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Dragonite, Tyranitar, Metagross, Salamence, Garchomp...
Choose one of these five pseudo-legendary families.
Roy first examined the image of the Dragonite group. It was Champion-level Dragonite that had left a deep impression on him, making him want to train one too.
There was another name for pseudo-legendary Pokémon: "late bloomers."
Pseudo-legendary Pokémon in their first evolutionary stage were often quite weak, inferior to other Pokémon of the same level.
In their second stage, they began to show glimpses of their potential, actually catching up to some Pokémon with good abilities.
In their final form, pseudo-legendary Pokémon displayed overwhelming power values capable of crushing almost any other Pokémon. Because of their extremely high Species Strength, they were the easiest to break through the species limit and advance to professional level—second only to actual Legendary Pokémon.
But with any pseudo-legendary Pokémon, there was no need to worry about potential. They simply excelled in different areas.
Therefore, Roy's selection focused on "personality."
In reality, although a Pokémon's personality didn't determine the distribution of stats like in games, it had greater influence than games portrayed. Using the phrase "character determines destiny" to describe its importance wasn't an exaggeration.
Elekid was a prime example of character changing destiny.
If he hadn't possessed that reckless personality that refused to admit defeat, Elekid probably couldn't have withstood the torture and might have died before meeting Roy. Even if they had met, Roy might not have been able to change his mind.
"The Pokémon of the Dragonite line are generally gentle and stable, with kind hearts..." Roy murmured.
"I need to pick someone who is motivated..."
He carefully observed the dragons, Dragonair, and Dratini in the image.
Two words came to mind.
Unmotivated.
Due to their unique racial advantages, the Dragonite family had no natural enemies in the Nirvana Spiritual Realm. They existed at the top of the food chain. Even when encountering other pseudo-legendary Pokémon, their gentle temperament led them to yield rather than engage in conflict.
So what appeared before Roy were carefree Dragonite lounging on the shore, basking in the sunlight and occasionally hunting water Pokémon.
Roy thought about it differently—if he were living such a life and suddenly someone came along saying they had chosen him and wanted to lead him to struggle and become the world's strongest, what would his reaction be?
Are you crazy?
Dragonite group: PASS.
Seeing Roy's apparent disappointment, Ho-Oh calmly explained:
"The most promising Dragonite in recent years has already been selected. The chosen one is the Champion of your country..."
I see.
Roy suddenly realized this also explained why Randon, born a commoner, had obtained a pseudo-legendary Pokémon like Dragonite.
"Besides, you don't need to consider the Salamence group," Ho-Oh continued. "Yesterday, someone took away the best offspring of the Salamence clan."
"Who?" Roy asked curiously.
Someone had gotten there first? Weren't they the first batch to visit the Nirvana Spiritual Realm?
"It was the chosen one from the United States."
"According to your human rules, they currently have the highest priority."
"..."
Roy frowned but didn't speak.
In the last global championship, Frances had finished as the runner-up, failing to complete three consecutive victories.
The winner of the global championship was the current Champion of the United States.
The dominance of the world was determined by the peaceful competition of "Pokémon battles"—this wasn't empty rhetoric but a universally acknowledged rule.
When it came to international affairs, the country that won the global championship received the highest priority.
For example, in allocating resources from newly discovered spiritual realms, the champion country always took the largest share.
For instance, imported goods like healing machines, Poké Balls, Pokémon food, Pokémon cosmetics, human technology, berries, and so on had reduced import taxes in various countries...
And as demonstrated now, the United States also enjoyed the highest priority for resources granted by Legendary Pokémon, while the runner-up, China, could only be second.
The duration of this championship privilege was four years.
This was the third year, and at the end of next year, another global championship would determine each country's status for the following four years.
"I'll participate in the championship in about a year and a half," Roy thought, feeling the timeline was still somewhat distant.
Following Ho-Oh's suggestion, Roy also eliminated the Salamence group and focused on the Garchomp, Metagross, and Tyranitar groups, looking for exceptional individuals among them.
Suddenly, on the battlefield between Metagross and Tyranitar, a figure caught Roy's attention.
Tyranitar had a violent personality, evident from its appearance alone, having earned the nickname "Sand Tyrant."
But few people knew that Metagross, despite its expressionless face, actually had a cruel personality and bad temper.
They were highly territorial and would attack intruders without hesitation.
Metagross possessed four brains forming a complex neural network, giving it computing power beyond advanced computers. Its fighting style was calm; it used superior computing abilities to analyze opponents' weaknesses and methodically push them into desperate situations.
The battle between these two species for territory was brutal—earthquakes trembled the ground, forests collapsed, and rivers dried up...
However, following rules established by Ho-Oh, they wouldn't attack enemies in a dying state and wouldn't commit genocide.
Among the two warring groups, there was one Beldum whose appearance and behavior particularly attracted Roy's attention.
First, its appearance.
The metallic color of a normal Beldum was blue.
But this Beldum's metallic color was off-white.
"A Shiny Pokémon..."
Roy was somewhat surprised. Although there was no difference in potential between Shiny Pokémon and ordinary ones, obtaining a Shiny was considered a mark of exceptional luck.
Immediately afterward, Roy noticed the abnormal behavior of this Shiny Beldum.
While members of its species fought violently against the Tyranitar group, this Shiny Beldum silently hid beside white rocks, using its pale coloration to avoid detection by enemies.
The Shiny Beldum wasn't avoiding the fight entirely.
Instead, it silently observed the battlefield with its single eye. When it noticed a member of its species in a stalemate with an enemy, it would rush out at astonishing speed, breaking the balance.
Immediately afterward, it would quickly hide again and search for the next target.
In just one minute, the Shiny Beldum had successfully helped four comrades defeat their opponents.
"Smart and cautious..."
With such an evaluation, Roy smiled appreciatively.
Pseudo-legendary Pokémon in their first stage were notably weak... Beldum was no exception. It could theoretically learn no more than five moves, and the only move it naturally knew was Take Down.
Even Caterpie might have better combat capabilities.
If it appeared on the front lines, the Shiny Beldum wouldn't be able to contribute much at all—the other Beldum fainted on the ground were evidence of this fact.
Smart and cautious, yet not lacking courage to fight, plus being a Shiny... Roy was already inclined toward it.
But at that moment, an unexpected change occurred.
On the screen, a Tyranitar approached the Shiny Beldum. When it was about to be discovered, the Shiny Beldum suddenly dropped to the ground, its eye staring blankly upward, appearing as if it had fainted. Its acting was remarkably convincing.
The Tyranitar withdrew its gaze and left the area. Its footsteps were so loud that the Beldum could confirm it had gone far away just by listening.
But even so, the Shiny Beldum lay on the ground for three full minutes before floating up again. It carefully hid behind a rock, observing its surroundings.
After half a minute of observation, it let down its guard and floated out.
It was as cautious as a veteran, hovering in place for a minute. After confirming there were no unusual phenomena, it slowly lurked back to the battlefield and returned to its previous sneak attack strategy.
Roy was speechless.
This Beldum was clearly intelligent, but perhaps too cautious.
Come to think of it...
Among my own Pokémon, except for Lucario who's fairly normal, the rest are more or less unique.
Ninetales is extremely attached to me, jealous...
Blastoise grew up from a naive child, its thought processes are fascinating...
Elekid is ridiculously reckless, with straightforward thinking...
Mimikyu is socially anxious and arrogant, preferring to hide in shadows...
Cosmog is a simple-minded glutton...
And this Beldum, which I'm quite drawn to, is an overly cautious fighter...
Why are all the Pokémon I encounter such characters?
Roy was a little dumbfounded but didn't change his mind.
I choose you, Shiny Beldum.
Roy declared, "I choose this Beldum."
"I see."
The moment the words were spoken, the Sacred Fire suddenly surged, and some kind of power spread outward.
On the screen, the two groups of Tyranitar and Metagross that had been fighting for territory seemed to receive some kind of signal. They stopped their attacks one after another, blank expressions on their faces.
A mass of purple flames descended from the sky, transformed into a bird-like shape, and grasped the Shiny Beldum with its talons.
"Bel! Dum!" The Shiny Beldum made panicked sounds, its expression... well, Roy wasn't expecting to see much expression from a metal creature's face.
The only way to judge Beldum's mood was through its single eye, which currently displayed a disturbed look.
The bird formed of Sacred Fire quickly returned to Bell Tower and set Beldum down.
"Dum..."
Once released, Beldum immediately headed toward the exit without hesitation.
However, halfway through its escape, it was affected by some invisible force, turning around automatically and moving back.
"From today onward, this human will be your Trainer," Ho-Oh proclaimed.
But unexpectedly, Beldum didn't obey. It continued struggling, trying to break free from Ho-Oh's influence.
This surprised Roy somewhat. Shouldn't all Pokémon in the spiritual realm obey the commands of the Legendary who ruled this space?
After Ho-Oh remained silent for a moment, it communicated with the leader of the Metagross group and received an answer.
"It seems this Beldum was born only a month ago, and I'm still unfamiliar with it."
The Sacred Fire surged, and Beldum was brought face-to-face with Roy, their eyes meeting.
"If you wish, I could use my power to make it submit. It would take only a few days for it to become obedient..."
"But that wouldn't be meaningful."
"As a Trainer, learning how to earn a Pokémon's trust and convince it to follow you is an essential quality."