Ch.44 Nightmare God with a Gentle Heart

Darkrai.

Its appearance somewhat resembled the partially manifested Rika Orimoto, with a humanoid upper body and a lower half shrouded in darkness and shadows.

However, unlike Rika, its color scheme was reversed—mainly black, with only two contrasting colors: a red jagged scarf-like collar around its neck and a misty white hair-like substance on its head.

A Dark-type mythical Pokémon.

Darkness was its classification, Dark was its type, and Mythical indicated its rarity.

If Pokémon were ranked like curses, Darkrai would undoubtedly be classified as a Special Grade.

Whether by power or rarity, it surpassed ordinary Pokémon by a large margin.

Luckily, when Akira received the system notification, he was in the "Zone" state, his mindset extremely stable. Otherwise, his reaction would have been no less intense than when he first hatched Ralts.

After all, while Ralts had the bonus of being considered the ultimate waifu in the Pokémon world, Darkrai was simply renowned for its rarity and formidable strength.

Given its power, it wasn't surprising it took so long to hatch. In the main Pokémon games, these mythical Pokémon are unable to breed offspring.

Akira couldn't help but praise the system for this one, though such mechanics were certainly typical of many domestic mobile games.

This was also why Akira had relied primarily on his own strength rather than calling on his Pokémon.

Black Flash, after all, involved a significant amount of luck. With Akira's cautious nature, he wouldn't put all his trust in it—what if it failed?

What ultimately convinced him to make a move was Darkrai's "fetal movements."

When the human bomb soldiers appeared, when Nanami unleashed his Black Flash, and when Akira broke through his own limits.

The movements grew clearer and stronger.

Finally, the moment Akira successfully performed Black Flash, Darkrai also succeeded in breaking free from its "Egg of Darkness" and emerged into this world.

Although, like all freshly hatched Pokémon, it was only at Level 1, its inherent presence was enough to send shivers down the spine of anyone whose will wasn't strong enough.

Darkrai had another title in the Pokémon world—the Nightmare God, capable of plunging creatures into endless nightmares.

A seasoned curse user's will should have been strong enough to resist Darkrai's intimidation.

But by this point, Bayer and Kokun had already been scared witless by Akira and Nanami, their former bravado long gone.

Even more unsettling for them was the realization that the boy, who had been toying with them all along, still hadn't used any jujutsu.

Since when did Tokyo Jujutsu High produce another monster on the level of Satoru Gojo or Suguru Geto?

Terrifying.

"It seems we won't be able to escape," Bayer said, his tone somewhat despondent.

If he hadn't been intimidated by Darkrai, there might have been a chance, but there were no "what-ifs."

"I won't escape, but you still can," Kokun made a shocking decision.

Gathering his remaining strength, Kokun jumped down from Bayer's shoulder, shoved him forward, and used his body to block Darkrai's path. He tore open his shirt, revealing a curse mark rarely seen even among jujutsu sorcerers. The cursed energy it contained was so potent that both jujutsu sorcerers and Pokémon could sense it clearly.

"If you don't want to be blown up, don't move!"

"Kokun!!! Don't do anything rash! Don't be an idiot!"

Bayer's reaction was more intense than ever, for he knew exactly what his longtime comrade intended to do.

"This isn't foolishness; it's the most appropriate move. If I don't do this, neither of us will get away. This time won't be as easy as the last."

Kokun showed a fearless expression, completely disregarding the fearsome aura emanating from Darkrai.

"I'm responsible for this failed mission, as the coordinator. If both of us get captured, it's better to leave behind some hope. Go!"

Bayer had been willing to risk his life for Kokun, so Kokun was more than willing to sacrifice himself for Bayer. After all, what was a mere nightmare compared to death? You couldn't dream once you were dead, right?

"Guh!" Bayer clenched his teeth, realizing his friend had already resolved to die. With one final glance at Kokun, he charged forward.

"Akira, Kokun has turned himself into a human bomb. Your Pokémon—"

Even in the midst of this life-and-death struggle, Nanami Kento remained vigilant, offering Akira a warning.

Akira, however, was calm. He had anticipated this sacrificial move all along. Compared to Deidara's bombs, Kokun's were nothing.

"No problem. Even if all the bombs went off together, it wouldn't matter. I said they wouldn't escape, and they won't. Gardevoir!"

"Gar~!"

The Psychic Queen, who had been following Akira closely the entire time, immediately responded to her master's call.

With her nature, if Akira hadn't held her back, she would have already unleashed her psychic powers to subdue every enemy.

With a flick of her finger, her psychic energy pinned Bayer to the ground, leaving him unable to move.

"You forced my hand!" Seeing this, Kokun let out a furious roar and prepared to activate the curse mark to self-detonate.

Akira, however, merely smiled faintly and gave an order: "Darkrai, use Hypnosis."

"Mm."

A low, ominous sound perfectly suited to the darkness, and Darkrai's blue eyes shifted to red.

With a single glare from those eyes, Kokun's body froze, his cursed energy coming to a halt. It was only for a brief moment, but that was enough for Akira's Pokémon to restrain him.

Darkrai leaped forward, striking Kokun's jaw with a clawed swipe, causing a concussion. Gardevoir followed up with her own move, Skill: Confusion.

As the name implies, it puts the target to sleep.

Although it wasn't a guaranteed hit, and factors like willpower and resistance could affect its success, Kokun was already at his limit. There was no way he could resist the fully-prepared, high-level Gardevoir.

"I'm sorry, Bayer," Kokun murmured before closing his eyes and falling into a deep sleep.

Still conscious, Bayer let out a long, pained sigh, "I've failed you."

Watching this scene, Akira couldn't help but feel a strange sense of discomfort.

He knew that even villains had emotions and bonds, but seeing these two terrorists display such deep camaraderie unsettled him.

In a rush to put an end to it, he knocked Bayer unconscious.

With that, the battle finally reached its conclusion.

The reason Akira didn't kill them, permanently ending the threat, was partly out of respect for Nanami's stance. He also didn't want to stain his Pokémon with human blood, and besides, keeping them alive would be more useful to Gojo Satoru—whether for interrogation, negotiation, or even as a demonstration of power. That was Gojo's decision to make.

Akira pulled out his phone and sent a message to Ijichi, who had been on standby nearby. For the moment, even the reliable adult had nothing left to do, so he could only sigh:

"You were right. This time, the kid was more useful than the adult."

"I thought you'd have some complaints," Akira exhaled with relief.

"Though I didn't fully agree with your approach, the plan was yours, and you had full control of the situation, so I have nothing to say. After all, your Pokémon was watching over me the whole time, wasn't it?"

"Got caught, huh?"

Gardevoir had been the final "arrow in the quiver."

With her around, Akira could afford to take seemingly risky actions without fear.

Besides, Nanami had already figured out that Akira wasn't as cold-blooded as he appeared.

Just like Darkrai. Despite looking fearsome and being the so-called Nightmare God, he had a softer side.

The fact that Gardevoir didn't reject him was the best evidence of that, though Darkrai seemed to harbor a slight rivalry toward Gardevoir.

After all, inducing sleep and leading others into dreams was supposed to be his job as the Nightmare God.

Even though he was still low-level and hadn't fully mastered his skills, Darkrai's instincts as the Nightmare God were already calling out to him.