"Slow~"
Slowking: "I'll be back tonight."
It was a little past eight in the morning. Slowking was getting ready to head out. Today, it was going to teach a class for the Victoria Chefs' Association, and it had prepared a lot of materials last night.
"Okay."
Julian, Celebi, and Jirachi all nodded in unison.
After seeing Slowking off, Julian immediately closed the door, then opened it again and stuck his head out—making sure it really was gone.
He then let out a heavy yawn and said, "Now that Slowking's gone, I'm going back to catch up on sleep."
Celebi, looking drowsy, nodded weakly: "Me too."
Jirachi raised its tiny hand: "Count me in."
The three of them had been up until around four in the morning last night playing Pokémon Glory in trio queue, only to be forcefully woken up at eight by Slowking for breakfast.
Now that Slowking was gone, they couldn't wait to jump back into bed and catch up on sleep.
Julian and Celebi dove straight into the bed, and within seconds, the sound of steady breathing filled the room.
Jirachi was just about to lie down too, when it suddenly jolted upright—its sleepy look vanishing instantly.
It flew straight to Julian's face and shouted, "Julian! Julian! Groudon's coming! It's here!"
Within its sensory range, Jirachi had already detected Groudon approaching Victoria. Clearly, even though the Red Orb had been deactivated, Groudon was still coming.
It shook Julian, but he was sleeping like a log and showed no signs of waking up.
"Julian, Slowking's back!" Jirachi suddenly shouted, thinking fast.
"What—!?"
"Ahh!"
Julian shot up from the bed instantly—and not just him, even Celebi, who had been sound asleep, jumped up in fright.
"Slowking, why are you— Slowking?"
Julian looked around, confused. There was no Slowking in sight. Had he just imagined it? He could've sworn he'd heard someone say Slowking was back.
"Julian, Groudon is here!" Jirachi said urgently.
Those three words—"Groudon is here"—made Julian snap to full alert in an instant.
Jirachi's sensory range was a thousand kilometers—which meant Groudon was already within that range.
"Damnit, it really came," Julian cursed under his breath. It was exactly what he had feared.
"Julian, it's speeding up—it'll reach Victoria in less than an hour!"
In Jirachi's perception, Groudon, which had been moving slowly, suddenly accelerated.
"Which direction is it coming from?" Julian quickly asked.
"East."
"Let's go."
Jumping out of bed, Julian pulled out his phone and called Ella.
"Groudon's coming. Proceed as planned."
"Yes, Commander!"
From that moment on, the entire population of Victoria began a full-scale emergency evacuation. Piercing alarm sirens wailed across the entire city.
No one knew why they were suddenly being told to evacuate, but most people still obeyed the government's arrangements. As for the small number who tried to cause trouble—they were swiftly suppressed.
In the skies above Victoria, a fiery red figure sped rapidly toward the east.
Julian was riding on the back of Moltres, holding the Red Orb in his hand. The orb was faintly pulsing with light—not because it had been reactivated, but because it had begun responding to Groudon's presence.
"Groudon has stopped," Jirachi said from Julian's arms.
Then, puzzled, it asked, "Why did it stop? Is it… planning to turn back?"
Julian shook his head. "No. It's waiting for me."
That was fine as well. As long as Groudon didn't keep advancing, the battlefield could be drawn far enough away—so even if a fight did break out, the collateral damage to Victoria would be minimal.
---
About nine hundred kilometers from Victoria, the ocean surface was boiling. Steam surged upward, and bubbles roiled violently.
The next second, red magma erupted from the seabed. As the magma cooled, it formed a solid patch of land on the ocean's surface.
"Rooaar!!"
A red behemoth now stood quietly on the land it had temporarily created, molten lava dripping from its body, and its golden eyes burning as they gazed toward Victoria.
Groudon had appeared.
With its emergence, satellites in orbit around the world instantly picked up an immense surge of energy and magnetic disturbance.
The violent readings sent every detector blaring alarms.
From the live satellite feed, analysts across nations could see the towering figure standing in the middle of the ocean.
The First-Class Legendary Pokémon, Groudon!!
Gallia: "Notify the President immediately—Groudon has appeared!"
Celestria: "Why has Groudon appeared in the East?"
Volkaria: "Did Drakoria do something to anger Groudon?"
Although it wasn't clear whether Groudon's target was really Drakoria, it was currently within Drakoria's territorial waters, and its gaze was fixed on Victoria.
Considering that Victoria was currently evacuating its citizens, it was highly likely that Groudon had come for Drakoria.
The last time a First-class Legendary appeared, it was in Drakoria. And now, once again it was Drakoria.
Western nations watched with a touch of schadenfreude. Sure, Drakoria was powerful, but constantly provoking First-class Legendaries? That was just asking for trouble.
At this moment, within Drakoria's Elder Council, aside from the six Elders, six of the country's seven Champions were also present—the full assembly of Drakoria's highest authority and strength.
In the conference room, Groudon's image was being projected on the screen.
"The Red Orb still ended up drawing Groudon here," the Grand Elder let out a heavy sigh.
Everyone present understood why the slumbering Groudon had suddenly appeared in Drakoria's waters.
"Where's Julian right now?" the Fifth Elder asked.
"He told me that if Groudon really came, he had a way to deal with it. Judging from the situation, he's probably already on his way. And from the looks of it, Groudon seems to be waiting for someone," James explained.
"What way? Is it Mewtwo from the Haitian City incident?" the Third Elder asked quickly.
When Kyogre made landfall in Haitian City, it was Mewtwo who had repelled it—and this new First-class Legendary had a strong connection to Julian.
"Most likely."
"No, we can't put all our hopes on Julian alone. Someone needs to go to the Sky Altar. Which one of you will go?"
The Grand Elder stood up, his gaze sweeping over the Champions before him.
If Julian failed to repel Groudon, it would inevitably advance into Victoria, causing massive casualties both there and across Drakoria.
So, a backup plan was essential—and that plan was to use the Sky Altar to summon Rayquaza.
But to summon Rayquaza through the Sky Altar, one must possess Champion-level strength, and the cost of summoning Rayquaza was one's lifespan.
In other words, whoever summoned Rayquaza would face an extremely high risk of death.
"I'll go!" x6
All six Champions spoke at once.
No one hesitated. No one felt fear.
They were the Champions of Drakoria, enjoying immense authority and the nation's top resources. Now that Drakoria was in peril, it was only natural for them to step forward.
"Don't any of you try to fight me for this. I believe my dear grandson can handle it. Besides, in terms of lifespan, I've consumed the Ambrosia that my grandson gave me—I'm bound to outlive all of you."
To those present, John's words didn't carry the tone of a hero preparing to sacrifice himself. Instead, it sounded like he was… bragging about his grandson.
*****
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