Professor Rowan and Carolina soon arrived at the edge of the grassy park, where Shiro was teasing his Feebas not far from the lake.
'Shiro, someone's here!' Unown A called out before immediately hiding itself. The other Pokémon, however, continued their training as if nothing had happened.
Rei was running at the front, but his steps suddenly slowed.
On the cleared open ground ahead, Growlithe was spraying blazing flames into the sky. The fire spread outward and thickened, swirling like a vortex as it hovered above.
Even from more than ten meters away, Rei could feel the intense heat pressing against his skin.
"Is that Flamethrower?" Carolina said from behind, then frowned as she sensed something was wrong. "That doesn't seem right. A Gym-level Growlithe shouldn't be capable of this level of power. This is comparable to an Elite-level Pokémon's attack."
"I don't know… maybe it's the result of some special training method," Rowan replied, hesitating as he stopped moving forward.
The flames were simply too fierce. It was enough to make anyone uneasy.
At that moment, a red light flashed, and Growlithe was recalled. From afar, Shiro had already spotted Rowan and Carolina, so he jogged over.
"Professor Rowan… did something happen?"
He stopped in front of them.
Carolina was still deep in thought, analyzing the principles behind that Flamethrower, and did not respond right away.
Rowan spoke first, his voice carrying clear anxiety. "Shiro, about your Dynamax paper…"
"I published it last night."
"Then this Dynamax mechanism, can it be widely—"
"No." Shiro cut him off immediately. "It can only be used in the Galar region. It's a unique system exclusive to Galar."
Carolina then snapped back to attention and followed up, "Then has this mechanism been used in Galar for a long time?"
He thought for a moment before answering, "The Dynamax phenomenon has existed in Galar for a long time. It usually comes with Pokémon growing larger and a change in the surrounding weather… but I can guarantee that controlled Dynamax is a recent development. It hasn't even fully spread within Galar yet."
She let out a small sigh of relief and continued, "And the Chairman of the Galar League…?"
"Rose approached me for cooperation to promote Galar," Shiro replied simply, then added, "The local nobles and other forces there are not a threat."
"I see." Carolina nodded slightly.
Only now did Rowan fully catch up. He grabbed his messy gray hair and said, "Galar? Nobles? Are you saying nobles might target him because of the Dynamax system? But…"
Halfway through, he suddenly remembered something Shiro had said previously in the lab, when he saw the colorful stone Professor Sycamore had thrown over.
"He'll attract special attention… so that's what it meant."
Rowan finally understood, but worry quickly filled his heart. Those stones now felt like hot potatoes in his hands, and he even began to wonder if he should return them to Sycamore.
After that, the group discussed the details of Dynamax for a while. Both Rowan and Carolina were very curious about its true origin, but Shiro refused to answer directly.
A short while later, they returned to Rowan's laboratory.
At the entrance, they found Cynthia standing there with her hands in her pockets, waiting.
"Cynthia…" Carolina spoke up. "What's wrong?"
"Grandma, I'm waiting for Shiro." She smiled and took out a Poké Ball. "I want to challenge him."
* * *
Before Shiro could even prepare, he was pulled over to the battlefield on the west side of the institute.
As a "candidate Elite Four," Cynthia wanted to challenge him, the Champion of Galar.
"I'm preparing to take on the Victory Road. I want to see where I stand right now… You won't refuse, right?"
She held the Poké Ball in her hand. Her eyes were sharp, yet her expression carried a faint smile as she spoke.
Naturally, Shiro had no reason to refuse. He also wanted to see how strong she currently was, so he could better understand his own level.
They stood on opposite sides of the field, ready to release their Pokémon at any moment.
This battlefield was nothing more than an open space marked with white lines. It lacked the specialized battle pillars from Galar that could form psychic barriers, restrict movement, and provide protection.
That meant anyone watching nearby could be in real danger.
"I'll be the referee," Carolina said as she casually threw out a Poké Ball.
A fox with an icy blue body appeared. It was Glaceon, and its strength had reached the peak of the Elite-level.
The moment it appeared, the surrounding temperature dropped sharply. As it stepped forward gracefully, the grass beneath it began freezing from the roots upward, turning into strands of icy sculptures.
'What a powerful Glaceon…'
Shiro observed carefully, his expression turning serious.
Its control over ice energy was incredible. It spread its power slowly across the ground, freezing everything without letting the energy merge uncontrollably.
If it were a less skilled Pokémon at the same level, the entire area would have been frozen into one massive block of ice, smooth enough to skate on.
Ice energy was naturally prone to linking together, yet this Glaceon avoided that completely. More than the Pokémon itself, it showed just how strong Carolina truly was.
It wasn't just Professor Oak who doubled as a trainer… who knew how many of these well-funded professors had raised their own powerful Pokémon?
"With Glaceon protecting the area, there's no problem."
Carolina waved her hand. "I'll act as the referee. The two of you may release your Pokémon and begin."
Shiro and Cynthia exchanged a glance, then threw their Poké Balls at the same time.
"Haunter!"
"Garchomp!"
A dark purple ghost floated into the air with a sinister grin.
On the other side stood a powerful, upright land shark Pokémon. Its body was deep blue, with a red upper abdomen and a yellow lower half. Blade-like fins extended from its arms, sharp teeth lined its mouth, and spikes ran along its body.
The pseudo-legendary land dragon, Garchomp.
Shiro immediately used his psychic power to scan it:
[Name: Garchomp
Type: Dragon/Ground
Level: 53 (Elite)
Ability: Rough Skin
Held Item: Leftovers
Moves: Crunch, Sand Attack, Tackle, Dragon Breath, Sand Tomb, Bulldoze, Bite, Slash, Dragon Claw, Dig, Sandstorm, Scary Face, Protect, Fire Fang...]
In terms of typing, Ground restrained Poison. Fortunately, Haunter specialized in Ghost-type moves, so the impact was limited.
However, Garchomp held Leftovers, allowing it to recover some stamina over time. On top of that, its level was significantly higher.
Shiro hadn't expected Cynthia to send out her strongest Pokémon right from the start.
**
**
**
Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you can visit my P@treon:
P@treon/SilverShark769
Vote with Power Stones for Bonus Chapters!
Your support means a lot, thank you!