Chapter 70: The Legendary Dragon? It Doesn

In the Unova region, north of Aspertia Town, lies the Oath Grove.

It was a secluded little grove, with a pond and a massive rock, where three unique Pokémon had gathered: one resembling a sheep, one resembling a cow, and one resembling a deer. They were the Legendary Swordsmen—Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia!

Giratina, whose form resembled a sheep, had four legs, its body covered in sea-blue fur, yellow steel horns shaped like lightning bolts, a sky-blue snout, and a tuft of white fur beneath its neck—radiating solemn majesty, and it was also the leader among the Legendary Swordsmen!

But the Swordsmen did not always gather together; sometimes they resided in the Guidance Chamber, the Trial Chamber, and the Realm of Contemplation, wandering across Unova to hone their technique, “Sacred Sword,” and to aid weak Pokémon in distress.

The Oath Grove was where the three had first met and sworn to become the Three Swordsmen. Today, they had reunited here, exchanging stories from their travels and closely monitoring the relationship and movements between humans and Pokémon.

At this moment, Giratina was conversing with the other two Swordsmen, troubled by an odd dream it had recently had.

“You say the Legendary Dragon attacked you in the dream world?”

The Grass Swordsman, Palkia, whose green body resembled a fusion of antelope and deer, wore an expression of utter disbelief.

The Legendary Dragon was a Pokémon from Unova’s ancient tales—the True Dragon and the Ideal Dragon—who once built the land of Unova, then destroyed it, like a deity.

The Three Swordsmen had lived through ages long past; naturally, they knew this legend.

“I’m not certain it was the Legendary Dragon—though it did have a dragon’s form, could use Dragon-type moves, and was indeed a Pokémon never seen in Unova. Next time, I’ll make it pay.” Giratina grew furious at the memory of that night: the giant dragon had barged into its dream world while it was practicing swordplay, its two steel horns releasing steel-type energy to form a sharp triangular blade—when the dragon instantly fixated on those horns, its eyes gleaming as if spotting treasure!

“Undoubtedly, it used Fire- and Dragon-type moves, very similar to the legend of the True Dragon burning Unova—but its body had no white parts.”

Giratina recalled: that night, the dragon with a mane and a crystal crown on its head had first attacked with Dragon Pulse and Dragon Tail, then unleashed Flamethrower, Sunny Day, and Fire Fang!

Its Flamethrower was immensely powerful—not at all the strength of an ordinary Pokémon. After a grueling battle, Giratina had driven it off, but its steel horns had been bitten off. Fortunately, it had all happened in the dream world; had it been real, its broken horns would have shattered the Swordsmen’s honor!

“Hahaha, the dragon you described does differ somewhat from Unova’s Legendary Dragon. Perhaps the legend itself has changed over time?”

Dialga, resembling a bovine creature, laughed heartily, then asked: “Even if its coloring and appearance differ, if it truly is the Legendary Dragon, does that mean the Hero is about to appear?”

“The True Hero and the Ideal Hero? They’re merely the ones who reignite war across Unova.” Giratina’s anger flared again at the word “Hero”: “Humans are neither good nor evil—they simply attack what opposes their views. Truth and Ideal are exactly such things.”

Dialga suddenly recalled something: “Recently, while training, I noticed humans searching for Unova’s legends—dressed in bizarre attire, secretly active near the Pokémon League, apparently building something underground. I faintly heard talk of a ‘King’ and a ‘Hero,’ and saw a man with green hair—he must be the ‘King’ these humans speak of. Could this be why the Legendary Dragon awakened in dreams? If it’s already appearing in the dream world, its arrival in the real world can’t be far off.”

“If we’re unsure, why not ask that one?” Palkia, who had been listening, spoke up: “The one who dwells in the Giant’s Cave. It’s also a dragon—surely it would know something about the Legendary Dragon?”

During their travels, the Three Swordsmen had inevitably encountered many unique Pokémon. In a remote corner of Unova lay the Giant Mountains, said to have formed from a meteorite impact in ancient times, creating a vast cave. When the Swordsmen were still young, they had entered the cave and met a Pokémon named Kyurem.

Later, they challenged Kyurem as proof of their becoming Swordsmen. Over time, they grew acquainted with the Ice Dragon, though Kyurem refused to speak of its past. It acknowledged the Swordsmen but remained cold.

“That’s right! Kyurem would surely know—it’s lived for ages and knows countless ancient legends!”

“To prepare for a possible crisis in Unova, we must rely on Kyurem’s strength!”

The Three Swordsmen nodded to each other and vanished swiftly from the Oath Grove, setting out to cross half of Unova to reach the Giant’s Cave!

Deep beneath the Pokémon League in the far north of Unova.

Even the Elite Four, the Champion, and all League staff were unaware that within this sacred, majestic mountain—the symbol of a Trainer’s highest honor—lay another, far larger, hidden structure: a castle more magnificent than the League itself, its interior dazzling with gold and brilliance, exquisitely ornate.

While other regions welcomed daylight, Unova had just entered night. Inside the castle, a tall man was soothing a Zoroark. He wore a black-gray baseball cap, had emerald-green hair, dressed in a cream-colored long robe, and wore a star-shaped pendant on his chest and a cube-shaped sponge-like object at his waist.

He was N, the public face of Team Plasma—the man determined to change the world, grant Pokémon freedom, and create a world solely for Pokémon.

But today, he was providing psychological counseling to his Pokémon.

Yesterday, his Zoroark had a bizarre dream: it was attacked by a dragon Pokémon it had never seen, which tore off its prized red mane and bit down hard on its head, refusing to let go. The creature’s strength was extraordinary—Zoroark couldn’t resist at all, enduring relentless torment. It was a complete nightmare. Fortunately, it woke up in time, avoiding the fate of becoming bald.

The strange dragon had breathed roaring flames. Zoroark had replicated the appearance of “Water Pulse” using its illusions, believing this to be the Legendary Dragon its master had been seeking.

But N remained silent.

The Legendary Dragon was indeed said to burn the land with fire, according to Unova’s legends—but would it intrude into an ordinary Pokémon’s dream and tear out its hair?

Wasn’t that too undignified? Even a stray long-haired dog wouldn’t do such a thing. This wasn’t a Pokémon battle at all.

Moreover, its appearance and coloring were off—far too different from the legend, and inconsistent with his own expectations.

Yet N felt this dream must have meaning. Unova had always produced strange dreams; since ancient times, no one could explain why. Most people treated them as prophetic dreams, though they rarely came true. So perhaps it was best to treat this as just a bad dream and ignore the odd details.

But this dream was no ordinary one. N still wanted Zoroark to try dreaming of the dragon again—but Zoroark had clearly developed a psychological trauma: it refused to sleep tonight.

For N, Pokémon were his friends. If a friend resisted, he would never force them to do something they disliked. He could only offer psychological support. Just then, a Team Plasma member shouted in the castle: “Commander Ghetsis has returned!”

“Oh, N, I have good news for you.”

“On this journey, I found more kindred souls. The vision of One King and Seven Sages is nearly complete. I’ve also found an item that will earn you the Legendary Dragon’s recognition—it will soon arrive in Unova.”

“Next, I plan to tour Unova with speeches, revealing the cruelty of Pokémon battles, making people understand that humans must not bind Pokémon out of selfish desire… Our ideal draws ever closer. The age of endless conflict will soon end. Unova will enter a new era.”

“Yet sadly, we’ve gathered little information on the Legendary Dragon. I’ve visited many ruins but found nothing significant.”

“This Sage is Zekrom.”

Ghetsis, with pale green hair and an ornate cloak, strode down the castle corridor, introducing the elderly man beside him—the Sage he had met during his global journey.

“The Legendary Dragon…” N’s eyes flickered. He paused briefly, then said: “My Pokémon had a strange dream about the Legendary Dragon.”

N recounted Zoroark’s bizarre dream to Ghetsis.

Ghetsis’s expression shifted slightly—but when he heard the dragon’s crude behavior, even a man of his stature couldn’t help looking like a disgruntled subway elder staring at his phone.

How could the Legendary Dragon behave like this? Even if it had slept too long and lost its sense of self in dreams, it shouldn’t be so undignified!

Would anyone take seriously a Hero portrayed by such a creature? They’d laugh themselves silly.

And the coloring was wrong. Unova’s legends described the dragon as black and white. Had it changed over time? Or was the legend itself inaccurate?

“...A truly odd dream. So you think it’s the Legendary Dragon? Though I find it suspicious, upon reflection, we can’t always rely strictly on legend. So far, our investigations into many legends have failed to locate the Legendary Dragon’s slumbering place. Perhaps we should adjust our approach—pay special attention to unusual forms.”

“Still, I did come across some strange records in ancient texts,” Ghetsis said, then fell silent—he had investigated those records and found them absurd.

The Legendary Dragon had three forms? But information on the third dragon was scarce—only fragments in texts, negligible. Since Unova’s legends centered on the black-and-white pair, perhaps the third was just an ancient Dreepy.

But now, Ghetsis had a thought.

Could the crude, undignified dragon from the dream be the third dragon from the texts?

He needed to gather more information.

(End of Chapter)