SWSH024: Unbelievable!! The Shocking Truth

is a chapter of Sword & Shield arc.
==Synopsis==
The two men fly away, announcing the start of their plans. While the group, joined by Hop and Marnie, discuss about the recent events, Sonia wakes up in a hospital. She is greeted by Leon, her childhood friend, whom she explains to why she quit the Gym Challenge.
==Chapter plot==
Henry tries to get Casey to her senses as a Pokémon attacks him. In that moment, Casey snaps out of her state. At the gate to Spikemuth, Marnie and Hop stand at the closed shutters. Marnie knew this would happen. Hop is agitated, wondering what she meant by that, since they can't enter. Marnie notices it is quiet for a while, then hears Casey shouting to Henry to dodge the attack of the Pokémon, Doublade. Marnie and Hop realize that Henry and Casey are inside, but wonder what is going on in there. To find out more, Marnie has Hop follow her to a back entrance, which only the townsfolk are aware of. The two men see that Doublade's Lick was not able to stop Casey, since she has come to her senses so quickly, and have Doublade repeat its attack.
Before it does, Piers' Obstagoon strikes Doublade, and immediately goes after the two men. Obstagoon is about to hit the men, but Marnie shouts at her brother to stop that. Piers calms down, and thanks Marnie for stopping him. The men see it is for the best that they retreat with their lives: they hang onto a Klinklang, who blasts a hole through the gate for them to escape. Casey runs after them to give her Pokémon back, but trips over from exhaustion. Moments later at the Pokémon Center, Casey has recovered, and remembers Doublade drinks life force from its victims, just as it did at the Slumbering Weald. She recalls a bright light that blinded her a while, and when Henry got knocked out, she fell when she rushed over to him.
Casey vividly remembers the two men standing near her, while her strength was drained away. The men were infuriated that the two Pokémon appeared to these “two lowly commoners” even if the two men claimed themselves as heroes, and felt ridiculed. They noticed the Rusted Sword and Rusted Shield, seeing the connection towards Zacian and Zamazenta, as a proof of heroism, according to their heroic ancestors. They doubted that these Pokémon were heroic, and took the two items to "correct the false history". The two raised the sword and shield, muttering “celebrity”. They noticed Casey was still awake, so they had Doublade drain her life force even more so she would forget everything, and took her Pokémon to prevent her from interfering some more.
Hop sees what atrocities have happened near his hometown. Marvin ponders if these two men are linked to the heroes from the Galar legend. Magnolia admits that she wouldn't be surprised if such people existed, but neither she, nor Piers and Henry know of such people. The latter merely remembers his father telling him that the Rusted Sword and Rusted Shield were located in the Slumbering Weald. Hop turns to Piers, asking about his relationship towards Marnie. The two siblings point at each other, calling each other as brother and “talented” sister, surprising the rest. Hop inquires Marnie as to why didn't she say anything earlier, but Marnie points out Hop is no better. Piers merely states that there were lies - based on suspicions - about a Gym Leader that people believed in, causing mass fights outside the stadium. It was why challengers' privacy is kept confidential.
Piers admits he is sometimes out of control, and does not wish that his sister is in the same spot as he is, to later be attacked much like Sonia had been. Marvin notes Piers cares for his sister a lot, and writes it down. Henry is worried about Sonia, making Casey wonder if those two men will target her, seeing she witnessed their crimes. Magnolia responds that she is with Leon, so she should be safe. Hop realizes they are speaking about "that" Sonia, Leon's childhood friend who accompanied him on the Gym Challenge, and is glad that they made up. He is then pointed out that he met her at Turffield, shocking him even more. Piers is annoyed how loud Hop is, to which Marvin notes it down that Piers is okay with Casey's shouting but not Hop's.
Sonia wakes up, pleasing Leon. Realizing he is watching over her, Sonia becomes startled, but is reminded by Leon to save her strength. Leon explains that Piers and Professor Magnolia told them that she was attacked by two odd-looking men, and that she saw them meeting with another man. Sonia asks about Piers and her grandmother, to which Leon adds that they have been attacked by the two men, for they had her camera that recorded this meeting, but left when the video was corrupted. Sonia realizes she could be attacked next, but Leon swears he will do whatever he can to protect her. Leon sees it is sort of a lie, since he was never able to defeat Sonia, but the latter reminds Leon that he is the undefeated Champion.
Sonia smiles for a moment, but becomes sad, since she was running away from Leon all this time. She reminds that she was Professor Magnolia's grandchild, and was endorsed by Chairman Rose. Since the latter two worked together, it made people think that she pulled connections to enter the Gym Challenge. Leon reminds that he was never able to defeat her, which takes her in a more difficult spot, though Sonia didn't think much of it. Sonia felt that if she were to continue battling, she would show her skills so people would stop thinking that she was cheating. However, when she was battling in Turffield in the first Gym Challenge battle, despite having various strategies and training her Pokémon hard, her battle did not go well, and even after having defeated the Gym Leader, Sonia didn't enjoy battling for the first time. She then went to see Leon's match, and noted he was far better and superior. Sonia saw that he fought with grace, even smiled as he was put in a disadvantage. She even remembers waving to the people that booed him, saying “Thanks” to them. Leon admits he thought at the time that they were cheering him, which makes Sonia laugh.
Sonia remarks that Leon had fun battling, which made his battles more enjoyable to watch, and made her think she was out of his league to battle. While she did make it to Ballonlea, she felt the pressure on her growing too much, and when she lost, she felt a relief. After the match, Chairman Rose spoke to her, stating that the spectators and challengers would come to the stadium without a worry, for some of her fans have fought with others that disapproved of her. Leon is surprised, hearing this bit for the first time. Sonia continues on, stating that some of the Gym Leaders, like Nessa, came to comfort her over her defeat. Kabu visited her, too, sharing advice that he went through pressure when he was a young trainer in his home region, Hoenn. He spoke about Legendary Pokémon from Hoenn, which fascinated her a lot. It made her think whether Galar region had Legendary Pokémon, which made her think of the Galar's legend, involving the hero. With her grandmother's approval, she decided to study and become a researcher, than a Trainer. Leon becomes sad, knowing the reason why she left Wedgehurst.
For multiple reasons, she did not participate in battles, despite her earlier statement that Wedgehurst would become the strongest Galar town. Leon asks if she dislikes that catchphrase of hers, and Sonia nervously confirms it. Leon shares that saying that phrase has given him a different perspective: it isn't so much about having strong trainers, but people that can help other people in need. Sonia pushes her finger into Leon's face, seeing becoming a Champion has changed him a lot, since he previously thought only about battles. Leon closes his eyes, recalling that Chairman Rose's words have echoed on him: for if the strong and powerless can live together without a worry, then the whole Galar region would become stronger, too.
Leon admits that he previously didn't think much about it, but watching Chairman Rose do stuff like that has made him believe in that ideal, too. Sonia stops Leon, her face turning grim. She reminds she is grateful for Chairman Rose's support, and how he helps Galar region. It is why this action he made doesn't make sense: the two men that attacked her met up with Chairman Rose. Leon gasps, as Sonia sheds the truth: Chairman Rose has teamed up with the two men to bring back the Darkest Day.
==Gallery==
Category:Pokémon Adventures: Sword & Shield Chapter chapters