"Elias, here. Wear this."
After tying the [Key Stone] onto a woven cord, Lucario stepped forward and handed it to Elias.
Their conversation with Zoroark cut off mid-bicker, Elias blinked, then gave a slightly awkward cough.
He'd gotten so caught up arguing with Zoroark that he'd forgotten Lucario was even standing there.
Talking about him losing... right to his face... not great.
"Sorry, Lucario. I didn't mean it like that," Elias muttered with a sheepish glance.
"It's fine."
Lucario shook his head, expression unreadable.
Then he gave the stone a small shake and added, "Put it on."
He wasn't exactly upset about Elias's lack of faith.
To be fair, based on how things had gone in the Alabaster Icelands, it was likely he'd lose to Enamorus and Tornadus.
But his pride wasn't that fragile.
If anything—
He was more interested in seeing Elias's face after he pulled off a 2v1 sweep.
On the other side, Elias took the "necklace" with curiosity, eyes narrowing slightly.
It had a strange, round shape—smooth and solid to the touch, like some kind of polished stone.
And though translucent, there was a brilliant colored pattern nestled at its core.
"What is this?"
Elias tilted his head, intrigued. His instincts told him it wasn't just decoration.
"A secret," Lucario replied coolly.
Then, from within his own belongings, he pulled out a matching one—and slipped it around his neck.
Now, whenever he chose, he'd be able to [Mega Evolve] during the tournament. His power would skyrocket.
With that edge, he had a real shot at taking down both Tornadus and Enamorus.
Watching him, Elias's curiosity deepened, but since Lucario wasn't offering an explanation, he simply fastened the stone around his own neck.
Lucario wouldn't give him anything dangerous, and if he wanted to keep it hush-hush for now, Elias could play along.
Nearby, Zoroark had watched the entire exchange in silence.
Narrowing her eyes, she flicked her ears warily.
What's that mutt up to...?
Bringing out a shiny, pretty-looking stone just to win Elias's favor? Something was definitely fishy.
Baring her teeth slightly in warning, she glared at Lucario—then made a mental note to craft a necklace of her own to give Elias later.
---
[Thanks to Lucario's timely intervention, your argument with Zoroark ended halfway through.]
[Before bed, you made a quick stop by Cogita's place.]
[To your surprise, she'd somehow managed to build an entire wooden cabin in the span of a single afternoon.]
"If you're cold, you can sleep here with me."
Cogita stretched lazily on her futon and patted the empty space beside her, voice sultry with mischief.
Elias didn't budge.
A tent might not be as cozy as a cabin—but he got to sleep curled up next to a warm, fuzzy fox.
Zoroark's body heat was more than enough for a restful night.
Besides… if he really did take up Cogita's offer, there was no way he'd sleep at all.
Her chaotic sleeping habits were forever burned into his memory.
Seeing him decline, Cogita pouted in disappointment.
Then, smoothing her expression, she pulled a blanket over her legs and asked:
"If you're not here to share my bed, what are you doing here so late?"
"Is it about tomorrow's match?"
She'd seen the tournament list and had a pretty good guess.
Before Elias could answer, she gave a sly little smirk and said:
"If you came to beg me to go easy, maybe try sounding a bit more sincere—I might consider it~"
Her tone was cheerful and teasing.
She hadn't entered the tournament with any serious ambitions. She just wanted to have fun.
And if she could make Elias squirm a little, that'd be the cherry on top—even if she threw the match in the first round.
But to her surprise, Elias simply shook his head.
He's not here to grovel?
Cogita blinked, confused.
Before she could press, Elias straightened his back and looked her square in the eye.
"Tomorrow, don't hold back."
"Use both Tornadus and Enamorus. That's all I ask."
He was completely serious—not a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
Eyes wide, Cogita stared at him in shock.
That's… not what I expected.
Unfortunately for her, Elias didn't stick around to explain. After handing her a few handmade healing items, he turned and left.
She sat in silence for a while after he was gone, staring at the potions in her hands, deep in thought.
---
[The next morning, you dragged a "sick" Zoroark out of bed.]
"Elias, I caught a chill… I think I've got a fever… cough cough..."
Zoroark looked up at him with wide, watery eyes, feigning frailty. She even threw in a couple coughs for good measure.
"Oh yeah?"
Elias raised a brow and gently pinched her cheek, smiling.
"No problem—The [Power of Viridian] should heal you. You'll be fine before you even step onto the field."
Honestly, this was probably the most practical use of [Power of Viridian] yet.
Sure enough, Zoroark slumped with a defeated groan.
No escape, huh…
---
[Unlike the grumbling Zoroark, Lucario was up early and more fired up than ever.]
[By the time you stepped outside, you saw him pummeling a tree trunk with rapid punches, bark flying everywhere.]
[Crowds from both the Pearl Clan and Diamond Clan had gathered to watch.]
"Elias, you're up!"
Irida waved from the crowd, her Eevee cradled in her arms.
"Morning," Elias replied with a nod, reaching over to scratch the fuzzy little Pokémon behind the ears.
He knew this Eevee. Practically a mascot by now.
And notoriously food-obsessed…
"That's your Lucario, huh?" Irida said, watching the wind from his punches ripple through the air.
"My Eevee's looking forward to facing him."
She sounded full of fighting spirit.
Too bad she didn't notice that the Eevee in her arms was already curled into a ball, trembling.
"B-Buii…"
From Elias's angle, the poor thing looked like it was on the verge of tears.
"Y-Yeah, good luck with that," Elias replied, forcing a chuckle.
For Eevee's sake, let's hope that matchup doesn't happen.
---
[As morning broke and the camp buzzed to life, the tournament officially began.]
[The leaders of both clans had volunteered to serve as referees.]
[Paired-off trainers began taking to the stage, one battle after another.]
[Next to you, Cynthia stood watching… grimacing behind her hand.]
"This is painful to watch…"
She muttered under her breath.
In Hisui, she'd seen some wild approaches to battling.
Trainers charging in with a swarm of Shinx like they were herding sheep…
Others trying to lull opponents to sleep using an army of Jigglypuff…
One even attempted to crush their opponent under a pile of hundreds of Magikarp.
Honestly? Cynthia was impressed they'd even managed to catch that many.
With a bit of luck, if even one had evolved into Gyarados, it'd probably be a tournament favorite.
But after enduring so much chaos, a matchup finally appeared that caught her attention.
—Elias vs. Cogita.