Chapter 0823: The Kings of Sword and Shield, and the Darkest Day(Two-in-One)

Natsume had just finished his vacation in Alola and was back at the Lumiose City café for a short stay.

The shop still had all the original furnishings. Indeedee kept the café in tip-top shape, spotless inside and out.

Alcremie and Steenee had even invited Natsume personally to try the new cake and fruit juice they’d created.

A strawberry cake dusted with powdered sugar and a colorful glass of fresh fruit juice sat on the table.

With knife and fork in hand, Natsume looked up: Alcremie watched nervously on his left, while Steenee waited, eyes sparkling, on the right.

No matter which one he tasted first, it felt like he’d be letting the other Pokémon down.

With a faint sigh, Natsume cut a piece of cake and lifted the glass of juice, sampling them both at once.

Alcremie and Steenee both widened their ruby-red eyes with anticipation.

Natsume: “…They’re both great.”

(I mean, it’s actually way too sweet—no idea what the flavor really is.)

Alcremie and Steenee looked immensely relieved and happily walked away.

Natsume hadn’t even had a chance to tell them he’d be leaving for Galar today. He couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt and regret.

Honestly, being such a hands-off boss—able to run the company, the café, and everything else—was all thanks to Oleana and these Pokémon.

This time, he was heading to Galar at Sonia’s invitation, to investigate Galar’s legendary heroes and the “Darkest Day” phenomenon.

Cynthia, being a mythology scholar, had a deep interest in myths around the world and eagerly agreed.

Natsume had already planned a trip to Galar, and with Moe-Moe! tagging along, all the better.

As for Galar’s legendary heroes and the “Darkest Day,” Natsume already knew the truth from playing through the Sword and Shield plot.

The royal family of Galar weren’t the real heroes. Zacian and Zamazenta were the ones who ended the Darkest Day.

And the “Darkest Day”… was really Eternatus and its Gigantamax form causing the massive disaster.

Of course, he couldn’t spoil Cynthia and Sonia, not least because it would be a nightmare to explain—and besides, he’d noticed some major events here didn’t line up with what he remembered from the story.

If he spoiled something and it turned out to be different in this world, that would just be awkward.

This was basically a free vacation.

And in the middle, a few rounds of Baby Cup… (crossed out) A few matches at the World Tournament!

“Sirfetch’d, get ready—we’re heading out.”

Packing up his luggage, Natsume called out to Sirfetch’d, who was sunbathing in the gardens:

“Sonia invited us to Galar, and Cynthia’s already agreed!”

“Sirfetch’d” (Got it)

Sirfetch’d’s laid-back voice floated over.

Not even a twitch of excitement… despite Galar being his hometown.

Natsume looked up at the sky.

He still had no clue how Sirfetch’d managed to cross the sea and end up at Tokyo Metropolitan University’s Pokémon Day Care.

Probably a story of its own.

But now wasn’t the time to ponder that. Natsume shook his head, checked the time on his phone.

Time to hit the airport and catch a flight—he could transfer at Sinnoh League and meet Cynthia on the way.

“My next destination…”

Natsume focused, muttering to himself:

“Galar Region!”

……

The flight took off from Lily of the Valley Island, cutting through the clouds toward Galar Region.

Cynthia, dressed in black, sat facing away from Natsume, reading intently with her gray eyes fixed on the pages.

Natsume scrolled through his phone, using the in-flight wifi, and glanced over.

“Reading up on Galar mythology?”

“Mm… What about you?”

“World Tournament website.”

Natsume exclaimed, “I actually thought the Master Ball tier would be like Pokémon: Battle, but there are only eight slots for Master Ball tier here.”

Cynthia closed her book and nodded gently. “The world’s top 1,000 Trainers are Great Ball tier, 99 through 9 are Ultra Ball, and the top 8 in Master Ball tier are the ‘Eight Masters.’”

“No wonder the registration’s so complicated,” Natsume said. “Even Red, a Battle Legend, would have to climb up from the bottom if he hasn’t played before… otherwise it’s just stealing someone else’s spot.”

“Do you think Red will be in this year’s World Championship?”

“I doubt it… I don’t think he’ll show up, but Blue Oak is definitely entering, and just like me, he’s starting from Ultra Ball. He’s never done the World Tournament either—got the Champion title and jumped straight to Ultra Ball.”

“My guess,” Cynthia smiled, “is that Blue Oak’s in it because of you—to try and settle the score.”

“Hmm…not saying it’s impossible.”

“I wonder what the other Contestants will feel running into the pair of you.” Cynthia chuckled, eyes shining. “What’s your ranking now?”

“Let me check.” Natsume looked it up and showed her his personal ID on the official site. “Ranked 98th.”

Cynthia took his phone, tapped it with slender fingers, and handed it back.

On the screen: Cynthia’s own ID.

World Ranking: 3rd.

Looking at the huge gap, Natsume couldn’t help but laugh.

Cynthia looked playfully pleased, lips pursed. She went back to her book, a faint smile at the corner of her mouth.

To be fair, making it into the Ultra Ball tier worldwide top 100 was anything but “Baby Cup.”

Ultra Ball tier rules were a lot stricter than Great Ball or Poké Ball—Trainers could pick one of Mega Evolution, Z-Move, or Gigantamax, and use it once per battle.

And at the Master Ball tier, the Eight Masters could challenge the current Champion—lose, and their ranking stayed the same. At season’s end, Master Ball went into elimination rounds, the top eight battling for the ultimate Champion title.

The current World Tournament Champion—the true king—is Leon.

Lance is second, Cynthia third, Steven fourth, Raihan seventh.

Natsume is still down at 98th—one loss and he’ll fall out of the top 100. Kinda stings.

The journey from “Baby Cup” was just getting started.

As night fell, the flight landed at Motostoke in Galar Region.

Motostoke was classic industrial city: factories everywhere, steam on the air, and the Fire-type Gym Leader Kabu in charge.

Their hotel for the night was the upscale Budew Hotel, with Sonia coming personally to pick them up at the airport.

Natsume and Cynthia, both wearing sunglasses, waited outside the arrivals area, watching cars go by. Natsume murmured,

“Cynthia… you know, there’s something I remembered.”

“Hm?”

“This time, Sonia’s driving us herself, right?” Natsume’s face was ever-so-slightly uneasy.

Cynthia nodded. “That’s what she said on the phone. Why?”

“Sonia’s driving… Let’s put it this way—she can drive into a tree on a straight road. Kinda like Leon getting lost the moment he leaves the Pokémon Center.”

Cynthia touched her chin, suddenly getting that lightbulb expression.

She thought back to the café’s ribbon-cutting ceremony. Sonia had, indeed, failed spectacularly there.

Natsume: “…You seriously just remembered?”

Cynthia: “Of course not, ahem. Anyway, the airport’s pretty close to the Budew Hotel, so it should be fine.”

She spoke, then glanced at Natsume, realizing she’d just echoed one of his own catchphrases.

Screeeech!

The sharp sound of drifting tires echoed down the road.

On the huge, multi-lane airport drive, a pink compact car darted around a full-turn drift, burning rubber right up to where they stood.

Natsume and Cynthia stared.

The car accelerated out of the corner in a perfect pendulum drift—a wide, empty road, yet you’d swear they were racing on a cliff’s edge.

The pink car smoked all the way up to the pair before the engine shut off.

The window rolled down. Sonia, wiping cold sweat, cheerfully greeted them:

“Hey, Natsume-sensei, Champion Cynthia! I’m here to pick you up!”

Cynthia: “…”

Yeah, that’s a bigger problem than I thought.

Natsume eyed the smoking tires and said,

“Sonia…maybe just leave the car here, and let’s take a taxi?”

Sonia, hands on the wheel, blinked her green eyes. “Huh?”

They left the pink car in the airport garage and Sonia called someone for repairs.

Budew Hotel sent a car to collect their three special guests.

“It was just a fluke this time,” Sonia explained seriously in the backseat, hugging Yamper. “I actually drive well—every time Leon gets lost, it’s me and Yamper who go find him!”

“Right, you and Leon are childhood friends,” Cynthia said warmly.

“Not ‘childhood friends!’ Leon’s just a battle maniac who’d get lost without me around!” Sonia said proudly.

Cynthia’s gray eyes glimmered, and she glanced at the front seat.

Without Natsume, maybe I wouldn’t be myself either.

Natsume sat up front, deep in thought.

One gets lost, the other is a driving disaster.

It’s a miracle you and Leon made it this far alive.

Now that I think about it… didn’t Leon call Raihan for help more than Sonia when he got lost…?

Arriving at Budew Hotel,

Sonia led the way, introducing them to the hotel and surrounding amenities.

“Budew Hotel’s a premium chain—and right next door is Motostoke’s battle arena. There’s a backyard here perfect for practice battles…”

“All of Galar’s super into Pokémon battles, huh?” Cynthia put her hand on her hip, a bit surprised.

“Well… sort of…” Sonia scratched her orange hair and laughed awkwardly. “Galar never had much in the way of resources, so they poured everything into battle competitions—the people really got swept up in it.”

“You make the most of what you’ve got. It’s created a unique league style,” Natsume agreed.

Chairman Rose was a one-of-a-kind businessman. Without him, the Galar league might’ve lagged behind by a decade.

And with “Strongest Champion” Leon at the top, Galar’s scene blew up all the more.

On the flip side, if Leon ever went down, the scene would lose steam fast—and the backlash on Leon would be brutal.

Still, he laughs his way through every match—dude really, truly loves Pokemon battles.

Even with every inch of him plastered in sponsorships, Leon throws himself into things headfirst, all for Galar.

They stepped into Budew Hotel’s grand lobby.

It was huge, the floor gleaming, with majestic stairs on both sides. In the middle, a giant golden statue stood proud.

A hero holding sword and shield.

Noticing Natsume and Cynthia glancing over, Sonia explained,

“That statue commemorates the sword-and-shield hero who fought the ‘Darkest Day.’”

She stood in front of it, hands folded behind her back, studying the indistinct face.

“Legend says that three thousand years ago, the Darkest Day hit Galar—the whole land blanketed in darkness—until a hero rose with sword and shield and defeated it.”

She turned to face them, adding, “But over time, the truth of the legend became lost; now there are lots of versions. Paintings in Hammerlocke’s vault say there were two heroes—princes of Galar’s royal family. Some say they were actually two Pokémon; at Wyndon, everyone knows that statue, saying it was just a single human...”

“That’s why I invited you both here,” Sonia’s eyes flashed, “to get to the truth about Galar’s mythology. Who was the real Sword and Shield hero?”

Natsume almost blurted out: Zacian and Zamazenta!

But at his side, his Premier Ball started to rattle, a flash of red light bursting out.

Sirfetch’d, leek and shield in hand, bushy-browed and calm, gazed up at the statue. “Sirfetch’d...”

Why does the weapon in that statue look kinda familiar…?

“Don’t interrupt her explanation…”

Natsume sighed and returned Sirfetch’d to the ball before nodding to Sonia. “Please, go on.”

“In short,” Sonia smiled, “this ‘King of Sword and Shield’ legend is just waiting for us to uncover it together.”

King of Sword and Shield...

Natsume paused.

Sword king, sure—that’s Zacian.

Shield king too—Zamazenta.

But king of sword and shield… is that Aegislash!?

Looks like the plot’s already diverged a bit from what he remembered.

Natsume’s eyes flickered.

But the real answer probably wasn’t far away now.

“Well, I hope you both get some rest tonight.”

Sonia flicked her fingertips, smiling. “Tomorrow morning, we’ll head out to Turffield and check out the mural!”

Natsume nodded quietly, lost in thought, unconsciously following Cynthia toward the elevators.

Suddenly, a thought hit him.

Natsume: “Just one room, right?”

Cynthia glanced over, “What, you thought otherwise?”

“Guess I better recall all the Pokémon, and send Sirfetch’d to Bill’s PC, or he’ll barge out again…”

“Sirfetch’d! (′︿‵)” The Premier Ball rattled.

Hey, at least try to do this subtle, this is still technically a kids’ show!

It wasn’t even ten o’clock—way too early to sleep.

While settling into the suite, Natsume spent some time researching the World Tournament’s official matchmaking app.

It auto-matched Trainers with “evenly-matched” opponents.

There were two options: Ranked matches and Ranking matches.

Ranked matches meant your rating could go up or down, but only against opponents in the same tier.

Ranking matches factored in tier gaps and adjusted points accordingly, and let you face off against Trainers from lower or higher tiers.

For any Ultra Ball Trainer in the top hundred, choosing Ranking matches was risky—a single loss could cancel out ten victories.

But for Natsume-sensei... hey, every little bit counts.

Ranked matches were impossible to find opponents.

Might as well try Ranking matches—maybe he could see the World Tournament’s world-class match algorithm in action.

Natsume stared at his phone, radar animation spinning, until a “Match Success!” flashed on-screen.

“Beep… Match success, Rotom!”

“Who’s the opponent?”

“Great Ball tier, Ranked 260, Rotom!”

“And us?”

“Ultra Ball, Ranked 98, Rotom!”

“Crush them—wait, who is it?”

“Beep… Spikemuth, Dark-type Trainer: Marnie, Rotom!”