The moment he realized that he himself was the tall one, Julian suddenly felt a bit gloomy. He thought to himself that from now on, he could no longer say the phrase, "If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up"—it was truly unlucky.
"What's wrong, Commander?"
Ella, noticing Julian's strange expression, thought he had encountered some tricky problem and asked curiously.
"Nothing," Julian shook his head.
Just then, Gengar suddenly appeared beside Julian.
"How did it go? Did you find anything?" Julian asked.
He had sent Gengar to the Dawson family. With Gengar's absolute invisibility, even if Eric was a champion, it would be difficult for him to detect it.
"Gen~"
Gengar: "I couldn't get in."
Its reply surprised Julian.
"What do you mean, ‘couldn’t get in’?" Julian frowned.
Gengar: "There’s a red energy field surrounding the Dawson family. Once I enter the range of that red energy, I become visible."
Normally, the invisibility of Ghost-type Pokémon could only be broken in two ways—either through detection-type moves or through wide-range attacks that covered the area. As long as those attacks touched an invisible Ghost-type Pokémon, it would become visible.
Even the slightest touch, like a finger lightly brushing against an invisible Gengar, would make it visible.
Any amount of energy, no matter how small, would work as long as it touched an invisible Ghost-type Pokémon—making this one of the most effective ways to counter invisibility.
However, human technology had not yet advanced to the point of being able to release a sustained field of energy that affected Ghost-types without harming humans.
Therefore, Julian suspected that the red energy Gengar mentioned was most likely the energy emitted by the Red Orb.
That energy was like a lighthouse in the ocean, guiding Groudon in the right direction.
"Were you discovered?"
Since Gengar said it became visible due to the red energy, it might have been spotted.
Gengar nodded sheepishly, admitting that it had indeed been discovered when it became visible.
"But I ran fast, and they couldn't catch me," it said, a proud expression on its face as if recalling the frustrated looks of those who had chased it.
"Great job," Julian said dryly, clearly forcing the praise.
Now Eric must know that he had sent Gengar—after all, his Gengar was white, and there wasn’t a second white Gengar in the world.
A white Gengar appearing out of nowhere in the Dawson family estate, while he himself was in Victoria—it was obvious who it belonged to. Even a three-year-old wouldn’t believe otherwise.
"Gen~"
Gengar grinned smugly, then sank back into Julian’s shadow. But just as half of its body disappeared, it suddenly seemed to remember something.
Julian also felt that Gengar seemed to have forgotten to do something.
The next second, he felt his left cheek become damp, followed by a familiar wave of numbness spreading through his whole body.
"Gen~"
Gengar: "Now that feels better."
Ella, having witnessed this before, was no longer surprised. She had come to understand that this was just the unique way the two expressed their affection.
Still, this particular way of expressing affection was something ordinary people really couldn't manage.
Ella calmly watched as Julian trembling took out a Cheri Berry and swallowed it. Julian getting licked by Gengar had practically become one of his signature moments.
"Commander, since Groudon is heading toward Victoria, shouldn’t we do something? If a battle breaks out once it arrives, the aftermath might destroy the whole city," Ella asked with concern.
Victoria was a megacity with a population of over 30 million, rivaling metropolises like the Imperial Capital and Orient City in terms of prosperity.
"Don’t worry, I’ll think of something. If Groudon really comes, I have ways to deal with it," Julian said, finishing his berry and wiping his mouth with a napkin.
The Red Orb had already been activated, and Julian had no idea how to deactivate it. Even though the Elder Council had tasked a large number of Pokémon researchers with investigating, it was unlikely they would find a solution quickly, and it was uncertain whether such a method even existed.
If there was no way to deactivate the Red Orb, Groudon would undoubtedly arrive in Victoria.
Deep in the ocean, ten thousand meters below, the sleeping Kyogre suddenly opened its eyes.
It had sensed a familiar presence.
'Why has that land-walker awakened?'
'Well, it's good that it's awake. Our battle from a century ago isn't over yet.'
Kyogre closed its eyes again. For now, it still couldn't pinpoint Groudon's exact location, only sensing a vague impression.
It figured that the creature must still be moving through the underground magma, and until it emerged, there was no way to lock onto its position.
Julian had no idea that Groudon’s awakening had also stirred its old rival—Kyogre.
These two were eternal frenemies; in the TV series, every time they met, they fought. And before a victor could ever be decided, Rayquaza, the "big brother," would swoop in, stop the fight, and give both of them a good beating.
The same thing had happened in this world. Kyogre and Groudon had been discovered in two neighboring Ruins, and both awakened at nearly the same time.
As soon as they awoke, they started fighting. Their battle directly erased the country they were in from the planet. Just as the nations were struggling with the severe global weather changes caused by their conflict, Rayquaza made a dazzling appearance and put an end to their fight.
Since Kyogre hadn't moved, Jirachi naturally didn't sense anything. At this moment, it was busy fighting Celebi over the last pork knuckle bone.
Celebi: "Jirachi, there’s not much meat left on this bone—just let me have it."
Jirachi: "The best part of the pork knuckle is the meat on this bone! You’re the one who told me, ‘there are no friends and brothers at the dinner table,’ Celebi!"
Celebi: "How about I call you 'Dad,' and you let me have it?"
Jirachi: "How about I
call you 'Dad,' and you let me have it?"Celebi: "Jirachi, you're going too far! Who was it that taught you to eat fried chicken and drink cola?"
Jirachi: "'A master who teaches his apprentice too well risks starving himself.' Celebi, don't you even understand that?"
Celebi: "Fine! I’m going to make a wish!"
Jirachi: "My wishes are for Julian!"
Celebi: "Julian! Make a wish right now—wish for Jirachi to give me the pork bone!"
Listening to the two little ones argue, Julian lightly tapped both of them on the head.
Normally, they were the best of friends—but now, because of a single bone, they had turned against each other.
To preserve their friendship from being ruined by a pork knuckle, Julian simply reached out, grabbed the bone, and took a bite himself.
'Hmm, not bad at all.' The taste was really quite good—though maybe it was because he'd snatched it that it seemed even better.
Celebi froze. It had had its eye on that bone ever since the pork knuckle was served. In the end, neither it nor Jirachi got to eat it—instead, it was stolen by that shameless guy!
Celebi: "Jirachi, let's get him!"
Jirachi: "Celebi, attack together!"
Julian called out to the server, "Two more orders of pork knuckle, please."
Celebi and Jirachi: "Dad!"
*****
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