Lucario was on the edge of leveling up, with just a sliver of experience left before advancing to the next stage. So Larry had Lucario fight in every match, and as expected, none of his opponents could withstand Lucario's attacks.
The crowd didn't mind how fast Lucario wrapped up each match, in fact, they loved it. Cheers erupted after every swift victory, not because the fights were intense, but because it brought them closer to what they thought was inevitable: Larry being crowned champion.
Even though he ended up forfeiting in the end, no one seemed angry. To them, just watching Larry dominate was worth it. Lucario's quick wins only made the event smoother, and the excitement never dipped, if anything, it added to the legend.
Each time a floor master was defeated, Lucario gained a bit of experience. Though small, these points added up, and when Kanjiru fell, a promotion notification sounded, only Larry could hear it.
Lucario had finally broken through! He was promoted from A+ to S-level, officially becoming a top-tier powerhouse. In the place where he was born, Lucario was now recognized as one of the strongest fighters across the six continents.
On the player channel, Larry looked at Lucario with eager eyes and asked, "So, can you mega evolve now?"
Lucario, full of energy, nodded firmly, confirming that he had indeed unlocked the power of mega evolution. Larry couldn't hide his surprise and excitement. This confirmed his theory: once a Pokemon reaches a certain strength, they can use mega evolution.
For A-level Pokemon, that means reaching the S-level range. And for S-level Pokemon like Tyranitar, they need to be promoted from the lowest S-level up to S+ to unlock that ability.
Larry's current Pokemon were all top-tier, falling into the S-level category, and some even had mega evolution forms. Among them were only three with this capability: Gengar, Lucario, and Tyranitar.
Interestingly, neither the Hydregon nor Dragonite had a mega evolution form. This disparity is one of the main reasons why mega evolution faces criticism, because it's not fair that some Pokemon get it while others don't.
However, the Gardevoir in Larry's team still had potential for mega evolution. Mega Sableye, being a mega evolution form, didn't count toward that limitation.
Overall, Larry gained a lot from the martial arts competition. Tyranitar was upgraded to S+ level and gained mega evolution ability, Lucario moved up to S- level with the same potential, and the biggest prize was Marshadow, his first mythical pokemon.
Larry was confident that Marshadow was his first, and it certainly wouldn't be the last; he was determined to catch more legendary and mythical Pokemon in the future.
Just then, Larry's phone suddenly rang. He casually pressed the answer button, and a clear, high-pitched voice came through. "So, our champion decided to walk away? Care to explain how it feels to forfeit the title everyone expected you to take?"
The tone was sharp and teasing, it was clearly a woman. "Yeah. Guess I'm not cut out for all the ceremony," Larry replied with a grin.
Although Pyon wasn't physically present, her voice felt so personal and close it was as if she were right beside him. Pyon, one of the Zodiacs, had only recently gotten to know Larry.
"As your good friend, I had to call," Pyon said from a dim corridor, her voice carrying a playful warmth. "But I'm not just here to tease you. I actually have some good news to share."
"Oh? What surprise does our Rabbit have for me this time?" Larry asked, raising an eyebrow, curious despite himself.
Before this, he hadn't been too interested, except when it came to delicious food. Could she have found some rare ingredients? Just as he pondered this, Pyon began to share the news eagerly.
"Hehe, it's information about the Dark Sonata~"
Larry's words caught me off guard, 'Dark Sonata? That was unexpected, but it made sense. I had already shared my thoughts about the Dark Sonata before, especially during our last trip to Carter Port.'
Cluck and the others knew he was planning to get rid of the Dark Sonata, so it wasn't surprising that Pyon was aware of it too.
"Don't mention it, this is really good news for me," Pyon said, her earlier nervousness fading into joy.
Larry's confirmation meant her recent efforts hadn't been in vain. Since the Dark Sonata was involved, Cluck and the others had handed over their mission reports to her, so Pyon already had a general idea of what this trip was about.
Naturally, Larry was the central figure in all this. Pyon also learned about Larry's determination to find the Dark Sonata and immediately decided to help him. That's how she ended up at yesterday's meeting, she was researching related information at the Hunter Association.
Unlike Hisoka, Pyon is one of the Zodiacs and specializes in document research, so she could easily access all sorts of data from the Hunter Association. She could even check secret files on the Dark Continent, although only those held by the Association. But even with all that information, it wasn't enough to locate the incredibly mysterious Dark Sonata.
In the end, she connected various records and documents, piecing together clues that pointed toward what might be the Dark Sonata. With Larry's support, all her hard work finally felt meaningful, not wasted at all.
Yoshi Island lies to the east of the Republic of Padokea, separated from the mainland and just a bit further east from the Sky Arena. Although it looks small on the map, the island actually covers a pretty large area.
It's not listed among the top ten tourist spots across the six continents, but it still draws a good number of visitors each year, sometimes even more than some of those top destinations. The reason it isn't officially ranked as a top attraction is a bit unusual: most people who come here aren't really tourists.
Many visitors actually plan to move to the island permanently, and a large portion of those are elderly folks. Known as the "Island of Volcanoes and Fossils," Yoshi is famous for its volcanic landscape and abundant fossils.
The island features several small volcanoes called the Chimney Mountain Volcano. Thanks to these volcanoes, the island boasts rich geothermal resources, including plenty of hot springs.
While the Chimney Mountain volcanoes are similar in nature to the Mount Kira'Zan, the key difference is that Kira'Zan is a single large volcano, whereas Yoshi has multiple smaller ones. These volcanoes rarely erupt, and when they do, it's usually just a minor eruption in a remote area, far from where people live, making the island quite safe overall.