Solgaleo's gaze shifted from Tapu Koko and the others to Julian. Being stared at by a First-class Legendary would likely overwhelm an ordinary Champion.
But Julian met its gaze without a trace of fear.
From Julian, Solgaleo sensed the auras of five First-class Legendaries—all of them friendly.
One was of that White Dragon, and the other was of the small creature wearing sunglasses in Julian's arms, which was also a First-class Legendary.
Aside from this little one, which Solgaleo felt confident it could handle even in its relatively weakened state, the other four auras would be difficult to defeat even at its full strength.
Looking at the White Dragon and Jirachi in Julian's arms, an unbelievable thought surfaced in Solgaleo's mind: 'This human has subdued two First-class Legendaries?'
It was indeed possible for a human to make a First-class Legendary follow them, but only under the condition of receiving its utmost recognition—something exceedingly rare.
The dignity of a First-class Legendary made it nearly impossible for them to develop a sense of recognition toward a human, let alone to the level that would make them follow one.
Solgaleo could sense that the White Dragon had genuinely been subdued by this human, as its aura carried traces of his own.
As for the little creature in his arms, it wasn't this human's Pokémon, but the little one seemed deeply attached to him.
"You are a remarkable human."
Solgaleo's voice, tinged with admiration and surprise, echoed in Julian's ears.
Since the beginning of its existence, it had seen far too many humans covet the power of First-class Legendaries, only to be destroyed by them in the end, with their entire regions sometimes vanishing under the First-class Legendary's wrath.
Having lived for who knew how many tens of thousands of years, it truly had never seen a human who could subdue a First-class Legendary; at most, there were only cooperative relationships.
The expression in the White Dragon's eyes showed that it wasn't a soulless puppet, so it could rule out Julian having used any special means.
And the fact that Tapu Koko and the others had brought Julian here proved he had earned their respect too.
Taking all this into account, Solgaleo's first impression of Julian was quite favorable.
"You flatter me," Julian smiled faintly, his expression neither humble nor overbearing.
For him now, encountering First-class Legendaries was nothing new, so there was nothing to be surprised about.
By now Reshiram had already landed to Julian's right, staring intently at Solgaleo, while the Poké Ball containing Zekrom at Julian's waist also began to tremble.
The next second, Zekrom burst out of its ball on its own.
It stood to Julian's left.
Zekrom: "Come on, let's fight!"
As soon as it emerged, it let out a provocative roar toward Solgaleo.
Its temper was far more explosive than Reshiram's, and it loved a good fight.
"Knock it off. Solgaleo's injuries aren't fully healed yet. Even if you win, it wouldn't be an honorable victory."
Julian patted it, his tone carrying a bit of disdain, as if saying that it only knew how to bully the weak.
"Fine."
Zekrom smacked its lips in dissatisfaction.
"You actually have another First-class Legendary?!"
Tapu Koko's eyes widened, its heart nearly stopping. Its small head full of huge confusion.
How? How had this human changed so much since they last met?
Was it really only two years that had passed, and not two hundred?
"No."
Julian shook his head. Then raising Jirachi in his arms, he said, "Three, actually."
Jirachi took off its sunglasses and looked proudly at the four Guardians. "I am the Wishing Star, Jirachi. I wonder if any of you have heard of my great name?"
As it spoke, it released its aura of a First-class Legendary.
Tapu Koko and the other three shook their heads in unison, indicating that they didn't recognize it.
The only First-class Legendaries they knew were Solgaleo and Lunala. What Wishing Star? They'd never heard of it.
And were you really a First-class Legendary?
A First-class Legendary that eats fried chicken and drinks cola?
Then sensing the aura Jirachi deliberately released, aside from surprise, Tapu Koko and the others had another thought:
'Can a being like this really be a First-class Legendary?'
Overall, Jirachi managed to lower the prestige associated with First-class Legendaries.
Looking at the Black and White Dragons by Julian's side, Solgaleo was momentarily dazed. This human hadn't subdued just one First-class Legendary, but two.
Was he really a human, and not Arceus, the Creator, in disguise?
Or had humans, during the time it had been asleep, reached a point where everyone had a First-class Legendary?
It could accept Julian having one First-class Legendary, but two? Solgaleo found that a bit hard to swallow.
Reshiram: "Has this guy been scared silly?"
Zekrom: "Probably. He looks completely spaced out."
After a long while, Solgaleo finally came back to its senses and said in an incredulous tone, "Your existence has surpassed my understanding of humans."
Julian smiled. "It was more a matter of coincidence and fate that I met them," he said, his gaze shifting between Zekrom and Reshiram.
"Human, what is your name?"
"I am Julian."
Solgaleo nodded.
Then, its expression turned grave. "In that case, Julian, may I ask a favor of you?"
"No."
"Good. Since you agree—what? You refuse?!"
Solgaleo's words had only gotten halfway out when it suddenly realized what was said. Its composed tone vanished, and its voice rose noticeably in the latter half of the sentence.
"Yes, I refuse."
Julian nodded, confirming that Solgaleo hadn't heard wrong.
A favor asked by a First-class Legendary would definitely be something troublesome, possibly even life-threatening, and might not even come with worthwhile rewards.
Such a thankless task was something Julian truly didn't want to take on.
Besides, he was someone with cheats—he could grow stronger just by lying down. Why should he do work for others?
Moreover, Julian didn't think Solgaleo could afford to hire him. The payment would have to be at least a World-class treasure.
After all, even an Ultimate treasure would merely be the icing on the cake for him.
Other treasures were even more useless.
Julian's move left Solgaleo speechless. Why wasn't he following the script? How could he just refuse outright? 'I'm a First-class Legendary! Don't I have any dignity?'
If it weren't for the Black and White Dragons by his side, Solgaleo would definitely make him understand how unwise it was to refuse a First-class Legendary.
Zekrom was staring straight at Solgaleo.
'Go on, get angry. Hurry up and get angry! My trainer is being so disrespectful to you—as a First-class Legendary, don't you care about your pride?'
Solgaleo: 'What's with this guy's look? Does it want to fight?'
Tapu Koko and the other three looked at the frustrated Solgaleo with serious expressions, desperately thinking about all the sad things from these past years, because they were afraid that if they weren't careful, they might accidentally burst out laughing.
If that happened, they'd be the ones in trouble.
*****
Upto 30 chapters ahead on patreon :-
patreon.com/ReduxMagister