Seeing Auron so serious, Dax couldn't hold it together anymore. He scratched his head awkwardly, looking somewhat embarrassed as he spoke.
"Actually... I was hoping I could stay at your place for a few days."
Auron blinked. That's it? I just put on my serious face and this is what you tell me?
"Uh, is that okay? The thing is, basically all the hotels around Skyspire are fully booked. I really can't find anywhere to stay."
Auron deflated all at once. "Ugh, fine—stay. What, you think I'd turn you away? You made it sound so serious, like you were about to send me off to save the world or something."
Auron thought to himself: Save the world—I've saved it plenty of times already. After all, every time I wanted to beat Pokémon Emerald, I had to summon Rayquaza to stop Kyogre and Groudon from fighting. If that's not saving the world, what is?
"Hehe, you're the best. Way better than your dad." Hearing the confirmation, Dax happily clapped Auron on the shoulder.
"Huh? Wait—why are all the hotels around Skyspire fully booked?" Auron suddenly remembered what Dax had said and asked with some confusion.
"Because of your freshman tournament, of course. Once the main tournament starts, there'll be commentary and big screens—naturally parents and members of the public will come to watch the matches."
"Ah, that makes sense." Auron nodded. No wonder the hotels were all booked. He'd heard that this tournament's venue was one of the largest on campus, capable of holding five thousand people at once.
Moreover, this venue came with random terrain variations. It wasn't just the standard battle platform anymore—there was also a slippery ice terrain, a desert terrain with sand underfoot (though it wouldn't trigger automatic Sandstorm weather), and even terrain with water pools.
However, the special terrains only had a one-in-sixteen chance of being randomly selected. The terrain would be randomized before each battle—it all came down to luck.
"So—think you've got what it takes to win first place?" Dax slung an arm around Auron's shoulder.
"I guess? But nothing's certain. Everyone who made it into Skyspire is no joke."
Dax nodded. "True. Don't get careless. Even a lion uses its full strength when hunting a rabbit. As long as you're confident, that's what matters."
After chatting for a while longer, Auron showed Dax to the guest room next to his own, and the two of them turned in for the night.
The night passed without incident. The next morning, Auron's punctual biological clock woke him right on schedule.
After washing up groggily, Auron began preparing breakfast for himself and his Pokémon—and of course, he didn't forget Dax's portion either.
"Everyone, time to wake up and eat~!"
After breakfast was ready, Auron went upstairs and woke each of his Pokémon one by one. Crobat, timing it perfectly, flew in through the window from outside.
And so—Snorlax carried the still-drowsy Elekid on his shoulder, Auron cradled the not-yet-awake Dratini in his arms, and Clawitzer and Charizard followed behind.
One human and six Pokémon headed downstairs together.
When they reached Dax's door, Auron knocked and shouted inside:
"Uncle Dax, time to get up and eat!"
"Mm? Oh—coming, coming!"
Auron smiled, didn't wait for him, and headed downstairs on his own.
Before long, Dax had also finished washing up and came down.
"Uncle Dax, let all your Pokémon out—I made food for them too."
Watching Snorlax and the others diligently eating, Dax nodded and released his Pokémon as well.
"Ah! Wait—don't let out Great Steel Serpent! The house is too small—he won't fit!" Seeing Dax's movements, Auron suddenly remembered Great Steel Serpent and hurriedly stopped him.
"Oh, right. Your place is a bit small—Great Steel Serpent wouldn't fit." Dax muttered, then released his Metagross, Aggron, Nutbell, Corviknight, Aegislash, Magnezone, and Slash Commander.
The moment Slash Commander came out and saw Auron, his eyes lit up. He quickly scanned the room, then returned to his cool, aloof demeanor.
"So what about Great Steel Serpent?"
"Put him in the front yard—there's more space outside." Auron pointed helplessly toward the door.
Actually, the house wasn't that small—it was a good ten meters tall. But unfortunately, it was divided into two floors. Pokémon like Snorlax and Aggron were fine, but Great Steel Serpent, who was taller than a building, was just impossible to accommodate.
"Alright then~"
Dax shrugged, then headed outside and released Great Steel Serpent in the open space in front of the house.
Great Steel Serpent came out looking a bit pitiful, lowering his head sadly. His enormous face peered through the doorway at everyone inside.
Auron picked up the Snorlax-sized energy blocks he'd prepared for Great Steel Serpent and set them on the small table outside. He gave Great Steel Serpent's head a gentle pat.
"There, there. It's not like I didn't make you food—it's just that you're too big and the house is too small to fit you."
Hearing this, Great Steel Serpent perked up and happily began eating the Snorlax-sized energy blocks.
After taking care of Great Steel Serpent's situation, Auron finally returned to the dining table with Dax and started eating.
"When is Metagross going to have babies? I want one too. It'd be even better if it were shiny."
As he ate, Auron looked at Metagross eating quietly beside them with obvious envy.
Dax nodded. "True—a shiny Metagross is absolutely stunning. I've actually been considering whether to exchange for a Shiny Charm from the National Treasure Vault and make Metagross shiny."
"Shiny Charm?" Auron blinked. A Shiny Charm could directly turn a Pokémon shiny?
Wasn't the Shiny Charm supposed to increase the chance of encountering shiny Pokémon? How had it become an item that could directly transform them?
Dax nodded. "Yeah, the Shiny Charm can turn Pokémon shiny, and it has no side effects. Of course, it won't boost their abilities either."
Auron nodded blankly. "I get it. Being strong is temporary, but being cool is forever."
Dax snapped his fingers. "Exactly√. That's precisely what I mean."
Auron instantly got excited. "Then exchange for it! What are you waiting for?"
Dax stopped eating and looked at Auron with a knowing smile. "Not enough merit points. How about you lend me some?"
"Mm, this food I made really is delicious."
"Tch."
.........
"Pretty good luck—today we can give them a huge surprise."
In the contestants' waiting room, Jace looked at the information on his phone with visible excitement.
"True—it's the first day of the main tournament. Lots of people. Let's put on a big show!"
Auron got excited too. He'd just checked the match schedule on his phone—both his and Jace's matches happened to be today.
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
Aside from the two excited guys, everyone else looked at them in confusion, having no idea what they were so happy about.
Before long, amid their eager and excited waiting, the third match—Auron's match—was about to begin.
"I'll go put on a big show first, then you go up and do the same. Today we're going to shock them for an entire year."
"Yeah, good luck!"
After psyching each other up, Auron headed onto the field with an excited little jog.
"Both contestants, release your Pokémon."
"Go, Charizard!"
"Go, Shiftry!"
"Swish!"
The flag dropped. The battle began.
The instant the flag fell, Auron smiled slightly. He brought his index and middle fingers together and pressed them precisely against the Key Stone on his left wrist.
"Charizard! Mega Evolution!"