Siege

Shortly after Breloom defeated Swampert, Shadowsong and Dusknoir walked out of the palace, carrying a lifeless body.

Of course, Shadowsong was dragging a corpse this time.

The next day, shocking news spread through the royal palace: Leon was dead, and his body, along with his Swampert, had been hung at the gates of his own palace.

As the acting ruler of the Arus Empire, Nolans was furious about his brother's death and ordered a city-wide manhunt for the culprits.

However, this pursuit didn't last long as another major event overshadowed it.

Emperor Rode was returning with his massive army!

In reality, Emperor Rode had been defeated and forced to retreat by the Vante Empire.

The day of Emperor Rode's return to the capital was marked by deserted streets. The citizens wanted nothing to do with a ruler who was about to lead the nation to its downfall.

The only one who welcomed Emperor Rode and his army at the palace gates was Nolans, along with a group of followers.

Yuga and Shadowsong observed from the shadows, witnessing Emperor Rode two years after their last encounter. He hadn't changed much, even though he had been suffering defeat after defeat. His spirit remained unbroken.

As Emperor Rode returned to the city, there was a temporary calm in the Arus capital. However, everyone knew this was the calm before the storm, as the Vante Empire's armies and their controlled Ultra Ancient Pokémon were closing in on the city.

Emperor Rode stationed his troops within the capital and forbade both commoners and nobility from fleeing.

During these days, Shadowsong and General Moro discreetly operated among the city guards and the populace.

The city guards, responsible for protecting the capital, were different from Emperor Rode's personal army, which was mainly focused on external conquests.

General Moro, who had held the position for over twenty years, had earned great respect. Many soldiers and officers within the city guard were disillusioned with Emperor Rode, and after General Moro's persuasion, they quickly switched allegiances to Shadowsong.

However, the city guard couldn't match the numbers of Emperor Rode's personal army. Their best chance was to find opportunities to lead a group of commoners out of the city.

So, this continued for over a month.

During this time, news about the Vante Empire's invasion reached the city.

Wherever the Vante Empire's army went, the land turned into scorched earth. Once-fertile territories of the Arus Empire became lifeless wastelands, and countless civilians suffered.

One night, Yuga quietly appeared near the eastern gate of the capital, accompanied by Gengar and Mismagius.

Yuga nodded at the two Pokémon, and they vanished in a shimmering display. Soon, mysterious psychic waves swept through the soldiers guarding the city walls and gates, causing them to yawn and fall into deep slumber.

With the soldiers asleep, the eastern gate of the capital slowly creaked open.

Following Yuga's arrangements, a large group of people quietly left the city under the cover of night.

The next day, the guards who had fallen asleep woke up with splitting headaches, unaware of how they had dozed off. But no one dared to speak up, as discovery meant certain death.

The departure of the commoners went unnoticed among the city's population because the people of the capital had long stopped venturing outside. The streets remained eerily empty.

However, the significant disappearance of city guards did catch the attention of the royal palace.

Yet, due to Yuga and his team's excellent secrecy, the departures went unnoticed, and the matter was eventually dismissed.

Even though Emperor Rode had forbidden anyone from leaving the capital, at this critical juncture, who had the time or inclination to worry about a group of people who had vanished without a trace?

Seven days later, the Arus capital was surrounded by the Vante Empire's massive army, with the Legendary Pokémon Groudon blocking the northern gate of the city.

On the day the capital was besieged, the Emperor of Vante, had someone outside the city gates announce that Emperor Rode should surrender willingly.

But was Emperor Rode the kind of person to bow down to anyone? Clearly not.

If he were, he would have abandoned the city long before the Vante army reached it.

As half of the spiritual form of the Forest God Celebi, Emperor Rode possessed an unimagined level of pride and self-esteem.

Three days later, since the Vante Empire's Emperor didn't receive the answer he wanted, he finally took action against the capital.

Early one morning, while Yuga and Shadowsong were still having breakfast at their inn, they felt the entire capital shake violently.

All the buildings in the line between the city and the northwest gate were reduced to rubble.

Groudon had used a single Solar Beam to split the city into two, with the north and south gates as the dividing line.

The royal palace was affected as well.

A significant portion of the Arus Royal Palace had been destroyed.

Fortunately, Arus' capital wasn't built right at the center of the city; otherwise, the entire palace would have disappeared with that single attack.

The searing heat generated by the Solar Beam melted buildings, the city's ground, and the flowing lava created deep chasms, a terrifying sight.

Before long, Emperor Rode appeared outside the north gate with his army.

He rode atop a Metagross, accompanied by a Gardevoir on his left and an imposing Gallade on his right, with a Solrock floating above.

Among them, Gardevoir and Solrock were the ones Yuga and Shadowsong had seen two years ago, while Gallade and Metagross were very unfamiliar.

And the most powerful Among these four Pokémon were the unfamiliar Gallade and Metagross.

These were clearly Emperor Rode's hidden aces.

Consider this: if it weren't for Celebi's intervention two years ago, they might have been in serious trouble.

After Emperor Rode appeared at the front of his army, it didn't take long for the Vante Empire's Emperor to descend from the sky on a Salamence.

Yuga and Shadowsong watched from a distance as the two armies faced off, witnessing the legendary Vante Emperor for the first time.

The Vante Emperor was much younger than Emperor Rode, appearing in silver-white armor, emanating an air of martial prowess.

However, what surprised them were the peculiar red patterns on his face.

Yuga knew very well that those red patterns were the result of him fusing with the Red Orb.

From his memory, if someone fused with the Red Orb, they would lose consciousness, and their actions would be controlled by Groudon.

But this Vante Emperor appeared clear-minded and nothing like someone under control. In contrast, Groudon seemed more like a puppet.

Besides that, Yuga and Shadowsong also spotted the Vante Emperor's guardian Pokémon—Heatran.

Even though they had Groudon, Vante's Emperor still sent Heatran into battle, leaving no room for the Arus Empire.

As soon as the Vante Emperor arrived, he began to speak to Emperor Rode, but Yuga and Shadowsong were too far away to hear what they were saying.

However, it was clear that they couldn't reach an agreement, as the Vante Emperor appeared very angry.