After submitting Zoroark's novel to Durin Publishing, Edward didn't bother following up. After all, print magazines still required some time for review and approval these days.
Still, he had a good feeling about Zoroark's story. The concept was genuinely original—massive cataclysmic Pokémon, water pollution, and entirely new types. Edward had never seen a novel like that before. If it became popular, there was even a chance it could be adapted into a movie by the company.
Meanwhile, Edward spent another half a month working on A Wicked Ghost before finally completing the film. He'd also inserted a few product placements—now that his fame was growing, more advertisers were eager to invest. That made his filmmaking budget far more flexible.
The special effects? All top-tier.
"Zoro… Shizuka, let the post-production team know to start editing as soon as possible," Edward casually instructed Zoroark. But as soon as he said the name, he saw Zoroark's half-smirking expression and quickly corrected himself.
Watching the cheerful Zoroark leave, Edward rubbed his face. It had been nearly a month, yet Zoroark still insisted on keeping that face and stubbornly demanded to be called "Shizuka." If Edward called it "Zoroark," it would just pretend not to hear him. In the end, Edward gave up arguing and went along with it.
Still, seeing how persistent Zoroark was about the name made Edward start to wonder—could that story it told be true? Had it really once been a girl, betrayed by her own village and killed, leading her to be reborn as a Ghost-type Pokémon?
"…Forget it." Edward decided to ask Grandpa Robert to consult with some historians in Sinnoh when he got back. If they could uncover any connections to Zoroark's story, that would be ideal. If not, well, that was fine too. After all, ordinary people were rarely recorded in history.
When Edward was young, he'd always wondered why people in ancient times cared so much about leaving their names in history—some even going to great lengths to achieve it. Only as he grew older did he understand: all people die, and once those who remember them are also gone, it's like they never existed at all. Being written into history meant that people would continue to know your name and your story. In a way, it was a form of immortality.
But even if Zoroark's story were true, as a regular girl who was killed unjustly, would her name have made it into the history of the Hisui era? That was doubtful.
So, Edward didn't expect too much. He just wanted to look into it out of curiosity—if it led to something, great; if not, no big deal.
With filming wrapped, Edward officially disbanded the production crew and rushed home. He'd been busy with the movie for quite a while and hadn't had time for anything else. Now that it was over, he was ready to relax—and also visit Gengar.
"Boss! I already passed along your instructions. The editing team will speed things up," Zoroark ran over, face flushed, clutching its chest as it panted heavily. Edward twitched at the sight—it was looking more and more like a regular human girl.
"Good work," Edward nodded. But then he noticed Zoroark still standing in front of him, blinking its big eyes at him. His eyelid twitched. What's this rascal up to now?
But Zoroark didn't pull any tricks. It just handed Edward a magazine and then skipped off, humming a strange little tune.
Edward glanced at the magazine.
It was Durin Magazine, a monthly publication known for featuring articles and serialized novels, especially popular in the Hoenn region. Edward had read it as a child and remembered it for its high-quality writing.
"This guy actually got published?" Edward was a little surprised. As soon as he saw the magazine, he knew why Zoroark had given it to him. Flipping through, he found the very novel Zoroark had submitted—it had indeed been selected for publication.
He tucked the magazine away. Zoroark might act ridiculous most of the time, but it had pulled off something impressive out of the blue. As long as it didn't slack off on its secretary duties, Edward didn't mind. After all, he'd gotten used to having Zoroark as his assistant—so much so that he didn't want to replace it with anyone else.
Zoroark might be mischievous and constantly pulling pranks, but when it came to its secretary work, it was exceptionally competent.
Once he arrived home—where he hadn't been in ages—Edward collapsed onto his soft bed, stretching out lazily with a contented sigh.
"…Oh, right." Just as he was about to take a nap, Edward remembered something. He grabbed his phone and checked his inbox.
Thanks to Edward's investigation, Team Magma had suffered a major blow. But the detective he hired to investigate Team Aqua hadn't sent any updates lately, which struck him as odd.
It wasn't that the detective had never gone silent before—he was cautious by nature—but he'd maintained a consistent habit of sending progress reports once a week. Now, however, there'd been nothing.
Edward checked the last message—eight days ago.
Feeling uneasy, he sent the detective a follow-up email.
"Hope nothing's happened… But if I recall, one of Team Aqua's bases was located near Slateport City," Edward murmured, narrowing his eyes.
The Hoenn region was one Edward knew well—he'd played the Ruby & Sapphire versions often, so he was very familiar with where Team Magma and Team Aqua had set up bases.
But with how massive the Pokémon world was in reality, he didn't want to waste time searching blindly, so he had hired a professional.
He had already shared the suspected location of Team Aqua's base with the detective. For them to go silent now… something wasn't right.
His phone buzzed.
"You've got new mail, Edward~" Rotom chimed.
Edward picked up his phone and checked.
[I've found something. We need to meet in person. I'm in Slateport City!]
(End of Chapter)