An uneasy feeling surged up from the depths of her heart. Without a moment's hesitation, Lorelei gave a sharp command to her Dewgong.
In an instant, Dewgong turned its head, the Blizzard it had been gathering already condensed and unleashed directly toward its rear.
At that very moment, a Weavile was darting at extreme speed straight toward Lorelei!
Noticing that its ambush had been discovered, Weavile's claws glowed with a sinister purple-black light, crossing before it slashed downward with immense force.
Night Slash!
Dewgong's Blizzard was cleaved apart by the strike, scattering into shards of icy snow.
Immediately afterward, the Weavile leapt back with incredible agility, retreating to stand before Karen. Its eyes, brimming with malice, locked coldly onto Dewgong.
"To think you actually noticed… tsk, tsk~ it seems the mighty Elite Four's Lorelei does have some skill after all."
Karen's voice carried mock pity, but the expression on her face remained the same provoking, ridiculing smile that only made Lorelei's eyes turn colder.
"I'll tear that filthy mouth of yours wide open." Lorelei's voice was as frigid as the ice she commanded.
She had already had enough of this vile woman's endless taunts.
"Oh~? If you think you can, then by all means, come and try."
Karen let out a derisive laugh. A joke—other than her teacher and Giovanni, there was no one she feared!
Lorelei? Heh~ what a laugh.
-------------------------------------
Celadon City, once praised as a harmonious city where many generations lived together in peace.
But now, the once-thriving commercial street was engulfed in flames of war. Most of the residents had already evacuated in advance, but there were still a few who had either stayed behind to gather belongings or simply out of dissatisfaction had refused to leave.
Yet with things as they were now, even if they wanted to flee, there was no chance anymore.
Everywhere on the streets, Rocket Grunts clashed fiercely with League personnel.
"Oh, Arceus above… why is something like this happening…"
Inside one of the nearby houses, a middle-aged man peeked out through his window at the chaotic battle unfolding below. Cold sweat ran endlessly down his forehead.
The very next instant, a beam of icy light shot past, scraping across the window right in front of him.
The man's soul nearly flew out of his body. He yelped in terror, stumbling backward in panic until he slipped and fell heavily onto the floor.
"Help! I'm stuck in Celadon City's commercial district! What should I do? They're fighting outside, I'm so scared! Someone, please send rescue—posting online for help!"
The man scrambled shakily into a corner, trembling as he pulled out his phone with tear-filled eyes. He opened the Kanto forums and frantically made a post begging for aid.
At this moment, regret gnawed at his heart. He regretted it—truly regretted it. Last night, when the League officers came by to issue their warnings and notices, he had thought it was all some kind of joke.
Never could he have imagined that danger had always been lurking so close by their side.
---------------------
Amidst the ruins of the destroyed Game Corner, Lucas raised his head to the stormy skies.
Above, Reshiram and Dragonite were clashing violently.
"Fusion Flare!"
Lucas's short silver hair was drenched by the downpour, sticking to his face. Seeing the draconic energy of Dragon Pulse hurtling toward Reshiram, he barked the command without the slightest hesitation.
Reshiram's massive frame retreated a few steps back, the turbines on its tail glowing a deep crimson. A massive fireball began to form before its body, writhing serpents of flame endlessly coiling around its surface.
Fusion Flare!
With a roar, Reshiram hurled the enormous blazing sphere forward, directly into the incoming Dragon Pulse.
BOOM!
The two attacks collided with earth-shaking force, shockwaves rippling outward violently. Yet in the next instant, under the furrowed brows of Lance, Reshiram's Fusion Flare gradually overpowered Dragon Pulse, its momentum unceasing as it pressed on toward Dragonite.
"Dragon Dance!"
Dragonite twisted its body and dodged swiftly, its movements following an mysterious rhythm, its speed and strength climbing higher and higher.
The power-amplifying Dragon Dance!
"As expected of the Legendary Dragon of Truth… its strength even surpasses my Dragonite."
Lance licked at his parched lips, the corners of his mouth twisting into an increasingly frenzied grin.
His pride—his Dragonite—was actually being suppressed by Reshiram!
Yes, the battle had not lasted long, yet already Dragonite was clearly being overwhelmed by Reshiram's sheer might.
For Lance, this was an unprecedented experience.
At any other time, if his ace Dragonite had been suppressed, Lance would have felt nothing but humiliation and fury.
After all, he was Lance Blackthorn—Kanto's Champion!
The pinnacle of the Indigo Plateau, standing tall as one of the strongest Champions of the entire world!
It was unthinkable, impossible, that he could lose—much less lose to another dragon!
From the moment he first debuted, Lance had been advancing with an undefeated stance, his dragons crushing opponent after opponent.
An indomitable will, unbreakable conviction, and an unstoppable legion of dragons—these had built the legend of Dragon Master Lance, undefeated in the eyes of the world.
Dragons are proud and mighty creatures, and Lance was no different. Beyond his dragons, Lance himself was a proud, mighty dragon in human form.
And yet now, his strongest ace was being forced down by another dragon.
But rather than feeling strangeness or shame, what Lance felt deep within was—excitement!
Because his opponent was none other than the Legendary Dragon of Truth itself—the dragon said in Unovan legend to have shaped the very region into being!
If even a Legendary Dragon did not wield such strength, then Lance would only feel a crushing disappointment.
"Dragon Dance, is it? Even if you boost your Dragonite's strength, Cousin Lance, the gap of racial talent between species remains an insurmountable chasm."
Watching Dragonite whirl midair in its empowering dance, Lucas chuckled lightly, lowering his head with a faint smile as he spoke.
Yes, a top-tier Champion could indeed wield a team powerful enough to match even ordinary Legendary Pokémon.
Had Lance encountered a wild Reshiram in the wilderness, then even if his Dragonite managed to fight evenly or even press the Legendary back, Lucas would not be surprised.
But this Reshiram before them was not some wild Legendary.
The racial talents of a Legendary were among the greatest in the world—second to none. They were species born under the blessing of fate itself!
An ordinary Pokémon with superb potential might, through specialized training and ceaseless effort, approach the level of a Legendary. But to actually surpass a Legendary who trained just as hard… was nearly impossible.
"Talent and species, is it? Lucas… even if it is a dragon-type Legendary, that does not mean it is invincible. Today, I'll make you understand this truth!"
Lance sneered coldly. He admitted it—Reshiram's power surpassed Dragonite's. But that did not mean he had no chance at victory.
He revered dragons. He longed for Legendary Dragons. But he had his own pride, and Lance had never believed that simply facing a Legendary Dragon guaranteed defeat.
"Dragonite, Dragon Rush!"
With a fierce roar, Dragonite's body surged forward, hurtling toward Reshiram like a blazing comet.
"Dragonairs, Dual Draco Meteors!"
Lance's commands came unceasing. Above, the two Dragonair twisted and intertwined, their long serpentine bodies coiling together as they gathered immense, pure draconic power.
Dual Dragon Combat Technique!
A massive Draco Meteor, as if it contained within it the stars of the cosmos itself, formed between the two Dragonair and shot upward.
At its apex, the meteor shattered apart, breaking into a shower of radiant fragments.
A storm of draconic meteors cascaded down, blanketing the skies in a dazzling, destructive rain, all aimed directly toward Reshiram.
"You've even mastered the Dual Dragon Technique of Draco Meteor?"
Lucas raised his brows, a flicker of genuine surprise crossing his face as he looked at the meteor shower that veiled the sky.
He had to admit, even if Lance had yet to touch upon the true realm of a Master-level trainer, his strength within the domain of top Champions was already pushed nearly to its peak.
After all, Lance too had once dominated his entire generation as a peerless prodigy. It was just that the threshold of the Master-level had trapped countless geniuses in history—Giovanni, Lance… both had met this wall.
"I wonder though… if this world's Lance were to battle Leon, who would win?"
Even in the middle of the clash, Lucas found such a whimsical thought flashing into his mind.
After all, in the anime of his previous life, Lance's shiny Gyarados had been defeated by Leon's Charizard. And why was it Gyarados and not Dragonite, his beloved ace, that was used against Leon?
…Well, because "Dragonite" had been detained at customs and wasn't allowed to participate…
Still, Lucas couldn't help but wonder—this arrogant, obsessive Lance standing before him, how would he fare against Leon?
"Whatever the case, he's still my cousin. No way he'd lose to some outsider, right?"
Lucas chuckled inwardly. Though he and Lance didn't exactly get along, Lance was still family.
Losing to him was one thing—but losing to Leon as well? That would be unacceptable.
"Reshiram, Dragon Pulse!"
Lucas shook away the stray thoughts and focused his command.
If someday his cousin truly did lose to Leon, Lucas promised himself that he'd personally "educate" him on how to properly wield dragons!
Reshiram's pure, resonant dragon's roar echoed through the heavens as a brilliant beam of draconic light erupted from its maw, lancing toward the onrushing Dragonite.
Dragon Pulse clashed directly with Dragon Rush!
The skies quaked with the turbulent storm of force, yet gradually, it became clear—Dragonite's Dragon Rush was still inching forward, bit by bit, pushing into Reshiram's beam.
"Blue Flare!"
Lucas's eyes narrowed slightly. Truly, Lance's ace Dragonite was formidable.
Reshiram seemed to sense it too. The turbine at its tail flared with blinding flames, the surrounding rain evaporating into steam under its blazing heat.
The next instant, Reshiram's Dragon Pulse flared, transforming into a breathtaking azure inferno, erupting forward in a pillar of searing flame.
Blue Flare!
"A Legendary's signature move…?"
Lance frowned deeply. Just like with Fusion Flare earlier, he had never seen this technique before.
There was no doubt—this was Reshiram's exclusive attack.
Dragonite's body blazed with draconic aura as it crashed headlong into the Blue Flare. Energy collided in a deafening explosion, shockwaves raking the battlefield, the sheer power making it nearly impossible to even look upon the two combatants.
But soon, with Reshiram pouring more strength into its flames, the Blue Flare suddenly swelled in size, violently bursting past Dragon Rush and slamming directly into Dragonite's body.
"Dragonite!"
Lance's pupils shrank. His Dragonite—forced back in a direct clash!
The scalding flames of Blue Flare battered Dragonite mercilessly, the dragon crying out in pain as its body was overwhelmed and driven downward.
BOOM!
Dragonite crashed violently into a storefront, the entire building shattering under the impact, burying the dragon beneath rubble.
"Dragonairs—Dual Dragon Hurricane!"
Lance didn't even spare a breath to check Dragonite's injuries, instantly ordering his Dragonair to act.
The Dual Draco Meteor had immense power, yes, but without Dragonite's support to pin Reshiram down, actually landing a hit was nearly impossible.
He needed another move to force Reshiram into distraction.
The two Dragonair lifted their heads high, harmonious dragon calls resonating together as the orbs on their necks glimmered with light.
A colossal black tornado roared to life, tearing across the battlefield as it barreled toward Reshiram.
"This kind of move won't make much difference."
The storm winds whipped Lucas's hair and clothes about violently, but that was all.
The rain of dragon meteors descended from the heavens, but at Lucas's side, his shiny Dragonair rose into the sky to shield him.
"Well then… we've got plenty of time. I can play with you as long as you want, cousin~"
Lucas glanced at Dragonite, who was breaking free from the rubble and rising shakily to its feet. His smile only deepened.
Even though it had just taken Reshiram's Blue Flare head-on, Dragonite was naturally resistant to fire-type moves.
And as Lance's ace, Dragonite's physical endurance and stamina had been honed by Lance to their absolute limit.
Even so, there was no denying it—the blow from Blue Flare had inflicted serious damage.
"The outcome has yet to be decided, Lucas!"
Lance's face darkened. Though Lucas had gained the upper hand, beneath his frustration, excitement still welled within him uncontrollably.
As expected, a Legendary Dragon truly was overwhelming in its strength.
(End of Chapter)