In the Footage—
Golden electric arcs danced across Swellow's feathers. Just as it was about to hit the ground, a massive burst of golden light erupted from its body! Swellow's entire form turned into pure gold!
Without a moment's pause, Swellow spread its wings and dived along the ground, charging directly at the nearby Lucario. Its body was cloaked in blue flames—the ultimate Flying-type move: Brave Bird!
The blue flames, combined with the golden radiance, made Swellow look majestic and unstoppable. Lucario was hit dead-on, forced into the sky by the impact. A streak of blue light cut through the air, and upon reaching the arena's highest point, a violent explosion occurred!
BOOM!
A massive blast echoed as thick black smoke filled the sky. Under Korrina's shocked and tense gaze, the golden Swellow flew out from the smoke, gold and blue sparks still jumping across its body! This was the recoil from Brave Bird mixed with the lingering effects of the previous Thunder Punches. However, its expression was one of pure determination; it showed no signs of fainting.
On the other hand, another figure plummeted from the smoke and crashed heavily into the arena. As the dust settled, Lucario had reverted from its Mega form to its original state. It was unable to battle—Ash had won the match!
[Lance: No, wait! You've got to be kidding me! That Swellow is illegal!!]
[Volkner: Golden Swellow... Good grief, what on earth is that?]
[Flint: A brand new version I've never seen before!]
[Falkner: Too strong! Ash's Swellow is insane!]
[Winona: A golden Swellow... so cool! It's even more beautiful than my Shiny one!!!]
Ash's "Golden Swellow" left the entire world in awe. It was even more striking than a regular Shiny. But the real question was: how did this happen? Why didn't Swellow fall after taking so many Thunder Punches? Back at the Lily of the Valley Conference, it was one-shot by Latios's Giga Impact!
[Diantha: While I want to say Lance has successfully defended his title as a jinx, I'm more curious about how Ash's Swellow did that.]
[Wallace: You just said it yourself, haha! But I am curious too—how did that golden form happen? It's so elegant and stylish!!]
[Professor Oak: I suspect Ash's Swellow has an extraordinary resistance to Electric-type moves! After enduring those Thunder Punches, it didn't faint; instead, it absorbed the electricity into its feathers, resulting in that golden state!]
[Lance: A Flying-type absorbing lightning to use as its own power??? Am I dreaming?!]
[Diantha: Face reality, Lance. Just keep jinxing! Jinx Ash all the way to the Masters Eight Championship!]
[Cynthia: Hehe, if Champion Lance truly believes in his heart that he won't win, it might actually work~]
In the Footage—
After defeating Korrina, Ash was officially promoted to the Great Class!
The scene shifted. It was evening, and the annual Kalos Battle Festival was drawing to a close. Ash, Chloe, Sawyer, and Korrina were outside the stadium. Ash had spent the day climbing the ranks and was satisfied with his progress.
"Korrina, are you heading back to the Gym?"
"Yeah! My training isn't enough yet! One day, Ash, I'll beat you for real!"
"Indeed, you still have a long way to go, Korrina!" A gravelly voice interrupted. Everyone turned to see an old man with long eyebrows—Gurkinn—and a beautiful woman in a black dress walking toward them.
"Grandpa!" "Miss Cynthia!"
Ash and Korrina spoke at the same time. Korrina was stunned. "Miss Cynthia? As in the Sinnoh Champion?"
"Yeah! She's the special guest for the festival!" Ash explained.
Cynthia walked up and patted Pikachu's head. "Congratulations on reaching the Great Class, Ash. And Pikachu, you were wonderful."
After some small talk, the group prepared to part ways. Korrina was heading back to the Gym, Sawyer was looking for new rivals, and Cynthia was returning to Sinnoh to explore ruins.
Ash, meanwhile, had to head back to Kanto. He wanted to train Riolu and Gengar further; they weren't yet at a level to face the Masters Eight.
Before leaving, Cynthia handed Ash a gift. "Ash, take this as a parting gesture." She pulled out two tickets. "These are tickets for a Masters Eight official match at Wyndon Stadium.
The battle is between the 7th-ranked Raihan and the 1st-ranked Leon. I thought you'd be interested. I included a ticket for Chloe, too."
Ash was ecstatic. "Thank you, Miss Cynthia! This is the best gift ever!"
In the Footage—
Ash and Chloe boarded a plane back to Kanto. The match was in three days.
"The match is in three days, so I have to attend school until then! Ash, if there are any research tasks, you'll have to go alone for a bit," Chloe said, worrying about her attendance record. If she skipped more school, she might as well drop out.
She didn't get a response. She looked over and saw Ash fast asleep, hugging Pikachu. Both were snoring softly.
"Sigh... honestly, why do you push yourself so hard? You're exhausted..." Chloe whispered. She asked a flight attendant for a blanket and gently covered Ash, making sure Pikachu had room to breathe.
Watching the sleeping Ash, she couldn't help but smile. "During battles, you're so shocking and reliable... but usually, you're just like a child. You're a strange guy..."
She murmured to herself, her fingers reaching out as if to brush his cheek, before stopping just short. "Idiot, what am I doing?!" She looked around nervously to see if anyone was watching.
In the Real World—
Chloe's face in the classroom was as red as a boiled lobster!
SHAME! THE SHAME IS TOO MUCH!!! What on earth was I doing in the footage?! Is that a stalker? That's definitely stalker behavior!! How did I turn out like that in the future? It's wrong! This future is wrong!!
She was on the verge of a mental breakdown. Doing this in front of the whole world was the ultimate social death! And Ash must have seen it too! Would he think she was a creep? Probably not—he's a blockhead. But what about everyone else?!
[Professor Cerise: I can't take it! Chloe, go for it! Just take the lead and secure the 'main heroine' spot!!]
[Diantha: Don't shout, she can't hear you~]
[Catlin: Hmph! Attacking while my girl Cynthia isn't looking! At least she had some restraint.]
[Cynthia: Catlin... stop it, or I'm going to get angry!]
[Norman: Sigh, what is my May doing? There's still no footage of her... Forget the Contests, the house is being robbed!]
In the Footage—
Three days later, Ash and Chloe flew to the Galar region. During those three days, Ash had trained Gengar with the help of Infernape! Gengar focused on speed and evasion, while Riolu learned from the "fire monkey" master.
When they arrived at Wyndon Stadium, the atmosphere was electric. The stadium was packed. Their seats, courtesy of Cynthia, were the best in the house.
"It's starting! We made it!"
"Only because you insisted on buying cake because you were hungry! We almost missed it!" Chloe complained.
"I'm sorry, I was just starving... Hey, look! Why is Miss Cynthia there?" Ash pointed toward the commentator's booth. Sure enough, the Sinnoh Champion was sitting there.
"Wait, she said she was going back to Sinnoh for research... why is she in Galar? And commentating?" Chloe wondered.
"Who cares! The match is more important! It's Mr. Leon's battle!" Ash shouted.
Chloe sighed. Of course you'd think that.
The match was about to begin. The clash between the undisputed Monarch and his greatest rival was finally here.
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