The next day, Monday arrived—the most hated day of the week.
"Ugh, why isn't it a holiday yet?"
Jace dragged his heavy body along, grumbling to Auron.
"If they don't give us a break soon, I'm gonna keel over."
Auron wasn't much better off. After yesterday's nerve-wracking battle against the Church, his mother had still yanked him out of bed and shoved him off to school.
"Just hang in there. Three more weeks till exams. At least next week they've got to give us a break, right?"
"…Fine. Hopefully this year the school cuts us loose early."
Mid-Morning Break
Auron, Jace, Serena, and Tim gathered as usual, sitting together on the benches by the battle arena.
"So, have your Pokémon evolved yet?" Auron asked.
Jace grinned. "I used the Fire Stone I got in the secret realm to evolve Growlithe into Arcanine. I'm telling you, Arcanine looks amazing."
Serena's eyes lit up. "Mine too. Shellder evolved into Cloyster."
"I meant Feebas," Auron corrected, giving her a look.
Serena blinked, wide-eyed.
"Feebas? How's that supposed to evolve?"
Auron froze, then sighed.
"Right, you haven't been by my family's breeding house these past two days. Both my parents' Feebas have already evolved into Milotic."
Serena practically jumped up, shaking Auron's arm eagerly.
"How did they do it? Tell me!"
Auron pulled his arm free, uncomfortable.
"Talk without grabbing, thanks. Anyway, Dad's already worked out the conditions. First, Feebas needs to reach a certain level of beauty. Second, it has to have enough confidence in itself. Meet both, and it evolves into Milotic."
"Beauty?" all three of them echoed at once.
That word caught Jace and Tim's attention as well. None of them had ever heard of such a thing.
"'Beauty' is the name Dad gave it," Auron explained. "Think of it like this—Serena, your Feebas already looks way better than most of its species. That's its beauty."
Serena leaned forward, eager.
"So does that mean my Feebas can evolve? Is her beauty high enough?"
Auron thought it over.
"By rights, yeah, she should be. Probably just not confident enough yet. Tell you what—after school, come with me to the breeding house. Let her see my parents' Milotic for herself."
"Deal!" Serena agreed instantly, eyes sparkling.
Auron shot a sly look at Serena and Tim.
"And as it happens, I've got a little surprise for you guys waiting there."
That, of course, piqued their curiosity. All three pressed him to spill, but Auron only wagged a finger with a mysterious smile.
"Can't say. Secret."
They teased and bantered a little longer, but when the bell rang they shuffled back to class, resigning themselves to another dull round of lessons.
After School
The four of them headed together toward Auron's family breeding house.
On the way, Auron turned to Tim.
"How's that Deino coming along?"
Tim grimaced.
"My dad traded for it with one Silver Crown and five Genius Feathers. Had to deal with that old guy from Dragon Mountain."
"A Silver Crown?!"
All three of them stopped in their tracks, stunned.
Here, Silver Crowns weren't bottle caps from some game—they were actual regal, jewel-studded crowns. Rare artifacts, one of the few items in the world that could raise a Pokémon's potential.
When a Pokémon wore one, there was a thirty-percent chance its aptitude would rise by a whole tier.
Above it stood the Gold Crown, with an eighty-percent success rate. Both were unimaginably rare, usually found only in the most dangerous secret realms.
Even Auron was taken aback. Then he patted Tim on the shoulder.
"Don't sweat it. Maybe that Silver Crown will net you a Deino with top-tier potential."
But Tim only shook his head with a wry smile.
"That's not what I'm worried about. My family's got more Silver Crowns, and I've even seen Gold Crowns in my dad's vault."
Auron's jaw dropped. He had no words.
So this is what it means to be stupidly rich, huh…
Serena and Jace weren't much better—they nearly choked. That kind of clueless bragging was enough to crush anyone's spirit.
Auron slung an arm around Tim's shoulders, grinning wickedly.
"Alright, tell me where this vault is. We'll rob it together. Fifty-fifty split."
Tim rolled his eyes.
"Cut it out."
Auron chuckled. "Kidding. So what are you worried about?"
"I'm worried because the Deino hasn't even hatched yet. From what I was told, it'll be another month and a half—maybe two months."
"Ohh, I see. You're sulking because you won't have your Deino before the exams."
Now it made sense. He didn't care about the price paid—he just wanted it sooner.
"Exactly! The earlier I get it, the earlier I can start training."
Hands behind his head, Auron strode ahead with long steps, leaving Tim behind.
"Pfft. Getting worked up over a sure thing. Shameful."
Serena and Jace hurried past him too, each tossing out the same verdict.
"Shame on you."
"Shame on you."
Tim blinked, then laughed despite himself.
"Hey, wait up!"
Joking and chatting all the way, the four soon reached the Vale family's breeding house.
Inside, Auron's mom wasn't at the counter. After a quick hello to the staff, Auron led the group straight to the back.
"First, the surprise," he told Serena with a grin. "Then we'll put your Feebas in the pool to meet the Milotic."
"Fine, I'll play along," she replied, curious.
Auron brought them into his private little room. Ever since he'd gotten his own Pokémon, he'd spent more time here, so his dad had set aside a personal space—part rest area, part workshop.
It had a sofa and coffee table, fridge, air conditioner, tea set, even a proper workbench. Ashen himself had installed that, believing his son had the makings of a researcher and didn't want his talent wasted.
"Alright, sit tight. Drinks are in the fridge—help yourselves. I'll grab it."
He disappeared into the storage room. A moment later he re-emerged, carrying a Pokémon Egg cradled in its base.
"Ta-da!" he set it on the coffee table with a flourish. "Guess who this one's for."
The others leaned in, eyes fixed on the Egg's swirling violet patterns. They recalled the little trick Auron had told them back at the Pokémon Superstore.
"Poison-type, huh?" Jace ventured first. "But none of us run Poison teams."
Auron shook his head, smiling slyly.
"Says who? Jace, your Salandit's Fire/Poison. Serena, sure, your Ice team doesn't have a Poison/Ice option, but Ice and Water go hand in hand. What about Tentacool? And Tim—your Dragon team could always use Dragalge as a shield."
"I still prefer Ice-types," Serena admitted softly.
But Tim's eyes lit up.
"Wait—don't tell me… Dragalge? A Dragon's shield?"
"Bingo. Grimer's Egg. Poison/Dragon in the making."
Auron slid the Egg toward Tim.
Tim froze, flustered.
"This… this doesn't feel right."
Auron rolled his eyes.
"What's wrong about it? We're friends. Just take it."
Tim gingerly accepted the Egg, clutching it to his chest. But in the back of his mind, he was already thinking hard—how could he give Auron a proper "return gift"?
(End of Chapter)