The wooden hut was silent, and neither of the two occupants broke the quiet first.
However, Ace quickly "couldn't hold out" and was the first to raise his head, looking at the Dragon Elder. "Grandma, saving the planet is just too grand for me..."
Hearing Ace say this, the Dragon Elder sighed slightly in her heart, a hint of disappointment on her face.
"...But, I want to give it a try."
This sudden turn almost made the Dragon Elder's old back give out.
The Dragon Elder looked at Ace, a hint of surprise appearing on her face.
Ace smiled slightly and said to the Dragon Elder, "Honestly, I don't have much confidence in saving the planet or anything like that. But the Dragon God you mentioned, Grandma, must be a Pokémon, right? I'm a Trainer, and I always have a sense of curiosity about unknown Pokémon. So, I plan to try it, to experience what it feels like to command a legendary Pokémon in battle."
Hearing Ace's words, the Dragon Elder was stunned, then gave a wry smile and shook her head. "You young people, I, an old woman, can't keep up with your thoughts anymore. But since you are willing to fight alongside the Dragon God, then the position of the Lorekeeper shall be yours."
With that, the Dragon Elder stood up and walked out, saying to Ace, "Wait for me here for a moment. I'll go prepare for the Lorekeeper's inheritance ceremony."
Ace nodded, and the Dragon Elder left the wooden hut.
The waiting time felt incredibly long. Besides a cheerful man bringing Ace lunch around noon, Ace waited from morning until dusk.
Just as Ace saw the sky beginning to darken, the Dragon Elder finally returned, leading Ace out of the wooden hut.
Ace followed the Dragon Elder out of the Draconid Village and arrived at Meteor Falls outside.
At this moment, at Meteor Falls, both cliffs were lined with people of the Draconid Village. When they saw the Dragon Elder leading Ace out, they all knelt on one knee, chanting an ancient song.
In this atmosphere, Ace followed the Dragon Elder onto the suspension bridge.
After the two stood steadily on the bridge, as the song reached its climax, dragon roars sounded from far to near.
Ace looked around and saw a large number of Dragon-type Pokémon surging in from all directions, circling and swirling around him.
Looking at so many Dragon-type Pokémon, Ace could tell that these were all opponents he had defeated back in the Dragon's Den.
And at the very top, Salamence, Garchomp, Noivern, and Kommo-o, standing on the cliff edge under the guidance of an elderly Dragonite, suddenly opened their mouths, converging the purest Dragon-type energy.
Following the actions of the five leading dragons, the Dragon-type Pokémon surrounding them also began to gather their power.
"Ace, take off your clothes and put this on."
The Dragon Elder spoke, and then a young woman walked over, carrying a tray.
On the wooden tray, two palm-sized items were neatly folded.
"These are clothes?"
Ace compared them with his hand; they didn't seem much bigger than his palm.
"You'll know when you try them. Take off your outer coat first."
The Dragon Elder said with a smile, which made Ace feel a bit helpless.
It was quite embarrassing to strip in front of so many people!
However, it seemed to genuinely be part of the ceremony, so Ace reluctantly took off his thick trench coat and waist bag.
"Take off the clothes underneath too. Just leave your underwear on."
The Dragon Elder continued.
Ace stared at the Dragon Elder, dumbfounded and helpless.
However, thinking of the mission, Ace gritted his teeth and took off his sweater and pants, leaving only his underwear. He shivered in the cold wind.
The Dragon Elder took out a pair of pants from the tray, unfolded them, and handed them to Ace.
Ace took them, looked at the pants that weren't much bigger than his underwear, and instantly felt like cursing.
But at the Dragon Elder's示意, Ace reluctantly put them on.
However, as Ace pulled on these shrunken pants, he realized that they were somewhat similar to women's stockings—they looked small but were incredibly elastic, completely encasing Ace's two legs without any feeling of tightness, as if Ace wasn't wearing pants at all.
More importantly, after putting this on, Ace, who had been shivering from the cold, felt his lower body completely insulated from the chill. He couldn't feel any coldness!
"Good stuff!"
Ace exclaimed inwardly, then took the other small, long-sleeved T-shirt-style garment from the Dragon Elder's hand and put it on.
The clothing remained loose, yet it fit snugly against Ace's body, fully revealing his subtly muscular physique.
After he had changed, the Dragon Elder pointed to the pool below and said to Ace, "Jump in."
Ace paused for a moment, then stretched his body and, following the Dragon Elder's instructions, jumped straight from the suspension bridge into the pool.
"Splash!"
The icy pool water instantly chilled Ace's exposed skin, but where the clothing covered him, he felt no coldness whatsoever.
As soon as Ace surfaced, he was met with the Dragon-type energy converged by numerous Dragon-type Pokémon!
A vast amount of Dragon-type energy surged into the water. The previously clear and transparent pool instantly turned into a vibrant emerald green.
Large quantities of Dragon-type energy flowed around Ace. The former chill was instantly dispelled, and a warm sensation rapidly surged through Ace's body.
"Roar!"
All the Dragon-type Pokémon roared to the sky, as if celebrating something.
And by Ace's side, text appeared before his eyes from the system.
"Host is absorbing pure Dragon-type energy. Body strength is increasing... Dragon-type affinity is increasing... Status condition resistance is increasing..."
This was a good thing, and it was a gift from all the Dragon-type Pokémon to Ace!
As the pool water gradually returned to its transparent state, the Salamence swooped down, arriving above the pool.
Seeing this, Ace immediately grabbed one of Salamence's feet. Using the strength in his arms, he smoothly climbed onto Salamence's back.
Salamence flapped its wings, carrying Ace back to the suspension bridge.
Leaping off Salamence's back, Ace landed on the suspension bridge. He touched the still-dry clothing, feeling the slightly raised, scale-like texture on it, and he had a rough idea of what this garment was made of.
However, as the Dragon-type energy was gradually absorbed, those raised scale-like pieces quickly flattened, and the entire garment once again became soft and silky.
"There's one last step."
The Dragon Elder personally carried out a wooden tray, and on it, six neatly arranged Key Stones were placed.
The Dragon Elder took the Key Stones from the tray, then walked to Ace's side and meticulously embedded them, one by one, into Ace's clothing.
The garment seemed to have a life of its own; its scales opened, firmly locking the Key Stones in place, securing them onto the clothing!