As Metagross consumed the Potential-enhancing potion, its aura began to slowly rise, like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
The commander stared intently at Metagross, his heart filled with both anticipation and anxiety.
As Metagross's aura reached a critical threshold, the rising momentum came to a halt.
"Come on, Metagross!"
Seeing this, the commander couldn't help but shout.
As the saying went, strike while the momentum lasts; once it fades, it only grows weaker.
He knew very well that this was the most crucial moment. If it couldn't break through now, who knew how many years it would be before the next attempt—and the next attempt would be even harder than this one.
Watching Metagross's pained expression, Julian noticed that the energy within its body was slowly beginning to recede.
Clearly, if nothing unexpected happened, this breakthrough was destined to fail.
"Metagross."
Julian glanced at his own Metagross.
With him here, how could he possibly let the other's breakthrough fail?
"Meta~"
Metagross stepped in front of the other, gently placing a claw on its forehead.
A stream of energy flowed from its claw into the other Metagross's body.
With the infusion of this energy, the previously receding energy within the other's body began to surge as if strapped to a rocket.
BOOM!!
As the bottleneck that had confined it for years shattered, a soaring aura erupted from Metagross's body.
"Champion... I've become a Champion!"
The commander murmured to himself, his expression brimming with intense excitement.
After all, this was the Champion rank. Even in Drakoria, there were only seven Champions, and most countries didn't even have a single one.
Although he currently had only one Champion-level Pokémon, it was still a Champion. And even in Drakoria, that meant standing at the very top of the pyramid.
In terms of status alone, among the six Elders of Drakoria, he would rank only slightly below the Grand Elder, yet higher than the other five Elders.
And the Elders of Drakoria were those who stood at the pinnacle of political power.
But the source of that power was granted by the nation.
The stronger the nation, the greater the power of those who ruled it. And how did a nation grow strong?
Naturally, that was determined by the number of Champions it possessed.
The more Champions, the stronger the nation, and the greater the power of its rulers.
Thus, in every country, the status of Champions generally stood above that of the rulers—though, to a certain extent, the rulers could still command the Champions.
With the commander of the Steel Guards now a Champion-level figure, Julian felt that his family's hidden organization's setup was now top-tier.
Special organizations like the Steel Guards were surely cultivated in secret by top-tier clans and major families to handle unsavory tasks. The only difference lay in the scale and strength of these hidden organizations.
The commanders of such organizations were, at best, probably at the Pseudo-Champion level—most likely early-stage or mid-stage Pseudo-Champions at best.
And any family that had a Pseudo-Champion serving as the commander of its covert organization was undoubtedly a major clan, and it was highly likely that the commander position was held concurrently by one of the family's own high-ranking members.
But the Walker family? They were on an entirely different level of extravagance—not just one commander, but three, all of them Pseudo-Champions, with the strongest among them at the peak of the Pseudo-Champion tier.
And now, he had become a true Champion.
A Champion capable of safeguarding an entire nation, serving as the commander of the Walker family's covert forces—if word got out, probably no one would believe it.
After all, even among the top-tier clans nowadays, plenty still didn't have a single Champion within their ranks.
Seeing the Steel Guards commander forcibly suppressing his excitement out of deference to his presence, Julian waved his hand and said, "Alright, you're dismissed. Go and celebrate properly."
"Levi of the Steel Guards is willing to go through fire and water for the Walker family for generations to come!"
Levi dropped to one knee, his voice filled with absolute sincerity and devotion.
Levi was his name, and Metagross was his codename.
Some members of the Walker family's Steel Guards were orphans taken in, trained, and indoctrinated; others were talented commoners recruited from the outside.
But the majority actually came from within the Steel Guards' own lineage.
One had to understand that the Walker family's Steel Guards had a retirement mechanism. Once a member reached a certain age, or due to physical reasons, they could retire.
The Walker family would arrange a legitimate identity so that these retired Steel Guards could live out in the open. And if they wished to continue working, the Walkers would even arrange employment for them.
Of course, these retired Steel Guards remained under the Walker family's supervision.
And many retired Steel Guards, the moment they retired, the first thing they did was get married and have children—and their children became the primary source of fresh blood for the organisation.
Naturally, this was entirely voluntary.
If they didn't want their children to join the Steel Guards, that was perfectly fine too.
And although joining the Steel Guards meant losing decades of freedom, it allowed one to receive the highest level of resources and enjoy the massive backing of the Walkers.
So, many Steel Guards, once their children came of age, would send them to join the organisation.
Metagross returned to the headquarters brimming with excitement.
Just then, Metang happened to walk in. Seeing him looking so overjoyed, Metang asked curiously, "What's going on? Why so happy?"
"Take a guess," Metagross said.
"Don't tell me you're finally retiring—if that's the case, then I'll be the new First Commander."
Metang stroked his chin, speculating.
He had been eyeing the position of First Commander for a long time, and this guy had long since reached retirement age but just wouldn't retire, much to his frustration.
"F**k you! Unless I drop dead, you'll always be second-in-command."
Metagross suddenly didn't feel quite as happy anymore.
"Well, aside from that, I can't think of anything else worth getting excited about," Metang shook his head.
As far as he was concerned, Metagross retiring was the happiest news imaginable.
"Then let me tell you."
"Go on."
Metang nodded. Whatever it was, he wasn't going to be surprised.
"Metagross broke through. I've become a Champion-level trainer now," Metagross said calmly.
Metang: "...."
After a moment of silence, Metang curled his lip and said, "Quit messing around. Seriously, what's the real story?"
"I really have become a Champion."
Metagross repeated.
Metang fell silent once again.
A long while later, he walked up to Metagross, yanked off his own mask, his expression "contorted," and asked, "Really?"
"Really," Metagross nodded.
And to add credibility, he released his Metagross.
Sensing the Champion-level aura emanating from the Metagross, Metang collapsed straight onto the ground, rolling back and forth as he wailed, "Impossible, this is impossible!"
"How could you become a Champion? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
"Nothing to be done—the Clan Head helped me."
Metagross shrugged his shoulders, watching Metang roll on the ground with amusement.
The moment Metang heard that, he immediately jumped to his feet and started walking out.
"Where are you going?" Metagross called out to stop him.
Without even turning around, Metang answered, "I'm going to see the Clan Head."
Metagross knew exactly what the other was planning to do and immediately said, "It's no use even if you go. You're not even a Peak Pseudo-Champion yet—how can the Clan Head help you?"
Those words made Metang freeze in his tracks.
That's right, he wasn't even a Peak Pseudo-Champion yet...
*****
[T/N: The story is soon coming to an end. I will see if I like another Pokémon fic enough to translate it, so look forward to it. <3]
Upto 30 chapters ahead on patreon :-
patreon.com/ReduxMagister