When it came to preparations, there really wasn't much to do.
It was just a trip to Fury Falls—at most, an overnight stay. It wasn't much different from a spring picnic.
All he had to do was stuff his go-to supplies into his spatial backpack and bring along a tent in case he needed to spend the night.
Once he'd finished handling all the farm business, Lucas paused as he packed his things.
After a moment's thought, his determination solidified, and he strode firmly toward the cold storage.
Might as well bring more meat. With Ceruledge as company, they could even enjoy a wild BBQ at night. How comfortable would that be?
Once most of the essentials were ready, Lucas moved swiftly to select which Pokémon to bring.
Dragonite—definitely taking it. Ceruledge—essential, for emergencies. Comfey was a must-have as well.
Then there was Appletun, Ogerpon and the Tinkatink twins, along with the now-promoted "BBQ star" Larvesta.
This lineup exceeded the standard party size by one, but it wasn't a problem.
After all, Lucas wasn't a formal Trainer and wasn't subject to the system rules on limits. As long as he could carry them, he could bring as many Pokéballs as he wanted.
"Whoa, are these goggles?"
Ready to leave, Lucas bent down, carefully examining the goggles perched atop Tinkatink's head.
"Tanu~!"
Tinkatink, quite proud, snapped the goggles over her eyes and struck a pose.
She'd thought ahead!
Since they'd be flying to the area, she knew they'd need to deal with harsh wind and cold, so goggles were a necessity.
It wasn't just for herself—she'd prepared a pair for Lucas and Dragonite too. Good pal Ogerpon already had four different masks, and since she wouldn't be riding Dragonite anyway, Tinkatink hadn't bothered getting one for her.
"Well, thanks for thinking about us."
Lucas accepted the goggles and gave the other pair to Dragonite. The two shared a smile.
Thanks to Dragonite's steadily improving wind control, even at high speeds, no strong gusts could trouble them or those on Dragonite's back.
Still, it was the thought that counted.
Both Lucas and Dragonite put on their goggles without hesitation. The fit was surprisingly perfect—neither too tight nor too loose.
If you could craft this well out of metal, Tinkatink's skills were already quite impressive.
As for the lenses, they were probably courtesy of Oranguru.
Shortly after...
With Dragonite's melodious dragon cry, the trio—decked out in matching goggles—soared into the sky, disappearing beyond the horizon.
…
North Paldea, "North Province Area Two"
Lucas had assumed there would be at least some people here—even if not crowded, it shouldn't have been deserted.
But reality was the opposite. Aside from a handful of backpackers, it was mainly hurried travelers passing by.
There were certainly none of those happy family vacation scenes, or tour groups led by guides waving little flags.
"Weird."
Lucas mumbled softly.
Yet, Tinkatink and Ogerpon were in high spirits, already discussing from which angle they'd ambush that pack of Bisharp.
First time traveling far from home, Larvesta followed right behind Lucas like a little lamb, curiously taking in the environment so different from the farm.
Even though this was close to Glaseado Mountain, and the temperature approached that of winter...
The plant life here didn't seem too affected. Sure, yellowed leaves and bare branches were inevitable, but this mountain-surrounded area was still bursting with vibrant greenery and sprawling lakes.
Wild Murkrow occasionally perched in trees, but the typically plentiful Swablu were nowhere in sight.
Likely the approaching winter drew them to warmer climes.
As they passed a mountain with a rushing waterfall, Lucas paused. Under Tinkatink, Ogerpon, and Larvesta's confused stares, he glanced thoughtfully at the waterfall cascading down the mountainside.
But this wasn't the famed "Fury Falls," one of Paldea's Ten Sights.
If he remembered correctly, behind that waterfall lay the Firescourge Shrine—home to the legendary "Ruin Quartet" Pokémon, Chi-Yu.
In fact, along the way, he'd seen a few of the stakes used to seal it.
But Lucas hadn't recklessly yanked them out. He simply marked the coordinates for later, planning to revisit after returning from Alola to consider a long-term solution.
He still remembered his promise to Raifort.
To try purifying the four legendary Pokémon linked to disaster—see if he could turn them into symbols of fortune instead.
He'd try his best, at least.
Heading on, Lucas acted as if completely ignorant of Chi-Yu's presence and continued toward the bamboo forest.
He distinctly remembered that somewhere near the mountain or waterfall, in the game, a high-level Dragonite would fly overhead. But back then, no matter what he tried, Lucas had never managed to battle that Dragonite.
The reason was simple.
Because the ride Pokémon—Koraidon or Miraidon—had no flight mode. Like a fool, Lucas just chased after the Dragonite for ages, never able to trigger a battle.
Now, even with all sorts of ways to take to the sky, that Dragonite had yet to respawn in the area—not even a trace of Dratini or Dragonair!
Disappointed, Lucas kept going with his three Pokémon, heading further for the bamboo forest.
…
Before they could even reach the bamboo, two apparent Trainers called out to him.
Both looked about sixteen or seventeen, a little younger than Lucas himself, with standard-issue travel backpacks and innocent, clear eyes.
Clearly, they were Trainers exploring together.
One was a braided girl in black-rimmed glasses, who warned him, "I really think you shouldn't go any further."
She glanced uneasily at the Pokémon following Lucas.
Ogerpon—she didn't recognize it all, but it didn't look very strong.
Larvesta—she remembered from class, but it wasn't that powerful pre-evolution; even with a type advantage, it'd be hard to break through an ambush.
As for Tinkatink—she didn't even want to say it.
Her research said Tinkatink were always bullied by Bisharp, getting their hammers stolen and eaten.
Beside her, a guy with a once-foil-permed hairstyle added, "We're Naranja Academy graduates. There's a 'King' in the bamboo now—even Scyther, Lokix, and Grafaiai stay far away."
"Unless you absolutely have to... no, actually, even if you have a reason, bro—you really shouldn't go in there."
"With that King around, those Bisharp are impossible for anyone but top Trainers to handle. Plenty of people have had their metals and ores—bought from Zappapico—stolen, and they're just waiting for the League to step in at this point."
Both meant well.
With just this team, it would be crazy for this friendly-faced big brother to enter the bamboo forest alone.
They had to warn him.
After some anxious babbling, and once he'd gotten the details, Lucas's expression turned thoughtful.
So, a "King" kingpin had taken over, looting people by force with his Bisharp gang. To reach Fury Falls—one of Paldea's Ten Sights—you had to go through this very bamboo.
No wonder there were so few tourists, Trainers, or backpackers. If you tried to fly over, you'd probably just get shot down. That explained a lot.
Smiling, Lucas asked, "You guys really don't recognize me?"
He wasn't being vain.
Even without much publicity, he often got recognized on the roads, and plenty of neighbors had learned who he was.
Yet here were two academy grads worried about his safety—what a weird feeling.
"Do we know you?" the two exchanged glances, stumped.
If not for their classes in courtesy, they'd probably have just said, "And you are…?"
"No worries!" Lucas wasn't the least bit embarrassed—he reached out and introduced himself, "I'm Lucas, just a regular farmer these days. I'm also a battle instructor at Naranja Academy, and I used to hold Paldea League's 'Champion' title before I retired."
"I am quite interested in this 'King' and his bandit Bisharp. Would you mind telling me more?"
The first half of his introduction left both relieved—if they hadn't stopped him, who knows what trouble the "powerless" Lucas would've faced?
But as he went on, something felt off.
First, the mere mention of "battle instructor" was enough to make any graduate shudder.
Then, the title—"Champion"—completely floored them.
Wait, could someone even be all three things at once!?
Boy and girl stared at each other, twin earthquakes in their eyes. Had they really spent so much time in the wild that society had left them behind?
About two kilometers from the bamboo, Lucas grilled the duo for details.
The boy was Rood, the girl Phil—both proper Naranja Academy graduates.
But their major wasn't battle; they specialized in wilderness exploration, meaning they spent most of their lives outside, only rarely entering towns for supplies. So, they missed most of the news.
Since neither was a formal Trainer, they only had the academy-issued Pokémon: Scizor and Espathra.
Given the pure evil and steel types of Bisharp and the "King," they were completely countered and, frankly, not much good at battling anyway.
Occupations in the Pokémon world are varied—not everyone's a Trainer. There are rangers, breeders, farmers like Lucas, ordinary workers, housewives, and explorers like Rood and Phil.
Since they lacked the power to put down the bandit Pokémon, they'd notified the League and just did their best to steer visitors away from Fury Falls or mass spawns of Chewtle.
"We pieced this together from various people," Phil said, pushing up her glasses and producing a packed notebook.
"Bisharp compete for leadership, and whichever stands at the peak of the group can, under the right conditions, evolve into the famed 'King'—Kingambit."
At this point, Rood picked up the story:
"Since you're an instructor, you probably know the rest. I'll just cut to the chase."
"Witnesses say that over the past months, infighting among Bisharp has run rampant. None could truly dominate, so things just dragged on endlessly."
"Because of that, the exhausted Bisharp rarely blocked tourists on their way to Fury Falls. Then, one day, everything changed."
"A Bisharp born in the group inexplicably outgrew the rest. After a series of battles, it defeated every challenger, claimed the top spot, met some special condition, and evolved into a Kingambit."
"Once the new Kingambit emerged, the whole group unified. In a few short days, things escalated to what we have now."
With that, the two finished their findings and looked to Lucas, waiting for his response.
Now that Lucas had called himself a former Champion, not even Rood and Phil could doubt his ability to handle the case—especially given the impression top Champion Chairwoman Geeta left on them.
What they did care about was: How was Lucas going to handle it?
Lucas didn't answer straight away. Instead, he turned to Tinkatink and asked, "Does this have anything to do with your stolen hammer?"
Based on what he'd learned, the only thing that might've boosted that Bisharp was Tinkatink's prized hammer.
It might be nothing—or it might be everything—Lucas was just tossing it out.
After all, Tinkatink's background was mysterious, and who knows what rare metals were in her hammer.
But Tinkatink's answer surprised Lucas.
"Tanu!" She nodded, looking thoroughly unhappy.
That hammer was the pride of her elders—crafted from all sorts of rare materials, including a broken Kingambit blade!
But her hammer was swiped by those brutes—which made her furious!
...