Chapter 292: Arceus's Dragon-Type Plate
"Huh...?"
Hikaru was a little confused. What was all this about?
"Stop asking questions and just put it on... tsk, ow..."
Takashi Hayashi snapped irritably, but midway through his words, a sharp pain from his waist made him wince and fall silent.
He turned to see Sakura smiling at him with an angelic—but also vaguely threatening—expression.
Then she handed a black cloth to Hikaru with a sweet smile.
"Here, big bro, cover your eyes."
Though a bit puzzled, Hikaru trusted Sakura, so he obediently tied the blindfold over his eyes.
If it were anyone else, maybe he'd hesitate. But with Sakura, he was at ease.
Lance's voice came from nearby,
"Also, don't use your Aura abilities."
Hikaru nodded,
"Okay."
Right after, he felt someone lift him and place him on Dragonite's back.
They took off—soaring into the sky.
Even the last trip to Dragon Island hadn't felt this secretive.
Why so much caution this time?
Flying through the air, blindfolded, Hikaru had no idea where they were going.
Without using Aura, all he could feel was the occasional shift in direction—some flying, some walking.
By the time the blindfold was removed—
The surroundings had completely changed.
They were now in what looked like an underground chamber.
Stone pillars filled the area, and modern white fluorescent lights lit the space with an eerie glow.
Some of the kids looked calm—clearly they'd been here before.
But others, especially those around twelve or thirteen, were full of wide-eyed curiosity. This was clearly their first time.
But that wasn't what caught Hikaru's attention.
The moment his eyes adjusted, his pupils widened in shock.
Directly ahead was a small, round altar—and in its center…
A stone plate.
Hikaru instinctively activated his Eye of Insight.
> [Arceus's Dragon Plate (Dragon-Type): ???-Rank Relic. A plate containing a fragment of Arceus's original power. Holds mysterious energy that can enhance a Pokémon's potential through long-term contact.]
A complete Dragon Plate!?
Was this for real?
In that instant, Hikaru suddenly had a strong suspicion about the source of the Dragon Mastery power.
But he quickly masked his expression, replacing the shock in his eyes with mild curiosity.
Clearly, the Hayashi family had discovered new uses for this Dragon Plate.
Sure enough, Hayashi Dou stepped forward to the altar.
"Everyone, line up."
"Come on, big bro," Sakura said, tugging at Hikaru's arm and pulling him toward the front.
Now up close, Hikaru could see the plate clearly.
The diamond-shaped plate stood upright on the altar, etched with a pictograph of a dragon.
Even without using Aura, Hikaru could feel a pull deep inside—
This was definitely Arceus's Dragon-Type Plate.
Hayashi Dou addressed the group again.
"Those who haven't touched it before, come first. Those who have, wait a bit."
A few of the younger kids, around twelve or thirteen, stepped forward first.
Then Sakura nudged Hikaru.
"Your turn!"
Looking at the younger kids beside him, Hikaru rubbed his nose awkwardly.
"Actually… I already have Dragon Mastery."
As he spoke, a faint stream of Dragon energy flowed from him.
"That's fine," Hayashi Dou replied calmly, glancing at him.
"The first time is always the most effective."
"You can go first. It'll serve as a demonstration for the others."
"Uh... okay..."
Hikaru stepped up beside Hayashi Dou and, following his gesture, placed his hand on the Dragon Plate.
The moment his fingers touched it—
A system notification sounded in his mind.
> [Dragon-Type Plate detected. Analyzing and recording data… 1%... 2%...]
The cold mechanical voice didn't faze him at all.
He had already encountered this during the last Plate—the Normal-Type one.
Clearly, his system was guiding him to collect all of Arceus's Plates.
Hayashi Dou gave further instructions:
"Now that you have Dragon Mastery, try channeling it and sense the energy within the Plate. The goal is to guide the energy into your body—calmly and steadily."
"Calmly and steadily!"
He emphasized again.
Then, he and Lance activated their own powerful Dragon energy.
Under their pressure, the Dragon Plate began to float slightly into the air.
Hikaru closed his eyes, reaching out with his Dragon Mastery to feel the energy within the Plate.
Pale green light started to swirl around the stone.
It didn't take long before Hikaru was able to catch some of it and draw it into himself.
But he immediately realized why Hayashi Dou had stressed the need for control.
If not done carefully, the Dragon energy would leak into the air—and once it did, it would flow right back into the Plate.
Precision was key.
Which reminded Hikaru of his Aura powers.
What could be more precise than Aura?
So, he began channeling his Aura alongside the Dragon Mastery.
Thin threads of Aura gently held the Dragon energy at the surface of the Plate.
From the outside, energy still escaped, but far less than before.
Previously, when someone absorbed 100 units of energy, 95 would spill out.
Now, with Aura assisting, the waste was dropping fast.
In less than thirty seconds, the leakage had fallen to around 5%.
This scene didn't go unnoticed.
Hayashi Dou and Lance watched in astonishment as Hikaru's absorption became increasingly efficient.
The two exchanged glances—both clearly shaken.
This level of absorption… are you kidding?
Even now, they still didn't fully understand what kind of relic the Plate was.
But they knew one thing: it wasn't man-made.
This was something left behind by a Pokémon.
For years, this Dragon Plate had helped awaken and strengthen the Hayashi family's younger generation with Dragon Mastery.
But every child responded differently.
The first time someone touched the Plate was crucial—how much Dragon energy they could absorb determined their affinity.
Put simply, it was like Pokémon potential.
The more energy they absorbed on their first try, the faster their Dragon Mastery would grow in the future.
Most Hayashi youths only managed to awaken the most basic spark of Dragon energy—not even low-level mastery.
In the past century, only one person had reached the "Basic" threshold on their first try.
That person stood behind Hikaru—Sakura Hayashi.
And even then, Hayashi Dou and Lance remembered clearly—
When Sakura absorbed the Plate's energy, the amount she lost to overflow was several times more than Hikaru now.
This… was beyond anything they had seen.
---
Read up to 20 Chapters ahead on patreon.com/Fanglin
[Please leave a 5 Star review and power stone for this novel]
*Thank you*