Noda never expected that Julian would actually strike down Houndoom in public, even though he himself had previously harbored thoughts of killing his Pokémon—or even Julian himself.
But the current situation was completely opposite to what he had imagined, and Noda naturally couldn't accept it.
Just as the Air Slash was about to slice Houndoom in half—
A Rhyperior suddenly appeared in front of the Air Slash, crossing its arms to block the attack for Houndoom.
The one who made the move was naturally one of the three Elite-level trainers from Celestria.
They couldn't just stand by and watch a Pokémon from Babath die in front of them—otherwise, their allies, subordinates, and "godson" would undoubtedly feel uneasy.
What surprised the three Celestrian trainers was that, even though they intervened, the three trainers from Drakoria didn't stop them—they just stood there indifferently.
'Could it be that Drakoria doesn't want to openly break ties with us?'
That's what the three trainers from Celestria thought.
But Edward and the others didn't move, not because of that reason. But because Julian had noticed the movements of the Celestrians and secretly used his psychic abilities to signal them not to interfere.
He wanted to put on an act—he wanted the Celestrians to pay a price as well.
"Meta!"
A deep voice echoed in Rhyperior's ears as Metagross raised its right arm, its Meteor Mash erupting with the force of a falling mountain. With a single punch, it smashed Rhyperior into the ground.
Then, its body flashed and vanished—whoosh!—the Air Slash sliced Houndoom—already scorched by the Flamethrower—cleanly in half.
"Well done!!"
Before the Drakorian side could even cheer, the crowd from Volkaria had already erupted.
"Julian, you've gone too far!"
The Celestrian trainers' faces darkened. Julian had killed Noda's Pokémon right in front of them—it was no different from slapping them in public.
But before they could finish speaking, their expressions suddenly twisted in horror.
"Meta!"
"Tres!"
They saw Metagross's Flash Cannon and Moltres's Flamethrower blast toward Rhyperior, whose body was still half-buried in the ground.
Not only was Julian refusing to spare them any face—he was even going to kill 'their' Pokémon.
This left them both shocked and furious.
But the real problem was just beginning.
The three immediately tried to intervene, only for an icy chill to sweep over them from nearby, freezing them to the core.
"Gentlemen, this old man advises you… not to move."
Edward's aged voice rang out as his Abomasnow stood silently beside him, radiating a late-stage pseudo-Champion aura that left the three too terrified to even twitch.
They didn't believe Edward would dare kill them—but they didn't dare gamble on it.
BOOM!!
The combined attack from Metagross and Moltres shook the earth, followed shortly by Rhyperior's final, despairing roar.
Even with its sturdy armor, facing two Pokémon whose strength far surpassed its own, death was its only inevitable end.
With Rhyperior's demise, Julian's display of deterrence was complete.
As everyone watched the young man standing calmly, hands in his pockets, with Moltres soaring above him and Metagross towering at his side, an instinctive silence fell over the crowd.
Given time—no, even now—this young man had already surpassed the older generation of trainers. The Champion rank might not even be his final stop.
"The younger generation is impressive indeed," Edward mused approvingly, before shooting a glare at his great-grandson.
Rowan: ⊙o⊙
Asher muttered, "Hands in his pockets, giving zero fucks—Julian just pulled off the ultimate power move."
General Sam from the military patted Pierce on the shoulder. "Being in the same generation as a freak like him… you guys really drew the short straw."
His words, though meant as comfort, carried a hint of teasing.
"Easy—just don't compare myself to him," Pierce replied matter-of-factly. He wasn't stupid. After witnessing Julian's monstrous strength multiple times, setting him as a benchmark would be pure insanity.
General Sam was taken aback. 'Is this the so-called 'lying flat' mentality of the younger generation? No ambition at all?'
"Damn it, Edward! You're sabotaging the friendship between the Celestria and Drakoria!"
The Celestrian trainer was livid. His Pokémon was dead, and his heart bled with rage. He never imagined Julian would dare kill not just Babath's Pokémon, but theirs as well.
'Friendship between Celestria and Drakoria? What a joke.'
Every nation knew the two superpowers were locked in a cold war, openly and covertly stifling each other's growth.
"Koen, how do you even have the face to yell? You lost because you're weak. If your Pokémon died, then it died. If it were me, I'd be too ashamed to live," scoffed a Volkarian Elite—a nearly two-meter-tall behemoth of a man, arms crossed as he smirked at the Celestrian trainer who had just lost his Pokémon.
Then he turned to Noda. "Speaking of which, doesn't Babath have that hara-kiri tradition? You know, slicing your belly open for honor? Why don't you demonstrate it for us right now?"
Noda: 'If I wasn't outmatched, I'd punch you twice in the face.'
"What're you glaring at, Noda? Wanna settle this one-on-one?"
The Volkarian trainer bared his teeth in a savage grin.
"...Hmph!"
Noda snorted coldly and looked away.
Then he shot a meaningful glance at the three Celestrian trainers, as if to say, 'Your godson just got humiliated. Aren't you going to step up and do something about it?'
The Celestrian trio: 'Do something? Our own Pokémon just got slaughtered.'
Right now, the Drakorian side had the upper hand. With Edward, a pseudo-Champion, on their side, the Celestrian trainers were at a disadvantage. If they had known it would turn out like this, they would've brought a pseudo-Champion of their own.
'Who knows what Drakoria was thinking, sending a pseudo-Champion just to guard the secret realm gate. Why not just send a full Champion while they're at it?'
The Celestrian trainers grumbled internally, but before they could voice their complaints—
"Hahaha! My dear grandson, you've finally come out!"
A hearty laugh rang out, and then everyone saw John riding on Metagross, arriving in front of Julian.
The Celestrian trio: (´･ω･`)?
John sized up Julian from head to toe, checking that all parts were intact, and not a single scratch was visible. His clothes even looked brand new.
"This Moltres—did you capture it?"
His gaze then snapped to the flaming bird circling Julian's head, and his eyes widened—not at the sight of Moltres itself, but at its power level.
And then he noticed his grandson's Metagross—now at late-stage Elite.
"Yes, Grandpa."
Julian nodded and gestured for Moltres to descend. The legendary bird flew down, cautiously eyeing the Metagross beside John.
From its aura, Moltres could sense a powerful presence—far more imposing than Tapu Bulu who had borrowed the power of the island to reach the Champion level last time.
"This is my grandfather. No need to be nervous," Julian reassured, patting Moltres lightly.
'Grandfather?'
Moltres blinked. 'So my trainer has backing this strong? That means… this is my backer too now?'
"Meta~"
Julian's Metagross greeted its progenitor with a metallic rumble.
The two were technically father and son—or perhaps mother and son, given Metagross's asexual reproduction via fission.
"Meta~"
John's Metagross rumbled back, clearly pleased with how powerful its offspring had become.
*****
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