Moreover, the number of Legendary Pokémon under Aiden Flint's command had already reached the size of an entire team.
Three Tier-One Legendaries—Rayquaza, Groudon, and Kyogre.
One Tier-Two Legendary—Regirock.
Two Mythical Beasts—Latios and Latias.
Six Legendary Pokémon in total!
With Rayquaza and the others by his side, Aiden no longer cared too much about how strong or weak individual Legendaries were.
Strong? Great.
Weak? Doesn't matter.
In fact, this outcome was perfect.
A new Guardian of the City of Water had been born, continuing to protect the people of the city.
Otherwise, if another tsunami struck and the floating city was submerged, wouldn't the people of Water City come knocking on his door?
After all, if they found out that Latios had been captured by Aiden and that was why the city lost its protection…
That would be troublesome.
"Latios, Latias, if you want to become stronger, I actually have a better method for you."
When they heard Aiden's words, both Pokémon instantly became interested.
Although they had been captured because they were weaker, if following this trainer could make them stronger, why wouldn't they accept it?
As he spoke, two dazzling stones appeared in Aiden's hands.
The moment Latios and Latias saw them, they felt an intense attraction.
They wanted them—desperately.
"These are Mega Evolution Stones. And they belong exclusively to your species."
"Once you Mega Evolve, your strength will increase drastically. Surpassing Tier-One Legendaries might be unrealistic, but fighting them head-on? That won't be a problem."
"And among Tier-Two Legendaries, almost none will be your match."
Hearing this, the Latios that hadn't been captured felt a strange sense of melancholy.
He had thought that not being captured and gaining divine authority was a blessing in disguise.
But now, he felt that those mysterious stones were even more tempting.
"Now then… Mega Evolve!"
As Aiden's voice fell, he tossed the Mega Stones toward Latios and Latias.
Under the guidance of powerful psychic energy, Mega Evolution began!
Brilliant, rainbow-colored light illuminated the entire coastline.
Within that dazzling glow, Mega Latios and Mega Latias appeared.
"Ding! Mega Latios and Mega Latias' current attributes are as follows:"
Pokémon: Mega Latios
Divine Authority: Guardian of the City of Water
Level: 80
Ability: Levitate
Type: Dragon / Psychic
Potential: Red
Bond Evolution: Not unlocked
Mega Evolution: Mega Latios
Skills: Dragon Dance, Stored Power, Recover, Dragon Breath, Luster Purge, Heal Pulse…
Affinity: 150
Experience: The guardian deity of the City of Water. After being captured by a trainer, it longed for greater power. After Mega Evolution, its affinity toward its trainer increased significantly.
Hobby: Becoming stronger
Pokémon: Mega Latias
Divine Authority: None
Level: 78
Ability: Levitate
Type: Dragon / Psychic
Potential: Red
Bond Evolution: Not unlocked
Mega Evolution: Mega Latias
Skills: Dragon Dance, Stored Power, Recover, Dragon Breath, Mist Ball, Heal Pulse…
Affinity: 160
Experience: The younger sister of Latios, the guardian deity of the City of Water. She likes transforming into a human girl. After being captured by a trainer, she developed a special kind of affection toward him.
The Mega Evolution of Legendary Pokémon brought an even greater boost than that of ordinary Pokémon.
For normal Pokémon, Mega Evolution usually increased their level by five—just like Aiden's Sceptile and Pidgeot.
Rayquaza, a Tier-One Legendary with divine authority, had gained ten levels after Mega Evolution, reaching a terrifying level 110.
Groudon and Kyogre, after their Primal Reversions, had each gained eight levels.
And now, as Mythical Beasts, Latios and Latias also gained eight levels after Mega Evolution!
Compared to that, Bond Evolution—the rarest form of evolution—was clearly the most terrifying.
Just Infernape alone had gained six levels through Bond Evolution and acquired three abilities at once.
At this moment, feeling their new bodies—sleek, purple-and-white forms resembling jet fighters—and their vastly increased power…
Latios and Latias exchanged glances, both seeing excitement in each other's eyes.
It seemed that following this trainer truly brought unimaginable benefits.
Just Mega Evolution alone was enough to completely transform their strength.
Now they finally understood why this human was so special.
Not only did his Poké Balls contain an entire world-like space, but he also commanded three supreme Legendary Pokémon.
"Ding! Latios and Latias' affinity has increased!"
With two Mega Stones, Aiden completely won over Latios and Latias.
The matter of capturing the twin Legendaries was finally settled.
The new Guardian of the City of Water watched Aiden's departing figure with reluctance before returning to the tower to continue absorbing the faith of the people.
…
When Aiden returned to Ever Grande City, five days had already passed.
After resting for two days at the Pokémon Center, the first round of the Hoenn Pokémon League Ever Grande Conference finally came to an end.
The list of the 128 trainers who advanced to the second round was announced.
The bracket was reshuffled, and the second round of three-on-three battles officially began.
In the second round, battles would follow a three-on-three format, with randomly selected battlefields.
Only the top sixteen would advance to the third round of full-team battles.
As expected, Ash, Morrison, Paul, Tyson, and Tetsuya all advanced to the second round.
And Aiden's first opponent in the second round was revealed.
A famous trainer from Ever Grande City—
Mr. Sam.
A man around forty years old who had competed in the Hoenn League for many years.
Though older in age, his strength was far from weak—at least elite-level peak.
He specialized in Rock-type Pokémon.
Facing such an opponent, Aiden had already decided which three Pokémon he would send into battle.
…
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> patreon.com/SorenSwiftTL