One hour later.
"Tyranitar!"
Tyranitar's overwhelming aura soared to its peak, hitting what seemed like its absolute limit!
But just as the pressure reached its ceiling, Tyranitar let out a roar—and that terrifying force smashed through the barrier, climbing even higher, seemingly endless. The sheer might washing through the forest sent a shockwave through every Pokémon there, making them freeze and tremble on the forest floor, casting fearful, worshipful eyes in Tyranitar's direction. In every gaze, you could see submission.
"Pikachu~"
Pikachu, who had been happily munching lunch at Giselle's feet, suddenly jumped up and dove straight into her arms, shivering like it had seen a ghost. The cute little face buried itself in Giselle's chest, as if that spot alone could offer safety. The three girls stopped eating instantly.
"What's wrong?" Giselle asked, worried as she stroked Pikachu's head. "Are you not feeling well?"
That got Suzie and Lorelei nervous, too. Pikachu was Silas's Pokémon—if something happened to Pikachu, how could they face him? Suzie, being Silas's Breeder, felt the weight most. If any of Silas's partners ended up sick on her watch, she'd never forgive herself.
She hurriedly said, "Giselle, hand Pikachu to me. Let me check what's wrong!"
"Okay." Giselle moved to hand Pikachu over, but to her shock, Pikachu clung to her shirt, refusing to let go no matter how she coaxed, as if letting go would mean facing some terrifying danger. Giselle could only laugh awkwardly, "Uh, Sister Suzie, what do I do?"
"Uh…" Suzie bit her lip, stumped. She'd never seen anything like this before.
"Relax." Lorelei was more composed, seeing the worry in Giselle and Suzie. "I don't think Pikachu is sick—just scared."
"Scared?" the other two girls gasped together.
Giselle was baffled. "But Big Sis Lorelei, what could scare Pikachu? It hangs out with Charizard, Dragonite, Tyranitar, and Gastly every day."
"No clue," Lorelei said, thoughtful. "But maybe—"
"Stop guessing." Before she could finish, Gastly popped into view, glancing at Pikachu, then toward the part of the woods where Silas had gone. "Sure, Pikachu's usually with us, but we always keep our aura suppressed. Right now, a Pokémon just broke through to Legendary Pokémon level and can't control its own presence. That's why Pikachu's so freaked out. In fact, I bet half the Pokémon in the woods are as spooked as it is!"
"Legendary Pokémon level?!" all three girls exclaimed in unison.
Suzie's worry only grew. "Silas left without even eating—could this have something to do with the Legendary Pokémon? He's not in trouble, right? Gastly, should you go check on him?"
"No need." Gastly shook its head, a faint amused smile on its face as it glanced toward the deeper woods. "It's Tyranitar that's breaking through."
"What?!" The three girls were floored.
...
Deep in the forest.
That monstrous aura finally faded.
The blinding white light around Tyranitar faded too, and when the new Tyranitar emerged before Silas, his jaw just dropped—its transformation was far beyond anything he'd imagined. Tyranitar had shot up to over eight meters tall, still emerald-green, but now its eyes burned blood-red, and the spikes and armor across its body gleamed like polished diamond.
"Tyranitar!"
Feeling the unimaginable power now surging through it, Tyranitar let out a triumphant roar. It had waited for this moment for centuries, and now its hundred-year dream was finally real—how could it not be overjoyed?
"Trainer." The excitement faded, and Tyranitar looked Silas in the eye, voice earnest and solemn. "From now on, any enemy you face, I will destroy for you. And your descendants—I swear, I'll protect them with everything I've got!"
"Yeah." Silas smiled warmly, every last scrap of doubt evaporating from his heart. "Congratulations. You've become a Legendary Pokémon."
"Mhm." Tyranitar nodded, then gazed at Silas with that goofy, hungry look. "Trainer, got anything to eat? That breakthrough really drained me—I'm starving…"
Grrr~!
As if to punctuate that, Tyranitar's belly gave a thunderous growl.
"I'm hungry too!" Dragonite chimed in, looking totally worn out. "Between flying everywhere this morning and that crazy fight, my fuel tank's running on empty..."
"Charizard~"
WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!
Charizard jumped in, pawing at its stomach pitifully and giving Silas its best puppy-dog eyes, clearly begging for food too.
Facing his three mainstays putting on such a display, Silas couldn't help but laugh and shake his head. Tyranitar was believable, but Dragonite and Charizard were clearly just angling for a feast.
But Silas was in such a good mood, he didn't bother pointing it out. With a grand gesture, he declared, "Alright, alright—you'll all eat your fill today!"
"Tyranitar!"
"Charizard~"
"Dragonite~"
The instant they heard that, all three Pokémon's eyes practically sparkled with excitement!
...
Afternoon.
When Silas returned with his three Pokémon, the two girls were instantly dumbfounded.
And it was no wonder—they were stunned because of Tyranitar. Tyranitar had always been gigantic, way bigger than the usual, but still, anyone could tell it was a Tyranitar. Now, though? It was even taller, and its sharp armor had turned into dazzling diamond. Who would dare say at a glance this monster was a Tyranitar?
The two girls stood there gaping while Lorelei was in outright shock. She blurted to Silas, "Legendary Pokémon level?"
"Yeah."
"…"
Lorelei fell silent, then eyed Silas with a mix of caution and, for the first time, a hint of fear!
Silas already had Dragonite, Charizard, and Gastly—those three alone were terrifying and enough to let him dominate not just anyone his age, but even the previous generation. He was on par with the old monsters of the League. Now that he had Tyranitar as well, who could possibly stand against Silas in the future? Who could keep him in check?
Lorelei was already debating who she should report this to.
Sure, she was a Silas supporter—but to be honest, even the most loyal supporters wouldn't want Silas to be too powerful. If he became unstoppable, he'd be above the law. If he stayed righteous, fine; but if he ever went rogue, it'd be a disaster for the League and the world alike.
As she contemplated this, Lorelei noticed Silas prepping Pokémon food. The four monster-level Pokémon she'd been so wary of were laughing and playing together, just having fun with one another. Her heart softened at the sight, and she gave up on the idea of reporting anything.
That moment was simply too pure, too harmonious—she didn't want to be the one to ruin it. Besides, Silas had never once lost control, never been reckless or hotheaded. He always acted with maturity and a steady hand. So she consoled herself: Forget it. I'll just stick with him and see where things go.
While Lorelei was lost in thought, Silas finished prepping Pokémon food!
This time, he made five servings at once, each one generous and filling, with three times the usual amount of crystals mixed in. Clearly, he was in a fantastic mood. He beamed at his five Pokémon and called out, "Alright, everybody—dinner time! Dig in!"
"Pikachu~"
"Gastly~"
"Charizard~"
"Dragonite~"
"Tyranitar~"
All five Pokémon lit up and immediately charged over, devouring the meal in a frenzy!
It didn't take long for the five Pokémon to finish their feast, faces full of contentment as they cleaned their plates. Dragonite, Charizard, Gastly, and Pikachu all looked blissfully satisfied—except Tyranitar, who kept glancing at Silas, clearly wanting to say something but too embarrassed to speak up.
"What's up?" Silas asked directly.
"Um…" Tyranitar hung its head sheepishly. "Could I have another helping? I'm still hungry!"
Still hungry?!
Silas frowned; he'd already given Tyranitar twice the normal amount—by any logic, it should be stuffed. But Silas trusted Tyranitar wouldn't lie to him, so he just grinned. "No problem—I'll whip some up right now!"
A few minutes later, a fresh batch was ready—this time, it was two giant plates just for Tyranitar.
Once Silas set it down, Tyranitar dug in under the envious eyes of the other four Pokémon.
However, what left Silas completely floored was—after finishing, Tyranitar looked at him again and said, "Is there more? I'm still starving!"
"Hold on!"
One plate… two plates… three plates… four plates!
Silas cooked up four more helpings, and still, after polishing them off, Tyranitar looked miserable. "Trainer, I'm still hungry!"
Growl!
As if right on cue, Tyranitar's stomach rumbled loudly.
Seeing this, Silas's expression changed. He'd fed Tyranitar over eight times a normal portion, but it was still hungry—that had to mean something was off with its body!
Silas turned to the most experienced in the group—Dragonite—and asked, "Any idea what's going on?"
"No clue." Dragonite shook its head in genuine regret. "Honestly, this is the first time I've ever seen a fellow pseudo-legendary break through to demi-god level. We're born with crazy talent, yeah, and break through a lot faster than normal Pokémon, but that talent makes becoming a demi-god even harder, so I'm not sure what's up with Tyranitar."
That left Silas feeling helpless. If even Dragonite didn't know what to do, what options did he have? He couldn't just let Tyranitar keep starving like this!
Watching Tyranitar look at him with those big, sad eyes, Silas asked, "Is there anything special you're craving?"
Special craving?!
Tyranitar fell deep into thought, glancing around the group. When its eyes landed on Lorelei, they suddenly lit up with excitement. In front of everyone—much to their shock—Tyranitar lumbered over to Lorelei, reached out its paw, and pointed right at her chest: "I wanna eat that!"
Silas followed Tyranitar's gaze, blinked… and then just facepalmed.
Because what Tyranitar was pointing at, clear as day, was a gleaming diamond!