In the desert, Ryoku gradually regained consciousness, though accompanied by a sharp pain in his mind.

Around him, Team Plasma grunts were escorting him away from the Ancient Castle.

“What… exactly happened…?”

Ryoku’s memory was very fuzzy. He vaguely remembered seeing Volcarona inside the Ancient Castle, which proved their investigation wasn’t wrong. But why exactly…?

“Our memories are a bit fuzzy too, but it felt like we were struck down by some overwhelming force. When we woke up, we were already outside the castle.”

One of the Team Plasma grunts, still shaken, answered Ryoku’s question, “Lord Ryoku, there seems to be some extraordinary power here! It’s too terrifying. What should we do?”

“All of our instruments are destroyed too…”

“…Let’s head back first. Find somewhere to rest…” Ryoku looked at the sandstorm swirling around them. His head ached immensely, his old bones feeling as if they would fall apart. Deep in his memory, a blue radiance lingered, refusing to disappear.

————

“Ahaha! The guards have all left! Uwaa! The fourth floor has cracked into this mess! There’s no way to go down to the lower levels now, and these quicksands seem… almost alive.”

On B4F, Boss Clay and his workers had arrived. The Sigilyphs and Cofagriguses had been recalled by the ancient spirits, giving Clay’s team a moment to breathe. They rushed down just in time to meet Sain returning with the instruments.

And behind Sain was Hikaru, climbing up.

“That ancient spiritual force has stopped already, huh? Hmph, the guards are gone too. Well done!”

“Whew… but those guards were different from the ones in the Desert Resort tower. Looks like they can’t be released. This Ancient Castle excavation… I guess it ends here.”

Originally, he thought this excavation project was a good opportunity, especially since they paid such a hefty price for it. Who would have thought the ruins were full of such dangers? For Boss Clay, this investment was turning out to be a loss.

“Boss Clay, the ancient spirits wish to make a deal with you.”

Hikaru spoke, conveying the discussion he had with them earlier, and took out a Vitality Urn.

[Item: Vitality Urn]

[Effect: Crafted by ancient people, it stores natural power and condenses it into vitality. Holding it prevents fatigue under normal circumstances.]

This was the gift the ancient spirits had chosen. After all, people excavated ruins to obtain treasures or ancient secrets.

“Hm? You’re saying… those spirits lingering here don’t want this city buried in the sands of time, so they want to help me turn this place into… a tourist site?”

“Hmm! Attracting tourists was my plan anyway. Didn’t think those ancient spirits would be so reasonable! I thought they’d just kick us out and seal the place off!”

“Uwahaha! Turns out they’re quite understanding! Though, this is probably your idea too, huh kid! Gotta say, it’s a good suggestion. If we can work together…”

“How about this?” Boss Clay surveyed the damage on B4F. “The fourth floor’s pretty badly wrecked. We’ll just open the areas above for exploration. Anything below B4F stays with the spirits, so no one disturbs their peace. You said there are treasures and fossils hidden here?”

“Ha! I don’t care about those, but tourists sure will! The romance of an ancient city, buried treasures in the desert sands… Good! That’ll definitely draw in crowds!”

Hikaru said, “This Vitality Urn is their gift of goodwill. Also, after we leave, the quicksand that was removed will cover everything below B2F again. You’ll need to clear it out later, but there will be no guardians to interfere anymore.”

“And the quicksand will lose its power.”

“More cleaning work, huh!” Boss Clay grumbled, but he couldn’t bring himself to get angry at Hikaru. He just waved his hand, “Fine, fine! It’s just sand. Now that we have the blueprints Sain brought back, we’ll clear it out fast!”

“Come on, let’s get out of here!”

Clay accepted the Vitality Urn. The moment it touched his hands, he could feel it wasn’t something ordinary. He pondered whether to have Aloe examine it later.

The group returned to B1F. As soon as they left, the endless quicksand swallowed up the entrance, as if the tunnel never existed. But the quicksand in B2F wasn’t as deep, so only half needed clearing to reach B3F.

This was good news for Clay. He laughed heartily again, thinking these ancient spirits were quite amusing – they really understood human dealings.

That night, the stars glittered across the sky, and the sandstorm gradually subsided.

The Ancient Castle’s entrance and towers stood silent in the desert. The endless, frigid wastes beyond stirred one’s soul. The sky and earth fused at the horizon, making even a businessman like Clay feel deeply moved.

“Ancient history, modern history, all meeting at the ends of the earth… I was feeling down tonight, but now my mood has completely changed!”

“Ah, and here – your payment as promised! I’m not the kind of foreman who leaves debts unpaid!”

Clay pulled out a card from his chest pocket and handed it to Hikaru, declaring that it contained a million Pokédollars, free to use.

After resting briefly that night, dawn broke over the desert, the sun’s rays piercing the gloom, slicing through the chaos, and people woke from their slumber.

Hikaru bid farewell to Clay, preparing to head for Nimbasa City. When Clay heard that, he called out immediately!

“Ah! Hold up a sec, I’ve got something… Could you deliver it to my daughter while you’re there?”

“I came straight from out of town to the site, so I haven’t visited Nimbasa yet.”

Clay personally fetched a portable incubator from the site office. Inside was a Pokémon egg!

“This here’s a Pokémon Egg from Galar, a Fairy-type. I got it through some connections from a Professor, planning to give it to my daughter to raise.”

“My daughter… She’s in Nimbasa’s academy. Pink hair, cutest girl you’ll see, and her catchphrase is ‘I don’t think that’s good.’ You’ll find her easily. Here’s her contact… Her name is Shion.”

“As thanks, here – some Revival Herbs from Driftveil City. These are top-quality, only found on Kami Trio Island. They’re called the Kings of Herbs for a reason!”

Clay gave him three pristine Revival Herbs. Hikaru remembered that Kami Trio Island was nurtured by Landorus, Thundurus, and Tornadus, making its herbs exceptionally potent.

After parting with Clay and Sain, Hikaru set off for Nimbasa. On the way, he had Aegislash scout around the outskirts of the Desert Resort.

As before, he checked for any Team Plasma tailing them. Aegislash flew far and wide, returning to report no immediate threats in its scouting range.

However, soon after leaving the desert, some strange tracks appeared behind them. Aegislash deduced that the person tailing them was still following, albeit from a great distance.

“The Shadow Triad… Their tracking skills are so troublesome. Even from this far, they can still follow me so accurately.”

Hikaru found a concealed cave near the end of Route 4 and released Landorus. Landorus immediately summoned a sandstorm to cover their departure. With the area’s natural sandstorms and lack of settlements, there would be almost no witnesses – the perfect chance to slip away.

“Ra-don!”

Landorus bid Hikaru farewell.

Thank you for your help. Perhaps we will meet again elsewhere! Farewell, last king of the Ancient Castle!

And farewell, friend from the cosmos! Next time I return to the castle, I’ll be more careful to remain unseen.

“Calling me the ‘last king’ sounds so ominous.”

“Farewell, Landorus.”

Watching Landorus depart, Hikaru waited in hiding for a long time before leaving himself. When Shadow came to search, he looked around suspiciously.

Why was he loitering here for so long? Did he discover me?

Probably not… He’s cautious, and I can’t even get close, so most information remains out of reach.

Forget it… No point dwelling on it.

Shadow was puzzled, but ahead was Nimbasa City. Appearing there as a ninja would get mistaken for a clown, so he changed into a new disguise to blend in with the crowds.

Meanwhile, Hikaru crossed the gate into Nimbasa Town, the small settlement south of Nimbasa City seen in the anime. Just like the city, it brimmed with theme parks and was also the venue for the Eastern George Battle Tournament.

Hikaru had no interest in that. Passing through Nimbasa Town, he finally arrived at Nimbasa City proper.

Nimbasa City – a dazzling metropolis of lights, the entertainment center of Unova. Everywhere were theme parks, grand stadiums, smaller arenas, and the Pokémon Musical Theater. Here also stood the famed Battle Subway and Battle Institute.

Hikaru couldn’t help but comment again. Was it really okay to study in a city this fun?

Who builds schools inside theme parks?

Unova truly gave each city its own unique feel.

And then, he saw them – strangely dressed people… Team Plasma.

“Those guys…?”

Seeing Team Plasma everywhere was starting to get annoying.

Apparently, they were about to hold a speech in Nimbasa. But everyone was too busy enjoying their leisure to care. Even more comically—

“Your speech time clashes with Lady Elesa’s fashion show. Sorry, but your event is temporarily canceled.”

City staff were clearing Team Plasma’s setup. A sage in robes tried negotiating with them, but it was doomed to fail. In the end, the sage could only grumble that the people of Nimbasa didn’t understand the meaning of Pokémon to humanity, immersed as they were in pleasure.

But the staff member replied curiously:

“Even if people indulge in pleasure, as long as Pokémon are happy too, isn’t that fine?”

The sage was left speechless and could only leave in frustration.

Of course, they didn’t plan to leave entirely. Elesa’s show was only today. If they couldn’t speak today, they’d try tomorrow!

“That guy looks familiar… Wait, that parted hair… Is that Rood?”

One of the Seven Sages, second-in-command of Team Plasma? Perhaps.

But Hikaru didn’t chase after them since they had already left. With no Team Plasma activity today—

“Hello, I’d like to file a complaint.”

After lodging a complaint against Team Plasma, Hikaru left Nimbasa’s administrative office feeling satisfied.

Apparently, he wasn’t the only one. Many locals complained that since yesterday Team Plasma blocked streets handing out flyers, being an overall nuisance. Some out-of-town tourists complained even harsher!

As a result, just as Team Plasma packed up for tomorrow’s plans, they were slapped with an expulsion order from Nimbasa City Hall.

“What nonsense! We’re a legal organization!”

No matter how much they protested, the order stood. Rood was fuming.

Those people didn’t understand the value of life or the greatness of Team Plasma’s cause!

Fine then! They’d just go to another city. Who needed Nimbasa anyway? They could all drown in their entertainment!

With Team Plasma dealt with, Hikaru asked for directions to Nimbasa Academy. Apparently, classes were off today, and students had gone to Elesa’s fashion show venue.

But before that—

At the Pokémon Center, Hikaru called Professor Juniper.

Professor Juniper: “Ah! Hikaru, what’s the sudden call about?”

“There’s a Pokémon I want to temporarily leave with you.” Hikaru gave a brief account of Volcarona’s origin, shocking Juniper greatly!

“There really was a Pokémon deep inside the Ancient Castle?!”

“I’d heard legends from my father about that place possibly hiding a Pokémon linked to Pokémon origins, but I never thought you’d actually… actually find Volcarona!”

“And you recognized it too?! You’re just full of mysteries… If you were a Pokémon, I’d probably try catching you myself.”

Juniper couldn’t hide her excitement. A Volcarona that had lived for centuries was priceless to her research!

Even though Deoxys had left, now the sun god of ancient times appeared. Such delightful surprises one after another! And the ancient spirits entrusted it to him?

To think the spirits of ancient people still lingered in the castle… This world was filled with so many mysteries!

“I was planning to investigate the castle’s statues too. They say some extraordinary sculptures were found…”

Hikaru understood immediately.

In Black and White 2, Juniper visits the Ancient Castle to study the Darmanitan statues and gives the protagonist RageCandyBars to awaken them. Whether she knew about Volcarona was unclear – perhaps she dismissed it as myth?

Regardless, after transferring Volcarona, Hikaru gave her some instructions. But judging by her joyful expression, she would surely care for it extremely well. This was an invaluable Pokémon!

And in Juniper’s backyard, Volcarona would be able to live freely for a while. Someday, when Hikaru mastered those special arts…

“…Creating a kingdom where Pokémon can live freely… I never really thought about that before.”

Taking out his Pokégear, he checked Shion’s contact info Clay had given him. Judging by the odd suffix, it seemed to be Clay’s secondary work number.

Although the sense of kinship from being a Child of Godslayers brought them slightly closer, Clay wasn’t the type to let his guard down easily. For him to ask Hikaru to run an errand was already surprising to the other workers.

“Hello…? Yes?”

A clear voice came through the Pokégear.

“Hello, Miss Shion. I’m the one your father asked…”

Shion: “Ah! Are you Hikaru-nii? Father told me a big brother would bring me something important!”

Hikaru: “It’s the egg of a Fairy-type Pokémon.”

“Really?! That’s wonderful! Where are you? I’ll come get it right away.”

Hikaru: “No worries. I’ll bring it to you. Are you at the fashion show venue?”

Shion: “Ah, that… I was invited, but I didn’t go. I’m at the Battle Subway! They’re running special double battle trains this week, so I’ve been training!”

“And the fashion show isn’t for a while yet.”

Hikaru was a bit surprised.

By setting, Shion was supposed to be a girl who loved cute things, yet here she was at the Battle Subway instead of Elesa’s fashion show.

The Battle Subway entrance was at Gear Station, the biggest building in Nimbasa – impossible to miss.

Hikaru described his appearance to her and quickly arrived at the waiting area. From afar, he could already see a pink-haired little girl waving energetically.

Trainer type: School Kid from cram school!

And next to her was… a green-haired young man?!

N saw Hikaru and was equally shocked. Looking at his “double battle partner,” then at Hikaru, he quickly pulled his cap down.

…This was awkward.

(End of Chapter)

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep