Pokemon Paldea [355-356] (Patreon)

Chapter 355: The Giant of the Glacial Age!

“Mogo~!”

A cheerful cry suddenly rang by his ear—from the Cosmog cradled in his arms. In the middle of speaking, Lucas felt a jolt of dread. He abruptly remembered one of Cosmog’s only two learnable moves.

But it was too late to stop anything. Lucas only felt his vision blur as a dizzying sensation of sky-spinning and earth-whirling swept over him. It was like experiencing a full wash cycle in a tumble washer—his head turned foggy and swollen.

Lucas knew Cosmog had most likely used a move called Teleport just now—not the ordinary, self-only kind that Abra uses, but a group Teleport.

Should he say, as expected of a Legendary Pokémon’s infant? Even this is within its capabilities.

But it wasn’t like Mewtwo’s silent, ultra-long-distance Teleport, nor like Calyrex’s subtle, gentle Teleport either.

A more fitting description would be: an unlicensed black-market teleport.

“Ow, ow, ow—”

Penny and Peonia’s weak groans reached his ears. Lucas forced himself to steady his stance and opened his eyes, which had narrowed from the throbbing, muzzy ache in his brain.

Because they both knew and trusted that their Trainer could hold it together, Ceruledge and Swampert shook off their initial vertigo on the strength of their powerful bodies. Following Lucas’s instruction to protect Penny and Peonia, they each helped the two girls who were about to collapse from the discomfort.

Lucas shot them an approving look, then lowered his gaze to the Cosmog in his arms, now quiet.

Cosmog lay there with eyes closed, breathing steadily. It didn’t look like it had any aftereffects—if anything, it just looked… asleep from exhaustion.

Lucas had never been this speechless.

Heaven and earth as witness, he only wanted to test whether Calyrex would show up to stop him if he tried to enter the Iceberg Ruins.

But in all his meticulous calculations, he’d forgotten one of Cosmog’s signature tricks.

In the Pokémon Sun & Moon anime, Cosmog demonstrated the ability to read the thoughts of those close to it and use Teleport to take them to the place they were thinking of.

Lucas remembered one episode where Ash wanted to battle Gladion. Ash’s Cosmog—Nebby—read that thought, then Teleported him straight to Gladion on another island.

What likely happened now was that the image of the Iceberg Ruins’ interior flashed through Lucas’s mind for just an instant.

Cosmog, having picked up on that, simply flexed its power and ignored all conditions, Teleporting them straight into the heart of the ruins.

 Wasn’t this just a complete and utter wipeout?!

Lucas sighed heavily and looked around to survey their surroundings.

A light from some unseen source rained down from a ceiling too high to see. It was very faint, but enough for him to make out the environment.

Around them, some kind of teal bricks were stacked into walls. They looked extremely hard, reminding Lucas of the bronze on Peony’s Copperajah. He wondered if there was a connection.

The ground was compacted earth, with several round dots set into it here and there, seemingly key to something.

But the most eye-catching presence in the space—the one with the strongest sense of existence—

Lucas would give that to the stone statue standing deep within the ring of bronze bricks, radiating a chill like it had crossed time from the ancient glacial age, giving no reaction at all.

That should be the Legendary Pokémon sealed within the ruins—the Legendary Titan, the Iceberg Pokémon Regice!

At the moment, Regice was clearly in the same long slow start as the one who created them, the Colossal King Regigigas. As long as Lucas didn’t step on all the round dots on the floor in a certain order, it wouldn’t awaken.

Lucas drew his gaze back, carefully avoided the round dots, and walked straight over to Penny and Peonia, who were clutching their heads in pain. “Do you feel like throwing up?”

“We’re… okay.”

After resting for a while, Penny and Peonia finally felt a bit better and shook their heads, indicating they could hold on.

“That’s good.”

Lucas nodded slightly and, to be safe, handed them each a tablet to alleviate dizziness.

If Comfey were here, Aromatherapy would greatly ease the vertigo. They were clearly short on a team medic…

 He thought of his Comfey—busy every day nourishing the farm’s fields with Grassy Terrain, treating a whole crowd of Pokémon on the farm, and occasionally tagging along to Naranja Academy as a school nurse.

Lucas considered preparing to find Comfey a colleague equally specialized in healing once they got back.

After swallowing the tablets with clean water, Peonia and Penny finally felt some relief. They opened their eyes and began to look around.

If Penny was still somewhat dazed, Peonia—who had learned quite a bit from Penny—was shocked.

She widened her eyes at the surroundings, incredulous.

“Could this be… the inside of the ruins?”

“I’m afraid so,” Lucas nodded, then motioned toward his arms. “Cosmog Teleported us in. As you can see, it’s fallen asleep from exhaustion and probably can’t Teleport us out.”

“No way…” A flicker of astonishment flashed in Peonia’s eyes. “Normally, ancient or prehistoric ruins have anti-Teleport measures against Psychic-types. Skipping with Teleport is directly prohibited!”

That Cosmog could Teleport all three of them plus three Pokémon straight into the ruins—this was unbelievable.

Before Lucas could explain, Penny said, “Sis, Cosmog was entrusted to Teacher Lucas by the King of Bountiful Harvests. It likely has special traits we don’t know about.

“Instead of fixating on how Cosmog Teleported us inside, let’s find a way out first.”

Hearing her cute little sister, Peonia blinked, then nodded slightly as if persuaded. “Good point. Let’s prioritize finding a way out.”

“But my knowledge of ruins is superficial at best, so…”

Penny understood Peonia’s implication. She frowned and opened her portable computer—only to find that not only was there no signal, but even the display was turning into snow, flickering from some strange magnetic interference.

Fearing damage to the drive with important data, Penny shut it down immediately, face a little grim. “I can’t analyze these murals or inscriptions with software either…”

Panicking, the two looked to Lucas for help.

“Stay put for a moment, don’t move around. Ceruledge, keep an eye on them.”

With the faintest sigh, Lucas signaled Swampert to follow, then headed toward the ancient, heavy door behind them.

Ceruledge, following orders, drew a circle on the floor with the tip of its blade. Then it glanced at Penny and Peonia and said coolly, “Ce—ru!” (Do not leave the circle!)

Ceruledge was confident: as long as the two stayed within the circle—within its defensive range—in most cases it could keep them safe.

It didn’t care much for humans, but if the order came from Lucas, it would execute it with all its might.

“He wants us to stay inside this?” Penny and Peonia exchanged a look, then stepped into the circle without hesitation.

Since Lucas had assigned Ceruledge to guard them, they could only trust him. Not running around and not making trouble was the biggest contribution they could make.

Seeing the sisters obediently enter the circle, Ceruledge nodded in satisfaction and turned its gaze toward Lucas and Swampert.

By then, Lucas and Swampert had reached the ancient door.

Even Peony’s Copperajah couldn’t kick open that door. Still, Lucas wanted to try whether Swampert’s strength could break it from the inside.

Being inside might give them better odds.

He stepped back to a safe distance, met Swampert’s eyes, and gave a small nod. “High Horsepower!”

In an instant, Swampert flared with a blinding red glow that could scorch an onlooker’s eyes. Its muscles swelled, and after charging for a few seconds, it slammed a fist into the door!

Boom—!

The entire Iceberg Ruins seemed to quiver. Penny and Peonia, unable to keep their balance, fell right onto their butts.

Even Calyrex, anxiously pacing outside, clearly sensed the commotion Swampert caused.

But that was all.

The ruins were as sturdy as Penny had said—beyond the ordinary, likely deeply tied to ancient humans. Ordinary brute force could not damage it at all.

“Ah…”

Though he’d already half-guessed the result, Lucas, unwilling to give up without another try, looked at the unmoving door and sighed.

It seemed they had only one option left.

“Smashing our way out won’t work. We’ll have to follow the intent of the ruins’ creators and clear it the proper way.”

After calling Penny and Peonia over, Lucas laid out the situation.

Peonia looked worried, hesitated. “But we…”

Lucas knew what she wanted to say. He smiled with confidence. “That’s not something you two need to worry about.

“Since Peony entrusted you to me, I will get you out of these ruins.”

“What you need to do is simple and straightforward—just like before: don’t panic, and keep yourselves safe.”

Perhaps he’d been a teacher for almost half a year now—Lucas’s voice had a calming quality that made people want to trust him.

Hearing his gentle explanations, the lingering confusion and anxiety in Penny and Peonia’s hearts faded, replaced by growing resolve.

“Peonia, you probably know what that chilly statue is, right?”

The sudden question startled Peonia. Penny, beside her, looked curious.

After a moment’s hesitation, Peonia looked toward the frosty statue in the distance. “It should be the Legendary Titan… Regice.”

Her field of study at school was precisely this sort of thing. She knew Legendary Pokémon well; the Titans were no exception.

Though the original Unit-01, created by the Titan King Regigigas, existed somewhere unknown, the Regice inside this statue was likely sealed here by ancient humans—or placed here to guard the ruins.

Given the lack of any passageways around, Peonia felt the sealed possibility was stronger.

“Correct.” Lucas nodded, satisfied. “Regice is a Legendary Pokémon. Its true strength is unknown. To get out of here, we’ll likely have to fight it.

“Because the opponent is a Legendary Titan, to keep the aftermath from hitting you, I’ll assign Pokémon to protect you.

“All you need to do is not get caught in the crossfire.”

Peonia’s eyes went wide. She hadn’t expected Lucas’s solution to be battle the Legendary Titan.

Penny, on the other hand, seemed to think of something; a faint smile tugged at her lips, as if she felt certain Lucas would win.

A short while later—

Penny and Peonia stood by the ancient door, guarded by Swampert and Dragonite.

Considering type matchups, Lucas decided to send Ceruledge to fight Regice first; only if things became unclear would he switch to a team assault.

Beside him, Ceruledge had closed its eyes and begun charging up. Phantom sword-shadows swirled around it, sharpening its aura.

Since this wasn’t a formal match with rules, naturally he would have Ceruledge max out its buffs before waking Regice—to ensure victory.

Following a prompt from his system, Lucas began moving over the seven round floor dots in order.

Each dot he stepped on lit up with a faint, warm yellow glow, making him wonder whether the light pouring down from above was really sunlight.

Without a Serperior to confirm, he didn’t dwell on it and stepped onto the final dot.

As the dots glowed in unison, the Iceberg Ruins shuddered several times. The unmoving statue lit up with the same glow as the dots.

Bzzzz—

A strange hum filled the ruins, and cracks appeared on the statue.

Falling dust and clods made Lucas realize: Regice hadn’t turned into a statue; dust and dirt had accumulated on its body while it slept, forming the statue-like covering!

Fragments of dirt and dust sloughed off. Within moments, the seven round dots forming a cross on the statue flashed in a specific rhythm. The cold spread even further, and in an instant, thick ice sheathed the surroundings.

Regice revealed its true form.

Its body was made purely of ice. Seven yellow dots on its face formed a + pattern that flickered; four ice spikes on its back, declaring Regice’s power.

Its conical legs stepped forward. Its cylindrical arms, ending in three crystal-like fingers, raised and aimed at Lucas and Ceruledge.

“Doo-doo-doo, jili-gulu—”

Despite having no mouth, Regice emitted a series of mechanical sounds.

Ice-blue light gathered on its lifted arms, and in a blink three icy beams shot out—one aimed at Lucas, one at Ceruledge, and one at the door where Penny, Peonia, Dragonite, and Swampert were.

The move: Ice Beam!

There was no chance for dialogue. Freshly awakened, Regice attacked at once.

Rather than being sealed, it felt more like it was guarding this place!

Of the split beams, Ceruledge met one head-on.

Flames roared along its greatsword. Empowered by Swords Dance, Ceruledge swung a simple slash—and in the vapor where cold and heat met, the Ice Beam was cleaved cleanly in two!

Without even looking back—unconcerned about Regice’s lock on Lucas—Ceruledge charged the Titan!

Lucas, facing the Ice Beam coming at him, remained unafraid.

From his shadow, a huge, ferocious pair of Shadow Claws shot out and smashed into the incoming beam!

Ice Beam and Shadow Claw clashed violently. Trusting Mimikyu to protect him, Lucas exhaled a white mist and glanced back.

Dragonite’s Flamethrower collided with the third Ice Beam, while Swampert raised a wall of earth to block the aftermath from Penny and Peonia.

“Looks like I don’t need to worry about that side.”

He turned forward again. Even in a heavy winter coat, he felt as if he were standing on a vast icefield of the glacial age.

Legendary Pokémon were terrifying not only for battle power, but for the way they could shape environments—even change heaven and earth.

If the fight dragged on, Regice might truly transform the surroundings into a near-glacial environment.

Even in cold-weather gear, exposure like that might be too much for Lucas, Penny, and Peonia.

He had to end this quickly—before then.

Ceruledge’s fearless charge toward the Legendary Titan was clearly visible to Lucas. As it closed in, Lucas issued his command: “Bitter Blade!”

At his voice, flames on Ceruledge’s greatsword flared even fiercer. Regice’s clumsy motions made it a mere target to such a swift fighter.

Ceruledge nimbly evaded several boulders brimming with ancient power, its cold gaze scanning Regice’s body for a weak point.

In the end, there was no weak point to find. But that didn’t stop Ceruledge’s gale-like fiery slashes from hammering Regice’s body like rain!

Though Ceruledge was Fire/Ghost, when necessary its flames were in no way inferior to a pure Fire-type’s heat.

Even so, Regice’s ice-forged body didn’t even show a scratch, let alone melt.

This was a first for Ceruledge.

Regice spread its arms. Low, frigid air spread, then gathered toward Ceruledge under its command.

“Shadow Sneak!”

A flicker of surprise crossed Ceruledge’s eyes. As Regice tried to freeze it with condensed cold, Ceruledge slipped into a separate space, evading under Lucas’s command.

A heartbeat later, Ceruledge reappeared behind Regice, its flame-wreathed ghostly greatsword cleaving down again!

Clang—!!

The ring of two hard objects colliding reverberated through the ruins—another apparently “not effective” strike.

Regice’s body rotated as if it could turn 360 degrees, smoothly aligning with Ceruledge.

Its raised arm became a cannon, gathering a terrifying yellow-blue electromagnetic sphere, then firing at Ceruledge.

Perhaps out of stubborn pride, Ceruledge didn’t intend to dodge this time, and Lucas respected its decision. “Shadow Claw.”

Ghostly energy welled up on the flaming blade—used less like a claw and more as a “shadow blade.” With both swords moving in concert, it sliced the electro-cannon into four equal parts!

Boom—!

The unstable projectile discharged tremendous electricity, exploding violently.

It barely affected Ceruledge.

It quick-stepped to Regice’s side, landing plain, workmanlike flame slashes over and over.

“Ji-ji… doo-doo-doo…”

To handle the nimble Ceruledge, Regice switched to a sweeping Blizzard to seal off its paths.

Behind them, watching the clash, Peonia frowned in worry. “Penny… has Regice not taken any damage this whole time?”

Penny pushed up her glasses, holding a different view. “No matter how tough a body is, there’s a limit—otherwise how could Regice be sealed at all?

“Ceruledge is hitting almost the same spot each time. Teacher Lucas is probably setting up…”

Chapter 356: Capturing Regice; Calyrex Walks Right In

Things developed just as Penny said.

Regice’s Blizzard spread in a 360-degree sweep with no blind spot. The biting wind carried a cold that felt like it could freeze your soul. The ground iced over thickly—an untrained Pokémon would slip just trying to move.

Ceruledge raised Protect, then shattered its shell-like ice casing with a single sword stroke.

Then, a second Bitter Blade parted the air and struck Regice’s hard body again.

Clang!

Another crisp ring of blade on steel-hard ice.

Ceruledge didn’t get discouraged. Per Lucas’s orders, it alternated Fire- and Fighting-type attacks, occasionally mixing in Ghost-type moves. Its steady, agile footwork was completely unaffected by the ice.

The ruins rang with rhythmic clashes of steel on ice, like a master smith forging twin flaming greatswords.

The scene looked perilous. Ceruledge’s attacks seemed unable to harm Regice’s tough body at all.

It felt as if one misstep would see it frozen solid and plunged into an abyss.

But the truth?

The flicker rate of Regice’s facial yellow dots grew faster. Even a mostly emotionless Legendary Titan found Ceruledge troublesome.

Regice raised its hands. Invisible energy locked onto the afterimage-trailing, fleet Ceruledge. Twin electromagnetic cannons built up in its arms.

That strong combo—lock-on plus Zap Cannon—was once again broken by Ceruledge’s two quick slashes.

Regice’s other attacks were also dodged, while more and more clangs rang out against its body.

Because of speed, even at similar power levels, Regice was less threatening than Mega Blastoise.

And Ceruledge’s damage was accumulating. The exterior looked pristine, but that was only Regice’s Legendary endurance hiding the injuries’ presence.

“Bitter Blade!”

“Sss—goh!”

With a low growl, Ceruledge’s flames surged again.

This time, insights from two previous sword duels with Iron Valiant flowed through its mind. Sometimes swift as wind, sometimes heavy as thunder—Ceruledge now had it all under full control.

In its violet eyes, the tiniest hairline crack—born from repeated strikes—on the side of Regice’s light-blue polyhedral prism body became starkly clear.

Ducking under a destructive Hyper Beam, Ceruledge pushed off hard, sprinted to Regice’s flank, and brought both blazing blades down!

Clang! Clang!

Two clear rings sounded as the blades hit home.

“Ji-ji-ji—!!!”

Regice’s reaction was huge. Its rotation halted—it seemed stunned.

On its formerly pristine light-blue body, spiderweb cracks spread. Lucas also caught that crisp “crack.”

Knowing the moment had come, he didn’t hesitate.

“Flare Blitz!”

Ceruledge’s feet bit into the ice. Its cold gaze flared hot. Flames climbing its swords leapt onto its body, and in a blink it became a roaring fireball, charging Regice!

Where it passed, steam from melting ice condensed into frost in the cold, then was heated again and turned into a shrouding fog.

The next moment—

BOOM—WHUMP!

Ceruledge’s all-out Flare Blitz smashed into Regice. A furious vortex of fire scoured the steam away—then more steam billowed as the ice melted further.

The blast felt like it would puncture eardrums, hot air twisting the cold that Regice had imposed.

Penny and Peonia stared wide-eyed, stunned by the sight.

Peonia even found herself wondering what would happen if her idiot dad’s Copperajah took that hit.

Moments later, the upheaval subsided.

“Drago~”

Dragonite stepped forward, its wings beating fast. A gust curled the steam toward the high ceiling, finally clearing their view.

Ceruledge knelt on one knee, eyes closed, calmly enduring the recoil of Flare Blitz.

Regice was in worse shape—lying prone, its once indestructible body torn up badly. Chunks of half-melted ice lay scattered about—no doubt pieces of its body.

The yellow eyes barely flickered. A few faint, unintelligible mechanical sounds stuttered out.

“Doo-doo… le… ji… eh…”

With the outcome decided, Lucas pulled the soundly sleeping Cosmog from under his jacket. Under Mimikyu’s guard, he walked to Ceruledge and held out a hand.

“Can you stand?”

Ceruledge nodded lightly, accepted the help without fuss, drew a steadying breath, and stood.

It had simply been tired from all the dodging and swinging—not truly hurt—just needed a moment.

Regice had barely managed to land anything serious. The worst injury Ceruledge suffered was the recoil from Flare Blitz when it “created” a weak point on Regice.

“Good. Still, once we’re out of here, let Comfey give you a Flower Healing.”

Lucas sighed in relief. This was a good result.

He hadn’t needed any of his many hidden cards—Ceruledge alone defeated the Legendary Titan.

The plan to keep striking the same point until unbreakable armor broke had worked.

It all tied back to what Ceruledge learned from its fights with Iron Valiant.

The old Ceruledge couldn’t have gracefully dodged Regice’s spammy, wide-area attacks while relentlessly focusing precise, stacking strikes on one spot.

“Miii~”

He felt a tug at his hem.

He looked down—it was Mimikyu.

It tugged again to get his attention, then pointed at the fallen Regice, clearly asking whether to catch it.

“Catch it, huh…”

Understanding from its eyes and gestures, Lucas pondered.

Regice, Registeel, and Regirock often appeared as guardians of some place. Perhaps that was Regigigas’s intent in creating them.

If captured and obedient, Regice could guard the farm—though its environmental influence would need managing.

[Ding! Capture Regice or return it to slumber to open the ruins’ door.]

The system, not wanting to be left out, flashed text across his vision.

Fortunately, Lucas had already decided. Since the chance was here, why overthink? He’d deal with the rest later.

It would be his first attempt to capture a Legendary through battle alone.

He took out several high-performance Ultra Balls and tossed them one by one at Regice.

As expected of a Legendary—even though Regice had been knocked out by Ceruledge’s targeted strike, the first four Ultra Balls popped open and shattered.

Just as he was about to throw a fifth, Regice seemed to wake.

“Ji-ji-ji—!”

It let out a warbling mechanical cry and tried to push itself up, but with a large chunk of its body missing, even getting up was a struggle.

Knowing what he needed to, Lucas threw the fifth Ultra Ball. On contact, Regice turned to red light and flowed inside.

The ball hit the ice and shook three times.

Penny and Peonia, hurrying over with Dragonite and Swampert’s help, didn’t even dare breathe. Their hearts pounded, afraid the sound would affect the outcome.

Luck was with Lucas. Even though Regice’s consciousness had returned and it wanted to act, the capture was a success.

Click!

Three golden stars flashed on the Ultra Ball.

Lucas blinked. He hadn’t expected to succeed with just five balls.

He thought he might have to fight another round.

After all, Regice, Registeel, and Regirock could feed on ice, metal, and rock to repair themselves. The ice Ceruledge had melted was only a small patch. There was fuel for Regice everywhere.

He picked up the Ultra Ball holding the Ice Titan. Mimikyu climbed up onto his shoulder with a happy chirp.

Ceruledge nodded in satisfaction.

They’d gained many companions already—one more Regice hardly hurt. In its eyes—being caught by Lucas was Regice reaching up, not them stooping down.

Penny and Peonia arrived, shuffling carefully over the ice with Dragonite and Swampert’s help, faces alight with joy. “Congratulations, Teacher Lucas / Mr. Lucas, on capturing Regice!”

“Thank you.”

Lucas smiled kindly, asked about their condition one by one, and when sure they could handle it, he shrank the Ultra Ball and pocketed it, then looked toward the sealed door.

With Regice captured, the door should open soon, right?

Just as Penny and Peonia were about to ask what they needed to do next to leave the Iceberg Ruins, a low, drawn-out rumble sounded from the door.

The panels began to move—slow, steady. A rush of icy air blew through the widening gap, scattering dust and filling the air with an ancient scent.

True sunlight speared into the ruins. Through it, they could clearly see the snowbound vale outside.

Beyond the door, a backlit figure, as if it had been waiting, sped toward them!

Penny and Peonia blinked at the unfamiliar Pokémon.

Lucas instinctively held Cosmog a little tighter, eyes flashing with surprise.

After one mishap, was Calyrex… walking right into the net?

As the door opened, Calyrex, without thinking, rushed into the ruins for the first time—like a gust of wind—coming to a stop before Lucas and the others.

Only then did the brain Calyrex had forgotten to use in its worry start back up.

It took in Lucas holding a soundly sleeping Cosmog, Lucas’s few Pokémon—each formidable in its eyes—and the two bewildered girls.

Then, with psychic sight, it surveyed the interior: mingled heat and cold, ice scarred with battle, and no sign of the guardian statue.

Calyrex realized at once it had been impulsive.

This human, Lucas, had passed the Iceberg Ruins’ trial on his own. The icy giant was probably sealed in one of those strange round balls.

Its worry had been unnecessary.

It froze a second, then looked a last time at the sleeping Cosmog. Its body began to fade as it prepared to Teleport.

“Wait, Calyrex.”

Lucas suddenly called out.

Penny and Peonia’s eyes widened in surprise. This big green Pokémon was the Legendary King of Bountiful Harvests—the once-sovereign of Galar—Calyrex?

Dragonite and the others also stared curiously at the forgotten king.

Seemingly changing its mind, Calyrex’s fading form re-solidified. Lucas was pleasantly surprised. “You’re willing to communicate with me!”

Calyrex felt a flash of awkwardness.

It had wanted to leave quickly, to avoid the growing, tearing ache of seeing Cosmog again—the rising reluctance to part.

But it had forgotten: even with the door open, Teleport still didn’t work inside.

“Ahem… In any case, what is it thou wouldst say to Us?” It added, “Let us speak outside. If we linger, this door shall close again.”

“Ah!?”

Experiencing Pokémon telepathy for the first time, Penny and Peonia gasped, their horizons expanding on the spot.

Since Calyrex had said so, Lucas didn’t dally. “All right. Let’s head out now.”

Dragonite scooped up Penny and Peonia. Lucas recalled Ceruledge to rest and, with Swampert’s help, carried Cosmog off the ice. They hurried out of the ruins and back into the snowy valley.

Outside, it actually felt… warmer. One could imagine how extreme Regice’s chill had been. Staying inside too long might have frozen them alive.

Not long after they left, the ancient door began to move again, slow and sure. With a low, long hum, it shut completely.

Calyrex pulled its gaze from the door and turned to Lucas. Its telepathic tone was cool.

“Thou may’st speak now.”

Penny and Peonia stood nervously behind Lucas, hardly daring to breathe.

After all, the king of real history stood before them!

Every move radiated dignity—

Lucas adjusted Cosmog in his arms—not to hoard it, but simply to keep it warm.

Under Calyrex’s slightly warmer gaze, Lucas spoke. “We investigated your past deeds and history in Freezington.”

“Oh?”

Calyrex’s subtle up-and-down hover paused—stopping in midair. That tiny hitch revealed its true feelings weren’t as calm as they seemed.

Lucas noticed, his eyes dimming for an instant. He sighed inwardly and said quietly, “The villagers in Freezington consider you a fictional figure from compiled stories…”

He gently conveyed the villagers’ views that Nemona and the others had gathered.

After listening, Calyrex slowly turned to regard the snowbound valley, lost in thought.

After a long while—and a sigh so faint Lucas almost missed it—it turned back. Its bearing and words were once more full of elegance and majesty.

Lucas understood: Calyrex didn’t want to reveal weakness in front of him—or in front of Penny and Peonia, descendants of its former people.

“It seems they do not believe We exist. Humanity has forgotten the bond We once forged together.”

“No matter. Would We lament such? We are the King of Bountiful Harvests! We shall not stoop to pinning Our hopes on humanity!”

Resolve flashed under its noble gaze. Lucas’s words shattered its long-held fantasy—truths it had ignored or dared not accept were, in fact, true.

Though truth cuts like a knife, Calyrex would not sink into despair.

If anything, it hardened its resolve.

Since it had decided not to rely on humans, there was only one path to restoring its strength.

Calyrex closed its eyes, clearly struggling within.

Only then did Penny and Peonia let themselves look at it with pity and heartache—for a heartbeat.

Only a heartbeat.

A king would not welcome such looks.

Lucas parted his lips, but didn’t offer comfort. To Calyrex, that would be an insult…

After a long time, Calyrex opened its eyes and said gravely, “Were Our noble steed to return to Us, matters would improve.”

It had thought much. Though it had just said it would not rely on humans, Lucas—entrusted with Cosmog—was different. Otherwise it wouldn’t ask this.

Looking at Lucas, it continued, “It is the mount We once rode with ease—a four-legged Pokémon. The village statue depicts Us astride it.

“Long ago, they were Our companions as We galloped through wilds and hills. But since Our power waned and We parted ways, We know not where they are.

“Moreover, thou shouldst know: even if We found Our steed now, this meager strength We have briefly regained would not suffice. We could not hope to master them…”

It raised its head to meet Lucas’s eyes, awaiting his answer.

Under that gaze, Lucas realized Calyrex stood at a dead end.

That it would set aside its pride and plainly state its need was a pleasant surprise.

His prepared persuasion was no longer needed. Calyrex had truly “walked into the net.”

“Glastrier and Spectrier, right? I’ll help you regain your strength. Then, you’ll agree to leave the Crown Tundra with me and raise Cosmog yourself. How about it?”

He didn’t force the issue with pressure.

Leaving aside whether Calyrex’s pride would allow it, Lucas didn’t want to do that anyway.

So he asked—seeking Calyrex’s consent.

“Thou even knowest Our steeds’ names…”

Surprise flickered in Calyrex’s eyes. It glanced at the half-hidden Cosmog in Lucas’s arms.

Then it hesitated.

As Galar’s king—forgotten though it was—it had never considered leaving the Crown Tundra, leaving Galar, leaving its realm, leaving the land of its memories.

But Lucas’s question laid it bare—

Even if it regained its strength, should it reign again?

Beyond the shock to current institutions and the impact on Galar and its people’s descendants—

Even if it reclaimed its power, its answer would surely be no.

It didn’t want to experience all that again. Not out of cowardice—but clarity.

Rather than being a king again, perhaps its heart wanted to be a caretaker—to raise Cosmog, who had filled the void in its heart upon waking.

After a long silence, Calyrex replied, “If thou fulfill’st thy promise, We might consider it.”

Exactly what Lucas hoped to hear.

He had already stated that, even if Calyrex refused, he would help it find its steeds. Since it didn’t reject him outright, it meant its heart had moved—it was considering the possibility.

That was enough.

Lucas smiled. “Then it’s a deal!”