Chapter 48 48: Target — The Azoth Kingdom!
This round of purchases practically burned through the 300,000 Poké Dollars Sora had just earned.
After all the spending, his remaining savings were down to about 60,000.
And next, he had no intention of staying in Sinnoh any longer.
He had his own plans.
His own targets.
There were no Pokémon in Sinnoh that could rapidly boost his strength right now.
After resting one more night in Eterna City, Sora headed to the airport and boarded a flight bound for the Kalos region.
Yes—Kalos.
His destination was the birthplace of mysterious science, the mechanical nation known as the Azoth Kingdom.
Despite being called a kingdom, Azoth was essentially a massive city.
That wasn't unusual in the Pokémon world.
Regions were vast and sparsely populated.
One city often governed huge surrounding areas of forests, plains, and highlands.
Azoth was no exception.
Sora flew from Eterna to Vaniville Town in Kalos, then crossed mountains and forests.
The journey took nearly half a month before he finally arrived at the Nebel Plateau.
During that time, Cynthia contacted him several times.
Whenever he reached a Pokémon Center, he would video call her, sharing the sights and stories from the road.
Cynthia remained deeply interested in Ogerpon and Victini.
After all, they were Legendary Pokémon.
Even for a Champion, encountering stable, reliable information about Legendaries was rare.
"2,800,000 Poké Dollars."
That was the final total.
800,000 more than their original estimate of two million.
Without Cynthia, Sora knew the truth:
With his own network and resources, those ten Peat Blocks might not have sold for even 1.5 million.
After expressing his gratitude once again, he ended the call.
This place was the Nebel Plateau.
Beyond the plateau lay the Azoth Kingdom.
But that wasn't his true objective.
His real targets were the Legendary Pokémon living here:
Volcanion
and
Magearna
Yes.
These were the two Legendary Pokémon chosen for Phase Three of his plan.
In Eindoak — he obtained Victini
In Kitakami — he brought Ogerpon into the team
And now — Azoth
With those two already by his side, Sora had confidence.
Against any Pokémon below the level of the highest-tier gods—
He could fight.
Volcanion was powerful.
But he wasn't afraid of it.
"Kings don't meet kings? Avoid the strongest?"
Avoid it?
Please.
Let Volcanion come.
At worst, they'd stage a perfectly justified group beatdown.
As for Magearna—
He was determined to recruit her.
No matter what.
Of course, that was mostly bravado.
Sora wasn't the kind of trainer who forced Pokémon against their will.
His desire to bring Magearna along came from practical reasoning.
First:
Magearna wasn't safe on the Nebel Plateau.
In the movie timeline, Ash and his companions intervened and prevented her core from being destroyed.
But now—
Because Sora existed, the timeline might change.
Would Ash still arrive in the future?
No one could guarantee that.
To prevent a butterfly effect from leading to Magearna's destruction, Sora believed he had a responsibility to act.
And if Volcanion tried to stop him—
Well, that would be perfect.
Two birds with one stone.
He wouldn't mind recruiting Volcanion as well, adding another powerhouse to his Legendary lineup.
There was another reason too.
Magearna's core was unstable.
Her energy reserves were low.
And after five hundred years, her body showed clear signs of aging.
Fortunately, Sora possessed the perfect solution:
Victini.
Victini could restore energy.
Stabilize vitality.
Extend endurance.
From every angle—emotionally and logically—this trip made sense.
"I just hope I can persuade them," he murmured.
If Magearna were alone, convincing her would be easy.
She was gentle, trusting, and kind.
The real obstacle was her guardian.
Volcanion.
"That steam old man won't be easy to deal with," Sora muttered.
He began setting up camp on the grassy field.
The Nebel Plateau was one of the places closest to the sky.
It felt like an emerald left behind by the gods—floating among endless mountains.
Wind, snow, light, and mist wove together into a breathtaking sky sanctuary unique to the Pokémon world.
No city noise.
Only:
wind whispering through trees
snow settling softly on grass
Pokémon running freely across open land
Sora spread out a picnic blanket beside the lake.
Buneary quickly came over to help.
Her learning ability was remarkable.
After watching Sora cook just a few times, she had already mastered most of the process.
Soon, he suspected he'd be able to hand over the entire cooking role to her.
Buneary's evolution into Lopunny didn't depend on level.
It depended on friendship.
That had always puzzled Sora.
Wild Pokémon didn't have humans constantly building bonds with them.
So what counted as friendship in the wild?
He had a theory.
Emotion.
Strong emotional moments.
For example:
A partner in danger.
A desperate rescue.
A surge of determination.
Under intense emotional stimulation, Buneary might evolve.
He even wondered:
If he had never appeared, would Buneary have evolved one day while protecting Eevee?
Maybe during a dangerous search for food.
Maybe in a moment of crisis.
But now?
Life was comfortable.
Peaceful.
Safe.
Her level had risen to the 30+ range, yet there were no signs of evolution.
Sora wasn't worried.
No pressure.
No rushing.
If dramatic triggers didn't happen—
Then warm, everyday companionship might do the job instead.
When her feelings for him reached a certain threshold, evolution would come naturally.
And he certainly wasn't going to push her just to turn her into the long-legged rabbit idol that made certain fans lose their minds.
"Eevee, use Baby-Doll Eyes!"
"Bui~~~"
Over the past two weeks, Eevee had progressed tremendously.
Her level had reached 45, and she had learned Baby-Doll Eyes, meeting the basic requirements for evolving into Sylveon.
Honestly, Victini's power was incredible.
When Eevee first joined the team, her level had been below 15—a complete beginner.
Now, after only two weeks, her internal energy had skyrocketed.
She already possessed the raw strength to compete with an elite trainer's main Pokémon.
What she lacked was simple:
Battle experience.
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Pat reon Advance Chapters: /YonkoSlayer