Chapter 12 - What a Truly Admirable Hero

Under a sky faintly tinged with red light, draco meteors rained down like a torrential storm, plummeting toward the earth at high speed.

The view stretched endlessly—an overwhelming swarm of falling stars filled the heavens. The sheer scale of this Dragon Meteor assault was enough to send chills down anyone's spine!

One could easily imagine that under such terrifying, blanket-like bombardment, the land would soon be pockmarked with gaping wounds.

"No!!"

In a corner of the Hammerlocke Stadium, Oleana stared up at the endless glowing lights above. Her face had turned ghostly pale, her eyes filled with despair.

A deep sense of helplessness and fatigue swept over her entire body. Already injured, she no longer had the strength to stand—her legs gave out beneath her, and she collapsed to the ground.

It's over...

"..."

Taking a deep breath, Raihan pressed his lips tightly together in silence, his trembling eyes fixed on the dazzling "meteor shower" falling from the heavens.

His clenched fists turned pale from the pressure of his grip, his emotions wound too tight.

"So then, what will you choose to do, Sword Hero?"

Unlike Oleana and Raihan, Lucas still wore a slight smile, even taking out his phone with interest to record the scene.

After all, this scale of Dragon Meteor—even for him, it was the first time seeing such a sight.

"Why?"

"What do you mean, why?"

Lucas raised an eyebrow and turned to Raihan, looking somewhat surprised.

"A Trainer like you... why are you doing this?"

Raihan's voice was hoarse and low, and his once-bright eyes were now bloodshot, a disturbing sight.

"You're clearly this powerful—so why would you join Team Rocket? If your goal was to capture Eternatus, why involve innocent people in the process?!"

"This is their home!"

Finally losing control, Raihan shouted in rage at Lucas.

He couldn't understand it. Lucas was clearly a powerful Trainer—why was he acting so heartless?

Was there truly not a shred of compassion left in him?

Hammerlocke... this was the entire city of Hammerlocke!

It was home to countless families, filled with the memories of so many people.

But very soon, all of this would be gone. And worse, with the destruction of their homes and livelihoods, many would be left destitute and homeless.

All for the sake of one man's ambition—trampling on the happiness and shelter of others. Someone like that...

How could someone like that still smile so casually and self-assuredly?

Yet upon hearing Raihan's words, Lucas simply sneered.

"How naïve. You're far too naïve, Raihan."

He raised a finger and wagged it lightly in Raihan's direction, his voice calm.

"And to think you actually made it to Champion level. Tell me, what is the true nature of this world?"

"It's that the strong reign above all. At your level, and you still don't understand that?"

"Pain, suffering, helplessness, fear... I've seen far too much of it."

Lucas's tone grew more mocking as he spoke. This was a real world—nothing like the blissful fantasy portrayed in the Pokémon anime.

"So, you believe that just because you're strong, you have the right to trample over people's homes and take whatever you want?"

Yet Raihan, rather than getting angrier, actually let out a bitter laugh. This was nothing more than empty rationalization!

"Power is not a tool for mindless destruction. And the world is not supposed to work like that!"

As a Trainer with a kind heart, Raihan had his own convictions from the very moment he became Hammerlocke's Gym Leader.

He loved Pokémon. He loved Pokémon battles.

He was the guardian of Hammerlocke, and he was willing to face danger head-on for the sake of the city's residents.

That's why he could never accept the values of this Team Rocket executive—Lucas's worldview was utterly twisted.

"Heh~ How noble of you. Then please, use that righteous sense of duty of yours... and watch this beautiful rain unfold."

Lucas shrugged. He never expected Raihan to agree with him—their ideologies were polar opposites.

To Lucas, he had a clear goal and path ahead. As for the rest of the world?

What did they matter?

And besides, he didn't have time to keep bickering with Raihan. In just this brief moment, the Dragon Meteor had already begun to fall!

Lucas looked up, his gaze locking on the Sword Hero—Zacian.

As expected of Galar's legendary Hero of the Sword —it didn't pursue the fallen Eternatus!

"Damn parasite!"

Zacian's eyes were icy cold. Below it lay the human city—a home to many lives.

And from its perspective, this rain of meteors was clearly Eternatus's attempt to spite it!

In the end, the reason Zacian opposed Eternatus was for the sake of protecting this continent and all the life on it.

After a brief hesitation, Zacian chose not to chase down the heavily wounded Eternatus. Instead, it charged straight into the descending Dragon Meteor swarm.

After all, Eternatus was gravely injured—escape was impossible. Zacian could take this opportunity to stop the attack instead.

Even though it couldn't block all of the meteors, it could at least minimize the destruction to the city.

A dazzling blue aura enveloped Zacian's body. Its Sacred Sword transformed into a massive blade.

Behemoth Blade!

Zacian swung the massive golden sword with all its might. A roaring tidal wave of golden energy exploded outward, instantly consuming a large portion of the falling meteors.

The overwhelming power of its attack rippled through the skies like a golden tsunami!

"What an admirable hero indeed."

Seeing this, Lucas's smile deepened. Yes—this was exactly what he had hoped for!

Though Zacian had a cold demeanor, it truly belonged to the side of good. Now that Eternatus was basically defeated, there was no way Zacian would just stand by and let the city be destroyed.

And taking advantage of this opportunity... Lucas could now use a Poké Ball to capture Eternatus and make his escape!

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"So terrifying... truly terrifying, this kind of power."

Lucas gazed at the vast sky, now covered in golden waves of energy, licking his lips with awe. A strange gleam flickered in his red eyes.

Yes, that golden energy came from none other than Zacian's Behemoth Blade.

Relying on its incredible speed, Zacian raced across the skies, intercepting the falling Draco Meteors!

Hammerlocke was a massive city—after all, it was the center of all Galar and one of the most prosperous cities in the region.

Yet Zacian, by itself, was managing to block the majority of the meteors!

What kind of terrifying feat was this?

Defense was always harder than destruction. The difficulty levels weren't even comparable.

"Zacian!"

Compared to Lucas's admiration, Raihan and Oleana were now overflowing with joy and relief.

They hadn't expected a reversal like this under such dire circumstances.

Once again, the legendary hero had come to save them!

Even though Zacian couldn't stop every single meteor due to the sheer scope of the attack, compared to total annihilation, this was already an ideal outcome.

"Draaa~"

A soft cry echoed through the air. A light purple Dragonair flew gracefully, its long body swaying as it rushed in at high speed.

"???"

Raihan and Oleana frowned at the sudden reappearance of the Dragonair. Sharing a puzzled look, neither could figure out where it had gone just now.

Dragonair flew to Lucas's side and opened its mouth—a Heavy Ball dropped into his hand.

"Finally... hahahaha~"

Staring at the Heavy Ball in his palm, Lucas felt its weight and texture, his expression overflowing with joy—so much so that he actually burst out laughing.

At last! He had finally done it!

"Eternatus!"

Seeing Lucas's expression—and the Heavy Ball in his hand—Oleana and Raihan's expressions changed. They immediately understood.

Eternatus—had been captured by this man!

"You had Eternatus use Draco Meteor... just to attract Zacian's attention!"

Oleana's face turned ashen. The joy she felt from Zacian saving Hammerlocke was completely shattered. She clenched her teeth and spoke in a low voice.

Her thoughts raced—releasing Eternatus, predicting Zacian's appearance from the start...

And now using Zacian's distraction to capture Eternatus...

Everything had been planned by this man from the very beginning!

"Of course. Zacian is the legendary hero, right? The appearance of Eternatus was bound to draw the attention of both the sword and shield."

"Looks like you finally figured it out. I must say, Miss Oleana, you truly live up to your name."

Lucas steadied his emotions and held the Heavy Ball tightly. Having captured Eternatus, his mood was clearly elated.

"You've really gone to great lengths..."

Oleana bit her lip in frustration, her voice filled with bitter resentment.

Eternatus...

They had poured so much effort into locating it, and in the end, all of it had gone to waste—for this young man to reap the rewards.

What a cruel and pitiful outcome.

She could already picture Chairman Rose's disappointed expression upon returning. Her heart filled with bitterness.

Eternatus was the cornerstone of Chairman Rose's dream—and now, it had been stolen away by this man.

"Well, thank you for the compliment, Miss Oleana. I had a wonderful time today. Until next time, you two."

Lucas gave a slight bow, retrieving his Dragonair with a gentleman's flourish.

Yes—it was time to go!

Lucas had already assessed Zacian's strength. It wasn't something he could deal with at his current level.

While a top-tier Champion could possibly fight against a legendary Pokémon, even among those legends, there were vast differences in power. A high-tier legend like Zacian... was simply too strong.

"Gardevoir—Teleport!"

Lucas cast one final glance at Zacian, who was still intercepting the meteors, the corners of his lips curling upward. He tossed out a Poké Ball.

A flash of white light—and a graceful, elegant Gardevoir appeared, folding its slender arms as a deep blue glow shimmered in its eyes.

Teleport!

In the blink of an eye, both Gardevoir and Lucas vanished from the battlefield.

(End of Chapter)