"You're saying I gave up my most beloved mining career for my duties as Champion?"
Steven pointed to himself, his face filled with shock.
"You're saying I'm the most famous chef in the world?"
Wayne was also stunned.
So in this world, they were such important figures?
Byron didn't understand why Wayne and Steven were so shocked, but he still explained:
"That's right, Steven, your deeds are well-known. Not to mention your daily overtime on the front lines."
"Didn't you once work continuously for thirty-three days, almost going into shock, and then continued to work after being resuscitated?"
"Everyone praises you for pouring your heart and soul into Hoenn."
Steven's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.
Terrifying memories flooded his mind.
He had truly walked through the gates of death.
For a moment, Steven didn't know what to say.
Steven couldn't help but exclaim in his heart,
"My alternate self, you've worked hard."
Steven then made a grand vow:
Overtime?! Impossible!
Wayne stroked his chin, thinking it made sense.
Even if it wasn't overtime leading to collapse, although Steven loved mining, when had he ever shirked his Champion responsibilities?
When it was time to step up, he never backed down.
It was just working continuously for thirty-three days...
That was too extreme.
Even a workaholic wouldn't dare work that hard.
Byron then looked at Wayne and nodded. "You are number one on the Famous Chefs List, but you look a bit younger than in your picture."
As for Byron and Roark in this world, their relationship was very good.
Unlike the father-son duo of Byron and Roark that Steven and Wayne knew, who would argue whenever they were together.
However, that could be considered their way of showing affection.
If their relationship were truly bad, they would have long since gone their separate ways, and arguing would only cause themselves trouble.
Wayne looked at Steven. "You explain?"
Steven nodded slightly. "I'll do it."
Steven stepped forward, first giving them some reassurance.
"What I'm about to tell you might sound a bit fantastical, but please don't be surprised."
Byron nodded. "Just tell us."
"We might not be the Steven and Wayne you know. In short, we come from another world."
Inside the Oreburgh Coal Mine, for a moment, you could hear a pin drop.
"What?!"
Clang—first came the sound of a chandelier falling to the ground, followed by glass shattering everywhere.
The composed Byron successfully processed the news, but the young Roark and the miners were truly startled.
Byron and Roark's mouths hung open.
"We argue when we're together?!"
"How can that be?!"
Roark said earnestly, "Arguing with Father is wrong."
Byron waved his hand. "To be fair, that depends on who is right or wrong, not on status."
It took them a while to fully digest the massive amount of information.
"There's such an incredible thing?!"
"So you're not the Steven and Wayne we know. Then how should we address you?"
Steven couldn't help but chuckle. "We're also called Steven and Wayne, so let's not worry about the address."
Continuing to explain would be a waste of time, so Steven got straight to the point.
"We're here for something. I wonder if you have encountered three people like us here?"
Byron nodded. "Yes, they were taken out for treatment because they fainted. That's one of the reasons we're here."
Wayne successfully caught the key point. "One of the reasons?"
After a moment of hesitation, Byron's expression suddenly turned serious.
"Please follow me."
Wayne and Steven exchanged glances and followed Byron and Roark.
Following Roark and the others through winding paths and a tunnel, the space suddenly opened up.
Although it was still an enclosed space, it was bright enough due to the illumination of the reflection stones.
"Rayquaza?!"
Looking at the Shiny Rayquaza coiled inside the cave, even Steven couldn't help but be surprised.
The Shiny Rayquaza, resting with its eyes closed, had golden patterns on its body that shimmered under the light.
With the Shiny Rayquaza's steady breathing, the golden patterns on its body also lit up and dimmed like breathing lights, repeating the cycle.
"Rayquaza is injured."
The moment Wayne spoke, Rayquaza opened its golden eyes.
Suddenly, a strong wind swept through the cave, and Wayne and Steven instinctively raised their hands to shield their eyes.
Two Metagross simultaneously stepped forward, activating Light Screen to block the strong wind.
Even though they unconsciously felt fear, Dragapult, Arcanine, and Lucario still stood in front of Wayne.
But the Shiny Rayquaza was not angry. It saw a presence behind Wayne that no one else could see.
This was the reason for its injury.
Although the Shiny Rayquaza was defeated, it was not angry.
If it couldn't win, it would keep fighting!
Wayne, with his Intermediate Appraisal skill, had already figured out Rayquaza's status.
[Name]: Rayquaza (Shiny)
[Type]: Dragon, Flying
[Gender]: Genderless
[Ability]: Air Lock (All weather effects are nullified)
[Moves]: Dragon Dance, Dragon Ascent, Extreme Speed, Draco Meteor, Dragon Pulse, Ancient Power, Twister, Hyper Voice...
[Strength Rating]: Champion (Advanced)
[Status]: Severely injured
It already knows Dragon Ascent...
Wayne looked through Rayquaza's moves.
Learning Dragon Ascent meant that Rayquaza could Mega Evolve on its own through its special organ.
However, given Rayquaza's current state, that was certainly impossible.
The coiled Rayquaza partially propped up its front body, and a heart-pounding sense of oppression emanated from its dark golden eyes.
Even in its injured state, this was still a very formidable Rayquaza.
Perhaps no one knew better than Steven how formidable Rayquaza was.
However, the good news was that this didn't seem to be the Rayquaza that resided in the ozone layer.
The Rayquaza worshipped by the Draconid people, which could be summoned at Sky Pillar and resided in the ozone layer, was green.
But the Rayquaza in front of them was black.
This was an astonishing discovery.
Steven had always believed there was only one Rayquaza, never expecting that a Shiny Rayquaza also existed.
Through the Shiny Rayquaza's gaze, Steven accurately determined that Rayquaza was looking at... Wayne!
Why was it looking at Wayne?
Steven pondered internally.
Who could severely injure a Champion-level Rayquaza?
As Wayne pondered, the mechanical female voice sounded again within the system.
[Ding, optional side quest detected—Heal Rayquaza.]
[Quest Reward]: Rayquaza's gratitude, Pokémon Item Gacha Ticket × 2
Heal Rayquaza?
You want me to heal it in this state???
Wayne felt like a stampede of ten thousand Tauros was running through his mind.
With the Shiny Rayquaza's size, it could swallow Wayne in one gulp.
Byron explained, "This is the main reason we're here. We originally thought the three unconscious people were scared by Rayquaza."
Roark and the others had also only recently discovered Rayquaza and were considering reporting it to the League.
Then Wayne and Steven arrived.