"Did I just… gain Darkrai's friendship?" Nathan muttered to himself, then chuckled and shook his head, carefully putting away the feather.
No matter what, this feather was a valuable item.
Maybe, if he wanted to capture Darkrai someday, he'd need to rely on it.
After all, there wasn't just one Darkrai in the world.
He might never be able to capture the one he'd just met, but he could always ask it where to find its companions, right?
And in the end, he'd still rely on strength to earn their respect.
By then, maybe that Darkrai wouldn't mind pointing him in the right direction.
"Alright, now it's your turn."
Nathan turned his gaze to the other "cocoon."
Pangoro was still wrapped inside.
He had to admit—Mythical Pokémon really were amazing. They could even help Pokémon awaken their Hidden Power.
But then again, it was a Mythical Pokémon, after all.
As Nathan pondered this…
The cocoon around Pangoro suddenly turned into glowing particles and began to fade.
Pangoro's figure reappeared before Nathan.
But something was different.
Its originally pitch-black eyes now had a touch of green in them.
Green markings had also appeared across its limbs and parts of its body—not only did they not make it look strange, they actually made Pangoro look even more impressive.
[Name: Pangoro]
[Ability: Iron Fist (Increases power of punching moves); Sap Sipper (Grants immunity to Grass-type moves and raises Attack when hit)]
[Type: Fighting + Dark]
[Hidden Power (Grass)]
[Description: Pangoro, the Dauntless Pokémon. Evolution of Pancham. Hot-tempered and always looking for a fight. The bamboo leaf in its mouth acts as a sensory organ, detecting nearby movements.]
[Level: 46 (Gym-Level Range: 41–50)]
[Moves: Shave, Iron Body, Thunder Punch, Fire Punch, Ice Punch, Crunch, Hammer Arm...]
Looking at Pangoro's stats, Nathan's eyes lit up and a wide grin spread across his face.
"As expected, Hidden Power! And I didn't think it would be Grass-type!"
Grass-type Hidden Power was a perfect fit for Pangoro.
With the Iron Fist ability and Nathan's specialized training, Pangoro's punches already had terrifying destructive power.
What it lacked was defense and recovery.
Its defense had improved thanks to previous training—but it still had no healing moves.
Now, though? Everything had changed.
With Grass-type Hidden Power, Pangoro could now learn Energy Ball.
In battle, even if he couldn't overpower his opponent directly, he could just fire up an Energy Ball… and eat it.
It would instantly activate a berserk mode—boosting strength, healing injuries. Worst case? Just follow up with Synthesis.
With Grass Hidden Power, Pangoro could now hit hard, tank hits, and recover.
No wonder Nathan was so hyped.
"Raargh!"
Sensing the change in itself, Pangoro let out an excited roar—then immediately punched a giant tree nearby.
Maybe it didn't hold back enough—because the massive tree trunk snapped clean in half and was sent flying into the distance, raising clouds of dust as it landed.
That punch?
Easily enough to bring down a building.
Seeing Pangoro so fired up, Nathan didn't hesitate—he opened the system store and bought Grass-type recovery moves: Energy Ball, Synthesis, and even Giga Drain.
Sadly, he couldn't find Jungle Healing.
Even if it were there, Pangoro wouldn't be able to learn it anyway—it's a Grass-type group healing move exclusive to Zarude.
Still, it would've been pretty useful in the wild.
After buying the TMs, Nathan recalled Volcarona and Metagross.
Now that the thick fog had lifted, the forest was bathed in warm sunlight. He wasn't too worried about surprise attacks anymore.
Besides, even if something did happen, with Pangoro and Flygon by his side, he had more than enough protection.
"Pangoro, let's go explore the island a bit," Nathan called out.
The fog was gone, but he still needed to document the island's various zones and upload the info to the Exploration App.
Plus, he wanted to see if there were any good Pokémon worth catching.
As for danger?
He wasn't too worried.
The fact that the Derek's family could afford to buy this island meant there weren't any overwhelmingly powerful Pokémon here.
With a Elite-tier Volcarona in hand, Nathan was pretty much fearless.
Unless another Mythical Pokémon popped up—but that was just unrealistic.
They'd already encountered two Mythicals here. If a third appeared, Nathan might start suspecting the island was hiding some kind of treasure.
With Pangoro and Flygon at his side, Nathan explored the island from day to night.
He found a good number of wild Pokémon—but most were common Grass-types like Carnivine, and the Water-types near the shore weren't anything special either.
None were worth capturing.
As night fell, Nathan set up camp near a coastal forest and lit a bonfire.
Under the night sky, he had Pangoro learn Energy Ball—it was currently the most important move for it to master.
Once learned, Pangoro's overall strength would skyrocket.
As he prepared dinner, Nathan also began crafting Pokéblocks.
The delivery deadline was approaching, and he hadn't even started on the 3,000 blocks for Miss Evelyn.
After dinner, Nathan worked on Pokéblocks while watching his Pokémon train beside him—Pangoro, Volcarona, and Mimikyu.
Pangoro was practicing its new move.
The other two were working on mastering dual focus techniques.
(TN: Sounds better than multitasking. Too lazy to change other chapters.)
Beneath the warm bonfire glow, the whole scene was calm and harmonious.
..
Poplar City – League Branch Office
The Vice President sat at his computer, reviewing the latest emails.
His brows furrowed as he opened one and saw a series of photos.
"This secret realm… looks like its danger level needs to be increased again."
He frowned deeply.
"Good thing this realm is located in the Silent Plateau restricted zone—even if it merges with reality, it won't affect humans too much. But I wonder if that kid Nathan can make it in time…"
In the photos were images of strange, unknown Pokémon.
Some were hidden in the mist.
Others were engaged in battle, but the light was too intense to see their true forms.
Beneath the images were lines of text—descriptions of these mysterious creatures.
There were four or five photos total, each showing a completely different Pokémon.
They looked bizarre.
But one thing was clear: they were strong.
The weakest among them were at least Elite-level.
"Luckily, there aren't too many of these Pokémon in the realm, and their movements are erratic. So it's not too concerning just yet."
Still, the Vice President's brows creased again.
"But these Pokémon… they're not easy to catch. Ordinary Poké Balls barely work—seems like they break free way too easily. I wonder if the League can develop a new kind of Poké Ball before the National Tournament begins…"
….
Nathan hadn't known anything about it.
But the next morning, after waking up, he found out.
He opened his phone and saw a message from the Vice President.
Nathan's lips twitched slightly.
Vice President Cloud: "Kid, do your best! Otherwise, these powerful, mysterious Pokémon might just slip away from you~ 😏 (Image) (Image) (Image)"
(TN: Probably Ultra Beast)
As if effort alone could get the job done.
Catching Pokémon wasn't about effort—it was all about strength.
Grumbling to himself, Nathan clicked on the photos—and immediately frowned in surprise.
"This is…"
"So that's why the mystic realm is so dangerous… These are all highly aggressive Pokémon. But whatever—by the time the National Tournament rolls around, Volcarona should be even stronger. And if all goes well, Pangoro will have reached the Elite level too."
A confident smile curled on Nathan's lips as he tucked his phone away.
After washing up and eating breakfast, Nathan uploaded the data and photos he'd collected on the island to the Exploration App.
Then he recalled all his Pokémon—leaving only Flygon.
"Flygon, let's head over to that next location."
"Flyy!" Flygon let out a cheerful cry, then soared into the sky, vanishing into the horizon like a beam of light.
…
Overseas Archipelago.
The chain of islands still didn't have a name—exploration hadn't been completed yet.
Once it was fully mapped and deemed safe, it would be officially named, and they'd decide whether to develop it for tourism or other purposes.
The new area wasn't too far.
Two hours later, Nathan was flying high above the archipelago.
Just as the name implied, it consisted of three islands linked together by small channels.
From the air, Nathan could see numerous Flying-type Pokémon soaring around—Pidgeotto, Fearow, even several Corviknight.
There were grassy plains and lush forests.
On the grasslands, he spotted Tauros and Mareep.
In the forests, swarms of Beedrill and clusters of Vileplume.
"Raaaargh!!"
Suddenly, a loud roar echoed across the island—sharp and piercing.
The sound made Nathan frown.
"What an ear-piercing cry… whoever made that sound is pretty strong. Probably stronger than Gym-level… maybe even Elite."
Which meant at least one high-level Pokémon was on the island.
But how many were there?
If too many, it could be dangerous.
Of course…
That also meant opportunity.
"As long as there aren't groups of Elite-level Pokémon… this might be just what Volcarona needs to break into the Champion tier."
A smile of excitement formed on Nathan's lips.
His eyes fell on a beach below.
"Flygon, head over there."
"Flyy!"