The man in black had finally reached his destination deep within the temple. He stopped and raised his head, gazing up at the divine throne that stood at the center of the room.
Atop the throne sat a statue of Lugia. It had been crafted with great care by skilled artisans long ago, and even after centuries of weathering, it remained lifelike and imposing, as if the Sea God itself were watching over the hall.
Floating quietly in front of the statue was a sky-blue crystal, shimmering with a faint golden glow.
In the presence of that crystal, even the grand temple — which the people of the sea had painstakingly restored countless times over hundreds of years — seemed to lose its splendor. The treasures displayed throughout the hall, which would have drawn anyone's eye on any other day, now felt dull and unimportant. Anyone who caught even a glimpse of the crystal would find their gaze locked onto it, unable to look away.
"This is it!"
After enduring so many hardships to reach this place, the man in black felt a surge of wild joy the moment he laid eyes on his goal.
This was what he had come for. It was the sacred token passed down through generations by the people of the sea — the great treasure that the Sea God Lugia had gifted to his most devoted followers. It was said to hold the Breath of the Sea God, a power capable of calming raging storms or calling forth monstrous tsunamis.
The man in black's eyes went bloodshot. In that moment, only one thought filled his mind.
I must have it.
An uncontrollable smile spread across his face. He could already picture the generous reward that awaited him once he brought this treasure back to the organization. Power? Money? Neither of those truly mattered to him. What he had always longed for were the resources that could help his Pokémon break through the King-level barrier. For someone like him, strength was everything. All other things — wealth, fame, status — were nothing more than accessories that came with having power.
And yet, even now, standing before the enchanting glow of the crystal, a reckless thought crept into his mind: What if he kept it for himself? What if he betrayed the organization and claimed the Breath of the Sea God as his own? If he could wield that divine power with his own hands, could he not one day stand among Champion-level Trainers? Perhaps even catch a glimpse of the legendary realm beyond?
For a brief moment, the fantasy felt real. He imagined himself rising to the very peak of the Trainer world, commanding everything around him through sheer strength alone.
But then, the man in black shuddered and snapped out of it.
"Hoo... hoo..."
He let out a slow, shaky breath. His back was completely soaked in cold sweat.
"Heh."
He gave a quiet, bitter laugh to himself. "If I actually did that, I'd be a corpse before I even made it out of Belon City."
The Breath of the Sea God was a remarkable treasure, no question about it. But it was not his to take. Even if he somehow managed to escape with it, he would be hunted to the ends of the earth. Given what he had already done in Belon City, the Cloudspire Alliance would never let him walk free. And the organization did not forgive traitors — not ever.
On top of that, without the support of Lord Sea Pillar, he would likely find himself at a dead end the moment he stepped outside the ruins. The official forces of the Belon City branch of the Alliance had almost certainly surrounded the area by now. With his strength sitting at the Gym-level, the chances of breaking through that net were zero.
Once he had thought it all through, the man in black forced the greed back down, steadied himself, and began moving toward the statue to retrieve the Breath of the Sea God.
He had come a long way — from a newcomer who could not even afford a starter Pokémon, all the way to where he stood today. The one thing that had kept him alive through all of it was his ability to read a situation clearly. He still knew, better than anyone, what could be done and what could not.
"So this is the secret treasure left by Lugia?" a voice suddenly said from behind him. "I thought it would be a Silver Wing. Guess I got excited over nothing."
The man in black felt his hair nearly stand on end. He dropped to the ground in an instant, rolling sideways and pressing himself into the nearest corner. In the same breath, he pulled out two Poké Balls and snapped them into the air with a practiced flick of his wrist.
"Ssss—!"
"Craaw!"
A Seviper and a Crawdaunt materialized before him, fangs and claws at the ready, standing guard between him and the voice.
He glanced quickly at his Pokémon.
Seviper — Type: Poison — Energy Level: 52
Crawdaunt — Type: Water / Dark — Energy Level: 55
"Knew it," said the voice, calm and unhurried. "Someone who made a name for himself in an organization like that would never walk in here alone without a reason. I had a feeling."
From the shadowed corner behind him, David stepped out into the open. They had made it through the entire ruin together, and it seemed that journey was ending here.
"Why are you here?" the man in black demanded. A heavy unease settled over him, but there was little choice but to keep talking. His Seviper and Crawdaunt turned toward David and glared, baring their fangs.
David, however, did not seem interested in answering. He did not even glance at the man in black. His eyes had gone straight to the crystal floating before the statue — the Breath of the Sea God — and stayed there.
The silence made the man in black's unease grow sharper. Had the other side come prepared all along? Had he really just been a pawn used to get here?
His two Pokémon, sensing their Trainer's tension and irritated by David's dismissive attitude, clicked and snapped, clearly ready to lunge.
But before either of them could move, a shadow uncoiled from the darkness behind David. Dragapult drifted silently out of the gloom and took up its position at David's side, hovering with an eerie calm. It looked down at Seviper and Crawdaunt with a thin, unsettling smile.
The Dragapult's aura poured out — the full, unrestrained pressure of a King-level Pokémon at its peak.
Seviper and Crawdaunt, which had been bristling like cornered Joltik a moment ago, shrank back immediately. The fight drained out of them the instant they felt that presence. They stayed on their feet, but the bravado was gone.
David paid none of it any attention. He was focused elsewhere — quietly stirring something in the back of his mind, something that had been dormant for a long while.
System, he called inwardly. Are you there? Take a close look at that item for me.
Acknowledged. Running scan per host's request...
Name: Crystal of the Sea God — Lugia's Divine Power Vessel (Beneficial Mutation)
Description: A symbol of the bond formed long ago between a human child and a deity, this crystal holds a faint trace of Lugia's power. For over a century, both the name of the Sea God and this crystal have been venerated by countless believers.
Whether by the strength of that faith alone, or by something more, the crystal has begun to change — a gradual, beneficial evolution. The power it holds now carries a genuine trace of the ocean's essence.
Evaluation: Without question — Golden Legendary.
David blinked at the readout.
"If everyone truly believes in Lugia and calls him the Sea God... could he actually end up stealing Kyogre's title?"
He couldn't help but think it. Somewhere out there, a certain ancient Legendary Pokémon might be in for an unpleasant surprise.
Then again — Kyogre's ambition had always been to let the ocean swallow the entire world. Whether or not anyone called it the Sea God was probably not high on its list of concerns. Lugia drawing on human faith might grant it a faint trace of authority over the sea, but anything beyond that was wishful thinking. Kyogre was the true embodiment of the ocean, a living symbol of the sea's power. That was not something that could be taken by belief alone.
David stepped past the man in black — who had gone through no small amount of trouble to get here — without a second glance, and walked straight up to the statue.
"It seems like this was meant to find its way to me," he said simply, reaching toward the crystal. "I'll be taking it, then."