Head, chest, abdomen… the absolute vital points shared by nearly all living beings that breathe—
Zero's original target was the heart, but he couldn't be certain the colossal demon's DigiCore was actually located there. Nor could he be sure whether Devimon possessed some ability to relocate its DigiCore.
The simplest solution to an uncertainty…
…Was to eliminate every possibility at once.
Even if Devimon could shift its DigiCore, locking onto three vital points simultaneously meant this attack should be as close to certain victory as possible.
So—
"…Take this shot—and pass on already!!!"
All three blasts erupted at once, giving the colossal demon not even a fraction of a second to react. With the crest amplifying them, each of the three shots individually surpassed the earlier double shot in raw destructive power.
After unleashing these overwhelming blasts, the Trident Revolver's barrel burned a glowing red, sparks crackling violently inside, faint trails of smoke coiling from its joints.
Clearly, this three-shot burst had pushed the weapon far beyond its limits—short-term reuse would be impossible.
The explosion rolled across the battlefield in a scorching wave, engulfing the colossal demon. In that moment, a scream—raw and agonizing—echoed across the entire region.
This was probably the first time the demon of File Island had ever cried out in such a wretched howl.
After firing that devastating attack, Zero retreated from the blast zone, circling back toward Rina.
Peering into the blazing haze, Hajime couldn't contain her excitement.
"If that hit… then we've won—"
"…'We've won'—you're not seriously thinking that, are you?"
Just as Zero and Hajime believed this time the demon had finally died for real, that despair-inducing voice… dripping with suppressed fury and twisted laughter… slowly echoed out—
"Hey now. That's just rude. Can't you let me die peacefully for once?"
As the flames dispersed, the monstrous silhouette reappeared—now missing half of its body.
Its chest had been blown open into a cavernous hole—forget the heart, there likely wasn't a single intact organ left. Its head was missing an entire half, and the gaping wound across its lower abdomen connected with the cavity in its chest, leaving only a thin segment of its frame still holding together.
By any standard, this should have been a fatal injury.
…And yet, the demon still refused to fall!
What kind of bullshit was this?!
For a moment, even Zero wanted to curse out loud. They'd even used the crest—the official protagonist cheat item—and the demon STILL wasn't dead.
"Cough… cough—"
But after speaking, the colossal demon swayed, nearly collapsing outright.
There was no doubt that even if it wasn't dead, that blow had inflicted catastrophic damage.
"To be honest, your performance far exceeded what I expected. Even in this form, I didn't think you'd push me this far. However—"
It slowly stretched out its right arm, pointing toward Zero and Hajime. A chilling, bone-deep cold swept across the two of them.
"…There won't be a next time!!!"
Yes. There would be no next time—
At Devimon's roar, all across File Island, every Digimon under the control of the Black Gears suddenly froze, eyes widening in agony, letting out miserable cries.
Devimon had expended tremendous effort to build his army. Although it looked like he casually scattered Black Gears everywhere and built his army in mere weeks, that was only the final "execution" phase of his plan.
The truly difficult part had been the years of preparation beforehand—preparing enough Black Gears to conquer the entire island at once.
His plan had almost succeeded…
…Until that damn wildcard Zero came out of nowhere and flipped the entire chessboard over.
Now his plan was basically ruined. Resetting it from scratch would take far too long, and who knew what changes might occur on the Server Continent in that time?
And the root of it all—was Zero, Hajime, and Rina.
…So even if his grand plan died here today,
…Even if he uprooted every "crop" before it fattened,
…Even if he had to pay a far heavier price—
He would still crush Zero's group with his own hands!
The only reason he survived the crest-enhanced Trident Revolver burst was because his data volume was simply too vast.
Thus—if he pressed on, DigiCore cracked or not, and absorbed more data to refill himself, he could continue fighting.
…This wasn't over. Not even close!
Countless Black Gears erupted from the bodies of the screaming Digimon, surging skyward like a swarm of ravenous insects. A massive black torrent formed in the air, all of it pouring into Devimon.
He had previously absorbed an entire mountain's worth of Black Gears to achieve his colossal form. Now he reclaimed even the ones used to control his army.
Without those gears, the Devimon Army collapsed instantly, all his previous efforts turning to ash.
And with this, rebuilding an army of that scale was essentially impossible.
Only one thing remained for Devimon to do—
Convert every ounce of rage from his failed plan into murderous hatred toward the ones who ruined it!
"Today… EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU WILL DIE!!!"
Zero and Hajime, powered by the crests, barely had enough strength left for one final fight. But Hajime's equipment was on cooldown, Zero's Trident Revolver was overheated beyond use, and almost all reliable attack options were gone.
Just relying on their personal special moves likely wouldn't even scratch the colossal demon after its second infusion of Black Gears.
…What now?
There was no time to talk, no time to think. The colossal demon had already closed the distance, its massive claw descending like a shadow covering the sky.
Zero glanced at the Trident Revolver—the barrel had cooled only a little, nowhere near usable. Hajime's Jet Wings were off cooldown, but her grenades still needed time to reload.
Aside from escaping, they had no offensive options left.
Zero gestured for Hajime to take Rina and retreat—buy time, then reassess—
But before he even completed the signal, a sudden flash of light shot forth—slamming directly into the colossal demon's approaching claw.
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