Facing Steven's complaint, Aiden Flint immediately shot back.
"And you're one to talk. You were the one who opened with your ace against me. I'm a brand-new Trainer, and you threw out a Master-tier Pokémon like it was nothing. Who's the one being unreasonable here?"
Steven's eyebrows jumped. Then he looked like he was about to explode.
"Brand-new? You call yourself brand-new? Show me a 'newbie' who has a Legendary! You're literally playing the pig to eat the tiger!"
Aiden didn't even argue. He simply pulled out his Pokédex and flipped to the registration record.
The moment Steven saw the official start date—confirmed again and again through Professor Birch's details—his expression froze.
He went quiet. Dead quiet.
For a few seconds, it looked like the former Champion's soul had drifted out of his body.
Because the worst part was… Aiden really was a Trainer who had started his journey only a little over a month ago.
Steven couldn't help thinking back to his own first month on the road.
…Yeah. He didn't want to remember that.
Then, as if a switch flipped, the two of them stared at each other—and burst out laughing at the same time.
Maybe that was just how it worked between men. Steven had used his Shiny Metagross to crush Aiden's three main partners. Aiden, refusing to swallow that humiliation, had answered with Rayquaza and flattened Steven's three elites right back. In a way, it was even.
Steven sighed, rubbing his forehead like he'd been bullied by fate itself.
"Honestly, I only challenged you because I saw that Grovyle of yours. You're clearly talented, so I figured I'd test you… and if you passed, I was going to give you a Beldum."
He glanced at Aiden with a look that was equal parts amusement and grief.
"And then you went and made me look like I'd been dragged across my own mine."
As he spoke, Steven took out a Poké Ball.
A flash of red light.
A sturdy, metallic little Pokémon landed on the stone with a solid clink, its body cool and heavy, its single eye gleaming with quiet focus.
Aiden's breath caught.
Even though he'd been expecting a gift, he didn't expect Beldum—a pseudo-legendary.
"T-This… you're really giving me something this valuable?"
Seeing Aiden suddenly get all careful and hesitant, Steven felt his mood improve for the first time in a while.
Finally. A win.
He grinned.
"Oh, it's just a pseudo-legendary. I've got a whole group of them back at home in the mines. This one has potential, but I don't feel like raising another Metagross. Better to hand it to someone who won't waste its talent."
At that moment, Aiden's system reacted.
Ding! Detected Pokémon data as follows:
Pokémon: Beldum
Level: 18
Ability: Clear Body
Type: Steel / Psychic
Potential: Gold
Bond Evolution: Locked
Mega Evolution: Locked
Moves: Take Down…
Friendship: 20
Background: Born within a Metagross colony, a Beldum with outstanding talent
Likes: Battling, eating ore
"…Gold potential," Aiden muttered, staring hard.
Again.
Of course it was again.
Steven was basically flexing without even trying.
But if Steven was willing to hand him a Pokémon like this, Aiden wasn't about to pretend pride mattered more than opportunity.
Aiden stepped forward, looking Beldum in the eye.
"Beldum. Are you willing to follow me, travel the world, and become the strongest Metagross out there…"
He paused, then smiled—sharp and mischievous.
"…and one day beat Steven's Shiny Metagross into the ground?"
Steven's face instantly blackened.
"Seriously? You couldn't say something nice?"
Beldum, however, wasn't offended in the slightest. It glanced at Steven, then back at Aiden, and finally gave a firm, decisive nod.
Aiden didn't waste time. He took out a Luxury Ball and switched Beldum over on the spot.
And just like that, he gained his first true pseudo-legendary.
Beldum was special even among pseudo-legendaries. While most needed Level 30 to evolve and Level 55 or 56 for their final form, Beldum's growth curve was far more forgiving. At Level 20 it could evolve into Metang, and by Level 45 it could become Metagross.
Fast. Clean. Brutally efficient.
Of course, there was that other theory—the one people loved to talk about—that Beldum evolved by fusing: two Beldum becoming one Metang, two Metang becoming one Metagross… meaning you'd need four Beldum total.
Aiden thought about it for half a second.
Then decided, very calmly, to pretend that theory didn't exist.
No, thank you.
"Anyway," Aiden said, exhaling, "Steven… seriously. Thank you."
Steven waved it off, unusually sincere.
"I should be the one thanking you. Beldum meeting a Trainer like you is its luck. And… battling your Rayquaza today gave me and my Metagross a lot to think about. I can feel it—there's still room to grow."
He paused, then added with a half-smile.
"We'll battle again someday, Aiden."
Then Steven's expression tightened just a little, and his tone turned cautious—like a Champion speaking from experience.
"I'm going to say this once: don't show Rayquaza off too openly. Even within the League, there are people with… ugly ambitions. Be careful."
Aiden nodded, committing the warning to memory.
After parting ways with Steven, Aiden led his two newest partners down the mountain toward the Pokémon Center.
Thankfully, neither Aron nor Beldum had been knocked out. Otherwise, with how aggressive the wild Pokémon around here were, he'd have been forced to let Rayquaza handle everything—and that would've been way too loud.
Back at the Pokémon Center, Aiden handed over all five of his Pokémon to Nurse Joy for treatment. Even the three newly captured Lairon were checked over before being sent back into his system space.
Once everyone was fully recovered, Aiden released his main team in front of him.
Right now, their strength looked like this:
Milotic was still his strongest—Level 34, and his only fully evolved powerhouse.
Next came Grovyle at Level 33, and Pidgeotto at Level 33.
Aron was Level 25.
Beldum was Level 19.
Aiden looked at them one by one, eyes steady.
"Battling someone like Steven… you all felt it. Losing today is normal. The gap is huge."
He clenched his fist, then smiled.
"But don't underestimate yourselves. He's been traveling for more than ten years to reach that level.
We've only just started.
We've got time.
And we're going to get stronger—together."
Aiden stretched out his hand.
Grovyle moved first, placing its hand over his without hesitation.
Milotic gently laid the tip of her tail on Grovyle's wrist, the gesture soft but proud.
Pidgeotto folded a wing over Milotic's tail, eyes burning with renewed determination.
Aron and Beldum leaned in last, bumping forward until they were part of the circle too—small, solid, and unwavering.
"Together," Aiden said quietly, "we move forward."
The response came instantly—voices and cries layered together, firm enough to shake the fatigue out of the air.
For their Trainer, they would face anything.
Hardship. Danger. Monsters. Champions.
They would keep climbing until nothing stood above them.
And that was what adventure meant.
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