.
They had to leave.
Yet none of them wanted to.
It was just...
The kid.
That was how most of them referred to him. He was the youngest C-Rank Hunter among them, and despite his age, he had earned everyone’s respect. He never complained, always pulled his weight, and treated even veteran Hunters politely.
Nobody wanted to abandon him.
But they had no choice.
As they reluctantly retreated toward the exit, another thought crossed every one of their minds.
How were they even supposed to explain this?
It sounded ridiculous.
"A dungeon swallowed him."
Who would believe something like that?
Even if they told the truth, it would sound like they were making excuses.
And if this really was a new type of Dungeon...
The implications were terrifying.
If Gates could suddenly drag people away on their own...
What exactly were Hunters supposed to do?
The possibility alone sent chills down their spines.
Unfortunately, they didn’t have the luxury of dwelling on it.
The Gate continued collapsing.
They had to leave.
...
On the other side...
Takuya was facing a very different problem.
To begin with...
He had never expected to face a trial.
Yet that was exactly what the floating screen before him announced.
---
The Human Spirit of Fire will test you.
To obtain the power of the Legendary Warrior of Fire, you must face and overcome the trial.
The Human Spirit of Fire is offering you an opportunity.
Do you accept the trial?
Y / N
---
Takuya stared silently at the screen.
"...Seriously?"
He hadn’t expected this.
Not even for a second.
His surprise quickly gave way to curiosity.
If Agnimon required a trial...
Did that mean every Adult Digimon would have one?
He frowned.
...Probably not.
Agnimon was different.
He wasn’t simply a random Digimon.
He was the Human Spirit of Fire.
A fragment of the power left behind by the Legendary Warrior, AncientGreymon.
Compared to an ordinary evolution...
This was on an entirely different level.
Which probably meant the requirements were different as well.
It made sense.
Power like this shouldn’t simply be handed over.
You had to prove yourself worthy of inheriting it.
Takuya took a deep breath.
Then, without another moment of hesitation, he selected the only answer he had ever intended to choose.
I ACCEPT THE CHALLENGE.
As soon as Takuya finished speaking—like the protagonist of a proper shonen series—the text on the screen changed.
The display ignited in crimson flames before the words dissolved and were replaced by a new message.
The Human Spirit carries wisdom, yet it is also the embodiment of fire.
Like fire itself, it cannot be consumed nor subdued.
Challenge the Kings of the Mountains.
Prove your dominion over the flames.
Show that no fire burns brighter than yours.
Show that you are worthy of the title of the Human Spirit of Fire.
The screen faded away.
Takuya found himself standing alone.
Surrounding him were four volcanoes.
He stood at the center of a volcanic landscape. Rivers of lava flowed between black stone, and the scorching air distorted the horizon with waves of heat. It truly looked like the perfect habitat for Fire Digimon.
He observed the four mountains.
Not all of them were the same size.
Two were enormous, towering over everything else.
One was noticeably smaller.
And the last was the smallest of them all.
Of course, they were all gigantic volcanoes, but the difference in height was obvious.
"If I were the strongest Digimon here, I’d take the highest mountain and force everyone else to fight over the smaller ones," Takuya muttered.
His destination was obvious.
The smallest volcano.
First, he needed to find out what exactly a King of the Mountain was.
If this trial had been created by the D-Scan, then his opponent was almost certainly a Digimon.
Probably an Adult-level one.
Anything stronger would be absurd.
And since this was the Human Spirit of Fire...
It would almost certainly be a Fire Digimon.
The problem was that "Adult level" meant almost nothing by itself.
An Ogremon and a GeoGreymon were both Adult-level Digimon, yet the latter could wipe the floor with the former.
For now, all he could do was keep moving.
The temperature was unbearable.
Takuya estimated it had to be at least sixty degrees Celsius.
As he made his way toward the smallest volcano, he found nothing but scorched rock, flowing lava, and burning air.
The four volcanoes formed a massive circle around the valley.
Yet there wasn’t a single Digimon in sight.
After nearly an hour of walking, Takuya stopped to eat.
Fortunately, he had prepared enough food before entering the raid, expecting it to last more than a day.
He took the opportunity to rest as well.
After all, he had come here immediately after clearing a dungeon.
Nearly four hours later, he resumed climbing the volcano.
As he approached the summit...
Nothing.
No Digimon.
"Was I wrong?" he wondered.
Suddenly—
A mass of crimson burst out from the crater.
It landed heavily only a few meters away from him.
The impact shook the volcanic rock beneath his feet.
Takuya recognized it almost immediately.
"Boarmon..."
An Armor-level Digimon.
Most Armor Digimon were comparable to Adult-level Digimon, with only a handful of exceptions being stronger.
Standing before him was a massive crimson boar.
Its fiery mane burned continuously, while thick armor plate covered the forehead.
Whatever it was made of...
Every instinct Takuya possessed screamed at him that it was dangerous.
"So..."
"You’re the King of this mountain."
The words slipped out almost unconsciously.
Boarmon answered with a thunderous roar.
For a brief moment, Takuya had expected an actual reply.
Digimon were supposed to be able to speak.
Yet not a single word came from the boar’s mouth.
Instead of answering, the boar took a deep breath.
Its massive chest expanded.
The next instant, a torrent of flames erupted from its nostrils, engulfing everything in front of it.
The fire was far larger than anything Takuya could produce.
He was certain of that.
Even so...
He was a Fire Digimon.
Fighting against every instinct screaming at him to dodge, Takuya charged straight into the flames.
The heat burned.
It hurt.
But he endured it.
At the last moment, he leaped high into the air, passing over Boarmon’s head.
As he flipped through the air, he extended both hands.
"Baby Salamander!"
The twin streams of fire struck the area just behind the blazing mane—the part that looked the least protected.
Judging by Boarmon’s reaction...
He had guessed correctly.
The enormous Digimon, nearly the size of an elephant—perhaps even larger—let out a roar of pain as the flames exploded against its neck.
Takuya landed behind it without hesitation.
"Fire Toss!"
The blazing fireball crashed into Boarmon’s back.
This time...
Nothing.
The boar didn’t even flinch.
It was as if the attack hadn’t existed at all.
"...Huh?"
"That’s strange."
Before he could think further, Boarmon spun around.
Its chest expanded once again.
Another torrent of fire shot toward him.
This time, Takuya was ready.
After feeling that attack once, there was no way he was taking it head-on again.
Especially now that he noticed something else.
The heavy plate covering Boarmon’s forehead wasn’t glowing or charging a special technique.
Instead...
The Digimon lowered its head.
The armored plate pointed directly at him.
It wasn’t preparing a ranged attack.
It was preparing to ram him.
Boarmon exploded forward with terrifying speed.
The charge was perfectly straight.
At that moment, Takuya used a technique he usually reserved for fighting alone.
"Smoke."
The Baby-level ability from Mokumon activated.
Although originally designed as an escape technique, his Rookie body amplified it considerably.
Within seconds, a dense cloud of black smoke covered the battlefield.
Boarmon charged directly into it without slowing down.
It didn’t hesitate.
It didn’t stop.
It simply kept running.
The moment the giant boar rushed past him, Takuya sidestepped at the last possible instant.
Then—
He struck.
"Baby Salamander!"
At point-blank range, the flames slammed directly into Boarmon’s exposed eye.
The Digimon let out a deafening scream.
Where its eye had been...
Only shimmering fragments of Data remained.
"I guess that’s this world’s version of blood," Takuya muttered.
The flames had scattered the smoke for just an instant, allowing him to clearly see the glowing particles before they dissolved.
Without wasting another second, he activated Smoke once more.
The battlefield disappeared beneath another thick curtain of black.
Boarmon certainly wasn’t going to stand there and wait.
If anything...
Having someone interrupt its charge seemed to have driven the giant boar into an even greater rage.
Takuya continued relying on the same strategy.
Little by little, he chipped away at Boarmon’s defenses.
There was no way he could overpower an Adult-level Digimon through raw strength alone.
Boarmon was physically stronger.
Much stronger.
But it was also far less intelligent.
No wonder it guarded the smallest of the Mountain Kings.
Although...
"Mountain King" sounded like an incredibly grand title for what was, in the end, just an Adult-level Digimon.
As the battle dragged on, the giant boar’s movements became noticeably slower.
Seeing the opening, Takuya decided to test something.
His own physical strength.
He wasn’t getting overconfident.
The flow of the battle was simply in his favor now.
He knew he was far stronger than an ordinary human.
What he didn’t know was how well that strength compared to an Adult Digimon.
Boarmon charged once more.
There was no chance Takuya could stop that attack head-on.
He sidestepped at the last second as he had done throughout the fight.
Just as before, the boar made no attempt to turn around.
It simply continued charging forward.
Using that opening, Takuya rushed after it.
His fists became a blur as he unleashed a relentless barrage of punches against the giant Digimon’s side.
To his surprise...
They worked.
Each strike drove deep enough to make Boarmon grunt in pain.
His knuckles sank into its flesh, opening fresh wounds with every blow.
He kept attacking.
His muscles burned.
His breathing had become ragged long ago.
But he couldn’t stop.
Boarmon had no intention of surrendering.
Its body was covered in burns and injuries, several of which already exposed shimmering fragments of Data beneath its hide.
Yet it continued standing.
Continued charging.
Continued fighting.
At this point, it couldn’t even breathe fire anymore.
The repeated attacks had exhausted it completely.
"This is your last charge..." Takuya thought.
And he was right.
With one final roar, Boarmon lowered its head and rushed toward him.
This time...
Takuya didn’t dodge.
He leaped.
His body ignited with flames as Noble Heart wrapped around his arms.
He landed squarely on Boarmon’s back.
The giant Digimon bucked wildly, desperately trying to throw him off.
Too late.
Takuya thrust both hands toward the wound where the creature’s eye had once been.
"Baby Salamander!"
Twin streams of fire poured directly into the exposed opening.
The flames erupted inside Boarmon’s body.
Light burst through the cracks in its armor.
The attack had reached its interior.
For the first time since the battle had begun...
Boarmon screamed.
A second later, its massive body collapsed onto the volcanic rock.
After nearly three hours of fighting...
The Adult-level Digimon was finally defeated.
As the giant body dissolved into Data, a screen appeared before Takuya.
Boarmon, King of the Ash Volcano, defeated.
Absorbing required Data...
Your DigiCore is undergoing changes...
High-density Fire Data detected...
A/N: hello, again, this time another 100 power stones and another Chapter, I don’t know if it posible but let’s try.