Herpo the Foul hissed in anger, lifting the Basilisk Staff.
Suddenly, with an ear-piercing rumble, the sky split in two — becoming eyes.
The Timeline was here!
A wave of power drowned the world as She lunged at Herpo the Foul, but the Grand Wizard had already blurred out of existence, his hateful gaze never leaving the Yellow Warlock.
Another wave of power almost struck Red Sun, causing him to cough up blood.
However, before the Timeline could kill him, Black unleashed his full Reality Marble, replacing Reality.
Meg, Moraine, Tina, and Red Sun's figures rolled in blood.
ShineGreymon and Beelzemon managed to keep themselves up, but under the weight of pressure in their surroundings, a frown had appeared on their faces as well.
Black stared at the two Mega-level Digimon. "Wanna fight?"
ShineGreymon let the sword dissipate and shook his head.
Beelzemon was much more direct, charging toward Black with a vile grin on his face.
CRACK!
Black's kick landed in the middle of Beelzemon's chest, yellow bolts of lightning thundering around his leg.
With a BOOM, the Devil Lord was sent flying, hit the distant stony pillar, and disintegrated into data before returning to the Beast Ball.
In silence, ShineGreymon stared at the spot where his fellow Digimon had vanished, and then brought his gaze back to Black.
Letting out a sigh, ShineGreymon too returned to the Beast Ball.
"Heal yourself," Black commanded, looking up at the shaking sky. "We don't have much time."
A stony throne splashed out of the blood ocean, and Black sat down, closing his eyes.
Cursing under his breath, Red Sun threw several HP capsules in his mouth and crawled toward Meg, Moraine, and Tina.
Green fumes were already coming out of Spawn's body, healing her. Now that there was no enemy suppressing her innate powers, her Blessing was powerful enough for her not to need any HP capsule, as her HP Regeneration Rate already rivaled Contestants of the 4th Set.
After a while, the three ladies regained their vision, feeling the wetness beneath them.
With a bang, they shot to their feet, and, seeing the familiar place, suddenly realized that the danger had already passed.
Spawn slowly got up next to them as well, holding her head.
Together, they turned around and faced Black, who opened his eyes.
One by one, the White Serpent Pirates began kneeling, a storm raging inside their hearts. "… Congratulations on winning the Great Holy Grail War, Your Majesty!"
They still remembered Kai's claim regarding his adventure into the Fate Bubble.
He had said that even he had no certainty that he would come out of this Mission unscathed.
Not only had he returned unscathed, though, but he had also returned stronger than ever.
They had already tasted a hint of his strength when he had projected a part of his Reality Marble over the Reality just moments ago.
And if their Master was willing to openly show that, then they could bet their lives that he had even more horrifying things to reveal.
"Look at you all…" Black said with Calm. "Couldn't even handle a projection…"
Blood replaced their thoughts and visions, their heads snapping up toward the yellow-clocked Emperor.
"… Projection?!" Red Sun stuttered.
Black nodded. "How else do you think he directly appeared in the Bounded Field?" he asked. "Herpo the Foul must have baited the Timeline by revealing his true body in some other timeline. Then, his projection arrived here, knowing exactly where he needed to appear. It must be a grand scheme of The Order of the Immortal Lotus… My actions in the Fate Bubble must have scared them a lot… Hahaha!"
The Contestants looked at Black, laughing it off, a chill running down their spines.
Six powerful immortals had conspired with Herpo the Foul, a Character who stood over all in the Harry Potter Bubble, to act against him… and he was laughing?!
As Moraine, Tina, Spawn, and Red Sun contemplated the true meaning behind his laugh, Meg let out a breath, catching on to the crux of the matter.
"… So… you baited them, Master?" Morning Mist asked, making all eyes widen.
Black showed a genuine surprised expression. "… Beautiful as always, Meg," he praised, making the Fallen Priestess blush. "The Contestants hiding in Hogwarts must have already shared my true identity with them. So, I knew the moment the Order heard a few matters related to the Fate Bubble, it would act. Those Six have contacts among the Contestants. iI's not difficult to access my Wanted Poster and the rumors leading to the increase in my Bounty. It's just… I didn't expect them to go this far… and this soon."
The kneeling Contestants shared a confused glance among themselves.
"… Why?" Red Sun asked, holding his squirming right hand.
Why was the Order of Immortal Lotus so... unnerved by His Majesty's actions in Fate Bubble which had no relation to the Harry Potter Bubble?!
Black tapped the stony arm of the throne. "It's related to the Harry Potter Bubble and… Zelretch," he said.
Zelretch?!
One of the strongest Deep Ones of the Fate Bubble?!
Red Sun and others didn't have AI like Kai and Black, but even they could tell that His Majesty hadn't just guessed it. He had merely stated a fact. Didn't that mean… that he was privy to knowledge and was only known to entities on the level of Deep Ones?!
Just what the hell happened in the Fate Bubble?!
"Master…" Spawn looked at Black with her Byakugans. "May I know how strong this… projection was?"
Moraine, Meg, Red Spawn, and, kneeling behind them all, Tina nodded at that, too.
Black didn't need Echoes to know their thoughts as he looked at them. These were no mere Contestants, but prodigies among prodigies. Any organization in the Primordial Tower could wash the land with blood to have one of these Contestants among its ranks.
Well, not Red Sun, perhaps… Black amused himself with the thought. "Do you want me to boast?"
"It's not a boast if it's truth…"
Heads turned to look at Tina, who had dared to open her mouth.
Black smiled. "The sparrow has gained feathers, I see," he said, noticing the magical, dorsal spikes on the android's back. "A celebration is due, but… later. Hmm… How strong? Around 12th Floor…"
Red Sun's jaw dropped.
"12th Floor?!" he blurted, getting offended. "Didn't you say it was a mere projection?!! Mere, my ass!!!"
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