Flames flickered within the man's eyes—this was the strongest Pokémon he could command.
Although he had never truly captured Spectrier, by relying on it he had gained much.
And now, the strange, unknown halo that had just radiated from Nathan's body had actually sealed Spectrier away.
Wasn't this nothing less than blatantly stealing someone's Pokémon?
"Hey! You bastard! What did you do to my Spectrier? Hurry up and let it out, now!"
Riding atop his Pokémon, the man rushed in front of Nathan, jabbing his finger at Nathan's nose as he barked.
Having been knocked back earlier, Nathan was still somewhat bewildered. Being pointed at like this instantly left him in a foul mood.
Why was this mess falling on his head?
He had done absolutely nothing. If one really had to say who caused it, it could only be Calyrex.
Why should he be the scapegoat for Calyrex?
"Are you blind? Didn't you see me get blasted away as well?"
Nathan's tone was naturally sharp as he replied. He was not the kind of man to swallow insults in silence.
"You may have been thrown out of the light orb too, but that light first came from you! If it wasn't you, then who else could it be?"
The man roared in anger. If he weren't still sitting astride his Pokémon on the open sea, he would likely have already grabbed Nathan by the collar.
But standing on water, such actions were impossible.
Nathan only felt even more wronged.
Was it easy being him?
"I'll say it again—this has nothing to do with me. If you want answers, go ask Calyrex!"
With a casual wave of his hand, psychic energy surged.
The finger the man had been pointing at Nathan's nose suddenly jerked back, as if struck by a force pressing hard against the back of his hand.
The sudden push sent him stumbling so violently that he almost tumbled straight into the sea.
Steadying himself with effort, the fury on his face only deepened. Yet he did not dare to make any rash move against Nathan.
Because he had noticed the Volcarona beneath Nathan's feet. Its body was already blazing with roaring fire, as if ready to engulf him in a heartbeat.
Volcarona was no ordinary Pokémon now—it had already stepped into the realm of the legendary tier. The only legendary level Pokémon he could use, Spectrier, was still trapped inside that light orb.
If he really fought Nathan here, the one who would suffer losses could only be himself.
Meanwhile, on the shore, Grog was utterly stunned.
What was supposed to be nothing more than a fun exhibition battle had actually escalated into something like this.
Was this… a miracle?
Even Volcarona, so monstrously powerful, had been knocked aside by that light sphere. That alone was proof of just how unfathomably strong the one who created it must be.
And it wasn't only Grog. All the wedding guests watching were thunderstruck.
They speculated wildly about what could have caused such a phenomenon, but more often than not, they simply pulled out their phones and started recording.
Time ticked by.
Minute after minute passed, yet the light sphere remained utterly silent. No one knew what was happening inside.
But everyone waited, holding their breath for the moment it would vanish.
Soon, more than half an hour slipped away.
The sphere finally began to shimmer faintly, as if it were about to disperse.
Noticing this, the man who had come with Spectrier grew visibly anxious.
He worried that once the sphere vanished, Spectrier might no longer be willing to aid him.
Worse still, he feared that once it was gone, he might never see Spectrier again.
Nathan, however, gazed at the orb with curiosity.
Deep down, he was almost certain—this had to be Calyrex's doing.
Besides Calyrex, what other Pokémon would deliberately single out Spectrier?
And who else would go to such lengths, creating such a grand display?
Roughly five minutes later, the sphere finally collapsed, and Spectrier gradually reappeared before everyone's eyes.
On the surface, it looked much the same as before, save for the fact that its eyes remained tightly shut.
The man rushed forward in panic.
"Spectrier! Are you alright? Spectrier?"
He called out several times in a row, but the horse did not respond.
After a brief while, Spectrier slowly opened its eyes. Finding nothing beside it, a single tear welled and trickled down.
Then, without warning, its form dissolved into a streak of white light, vanishing into its Poké Ball.
At that exact moment, a voice suddenly echoed in Nathan's mind.
"…Thank you…"
No excess words—only two simple syllables.
Yet Nathan recognized it instantly. This was Calyrex's voice.
And within those two words, he could clearly hear a faint trace of sorrow.
Nathan let out a sigh. With that sound, and everything that had just transpired, he could not help but guess—
Perhaps this had been Spectrier's final time seeing, or hearing, Calyrex.
Of course, it was only his speculation. The future was uncertain, and no one could say for sure.
The man, meanwhile, finally breathed a sigh of relief seeing Spectrier return safely to its ball.
As long as Spectrier was unharmed, everything else was secondary.
He left, taking the Pokémon with him.
Nathan merely watched silently as he departed.
By the time the crowd snapped back to their senses, only Nathan and his blazing Volcarona remained above the sea.
"Everyone, apologies for wasting so much of your time. The challenge shall continue. After all, I still have two more challengers to face."
Hearing this, the guests realized—
Only one round of the challenge had taken place so far. There were still two more exciting battles to come.
…
Elsewhere, in an unknown land, Calyrex gazed toward the horizon where the sun was sinking.
Upon its majestic figure lingered a faint sorrow.
"I hope you can grow stronger, and quickly. If we can no longer hold out, then you will be the last hope."
As it spoke, a silhouette quietly appeared behind it.
Had Nathan been here, he would have recognized it instantly.
A body cloaked in brilliant red plumage, beautiful wings, and a flowing tail like streaks of light—who else could it be but Ho-Oh?
"You believe he may truly become the final hope as well?" Ho-Oh asked, gazing at the somber Calyrex.
Alas, there were no human witnesses here.
If anyone had seen Calyrex and Ho-Oh appear side by side, their excitement alone might have killed them.
Two world-class Pokémon, standing together—such a sight was something the world almost never beheld.
…
Nathan's battles continued.
In the next rounds, he sent out Metagross and Frosmoth.
Both performed splendidly, decisively defeating their opponents and adding to his tally of victories against legendary-class challengers.
When the challenge was over, Nathan even produced a fragment of Rayquaza's scale and gifted it to one of the participants.
The recipient could scarcely believe his own eyes at such a treasure.
"All right, the battles are concluded. Now comes my wedding gift for Mr. Gelleon!"
Saying this, Nathan drew a Poké Ball and released Xerneas.
The instant Xerneas appeared, as rehearsed beforehand, its body radiated waves of dazzling rainbow light.
The moment the light spread, not only the Pokémon, but even the people themselves felt waves of comfort wash through their bodies.
It was as if they were soaking in a hot spring, making them want to close their eyes and drift into peaceful sleep.
And this was only the beginning.
Soon, one by one, Pokémon surfaced from beneath the sea.
Of all kinds and species, they leapt eagerly from the water, striving to draw closer to Xerneas above.
The guests, who had been basking in warmth, quickly noticed the commotion on the waves.
Gasps of awe rang out as phones were whipped out again to capture the scene.
"My heavens… this is truly a miracle!"
"Who would have thought attending a wedding would let us witness something like this? It's worth everything!"
"Forget that—when I get married, can I invite Nathan to help too? This is simply too amazing!"
…
Closest to Xerneas, Nathan was just as astonished as the others, but at the same time his heart ached.
Beautiful? Undeniably so. The expressions on the guests' faces alone proved it.
Unique? Without question—there was no second such sight in all the world.
Comforting? Absolutely. Being nearest to Xerneas, Nathan felt the soothing energy most vividly.
But alongside admiration, he also felt heartache—not for anything else, but for the cost.
This miraculous spectacle Xerneas created came from releasing part of its life force.
And for Xerneas, doing so consumed tremendous energy.
Under normal circumstances, it would never willingly use such a power.
The only reason it agreed now was because of the special terms Nathan had negotiated with it—valuable items he had offered in exchange for Xerneas to go all out here.
And this, he knew, was merely the beginning.
More and more Pokémon burst from the sea, while those on land and in the sky also flocked toward this place.
All of them could feel it—something good, something wondrous, was here.
With each Pokémon arriving, the breathtaking scene grew even more lively, brimming with vitality.
Watching the endless stream of little Pokémon rushing in, Nathan felt his heart bleeding.
(End of Chapter)