Sato watched the man leave, but in his heart, he was thinking, 'If I can avoid seeing him again, I will.'

Mistaking him for Mark? Just how face-blind was that old man?

'If face-blindness was hereditary… judging by his age, that guy probably had kids too.'

The more Sato thought about it, the more unsettled he felt. He quickly turned his head, suddenly realizing that seeing the elder didn't seem so scary anymore.

"Exe~"

Exeggutor let out an innocent cry, then turned around and waddled off on its own.

Sato hurried after it, adjusting his mindset on the way and beginning to run through all the possibilities he had anticipated.

Exeggutor swayed lazily in front, each step appearing leisurely, but Sato had to take long strides just to keep up.

Elite Four level!

A genuine, possibly ancient Elite Four Exeggutor.

And that was only a glimpse of Wilma's revealed strength.

According to her previous words, every wielder of Dark Energy was given a Hydreigon, so she undoubtedly had one as well.

Druddigon and Haxorus were also common in the Village of Dragons, so raising an extra one of each shouldn't be a problem.

That meant Wilma had at least four Pokémon. Judging by Exeggutor's power…

'Four Elite Four level Pokémon?'

Even if it was just a rough guess, Sato could feel the crushing pressure.

But before he realized it, Exeggutor had already led him to the center of the Village of Dragons, right to the door of Wilma's house.

"Exe~"

Exeggutor cried innocently again, then waddled off to the side of the yard and stood still, basking in the sun.

The door opened on its own, and from inside came Wilma's raspy voice…

"You've come again. Come in."

Sato swallowed hard, then took a deep breath before slowly stepping inside.

"Wilma, sorry to bother you again," Sato said softly as he entered the wooden house.

Bang!

The door closed by itself, and the room instantly dimmed.

"If you know it's a bother, why come?"

Wilma's hoarse voice rang out again, completely unapologetic.

But Sato acted as if he didn't hear the sarcasm. He walked straight up to Wilma, sat cross-legged on the cushion opposite her.

"I didn't want to, but for Zweilous's sake, I had no choice!"

"…Zweilous still hasn't evolved?"

Wilma's cloudy eyes widened slightly. She seemed genuinely surprised that Zweilous hadn't evolved yet.

"Let me see it."

At this point, there was no turning back. Sato took a deep breath and tossed out a Poké Ball.

"Zweee~" "Louuus~"

A flash of red light revealed a healthy, powerful Zweilous in the room.

Lefty immediately tried to pounce on Sato for some affection, but Righty quickly stopped it.

Then both heads noticed Wilma's presence. They instantly straightened up and quietly stood at Sato's side without saying a word.

Wilma didn't speak either. She just stared intensely at Zweilous and observed it silently.

After a few minutes, Lefty and Righty began to lean anxiously against Sato, trying to find a sense of security.

It was clear Wilma's gaze was putting immense pressure on them.

"Sato, should I call you naïve… or just plain foolish?"

After a long silence, Wilma finally spoke, her first words a sigh of helplessness toward Sato.

Sato blinked but didn't respond, quietly waiting for what would come next.

"Zweilous shows no signs of fusion between its two minds. In fact, the relationship between the two is even more harmonious than when you first left the Village of Dragons. So I suspect… no-

I'm certain. You want to preserve both minds, and you want them to evolve successfully.

…Am I right?"

"I do."

Sato nodded calmly. He wasn't surprised Wilma had seen through Zweilous's condition; after all, she had lived for who knows how long.

"Sigh… naive child…"

Seeing how straightforwardly Sato answered, Wilma let out a sorrowful sigh, as if she genuinely felt concern for him and for Zweilous.

Sato furrowed his brows slightly and pursed his lips in feigned unease, but still wore an expression of 'mm, continue.'

"You're not the first Trainer who's tried to evolve Zweilous while keeping both minds. Many have attempted it before. Without exception, they all failed. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"It's simple. A Hydreigon with a single mind is already a pseudo-legendary. So what would a Hydreigon with two minds become?"

Sato froze. This was the first time he had heard the question framed that way.

And above pseudo-legendary… there was no doubt about it: Legendary Pokémon!

"Exactly. A Legendary. Have you ever heard of a Legendary Pokémon that became one simply by growing and evolving?"

Sato was about to respond "many Legendary species could do that". The Legendary birds, for instance. Or Latias and Latios. Or Solgaleo and Lunala. Or even Manaphy, who inherited a Legendary Domain…

Wait…

Legendary Domain!

As Sato's mind spun with realizations, the Wilma's raspy voice continued.

"You want to say Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno can do that? No. Ordinary members of the Legendary birds can only be considered very rare Pokémon. It's the same for other species that form a population of so-called 'Legendary Pokémon.' Because they lack one thing..."

'Domain!'

"Domain…"

The word echoed in both their hearts at the same time.

Sato suppressed his shock as best he could, still needing to pretend this was the first time he had ever heard of Domains, pretending he had no idea what they were.

"A Domain," the Wilma continued slowly, "is the key to 'transcending'. Without it, they remain rare, but not 'divine'."

But the more Sato listened, the more he realized that Wilma's understanding of Domains wasn't even as deep as his own.

After all, Sato had seen someone with a real Domain… with his own eyes!

And the woman in front of him… had never been so lucky.

"Now tell me, do you understand why Hydreigon can't retain both minds after evolving?"

"Because…"

"Because being pseudo-legendary means they have the potential to become 'Legendary'. And to ascend beyond that requires the help of a Domain, only then can they truly become 'gods'. Preserving both minds already touches on a fundamental transformation in Hydreigon's essence. It's almost equivalent to another evolution entirely.

So unless you can help Hydreigon find a Domain… it is absolutely impossible for it to keep both minds!"

Wilma finished. And while Sato's heart was still reeling from what he'd heard, his instincts told him to be cautious.

Because what she had just done… was quietly nudging him to seek a Domain.

And those who possess Domains… are all true, bona fide Legendary Pokémon.