"Is that the sound of the lake water?"
As he walked along the mountainside surrounding Lake Verity, Shiro could hear the faint sound of flowing water mixed with a barely noticeable humming noise.
'The sound of the lake?' Unown A raised its sharp little head. 'I don't hear anything.'
Shiro quickened his pace.
Mesprit floated through the air ahead of him at a steady speed, completely unhindered. Although Shiro himself moved faster, the uneven slope beneath his feet, scattered with weeds and stones that could trip him at any moment, slowed him down somewhat.
'We're almost there.' Mesprit turned its head while speaking, then slowed down further.
After another ten or so minutes, they arrived at a valley, where Mesprit finally stopped.
Since Lake Verity was surrounded by mountain peaks, most valleys near the edges stood higher than the lake's surface. Those valley regions naturally became excellent habitats for Pokémon.
Standing on the grassy slope before the valley, Shiro watched as Mesprit shot directly to the top of the valley.
An invisible wave of pink psychic energy spread outward and soon enveloped several nearby mountain peaks.
For a moment, the forest trees swayed wildly and the grass rustled violently as the Pokémon inside became restless.
Shiro was slightly startled and instinctively took a step back.
Within the forest before him, numerous dark figures suddenly appeared. All of them were wild Pokémon native to the area.
But because he trusted Mesprit, Shiro did not turn around and leave.
"Biba! Biba! Bibaarel!"
A Bibarel carrying its dark dough-like tail hopped out.
"Tooooor!"
Surprisingly, that explosive roar came from a Torterra. The tree growing on its back and its body color blended almost perfectly into the forest. Shiro only noticed it after it walked closer.
"Lux..."
A lion-like Luxray slowly approached with a cold expression as black electric sparks flickered through its dark mane.
Alakazam, Roserade, Onix, Crobat, Gyarados...
One Pokémon after another, all of different species, continuously gathered from their habitats: forests, grasslands, caves, and the lake itself. They all arrived at the shallow grassy slope before the valley as roars and cries rose in succession.
Shiro continuously swept his gaze across the wild Pokémon while observing them carefully.
First, there were no repeated species here.
Second, every single one of them was at least Advanced-level in strength. He could even see many Gym-level Pokémon among them.
They were all the leaders of the local wild Pokémon groups!
What was this supposed to mean?
Shiro could not figure it out.
At that moment, Mesprit slowly floated down from the sky.
All the Pokémon below immediately let out mixed cries and roars.
The Bibarel closest to Shiro raised both paws high.
"Bibaaa! Bibareeel!" (Great God of Emotion! You've finally returned!)
The scene before him felt almost like some massive religious gathering, leaving even Shiro somewhat shocked.
Ordinary Pokémon would also gather together and worship Legendary Pokémon?
Before this, he had only seen humans do such things.
Was it because Mesprit was special, or because these Pokémon were more intelligent?
Perhaps it was both.
Mesprit floated over and Shiro suddenly felt a soft weight land on top of his head. A pair of shining golden eyes also lowered into his field of vision.
'These are all my friends,' Mesprit said softly.
Shiro nodded slightly.
Mesprit tugged at his hair several times.
"???"
Shiro had no idea what it meant.
'That…' Mesprit repeated softly. 'Blocks…'
Blocks?
Shiro quickly thought of Pokéblocks.
Then he glanced around at the numerous wild Pokémon nearby. They could basically be considered Mesprit's underlings too.
Did it want him to feed these little followers Pokéblocks?
Hiss… There were quite a lot of them.
Although it hurt a little inside, Shiro still took out his Pokéblocks from his backpack. With Unown A's help, he sorted them according to types and placed them before the appropriate Pokémon.
"Toor?"
Torterra did not hesitate at all. It swallowed the Pokéblock in one bite and even chewed off a layer of grass beneath it.
The Bibarel in front of Shiro hesitated briefly, but after smelling the fragrance of the Pokéblock, it carefully picked one up in its mouth. Soon its eyes lit up as it lowered its head and sped up its eating.
The other Pokémon quickly finished their portions as well, and they all seemed much more relaxed afterward.
Luxray even lay down on its side and exposed its blue belly.
Even this feline Pokémon had made a friendly gesture… Shiro forcefully resisted the urge to rub its belly.
Turning his head, he discovered Unown A secretly stuffing Psychic-type Pokéblocks into its mouth.
Stealing while supervising?
More importantly, the number of Pokéblocks left in Shiro's backpack was now pitifully low.
He would need to find a way to restock them.
Before Shiro could say anything, Unown A instantly finished the Pokéblock and pretended nothing had happened.
'They're all very friendly Pokémon~' It casually spoke nonsense.
Just then, Mesprit flew into the air and once more released waves of psychic energy.
'You may all return now...'
Its light voice drifted across the lake surface.
The Pokémon no longer lingered. One after another, they turned around and returned to their original habitats.
"Biba!"
Bibarel even waved at him.
Shiro silently raised his hand and waved back lightly.
So this was Mesprit's hometown...
Bibarel dropped onto all fours and quickly rushed back into the forest.
Most of the Pokémon disappeared from sight within a minute.
But not long afterward, Bibarel's round black tail popped back out again. It ran all the way to Shiro and stood upright. Its simple eyes held tiny bean-sized black pupils, revealing an honesty completely unlike humans.
"Bibaaarel!" (This is for you!)
It held out a red berry that looked newly picked and extremely fresh.
"For me?"
Shiro froze for a moment before reaching out to accept it. He watched blankly as Bibarel ran off once more.
'It's a Razz Berry!' Unown A floated over with its single eye close to the fruit. 'If you don't want to eat it, I can—'
Shiro stuffed the entire berry into his mouth in one bite.
Instantly, sweat burst out across his forehead.
Only after seeing Unown A's grinning face did he realize something was wrong.
He had been careless!
It was a little spicy...
No, it was unbelievably spicy!
After barely swallowing it down, Shiro hurriedly pulled out water from his backpack to rinse his mouth.
"…."
After resting on the grass for a while and wiping away his sweat, Shiro finally recovered.
Unown A wisely hid itself, avoiding Shiro's dark stare.
'I'm going home now,' Mesprit suddenly said.
Shiro looked at it in confusion. "Isn't this already your home?"
Mesprit shook its head and flew from above his head toward the edge of Lake Verity.
'It was born at the bottom of Lake Verity. After returning, it must also sleep at the bottom of the lake,' Unown A explained.
"Sleep..." Shiro murmured softly.
Which meant that once it entered its slumber, even if something happened near Lake Verity, Mesprit would not be able to provide support in time?
'More or less,' Unown A explained further. 'Sleeping at the bottom of Lake Verity is its mission. It's also His command. An absolute command that cannot be disobeyed.'
"So this was set by Him again..."
Shiro slowly walked forward.
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