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Henry. Caroline. Roy.
In the eyes of the world, these three trainers had already demonstrated enough talent to become Elite Four members. Given enough time, there was a high probability that their potential would be realized.
The three of them had appeared at the same time. If the media had captured this moment, they might have created headlines like "Meeting of the Three Kings" or "The Three Elites of the Future."
Roy looked around and saw no one except the three of them.
"Is no one coming to pick us up?" he asked.
"There is no place for humans in the Nirvana Spirit Realm," Henry replied.
Henry obviously had some understanding of this place and explained: "Ho-Oh prefers quietness and nature, and this spirit realm has always maintained the most primal conditions. The ancient tower in the distance is a relic from another world. It's called the Bell Tower. Except for that tower, there are no products of human civilization here..."
"That tower is where Ho-Oh lives."
As he spoke, Henry gazed at the tower with reverence and curiosity toward the Legendary Pokémon.
Even as the only son of the Champion, he had never directly faced a 'Legendary' before.
Roy thought for a moment. This wasn't a dangerous area; the Pokémon hadn't turned violent, and with the strength of the three trainers, there would be no accidents. So he asked, "Should we go to Bell Tower by ourselves?"
Henry smiled and said, "No need. We should wait for the 'Divine Messenger' to take us there..."
"Messenger?" Roy's heart skipped a beat.
Caroline turned her head to look at the entrance of the forest. A pleasant yet emotionless sound reached their ears.
"He's coming," she said quietly.
The moment her voice faded, a pure breeze blew from the north.
With the wind came a hazy mist, and through the fog, a leopard-like figure appeared before the three trainers.
Its skin was like a crystalline lake, adorned with white cloud-like patterns. Its flowing mane rippled in the wind, surrounded by streamers, with a crown resembling deer antlers.
Suicune.
The first impression of this Legendary Pokémon was that it was as calm, gentle, and clear as pristine water.
"Suicune," Henry recognized it immediately.
The existence of Entei, Suicune, and Raikou wasn't a secret; they were Legendary Pokémon widely known throughout the world.
This was because these three often traveled all over the planet, with frequent sighting reports. They were called the "Legendary Beasts."
Suicune possessed the ability to purify water sources, regularly touring the world to clean polluted waters before departing with the north wind.
It was therefore also known as the incarnation of the northern winds.
The last time Suicune had appeared in public was a year ago, when it purified nuclear waste water that an island nation had dumped into the Pacific Ocean.
Similarly well-known Legendary Pokémon included the "Legendary Birds," which also made appearances in various parts of the world.
Looking at Suicune curiously, Roy remembered that in the Pokémon world, there weren't just single entities like the "Legendary Birds" and "Legendary Beasts"; there were multiple Suicune, Moltres, and others...
Among them were some less impressive Suicune who couldn't even break free from fishing nets.
Roy didn't know what was happening on Earth, but even if there were multiple entities that could serve as Ho-Oh's messenger, this Suicune must be the strongest one.
Suicune didn't speak but gestured with its eyes for the three to follow, then turned and walked toward Bell Tower.
"Let's go," Henry took the lead and followed.
The mountain path through the forest was difficult to traverse—very steep and challenging for people without mountaineering experience.
Henry obviously had extensive adventure experience, and Roy's physique had been strengthened. The two walked very quickly and appeared relaxed. In contrast, Caroline, who wasn't using her Psychic abilities, was no different from an ordinary person in terms of physical strength. Fine sweat appeared on her white forehead as she fell behind, panting.
Roy turned his head to look at Caroline and asked curiously, "Why isn't she using her Psychic powers?"
"She probably feels it would be disrespectful to use Psychic abilities to travel in the presence of the messenger," Henry replied, clearly a straightforward man. "She relies too much on her Psychic powers. It's good for her to exercise physically."
From his tone, Henry seemed to know Caroline very well. Roy asked, "Are you and Caroline well acquainted?"
Hearing this, Henry showed a wry smile, shook his head and said, "I'm just familiar with her unilaterally. She's always been distant, even with Elite Carter. Junior, you probably don't understand what it feels like to be consistently outclassed by one person for two years? How could I not get to know her?"
Indeed, Roy thought. Henry was obviously a genius of the same caliber, but because he was one year younger, he had been forced to endure being overshadowed for two years before making his debut. That must have been quite frustrating.
Caroline probably didn't realize that restraining her power was actually a way to inadvertently create rivals.
Wait—did Roy also want to challenge Henry this year? That would be interesting.
Thinking about this, Roy suddenly said, "I'm going to help our senior."
"Well..." Henry was taken aback, but before he could stop him, Roy walked up to Caroline and extended his hand to her.
The young Dragon trainer couldn't help but laugh, guessing what Roy was thinking.
The younger trainer thinks I have a bad relationship with Caroline, so he's trying to help bridge the gap.
You're mistaken, junior. I've made similar gestures many times, and many others have as well, but Caroline refuses all physical contact with others. Even women are no exception. This is why, despite her excellence and impeccable appearance, she doesn't have any friends.
However, in the next moment, Henry's smiling face froze, his eyes filled with astonishment.
What did he see? Caroline was actually holding Roy's hand!
"???"
Henry was at a loss.
He followed Suicune, looking back several times to see the two holding hands as they walked, finally confirming this was reality.
Remembering the embarrassing scene when Caroline had rejected his handshake after he lost their match, Henry's scalp tingled.
...am I the clown here?
Along the way, Henry wore an expression of someone questioning his entire life.
With Roy's help, Caroline felt much more relaxed, and her pace improved.
Soon, the three arrived at the base of Bell Tower.
The gate of Bell Tower opened automatically with a sharp sound.
After Suicune signaled for them to enter, it departed with the wind.
This time, Roy took the lead and walked in.
The first floor inside the tower was pitch black without any light.
Just as Roy was wondering what to do, a purple spark suddenly appeared in the air and quickly ignited into a ball of flames, illuminating the entire first floor of the tower with a purple glow.
Henry frowned in surprise, "This flame... I can't feel any heat from it."
Caroline didn't look at the flame but silently watched as Roy released her hand.
Roy didn't notice, watching the mysterious flame as a name appeared in his mind.
Sacred Fire.
A strange flame that could only be controlled by Ho-Oh and its messenger, Entei, one of the three Legendary Beasts.
It was said that this flame contained the power of 'resurrection.'
The will of Ho-Oh descended upon them.
A voice with no age, no gender, and no emotion could be heard—a voice from the sacred one.
"Are you the chosen ones of this generation from China?"
Roy almost couldn't hold back his laughter.
As soon as the words "Chosen One" were uttered, he wasn't surprised that a Phoenix-like creature might emerge from the flames.
Henry also showed confusion and asked, "Lord Ho-Oh, what is a 'chosen one'?"
"It's just a name. You don't need to understand its meaning yet," Ho-Oh replied. "When you grow to the strength you should possess, you will be qualified to know."
Roy raised his eyebrows. Caroline and Henry were both professional trainers; if they weren't qualified to know the truth, then the threshold was indeed quite high.
Henry also wore a thoughtful expression.
Everyone was guessing what the threshold might be.
Ho-Oh continued, "Summon your strongest Pokémon."
The three reached for their Poké Balls as instructed.
Roy chose Lucario, of course. After practicing the "Totem Aura" during this period, Lucario's body had undergone a second development, and his height had reached 1.75 meters, almost catching up to Roy's height.
Not only had his body size increased, but Lucario under normal conditions had also reached the "species limit value," and his comprehensive evaluation had reached the A+ level.
It was Roy's most formidable Pokémon among all he possessed.
Caroline chose Gardevoir, who had a previous connection with Roy.
After emerging from its Poké Ball, Gardevoir didn't look at the Sacred Fire first but turned its head and looked at Roy with resentment, clearly remembering that its Trainer had almost given it to this man.
It's not my fault, Roy felt wronged, and looked at Henry's Pokémon.
Logically speaking, Champion Frances's signature Pokémon was Dragonite, so Henry should have the same.
However, common sense in the biological world didn't apply to Pokémon.
Genetically similar Pokémon of the same Egg Group could reproduce. What hatched depended on what kind of Pokémon the mother was. It had nothing to do with the father, who merely provided genes.
If Dragonite's partner was Garchomp, then the offspring would be Gible.
Henry's signature Pokémon was also a massive Garchomp.
After the three Pokémon appeared, the Sacred Fire burned violently, and Roy suddenly felt a gaze projected from the flames, sweeping over the three Pokémon.
"This Gardevoir... its breeding is excellent," Ho-Oh said, appreciation evident in its tone for the first time. "Are you ready? When will you challenge for the Elite Four position?"
"Huh?!"
Both Roy and Henry showed surprised expressions and looked at Caroline.
She still maintained a calm expression and replied, "In one year, I will challenge."
It was still February.
After the New Year, it would be almost the middle of March.
At that time, Roy would be 19 years old, Henry would be 23, and Caroline would be 24.
If her challenge was successful, she would become an Elite Four member at 24 years old...
This was only one year later than the record set by the current Champion, Frances.
If the time was strictly calculated, Caroline was actually only a few months behind...
This talent undoubtedly surpassed the evaluation of her as a future 'Elite' by the outside world.
She had the potential to become a true Champion.
Henry clenched his fists tightly.
In the more than 100 years since Trainers had emerged, there had never been a "female Champion" in the world.
Ho-Oh seemed pleased with her reply.
"Very good," it said. "When you succeed in your challenge, you will earn the qualification to climb to the second floor."