"Did Lugia just move?!"
"I don't think so. Isn't she sleeping really soundly?"
"I swear I saw her eyelids twitch too."
"Pika pika~"
As they spoke, Lugia's eyelids twitched again, and this time, all three of them saw it clearly.
"It really looks like she's about to wake up," Brock said, surprise written all over his face. "Ash, is your treatment really that effective? She hasn't even been asleep for thirty minutes."
"I only removed the Power of Death from Lugia's body," Ash replied calmly. "She doesn't actually have any physical injuries. How quickly she wakes up depends on when her spirit recovers… but even so, this recovery speed is incredible."
Even Ash himself couldn't help but marvel.
Lugia's recovery wasn't entirely because of him. After all, her earlier agony had come from the internal conflict between her original Psychic-type power and the invasive Dark-type energy, not from bodily damage.
Now that the Dark-type power had been fully absorbed, her body wasn't just restored, it had grown stronger.
That was because the quality of the Dark-type energy inside her far exceeded her original power.
At this point, it was almost certain that the source of that energy was Yveltal, and not just any Yveltal, but one that held a Divine Authority.
Aside from such a power, it was difficult to imagine anything else that could allow a first-tier God species like Lugia to advance so dramatically in a single leap, raising her level and maxing out her stats all at once.
Physical recovery was one thing.
But the main damage Lugia had suffered was mental.
How quickly she recovered from that depended entirely on herself.
And now, in this short span of time, she actually woke up.
This resilience… truly lived up to the name of a Mythical Beast.
Under everyone's expectant gaze, Lugia slowly opened her eyes, revealing crimson pupils.
In the past, Lugia's eyes had been no different from a human's, black pupils, white sclera.
Now, however, the whites of her eyes had turned a deep crimson. Combined with her pitch-black body, the change gave her a strangely intimidating presence, despite her small size.
With her eyes closed, she still looked somewhat cute.
But the moment they opened, her aura changed completely.
The instant the newly awakened Lugia saw three humans, a yellow mouse, and another Pokémon crouched right in front of her, she panicked.
With a startled cry, she spread her wings and scrambled backward several meters, pressing herself flat against the wall.
"Uh… Brock," Ash said awkwardly, "you scared Lugia!"
"Don't talk nonsense!" Brock shot back. "Why couldn't you be the one who scared her?!"
Brock wanted to roll his eyes—but somehow, his eyes just refused to cooperate.
That didn't stop the strong sense of injustice welling up inside him.
They had all been staring at her together, why was he the one getting blamed?
"Alright, alright, stop it," Misty said helplessly, stepping in between them. She raised her hands to show they were empty and smiled gently.
"Hello, Lugia. Nice to meet you. None of us mean you any harm."
Faced with Misty's sincere kindness, Lugia gradually shook off her post-awakening panic. Her crimson eyes shifted cautiously as she observed her surroundings.
A very ordinary house.
Humans who didn't seem hostile.
A tiny yellow mouse that felt extremely weak.
And a Pokémon that looked vaguely cat-like.
Then, her gaze landed on Mewtwo.
Lugia's body trembled.
Her instincts screamed that this slender, quiet Pokémon was the most terrifying presence in the room.
Yet…
That existence showed no hostility toward her at all.
Slowly, Lugia's racing heart began to calm. Everyone here seemed to be emitting friendly emotions toward her.
And then her gaze returned to the boy standing at the center.
"Wooo~" 'Was it… you who saved me?'
Only Ash understood her voice.
He nodded, smiling warmly.
"That's right. I helped you. Lugia, stay with me for a while, okay? Once the competition is over, I'll take you home."
Lugia tilted her head.
She didn't quite understand what "competition" meant, but she definitely understood the word home.
After a moment's hesitation, she nodded.
Out of gratitude for Ash's help, and because she felt genuine warmth from him, she agreed to stay by his side for now.
Besides… she didn't really have anywhere else to go.
The experience of being captured had left a deep shadow in her young heart. Even if someone told her to leave on her own now, she wouldn't dare.
Having made up her mind, Lugia instinctively glanced down at her own body.
And then, her expression froze.
She rushed to find a mirror.
Ten seconds later, her little face twisted into pure despair.
"Woooo! Waaaaaah!!"
What happened to my body?! Why did I turn like this?!
Ash and the others exchanged looks and scratched their cheeks awkwardly.
Even without translation, they understood perfectly.
Lugia clearly couldn't accept the fact that she had turned pitch black.
But there was nothing that could be done.
At the time, the Dark-type power had completely overwhelmed her Psychic-type energy, leaving it no room to survive. That power had filled her body entirely—changing not just her attributes, but even the color of her feathers.
From that moment on, unless Psychic-type power stronger than the Dark-type power within her was infused into her body, there was no way for her to return to her original form.
Mewtwo could theoretically try.
But with Lugia's current condition, it would mean two God–level powers clashing inside her body like warring deities.
Even if she survived, the price would be catastrophic.
The Legendary Ash in the Chat Group had briefly mentioned something similar before, quietly extinguishing Ash's fleeting idea of restoring Lugia's original appearance.
That person clearly spoke from experience.
Ash just hadn't had the chance to ask whether that experience was… personal.
In short, it was basically impossible for Lugia to return to her original appearance.
Waiting until she became stronger and then changing it back?
Don't be ridiculous.
The power Lugia was currently gaining was Dark-type power. As she continued to grow, the Dark-type energy within her body would only become stronger as well. Moreover, as time passed, that power would fully integrate into her being, becoming her natural attribute and type.
If someone truly wanted to revert her type and appearance afterward…
Well, there might be a chance if Arceus himself were called over.
Ultimately, after Ash patiently explained everything, Lugia had no choice but to accept the reality—sadly and helplessly. It seemed that when she eventually returned to her family, it would have to be with this appearance.
She didn't know whether her father and mother would accept her like this…
But at least, it wasn't all bad news.
Her strength had skyrocketed.
Under normal circumstances, it would have taken her several years of natural growth to reach her current level. Although Legendary Pokemons are born powerful and are practically invincible among peers at the same stage, their growth rate is notoriously slow.
Without external interference, it would take decades, if not over a century, for a Legendary Pokemon to fully mature.
This referred to natural growth, with little to no deliberate training.
Even if they trained themselves, it would still take at least ten years to reach Champion-level strength.
This was precisely why some Legendary Pokemon chose to attach themselves to Trainers.
Under the guidance of a Trainer, their growth speed could increase many times over!
Of course, that depended on meeting a reliable and powerful Trainer.
For Lugia, who had never even encountered a Trainer before, this sudden leap in power was already the fastest possible progression. It was equivalent to skipping several years of growth entirely.
That was her one consolation.
Once Lugia finally accepted the change in her appearance, Ash patiently explained the concepts of Poké Balls, Trainers, battles, and daily life in the human world.
Her ability to accept new information was astonishing. Before long, she had fully understood everything Ash told her.
After that, she obediently entered her Poké Ball.
This exclusive Poké Ball had a special design that allowed the Pokémon inside to clearly observe the outside world at all times.
Ordinary Poké Balls could technically do this as well, but only if the Pokémon inside was strong enough to ignore the Poké Ball's spatial rules.
But Lugia's special Poké Ball bypassed all of that.
Regardless of her strength, she could freely observe everything outside.
So for her, entering the Poké Ball felt far from restrictive.
Ash, however, had a different problem.
If he counted Lugia, he now had eight Pokémon.
If he sent one away, what would he do in the upcoming six-on-six battles?
He couldn't exactly fight five-on-six, could he?
As for sending Lugia into battle…
That felt a bit like showing off.
Even though Ash really wanted to do it.
But wouldn't that just be openly telling Team Galactic—and every other villainous organization in the world, that Lugia was with him?
"Come and steal her," basically.
So when it came to Pokémon slots, he had to think carefully.
Five-on-six… actually, it wasn't completely impossible.
And if things truly became unstable—
He could always count Mewtwo as the sixth slot.
Thinking of that, Ash immediately felt much more relaxed.
If someone in the tournament was strong enough to defeat five of his Pokémon, then they would earn the right to face his greatest challenge.
Mewtwo.
'It's all a test.'
Time passed quickly.
Two more days went by.
This marked the eighth day after the Qualifiers, and the official matches of the Indigo Plateau Conference were finally about to begin.
The Round of 32 would take two full days.
Unlike the Qualifiers, the official tournament didn't use four battlefields.
There was only one, the Indigo Stadium.
All sixteen matches had to be held there.
Between entrances, battles, intermissions, and lunch breaks, starting at nine in the morning and ending at six in the evening, with a one-hour break at noon, it worked out to roughly one match per hour.
Just enough time to complete half the matches each day.
During these two days, Ash also grew much closer to Lugia.
He took her to various amusement parks around the Indigo Plateau Conference venue. To avoid attention, Ash asked Mewtwo to use Psychic distortion.
Under the effect of Psychic power, Ash appeared as an ordinary passerby.
Lugia, meanwhile, looked like nothing more than a Murkrow.
Who could have imagined that the boy and the Murkrow running around the amusement park were actually Ash and a legendary Beast?
Many of the amusement venues even had attractions specifically designed for Pokémon.
After all, this world revolved around Pokémon—and from a business perspective, catering to Pokémon was far more profitable than catering to humans.
Haunted houses, forest exploration, berry picking…
All sorts of Pokémon-interactive facilities.
They were expensive—but for Ash, as long as money could solve the problem, it wasn't a problem at all.
He didn't even know how much money was left on his card anymore.
Over these two days, the bond between Ash and Lugia grew rapidly.
She already felt gratitude toward him for saving her life. After spending time together, that gratitude turned into genuine fondness.
Whether it was the fun experiences, Ash's careful attention to her emotions, or simply the food.
Everything was better than ever before.
The meals prepared by Ash and Brock were top-tier in both nutrition and taste. Especially Brock, whose skills were already near professional level.
Ash still had room to grow, of course. His Breeder rank was currently stuck at Intermediate.
But even so…
For Lugia, staying by Ash's side was far, far better than going back.
She enjoyed herself so much that she almost forgot about home.
After just two days, even if the road home were placed right in front of her, she might not necessarily leave.
Wasn't the human world amazing?!
It was rare for Ash not to focus on Pokémon training during these days.
For him, soothing the unease in Lugia's heart mattered more than anything else.
And judging by the results, it was a complete success.
At the very least, Lugia no longer felt that initial distance or lingering fear.
All that remained now was her growing obsession with food, drinks, and fun in the human world.