At this moment, the sensation Kyogre experienced was as if it had just awakened from a long, deep slumber, eaten its fill of offerings, and then received a full-body spa massage. The comfort and satisfaction were beyond words, an indulgent, almost blissful state that made even a being like it feel utterly at ease.
The way it looked at Theo changed instantly.
If every time it woke up, it could enjoy such treatment, then life would truly be perfect.
At this point, Kyogre no longer cared about the faint and almost negligible annoying aura lingering on the Larvesta. It opened its mouth slightly, and a dense blue energy began to gather within. The energy slowly condensed, taking shape until it formed a droplet-shaped ornament, remarkably similar to the one worn on Wallace's chest.
The ornament drifted gently toward Theo and lightly settled around his neck. The moment it touched his skin, a cool sensation spread throughout his entire body, as if some subtle connection had been established between him and Kyogre.
After finishing all this, Kyogre gave Theo a slight nod, as if expressing its acknowledgment. Then its massive body slowly rose, merging once more into the clouds above.
With a single flap of its fins, the dense storm clouds dispersed instantly. Sunlight poured down upon Sootopolis City once again, and a magnificent rainbow arched across the lake's surface.
Kyogre's figure turned into a streak of blue light under the sunlight, shooting upward and vanishing into the distant sky.
Only after Kyogre's aura had completely disappeared did the water currents supporting Theo gently lower him back to the ground.
At this moment, Larvesta finally dared to lift its head. Looking at the droplet-shaped ornament around Theo's neck, it let out a series of chirps, clearly relieved that it had narrowly escaped disaster.
Theo raised his hand and touched the ornament. He could clearly feel the immense energy contained within it.
"So this… is Kyogre's gift?" Theo murmured softly.
On the platform, Juan and Wallace had witnessed everything that had just happened. The two exchanged a glance, both seeing shock reflected in each other's eyes.
"Master… that was…" Wallace said in astonishment.
Juan slowly nodded, his gaze filled with complicated emotions.
"This is Lord Kyogre's recognition ceremony. Theo… just like the people of Sootopolis, he has been acknowledged as its representative."
As Juan looked at Wallace, his expression gradually turned more meaningful. His gaze circled around him as if reassessing him entirely. Finally, he let out a soft sigh, his tone carrying a hint of disappointment.
"Wallace, this is not right of you. You even kept this from your own master. You have a child out there and did not tell me, and you hid it so well. If Lord Kyogre had not appeared today, would I only find out when the child is already capable of standing on his own?"
"A child?"
Wallace froze as if struck by lightning, his eyes widening in disbelief.
"Master, what are you talking about? Since when do I have a child? This… how did you even come to that conclusion?"
He instinctively glanced down at Theo below the platform. The latter was currently focused on studying the droplet ornament around his neck, completely unaware of the conversation happening above.
Wallace's face flushed red instantly, both embarrassed and exasperated.
Where on earth did his master get such an idea? How did Theo suddenly become his child?
"Alright, alright, I understand," Juan waved his hand, wearing an expression that said he fully grasped the thoughts of young people.
"You youngsters value freedom in love these days. If you do not want to say it, I will not force you. Considering that this child has gained Kyogre's recognition and may lead the Water Festival in the future, I will not ask further. It is just…"
"Master…" Wallace felt his scalp tingle and hurriedly tried to interrupt, wanting to explain properly.
Juan waved him off again.
"Let us finish the festival first. Do not keep everyone waiting."
With that, he turned and walked toward the center of the platform, leaving Wallace standing there, caught between laughter and tears.
Wallace took a deep breath, suppressing the chaos in his mind. He decided to complete the ceremony first and explain everything later. Otherwise, with his master's loose tongue, who knew what ridiculous rumors might spread?
Meanwhile, Theo was still examining the droplet necklace gifted by Kyogre. Beneath the cool surface, he could faintly sense a gentle flow of water moving within it.
At that moment, the system interface that had been lagging for so long finally resumed normal operation and fully displayed itself before his eyes.
Ever since Kyogre had appeared, Theo had attempted to access the system panel to view its information, but all he saw were flickering alerts and strings of ellipses. Only now did the interface finally load completely.
Unlike other Pokémon, Kyogre's information panel shimmered with golden light, every word radiating an indescribable sense of divinity and majesty.
[Pokémon: Kyogre]
Type: Water
Category: Legendary Pokémon
Ability: Drizzle (When it moves, its energy fluctuations influence the surrounding environment, producing torrential rain that can extend across an entire region.)
Moves: Water Spout, Sheer Cold, Origin Pulse, Heavy Slam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Blizzard, Earthquake, Hyper Beam…
Theo's gaze lingered on the "Drizzle" ability for quite some time.
Ordinary Pokémon with this ability could only affect an area of tens to hundreds of meters, but Kyogre's could influence an entire region.
The strange rainfall phenomena that had simultaneously appeared across places like Mt. Chimney, Littleroot Town, and Oldale Town earlier were clearly the result of its power.
"As expected of a legendary Pokémon…" Theo thought to himself.
A being like this had already transcended the category of ordinary Pokémon. It was only natural that the system required more time to analyze it.
While Theo was lost in thought, the livestream audience finally recovered from their earlier shock.
The camera that had been perched on Larvesta's head had captured the entire close encounter between Theo and Kyogre, allowing viewers to experience it from a first-person perspective.
Now, the barrage of comments flooded in like a bursting dam:
"Holy crap! That nearly scared my soul out of my body! I thought Kyogre was going to swallow the streamer whole!"
"Same here! When Kyogre got close, those golden eyes felt like they were staring right through the screen. My hair stood on end, I could not even breathe!"
"So this is the pressure of a legendary Pokémon? Even through a screen my legs feel weak. How calm was the streamer to handle that? I would have passed out!"
"Good thing the streamer is okay! Otherwise I would have experienced being eaten by a legendary Pokémon too, and I definitely do not want that!"
"Stop jinxing it! But seriously, that was incredible. Being able to witness Kyogre in my lifetime is worth it!"
"Is nobody going to talk about the glowing thing in the streamer's hand? Streamer, so you are actually a psychic? You have been hiding this from us all along!"
"This looks like the Aura or power from Ash Ketchum's region, something like the Viridian power! No wonder your Pokémon are so strong. Are you from Kanto too?"
"Stop talking nonsense, he is clearly from Hoenn!"
Theo glanced at the comments, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.
He did not mind being mistaken for a psychic at all. In fact, it was perfect.
This identity could conveniently explain why his Pokémon's strength had been improving so rapidly.
Even better, the audience had already come up with a specific type of ability for him. If anyone asked in the future, he could simply go along with it and claim it was something like the Viridian power.
(End of Chapter)