Yuga and the others did not go all out with their attacks, so although the Dragon-type Pokémon were defeated, they were not in any real danger.
The girl who had been singing saw that even the reinforcements she had called couldn't do anything against Yuga and the others. Her attitude finally softened. She still wanted to summon more help, but Yuga and the others weren't going to give her that chance.
Steven's Metagross directly used psychic power to knock her unconscious.
After the girl fell unconscious, Latios and Latias immediately signaled for Yuga and the others to leave. Steven pointed to the unconscious girl and asked, "What about this girl?"
But Latios and Latias indicated that they didn't need to worry about her, just leave her here.
Yuga said, "Isn't that a bit irresponsible? What if she runs into danger?"
Latios explained that this place was already within the boundaries of Dragon Island, and other Pokémon wouldn't dare approach. Leaving the girl here wouldn't put her in any danger.
So Yuga and the others had no choice but to place the girl and the defeated Dragon-type Pokémon on the reef, and then they followed Latios and Latias away. After all, the couple was absolutely unwilling to bring the girl and those Dragon-type Pokémon with them.
Even though they all lived on Dragon Island, their relationships with each other were far from harmonious.
The couple even warned Yuga and the others not to have any ideas about the girl or those Dragon-type Pokémon—otherwise, the others on the island wouldn't let them off the hook.
The three of them followed Latios and Latias flying for a while, and finally, a massive island appeared before their eyes. However, the area surrounding the island was filled with turbulent currents, making it nearly impossible for ordinary people or Pokémon to approach.
But this wasn't a problem for Yuga and his group. They all switched to Flying Pokémon and easily flew through the turbulent area.
Just as the three were about to follow Latios and Latias to land on the island, they suddenly heard waves of dragon roars coming from the island. Then, they saw several more Latios and Latias flying out from the island.
Yuga and the others were extremely shocked. They hadn't expected that there would be more Latios and Latias on Dragon Island, and not just one or two.
One, two, three... The three of them counted: this time, there were two Latios and three Latias that appeared.
These Latios and Latias, upon seeing the couple return, happily flew over and surrounded them, greeting them affectionately and not forgetting to comfort the Mudkip—the little one who had been abducted by bad people.
However, when they saw Yuga and the others, their attitudes immediately changed. All of them glared at the group with alertness and hostility.
Because of the incident where Mudkip had been abducted, all the Latios and Latias on the island had become very wary of and unfriendly toward outsiders.
So the couple began to explain everything that had happened back in Verdanturf Town.
Once the other Latios and Latias understood the situation, the hostility in their expressions faded, but their attitudes toward Yuga and the others still didn't improve. Two of them even opposed allowing the group to step foot on the island.
However, after some discussion among the Latios and Latias, they finally decided to allow Yuga and the others to set foot on Dragon Island.
Dragon Island was an incredibly beautiful place. The island was filled with lush green trees and blooming flowers, simply a paradise hidden from the world.
Originally, Yuga and the others thought that since this place was called Dragon Island, it must be home to a vast number of Dragon-type Pokémon. But as they followed the Latios and Latias along the way, they didn't see any other Dragon-type Pokémon.
Instead, there were plenty of common Pokémon—ones often seen in the outside world like Pidgey, Raticate, Sentret, Butterfree, and Ariados… and also some rare ones not often seen in the wild, such as Vulpix, Eevee, and Ralts...
These Pokémon lived happily on the island, freely playing and frolicking. When they saw Yuga and the others, they didn't show fear. Some even curiously ran over to follow them for a while, but were soon scolded and chased away by Latios or Latias.
The three of them, riding their Pokémon, followed Latios and Latias for who knew how long, until a freshwater lake appeared before them. Here, even more Pokémon lived, and the surrounding area was covered in large expanses of fruit trees.
As Latios and Latias let out a dragon's roar to announce their return, four more Latios and three more Latias flew out from the center of the lake.
This meant that there were actually six Latios and six Latias on this island.
After the couple who had returned from outside recounted everything that had happened, the group of Latios and Latias gathered together and began whispering among themselves. Yuga and the others did not interrupt them.
It's unclear how much time passed, but eventually, a Latios slowly flew over. He was the leader of all the Latios and Latias, and, surprisingly, he could use telepathy.
"Humans, greetings. Welcome to Dragon Island as our guests," the Latios leader said kindly.
From their expressions, it was obvious that the other Latios and Latias were not welcoming of Yuga and the others, but this leader still spoke calmly and openly, saying "welcome."
Just as Steven was about to speak, the Latios leader interrupted him and turned to Yuga, asking: "I heard that this gentleman has some of our kin by his side. May I see them?"
This information had naturally been shared by the returning couple with the other Latios and Latias.
Yuga didn't refuse and answered with a smile: "Of course you may!" As he spoke, he released his own Latios and Latias.
It was clear that this group of Latios and Latias had something on their minds—at the very least, this Latios leader's intentions weren't entirely pure.
Either way, better to wait and see what happens! Yuga thought silently to himself.
When Yuga's Latios and Latias first came out, they looked a little confused. But upon seeing so many of their kin, their moods quickly improved.
As legendary Pokémon, Latios and Latias were extremely rare in number, so seeing members of their own kind was certainly a joyful event.
A group of Latios and Latias surrounded Yuga's Latios and Latias, fawning over them warmly. Their attitude was completely different from how they treated Yuga and his companions.
They even suggested taking Yuga's Latios and Latias around the island for a walk.
However, Yuga's Latios and Latias had somewhat withdrawn personalities and weren't used to such overwhelming enthusiasm from their kin.
Moreover, they had lived a long time and were not so naive—they gradually sensed that this over-the-top hospitality from their kind might not be so simple. Subtly, they glanced at Yuga, using their eyes to seek his opinion.
Yuga quietly nodded at his Latios and Latias, signaling for them to play it by ear. With that, the sibling pair left, surrounded by the group of Latios and Latias.
But although the exchange between Yuga and the siblings was discreet, the Latios leader was no fool—he noticed the small gestures between the human and the two Pokémon.
Seeing how obedient the brother and sister were to a human, the expression on the Latios leader's face turned somewhat dark and unreadable.
Once the sibling pair and the other Latios and Latias had left, the Latios leader spoke again in a gentle tone: "You've traveled such a long way to get here—you must be tired. I'll have another Pokémon lead you to a place where you can rest."
Before Yuga and the others could decline, the Latios leader had already summoned an Umbreon, instructing it to lead them to a place to rest.
Steven and Robert looked toward Yuga, wanting to say something but hesitating. Yuga lightly shook his head at the two of them, then followed behind the Umbreon. In the blink of an eye, the Latios leader disappeared without a trace.
The Umbreon had a very proud attitude. It held its head high and chest out as it walked ahead, leading the way without looking back even once. The three humans followed behind, constantly exchanging glances with one another in silent communication.
Under Umbreon's guidance, Yuga and the others passed through dense layers of forest and eventually arrived near a beach by the sea, where a wooden cabin stood.
This wooden cabin was previously built by the Pokémon on the island for those Pokémon hunters. At that time, the Pokémon were not as hostile toward outsiders as they are now.
However, after some time being eroded by the sea breeze, the cabin was no longer as sturdy as when it was first constructed. But Umbreon didn't care at all. Stepping onto the creaky wooden boards, it led the three into the cabin.
There was nothing inside the wooden cabin. Apart from being able to shelter from the wind and rain, it served no other purpose.
"Umbreon~"
Alright, have a good rest. I'm leaving now.
With that, Umbreon walked out of the cabin.
But right after Umbreon left, two Noctowl silently landed on a big tree not far from the wooden cabin. Hidden within the overlapping layers of leaves, they watched Yuga and the others' every move inside the cabin with sharp, piercing eyes.
After Umbreon left, Yuga thoughtfully walked over to the window and happened to notice that large tree. He then proceeded to close the window.
"What do you think they mean by this?" Steven instinctively lowered his voice as he asked.
After thinking for a few seconds, Robert said, "Their hostility toward us is to be expected. But their strange behavior now probably means they're targeting Yuga's Latios and Latias."
As he finished speaking, he looked at Yuga with a worried expression, afraid that Yuga's Latios and Latias might be influenced or manipulated by their kin on the island.
Yuga smiled and shook his head at him, signaling that there was no need to worry. He understood his own Latios and Latias well—seeing their own kind certainly made them happy, but it was not enough to make them betray their Trainer. That would be extremely difficult.
After all, even under someone like King Robi's control, they never once considered betrayal. Surely, he couldn't be worse than King Robi.
"So, what should we do next?" Steven asked.
Yuga smiled and took out a camera from his space backpack, saying: "Of course, we complete the mission the League assigned to us!"
Besides safely escorting the Latios, Latias, and Mudkip family back home, the League had also instructed them to investigate and understand the habitat of these two legendary Pokémon.
Upon hearing this, Steven and Robert exchanged knowing smiles.
And so, Yuga, Steven, and Robert settled down on the island. They weren't picky about the primitive living conditions and behaved very well, staying quiet and cooperative. This went on for several days, and they noticed that the Pokémon watching them began to lower their guard bit by bit.
Over the next few days, whenever they had free time, Yuga and the others would stroll around the island, holding cameras in their hands—snapping photos here and there. Life was relatively peaceful and relaxed.
The Pokémon on the island didn't restrict their freedom. Aside from a few specific locations, Yuga and the others were free to move around. After a few days, they had taken quite a number of photographs and had investigated most of the nearby areas thoroughly.
However, the surveillance from the island's Pokémon never stopped. No matter where they went, they could always feel a faint gaze watching them from behind.
Also, the Pokémon on the island were not allowed to interact with them. Some naive young Pokémon, curious and wanting to approach Yuga and the others, would be sternly scolded and stopped by the other Pokémon.
In these past few days, Yuga had not seen his Latios and Latias again, but he remained extremely calm and unbothered—not the least bit anxious.
On this day, just like the past few days, Yuga and the others went out for a casual walk. As they were walking, they suddenly heard a commotion coming from one direction.
"What happened?" Steven asked.
Yuga shook his head. "I don't know, but it sounds like a battle is happening."
Upon hearing this, Robert said, "Yuga, aren't you worried about your Latios and Latias?"
Yuga wasn't completely unworried, but he didn't show it. He shook his head and said, "Let's wait a bit longer and see what happens."
The three of them then acted as if they hadn't heard the commotion coming from the distance and continued to stroll around casually.
After walking a round, just as the three were about to head back to the wooden cabin, a dark shadow suddenly fell from the sky, landing directly at their feet—it was a Noivern, and on its back was a beautiful young girl.
The girl was the same singing girl they had met before entering Dragon Island.
At this moment, both the girl and the Noivern were injured.
"It's you guys!" the girl exclaimed in surprise, wincing in pain as she looked at the three of them. Then, warily, she hugged her Noivern. But the Noivern was already unconscious and could no longer provide her with any sense of security.
Seeing this, Yuga said, "If you don't mind, I can help you two with healing."
"What are you plotting?" the girl did not relax her guard because of Yuga's words—instead, she became even more defensive.
Robert said, "There was never any enmity between us before. We just want to help you, that's all."
With her injuries preventing her from moving and Noivern unconscious, the girl had no choice in the end but to accept Yuga's help.
Under Yuga's treatment, Noivern quickly regained consciousness. The girl breathed a sigh of relief and said to the three of them: "I'll remember this kindness you've shown me."
Not long after, the girl rode on Noivern and disappeared into the sky. Before she left, Yuga even gave her some healing medicine.
Shortly after the girl left, the Latios leader appeared in front of Yuga and the others. The three were not surprised—after all, they had been under surveillance the entire time.
"You helped Shaya?" the Latios leader asked.
Shaya was the name of the singing girl.
"You mean the girl who can sing?" Yuga asked while secretly observing the Latios leader's expression. He knew that the girl had a bad relationship with Latios and Latias, but he didn't know just how bad it was.
"Shaya can indeed sing, but she's no girl—her age is older than your grandmother," the Latios leader said with an unchanged expression.
…
No way, that girl looked like she was only in her teens—she's actually an old lady? The three of them showed expressions of shock.
But all three were seasoned and knowledgeable individuals—the look of surprise on their faces only lasted for a brief moment before they returned to normal.
Before Yuga and the others could say anything, the Latios leader continued, "I still have things to do, so I'll be going now." He didn't seem angry about Yuga and the others helping Shaya, and his visit seemed like a casual inquiry.