After effortlessly crushing the overconfident Juichi, Shiba didn't linger in the battle zone.
An opponent of that level couldn't even give Aerodactyl a proper warm-up.
With Yuko at his side, eyes sparkling with worship and little stars, he began wandering around the club.
This private club, named "Apex Realm," was worthy of its reputation as the most elite venue in the Xia Nation. On the third floor, in the breeding area, the air was rich with the blended fragrance of countless rare Berries and top-grade Pokéblocks. Behind polished glass panels lay breeding rooms simulating different ecosystems, where valuable Pokémon Eggs slept quietly in temperature-controlled incubators.
The Trainers here were all impeccably dressed, their speech refined. Every gesture carried the ease and confidence of the upper circle.
As they walked, Shiba listened to Yuko's cheerful chatter with half an ear, but his mind had already sunk inward. He drove the Prophecy System at full capacity, like a starving predator surveying its hunting grounds.
He craved a new discovery.
Just as they were passing a lounge area, something changed.
Without warning, the Prophecy System shuddered violently. A golden radiance blazed upward from a figure nearby—so bright it stabbed at his mind and made his brain throb in pain.
The light was like a miniature sun—blindingly intense, overwhelmingly dominant.
Shiba froze in place.
His heart clenched hard; it felt like all the blood in his body rushed straight to his head.
Gold.
This was only the second time he'd seen a golden prophecy—the color of the very highest tier of fate.
His gaze locked instantly, slicing through the crowd and landing squarely on the source of that light: a young Trainer passing by them with a distinctly haughty air.
The man wore a limited-edition designer Trainer outfit, chin tilted up, eyes full of open scrutiny and disdain, as if the entire environment here barely deserved his presence.
He didn't need to think. A crystal-clear moving image exploded in Shiba's mind.
A secret-rift cliff with brutally complex terrain.
Jagged rocks like monstrous fangs stabbed up from the ground toward the sky. Gale-force winds howled through the valley, making sounds like ghosts wailing in the dark.
In the vision, that arrogant young Trainer was standing there in a rather bedraggled state, commanding his ace Pokémon—a Charizard at elite-tier—to battle fiercely against another creature.
His opponent was a Gible whose body wasn't particularly large.
That Gible was covered in wounds deep enough to show bone, its blue hide stained all over with dark red blood. One of its legs was twisted at an unnatural angle. It panted in rough, heavy breaths, every inhalation laced with a tremor of pain.
But its eyes were so savage they made one's heart lurch.
No retreat. No fear. Only the rawest, purest will to fight.
Facing the blazing Dragon Breath Charizard spewed at it, it didn't dodge. It charged straight through the flames, slamming its small body hard into its opponent.
Dragon Rush.
Trading injury for injury, life for life.
In the end, at the cost of leaving his Charizard badly injured and on the verge of collapse, the haughty Trainer finally managed to capture the utterly exhausted, unconscious Gible with a High-class Poké Ball.
The vision still didn't end there.
The final frame froze on the screen of a Pokémon appraisal device.
On that screen, a line of data shone with a brilliance that made Shiba's pupils constrict.
[Gible – Potential: Champion-tier.]
Champion-tier.
Those three words hit Shiba's heart like a sledgehammer.
Below the display, a line of cold golden text slowly appeared:
[One week from now, this person will encounter and capture this Champion-potential Gible in the "Dragon Lair Secret Realm" on the outskirts of Magic City.]
Another Champion-potential pseudo-legendary!
Shiba's breathing instantly turned hot and ragged.
A searing desire surged from the depths of his soul, consuming his entire being in a heartbeat.
There was no way he was letting an opportunity like this go.
Fate had already drafted the script. His role was to be the one who tore that script to pieces and rewrote the lead role in his own name.
Forcing down the pounding in his chest, he let his fingers tremble just once, then forced himself to calm and keep watching.
He couldn't afford to spook the prey.
But the surprises weren't over.
In another lounge area not far away, a deep violet halo quietly rose from the body of a middle-aged Trainer who was carefully polishing a Poké Ball with a soft cloth.
Shiba's thoughts flicked. He split off part of his focus and triggered a second prophecy.
A new vision unrolled.
[Three days from now, this person will also be in the "Dragon Lair Secret Realm." Behind a waterfall plunging down from the cliffs, he will accidentally discover a cave hidden by the curtain of water.]
[Deep inside that cave, he will find a rare treasure that greatly boosts the power of Dragon-type moves and is exceptionally effective at helping Dragon-type Pokémon break through bottlenecks—a Dragon Fang.]
Dragon Lair Secret Realm.
The Dragon Lair Secret Realm again.
Shiba's mind buzzed, as if struck by lightning.
All the scattered information snapped together into a single, perfectly clear line.
Within a single week, one secret realm was going to birth two colossal opportunities.
A Champion-potential pseudo-legendary hatchling.
And a top-tier treasure capable of pushing Dragon-type Pokémon to a new tier of strength.
Shiba's eyes sharpened in an instant. It was the focused, icy gaze of a hawk that had locked onto its prey.
That Champion-potential Gible—he wanted it.
That Dragon Fang that could skyrocket the power of his Dratini and Aerodactyl—he wanted that too.
He raised his wrist and glanced at the electronic clock on the wall. The time and date etched themselves clearly into his mind.
A wild idea formed in his heart in an instant—and once it appeared, it could no longer be contained.
He couldn't wait three days. He definitely couldn't wait a week.
Waiting meant variables.
What he had to do was reach the stage before any of the scripted scenes were performed, and claim both of those "gifts of fate" for himself before their original recipients ever got the chance to see them.
"Yuko, I just remembered something urgent. I'll have to head back first."
He turned to her, voice steady, though deep in his black eyes a fire of absolute determination burned.
"Mm, okay."
Yuko was a little reluctant, but still nodded obediently without pressing for details.
Shiba hesitated no longer.
He gave the girl a brief, apologetic smile, then turned, lengthening his stride as he quickly left the luxurious club.
As he passed, he glanced sidelong one last time at the arrogant young man and the focused middle-aged Trainer.
He looked at them like a man watching two future losers who were about to have everything taken from them.
Stepping out through the club's doors, the cool evening breeze brushed his face and cooled his overheated head a little.
But the fire in his chest only burned brighter.
Dragon Lair Secret Realm—here I come.
(End of Chapter)
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