After checking Weibo for a bit, Nathan opened his messaging app. His class group chat was buzzing nonstop.
"Awesome stuff, Nathan."
"Hahaha, looks like our Poplar City is about to rise up this year. Go Nathan, shoot for the championship!"
"No question—ladies, anyone wanna form a cheer squad? Let's go root for Nathan in the Top 16!"
"Count me in! From today on, Nathan is my idol."
Looking at the chat, Nathan shook his head and chuckled. He sent a quick "Just doing my best 😅" and then went silent.
But just then—ding dong—his homeroom teacher, Teacher William, messaged him privately.
Teacher William: [Nathan, you've been hiding your strength way too deep. I never expected your first Pokémon to be a Volcarona. No wonder you kept it a secret.]
Nathan:[If you just wanna praise me, teach, you could call me instead. Typing's too much work, don't you think?]
Teacher William: [You brat. I'm messaging you because, with your Volcarona's strength, it's not just realistic to reach the semi-finals of the Trial Tournament—there's a real shot at winning the whole thing. The principal asked me to check in with you: is there any type of resource or support you need? He wants to get things ready in advance so you don't have to wait after the tournament's over.]
Seeing the message, Nathan stroked his chin thoughtfully.
If he had to pick what he wanted most, it'd obviously be money.
But considering the system store sold things that money couldn't always buy...
After a moment's thought, Nathan replied,
"The principal's way too kind. How about... a few tens of millions of PokéCoins?"
Teacher William:[...]
Teacher William: [Are you being serious, Nathan?]
Nathan:[Just kidding. Maybe a compatible Pokémon and some related resources. Or you could help me find a rhombus-shaped crystal. It's related to Pokémon, but hard to describe exactly. Anyway, what I really care about is: how much PokéCoin support is the school planning to give me?]
Teacher William:[That's actually pretty straightforward—and easier to track down. I'll pass everything along to the principal. As for the PokéCoins... don't worry, the school won't be stingy. You'll know after the tournament.]
Nathan:[Ok!]
Truthfully, Nathan wasn't overly concerned about resources.
Even if there were things the system store didn't offer, he doubted the school could get them either.
So, it made more sense to have the school help him acquire a good Pokémon—or even a Z-Crystal.
Z-Crystals were sold in the system shop, but they were expensive, and had purchase limits.
That's right: purchase limits.
Not every Z-Crystal was available, and certain Pokémon-specific Z-Crystals couldn't be bought at all. Plus, each crystal could only be purchased once.
Z-Crystals were condensed power capable of evolving regular moves into Z-Moves, and Nathan was definitely interested in collecting them. They were about as rare as Mega Stones.
And in this world, Mega Evolution, Z-Moves, and Dynamax hadn't been discovered yet.
Which meant gathering these items might actually be easier than collecting traditional resources.
After grabbing a change of clothes, Nathan headed to the bathroom to freshen up. He dried his hair, pulled a bottle of milk from the fridge, and headed to his room to plan tomorrow's training.
When his parents returned, he was met with a wave of praise.
After dinner, he went to bed early that night.
It wasn't until 6 a.m. the next morning that he finally woke up.
"Nathan, remember to stay safe. Don't go chasing power like an idiot, okay?" his mom said. She knew he was heading into a secret realm, and though she was worried, she still understood and gave him a gentle reminder.
"Relax, Mom. With Volcarona around, I'll be fine." Nathan smiled confidently, giving her a reassuring grin before leaving.
The D-rank realm was, like the D-045 one, accessible by subway.
But this D-rank realm was even more remote. It used to be part of Poplar City, but because the D-086 realm's internal environment was mountainous, the city government decided to abandon the area—just in case the realm ever fused with reality and affected the city.
The subway headed for the D-rank realm was fairly crowded, with dozens of people onboard—men and women, young and old.
Ring ring.
His phone rang.
Incoming call: Lily.
"Yo, what's up?" Nathan asked curiously. This girl was actually up this early?
"I was gonna swing by your place to tell you something, but your mom told me you went to a secret realm. Hit me up when you're back—we should grab food. I plan to leave after your Top 16 match and start challenging Gyms to prep for Nationals," Lily said sweetly over the line.
Nathan's eyes flickered. "The National Tournament, huh... you sure?"
"Mhm! You put on a good show at the Trial Tournament, then I'll crush you at Nationals and make a name for myself. Ha!"
"...Keep dreaming."
"Blah blah, mind your own business. Just message me when you're back."
"Alright then. Your father will definitely notify you."
"Ugh, get lost—love you, son!"
Beep—call ended.
Nathan shrugged helplessly and went back to scrolling on his phone.
Before he knew it, half an hour had passed.
The subway arrived.
The secret realm—was here.
…
As soon as Nathan stepped out of the station, he could see the entrance to the realm.
The guards here were noticeably more muscular. The D-086 realm was mountainous and filled with Ground-type and Fighting-type Pokémon, so having a strong, sturdy body helped them respond quickly in an emergency.
At the entrance, Nathan got in line to register.
The soldier assisting him gave a heads-up:
"If you run into danger in the realm, head toward the Guardian Pokémon stationed inside. Right now, that's Elite Guardian member Logan Gray. Of course, we'll also send support right away. And if he leaves, we'll notify you via your tracking wristwatch."
[TN: Change Elite Four > Elite Guardian because there are more 4 and other countries might have even more or have less.)
"Logan Gray?" Nathan was surprised, then nodded. "Got it, thanks."
Registration complete.
After syncing his location, Nathan stepped into the realm, curious as to why an Elite Four-level trainer would come to such a low-level realm.
There were plenty of elite level trainers in the country.
But only six had the official title recognized by the national government. One of them was Logan Gray, a Fighting-type specialist.
They were the elite of the elite.
And even though Nathan had a Volcarona at the Elite level, he wasn't anywhere near competing with the country's Big Six.
Why? Because even though they're called "Elite Guardians," their main Pokémon may very well exceed that level.
Only trainers at the Elite tier are eligible for that title.
Above that... is the Champion.
And there's only one of those.
Below the Champion are each country's top trainers—the Elite Guardians.
So, you can imagine how insanely strong their top Pokémon are.
Trainers like that weren't short on resources. If they entered a secret realm, it'd be an A-rank one, not this D-rank zone. Nathan found the whole thing odd.
He shook his head.
As his vision shimmered, he found himself inside the realm.
The first thing he saw was a splash of yellow.
Looking up, he saw a range of mountains. Dust and wind whipped through the air. The environment was dry and harsh—a trial of survival in itself for any trainer.
Like in previous realms, vendors and government-run stalls were set up at the entrance.
Nathan scanned the area, then quickly stocked up on as much water as he could carry before heading out.
He'd done his homework on this realm. It was populated mostly by Ground-types and Fighting-types.
Perfect for boosting Pangoro's physical defense. As for special defense... he'd tackle that in another realm next time.
So, he set his sights on the southeastern region—where most of the Fighting-types gathered, and also where the Guardian Pokémon was stationed.
Worth noting: the wild elite-tier Pokémon protecting this realm was a Mienshao.
...
Whoosh!
Dust blew across Nathan's face.
Wearing goggles and a dust mask, he felt a little stuffy, but it beat eating sand.
"Come on out, Pangoro." Nathan tossed his Pokéball, and with a flash of red light, Pangoro appeared in front of him.
"Raargh!"
Just as he appeared, a gust of dusty wind blew straight into his face. Pangoro gave Nathan a pitiful look, as if saying, "Seriously? You let me out now?"
"Alright, alright—this is where we'll be training. Put on your weights, let's move." Nathan commanded.
Pangoro nodded, strapped on the training weights, and the two of them set off.
After about half an hour, a barren hill came into view.
But sounds of battle echoed from the top.
"Let's check it out."
Nathan gestured to Pangoro and headed that way.
Once over the ridge, the source became clear.
Two Pokémon were locked in battle.
One was a massive Onix, the other a Hitmonchan.
Despite the size difference, Hitmonchan was holding its own with incredible speed, dodging Onix's attacks with ease and countering swiftly.
After a few rounds, Onix collapsed, knocked out cold.
This Hitmonchan was clearly strong. After its victory, it turned and looked straight at Nathan, eyes burning with fighting spirit.
It seemed to be challenging him—or more accurately, his Pangoro.
Nathan? Yeah, he wouldn't last one punch.
"A battle-hungry Hitmonchan, huh?" Nathan smirked. "Let's go, Pangoro—can't let ourselves be underestimated."
"Raargh!"
Pangoro nodded seriously. He could feel the taunt in that scrawny opponent's eyes.
He dropped his training weights and walked forward.
Before he even got close, Hitmonchan came flying in with a punch.
"Raargh!"
Pangoro reacted fast—using "Shave" to vanish and reappear behind Hitmonchan in an instant.
"Nice move, Pangoro! Use Hammer Arm!" Nathan shouted, already grinning.