"Zorr~"
After eating its fill and downing a bottle of Pokémon drink, Zeraora instinctively let out a comfortable sigh.
But in the very next second, Zeraora abruptly reacted.
It immediately jumped away from Nathan!
"Hey, you don't have to do that, right? Don't you want to eat delicious food like this every day?"
Seeing the wary look return to Zeraora's eyes, Nathan couldn't help but sigh.
He had thought Zeraora, like Steelix, could be swayed with food.
But clearly, that wasn't going to work—Zeraora shook its head firmly and let out a low growl.
"Zorr!"
[Human, leave this place now!]
Nathan didn't quite understand why, but from the start, Zeraora had been extremely wary of him.
"Probably the aftermath of that hunter's influence, huh?"
Touching the notebook tucked in his jacket, Nathan began to understand.
Pokémon were naturally sensitive to those with ill intent.
Even though the Pokéblocks hadn't worked, Nathan wasn't ready to give up.
A sharp gleam flashed through his eyes as he suddenly asked,
"Zeraora, even if you don't want to eat this every day—don't you want to grow stronger?"
"Stronger than any Pokémon out there!"
As soon as he said that, Zeraora was stunned. The hostility in its eyes noticeably faded.
Seeing this, Nathan smiled inwardly and quickly followed up,
"My name is Nathan. I'm a trainer—I can help Pokémon unlock their potential and become stronger!"
"If you stay with me, it'll be way better than being out here alone!"
Sure, wild Pokémon might be able to reach their full potential on their own.
Take the Metagross leader, for example—a textbook case.
But the effort, time, and struggle it takes is unimaginable for most people!
It's like a caveman figuring out how to build a computer from scratch.
Just how long would that take?
And time is just the most basic requirement!
"Zorr!"
[How do I know you're telling the truth?!]
After some thought, Zeraora let out a suspicious growl.
Of all the humans it had encountered, nearly every single one was deceitful and malicious.
Could someone like that really help it grow stronger?
Even if Nathan seemed a bit different, once a bias takes root—
it's hard to see things clearly, be it human or Pokémon.
"Then let's battle! I'll have one of my Pokémon fight you fair and square!"
With a sly smile, Nathan said confidently.
Zeraora might be powerful in this forest, strong enough to reach Advanced-level by fighting off Pidgey and Butterfree on its own—
But in Nathan's eyes, it was still too weak!
Even the weakest member of Nathan's team was already at the peak of Gym-level.
Volcarona was a full-fledged Elite-tier Pokémon!
Perhaps due to youthful arrogance, Zeraora still hadn't realized how bad this matchup was and pointed straight at Volcarona!
"Zorr!"
[That's your strongest Pokémon, right? Let me fight it!]
Understanding Zeraora's intent through the Viridian power, Nathan couldn't help but sweat a little.
An advanced-level Pokémon challenging an Elite-level one with that much confidence?
"…Fine. Volcarona, humor it a bit. Just don't use any Fire-type moves."
Shaking his head, Nathan turned to give Volcarona its orders.
Fire-type moves were prohibited in the forest, but even without them,
an Elite-tier Pokémon facing off against an Elite-level one was like a grown-up playing with a child.
"Zorr!"
Zeraora, on the other hand, was excited. Electric energy surged around its body, making it look even more imposing.
In a flash!
Zeraora dashed forward with Quick Attack, arriving directly in front of Volcarona.
"Zorr!"
Its claws charged with even more electricity—Thunder Punch ready to strike!
"Quick Attack combined with Thunder Punch—not a bad combo," Nathan commented, nodding.
Then he gave a simple command: "Volcarona, use Gust. Be careful not to hit too hard."
"Vol~!"
Volcarona let out a chirp as its dazzling wings gently flapped.
It was just a basic move, but when used by an Elite-level Volcarona, it carried tremendous force.
Zeraora's Thunder Punch couldn't even reach Volcarona's body!
Zeraora couldn't believe it. It kept using Quick Attack, trying to sneak in an opening for a strike—
But under Nathan's precise guidance, Volcarona's defense was flawless!
With a near-playful ease, Volcarona left Zeraora panting from exertion.
"Roar… Huff…"
Stopping its continuous assault, Zeraora looked at Nathan in disbelief.
Volcarona was strong—so strong it could probably knock Zeraora out in one hit.
But Zeraora realized that Volcarona was only this calm and composed because of Nathan's insight.
Even if the eye couldn't track Zeraora's speed, Nathan's wealth of battle experience allowed him to predict every move.
That was the fundamental skill of a true trainer!
"So? Want to become one of my Pokémon?"
Nathan took out a Poké Ball and smiled gently.
If Zeraora still refused after all that, Nathan wouldn't force it.
After all, to become the strongest trainer, the bond between trainer and Pokémon mattered more than anything else.
And Nathan had already done everything he could.
Fortunately, Zeraora wasn't completely blinded by pride.
Once it acknowledged Nathan's skill as a trainer, it slowly stepped forward.
"Zorr?"
[Can you really make me the strongest Pokémon?]
To its surprise, Nathan shook his head.
"I can help you reach your full potential, even surpass your limits."
"But becoming the strongest among Pokémon—that's something you'll have to earn yourself."
Instead of discouraging it, Nathan's seemingly contradictory answer only fired Zeraora up.
It tapped the Poké Ball with its claw, transforming into a beam of light and entering it—
Then stepped right back out again.
"Zorr!"
[If it's not necessary, we should leave this place as soon as possible!]
With a low growl, Zeraora's face turned grim.
And Nathan's expression also turned serious.
Zeraora had said that before—
"Is there a dangerous Pokémon in this area?"
"One that harbors intense hatred toward humans?"
Nathan asked directly.
In a fused secret realm, there were only a few possible causes for extreme danger:
Either the Pokémon were inherently aggressive,
or they had gone berserk—making them very dangerous!
Zeraora nodded solemnly and growled again:
"Zorr! Zorr…"
[Deep in this mountain range, there are three extremely powerful Pokémon!]
[Two of them have very negative impressions of humans, and the third one often can't control itself!]
In short, all three overlords of the Wandering Mountains were very unfriendly toward humans!
"So that's it. The fusion of three secret realms resulted in three different overlords appearing here?"
"I wonder if that Tyranitar is one of them…"
Understanding what Zeraora meant, Nathan rubbed his chin in thought.
If even a pseudo-legendary at Champion-level wasn't one of the Wandering Mountain's overlords…
Nathan couldn't help but touch the Poké Ball on his belt containing Steelix.
Thankfully, he'd been feeding it rainbow Pokéblocks every day. Otherwise, this trip really would've been dangerous!
But with Steelix as his trump card, Nathan had no intention of backing off.
"At the very least, I should train Zeraora to Gym-level, right?"
Glancing at the golden Zeraora, Nathan thought to himself.
Despite growing up alone, Zeraora was only level 28!