Upon seeing this, Cynthia immediately said without hesitation:
"His online name is Kairos, and he's the creator of a game called [Pokémon: Emerald]."
"I previously had someone look into his files, but they ultimately found nothing. They said he should be in the League's classified database. Plus, his understanding of Pokémon is quite astounding, so I think he might be someone from a key research field."
"Wait a moment. This matter is too important. I'll go check immediately."
The elder's excited voice came through the phone. Cynthia said nothing and sat quietly, waiting for the elder's response.
A full minute later, the elder's voice came through the phone again.
"Little Cynthia, are you sure the identity information you gave is correct?"
Hearing this, Cynthia was immediately stunned, then nodded.
"I'm sure."
Honestly, she already had an ominous feeling.
After all, if the search had gone smoothly, they wouldn't be reacting like this.
Sure enough, moments later, the elder's voice came through, filled with confusion.
"I just looked carefully, and there's no one in the classified database whose information matches what you described."
"I checked the game you mentioned. The identity information in the game creator column is a string of garbled code."
"Not only that, the SkyNet system also found that a player account called [Decent Person] on Battle Road has the same garbled code in place of their identity number."
"Decent Person... garbled code??"
Now, even Cynthia couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Could that Decent Person also be him?!
If it was just the game registration information being garbled code, that would be one thing—it could just be a system bug from Dream Factory.
After all, this game company had the most bugs in the industry, so such a situation wouldn't be strange at all.
But if even the League's official website had the same garbled code for the Pokémon Emerald registrant information, and it was identical, then this definitely wasn't a bug issue!
While Cynthia was surprised, the elder's voice came through the phone again.
"I tried having people trace that game's profit accounts, but found nothing could be traced. That money just disappeared into thin air without any records."
"All other information that might be connected to his identity, even IP addresses, cannot be queried!"
"...I can only think of one possibility for this situation."
"—This person should be using some extremely powerful technical means to perfectly hide his identity."
"I could send people to investigate if he left any traces... but that game website is a sub-site of the League's official site, connected to SkyNet. If he can even fool SkyNet, then the people I send probably..."
The elder didn't continue, but Cynthia already understood what he meant.
Mai couldn't find anything, and even SkyNet, the League's highest network achievement, couldn't find a trace either.
Trying to obtain the other party's identity information through this method to contact him was basically impossible.
At first, Cynthia thought the creator, "Wind," was just a trainer with a deep understanding of legendary Pokémon.
But as time passed, not only had this person's veil not been lifted before her eyes, it had become increasingly mysterious and profound.
She took a deep breath and said:
"I understand, Grandma Carolina. You don't need to investigate anymore. I have another way to contact him."
"Leave it to me. I will definitely bring back information about Ultra Wormholes."
"Alright, child. Let me know anytime if you need support."
The elder replied very seriously.
She knew that any promise Cynthia made would definitely be fulfilled.
"Please help me find another Champion to cover my recent routine patrols and emergency missions. I'll compensate them later."
Cynthia replied.
"Alright."
The elder agreed readily.
At this point, having calmed down, Cynthia suddenly realized she had been too hasty in her urgency to ensure civilian safety and solve the Ultra Wormhole issue.
Even if she had forcibly contacted this person by searching for his identity, how could she guarantee he would definitely help her and reveal all the Ultra Wormhole information?
The other party had deliberately set up a challenge to obtain contact information, and by bypassing this challenge, she was undoubtedly being disrespectful.
She looked up at her first-place progress position on the game leaderboard and took a deep breath.
Since she was the one asking for help, she should follow the other party's rules.
After ending the call, Cynthia returned to her computer, turned on her livestream camera and microphone, and said with an apologetic forced smile:
"Sorry, everyone, I just had some urgent matters to handle. They're resolved now."
The livestream audience quickly flooded the chat with comments:
[It's okay, boss. Do whatever you want. We'll wait here for you.]
[You scared me. I thought the streamer couldn't handle losing and went to challenge the game creator offline.]
[Streamer, you're awake! You've already become Gardevoir!]
There were also many comments showing concern for Cynthia.
[Hahaha... Sister Cynthia, don't put too much pressure on yourself. Even if you have many missions, pay attention to your health and rest well.]
[Exactly, exactly. I've seen you going on missions a lot lately. Sigh, I feel tired just watching you.]
[Right, even though you're a Champion, you're still just a girl at heart. Remember to be good to yourself!]
Seeing these caring comments, Cynthia's gaze momentarily drifted.
After a while, her unfocused pupils refocused with renewed determination and fell back on the screen.
The dialogue box popped up again, and Gladion, standing across from her, spoke.
"Ah... I know these things might be troublesome for you, but this is really important, so please help me!"
"Oh, here, take this first."
As he spoke, he pulled out a box and handed it to Cynthia.
Inside the box was an irregular, deep black crystal.
A game notification popped up before her eyes.
[Ding! Congratulations, player, you have obtained the special item "Ultra Crystal"!]
Gladion's explanation followed.
"This is an Ultra Crystal, from a special crystal stone inside Ultra Wormholes. When it senses an Ultra Wormhole nearby, it will glow red to warn you. The closer you get, the stronger the glow becomes."
"The larger the crystal, the stronger the effect. Yours can probably work within a 5-kilometer range."
"Also, this crystal can be used to make a special Poké Ball. Only this type of Poké Ball can capture Ultra Beasts."
"We're currently developing this type of Poké Ball further. When we have a finished product, I'll give you some when we meet again."
"Alright, I need to continue searching for Ultra Wormholes. See you later! If you find anything, contact me using the communication number on the box!"
After speaking, Gladion snapped his fingers. Silvally's figure instantly appeared beside him, carrying him as they spread their wings and flew into the sky, disappearing from sight.
Cynthia looked at the Ultra Crystal that had appeared in her bag, deep in thought.
From what she knew about Ultra Wormholes, the Ultra Beasts couldn't be captured normally with Poké Balls, even after being defeated.
A research team had once tried to forcibly bring an Ultra Beast back to the laboratory for study, but during transport, the Ultra Beast turned into gas in front of everyone and disappeared into thin air.
So this thing called Ultra Crystals might also exist in the real world!
If the League could find it... they could provide early warning for Ultra Wormhole appearances and try to make Poké Balls capable of capturing Ultra Beasts using this material!
But this probably wouldn't be easy either. Currently, they could only passively combat Ultra Wormholes. Forget about approaching Ultra Wormholes—even defeating those Ultra Beasts was extremely difficult...
Thinking of this, Cynthia shook her head slightly. There were still too few clues and information about Ultra Wormholes.
She could only hope that the next time she met Gladion, she would learn more.
Or... let herself personally experience entering an Ultra Wormhole in this game!
While Cynthia was pondering, her phone suddenly rang.
She looked down and saw it was a call from Professor Oak.
Originally, Cynthia wanted to use this opportunity to discuss Ultra Wormholes with Professor Oak, but she ultimately decided not to mention it first.
Although Professor Oak was a Champion in his early years, he was quite old now. At his age, still dedicating himself to Pokémon research was already quite remarkable.
Although Professor Oak knew a thing or two about Ultra Wormholes, it really didn't concern him much now.
With the current situation of Ultra Wormholes, there was simply no possibility of conducting close-range research on them.
Even if she told Professor Oak about this new intelligence and information, it wouldn't help much with the Ultra Wormhole situation.
Bringing up these matters with him now would purely be adding to the old man's worries.
With that thought in mind, Cynthia answered the phone.
Professor Oak's laughter came through from the other end.
"Hey, little Cynthia! How's the game going? I see you're already in first place!"
"Not bad. I'm already preparing to head to the next city. It seems I need to trigger some storyline before I can take the cable car to Lavaridge Town to challenge the next gym."
Cynthia replied honestly.
"How about you, Professor?"
"Me? I'm already preparing to go to Dewford Town. Those three fossil Pokémon are really quite troublesome to deal with."
Professor Oak said.
Cynthia was stunned.
"Three? You mean?"
"Yes, that Archen is also a fossil Pokémon. My team found its feather and tooth fossils among our stored Pokémon fossils, perfectly matching what's in the game. We were still guessing which Pokémon these fossils belonged to, but it turned out to be another new ancient Pokémon."
Professor Oak continued, somewhat excitedly.
"Quite the find, right? We're still trying to understand how they fit into the larger ecosystem. But it looks like we've got a lot more to explore."
Cynthia thought for a moment and sent Professor Oak a screenshot she had just taken of a Pokémon called Silvally.
"Professor, take a look at this Pokémon. Do you recognize it? It can freely switch its form and corresponding type during battle."
She paused and then added, "Also, I think I saw an unfamiliar green hedgehog-like Pokémon in the flower bed next to Mauville City earlier."
After a moment of silence, Professor Oak finally responded with a thoughtful hum.
"Hiss—I've never seen this Silvally you mentioned either. Can it really change its type freely? How fascinating."
"As for that hedgehog-like Pokémon, I haven't heard of it either," he continued. "But I do know the flower you mentioned."
Cynthia perked up at this. "You do?"
"Yes," Professor Oak replied, "Interestingly, it's a plant unique to your Sinnoh region, commonly growing in the highland areas of Mt. Coronet. It's said that its branches, leaves, fruits, and seeds all have extremely strong healing effects for Pokémon."
Cynthia was intrigued. "That's incredible. I didn't know about that."
Professor Oak sighed softly, his voice tinged with a bit of regret. "Unfortunately, that flower went completely extinct several decades ago for unknown reasons, and no trace has been found since."
Cynthia frowned, her mind racing. "What if we could find it again? If modern research technology could be used..."
"Ah, if only," Professor Oak said wistfully. "If we could find even one specimen, we might be able to cultivate it again. Imagine what it could mean for Pokémon medicine and healing..."
Cynthia couldn't help but think of the seed she had acquired while playing the game—the Gracidea flower seed. But, of course, it was an in-game item, not something real.
She kept her thoughts to herself for now, but the idea of actually obtaining a real Gracidea flower seed was both exciting and a little bittersweet. If only it were real.
After briefly chatting with Professor Oak, Cynthia got back to the game. She continued controlling her character through Fiery Path, making her way left along the route, eventually arriving at a grassy area covered in volcanic ash. She began encountering several NPC battles along the way.
Fortunately, these NPCs weren't particularly challenging, as expected—mostly coming in to donate experience and money.
After easily defeating them, Cynthia's Pokémon leveled up, reaching level 28.
While progressing, she discovered a small house nestled in the volcanic ash-covered grassland.
Curious, she entered, and a man immediately approached her.
"Volcanic ash is created from fragments produced by volcanic eruptions... Many people don't like it, but few know that it can be fired into glass and used to make special items, so these are all valuable treasures!"
He smiled as he introduced himself. "I'm the Volcanic Ash Guy. If you can collect enough volcanic ash, you can exchange it here for special items made from volcanic ash or other rewards."
The man handed Cynthia a bag and explained that she could now collect volcanic ash automatically by walking around the area.
Cynthia checked her bag and then opened the chat window to see the list of possible rewards she could exchange volcanic ash for.
She raised an eyebrow, surprised by the range of items on offer.
Among the volcanic ash-made items were yellow, blue, and red glass flutes—each with a unique function to cure status conditions like sleep, confusion, and infatuation.
There were also black and white glass flutes that increased the probability of encountering either strong or weak Pokémon.
But what truly caught Cynthia's attention was a held item that could be exchanged for 1000 volcanic ash.
—Leftovers.
She knew exactly how important this item could be, especially in long, drawn-out battles. Leftovers gradually restored a Pokémon's HP each turn, making it a valuable asset, particularly for high-endurance Pokémon.
Recalling her recent gym battles, Cynthia knew this could give her the edge in future confrontations.
Without hesitation, she made her decision.
At the very least, she had to get her hands on that Leftovers.
She quickly left the building and began running through the volcanic ash-covered grass.
After a few steps, a child suddenly popped out from behind a pile of volcanic ash and challenged her to a battle.
[How was my camouflage? Did I scare you?]
Cynthia smiled at the child's playful remark and defeated them effortlessly, continuing to gather volcanic ash along the way.
A few minutes later, she returned to the volcanic ash house. The man was already waiting with a broad grin on his face.
"I didn't expect you to collect so much volcanic ash... Come exchange it for the rewards you want."
"You currently have 2156 volcanic ash. What would you like to exchange?"
Cynthia, with a satisfied smile, first spent 1000 volcanic ash for the Leftovers. Then, she used another 600 volcanic ash to exchange for two flutes—one that increases the probability of encountering high-level Pokémon, and one for weak Pokémon.
As for the status-curing flutes, she decided to grab two of each, just in case.
After spending a bit more, she still had over 500 volcanic ash left.
She was about to use the remainder for practical items like Poké Balls and potions when something caught her eye in the reward list.
It was a rusty, gray iron sword, covered in chips and cracks.
There were two prompts at the bottom of the item description:
[Rusted Sword]
[Exchange cost: ??? Volcanic ash points]