BOOM!BOOM!BOOM!
With Agumon causing such a ruckus, Chen Ze and Renamon—who weren't far from the chaos—naturally noticed the disturbance as well.
Whether it was the flames soaring toward the sky or the monstrous roar echoing through the night, everything indicated a Digimon had lost control nearby.
"It's that data signature from before."
Renamon quickly recognized the source of the chaos, a look of disbelief crossing her face.
If Renamon's memory was correct, that data had appeared in the human world just last night, hadn't it?
Yet the Digimon now wreaking havoc across the street hardly resembled a Fresh-stage Digimon born less than a day ago.
Sure, the growth cycle of Fresh Digimon was short—but even then, surely it couldn't evolve this much in just one day?
According to normal evolutionary rules, Fresh was indeed the shortest, easiest stage of a Digimon's life. Even so, they still required ample data intake before evolving.
Chen Ze, with his residual Agumon data, was already an extreme anomaly. It was incredible enough that he had evolved into Koromon in under a day.
But judging from the present situation, the Digi-Egg that appeared just two hours before Chen Ze seemed even more absurd.
Even ignoring everything else, the destruction caused by that Digimon's current rampage was already equal to what Renamon, who had spent several years at the Rookie stage, was capable of.
That's the true protagonist for you.
Chen Ze, equally stunned by Agumon's destructive power, smiled bitterly as he murmured quietly from Renamon's arms.
Though the ending is rather tragic.
In this world where everything was real, Chen Ze doubted the final battle would play out as lightly as it had in the anime. The trail of damage Agumon was leaving behind made that painfully clear.
What Chen Ze found most puzzling was that despite Agumon causing such a massive scene, somehow only those destined "Chosen Children" ended up witnessing that climactic battle.
Was it because those children were special "children of destiny," uniquely able to see events adults ignored?
Or was it precisely because of their performance tonight that Homeostasis chose them, marking them as saviors of the Digital World?
Regardless of cause or effect, the one thing Chen Ze was certain of now was that he and Renamon had to seize control by joining the battle before Homeostasis realized their identities.
I hope my guess is right—that Homeostasis still doesn't want to reveal itself to humans.
From deleting the Tokyo police department's surveillance footage to the bizarre silence enveloping Hikarigaoka's streets, Chen Ze felt it likely Homeostasis wished to keep the Digital World hidden from humanity.
In other words, as long as events unfolded according to Chen Ze's predictions, there was a strong chance that—to preserve secrecy—Homeostasis wouldn't look too closely into their identities as "stowaways" and might simply send them back home.
But all of that relies on Homeostasis—or whoever's manipulating events behind the scenes—actually having the ability to return us to our own world.
Chen Ze knew he was gambling. Gambling on the humanity that Homeostasis had displayed, gambling that the mysterious figure wouldn't simply let them contact Homeostasis directly.
Ultimately, whoever was behind their arrival in this world, Chen Ze doubted their manipulator possessed the power to openly oppose Homeostasis.
At the very least, their unknown manipulator clearly didn't want Homeostasis to discover the existence of these "stowaways."
Otherwise, given Homeostasis's abilities, there was no way it hadn't already noticed their presence.
So… what exactly is going on here?
Despite everything, Chen Ze still couldn't figure out the hidden manipulator's true intentions.
If someone really was controlling things from behind the scenes, what was their purpose in dropping him and Renamon into 1995's Hikarigaoka?
Were these machinations targeting him, or were they actually aimed at Renamon?
Moreover, during the period when Renamon had vanished from the network, could the mysterious "hacker" who'd forced her silence be that very manipulator?
...
Elsewhere in Hikarigaoka, within Mimi's upscale apartment building.
Due to interference from some unknown electromagnetic pulse, the entire area had gradually plunged into darkness.
Nearby streetlights and traffic signals had likewise malfunctioned, clearly affected by the same mysterious interference.
Having just finished checking the apartment's breaker, Mr. Tachikawa reluctantly picked up the phone, intending to call building maintenance for help.
"Hello?"
However, contrary to his expectations, it wasn't just the electrical appliances—the phone lines were also affected by interference, unable to connect at all.
"What in the world is happening tonight?"
After hanging up, Mr. Tachikawa stared out at the pitch-black streets and suddenly felt uneasy about his wife, who hadn't returned home yet.
Because, being observant, he'd already noticed that it wasn't just their own apartment complex experiencing issues—he could hear anxious murmurs echoing from nearby buildings as well.
Evidently, this large-scale blackout and electronics failure had spread across the entire Hikarigaoka area.
At this time of night, adults who hadn't yet fallen asleep had begun stepping outside their homes, nervously discussing what had happened.
"Is Mimi still asleep?"
At this thought, Mr. Tachikawa deliberately softened his footsteps, quietly approaching Mimi's bedroom door.
"As expected—still sleeping soundly."
Seeing his daughter's peaceful sleeping face, Mr. Tachikawa felt some relief.
"My princess, your knight must go pick up your mother now. Stay safe at home, alright?"
Having no intention of waking Mimi, Mr. Tachikawa carefully closed and locked her bedroom door before heading toward the entrance.
However, before leaving home, out of caution, he lit a candle in the living room. He also placed today's trash bags near the front door, creating the impression that an adult was still inside the apartment.