Pokémon: Wings Of Shadow

"Rooki-dee!"

Unable to suppress its urges, Rookidee's beak glowed with a white light, the precursor to its Peck move. Shiro didn't stop the bird from its reckless behavior.

Clang!

Rookidee's beak struck the blue Dragon Scale, producing a sharp metallic ring. The force of the impact sent the tiny bird tumbling across the bed, rolling several times before nearly slipping off—until Shiro caught it just in time.

"Rooki..."

Rookidee hopped back onto the bed, visibly fearful of the Dragon Scale in front of it, retreating into Shiro's embrace.

Being an ordinary Pokémon, Rookidee instinctively wanted to flee after feeling the Elite-level Salamence's presence from the Dragon Scale.

Attempting to attack with its move was a brave but ultimately futile effort.

As a Pokémon at the Beginner-level, it stood no chance against a Dragon Scale of this caliber. It couldn't even make a dent in it.

Making an impact on a scale of this caliber would require at least a Gym-level Pokémon.

"Gaasstlyy..."

Gastly also cautiously floated around the Dragon Scale, then quickly darted behind Shiro, peeking out with a trembling eye as if it were facing a vicious predator.

Gastly had a timid personality, so naturally, it was scared of something that even Rookidee feared.

When both of his Pokémon lost their curiosity about the Dragon Scale, Shiro lifted it and stuffed it into his backpack.

"Alright, I'll put the Dragon Scale away now."

The space inside the bag Shiro bought from the black market was surprisingly large. He didn't know what kind of advanced technology was used, but it could hold about a third of the space in a Hammerlocke intermediate training room.

Shiro would always keep this treasure close to him, or rather, all his belongings were always kept close.

However, the Dragon Scale was unlikely to be used in the short term and would gather dust in a small corner of his backpack.

After organizing his things, Shiro washed up and fell into a deep sleep.

...

For the next two days, Shiro maintained a routine of staying at home, the Stadium, and the restaurant, training intensively with Rookidee and Gastly.

Especially Rookidee, who was the main Pokémon for participating in the upcoming Hammerlocke Stadium sparring partner assessment. Shiro wanted it to reach around level 17 within these three days.

After consuming the Fly Berry and the remaining rare candies, Rookidee didn't disappoint. Its strength quickly reached the brink of evolution.

This was largely due to its relatively low level. With ample resources, its strength grew rapidly, leaving Gastly far behind.

Meanwhile, rumors spread within the Stadium about someone winning Dragon Scale in the basic level training area. However, with so many private arenas in there, such events weren't uncommon and didn't attract much attention.

Not many people set their sights on the Dragon Scale, mainly because they couldn't gauge Shiro's true strength. As an unfamiliar face, it was unclear whether his naturally gifted Gastly was a second-tier or third-tier Pokémon.

Galar rarely saw trainers with both personal and Pokémon talent suddenly rise to prominence. Most people thought Shiro was a member of some prominent family.

At the same time, based on Shiro's battle command ability, many of the onlookers believed his strength was likely at the Advanced-level. Comparable the region's ace trainers participating in the Gym Challenge such as, Bea, Piers and Gordie.

Leon and Raihan were far beyond the rest in strength, making them an unfair point of comparison.

The lack of attention Shiro received was partly due him keeping a low profile, but that didn't mean no one had their eyes on the Dragon Scale.

The evening before Shiro was set to participate in the Hammerlocke Stadium sparring partner assessment, he finished his training and was preparing to head home.

Just as he stepped into the corridor outside the training rooms, he ran into a familiar face.

"Hey, Shiro!"

A curly haired man leaned against the window frame, raising a hand in greeting as soon as he spotted Shiro.

Shiro had met him on his first day at the stadium. His name was Hugo, and Shiro had even asked him several questions about the usage of special berries.

"Leaving so soon?" Hugo said with a familiar tone, attempting to throw an arm around Shiro's shoulder, but Shiro swiftly stepped back to avoid him.

Over the past two days, Shiro had seen Hugo frequently outside the training room. He was well aware that the man was likely observing his strength, trying to decide if he should target the Dragon Scale.

"Need something?" Shiro asked flatly.

Hugo hesitated for a brief moment, clearly not expecting such a cold reaction. However, he didn't dwell on it and instead got straight to the point.

"Shiro, why don't you come inside my training room? How about a battle?"

Such a proposal was nothing unusual in Hammerlocke or anywhere in Galar, really. The people here loved battles, and even the region's culture revolved around promoting them.

But to Shiro, the invitation felt like a blatant attempt to ambush him.

Hugo didn't seem to notice anything wrong and continued to smile.

"How about it? Just a friendly match. Not much on the line, only 2,000 Pokédollars."

"Sorry, but my Pokémon are exhausted. They don't have the energy for another battle." Shiro turned away as he spoke, already walking off.

"Ah? It's just a quick match, no big deal—" Hugo reached out to stop him, only for Shiro to dodge him smoothly once again.

Shiro's pace didn't slow. Before Hugo could do anything else, he stepped into the elevator and disappeared from sight.

"...What?"

Hugo stood there, dumbfounded, unsure how to react.

He couldn't understand why anyone would be so opposed to battling, especially when that same person had actively challenged others to win the Dragon Scale.

The door of a nearby training room suddenly slid open.

A bald man stepped out, draped in a ragged brown cloak.

"What's going on? Where is he?" The bald man asked, his voice hoarse.

He had no eyebrows, his skin was a sickly yellow, and a large scar marked his forehead, where his eyebrows once were.

Hugo remained silent, not sure how to explain the situation. His task had been simple—invite Shiro into the training room for a battle, and if that failed, force him inside.

Yet somehow, before he even realized what was happening, Shiro had already slipped away.

A moment later, he sighed and answered truthfully.

"That guy didn't want to battle at all. Said his Pokémon were tired and just ran off."

The bald man scoffed, lowering his head.

"Hmph. No proper Galarian would ever refuse a challenge like that."

"What can I do if he doesn't want to battle?" Hugo spread his hands in frustration.

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