"We will do everything in our power to complete the mission."
Crane spoke with a heavy expression.
Immediately afterward, he prepared to lead his people into the mystic realm.
But at that very moment, a voice rang out.
"The World Champion, Nathan Vesper, is still inside the mystic realm. Perhaps you can find Nathan and move together with him."
The one who spoke was one of the guards.
The moment the specialized squad of trainers, who had been just about to enter, heard this, they all stopped in their tracks.
Every single one of them turned to stare at the guard.
If this line had been said during training, everyone would probably have tried to avoid Nathan at all costs.
But right now, these words were like heavenly music to their ears.
"You're saying Instructor Nathan is inside this mystic realm?"
Crane hurried over to the guard, his face brimming with excitement.
Before setting out, he had wanted to contact Nathan, but he had no way of reaching him.
He had never imagined that Nathan had already gone in.
This surprise came far too suddenly!
"Y-Yes… that's right…"
The guard was startled by Crane's reaction.
And besides, he was completely baffled as to when Nathan had suddenly become an "Instructor."
"Let's go!"
Now that he knew Nathan was inside, Crane's spirit instantly surged with energy.
With Nathan inside—both as their pillar of morale and a pillar of strength—what on earth was there to fear?
The squad members felt the same. From their earlier mindset of heading toward certain death, they now brimmed with renewed confidence.
And all of this came from just one sentence from that guard—
Nathan is inside!
The squad entered the mystic realm. What greeted them first was an endless, stormy sea of yellow sand.
"Captain, don't you think we might be celebrating a little too early?"
Standing behind Crane, Elliot frowned as he looked at the boundless desert.
In a place like this, finding Nathan would be no easy task. Even encountering a legendary Pokémon would be easier.
"Ahem… form into squads of ten. No matter whether you encounter danger or happen to find Instructor Nathan, use your radios to report immediately."
Crane spoke a little awkwardly.
In his excitement before entering, he had only been thinking about the fact that Nathan was inside.
He had completely overlooked the most crucial detail—Nathan wasn't one of them, and he didn't have a radio!
And this mystic realm… clearly wasn't small.
In such a vast place, without any means of communication, finding a single person was next to impossible.
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The squad, well-trained and disciplined, quickly divided themselves into ten groups and set out in different directions.
Very soon, some of the squad members encountered other trainers wandering inside the realm.
Upon seeing them, the squad immediately urged those trainers to leave, warning them about the dangers lurking within.
And every trainer who came across the squad wasted no time hesitating—they dropped everything and made straight for the exit.
They weren't stupid. Sure, they had wanted to pick up some good treasures in this newly opened mystic realm.
But treasure was meaningless without their lives to use it.
If the authorities had sent in specialized forces, how could this be just "a little danger"?
Meanwhile, elsewhere within the blazing desert, Nathan and Evelyn finally caught sight of what looked like an oasis.
But upon drawing closer, they realized it was still just another mirage—an illusion.
Yet Evelyn, who had always been attentive, noticed something peculiar: this illusion seemed far more detailed, more vivid, more seamless than the ones they had encountered earlier.
"Nathan, I think this mirage looks even more refined in its details than before."
Evelyn voiced her discovery.
Nathan nodded. He had noticed it too, which only further confirmed his suspicion—this was definitely the handiwork of a Pokémon.
These mirages weren't natural phenomena at all, but illusions crafted by some Pokémon.
"It seems we're getting closer to the culprit. But what puzzles me is—why would this Pokémon want to attract other Pokémon to it?"
Nathan's brow furrowed in thought. He couldn't understand why this Pokémon would conjure oases to lure other creatures.
Could it really be for hunting?
That possibility wasn't entirely far-fetched. After all, not every Pokémon lived solely on berries or specialized Pokémon food.
"Who knows? Hopefully that thing has something good near it, or else all this trouble will have been a complete loss."
Evelyn shrugged, speaking with a hint of playful resignation.
Nathan was at a loss for words. Honestly, wasn't she the daughter of a wealthy family?
Wouldn't it be far easier just to stay home, train her Pokémon comfortably, and live a carefree life?
Why put herself through this kind of hardship, coming into a mystic realm to hunt for resources?
But then again, this was Nathan speaking as someone who had never lacked. He couldn't truly understand the hunger of those who did. Even for a pampered heiress like Evelyn—
If she wanted higher-quality Pokémon resources, she really had to obtain them herself.
After all, the employees working for her family didn't have her level of strength, and the resources they could gather were simply not enough to satisfy her needs.
As the two were debating which direction to continue searching, the horizon in the distance suddenly darkened with a rolling, oppressive black cloud.
"Is it going to rain?"
Evelyn asked curiously, gazing at the approaching mass.
Nathan was equally puzzled. Rain? In a place like this?
They had been inside this mystic realm for well over a dozen hours.
And in all that time, not only had they found no water, but they had barely seen a single patch of green vegetation.
How could rain possibly fall here? The thought itself was bizarre.
"Who cares? If it rains, that'll be great. We could finally cool off a little."
Nathan replied casually.
Since stepping foot inside, they had been suffering under the relentless assault of scorching winds.
A downpour would be a welcome relief.
"You're right. In a place like this, being able to stand in the rain would be quite the luxury."
Evelyn nodded in agreement.
But as the dark "clouds" drew closer, Nathan suddenly felt something was off.
These clouds seemed far too low to the ground… and their color didn't look quite right either.
Clouds were supposed to be uniformly dark and grayish-black, weren't they?
So why did this mass not look like clouds at all?
"This doesn't look like any normal storm cloud."
Nathan's face turned solemn.
As the two of them focused intently on the fast-approaching mass, their eyes widened in shock.
Because those "clouds" weren't clouds at all—
They were a swarm of Pokémon.
A vast swarm of Flygon.
"Should we… maybe run first?"
Nathan muttered, staring at the sheer number of Flygon filling the skies.
The swarm blanketed the horizon as far as the eye could see, stretching across several miles. The phrase "blotting out the sun" was no exaggeration.
There had to be at least ten thousand of them!
Sure, their own Pokémon were powerful—but if every single one of those Flygon were to attack just once…
No one could possibly endure that.
"Then what are you still standing here for? Run!"
Evelyn didn't hesitate for even a second. She leapt onto her Pokémon and bolted away.
Seeing how quick she was to abandon him, Nathan's lips twitched. Was this woman completely heartless?
This time, instead of mounting his Flygon, Nathan chose his Volcarona.
Compared to Flygon, Volcarona's speed was far superior.
Although Evelyn had taken off before him, it didn't take long for Nathan to not only catch up but even overtake her.
"Over here, I'll take you!"
Nathan had Volcarona slow slightly, closing the distance between them.
Evelyn wasted no time. She immediately jumped off her own Pokémon and onto Nathan's Volcarona.
Fortunately, Volcarona's strength had increased significantly. With its boosted power and speed, carrying two passengers in flight was still manageable.
"Listen here—after this, you better stay far away from me!"
Evelyn snapped furiously at Nathan as soon as she landed on Volcarona's back.
She had finally realized the truth—sure, tagging along with Nathan brought benefits. But the dangers far outweighed them!
The last time she followed him, she managed to capture a champion-level Gyarados.
But before that, she had been scared half to death.
And now? Even worse. They were being chased by tens of thousands of Flygon.
Could anything possibly be more disastrous than this?
Absolutely not.
"How is this my fault? Weren't you the one who insisted on joining me in the first place?"
Nathan felt completely wronged.
Back when he first mentioned entering the mystic realm early, she had been ecstatic about it.
And now that trouble had come, she wanted to pin the blame on him?
"Don't talk to me! I'm afraid your bad luck might rub off on me!"
Evelyn turned her head away. She truly didn't want to exchange another word with Nathan.
What kind of heiress abandons her giant corporation's luxuries to suffer through disasters like this?
(End of Chapter)