Pokémon: When the World Changed

Chapter 563 558: The Battle of the Dragon Messengers

The Dragon Clan Festival had come to an end.

Most of the Pokémon began to leave.

However, there was still a small portion of Pokémon that remained behind.

These Pokémon seemed, for the most part, still somewhat immature. They looked at the humans present on the field with curiosity in their eyes.

"These Pokémon should be the ones who have just completed their coming-of-age ceremony, right?"

"That is to say, as long as we obtain their recognition, there's a very high chance we can become partners with one of them."

The dragon messengers observed the Pokémon around them, fervor evident in their expressions.

These Pokémon came from different races, and the most eye-catching ones were naturally the Dragon-type pseudo-legendaries.

Dragonite, Salamence, Garchomp, Hydreigon, Goodra, and also... Hakamo-o?

After the Dragon Clan Festival, most of the Pokémon present had already evolved into their final forms.

"This time, there are eight Dragon-type pseudo-legendaries participating in the Battle of the Dragon Messengers!"

Upon clearly seeing the number of Dragon-type pseudo-legendaries present, the eyes of the dragon messengers burned with excitement.

There were 32 dragon messengers participating this time, and there were 8 Dragon-type pseudo-legendaries. That meant a one-in-four chance of obtaining one. How could they not be thrilled?

"Hakamo-o..."

At that moment, Ethan was also observing the situation of the nearby Pokémon.

When he saw that the dark Hakamo-o had also stayed behind, his heart stirred slightly.

At the same time, the dark Hakamo-o also noticed Ethan's gaze and nodded faintly, almost imperceptibly.

Then, as Ethan continued looking around, he suddenly saw a Garchomp staring at him with a burning expression.

"Burning? Could it be that the fire of battle is blazing intensely?"

Ethan gently shook his head. He immediately recognized that Garchomp—it was the very one he had defeated before.

He clearly remembered how combative that Garchomp was, and it was obvious that it hadn't forgotten him either.

"That Hakamo-o and that Garchomp both seem very interested in you."

Naira also noticed the interaction between Ethan and the two Pokémon and couldn't help but laugh softly.

"Yeah, we've had contact before." Ethan rubbed his nose somewhat awkwardly.

At that moment, he also noticed the unfriendly gazes being cast at him by the other dragon messengers.

Obviously, Ethan's communication with two pseudo-legendaries had been seen by the others.

There were only eight pseudo-legendaries present, and two of them were already showing great interest in Ethan—something the others definitely didn't want to see.

After all, the goal of this Battle of the Dragon Messengers was to showcase their abilities and attract the attention of these Pokémon.

And before the battle had even begun, Ethan had already taken the lead... and with two at once! One had to remember that obtaining a pseudo-legendary depended entirely on the willingness of both sides. If those two Dragon-type Pokémon wanted to follow Ethan, there would be no problem at all.

"Ethan, it looks like you've gotten yourself into trouble."

At that moment, Lucien Foster and Marcus Foster approached from the distance, and Marcus Foster joked.

However, his expression was calm. After arriving at Dragon Valley, they too had interacted with other Pokémon, and neither the dark Hakamo-o nor the Garchomp were among their targets.

"Ah, they're rivals anyway. Even without the attention of those two pseudo-legendaries, do you think these guys would hold back?"

Ethan smiled faintly. The Master of Dragon Valley had already said at the beginning that this competition also represented, to a certain extent, a confrontation between Leagues.

It could be said that even before it started, the atmosphere was already filled with gunpowder. And when facing dragon messengers from other Leagues, there was no need to hold back at all—fight without reservations!

"Look, it's the four Masters of Dragon Valley."

Naira suddenly spoke.

Everyone turned their gaze and saw the four Masters of Dragon Valley arriving at Dragon Island mounted on their Pokémon.

The Daleron League, the Federal League, the Tavaria League, the Sylvara League...

At the same time, the dragon messengers from all regions also focused their attention on them.

After stepping onto the platform, the four Masters of Dragon Valley did not hold any opening ceremony—there was no host and no speeches.

Directly, after a simple draw, the competition began immediately!

"This feels... pretty informal."

Ethan held his plaque with the lucky number seven and looked somewhat puzzled at the Pokémon around him, who were cheering nonstop.

Normally, his battles were for humans to watch, but this time it was for Pokémon, so naturally there was no need for so much formality—just fight!

"I'm number one! Number two, come fight me!"

After the competition began, the dragon messenger who obtained number one mounted his Hydreigon directly and entered the battlefield.

Then, speaking in clumsy common language of the League, he shouted at the other dragon messengers.

"Number two... looks like that's me."

Marcus Foster looked at his plaque and shrugged.

Immediately afterward, he mounted his Salamence and flew toward the battlefield.

When Marcus Foster stepped onto the command platform, Salamence flew straight into the field, facing the opposing Hydreigon head-on.

There was no referee and no commentator. The moment the two Pokémon encountered each other, the battle was officially declared.

"This time, 32 dragon messengers are participating in the Dragon Clan Festival. If they face off two by two, there will be a total of five rounds. According to the rules, the first two rounds are 1 versus 1, the next two are 2 versus 2, and the final is 3 versus 3."

While watching the battle, Ethan mentally reviewed the rules and his own Pokémon lineup.

Then he frowned: according to the rules, he only needed three main Pokémon.

Moreover, after observing the others' Pokémon, he noticed that Gyarados and Kingdra were clearly a step below.

If they faced strong opponents, they would probably not even get the chance to enter the field.

"In the 1 versus 1 battles, only Charizard, Tyranitar, and Vibrava can go out. In the 2 versus 2 matches, if the opponent isn't too strong, maybe those two can participate. But in the final 3 versus 3, the opponent's Pokémon definitely won't be something Gyarados and Kingdra can handle."

Ethan took a deep breath and looked back at the battle.

Both Pokémon on the field were pseudo-legendaries: Salamence and Hydreigon. The battle was extremely intense.

In the end, Marcus Foster's Salamence won by a narrow margin, defeating the opposing Hydreigon and advancing to the next round.

Upon seeing Salamence's victory, the Salamence clan erupted into cheers, while the Hydreigon clan became much more somber.

It was evident that the battle between the two Pokémon represented, to a certain extent, the strength of their respective clans.

Furthermore, since most of the dragon messengers' Pokémon came from Dragon Valley, they all belonged to specific clans.

For example, Marcus Foster's Salamence came precisely from the Salamence clan that was cheering—it was the child of one of them.

The same was true for the Hydreigon clan. Seeing one of their own be defeated, their mood was naturally not good.

In this regard, Ethan's Charizard was the same. Champion Leo Cross's Charizard was the king of the Charizard clan of Dragon Valley, and Ethan's Charizard naturally maintained very close ties with its clan. If Charizard were to lose, its entire clan would surely feel disappointed.