Night settled over the city. The sky grew dark, and only a few stars were visible through the thin cloud cover.
After dinner, Jacob and Kyle walked Julia and Amira back to school. Kyle then headed straight to the training room to get in extra practice — losing to Jacob had only sharpened his motivation. Jacob, meanwhile, made his way to a construction site on the northern outskirts of the Imperial Capital.
Half a month earlier, once the official approval for the Giant Laboratory had come through, Jacob had wasted no time. He reached out to Raya and Maximus, brought in the country's top design and construction teams, and pushed to have the entire facility completed within a month. He had also made a point of requesting a large indoor battle arena as part of the build — somewhere his Pokémon could train and spar properly.
Half a month in, the progress was already impressive. The outer structure was nearly complete, and the surrounding grounds were almost finished. Only the interior work remained.
By his estimate, another two weeks and it would all be done.
"Dr. Jacob, coming this late just to check on things?" The site manager had been notified the moment Jacob arrived and came over right away, greeting him with a smile and holding out a pack of cigarettes.
"No thank you, I don't smoke," Jacob said pleasantly, waving it off.
He made a habit of not accepting small favors.
"Just wanted to see how things were going," he continued. "And I'd also like to try out the battle arena while I'm here. Is it ready to use?"
"Ready to use — absolutely. The ordered equipment and monitoring systems haven't arrived yet, but the arena itself is fully functional."
"What level of battle can it handle?" Jacob asked.
"We built it to your specs and followed the highest domestic and international standards," the site manager said proudly. "It's on par with a Champions League arena — it can hold up even to Champion-level battles."
"Good. You've all done excellent work." Jacob nodded. "I'll head in now. When I do, please lock up behind me and make sure nobody comes near — no one, no Pokémon."
"Understood completely," the manager said with a nod. "You Trainers always keep your methods close — don't worry, I'll make sure of it personally. Not even a Butterfree will get through."
Jacob smiled, though he quietly intended to leave Darkrai at the entrance just to be sure. "I appreciate it. Once the project wraps up, there'll be a bonus in it for the team."
"Please, that's not necessary — I should be the one treating you to a meal. Take care, Dr. Jacob."
Watching the manager's deferential bow as he left, Jacob felt a quiet, understated appreciation. There was something to be said for what came with experience, strength, and achievement.
Jacob stepped into the enclosed indoor arena, switched on the lights, and unclipped the Poké Balls from his belt one by one.
Every Pokémon except Gigantamax Lapras came out.
The reason he had made the trip out here so late wasn't only to check on construction — he had been planning a friendly sparring tournament among his team for a while now. It was originally supposed to happen two weeks ago, but the old basement at Purple Mountain Villa simply wasn't built for what his Pokémon could do anymore. If they went all out down there, the whole building would probably come down. He had held off until this arena was ready.
The moment they were all released, the energy in the room picked up noticeably. His Pokémon were visibly eager, restless with anticipation for what was coming.
"Settle down." Jacob let the excitement run its course for a moment before he spoke. "Here's how tonight works. When a match is on, if you want to support someone, go stand on their side of the arena. Pay attention to how they battle. This isn't just for fun — it's a chance to learn from each other, see what you're missing, pick up on what works."
He paused, then added, "Hard training alone will only get you so far. Real battles teach you things that solo drills can't."
"And the most important rule — friendship first, competition second." His eyes moved pointedly to Diancie and Indeedee as he said it.
If any two were going to forget the word "friendly" in friendly sparring, it would be them.
"Understood?"
"Roar!"
"First match!"
"Drakloak versus Sceptile!" Jacob announced. "I won't be giving commands tonight. Both of you battle freely — trust your instincts."
Sceptile and Drakloak took their positions on the arena.
Both were currently at Gym Leader level, but the gap between them was real. Drakloak had already reached that level by the time of the High School Cup finals. Since then, it had spent months steadily breaking through the Ghost-type energy sealed within the Prison Bottle, and its strength had grown to a point that was genuinely difficult to measure — even Jacob wasn't sure exactly how powerful it had become.
Sceptile, by contrast, had only crossed into Gym Leader level a month or two ago. The difference in experience and raw strength between them was clear.
Barring something unexpected, Drakloak would win this one.
"Right then — whoever you're supporting, go stand on that side." Jacob looked around at the assembled Pokémon. "Iron Valiant, just stay in the middle and watch. If you pick a side, everyone will follow you and it won't be a fair split." He then turned toward the entrance. "Darkrai — I didn't say choose a side. You're on door duty."
As the Pokémon sorted themselves out, Jacob assumed most would rally behind Drakloak — the stronger of the two by any measure. But almost every single one went to Sceptile's side.
It made a certain amount of sense, once he thought about it. Drakloak kept a low profile. Aside from the High School Cup finals, Jacob had never brought it into a public battle, and its training sessions were quiet and unassuming. Most of his team had no real reference point for how strong it was. Coupled with the obvious size difference — Sceptile was much larger — the crowd had gone with what they knew.
The only two who stepped to Drakloak's side were Shiny Gengar, whose sensitivity to Ghost-type energy told it more than appearances did, and Charizard.
Jacob raised an eyebrow at Charizard. He hadn't expected that — Charizard had clearly noticed something in Drakloak that the others hadn't.
What he didn't know was that Charizard hadn't based its decision on strength at all.
It had made up its mind the moment the teams started forming: it would always back whichever side had fewer supporters. Not out of pity — out of strategy.
If Sceptile already has a full crowd behind it, my support won't mean much. But if I go stand next to Drakloak, and it's just Gengar and me — that'll stick. Drakloak will remember.
It's better to be one of two than one of twenty.
"Sceptile, Drakloak — ready?" Both Pokémon gave a small nod.
"Three…"
"Two…"
"One…"
"Begin!"