The fiery wings spread wide, and Rope gently flapped its wings before taking off from its spot and flying toward the window.
Meanwhile, Halley moved gracefully, disappearing from the Pokémon's sight before anyone noticed.
It must be said that Rope, being an elemental-type Pokémon, is rather crude... The fiery wings are indeed impressive, but they lack any sense of mystery or elegance, making them too flashy.
Halley, on the other hand, is different. Even as enemies, the Pokémon had to admit that this woman's methods had a certain style.
That said, everyone knew deep down that such matters ultimately came down to action.
Rope flew into the sky, where he could now see the distant battlefield.
The intensity of the battle in Kanto was, of course, much lower than in Sinnoh. Nevertheless, it remained in a highly intense state. Lance was now engaged in a fierce battle with the two demigods.
Lorelei was currently commanding the central forces. This had always been Lorelei's role.
Blue, on the other hand, was responsible for protecting the various research facilities in the Kanto region.
For example, the Oak Research Center, Bill's Lighthouse.
These research institutes were what they needed to protect. These were the very foundations of the world's development.
Rope and the others are well aware of this. The Oak Research Center is the hub of the entire research community. Virtually every doctorate recipient visits the Oak Research Center after earning their degree.
The Oak Research Center focuses on studying the relationship between humans and Pokémon. Many of the outcomes derived from this research have significantly advanced the world. To name just one example, the Pokédex has been developed generation after generation through Professor Oak's research.
The Pokédex represents the understanding of the relationship between humans and Pokémon.
Professor Oak cannot make Pokémon actively understand humans. However, he has succeeded in making humans understand Pokémon. With understanding comes awareness of taboos, which in turn reduces fear.
As for Bill's Lighthouse research, there is no need to elaborate further.
The communication system, or Pokémon trading, has fundamentally altered the landscape of the Trainer community. It has also spawned numerous other developments.
As for the research institute, it could be described as an institution dedicated to archaeology. Their understanding of mythology has reached an almost perfect level. After all, to determine the authenticity of myths, all they need to do is ask.
First, ask Hoopa, who is well-versed in all manner of gossip. If that doesn't work, just ask the deity involved.
In any case, the archaeology project eventually turned into an interview project.
The research materials in this institute aren't important. However, some of the research items are truly one-of-a-kind.
Blue is also extremely busy. He is currently mainly guarding the Oak Research Center. The Shallow Talk Research Institute was newly established, so when Rope sensed something was amiss, he began transferring the research materials.
This has significantly reduced Blue's stress.
As for Bill's Lighthouse, it can only be left to Shiba to guard. Fortunately, Rope managed to avoid a large-scale war this time, although the current situation is deadlocked. However, it hasn't reached the point of being completely hopeless.
Rope is well aware of this, which is why he intended to control the intensity of the war from the outset. Some battles really shouldn't be fought lightly.
As for the neighboring Johto region, it was truly neglected. Their own champion was guarding the Kanto region, and although they received a lot of resources, what use were those things in the current state of war? No amount of supplies could compare to the presence of a high-level combatant.
Fortunately, Cynthia, who had made the plan at the time, would not simply ignore the Johto region, so now the one guarding it was...
"Lord Giovanni, the situation over there hasn't changed much yet, but we should be able to handle them soon."
Koga spoke with respect. After all, he had once worked under Giovanni.
Giovanni stroked the Persian's head, his eyes narrowing slightly, filled with indifference.
"Good job, keep it up, and take care of Silver for me."
If it weren't for his son's stubborn insistence on helping Gold protect Johto, Giovanni would never have come out of retirement.
"Yes!"
Koga bowed and left.
It must be said that although Giovanni has indeed reformed, his aura as the leader of an evil organization remains unchanged.
Meanwhile, Rope looked down at Halley, who was standing on black mist with a smile on her face, and felt a bit surprised.
"Is that... Cloud Riding?"
Rope was astonished. Hearing the term, Halley was even more surprised.
"You actually know the exact name of this technique?"
Halley was well aware of the rarity of this technique. To be precise, very few leaders knew this technique. It wasn't that there were few of them, but rather that they were all in very high positions.
Moreover, the so-called "Cloud Riding" was just a general term. The leaders' own classifications were too complicated, so everyone just referred to this technique as Cloud Riding.
In reality, it's not entirely accurate.
However, the more critical point is that this technique is quite difficult to learn and doesn't offer much of a speed advantage. Unless it's a special type of cloud-riding technique, it's mostly just visually impressive.
Rope nodded. He was well aware of this technique. After all, in the legends of his hometown, one wouldn't dare claim to be an immortal if they couldn't perform Cloud Riding.
With this, Rope also gained some insight into the background of the master behind Halley. However, this information still didn't hold much significance.
If Halley could learn it, then others could too. It was unclear where the person behind Halley had learned it.
Rope said no more, simply igniting the flames in his hands. Like clutching two small suns, he charged toward Halley.
Halley's expression grew solemn. Black mist rose from his hands and was flung directly toward Rope.
Rope charged into the black mist. As soon as he entered it, he felt his flames being greatly suppressed.
This surprised Rope, but soon, as if adapting to the black mist, his flames rose again, though still somewhat suppressed compared to before.
As Halley waited for Rope to emerge from the black mist, two fire arrows burst out of it and flew toward Halley.
Halley quickly deployed a black light shield. A ball of purple-black energy condensed in the center of the shield and fiercely blasted towards the direction of the fire arrow.
It was just like a punch in the air, no sound.
The battle between the two began as they tested each other.