Every Pokémon wanted to be the first to step onto the battlefield, to seize the opening blow.

The one chosen to lead carried a heavy burden.

And Hikaru’s choice was, of course—

Aegislash!

“The first one is Aegislash?!” N’s eyes widened the moment the great sword, broad as a door, appeared.

He had personally witnessed the power of this kingly Pokémon before. Aegislash was Hikaru’s ace, and likely his first partner as well—N could read this much from the Pokémon’s heart.

You’rereadingmymindagain.You’re reading my mind again.

Aegislash’s mental voice bristled with displeasure, but N didn’t apologize. Instead, he smirked playfully.

“Right now, we’re in battle. As a Trainer, do you think you can just stand there and do nothing while your Pokémon fights?”

Oh?Youmakeagoodpoint!Oh? You make a good point! Aegislash’s single eye lit up. It then glanced at Hikaru.

Myking,shallwejointhefrayaswell?My king, shall we join the fray as well?

“Are you suggesting… Mortal Kombat?”

Hikaru’s deadpan reply startled N so much he almost jumped.

Sure, Trainers shouldn’t just stand idle—but Mortal Kombat? That was a little much!

Even in a no-holds-barred match, there had to be some rules.

“Haha, I’m just joking. But if you’re going to be reading my partner’s thoughts, I’ll be taking action too.”

Hikaru pulled out a crooked wooden wand—

The magic wand from the Illusionary Forest!

“That’s…”

“Ever seen magic before?” Hikaru smiled mysteriously. N’s heart gave a sudden jolt.

Magic—old tales from ancient lands often spoke of it, but no one could say for sure if it truly existed.

“I can tell you,” Hikaru said softly, “magic is real. There are still magicians in the world even now.”

In Kanto, Ash had once met a real magician capable of brewing potions that could temporarily turn humans into Pokémon—one of the most fantastical events of the original series.

Meanwhile, Skyla and Drayden’s Elite Four peer Caitlin were speaking quietly nearby.

“The King of Team Plasma… he has the ability to read a Pokémon’s heart.”

Caitlin’s expression was grave. Her notebook was already open as her mind raced.

“To instantly read an opponent’s Pokémon’s thoughts during battle… that’s essentially a pre-read—a prediction. That kind of foresight is something only the strongest Trainers gain after years of experience. If you can anticipate your opponent’s moves before they act, you can deploy a perfectly tailored counter-strategy. It’s an extremely powerful ability.”

“If both Trainers are equally skilled at pre-reading, the battle devolves into a chaotic mind game. Until the moment an action is actually taken, you can’t be sure what will happen next.”

“Also, pre-reading requires an intimate knowledge of the Pokémon involved. But there are far too many Pokémon in the world for any one person to know them all.” Caitlin’s voice lowered. “And yet… N, the green-haired man called ‘King,’ can bypass all those conditions.”

“Pre-reading, huh…” Skyla clenched her teeth, tense. “If a challenger has that power, it’s terrifying. No one should be able to beat him—he starts the match already standing at the very top.”

“And the magic?”

Caitlin shook her head. “I have no idea.”

Then she quickly jotted down an opening narration:

The battle between the traveler and the king began. The king possessed the power to read the hearts of Pokémon, while the traveler wielded mysterious magic unknown to all. A fox of illusions and a golden greatsword crossed blades…

“Zoro!”

Zoroark’s form shimmered, morphing into a second Aegislash.

Ability: Illusion!

In games, Illusion disguises the Pokémon as the last in its Trainer’s party.

But in reality, Zoroark wasn’t bound by such restrictions—it could transform into anything it had seen, living or not, even conjuring entire forests out of thin air.

“Remember, Illusion is only deception—it has no actual force behind it. Watch out for the real attack,” Hikaru warned Aegislash silently.

In Pokémon: Zoroark—Master of Illusions, a female Zoroark had once used illusion to restrain the three legendary beasts. The ice crystals she conjured were fake, yet felt so real that they trapped them in place.

In other words—Illusion could even simulate sensations!

But Aegislash wasn’t concerned.

A foe might copy his form and even mimic the feel of his strikes, but there was one thing they could never replicate—

Technique!

Sacred Sword – Cancel!

Aegislash swung his blade, unleashing a Sacred Sword with impossible speed, retracting and striking again in the blink of an eye—three cuts in an instant!

Fighting-type energy slashed through the air, forcing Zoroark to dodge, then counter with an illusionary attack.

Sacred Sword – Illusion!

Zoroark couldn’t actually learn Sacred Sword, but Illusion let it fake the move perfectly. Though it caused no real damage, it could misdirect its target—masking the use of a real attack.

If you couldn’t tell the fake from the genuine, you’d fall right into its trap.

Aegislash instinctively raised his shield. The false Sacred Sword struck and vanished like smoke. Immediately, the disguised Zoroark’s blade gleamed with a dark, razor edge—

It was really Night Slash! A strike aimed to hit critical points.

“The battle’s moving so fast they don’t even need to call commands?!” Skyla gasped.

It was the first time she’d seen this style—no spoken instructions, or rather, no need for them.

“The shopkeeper also has the ability to communicate with Pokémon mentally,” Caitlin noted. “It’s not the same as N’s, but the result is similar. Without the delay of verbal commands, you save precious reaction time. At the highest level of battle, that’s critical.”

Even Caitlin, an Elite Four member, still had to give verbal orders. She’d heard of similar Trainers in distant Battle Frontiers, and studying such battles could only help her own skill.

Clang!

The sharp dark slash landed, but—

Zoroark’s attack power dropped instead! Aegislash’s King’s Shield had blocked it, shifting into defensive form and lowering the attacker’s strength.

Raising the shield didn’t just mean using a move—it was a part of Aegislash’s body, a real, unyielding bulwark.

Then—

The shield glimmered with stony light, its edges becoming jagged. Aegislash smashed forward with a point-blank Double-Edge!

Thud! Zoroark was hurled back—but in that instant, something flew from Aegislash’s body, wrapped in dark energy.

Knock Off.

It removed Aegislash’s held item for the rest of the battle, dealing extra damage if the foe was holding something.

N expected a super-effective blow—Dark vs. Ghost/Steel—but Aegislash shrugged it off with barely a scratch.

So… this was the peculiarity of a kingly Pokémon. Even type advantage could be blunted.

Still, the goal was achieved—Aegislash’s Metronome was gone.

“I know that item,” N said calmly. “I’ve seen the updated data in the Battle Company’s simulator.”

Hikaru hadn’t expected him to train specifically for this fight, but the free publicity for the item was welcome.

“You can buy one from me after the match,” Hikaru offered with a grin.

“I’ll consider it,” N replied. “But I’ve brought an item of my own.”

Zoroark’s eyes flared with a red glow—Confuse Ray!—just as it donned a monocle.

Scope Lens. Boosts critical hit ratio.

Then it used Swords Dance, before lunging with another blade strike—critical hits ignore defensive buffs and deal heavy damage.

But Aegislash’s single eye fixed upon Zoroark—

The fox froze.

Wasn’t it confused? How could it—?

N realized at once—

Confuse Ray hadn’t worked.

“You noticed. In a no-restriction match, I can channel some of my own power into my Pokémon—bolstering their energy, preventing confusion.”

“And I’m not done yet.”

Hikaru flicked his wand. Zoroark’s monocle vanished—

And reappeared on Aegislash’s face.

“Magical item swap?!” N gasped.

Aegislash’s golden form surged, his King’s Shield dropping as both Steel and Fighting energies flared—compressing Steel Beam power into a single Sacred Sword strike!

A colossal golden blade smashed down point-blank.

Zoroark’s HP hit zero instantly.

“That’s magic,” Hikaru said coolly. “As you said—a Trainer never just stands there.”

The tower’s guardian spirits erupted in cheers, their voices both mournful and celebratory.

Skyla blinked. “What was that? I’ve never seen a Pokémon turn golden before.”

Even Caitlin’s eyes gleamed with fascination as she scribbled her notes:

The traveler’s greatsword turned to gold, felling its foe in a single blow, like a legendary holy sword…

N sighed. “You did well, Zoroark.”

But the pressure on him had doubled. That golden form… King’s Stance? The opponent had shown it deliberately.

He returned Zoroark and, after a brief pause, sent out his second Pokémon—

Ninetales.

Hikaru understood immediately.

In Black 2 and White 2, during N’s Castle battle in summer, his seasonal team included Ninetales as his weather setter.

Which meant he probably had another Fire-type waiting—likely Arcanine or Rapidash.

But this Ninetales wasn’t using Drought as its ability. Instead—

It cried sharply, summoning a blazing sun overhead—Sunny Day.

“Manual sun. Ability: Flash Fire.”

Hikaru’s Poké Ball burst open to reveal Lilligant, twirling in a whirlwind of petals.

N’s eyes narrowed. Two of Hikaru’s main forces were Grass-types—Fire was the natural counter.

Ninetales bared its fangs, launching an intense Flamethrower.

With Heat Rock in play, the sunlight would last even longer.

Hikaru’s mental command rang clear—

Cut through with Solar Blade!

The sunlight let Grass moves like Solar Blade and Solar Beam fire instantly. Lilligant danced, slashing through the flames before instantly pivoting into Solar Beam, blasting Ninetales before it could dodge.

The blast rocked the Fire-type hard. Even N was shocked—

Such power from a Grass move? And in that instant, as the blade had swung, he’d glimpsed visions of endless flowers and the stars of the universe.

“Are you okay, Ninetales?”

“Wuuh!” It shook its head, growling in frustration.

Then its eyes glowed—it cast Disable!

Hikaru’s Lilligant shattered into nothing—Substitute.

But Disable’s blocking effect still lingered.

Lilligant closed the gap, slashing with Leaf Blade, releasing a strange dust—Sleep Powder.

The powder hit Ninetales’s shimmering Safeguard—useless.

Ninetales grinned, then inhaled deeply—Fire Blast!

The inferno engulfed Lilligant—only for her to whirl out of the flames, striking in a blinding flurry—Quick Guard Counter! Her palm strike stopped Ninetales’s Quick Attack mid-dash, returning the blow at +3 priority for a clean KO.

The crowd was stunned—

A Grass Pokémon immune to Fire?

Hikaru explained calmly, “It’s Role Play—Lilligant copied Ninetales’s Flash Fire.”

Even Caitlin and Skyla could only stare.

Ninetales fell. Lilligant’s held item—a Black Belt—had boosted that decisive Counter by 20%.

Could anyone withstand that?

(End of Chapter) ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI[F]ire.net

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