Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice

"Gallade, Sacred Sword."

At Caitlin's command, the Gallade before her gripped its hand tightly.

From thin air, it conjured a blade of pure energy and slashed through the air with considerable force, striking toward the opposing Darkrai.

Standing across from Caitlin was a boy who appeared about two years older than her, with a hairstyle eerily similar to Darkrai's.

Besides Leon and Swampert, one of the most frustrating plotlines from the anime back in the day was thanks to this guy.

"Darkrai, dodge."

Tobias casually brushed aside the bangs covering his forehead and gave his command with an air of composure.

Gallade swung its sword repeatedly, but each time, Darkrai managed to evade with minimal movement, showing complete ease.

This scene strangely resembled the Fighting-type move "Detect" or perhaps the Observation Haki Stephen once demonstrated to Mustard.

However, any trainer with a keen eye could tell—

This was simply a difference in strength.

Not to mention, Gallade's natural speed potential was far inferior to Darkrai's.

"Vacuum Wave!"

Seeing that Gallade's attacks were failing to land, Caitlin's gaze hardened as she changed tactics.

At her command, Gallade immediately discarded its energy blade and slammed a hand onto the ground, sending a shockwave rippling outward. The attack struck Darkrai's body.

The Fighting-type Vacuum Wave, like Bullet Punch, was a priority move, meaning it was incredibly fast and had high accuracy.

However, its drawback was its relatively low power.

But since it had a type advantage, the attack still caused Darkrai to stumble briefly, losing balance.

"Now! Sacred Sword!"

Caitlin shouted again.

The energy blade Gallade had just thrown spun through the air before returning gracefully to its hand.

It was undeniably stylish—like a swordsman straight out of a wuxia novel.

However, style was one thing; effectiveness was another.

Even as Gallade closed in at high speed, Tobias remained unfazed. He smirked and said:

"Dark Void."

Darkrai pressed its palms together, instantly forming a pure black energy sphere before launching it forward.

Darkrai's signature move, capable of dragging its opponent into a forced slumber—the dreaded Dark Void!

Gallade's eyes widened in shock. Instinctively, it swung its blade, attempting to cut the approaching black sphere in two.

However, as the Sacred Sword struck, the Dark Void passed through the blade like an illusion, hitting Gallade directly.

At the moment of impact, the dark energy rapidly expanded, engulfing Gallade.

Two seconds later, the darkness dissipated—

Gallade stood in the center of the battlefield, eyes shut, unconscious.

It had fallen asleep!

"Gallade, wake up!"

For a moment, Caitlin seemed possessed by Ash's spirit, trying to wake her partner through sheer willpower.

But Ash's miracle tactics weren't something just anyone could replicate.

"Dream Eater."

Tobias smiled as he uttered those two words.

Dark Void + Dream Eater, a tried-and-true combo.

Darkrai raised its arms, and a faint green energy wave surrounded the sleeping Gallade before gradually flowing into Darkrai's body.

Gallade's energy was being drained by Darkrai's Dream Eater!

Despite Caitlin's desperate shouts for Gallade to wake up, not everyone had Ash's supernatural luck.

In the end, Gallade's head tilted to the side. Any experienced referee would recognize—

This wasn't just sleep anymore; it had completely lost the ability to battle.

The judge, a bespectacled man in a butler's uniform, stepped forward and declared:

"Gallade is unable to battle. Darkrai wins. The victor is Tobias."

As soon as those words fell, the small audience gathered around the castle murmured in awe:

"That was incredible, completely one-sided."

"No wonder it's a Legendary Pokémon."

"Who is that Tobias? He looks so young, yet he owns such a rare Legendary Pokémon."

Hearing the praise around him, Tobias smiled faintly and held his head high.

On the other hand, the defeated Caitlin lowered her head, still floating about half a meter above the ground. Her long, platinum blonde hair swayed unnaturally without wind, and in a voice filled with despair, she murmured:

"I lost... I lost... I actually lost..."

Her voice gradually rose in pitch, until she suddenly snapped her head up.

Whoosh—!

A surge of psychic energy erupted from within Caitlin, unleashing a violent gust of wind that forced the spectators and even Tobias back.

Darkrai reacted immediately, stepping in front of its trainer and raising one hand to summon a Protect barrier.

Some of the weaker spectators were blown off their feet entirely.

"I actually lost?!"

Caitlin's eyes were unfocused as she continued her frenzied muttering.

"Oh no, it's happening again!"

In the referee's area, the bespectacled butler Darach turned pale and rushed toward her.

"Lady Caitlin, calm down! Please, calm down!"

His full name was Darach, the Battle Castle's caretaker.

In reality, he was the true Castle host—the facility's head, though he also served as Caitlin's personal butler.

Occasionally, Caitlin would participate in battles.

But every time she lost—or even got too emotional—her psychic powers would spiral out of control, causing massive destruction.

"Togekiss, Psycho Shift!"

Suddenly, a strong, commanding voice rang out.

A Togekiss swooped down, hovering above Caitlin. A soft pink aura enveloped her as if extracting something dark from within her body and transferring it to a nearby Roserade.

Then, a flash of red light—Roserade was recalled into its Poké Ball.

Many people followed the source of the recall beam, only to see the one holding the Poké Ball was none other than—

Cynthia, the prodigy of Sinnoh!

"Whoa! It's Cynthia!"

"So cool! She's amazing!"

"I heard she's preparing to challenge the Lily of the Valley Conference. She might soon become Sinnoh's Champion!"

"Wait… What was up with that little girl just now? She seemed… strange."

After recalling Roserade, Cynthia turned to the crowd and said:

"Apologies, everyone. There was a slight incident at the Battle Castle today, so it will be closed for now. As compensation, I'll cover today's expenses for everyone."

Although some spectators were still puzzled, since the future Sinnoh Champion had spoken, they didn't argue.

Some took the opportunity to ask Cynthia for autographs or photos before gradually dispersing.

"Phew… That was close. This almost turned into an uncontrollable disaster again."

Darach sighed in relief as he helped the collapsed Caitlin to her feet, still visibly shaken.

"It seems Caitlin still hasn't fully mastered her psychic powers. She might need more time before she can battle properly."

Cynthia walked over and remarked.

Not long ago, Caitlin's parents had entrusted Cynthia with watching over her for a while.

Besides simply being a companion, Cynthia's primary role was to step in whenever Caitlin's psychic abilities spiraled out of control.

Just now, Cynthia had used Togekiss' Psycho Shift to transfer Caitlin's rampaging emotions into her Roserade—neutralizing the situation before it got out of hand.

Roserade's ability is "Natural Cure," which allows it to recover from status conditions after resting for a while.

"I'm s-sorry..."

Caitlin half-opened her eyes and spoke apologetically.

She had always wanted to fix her problem of losing control over her psychic powers, but every time she lost a battle or got too emotional, she just couldn't keep them in check.

"Handing it over to Cynthia shouldn't be an issue, but that being said… do you still have the energy to participate in this year's Lily of the Valley Conference?"

At this moment, Tobias also stepped forward and joined the conversation.

Cynthia shot him a glance, her tone carrying a hint of disappointment.

"Tobias, you rely too much on Darkrai's power."

Having witnessed the entire battle between Caitlin and Tobias, Cynthia increasingly felt that Tobias was overly dependent on the legendary Pokémon Darkrai.

Caitlin, though inexperienced, had already demonstrated her talent in battles through her fighting style.

As long as she could stabilize her emotions and receive proper guidance, Cynthia believed that Caitlin had a real chance of advancing to the rank of an Elite Four in the future.

As for Tobias, though his battle just now seemed overwhelmingly in his favor, Cynthia saw it differently.

She believed he was merely relying on Darkrai's raw power as a legendary Pokémon to overpower his opponents through sheer level disparity.

A trainer like that, in Cynthia's view, wouldn't go far.

Tobias shrugged, seemingly not taking Cynthia's warning to heart.

Having grown up in the Sinnoh region, he had known Cynthia for a long time.

Their battles had been ongoing since childhood, with him winning more often than not.

Only recently had the situation started to shift.

However, with Darkrai's formidable strength, even Cynthia's Garchomp couldn't easily take him down.

Because of this, Tobias didn't feel much pressure yet.

Meanwhile, outside the Battle Castle…

Neither Cynthia nor Caitlin noticed that among the spectators who had just watched the battle, there were two particularly sharp pairs of eyes.

"What do you think, Miss Karen?"

Sird asked with a sly smile, turning to Karen.

"A fool. He's wasted even a legendary Pokémon."

Karen, who had witnessed the entire battle, didn't bother hiding her disdain for Tobias.

In her eyes, a Darkrai—an official Legendary Pokémon—under Tobias' command was performing worse than the Galarian Articuno in Will's hands, which wasn't even a full-fledged Legendary.

She even felt that Tobias' poor commanding and training skills were holding Darkrai back rather than maximizing its potential.

"So, have we decided on him?"

Sird asked with a grin.

Indeed, the plan that Giovanni and Sird had proposed to Karen was simple—steal it!

Steal Tobias' Darkrai.

Not everyone was like Ash Ketchum, who just happened to stumble upon Legendary Pokémon that willingly followed him.

Even with Team Rocket's intelligence network, tracking down wild Legendary Pokémon in the vast Pokémon world was no easy task.

However, finding trainers who already owned Legendary Pokémon was much simpler.

After all, these trainers couldn't resist showing off their Legendary Pokémon.

Karen thought for a moment before nodding in agreement.

Although she felt that Darkrai's looks weren't great and that Stephen might not like it, time was running out.

She needed to acquire something before the birthday deadline.

No choice—Darkrai it was.

However, Karen had one concern:

Would she be able to successfully tame a stolen Pokémon in the future?

"Right now, that guy is surrounded by Sinnoh's Champion-to-be Cynthia and the noble heiress Caitlin. It's not the best time to make a move. We'll wait until he's alone..."

Sird was explaining the robbery plan when her expression suddenly changed. She pressed a finger against the earpiece in her left ear.

Seeing Karen's puzzled look, she explained:

"I planted a tracker and listening device in his phone. He just received a call."

Karen was about to ask what was so unusual about that.

But then she noticed Sird's grin widening as if she had just heard something particularly amusing.

"Oho~ What an unexpected bonus. If this information gets out, it might cause a commotion no less significant than the Zacian-Zamazenta incident."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Karen asked impatiently.

"Let's tweak the plan a little, Miss Karen."

Sird removed her earpiece, still wearing a mischievous smirk.

"Let's head to Hoenn."

Karen: "Huh?"

She furrowed her brows.

What was this scheming bastard up to now?

...

Crown Tundra, south of the small town of Freezington, Galar.

In such an extremely cold region, even Nessa couldn't wear her usual form-fitting athletic swimsuit that showed off her figure.

She had to put on a thick winter coat instead.

After scaling the snowy mountains, the group finally arrived at the only inhabited place in the Crown Tundra—Freezington Village.

The villagers here had previously reported sightings of a mysterious Pokémon that moved so fast they couldn't see it, only catching glimpses of a bird-like silhouette.

"It's freezing!"

Will, also bundled up in a down jacket, shivered as he looked around.

Then, his eyes widened in shock.

"Holy crap! Stephen, that thing is still following us!"

Everyone turned to look in the direction he was staring.

A large canine Pokémon had entered the village, braving the blizzard, causing the villagers to exclaim in surprise, wondering what kind of Pokémon it was.

Who else could it be but Zamazenta?

"Wow, this is so romantic!"

Sonia clapped her hands excitedly, her eyes sparkling.

Nessa, on the other hand, was speechless.

Her best friend, who had previously supported her Drednaw being with Stephen's Bewear, had now betrayed her.

A few days ago, the Pokemon dog who ran into the Wedgehurst Pokémon Center with flowers for Bewear was none other than Zamazenta.

Perched on Stephen's head, a Pikachu (Mew) also had its eyes wide open, watching Zamazenta with a "popcorn-eating" expression.

Traveling from Kanto was so worth it—this human was always surrounded by interesting events!

"I already said I don't agree with this."

Stephen made his stance clear once again.

Back in Wedgehurst a few days ago, he had already stated his position.

To borrow a phrase: "I do not approve of this marriage."

Although Stephen had previously mocked Ash for releasing his Butterfree to let it find love, thinking it was ridiculous…

Now that something similar was happening to him, he realized it was a pain in the ass.

At the time, he thought Ash was being dumb.

Wouldn't it be easier to just catch both Pokémon and keep them together?

But that strategy clearly wouldn't work with Zamazenta.

Zamazenta was a guardian deity of Galar.

Unlike the mischievous Mew on his head, it had actual responsibilities to uphold.

In other words, it cannot leave its guardian land.

This is just like how the Latias from the Pokémon movie Heroes: Latios & Latias liked Ash so much but still didn't leave with him in the end.

It had to protect Alto Mare.

Of course, even if Latias ignored its duty and left, the outcome would probably be the same as Lunala—it would just end up being left with Professor Oak by Ash sooner or later.

No one can compete with Pikachu for the position of Ash's main partner!

And if Zamazenta and Bewear ended up together, then Stephen would have to leave Bewear in Galar.

That wouldn't do!

If Bewear was willing, Stephen would reluctantly support them.

But Bewear had already expressed its stance—it disagreed!

"Ying ying~"

Hearing the sound coming from Zamazenta's throat, Stephen felt a bit numb.

Was it appropriate for the dignified Shield King to make such a whimpering sound?

Stephen was curious—if Zacian saw its younger brother acting like this, how would it react?

"Come on, don't be so heartless. Anyway, let's all go inside the inn and warm up first."

Sonia stepped in to mediate.

Stephen didn't refuse either.

Soon, the group found a guesthouse in Freezington and sat down.

Inside the room, the sheer presence of Bewear and Zamazenta, these two big figures, took up a significant amount of space.

...

"Now, let's begin the first-ever matchmaking event in the Legendary Pokémon world! Let's welcome our first female contestant, Bewear, to choose her ideal male partner!"

Sonia, always eager to stir up trouble, raised her hand and cheered.

Pikachu (Mew) lay on her soft, plump thighs, raising its tiny paws and cheering along.

Sonia: "Pikachu, you think so too?"

Pikachu: "Pika Pika!"

The two of them high-fived: (≧≦)人(≧≦)!

They seemed to get along well.

Meanwhile, Drednaw and Beartic silently lowered their heads.

Previously, they had both thought that the other was unworthy of their goddess.

But once Zamazenta arrived, damn, the competition was instantly over.

What frustrated them even more wasn't just the overwhelming difference in strength, but the fact that when they saw Bewear and Zamazenta sitting on either side of Stephen, they thought the scene looked… fitting.

It was like that feeling of a husband watching his wife play poker with another man… from outside the door.

"Cut it out."

Stephen, annoyed, lightly smacked Mew.

"Bewear, what do you think? Do you like him? If you like this dog..."

Stephen placed his hand gently on Bewear's large paw and rubbed it while asking.

Back in Wedgehurst Town, when Bewear found out that Zamazenta wouldn't leave Galar, she immediately rejected his pursuit.

But Stephen had never actually asked how she felt about him.

Although Stephen personally disliked the idea of abandoning one's Pokémon, if Bewear truly loved Zamazenta to the point of obsession…

Bewear turned her head to look at Zamazenta, making the thousand-year-old legendary dog feel so embarrassed that he turned away.

After a brief pause, Bewear moved her mouth and said something to Stephen in her usual "Dong oh dong oh~" sounds.

Stephen glanced at Mew.

The little guy, still sulking from being smacked on the head, initially didn't want to respond.

But under Stephen's intense gaze, it eventually pouted and translated:

[She said, "I just want a child. I don't care who the father is."]

Stephen: !!!

But the best part was yet to come.

Next, Bewear hugged Stephen, rubbing against him just like how she did with Stufful in the original series. She let out a gentle "Dong oh dong oh~" in an affectionate tone.

"Dong oh! dong oh~"

Hearing Bewear's words, Mew let out a mischievous laugh, clearly enjoying the drama.

However, Nessa, Bea, and Sonia—who was letting Pikachu (Mew) rest on her lap—looked puzzled.

Was this really how Pikachu laughed?

Then, a voice echoed in Stephen's mind through telepathy:

[She said, "It's a pity, Master Stephen, that you're not capable in that way. Otherwise, you'd be the best choice for the father of my child."]

Stephen: "..."