BEEEP! BEEEP! BEEEP!

  The shrill beeping of my smartphone's alarm and the persistent vibration on the bedside table stirred me awake. My right hand reached out to turn on the lights before silencing the alarm.

  I set the alarm for 3 AM, allowing ample time to freshen up, change into a fresh set of clothes, and catch the Hotel-Airport shuttle by 3:30 AM.

  As a habit, I checked the notifications that came through while I was asleep. One of them caught my eye in my email and inbox.

  [Jet Jones,

  Congratulations!

  You have been chosen as a Digi-Destined candidate from Earth 008.

  The installation file for converting your smartphone into a Digivice is attached at the end of this email. After installation, you will receive a Digi-Egg bonded to your Tamer I.D number 111401003.

  You will become an official Digi-Destined if you raise your Digimon Partner to the Mega-Level in 30 days.

  Good luck!]

  I stare at the message for several seconds in disbelief.

  Are fans of the Digimon franchise dumb enough to install this obvious scam?

  I tapped the trash button on the right side of the mail, but the message wouldn't disappear. I thought something was wrong with the touch screen because it didn't work even after a dozen tries, but I could delete the other spam messages without a problem.

  "Weird!" I commented out loud and then realized I wasted 10 minutes on this when I should have gotten ready for my flight. I tossed the phone on my bed, rushed to get changed, and called the Hotel reception through their landline to confirm the schedule of the Airport Shuttle.

  Twenty minutes later, I boarded the self-driving electric bus, which was empty except for me, in the 50 seats. I checked the display, which indicated a 30-minute journey to the airport, and settled into a seat at the back. There wasn't any traffic on the road at this hour, so I expected to arrive on time.

  When I unlocked my phone, I noticed something was wrong. My home screen wallpaper had changed to an animated image of an Orange Digivice. Upon checking my mail, I found the Digivice file had been downloaded.

  I cursed myself, realizing I may have accidentally touched the install button when I tossed my phone onto the hotel bed. I searched through the download folder and confirmed my suspicion when I found the file's storage time.

  A notification popped up when I tried to use the uninstall button.

  [The Digivice cannot be uninstalled unless the candidate fails to become a Digi-Destined in 30 Days]

  "Are you freaking serious?" I muttered out loud.

  I went onto Google to see if this scam had affected anyone else. To my surprise, a few hundred people worldwide posted about it on Reddit and made YouTube videos. They all mentioned how the file was undeletable and how the company that owned the Digimon Franchise had no clue about it.

  Some posts mentioned that their smartphones refused to shut down or reboot to factory settings, which I found disturbing. The hacker who created this program could mess around with all brands of smartphones.

  Some victims suggested draining their phone batteries to force a shutdown. It seemed a good idea until I saw a victim sharing screenshots showing 100% battery, even after playing high-graphic, battery-draining mobile games for half an hour. The online community took it as a joke and mocked the one who posted it.

  I glanced at the battery icon, which showed 100%, which wasn't odd since I only disconnected it 10 minutes ago when I left my hotel room. I decided to play some games to drain the battery.

  When the shuttle bus stopped at the airport's departure entrance, the battery icon still showed 100%, confirming that the victim was telling the truth. I quickly left a comment to support the victim's claim and found that two others had done the same. After getting off the bus, I hurried to the check-in counter to drop off my suitcase and obtain my boarding pass.

  The airport's departure terminal was eerily quiet, with only a scattering of people standing in line, waiting for assistance from the ground crew for their respective flights. A few weary travelers were queuing up at the nearby coffee kiosks, desperately seeking a caffeine fix to combat their sleep deprivation.

  Despite having had enough rest, I couldn't resist the temptation of a butter croissant as I strolled towards my departure gate. While munching on it, I walked over to the flight status board. I noticed my flight was not on the list but was delayed due to an unexpected weather phenomenon. Originally scheduled to depart at 4:30 AM, the new estimated departure time was now 6:30 AM. Frustrated by the delay, I resigned myself to waiting. As I settled near the gate, I attempted to connect to the airport wifi to check if the Digivice issue had made the news. To my surprise, my smartphone was already connected to the internet without requiring a wifi connection, leaving me puzzled once again.

  When I launched the BBC News app, I found an article titled 'The mysterious Digivice-Virus,' which detailed the extraordinary abilities the infected phones had obtained. Maintaining a full charge indefinitely was there, with access to an unlimited internet connection at an astounding download speed of 50 GB/sec. I was shocked by the download speed and involuntarily let go of my phone, causing it to fall to the floor with a resounding thud.

  Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  "Shit!" I cursed as I picked it up, inspected the screen, and felt relieved to see no damage.

  I returned to the BBC app and found a new article with a video showing an old man whacking a construction hammer on his smartphone, failing to break the device or even damage the screen.

  "It made our phones indestructible!" The man said.

  I wanted to confirm if it was true, so I hurled my phone to the polished white marble floor with all my might. The action caught the attention of the airport staff and passing travelers, causing my cheeks to flush with embarrassment. "Sorry! I have anger management issues!" I blurted out as I hurried to retrieve my phone, only to find it miraculously without a scratch, crack or dent.

  "Damn! What else can it do?" I mutter with a smile.

  "Is everything alright, sir?" a woman in a crisp uniform bearing the British Airways logo asked, concern etched on her face.

  "Yes, I just lost my temper," I replied, trying to sound annoyed to keep up the lie.

  "Because of the flight delay? If it helps, we can upgrade you to first class as compensation since several seats are available there," she offered with a sympathetic smile.

  "Oh, that would be great!" I replied with genuine gratitude, feeling guilty for lying.

  "Are you traveling for tourism or business?" she inquired, her voice laced with curiosity.

  "Ah! I was accepted to Cardiff University in Wales for the International Human Resources Masters post-graduate program. I will be studying there for a year," I blurted out excitedly.

  "That is a great opportunity. If you give me your boarding pass, I will upgrade it," she said warmly.

  After a few minutes, she returned with my boarding pass, but her expression had changed.

  "Your flight is no longer coming to this airport. So, I switched your boarding pass to one that is about to leave in 10 minutes for Paris. You can take a connecting flight from there free of charge," she informed me apologetically.

  "What happened to it?" I asked.

  "The BBC will report it soon, so I might as well share it. The plane collided with a bird, forcing the pilot to execute a controlled crash landing. Everyone on board survived, as far as I know." the attendant disclosed, leaving me startled and wide-eyed.

  I thanked her for sharing the sensitive information and exchanged my boarding pass for the other flight. In a rush, I made my way to the gate, where the final boarding call was announced, and managed to get in before it closed. As I settled into a plush first-class seat, an air steward informed me that my suitcases had been successfully transferred to the plane.

  The aircraft took off several minutes later, and I gazed out the window at the sprawling city below. My seat's inflight entertainment screen informed me it would take over ten hours to reach Paris, and it would be an hour before food would be served. Instead of watching a movie on it, I chose to inspect the Digivice app, which caused a glitch in reality to make smartphones gain godly abilities.

  When I opened the app, a seventeen-minute countdown appeared. I learned that the countdown was for users attempting to access the app. I put on my ear pods and waited patiently, scrolling through the news articles and watching short videos until the countdown reached zero.

  The Digivice app opened and loaded independently, revealing a wiggling white Digi-Egg on the phone screen. I had previously played Digimon games on the Nintendo DS, where players had to touch the Digi-Eggs to hatch them. I tried the same, and the egg cracked with just one touch. I repeated the process until the egg shattered and a Botamon was revealed. Then, a notification screen with its details appeared.

  [Your partner is a Botamon!

  Level: Baby / Fresh

  Botamon is a newly born creature with a slime-shaped body covered in thick, black fuzz. Being just born, it is not capable of engaging in battles. One of its attacks is "Bubble Blow," where it produces bubble-like objects from its mouth to intimidate its opponent]

  The Botamon appeared as a 2-D animation and made bubbles when I touched it. However, that was also possible in many touch-screen games.

  A cartoon animation of a chibi, Black Gatomon, popped in from the right side of the screen and explained a few things in English with a female voice.

  [Congratulations on hatching your first Digimon!

  To raise your Botamon properly, place the following items within your Digi-Farm from your inventory box.

  Tiny Meat field - Provides 50 KG of food per day

  Punching bag - Increases ATK, DEF and DEX

  Treadmill - Increases HP, STA, and SPD

  Water fountain - Provides water to hydrate

  Bookshelf - Increases WIS and MP]

  An interface appeared on the screen, and I found an inventory bag icon containing the items she mentioned. A small floating grass island shaped like a Diamond materialized on the screen right after that. My Botamon fell onto the island and began exploring it until it was disappointed by the lack of anything on it. So it went to sleep, and the 'Z z Z z' icon appeared in a bubble above it.

  "Guess I will go along with the instructions."

  I tapped on the screen to drag and drop the items all at the center of the map.

  [Tip! Don't place all the items together]

  "I see."

  I relocated the gym equipment to the island's east corner, the meat field to the west corner, the fountain to the center, and the bookshelf to the southern end.

  Once that was done, a portal appeared at the northern end of the map with an exclamation mark on top. I clicked on it, and Black Gatomon's voice came through once again.

  [This is the portal that leads to the Digi-World. But it is locked until your Digimon reaches the Rank of Rookie]

  "Umm... if you don't mind explaining what the purpose of this game is?" I ask.

  [The Digi-Farm is not a game. It's the home of your Digimon Partner and contains the portal to the Digital World, which is filled with hostile Digimon who will try to kill him. If he dies there, he will reappear in your Digi-Farm as a Digi-Egg, and you will have to raise him from a baby to Rookie again. So, do your best to make him strong enough to survive and bring back plenty of resources to upgrade your Digi-Farm so that he can Digivolve to Champion, Ultimate, and finally Mega! If you manage to do it within 30 days, you will qualify to become a Digi-Destined and go to the Digital World to serve Yggdrasil]

  Go to the Digital World?

  At one point in my childhood, I dreamt of becoming a Digimon Tamer and exploring the Digital World. But I buried that dream when reality set in, and I had to focus on my studies.

  If there were a real opportunity to go there and become a Digimon Tamer, I would rather take that path than study and work in HR.

  I was mentally committed to taking this task seriously and believed everything the Black Gatoman shared.

  "I see. Can I only raise one Digimon?" I ask.

  Most Digimon games I played before allowed a Tamer to raise two, three, or six Digimon.

  [Your Digivice has a total of six Digi-Egg slots. When your partner defeats a Digimon in the Digital World, they will revert into a Digi-Egg. Bring it back to the farm, and it will be bonded to your Tamer Account. However, only three Digimon partners can be sent to the Digital World at a time, and only one of them has to reach the Mega Level to fulfill the condition for you to become a Digi-Destined officially. So you do not need to raise them all to Mega to get the job done]

  To be continued in the next episode...