Chapter 120

Cyrus and Natalie were quite surprised to find out that Daisy was going to join them for dinner tonight.

They were familiar with her, having met at several meetings of the Kanto Guardians where the blonde had accompanied her father. And they had a lot to talk about.

The conversations at the table flowed freely, and as good as the meal at the Imperialis was, Aizen and Anira were not too enthusiastic about it. They had tasted much better food, and it could be said that the reason why people wanted to visit this place was just for the ambience.

They were sitting on the rooftop, inside an open restaurant, and with their table right next to the glassed railing, they could see half of the Saffron City in all its glory.

Yes, it certainly was a nice place to have dinner.

"No wine?" Cyrus curiously asked when he poured himself some, and Aizen shook his head.

"I don't like the taste. It ruins the after-flavours of the meal." He honestly said, and the man just shook his head, not commenting on it.

However, learning that he did not like drinking, Natalie was very happy, and she looked at her husband disapprovingly, which made Anira and Leaf giggle.

The eight of them spent a couple of hours at the table, enjoying their time, and finally ended the meal on a happy note.

Daisy was relieved that Anthony did not bother them, and she now just wished to get out of this place as soon as possible.

However, the moment they exited the restaurant and entered the lobby, they found a group waiting for them.

"Princess." Sina immediately came over and courteously bowed to Anira, who happily smiled at her and then stepped forward to hug the purple-haired girl.

"Sina! It's been a while." She greeted the girl and then smiled at the blonde boy, who bowed to her as well. "Dexio! It's good to see you."

"It's good to see you too, Princess." The young man happily smiled and then apologetically looked at Aizen.

However, before he could even say something, Daisy narrowed her eyes at her friends.

"What is this about?" She coldly asked, spotting Anthony in the corner, unkindly looking towards them.

"I want to challenge him to a Pokémon Duel." The lemon-haired young man stepped forward and then looked Aizen right in his eyes.

"He's not someone you can mess around with, Anthony." She warned him, and seeing the tamed response from her former friend, she could tell that he knew Aizen's identity now.

"I just want a Pokémon Duel with you." He clenched his fist and lightly said.

"Why?" The Orayen Prince smiled at him.

"We are Pokémon Trainers. That's reason enough."

"And Pokémon Trainers are not obliged to accept every challenge." He reminded the young man, who grinned at him.

"Scared?"

"Should I be scared?" He lightly asked, and both Sina and Dexio audibly sighed.

"I will not use my Mega Stones in the Battle. It will be a duel between Non-Mega Pokémon. 6v6. You don't need to worry."

"I was never worried." He smiled a little. "If you want to battle with Mega Pokémon, we can do that. But what's in this Battle for me?"

"No, I will not take advantage of you. We will stick to Non-Mega Pokémon." Anthony shook his head and then frowned. "What do you want as the bet?"

"I don't know. Do you have something that might interest me?"

Seeing Anthony seriously think things through, it was now clear to all of them that he was well aware of who he was messing around with.

Had it been someone else, the lemon-haired boy would just bet a ridiculous sum of money, but he knew that money was the last thing that Aizen lacked.

The Blanc Kingdom, which ruled over Hoenn, Oblivia, and Almia, was the richest Kingdom in the world, and given Orayen Family's Businesses Empire, it was hard to fathom how much wealth they possessed.

"Wait, I will be right back." He suddenly said and then rushed into a lift, leaving everyone curious about what he was up to.

"Hello. I am sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier today." The black-haired boy, who was in Dexio and Sina's group stepped forward. "My name is Deric. I am Pokémon Doctor."

"Nice to meet you, Deric." Aizen smiled and shook hands with the boy. "Aizen Orayen."

"Of course." He laughed and then signalled to his girlfriend, who was a little nervous now in the Prince's presence.

"My apologies for not introducing myself earlier, Prince. I am Candy Clover, and I am a Pokémon Groomer, Stylist, and a Coordinator."

"That's impressive." He nodded to her, shaking her hand, and by the time their small conversations ended, Anthony returned, carrying a small backpack in his hand.

All of them gathered around the table when the lemon-haired boy opened it and started taking out some items.

"I have these Evolutionary Items with me. If you win the battle, you can pick any two of these items." He said and was mindful enough to not force Aizen to bet something as well.

Everyone was surprised at how many Evolutionary Items Anthony was carrying with him, and seeing his friends curiously look at him, he embarrassedly informed them what was going on.

"I am planning on challenging the Indigo Conference at the end of this year, and the Silver Conference in Autumn, next year."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Deric seemed a little upset, and Anthony felt even more embarrassed. "I thought you were all busy."

There was a moment of silence between the friends as they all sighed, and then one by one, everyone wished him good luck.

Daisy too wished him the best, and even if he was not holding any good feelings for her right now, he thanked her for it.

Aizen glanced at all the Items, where there were Evolutionary Stones, as well as a King's Rock, two Metal Coats, an Electirizer, a Prism Scale, and even a Drgaon Scale.

It did not take long for him to make a decision, but there was something inside the backpack that Anthony had not taken out, and he immediately recognised what it was.

"You won the Orange League?" He curiously asked, catching everyone by surprise, even Anthony.

"Yes." The Lemon-haired boy nodded his head and then took out the golden medallion, which had two flying Charizards on it. And there was a fond smile on his face as he looked at it. "This is the token of the Charicific Valley. As the Winner of the Orange Islands' league, I can head there and choose a Charmander for myself." He said, and there was clear hesitation on his face when he finished speaking.

It was not something he wanted to trade or use as a bet because it was something he had earned by working very hard for it.

"I accept your challenge and will pick two of these Evolutionary Items if I win the match." Aizen smiled, and the lemon-haired boy was elated at his words.

"Do you want to do it now?"

"Sure." He nodded. "I will have to visit the Pokémon Center first to make some changes to my Roster."

"It's okay! I will go and book the Battle Arena on the outskirts of the city..."

"There's no need for that. You can use Saffron Gym's Training Arena. It is more suitable than the Battle Arena." Cyrus suddenly said, grabbing everyone's attention.

"He's the Guardian of the Saffron City and the Saffron Gym Leader," Daisy informed her friends, who all surprisedly looked at Cyrus before stepping forward to greet him.

With everything decided, and things seemingly returning to normalcy between her friends, Daisy followed Aizen to the Pokémon Center whilst everyone else headed to the Saffron Gym.

"You are not worried?" She curiously asked as she observed that he was very calm about the situation.

"Why should I be worried?" He asked back, smiling at her.

"Anthony has very strong Pokémon on him, and he is a lot more experienced than you." She pointed out the facts, and the Orayen Prince just shrugged at her words.

"Doesn't matter. I am actually glad that he challenged me. It will help my Pokémon Team and also Leaf to realise what truly awaits them at the Indigo Conference." He said, still keeping his smile. "Watching videos of matches and experiencing the battle from up close are two very different things."

"Indeed." The blonde smiled at his words. "Why do you think he wants to challenge you?"

"I don't care." He replied and then chuckled when he sensed her restlessness. "Why are you worried when I am not?"

"I just don't want you to lose to him." She said, and then lowered her head, feeling that she should not have said these words.

"I will be fine." He assured her and led her inside the Pokémon Center.

Aizen made a call to the Blanc Laboratory, where an attendant picked it up. Minutes later, he walked out of the Center with the Roster that he needed for the battle.

"How many Pokémon do you have in their final form of Evolution?" The blonde curiously asked.

"Lapras, Aerodactyl, Arcanine, and Gengar."

Daisy frowned at his words, feeling more restless now.

"Are they ready for the League?"

"Gengar and Aerodactyl are, Arcanine is close enough. Lapras still needs a lot of work." He honestly informed her, and chuckled when he heard her audibly sigh at his answer. "Relax."

"You can borrow my Gyarados or..."

"It's fine, Daisy." He stopped and turned to look her in the eyes. "It is just a Pokémon Battle. An opportunity for me to let my Pokémon gain valuable experience."

"Losing isn't fun." She rolled her eyes and started walking ahead, still visibly agitated.

"I never enter a battle with the intention of losing." He chuckled and followed her, soon catching up with her.

"Just don't lose. Even a draw would be fine." She lightly said, this time, almost pleadingly.

"Yes, My Lady." He laughed as he nudged her with his shoulder, and received a full-on tackle in response. "Behave!" He warned her as he replied with with a much lighter tackle, but Daisy only grew bolder and laughed as she tackled him again.

The rest of the way back, they were both laughing with each other, almost forgetting the battle that awaited him.