Evening of January 21st.
Outside the Larousse City Battle Tower, the crowd was so massive that packed like sardines no longer sufficed to describe it. Even though it could be watched via live broadcast, many people still wanted to witness and experience the upcoming exhibition match in person.
Not long ago, the news that a heavyweight exhibition match would be held at the Battle Tower tonight had already been announced citywide by the cube-shaped robots. Electronic promotions for the exhibition match filled the streets and alleys of Larousse City.
The identities of both participants had been disclosed from the very beginning. Because they were from different regions and quite some time had passed since the Shamouti Island incident, many people in Hoenn were not very familiar with Lucas. They also didn't connect him to the young and promising trainer named Nemona's teacher from the recent viral Champion test livestream.
However, since Professor Lund and the others had not concealed Lucas's status as a Champion-level trainer, no one questioned whether he was qualified to battle the other participating trainer.
After all, compared to Lucas, the opponent was the undisputed pinnacle of Hoenn trainers—excluding the two Champions who frequently alternated at the top. The Dragon-type Elite Four member, Drake!
Once news spread that he would be holding an exhibition match at the Battle Tower in Larousse City, the entire city—and even nearby cities—began to stir. Even now, many people were probably still boarding the sea-crossing train, continuously heading toward Larousse City.
This was the Pokémon world. Even someone who didn't appear often carried the living billboard of being an Elite Four member. This also allowed him to sail the seas as a captain without any worries.
Among this huge crowd, Ash and his group naturally blended in. However, thanks to their new friend Tory's identity, they had obtained hard-to-get tickets through the back door. Even their other newly made friends received some.
Chatting about the strangely appearing aurora from the afternoon, the group made their way through the crowd and openly entered through the back door using Tory's higher-authority pass.
While entering, Rafe—who had been their opponent that afternoon using Blaziken—dropped his usual calm and composed demeanor. With some yearning, he said:
"I never expected to see Mr. Drake's battle today. Coming all the way from the southern city for the Battle Tower was totally worth it!"
The twin sisters Kathryn and Audrey fully supported their big brother Rafe. "Yeah, yeah! I'm his die-hard fan!"
Sid, who used Blastoise, nodded in agreement. Then, with agility surprising for his slightly chubby build, he suddenly dropped to one knee in front of the unprepared May. "However, right now, in my heart, May-chan, you are number one!"
"…Ahaha."
May could only offer an awkward yet polite smile.
The usually silent and somewhat socially anxious Tory suddenly spoke softly. "Then what about Mr. Drake's opponent? Since he was also invited, does that mean he's also at that level of trainer?"
As Professor Lund's child, Tory had clearly inherited some of his father's intelligence. From a different angle, he steered the topic elsewhere.
The moment his words fell, Ash immediately chimed in. "Of course! Master is super~ amazing!"
To add credibility to his words, Ash and Pikachu synchronously raised their arms, trying to express their excitement with exaggerated gestures.
"Master? Mr. Drake's opponent is your Master?"
Sid asked curiously.
Ash scratched his head a little embarrassedly and laughed awkwardly: "Master hasn't acknowledged it yet. It's just me calling him that one-sidedly."
"…I thought so."
Sid shrugged. He really couldn't imagine how a trainer capable of holding an exhibition match against Mr. Drake could have taught someone as rough and careless as Ash. During the afternoon Battle Tower spars, Ash had pulled quite a few wild stunts, making them doubt multiple times that he was actually an experienced trainer who had once won a League Conference.
"Still, I'm more optimistic about—or rather, strongly support—Mr. Drake." Rafe paused again. "After all, he's a genuine Elite Four member. As for what level a Champion-level trainer actually is… it's hard to say for now, but I imagine it shouldn't be on par with a regional Champion."
Sid and the twin sisters strongly agreed with his words. May and Tory hesitated slightly, since they had witnessed the strength of that Delibird. Tory stayed silent, Brock smiled without saying anything, and Ash got fired up, seemingly ready to debate Rafe and the others to the end.
At that moment, the quiet girl who had been hugging her laptop and looking something up pushed up her glasses and muttered in a voice only she could hear: "Unknown… very interesting."
Though noisy along the way, the group successfully reached the best front-row seats and sat down. Next, they only had to wait for the exhibition match to begin.
In the waiting room, one could faintly hear the noisy cheers of the audience coming from beyond countless walls. Lucas felt a slight sigh. Today was probably the first time he had ever participated in a battle with such a grand setup. The vast venue and sea of spectators were proof. This was the first time he had been so in the spotlight.
After all, previous battles had either been closed-door or had very few spectators. If he had to pick the battle with the most viewers, it would probably still be the recent debut match against Nemona in Mesagoza.
Only now, looking back, did he realize why his popularity wasn't as high as Drake's. He really couldn't blame anyone else. Who told him to rarely show his face in official competitions?
That afternoon, after reaching an agreement with Professor Lund and essentially picking up for free the important piece—"reward"—needed to build his own ecological dome, Professor Lund, who had become extremely excited after seeing his son Tory's "battle" on TV, had rushed out with assistant Yuuko.
With nothing to do, Lucas had released Luxray, Pupitar, and the others and strolled grandly around Larousse City. If the exhibition match notification hadn't come down around 5 p.m., he might have wandered even longer.
After all, having his and Drake's huge portraits plastered all over the streets was hard to stomach. Lucas could only slip into the Battle Tower early before curious crowds surrounded him. Coincidentally, Professor Lund had called him at exactly that time.
Lucas looked up at the program broadcasting the sea of people outside. Sudden surprised shouts erupted from the crowd—not because old man Drake had wandered into a mob of fervent fans, but simply due to changes in the gradually darkening night sky.
Layer upon layer of brilliant curtain-like auroras flickered in the night sky, as if carrying someone's longing for another. This strange natural phenomenon naturally caused surprise among the crowd.
Auroras are caused by solar wind. When solar wind reaches Earth, its high-energy charged particles are guided by the planet's strong magnetic field along magnetic lines to the poles. That is a beautiful natural phenomenon unique to those two regions.
After all, the Hoenn region is, strictly speaking, a coastal tropical area—not polar—so such brilliant light and shadow in the night sky should not appear. Notably, this was not the first time such auroras had appeared. Around 4 or 5 p.m. that afternoon, auroras had also appeared on a small scale in Larousse City.
Leaving aside the commotion caused by the unreasonable auroras, at least Lucas knew very well how these auroras were triggered—or rather, who was causing them.
The DNA Pokémon that had been defeated by Rayquaza on the ice plains four years ago, its entire body destroyed in one breath, leaving only its core crystal to fall into the deep sea. It had spent a long four years regenerating—Deoxys.
That's right. Deoxys had already arrived in Larousse City. Amid countless magnetic field interferences, it was trying to locate its companion's traces. And the auroras were this extraterrestrial Mythical Pokémon's unique method of communication.
Lucas had not encountered it that afternoon, nor did he plan to. Because this time's plot could reach the perfect "everyone gets wrapped up nicely" ending without his intervention.
After tonight, tomorrow would be when Rayquaza, sensing Deoxys's aura, would come chasing after it—the time of Larousse City's large-scale evacuation. Rayquaza really held grudges. After four years, upon sensing the same aura again, its first reaction was to come kill it. It was quite persistent.
Thankfully, the black one he had provoked had been thrown far away by Calyrex and should be hard to encounter.
A knock on the door interrupted Lucas's thoughts.
"Mr. Lucas, it's almost time."
After the "knock knock," a vigorous male voice came from outside. There was nothing much to prepare for, and no need for mental preparation either.
After replying, Lucas stood up and opened the door. A somewhat sturdy Battle Tower staff member, with a work ID hanging from a red lanyard around his neck, smiled.
"I'll lead you to the competitors' prep area."
He made a guiding gesture and led Lucas through winding passages until they reached a pitch-black space.
"Please wait a moment."
The staff member spoke respectfully, then turned and communicated via earpiece with what was likely the control room. Once he received clear instructions, he said: "Next, you only need to step onto the conveyor belt. It will take you to the competitors' prep area. Afterward, that area will automatically rise and bring you to the higher battle stage. Please don't be nervous."
The introduction was detailed in every aspect. Lucas nodded slightly and stepped directly onto the silently operating conveyor belt.
The moment he steadied himself, a force carried him forward. On the running belt, every half meter there was a rotating red ring serving scanning and communication functions. A faint red light shone on Lucas. It did not perform facial or iris recognition but accurately detected the pass in his pocket.
A synthesized mechanical voice sounded: "Pass confirmed. On-site registration complete. Mr. Lucas, we wish you an enjoyable exhibition match."
At that moment, the conveyor belt reached its end. A red-and-blue circular platform patterned like a Poké Ball came into view. Shortly after Lucas stepped onto it, the conveyor belt extending from the passage automatically retracted. The safety door closed tightly, and the surroundings suddenly darkened.
With the clicking sound of mechanical rotation, the battle platform began to rise under the lift mechanism, getting closer and closer to the light source above.
Then, the noisy atmosphere of the vast space turned into a heatwave, rushing toward him!
On the enormous circular platform also divided into red and blue sections, spotlights simultaneously shone on Lucas. From high above, the enthusiastic voice of the commentator riding a flying device rang out.
"On the blue side is one of the trainers participating in this exhibition match—a Champion-level trainer from the Paldea region, Lucas!"
In the huge space, the enthusiastic audience filling the stands still gave face and erupted in cheers. Lucas could faintly hear voices belonging to Ash and Pikachu.
But when the commentator introduced the red side's entering trainer, the atmosphere changed abruptly, and even the commentator's voice rose involuntarily.
"On the red side is the pride of our Hoenn region—an experienced trainer who commands the power of Dragons, Elite Four member Drake!!!"
Leaving aside the commentator's obviously biased introduction. The moment Drake appeared, the cheers from the stands came like a tidal wave—twice as loud as when Lucas entered. No, ten times, even nine times louder.
Lucas's expression remained unchanged. Using the spotlight's glow, he observed the white-bearded old man before him: wearing a white captain's hat, a black open-front jacket, with a weather-beaten, chiseled face forged by years of wind and sun.
He was Hoenn's Elite Four member, Drake. Just like Agatha of Kanto, Bertha of Sinnoh, Drasna of Kalos, and the senior of Paldea. As the most senior Elite Four member in Hoenn, his strength was far above that of ordinary Elite Four members.
For safety's sake, when facing him, Lucas would best use his main team. But he had no such intention. Whether it was Luxray plus Mimikyu or Mega Swampert plus Politoed, both lineups were overkill. It was just a battle against an Elite Four member. No need to take it that seriously.
Drake was unaware of the "arrogant" thoughts in Lucas's mind. He raised the two Poké Balls in his hands.
The commentator's voice introducing the battle rules echoed in his ears through the broadcast, but Drake—who already knew it was a Double Battle—looked at Lucas and said calmly: "Come on, let me see the strength of a Paldea Champion-level trainer."
"Then please guide me well, Senior Drake."
Lucas smiled slightly and threw out the red-and-white Poké Ball and Level Ball he had prepared.
As the beams of light shot out from the Poké Balls, the next instant, both sides shouted simultaneously:
"Roar! Salamence, Haxorus!"
"Go! Moltres, Victini!"
…