Chapter 24: The Limitations of Aura

[Rock Breaker Claw] Agumon X had just sent a Digimon flying and was preparing to charge after it when the silhouette of a Guilmon appeared before Agumon X, swiping at him with a claw. [Battle Hawk] Agumon X brought his axe down in a single stroke, instantly slaying the Guilmon.

Hatred was locked, but that didn’t mean Agumon X would mindlessly attack only the first Digimon. It just meant the first Digimon was Agumon X's top priority, but if another target within range drew his ire, Agumon X wouldn’t hesitate to strike them as well.

“Time is running out…” the Digimon murmured, his face grave. The time limit referred to the one minute countdown on the four crystals from earlier—almost expired. If Agumon X wasn't defeated before the time was up, the first Digimon’s attributes would plummet, and his overall combat power would drop by at least a hundred points.

Now, there was only one way to win: the Digimon would have to use his own aura to suppress Agumon X and let the first Digimon go in for the kill. But that depended on whether the first Digimon could trigger the one percent chance of [Megaton Shockwave]—only then was victory possible.

His aura was not a trick to be used lightly. He’d experimented before, when soloing dungeons with his Digimon. In any dungeon, it could only be used once.

Aura was a mysterious thing—one could compare it to the droppings of a large predator. These droppings carried the animal’s scent, and those unable to defeat the predator would flee at the smell. But this trick only worked once or twice. Wild animals aren’t fools; after dozens of times seeing only droppings, never the predator, they’d eventually gather their courage and test their luck.

The Digimon’s aura worked on the same principle. When unleashed, it would make the opponent believe a tremendously powerful Digimon had appeared, causing them to freeze momentarily. Some Digimon, even if attacking, would be frightened off by his aura.

But here lay the problem: whether it scared them off or made them hesitate, it was all just psychological—he dealt no actual damage. The first use was a surprise; the second, however, would only arouse suspicion. In other words, the second time, his aura was no longer guaranteed to subdue the enemy Digimon.

As for a third use, by then the target would likely have caught on, and the next instant would rush straight at the source of the aura.

Using aura to suppress enemies was not unique to him; other Digimon had done it too. One of the more famous was the Camouflagemon. Though Camouflagemon looked a bit shifty, he was far from weak. On his card, one of his stats was nearly as high as that of Lucemon: Fall Mode: his skill allowed him to disguise as any other Digimon, regardless of level—even as Omegamon—and intimidate others in that form.

So, his aura had to be used at the perfect moment. Whether such a moment would come was up to luck.

Five seconds remained.

Fearing a repeat of Guilmon’s instant demise, the other six Digimon dared not approach. As a result, Agumon X found himself directly in front of the first Digimon, bringing his axe down upon him.

At that moment, Omegamon and the others suddenly realized that the Digimon who was supposed to be hiding safely with them had somehow appeared in front of his own Digimon. Agumon X’s axe swung straight for him.

“Boom!” The axe landed on him, but he was not slain. A faint halo shimmered over his body—the source, a ring on his finger.

The Chosen Child’s Ring allowed him to ignore damage from Digimon with a total combat power under three hundred.

To say “ignore” referred only to the damage, not the impact of the attack itself. Even if one knew they were invulnerable to bullets, how many would dare stand in front of a hail of minigun fire?

Moreover, he wasn’t untouched; Agumon X's combat power was listed as three hundred, but in battle, numbers fluctuate—sometimes just below, sometimes just above.

Right now, it was just over three hundred. The ring blocked three hundred points of damage, but the few remaining points translated into real injury, striking his body.

Fortunately, while players’ health was low compared to their Digimon or boss Digimon, it was still enough to survive a minor hit. A few points of damage were not enough to bring him down.

Almost simultaneously as he shielded his Digimon from harm, the first Digimon thrust his greatsword at Agumon X. In that instant, a faint silver light flashed across the blade; a glimmer of excitement flickered in his eyes, and his aura erupted forth.

Oppressed by the aura, Agumon X’s reaction slowed half a beat; even as the first Digimon’s sword pierced forward, he could only watch, unable to defend.

On the other side, the first Digimon triggered [Megaton Shockwave], doubling his combat power to five hundred and thirty—seventy or eighty percent higher than Agumon X’s three hundred.

“Boom!” As if a threshold had been breached, a torrent of lightning burst from the greatsword’s tip, blasting Agumon X and hurling him into the cliff behind.

“Boom!” Another thunderous crash sounded. Though the smoke concealed the aftermath, everyone had seen Agumon X’s rapidly vanishing health bar before the dust clouded their view.

Omegamon and his companions were certain: even if Agumon X survived, his remaining health would be less than ten percent.