Inside the illusion, Servine wandered aimlessly through the dense, endless forest.
It kept its composure, thinking carefully, trying to find a way out of this mirage.
But then, out of the mist ahead, it saw a familiar, regal silhouette.
A Serperior.
The majestic form glided gracefully between the trees, its scales gleaming faintly in the dappled light. Suddenly, it turned its head, as if sensing Servine's gaze.
For an instant, their eyes met.
Servine immediately dropped into a battle stance.
No, something was wrong. Serperior should not be here.
Then it remembered the fox's ability. Illusions. Zoroark's illusions.
Everything around it was fake. The forest, the Serperior, all of it had been crafted to trap Servine inside and make Lucien lose the battle.
Servine's sharp instincts caught on quickly.
It scanned the surroundings, searching for a flaw in the illusion or a hidden exit, but no matter how long it searched, there was none.
Finally, Servine found itself once more facing the majestic figure of Serperior.
"Servi…"
It paused, thinking.
Then an idea sparked, bold and daring.
Could it be that the only way to break this illusion was to defeat the Serperior that represented its deepest fear?
Lucien was still waiting outside. Servine clenched its jaw. It had to escape, no matter what.
Lowering itself, it darted forward in a low serpentine glide, rushing toward Serperior.
But the regal serpent merely looked down at it with disdain, pride shimmering in its eyes.
It opened its mouth slightly, forming a sphere of green energy that exploded outward in a violent blast.
"Boom!"
The blast struck Servine head-on, hurling it backward.
"Serviiine!"
Pain seared through its body, but Servine grit its teeth, determination blazing in its eyes.
That attack had not broken its will. It had only ignited its pride.
It would not fall here.
Servine lunged forward again.
Three seconds later, it was blasted back once more.
Still, it rose again.
Once, twice, three times, again and again, Servine charged the illusionary Serperior, refusing to give in.
Every lesson Lucien had ever taught echoed through its mind.Grass Knot. Vine Whip. Magical Leaf.
Over and over, Servine fought, learned, adapted.
On the three hundred and eighty-second attempt, it darted forward once more.
This time, it skimmed the ground, narrowly evading Serperior's energy sphere, then leapt high, twisting midair to dodge a strike of Vine Whip.
After three hundred battles, Servine knew Serperior's every move, its timing, its patterns, its arrogance.
Even before Serperior moved, Servine could already predict the next attack.
"Servine!"
With a fierce cry, Servine unleashed everything it had left.
A storm of glowing Magical Leaves erupted around it, swirling into a deadly green whirlwind that rained down upon Serperior.
The explosion of light shook the entire forest.
When the dust settled, the majestic Serperior collapsed to the ground, and the illusion began to crumble.
The forest fractured like shattered glass. Servine landed gracefully, panting heavily, and looked around.
The world was dissolving. It had done it. It had broken free.
"Teacher, we're going to win this time!" Anna's voice was bright and confident. "Now you can't stop me and Zoroark from joining the Knights anymore!"
All of this, the battle and the forest, had unfolded in Servine's mind. Inside the illusion, what felt like hours had passed, but in the real world, barely a minute had gone by.
Lucien's expression softened. "You're not afraid of war, Anna?"
"I only know that if we don't fight back," Anna said, her eyes shining with conviction, "the enemy will come here and destroy everything we've built. Everyone will die, and our home will be gone. So, Prince Lucien, I want to protect it. I want to fight for you and for this land!"
She thought of her mother's stories about war, about what it cost, yet her voice held no hesitation.
Lucien sighed quietly.
In another age, perhaps in the modern world, Anna might have been like Ash and his friends, carefree, traveling across the regions with her Pokémon, dreaming instead of fighting.
But in this world, she was right. The weak had no protection. War showed no mercy.
Looking at the newly evolved Zoroark standing proudly beside her, Lucien exhaled. "I understand your resolve."
Anna's eyes widened. "Then, Teacher, you mean…"
At that moment, Servine's body twitched slightly.
Lucien immediately noticed what was happening. His Servine had broken free from the illusion that Zoroark had created.
"However," Lucien said calmly, "the battle isn't over yet."
He raised his hand and gave his command. "Magical Leaf!"
In an instant, countless glowing leaves spun up around Servine, forming a swirling storm of green energy that shot straight toward Zoroark.
Although Zorua had evolved, the Pokémon world was not like an RPG where leveling up automatically restored stamina.
Before evolving, Zorua had already taken several heavy hits from Servine's Vine Whip, Magical Leaf, and Grass Knot.
This final surprise attack hit Zoroark squarely, carving several deep gashes across its body.
The newly evolved Zoroark staggered, then finally collapsed to the ground.
Anna's eyes widened in disbelief. Her small face twisted in a mix of shock and outrage.
"Teacher! That's cheating!" she cried.
"You made a fatal mistake," Lucien replied with a faint smile. "No matter the situation, you should never underestimate your opponent. And more importantly, letting a child go to war is not something a responsible ruler should ever do."
Servine returned to Lucien's side.
"Well done, Servine," Lucien said, his tone approving.
Servine raised its head proudly. It knew its place in the team well. It was the strongest of Lucien's Pokémon and bore the responsibility that came with that strength.
But seeing this, Anna looked as if she was about to cry.
Damn it! She shouldn't have let her guard down!
Still, she quickly pulled herself together.
"Teacher, no matter what, I'm going to fight!" she said firmly. "Whether you agree or not!"
Lucien fell silent for a moment.
After a brief pause for thought, he finally spoke again.
"In that case, I'll give you five months. Five months from now, we'll battle again. If you can defeat me then, I'll consider letting you join the Knights."
"Five months?" Anna repeated, thinking it over. Then she nodded. "It's a deal!"
"Of course," Lucien replied.
"I'll train hard with Zorua, no, with Zoroark now, and we'll definitely defeat you next time!" she declared, clenching her fists in determination.
Lucien sighed softly.
When that time came, it probably wouldn't be so easy anymore.
"I'll need to balance my duties in the territory with training my Pokémon more seriously," he thought.
After all, even if it was a bit unfair that he had fought two against one earlier, he could never truly allow a ten-year-old girl to step onto a battlefield.
Lately, he had been too busy managing affairs within the territory and hadn't spent much time training his Pokémon.
In contrast, Anna had been out every day following his methods, battling wild Pokémon and honing her skills.
They had started from the same point, but now she was catching up, fast.
Lucien looked at the two Pokémon beside him and said, "Starting tomorrow, we're going to begin real combat training."
Simple practice alone was no longer enough. They needed the experience of actual battles.
...
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