"What are Pokémon to you?"
The Dragon Elder asked her first question.
Clair pouted from the side.
Here we go again...
The same questions every single time. Couldn't she come up with something new?
She had been hearing these questions since she was a child and was thoroughly sick of them.
"Uh..."
Silas hesitated for a few seconds.
"I suppose they're my family."
"Huh?"
Clair blinked in surprise.
Scratching the back of his head, Silas explained,
"I'm an orphan. I didn't really have any friends growing up, so to me, my Pokémon are family. They're just a little younger and a lot more mischievous."
"I see."
The Dragon Elder smiled faintly, her expression unreadable, before turning to Brock.
"And you?"
"Me?"
Brock clearly hadn't expected to be included.
Still, he answered without much hesitation.
"I'd say they're my partners. Partners who grow stronger together and live together."
Clair nodded in agreement.
"The second question."
"If you want to win a Pokémon battle, what is the single most important factor?"
The Dragon Elder immediately continued.
"The Trainer's commands and the Pokémon's own abilities."
This time, both young men answered identically.
A Pokémon battle had never been the responsibility of only one side.
Trainer and Pokémon always complemented each other on the battlefield.
It was a principle that many Trainers firmly believed in.
Of course, there were still plenty of people who blindly believed only in the Trainer's skill or only in the Pokémon's strength.
Such thinking was fairly common among inexperienced Trainers.
But as one's strength and experience grew, that mindset became increasingly rare.
The Dragon Elder nodded slightly.
"Third question."
"What kind of Trainer do you want to battle?"
"What kind?"
Neither of them understood immediately.
"Whether they're strong or weak."
Clair eagerly jumped in before either of them could answer.
"As for me, I like battling powerful opponents. That's what makes battling fun."
Brock nodded in understanding.
"As Trainers, we should have the courage to challenge strong opponents. I don't particularly enjoy battling, but I won't shy away from it either."
"As for me..."
Silas thought for a moment.
"It doesn't really matter."
"What do you mean by 'it doesn't matter'?"
"The identity of my opponent isn't important."
"The important thing is that once a battle begins, as a Trainer, I must never betray the trust and effort my Pokémon place in me."
"That's all."
Silas explained calmly.
Most of the time, he accepted any challenge that came his way, even from random Trainers he met on the road.
Even if battles couldn't further improve Pokémon like Pidgeot or Blaziken, his newly acquired teammates could still build confidence and strengthen their trust in him through constant victories.
Besides...
He had to admit it felt pretty satisfying to teach overconfident people a lesson after defeating them.
"What is the most important aspect of raising Pokémon?"
"I think it's knowledge. Only then can you understand each Pokémon's potential and development."
"Money, knowledge, and trust."
"Which is more important, a strong Pokémon or a weak Pokémon?"
"There's really no difference."
"They're both partners."
"The stronger one may simply be more useful in battle."
"Exactly."
"You can't just abandon your Pokémon because it's weak. A Trainer who does that isn't worthy of being called a Trainer."
The conversation continued rapidly.
One question from the Dragon Elder.
Two answers from the young Trainers.
Fortunately, her questions focused mainly on Trainers' values and their relationships with Pokémon rather than obscure trivia or bizarre knowledge tests.
Because of that, Silas and Brock simply answered honestly without overthinking.
After asking more than a dozen questions, the Dragon Elder finally nodded in satisfaction.
"You two young men are far better than my disappointing granddaughter."
She gave her verdict.
"Grandma!"
Clair stamped her foot angrily.
Was it really appropriate to criticize her own granddaughter in front of guests?
Besides, she didn't think there was anything wrong with herself.
Apart from freaks like Lance, there were very few people her age who had already become official Gym Leaders.
"Go, go."
"If you're not doing well, why shouldn't I say so?"
"Have you finished today's training yet?"
"Get to the backyard!"
The Dragon Elder waved her walking stick, chasing Clair away.
Silas couldn't help feeling a strange sense of déjà vu.
It looked remarkably similar to how Clair had just been coaxing her grandmother into going off to feed the Dragonair earlier.
With an annoyed expression, Clair walked away.
"I heard from Clair that you've come to participate in the Rising Dragon Ceremony."
The Dragon Elder looked at Silas.
He nodded.
Whoosh.
The Dragon Elder suddenly tossed something toward him.
Instinctively, Silas caught it.
It was an ordinary wildflower that could be found almost anywhere by the roadside.
The only unusual thing about it was how exceptionally healthy it looked, with brilliant, vibrant blossoms.
Silas looked puzzled.
"This is...?"
"Keep it."
"You won't tell me you can't even make the top ten of the ceremony, will you?"
The Dragon Elder offered no further explanation, simply telling him to accept it.
Silas didn't hesitate.
He carefully placed the flower into his backpack.
He had no idea what it was.
But considering the Dragon Elder was the guardian of the Dragon's Den, it was almost certainly something that would prove useful later.
"As for you..."
The Dragon Elder turned to Brock.
"Take this."
She tossed another item toward him.
Silas recognized it immediately.
A Dragon Scale.
He had obtained one himself only a few days earlier at Mt. Mortar.
That only made him more certain the wildflower was something extraordinary.
There was no way the item he'd received would be worth less than Brock's.
Silas had absolute confidence in that.
The only question occupying his mind now was. Just how many things was the Dragon Elder hiding inside that suit of samurai armor?
"Oh dear..."
"I'm getting old."
"Time for my afternoon nap."
The Dragon Elder muttered to herself as she slowly walked away, leaning on her cane.
Silas and Brock exchanged bewildered glances.
Old Kabu approached them with a warm smile.
"My apologies."
"Please come with me."
"Is there anywhere else you'd like to visit?"
He led the two of them farther into the Gym.
Behind one of the stone pillars beside the battlefield.
Clair looked at her grandmother.
"Grandma, why did you give him that flower?" Lance has much better judgment than you do."
The Dragon Elder answered with something completely unrelated.
Clair rolled her eyes.
She was already used to her grandmother favoring Lance.
Mainly because she knew she couldn't beat that guy anyway.
"By the way, Grandma..."
"About those Dragon Tamer questions just now..."
"By the way, Grandma about those Dragon Tamer questions just now..."
Before she could finish, the Dragon Elder interrupted her.
"When you truly understand them yourself, you'll naturally be able to answer them."
With that, she turned and walked toward another exit.
A faint blue-violet light flashed briefly in her eyes before disappearing.
Clair remained standing silently where she was.
Those questions had never been asked casually.
Among the Dragon Tamers, the process was known as Questioning the Heart.
There was no point trying to lie.
Because before the Dragon Elder, everyone would answer according to their true feelings.
Meanwhile...
After thanking Kabu, Silas and Brock returned to the Pokémon Center in Blackthorn City.
"We're back!"
The moment they stepped inside, a noisy commotion erupted.
Countless eyes immediately turned toward. Silas, standing beside Brock.
"It looks like they've figured out who you are," Brock teased.
He had never enjoyed being the center of attention, so this suited him just fine.
As for Silas' identity. Naturally, everyone believed he was Ho-Oh's Messenger.
Silas himself knew he wasn't. But he did possess the Rainbow Wing.
And this was Blackthorn City, a place with an ancient history rivaling Ecruteak City itself, where reverence for Ho-Oh ran deep.
Even setting that aside, what Trainer didn't dream of seeing a Legendary Pokémon?
Of course simply wanting to witness one and wanting to capture one for power were two entirely different things.
Not everyone remained as calm as Silas when facing a Legendary Pokémon.
Silas rubbed his nose, only to realize he was still wearing his mask.
"I thought this thing would hide my identity for a little longer."
There was still a full week before the Rising Dragon Ceremony began.
Being exposed this early, he could already imagine what the next several days would be like.
They're definitely going to be interesting.
Brock couldn't help laughing.
"Unless you get plastic surgery and replace all your Pokémon, those intelligence brokers were always going to identify you."
Not necessarily, Silas thought.
Those three from Team Rocket wander around wearing fake mustaches and wigs, and even Officer Jenny can't recognize them.
Surely wearing a face mask is an even better disguise than that.
"Maybe I should ask James later if they have any good ideas."
He pondered the possibility.
Fortunately this was a Pokémon Center.
Although many Trainers wanted to "have a chat" with Silas, they restrained themselves out of respect for Nurse Joy.
Besides, they knew why he had come here.
There would be plenty of opportunities later.
"Two single rooms, please, Nurse Joy."
The two handed over their Trainer identification cards at the reception desk.
Nurse Joy quickly completed the registration.
"Here are your room keys."
"One more reminder."
"Since the Rising Dragon Ceremony is approaching, lost room keys cannot be replaced. In addition, your room key may be used as the wager in Trainer battles."
"If someone challenges either of you with room keys at stake, you are required to accept one such challenge per day."
"I challenge you!"
"Me too!"
"Hey! Stop cutting in! He's mine!"
The instant Nurse Joy finished speaking, the surrounding Trainers rushed forward.
Silas grinned mischievously.
"Looks like having special privileges during this period isn't such a good thing."
To his surprise...
None of them had come for him.
Every single one of them had targeted Brock.
Although everyone wanted to battle Silas, they also knew exactly how strong the so-called Messenger of Ho-Oh was.
Barely eighteen years old, he had already reached the Top 16 of the Indigo Conference, only losing narrowly to the eventual Champion.
After another six months of growth, nobody believed his strength had remained stagnant.
Quite the opposite.
Rapid improvement was exactly what everyone expected from a Trainer of his caliber.
The Trainers gathered in Blackthorn City were certainly above average. But they weren't overflowing with League semifinalists or finalists.
Naturally, no one intended to gamble their room key against Silas.
There were easier targets.
Brock, on the other hand being the heir to the Pewter Gym sounded impressive.
But the intelligence reports also emphasized that he specialized in Pokémon breeding.
Nobody believed a Breeder could be particularly strong in battle.
A monster like Silas only appeared once in many years.
Brock narrowed his eyes.
Silas knew immediately that his friend was getting irritated.
People always pick on the easiest-looking target.
That saying wasn't wrong at all.
But Brock was proud as well.
Being treated like a pushover because of his appearance and profession...
Naturally, he wanted these people to learn what it meant to kick solid steel instead of soft fruit.
"Enough talking."
"You lot."
"One at a time."
"None of you are leaving."
Brock pointed a Poké Ball at the arguing Trainers.
They were still fighting over who would earn the right to challenge first.
"Huh?"
One of them stared in disbelief.
Looking around, everyone else wore the same expression.
"Young man, don't be so overconfident."
"You should know your own limits."
A Hiker kindly offered his advice.
Though it sounded more insulting than helpful.
"There are six Trainers here challenging you."
"Every one of us is an experienced Elite-level Trainer."
"Two of us even reached the Top Four in regional League tournaments and are recognized as pseudo-Elite Four–level Trainers."
"Setting strength aside, our experience far surpasses yours."
"The genius beside you might be beyond us..."
"But you definitely aren't."
Another Trainer wearing glasses adjusted them, trying to help Brock "understand the situation."
"The backyard battlefield."
"Now."
"Immediately."
"You, the fat Hiker over there."
"You're first."
Brock's already serious expression darkened completely.
Just how little do these people think of me?
"Haha, then I won't be polite."
"Everyone else can wait for next time."
The Hiker laughed happily, already acting as though victory belonged to him.
The other five Trainers looked disappointed.
Even so, they all followed toward the battlefield.
After all...
What if?
Meanwhile, the forgotten Silas was laughing so hard he could barely contain himself.
He could already imagine exactly how this was going to end.
Brock's Onix was already among the strongest Pokémon at the pseudo-Elite Four level.
His recently evolved Golem was no slouch either.
And on top of that h also had an Elite-level Ninetales.
Judging purely from those three Pokémon, Brock's overall strength wasn't much lower than Silas's own.
Besides this wasn't going to be a full six-on-six battle. These challengers had walked straight into a loaded cannon.
Chuckling, Silas followed behind to watch the show.
"Stop."
A familiar voice suddenly called out.
Silas raised an eyebrow and turned around.
"Oh?"
"Isn't this my old defeated opponent, Reggie?"
"We meet again."
"What a coincidence."
Reggie's usually expressionless face twitched violently.
Why does this guy's mouth get worse every time we meet?
"I challenge you."
He got straight to the point.
"I refuse."
Silas answered without even thinking.
Accepting only one challenge per day wasn't much of a restriction.
"You're afraid."
"You've never beaten me."
"You don't dare battle me."
"You've never beaten me."
"Are you even a man?"
"You've never beaten me."
...
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