Back in Ore Town, Salamon pounced into Aomori's arms, repeating excitedly, "Master, Master! The Digi-Egg hatched! The Digi-Egg hatched! Come look, quick!"
"The egg hatched?" A spark of joy flashed in Aomori's heart. Carrying Salamon, he hurried back into the stone castle and found them in his room.
Absol, Ditto, and Akihiko Kayaba were all there, gathered around a fist-sized, pitch-black Digimon perched on top of Absol's head.
"Master, Master, this is Botamon!" Salamon introduced to Aomori.
"I know." Aomori leaned in, intending to pick up the little fellow, but it shrank back, dodging him.
"This little guy is quite shy." He reached out again, gently scooping it up and holding it in his palm.
Botamon was covered in black fuzz that felt soft to the touch. A pair of bright eyes stared blankly at Aomori. Perhaps sensing that Aomori meant no harm, it settled down quietly in his hand.
"What a miraculous world," Akihiko Kayaba remarked. Witnessing the birth of life firsthand was a profound experience for him. "The propagation of life is the foundation of a world's development. I previously underestimated the significance of life."
"You can ponder those insights later. Right now, the priority is: what does a Botamon eat? Do you know?" Aomori asked.
"Well, it's a digital lifeform. Theoretically, feeding it some data should allow it to grow."
"Wouldn't that be a bit too early?" It was so tiny; feeding it raw data might be too much.
"Salamon, what did you eat to grow up when you were little?" Aomori turned to ask his partner.
"Um... I don't remember anymore." Salamon shook its head.
Aomori slapped his forehead, realizing his mistake. Why was he asking these inexperienced guys? "Never mind, I'll go ask Centarumon and the others."
Under Centarumon's guidance, Aomori and the group learned about the diet of Fresh-level Digimon.
"It seems I didn't eat those things back then," Salamon mused. Having lived a nomadic life in the wild, it had likely eaten whatever it could find. It was a miracle it had managed to evolve into the Rookie level so smoothly.
Once Botamon was full, it became drowsy. Within two minutes, it had fallen asleep in Aomori's palm.
Taking the opportunity, Aomori pulled out a Poké Ball and, without a hitch, captured Botamon.
Digimon, too, should be raised from a young age so they know to repay kindness when they grow up.
Leaving Botamon to sleep inside the Poké Ball, Aomori summoned all the Digimon in Ore Town to distribute some "rewards."
Gotsumon, Mojyamon, Centarumon, and the others lined up in neat rows on the open ground of Ore Town, looking expectantly at Aomori, who stood on the stone steps.
"It has been two days since you gained your freedom. During this time, we have been observing your performance. You have all done very well. Therefore, I have specially selected two Digimon to receive rewards granted by me, HellKnightmon."
"That's great!"
"Is there a share for me?"
Hearing that it was a reward rather than a punishment, the Digimon breathed a sigh of relief while growing excited about the potential benefits.
"Next, the Digimon whose names I call, follow me into the stone castle to receive your rewards." Aomori scanned the crowd before speaking slowly. "The first is the Gotsumon Leader. The second is the Centarumon Leader!"
"It's me! I was chosen!" The Gotsumon Leader was overjoyed, while the Centarumon Leader gave a steady, half-kneeling bow of gratitude.
The other Digimon groaned in disappointment. Why weren't they chosen?
"Very well, you two, follow me."
The Gotsumon Leader and Centarumon Leader followed Aomori into the stone castle, where Akihiko Kayaba, Absol, and the others had been waiting.
"Um, can I ask what the reward is?" Once inside, the Gotsumon Leader's joy faded, replaced by a touch of trepidation.
"You'll find out soon enough." Aomori signaled to Akihiko Kayaba to step forward.
Kayaba nodded, walked up to the Gotsumon Leader, and said, "Since you're so anxious to know, let's start with you."
"O-okay." The Gotsumon Leader swallowed nervously.
Kayaba drew a data strand from a stored cluster of data and, under the shocked gaze of the Gotsumon Leader, inserted it into its body.
"So hot! My body is burning!" After accepting the data strand, the Gotsumon Leader's body began to emit green smoke as it rolled on the floor in agony.
"It's not enough. Kayaba, add another one." Aomori could sense a power awakening inside it, but it wasn't yet sufficient to trigger a metamorphosis.
"Understood." Kayaba drew another data strand and pushed it into the struggling Gotsumon Leader's body.
This time, it finally acquired enough data to begin evolving.
After a flash of brilliant light, the formerly short Gotsumon had transformed into a tall, burly Golemon.
"I... I evolved?" The former Rookie-level Gotsumon Leader, now a Champion-level Golemon, looked at its own body, feeling as though it were dreaming.
"It seems to be a success." Aomori smiled and asked Golemon, "How do you feel?"
"I feel great! Better than ever! I'm bursting with power!" Golemon pounded its chest, venting its irrepressible excitement.
The Centarumon Leader was both shocked and envious; shocked that Aomori could force a Digimon to evolve, and envious that Gotsumon had received such a blessing.
However, excitement soon took over, knowing it would also receive the same gift and become a higher-level Digimon. For a Centarumon who had seen many fail on the path of evolution, this was like a miracle graced by a god.
Thus, Centarumon knelt on both knees, offering its complete loyalty to Aomori: "Lord HellKnightmon, I, Centarumon, am willing to serve you for all my lives. I only pray that you grant me power so that I may take another step forward on the path of evolution."
Surprised by this sudden gain of loyalty, Aomori nodded with a smile. "Very well."
Following instructions, Akihiko Kayaba repeated the process, inserting data strands into Centarumon's body.
The amount of data required to evolve from Champion to Ultimate was far greater. After consuming four data strands, Centarumon finally evolved into Armormon.
Its physique remained similar, the lower body of a horse and the upper body of a humanoid, but it now appeared to be wearing a specialized armored combat suit, and it carried far more weapons.
Armormon looked at the changes in its body, panted twice, and then knelt again, saying devoutly, "Thank you for your gift. Armormon is at your command."
Aomori, who had been quietly prepared in case Armormon lost control, relaxed. He nodded and said, "Good. Keep up the hard work. Evolving into a Mega-level is no longer an impossible dream."
Mega-level!
Armormon was filled with unprecedented motivation. "Yes, sir!"