Sure I’m real. My name is Roy, and I’m real. I’m a human. Well, I used to be, but… But I still am! I may not look like the typical human, but inside, I’ve got all the humanities I need. I just have to get back to civilization and all of this will go away.

…I wonder, if I got bitten, would I also explode into pixels?

I shake my head violently, but it makes my neck hurt as it scratches against the stone brace.

That’s not important! What is important is that I’m alive now, and I don’t need anything more. Since I can’t possibly answer what I am or why I am, I might as well not waste any mental energy on it. My best use of energy is to just focus on the here and now, and right now, I need to decide how to spend my future. Either I fight, or I go to Bukamon.

…Maybe it’s silly. Maybe it’s even stupid, or naïve, but I think Bukamon is… I think he might be able to give me more answers. He is pretty chatty, so listening to him is a good waste of time. Not because I like listening to him, but rather because, well, he sometimes happens to say things that tell me things about the world. That’s all.

Right. That’s my answer, then.

Jumping off the ocean floor, I begin swimming back to the clearing.

“Oh, hey, Innomon, you came back!” Bukamon greets me excitedly, swimming up and hugging me before I even have time to register his presence. And then, while I’m still reeling from the experience of being hugged for the first time in years, the little creature disconnects from me, swims a full circle around me and dives to the sandy bottom a few metres below us. “Look what I found!”

And from the sand, it pulls one of those squishy things I just ate myself full on. I stare at it. It stares back at me with big, red eyes.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Its name is Pichimon! You know, before I digivolved into my Child form, I actually used to look just like this. I was so small and cute, wasn’t I?” Bukamon says as he sways the little thing back and forth in his fins. It looks profoundly uncomfortable, but mostly so because I’m right in front of it. Maybe it can smell the pixels on my feet left from its brethren? Ah, but then Bukamon would’ve noticed, so maybe not. “Pichimon, can you say ‘hi’ to Innomon?”

“P-, pichi…” it whimpers.

I nod at it in greeting. Oh, god, this is more awkward than when dad caught me watching Sweet Movie. That was a hard one to explain. But, somehow, this feels even worse. It’s like it knows exactly what I want to do with it. At least it can’t exactly speak or it might have tattled on me to Bukamon. Not that I’d try to eat him. He’d make minced monster out of me.

“Isn’t it just so cute? Everybody loves Pichimon because they’re just adorable! It works as a sort of natural defence, so nobody attacks them or anything,” Bukamon explains even though I make no show of listening. Regardless, this is all very interesting information. Too cute to eat, eh? I think it might just be the opposite.

The little Pichimon flinches in Bukamon’s flippers and he accidentally drops it. “Eh? Ah, Pichimon, be careful!”

However, Pichimon doesn’t seem to have any interest in hanging around, because it quickly speeds off. Or, well, as fast as such a small thing can, at least. It burrows itself in the sand inside the reef of seaweed.

Bukamon looks towards it glumly. “That was weird, Pichimon are usually so friendly and curious…” He turns back to me. “Any idea why it might’ve run away?” And if any other creature had asked it in any other manner, I would’ve taken it as an accusation. Now, though, the words ring to me as nothing but pure curiosity from a pure creature.

I shake my head.

“Gee, that’s weird…” He suddenly looks up at the sky above. I follow his gaze, turning my entire body in order to not break my neck. Now that I’m looking up, it’s actually gotten a bit dark. Not night-time dark, but just evening-dark. “We should probably go home soon.”

I catch his gaze and tilt my head, hoping the universal what-are-you-talking-about gesture still works.

His eyes widen a little, so it seems to have been effective. “Oh! Um, yeah, you’re young, so…” His smile turns wry, even though he should be way too young to look so adult. “Things get a bit weird around here at night. Being out and about, even if you’re in your Rookie form isn’t very good. Elecmon told me so. It’s safer on File Island, but in some places, like down here, lots of really weird digimon come out at night.”

Hm. Nighttime is dangerous, huh? I can accept it. That said, he used a word I’ve heard a few times before, specifically used to refer to these monsters.

Digimon. One digimon, many digimon. Digimons?

…Digimon.

The hell is a digimon?