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Three days had passed since the Elite Four meeting concluded.
Without the participation of the four Elite trainers involved in the heated discussions, the excitement on the internet gradually began to fade. Despite all the wild speculation about what had transpired during that crucial Elite meeting, everyone would still have to wait for the championship challenge battle to see the true outcome.
Early that morning, Chris and Senior Roy gathered at League Airport to board a special passenger aircraft called the "Ferryman." They weren't traveling alone—Senior Alexis had joined them for this journey.
"Hey there, junior!" Alexis called out, draping his arm around Chris's neck the moment they stepped onto the plane. "So who actually won that Elite Four meeting in the end?"
"Is it true what they're saying online? Did you really have an intense battle with Roy and finally earn the right to challenge the Champion?"
"Since when did you become such a gossip?" Before Chris could respond, Roy, who was sitting nearby, spoke up first. "You've never shown any interest in Elite meeting outcomes before."
"That was different back then," Alexis replied with a snort, then suddenly seemed to realize something. He looked Roy up and down carefully. "Wait a minute... if you had won this time like you always do, you'd definitely be smiling smugly and staying quiet about it!"
"So that means Chris actually won this time!" Alexis stared at Chris with wide, amazed eyes.
Chris simply smiled but remained silent, neither confirming nor denying the speculation.
"Hey, Junior Chris, what's that smile supposed to mean?" Alexis scratched at his ears and cheeks in frustration.
Chris just shook his head quietly. I've already given you the answer, he thought to himself, but you haven't figured it out yet.
"What do you mean by shaking your head like that!" The fact that neither Roy nor Chris would give him a straight answer made Alexis feel like countless Meowth were scratching at his heart. The suspense was nearly killing him.
"League Airport has direct flights to famous overseas secret realms," Roy explained to Chris, changing the subject. "These secret realms are quite dangerous, so there's a minimum requirement of Gym Trainer level just to board the aircraft. If you're interested in exploring others sometime, you can check them out on your communication device."
"The secret realm we're heading to this time is called Halloween Island," Roy continued. "It's an island inhabited exclusively by Ghost-type Pokémon. The environment there has a unique spiritual quality, and it's known for producing numerous treasure-level items that can enhance Ghost-type Pokémon. It's an excellent location for that purpose."
"Here's some detailed information about the place," Roy said, handing over a printed document. "Take a look when you have a chance."
Chris accepted the papers and examined them carefully.
The content provided a comprehensive introduction to Halloween Island. Beyond the basic information available in official sources, this document contained detailed intelligence that could only be gathered by someone with years of experience visiting the location. It included information about the strength distribution of wild Pokémon on the island, locations where Totem Pokémon could be found, gathering points of Ghost-type energy, potential spots where secret treasures might appear, and much more.
Clearly, this was an internal document that Senior Roy had compiled himself over multiple visits.
However, as Chris read through the entire document, he couldn't find the real "reason" why Roy wanted to bring him along on this expedition.
After all, the strongest creature on Halloween Island was merely a quasi-Champion level Totem Dusknoir. Senior Roy could easily handle it on his own. If he was inviting Chris to come along, there must be some particular Pokémon or challenge that even Roy and Senior Alexis together couldn't manage alone—something that specifically required Chris's assistance.
Just looking at this information wasn't enough to figure out the mystery. Oh well, he thought, I'll find out when we get there.
Since they were traveling on a special aircraft with direct routing, the journey didn't take very long. They departed at 8:00 AM and arrived at their destination by 12:00 PM.
After landing at the small airport situated just outside Halloween Island, the three trainers enjoyed a substantial lunch in the nearly deserted terminal building. Fewer than ten people occupied the entire airport, including the chefs and waiters, and every single one of them was a certified Trainer.
Since they would be venturing deep into the interior of Halloween Island later and had no idea how many days they might spend camping in the wilderness, the three took their time with the meal, eating well before heading into the unknown.
At exactly 1:30 PM, the trio set off on their expedition.
Upon leaving the airport behind, they found themselves standing before a forest that seemed to emanate an otherworldly, ghostly presence. A strange wind blew across their faces. Though it had been sunny and clear back at the airport terminal, the sky here was undeniably gloomy and overcast, as if some invisible barrier separated the two locations entirely.
Unlike traditional secret realms that required special portals for entry, Halloween Island's secret realm had existed for hundreds of years and had long since merged completely with the original island. There was no portal to pass through.
"So which route should we take this time?" Alexis asked, pulling out a map that had been marked and altered so extensively that only he could decipher its meaning. "Should we take the longer, safer path, or go with the riskier approach?"
"We're not taking any of our usual routes this time," Roy replied firmly. "We're going straight through."
Alexis looked at Roy in complete shock. "There's nothing urgent happening right now, is there? Why do we need to push ourselves so hard?"
Rather than answering Alexis's question, Roy turned to address Chris directly. "Chris, please send out your Gengar."
Chris didn't understand what Roy had planned, but he complied anyway and released Gengar from its Poké Ball.
"Gengar!" The little purple ghost Pokémon happily emerged from its spherical home, wiggling its rotund body and floating in circles around Chris in an excited display.
Observing Chris's Gengar carefully, Roy frowned slightly with concentration. "Can it switch to its strongest combat stance like it did when battling me? I don't mean Mega Evolution or Dynamax."
"Well..." Chris hesitated.
"It can't do it on command?"
"It's not that it can't," Chris said, looking at Gengar with an apologetic expression before raising his hand and snapping his fingers sharply.
Immediately, Greninja, Gardevoir, and Blaziken materialized from their Poké Balls and began attacking Gengar in what appeared to be a coordinated assault.
"Gengar!" the ghost cried out. "No! Brother Frog, stop!"
"Gengar!" it wailed again. "No! Brother Garde, please!"
"Gengar!" it pleaded desperately. "Don't do this! Brother Blaze!"
Amid the pitiful howls and protests, Gengar's body color began to shift dramatically. It changed from its normal purple to a purple-gold hue, then to pure gold, and finally settled into a deep, pure purple that seemed to absorb light itself. As this transformation occurred, Gengar's HP dropped to approximately 25%, and its "King's Presence" ability finally reached its ultimate stage.
The King of Gengar now stood before them, though its bedraggled appearance hardly possessed the dignified aura that a "king" should rightfully command.
"Gengar, gengar," the little purple ghost said sadly, looking up at Chris with large, mournful eyes. "Master, what did I do wrong? Why did you have me beaten up like that?"
Chris could only shrug helplessly in response. It wasn't his fault that Gengar couldn't fully control its "King's Presence" transformation and could only achieve it by having its HP reduced through battle damage.
Sensing the powerful aura now emanating from Gengar in its transformed state, Roy nodded with satisfaction. "Have it maintain that presence. Now we can proceed into the island."
Alexis stared in complete bewilderment at what had just transpired. "Student, that Gengar of yours must actually be a Ditto in disguise, right?"
"No, it's not," Chris answered casually, then took his position beside the King of Gengar and followed Senior Roy as they began walking deeper into the mysterious, ghost-filled forest of Halloween Island.