144 Never threaten the MC's girl. Sigh... they never learn

"My real name, which I don't mind telling you since you'll both be dying anyway, is Robert Madrazo. I was a fanatic for Pokémon since I first understood what they were. At the young age of 10, I was already a full-fledged trainer and a finalist in the Kanto league.

I even won that and went on to face the elite four.

I clawed my way up, with tooth and nail, and finally, finally, I was able to meet the champion. But his skills completely differed from the four I had just defeated. He was a monster. He had Pokémon with strength that surpassed the limit of what I thought possible. Beyond the ceiling, I had previously thought unbreachable.

That's when my mentor and friend, Bill, who lives a bit beyond cerulean city came in. He and I became even closer after my defeat.

We were both entranced by the champions Pokémon. and we wanted to know the true limits of a Pokémon's potential.

A very discreet rumour was circulating around the city one day that caught our attention.

A cave, that was described to have paintings dozens of meters high spanning the entirety of the cave. It depicted the method of unlocking something within a certain Pokémon through some sort of ritual.

We naturally wouldn't hesitate to explore. But what we found was beyond the scope of our current understanding. It took three years to decipher the true meaning of the paintings.

It described the blossoming of a black rose after being watered by the blood of thousands of its kind.

Bill instantly refused to believe this and even wanted to blow it up in order to stop others from being misled.

Ha! The fucking fool he was. if only he knew what would come of a result of that simple painting." He said, turning slightly to gaze at Umbra.

Rex understood that this cave painting depicted the method of unlocking the abyssal legacy within a Pokémon.

"So, I searched for the strongest Machop in the entirety to Kanto costing me two years of my time. but finally, I met the right one. The cream of the crop. The future king of combat. We trained and trained from that day forward, he fought hundreds of trainers from Kanto, even going to other regions.

And in the process, killing every single Machop, Machoke and Machamp we could find or that crossed our path without exception.

And finally, two years later, we succeeded. I was able to bring out the full potential of my Pokémon. I was unbeatable…

Or so I thought until I came upon a different mural in the depths of the galar region. Deep within the mountainous region. A painting describing the inheritor of Arceus's full power. The god of martial arts. The Machamp made of light.

When I saw that, I was stunned. But when I read about how the abyssal legacy, as I had just then come to realise, was actually weaker than the light legacy. And that there was an even greater power when the winner of the battle was decided.

As you can expect, I tried to create the light Machamp, but I only came to find out almost five years later that there was a special, nigh impossible set of restrictions put in place. And that one needed to find the right keys to unlock them.

I tried and tried but I could never find it. and in a fit of rage, I had Umbra kill my other Machamp. I continued to search, not only for more clues but for people that had a black Machop, Machoke or Machamp anywhere in the world.

That's when I Ran into Sundown. An organisation that chased after the power of legacies. They strived to rule the world when every single legacy Pokémon had been acquired and a massive war would be unleashed.

When they realised that I had obtained a legacy, well, they tried to take it. sadly, one of their members died and so did his legacy Pokémon under Umbra's hands. There was no room for the weak, so I took his place. And I earned the code-name Sinestero Spade.

But one day, while sitting on a very small island having given up on finding the legacy Machamp I was so desperately looking for. I received a video from one of my associates…" he paused, looking at Giovanni with a grin.

Giovanni didn't even flinch and stared at him calmly.

"Notifying me of the appearance of a black Machop. You wouldn't believe how shocked I was. in all honesty, I was in disbelief. I couldn't believe it. I had tried everything, spent billions of dollars chasing after baseless rumours and hints that led nowhere in the end.

But a no-name, young kid like yourself, was able to crack the code? I was quite honestly full of rage. I don't get it, what right do you have to receive such a gift? WHAT RIGHT! You did nothing, so you, therefore, earned nothing. I have spent MY ENTIRE LIFE, searching for this knowledge. And you're stupid ass just runs into it. it's infuriating.

So, I threw diplomacy out the window. I didn't care anymore. I was, and still will, rip your fucking head off and mount it on a pike. There's your fucking story. Now that I have satisfied your last wish, I think it's time you satisfied mine. hand over Machamp's Pokeball and I will give you a painless death. Struggle, and I will kill everyone you love."

His words made Rex flinch slightly. A few weeks ago, such a threat would have meant nothing. But now… he couldn't help but admit that love was a double-edged sword.

"Especially that Elesa girl. I'll make sure to rip her digits off one at a time. slowly and painfully. As for the twins, I'll come up with something colourful that's to my liking." He said with a sinister grin.

"HAHAHAHAHA"

there was a short silence before Rex burst into a laugh that echoed through the room catching everyone off guard.

CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!

He clapped slowly as he stared at Spade's face.

"You really shouldn't have said that. I mean, seriously. There are lines you just don't cross." Rex said with an infuriated laugh.

Spade was confused, but his grin remained, "and why is that?"

Rex smiled widely as a red aura surged out of his body that manifested into the silhouette of a devil that appeared behind him instantly. It had six arms and resembled an asura.

Glowing Black eyes and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. Massive claws. It shocked everyone to their cores. Even Mordred was stunned. A trace of fear surged in his heart. Fear he had never felt before except in the presence of one being. Arceus himself.

"Because the protagonist always gets a boost!" Rex said with a mocking smile.

There was a confused expression on both Giovanni and Spade's faces.

"Times up. our game ends here." Rex spoke before snapping his fingers.

An: This is villain one on one, Spade! dammit, such a dumbass. doesn't he know not to piss off the protagonist?

big shout out to celestial_paragon for the backstory of Spade. keep it up with the great ideas.