Mesprit remained hovering at the edge of Lake Verity.
The surface of the lake had already begun glowing with blue light, yet it still had not entered. Its arms were folded before its chest while its tails continuously crossed together.
'I still want…' Mesprit muttered softly, unable to let go.
"What else do you want?" Shiro asked.
Mesprit's gaze lost focus for a moment. In its memories, a familiar object surfaced.
Cold and cool. A little sweet...
'Ice cream!' Mesprit suddenly raised its voice and shouted happily.
Shiro rubbed his temples and lowered his head to think about the nearby map.
The closest place was Twinleaf Town, but the town's only restaurant did not sell ice cream. The sweetest things there were only cakes and cream puffs.
If they wanted to buy some, they could only return to Jubilife City.
Jubilife City...
Using Unown A and Unown G's psychic powers for long-distance teleportation, they could probably make a round trip within thirty minutes. It actually would not take too long.
Shiro raised his head, but just as he was about to speak, he discovered that Mesprit had already turned sideways and slowly drifted toward the sparkling lake surface.
'Next time.'
After saying that lightly, Mesprit spread open its arms. On its chest, a gray Everstone blended together with the color of its body, making it difficult to notice.
Shiro subconsciously stretched out his arm, yet when he opened his mouth, he realized he had no idea what to say.
In truth, he should be leaving too.
While his thoughts were still hazy, Shiro suddenly felt something appear in his hand. It was a small pink crystal.
'If you encounter danger... crush it, and you'll return here. I will wake up too…'
That final voice gradually faded beneath the clear blue lake water as white light completely swallowed Mesprit's pink figure.
* * *
On the way down the mountain, the trees on both sides rapidly passed by.
'Sigh, this really makes me emotional.'
Unown A stood on Shiro's shoulder with mixed feelings.
Sending away a great being like Mesprit should have made it happy. But after thinking carefully, aside from suppressing its status, Mesprit had never really done anything annoying. Normally it barely even talked or argued.
Mesprit had been imprisoned for so many years and had only recently regained its freedom. Perhaps it needed to stay by Shiro's side more than anyone else.
The moment it thought about that, Unown A's original relief instantly transformed into guilt, making it feel uncomfortable all over.
"A, you're an Unown," Shiro replied.
Humans might feel emotional over such things. Unown were not necessarily the same.
'Hey, I have feelings too, okay?' Unown A shook itself around indignantly.
Shiro did not respond again, but he suddenly felt as though he had forgotten something.
He gradually stopped halfway down the mountain within the forest.
"Right. The original plan was to leave immediately after dropping off Mesprit," he muttered to himself and took out a Poké Ball.
Actually, he could simply fly away.
Climbing the mountain was one thing. There was no need to waste time walking back down.
Unown A quickly said, 'Please! Just go say a few words to that creepy policeman and say goodbye to everyone else. It won't take long!'
Its emotions still had not settled down yet. It truly did not want to leave immediately.
Shiro hesitated briefly before finally nodding. "Fine."
Perhaps he really had been overthinking. This was not Galar after all. The people he met along the way genuinely did seem normal.
There should be no problem with saying goodbye to Looker...
Shiro continued heading downhill.
* * *
Twinleaf Town. Restaurant.
After Looker and Shiro left, the only customers remaining were the couple with their child.
The surroundings were very quiet. Anna sat on her chair with her face propped in her hands while her legs swung back and forth.
Hummmm!
An invisible psychic ripple flowed down from Lake Verity and spread across the skies above Twinleaf Town before seeping into the restaurant itself.
Clink!
At almost the same moment, two sets of knives and forks struck porcelain plates before being calmly set down.
With a gentle smile, the woman looked at her husband seated opposite her.
"Alfred, are you done eating?"
Alfred slowly wiped his mouth. His eyes were extremely cold and a fierce glint faintly flashed behind his glasses.
"Yes, Bella."
The two stood up simultaneously while Anna obediently hopped into the aisle beside them and waited for her parents.
"Boss, the bill please!"
Bella waved lightly and the owner quickly walked over.
After paying for the meal, Bella politely bowed slightly before taking her daughter's hand and leaving.
On Twinleaf Town's small dirt road, Alfred glanced at Anna and spoke coldly. "Still keeping such a troublesome—"
Bella raised a finger before he could finish. "We're parents. How could we abandon our child?"
Alfred looked away. "As long as she doesn't interfere with things."
Anna blinked blankly. Although she did not understand what the two adults were talking about, once she saw her mother's usual gentle smile, she happily skipped forward again.
"Let's go see that big brother," Bella said as she lowered her head toward her daughter.
"The big brother with the Piplup?" Anna asked back.
"That's right." Bella narrowed her eyes slightly. "Piplup..."
* * *
'I'm Piplup now~'
Unown A transformed into a Piplup and happily ran across the grass.
Shiro had already reached the foot of the mountain. The forest had thinned considerably and Twinleaf Town in the distance was becoming increasingly closer.
Everything before him felt relaxed and peaceful, almost dreamlike. Yet because of that, Shiro constantly felt uneasy, as if something bad could happen at any moment.
The Hunters Guild. The League's news.
They felt like fishbones stuck in his throat.
Back at the Hunters Guild headquarters not long ago, Shiro had often entertained a thought: directly wreak havoc there and wipe them all out.
But that place was extremely mysterious. Even psychic power could not escape. The entire area was covered in Dark-type materials...
After all, it was the hunters' main headquarters. If the Hunters Guild still possessed some terrifying hidden trump card, dying there would be the end of everything.
Charging in recklessly would most likely lead to capture.
And now, without Mesprit, the Hunters Guild became even more troublesome. Or rather, the truly troublesome ones were those ancient nobles with unknown motives.
Those worms hiding in the shadows...
Shiro did not know whether they had already set their sights on him. Even if they had not yet, once Oak published the research results, Shiro himself would openly stand against them.
While he was deep in thought, a crisp young voice suddenly rang out.
"Big brother!"
Anna ran forward while waving her hand. Her pink shirt and yellow skirt were covered with bits of grass. Her adorable face and short black hair stood out vividly, adding brightness even to the surrounding forest.
Though her arms and legs were short, she moved surprisingly fast. In no time at all, she arrived before Shiro.
"Piplup!"
Hearing her voice, Unown A immediately jumped over and was caught in Anna's embrace.
Shiro, however, stopped in place and looked toward the familiar couple standing not far behind her.
"My, Champion Shiro returned quite quickly..." Bella folded her hands before herself and smiled gently. "Looks like we arrived at just the right time."
Alfred remained expressionless and silent.
"You people..." Shiro placed his hand on Anna's shoulder and spoke in a low voice. "How did you know I was here?"
**
**
**
Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you can visit my P@treon:
P@treon/SilverShark769
Vote with Power Stones for Bonus Chapters!
Your support means a lot, thank you!