A hard-to-read smile hung at the corner of Karuna's lips.
She couldn't help but wonder what kind of expression that woman would have upon seeing this outcome.
Just imagining Cynthia's iceberg-like face slowly cracking apart made Karuna narrow her eyes in enjoyment.
That night, Karuna slept exceptionally well.
As one of the only two female Champions in the past,
she had always been compared to Cynthia.
Losing out in strength was one thing!
But losing out in popularity too—
that truly left Karuna feeling stifled!
After all, she was the world's most famous superstar.
And yet she still couldn't beat Cynthia?!
It wasn't until she met Ash—standing beside Cynthia in Kalos—
That a certain evil idea quietly took root~
In his dreams, Ash had already replayed his battle with Iris!
He had barely managed to defeat Iris's Dragonite and Haxorus using his own Dragonite and Dracovish.
But the experience left him feeling… ugly.
Charging straight in!
A Dragon-type battle should be fists against flesh!
What was with all that tactical nonsense?!
With those thoughts in mind, the next day arrived.
The moment Ash opened his eyes, he headed straight for the Pokémon Center.
After contacting Professor Oak,
he successfully retrieved two Poké Balls that had been transmitted over.
"I'll use you two to battle Iris!"
The two Poké Balls in Ash's hand shook slightly.
Even through the barrier of the Poké Balls, he could still feel the pressure emanating from within!
"I knew it—you both really want to fight. Same here!"
Ash murmured softly.
On his way back to the villa,
he just happened to run into Karuna, who had just woken up and was still wearing her nightgown.
Her sleepy expression looked languid and relaxed,
completely unaware that the strap of her nightgown had slipped off her shoulder.
大片白皙的肌肤裸露在外——
a large expanse of fair skin was exposed.
Suddenly, a scorching gaze swept over her shoulder.
That instantly jolted Karuna fully awake.
She was just about to pull the strap back up—
When she saw Ash standing at the doorway, his face completely red.
Karuna stopped her hand.
Instead, she raised an eyebrow at Ash with great interest.
"Ash, does it look good~?"
"..."
How could this be something a kid was allowed to see?!
Let alone Ash—he forced himself to turn around, refusing to stare at that expanse of white.
"Um, Miss Karuna… your clothes aren't on properly!"
Ash's upright nature allowed him to remain righteous even in such circumstances.
Seeing his reaction,
Karuna burst out laughing, bending over in delight.
Ash really was adorable~
If Ash hadn't already turned away,
the audience might have witnessed a heart-stopping scene.
[Caitlin: Oh my~ Is there some unspeakable secret between Champion Karuna and Champion Cynthia?]
[Lusamine: Do you even need to ask? I've already imagined a whole love–hate drama in my head.]
[Karuna: You two, that's enough! How could I possibly be like that?! This is slander—pure slander! Cynthia is my half-sister from another father and mother, how could we do something like that?!]
[Cynthia: It's fine.]
[Karuna: Fine my foot! Explain properly, will you?!]
[Caitlin: Interesting! Sometimes adding a little sourness to sweetness makes the best flavor.]
[Sonia: So Ash is just one part of your play, then?!]
Audience: Holy crap, this is intense!
It really feels like as things develop, the upcoming scenes are going to get even more interesting.
Kind of looking forward to what happens when Cynthia and Karuna meet.
Just how will the two Champions face Ash~
[Ash: What does that even mean?! Can someone explain it to me?!]
[Lorelei: Go play~]
[Ash: Oh.]
...
On screen—
Back in her bedroom, Karuna changed into her white Champion attire.
This trip was to celebrate the coronation of Unova's new Champion,
so it had to be formal.
"Hard to believe that in just a few years, Iris has already become Unova's Champion!"
"Pika!"
"I think Axew must be incredible after evolving too!"
"Pika pika!"
"Nope—this time, I'm planning to battle Iris using only Dragon-type Pokémon. I specifically swapped Poké Balls with Professor Oak for this."
As Ash and Pikachu discussed the upcoming battle with Iris,
Pikachu wanted to take the field and have a destined ace-versus-ace showdown with Axew!
But Ash was set on a Dragon-versus-Dragon battle.
Just as the two of them argued endlessly,
The door opened.
Karuna, dressed in her white Champion outfit, looked dazzling beyond compare.
Even Ash and Pikachu were momentarily captivated.
Pikachu even abandoned Ash altogether,
Leaping into Karuna's arms in just a few bounds.
"Then let's set off."
Karuna smiled as she stroked Pikachu and spoke to Ash.
Ash nodded blankly.
Perhaps because of that earlier incident,
Ash now felt a bit awkward whenever he faced Karuna.
But the awkwardness didn't last long.
Once aboard the plane, Ash began imagining what it would be like to reunite with Iris.
"Unova! I'm back!"
"Ash, you need to keep your voice down on the plane."
Karuna patted Ash's head, her expression full of indulgence.
"Sorry! I just got too excited—I won't do it again!"
"Good boy~"
With that, Karuna continued reading her book.
The cover read in bold letters:
"How to Capture the Heart of a Young Boy"
Not even trying to hide it anymore, huh?!
Champion of Kalos, please mind your public image!
Unova, Opelucid City.
In Unovan legends, Opelucid is known as the city where past and future intertwine.
Once, in this city, Ash had accompanied Iris in challenging the Opelucid Gym Leader, Drayden.
Although the result of that battle hadn't been ideal,
It was that very experience that allowed Iris and her Dragonite to form a bond.
Stepping onto this land,
Countless memories came flooding back.
Ash was the type who said whatever was on his mind.
As memories surged, he chose to share his past travels in Unova with Karuna, his current companion.
Karuna listened with great interest.
Especially when she heard that Ash and the current Unova Champion, Iris, had once been partners—
And that they had promised to become Champions together.
Karuna's expression subtly changed.
Didn't expect this, did you, Cynthia?
Once again, I win.
Ash's experiences in Unova—I'm the first one to hear them~
And here's something you didn't expect either.
Ash has a partner with whom he once made a promise to become Champion together.
Karuna felt like Qin Shi Huang petting Pikachu—
Winning across the board.
The Opelucid Gym stood at the highest point in the city center.
To reach it, one had to pass through a forest surrounding the Gym.
Along the way, Ash never stopped talking.
From how he met Iris to their eventual parting—
He recounted almost everything.
Karuna listened attentively, occasionally offering her thoughts.
From Ash's description,
The current Unova Champion Iris had once been nothing more than a scruffy little girl.
Though she possessed the power to communicate with all Dragon-type Pokémon,
Her personal strength was rather average.
Even by the end of Ash's Unova journey,
Iris was only around Gym Leader level.
Yet now, after such a short time, she had grown into a League Champion.
This kind of talent—
The livestream audience had only one reaction:
This girl is no weaker than Ash!
Becoming a League Champion in just two years—
Was that even something a human could do?!
[Iris: Not bad, Iris. I didn't expect future me to grow this far—actually awakening the Dragon Master power that even the Dragon Clan failed to inherit.]
[Lance: Hey, hey, who are you calling out here?! Sure, I didn't awaken Dragon Master power, but I awakened Aura—no, the Viridian power! That's just as good, okay?!]
[Steven: Two years of effort to become League Champion… that talent is truly astonishing. As far as I know, the only ones who surpass Iris are those two freaks from Kanto.]
[Clair: I've noticed something—being around Ash seems to boost one's potential. Everyone who teamed up with Ash became a top figure in their field. Even Chloe went from knowing nothing to becoming an independent Trainer in a short time.]
[Wallace: That does seem true. Could Ash be some kind of human-shaped buff device? Otherwise it's hard to explain.]
[Norman: Ash, if you travel to other regions, please consider letting our May become your companion.]
[Johanna: My Dawn is the best choice!]
[Misty: All of you move aside! I'm Ash's partner!]
[Botan: Misty, go ahead without worry. Your Gym sisters will take care of things—just chase your love with all your heart.]
[Misty: ...]
If you don't know how to speak, you really don't have to!
Unova, Opelucid City.
At this moment, Iris—still just an ordinary academy student—stared blankly at the images on the light screen.
From Ash's words, she learned about her future.
Could she really become Champion?
Then why did no one at the academy like her now?
Iris wanted friends too!
The future felt far too unreal,
But the present reality was even crueler.
...
On screen—
As they entered the forest before the Opelucid Gym,
A familiar figure came into Ash's view.
That small body,
the protruding tusks at the sides of its cheeks—
In an instant, Ash's memories deepened.
"Axew? Why are you here?"
Ash stepped forward and scooped Axew into his arms.
He looked around, but didn't see Iris anywhere.
Had Axew sneaked out to play behind Iris's back?
Ash didn't think too much about it and continued forward through the forest with Axew in his arms.
But before long,
He sensed something was off.
Atop a tree in the distance,
a dark silhouette stood out.
That familiar figure—
Ash called out Iris's name tentatively toward the treetop.
Sure enough,
The figure leapt down from the branches.
A dark-skinned girl, about Ash's height, landed right in front of him.
"Long time no see, Ash."
Being discovered didn't faze Iris in the slightest.
After greeting Ash, she immediately reached out to Pikachu on his shoulder.
"You too—long time no see, Pikachu."
"Congratulations, Iris. I didn't expect you to really become Unova's Champion. That's amazing."
"Hehe, it's not that big a deal~"
Even Iris's face flushed slightly at Ash's praise.
Clearly, she enjoyed it.
At that moment,
Ash handed the Axew he was holding to Iris.
"We ran into your Axew on the way here. Did it sneak out to play?"
Seeing the Axew Ash offered,
Iris froze for a moment—
Then burst out laughing.
"Ash—hahaha! My Axew—hahaha—evolved into Haxorus ages ago! This Axew must be one my master Drayden recently caught!"
She had clearly included Haxorus standing beside her in the message she sent Ash—
And yet Ash still thought her Haxorus was in the Axew stage?
Ash felt a bit embarrassed about mistaking the Pokémon.
Time had blurred his memories.
Still, it was just a small episode.
Under Iris's guidance,
The three of them soon passed through the forest and arrived at the front gates of the Opelucid Gym.
At this moment,
The Gym Leader Drayden was already waiting at the entrance.
Upon seeing him,
Ash handed the Axew in his arms over.
However—
In that very instant,
Iris suddenly vanished from everyone's sight?
...
Karuna, meanwhile, watched the direction Iris disappeared toward with great interest.
Hopefully, what came next would be entertaining.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries,
Ash finally noticed something was wrong.
Where did such a big Iris go?!
He looked around in confusion,
But Iris was nowhere to be seen near the Opelucid Gym.
At that moment,
Drayden glanced at his phone,
Then walked over to Ash, interrupting his search.
"Come with me. Our Champion, Miss Iris, has prepared a grand entrance for you."
Drayden's voice, backed by his beard shaped like a dragon's jaw, was extremely imposing—
As if he himself were a living dragon.
When he spoke of Champion Iris,
The excitement flashing in his eyes was overwhelmingly intense.
His disciple had become Champion.
The youth he once believed in had become Champion.
What could be more exhilarating than that?
If there was—
It would be these two Champions battling each other.
And in his Opelucid Gym!
"Really?! Uncle Drayden, hurry and take us there!"
"Very well. Miss Karuna, please come along as well."
Drayden extended an invitation to Karuna, who had been silent to the side.
Karuna nodded and followed behind them.
How interesting.
The first clash between the two youngest Champions in League history—
Cynthia probably hasn't seen this, right?
This time too—
I win again~
Karuna was very satisfied with this journey.
Along the way, she had already won twice.
Entering the Opelucid Gym,
The surroundings plunged into complete darkness.
The endless black before them felt like some monstrous beast lay sleeping within.
When the three stepped into the battle arena,
A figure slowly flew across the sky above.
Golden sparks of electricity flashed over its body.
Then—
Dim yellow lights gradually lit up within the pitch-black stadium.
That figure became clear under the light.
Emolga—
a Pokémon Iris had caught while traveling with Ash.
Lights flickered one after another,
Gradually illuminating the entire battlefield of the Opelucid Gym.
Finally,
Emolga landed atop the central platform.
It waved at Pikachu.
Without any hesitation, Pikachu ran over.
Emolga and Pikachu rubbed their cheeks together—
The sparks released from the cheek rub instantly lit up all the lights on the platform.
At the moment the lights ignited,
A girl clad in a silk Champion outfit gradually appeared atop the platform.
"Rejoice!
Iris, the Princess of the Dragon Village who has inherited the Dragon Master power, has defeated the previous Unova Champion Alder and ascended to the highest peak of Unova!
The Dragon Champion who shall reign over the world is hereby born!"
At the side, Drayden spoke every word slowly, his voice as imposing as a dragon's roar.
From his tone, it was clear—
He wasn't saying this willingly.
But he had no choice but to say it.
Drayden, if you're being threatened, blink twice.
"Ash! After two years, let us have another Dragon battle—as a gift for my coronation as Champion!"
Atop the platform, Iris pointed straight at Ash.
At that moment, all the lights in the stadium fully lit up.
Every gaze turned toward Ash!
To read 30+ future chapters, head over to patreon:
patreon.com/ToastWizard