"It seems the battle between us that never reached a conclusion will have to wait until next time."
"Next time, I hope to face you in the finals of the World Championships, a full six versus six battle."
"No problem," Silas replied without hesitation. To him, the World Championships were not particularly difficult. "I also hope that by then, you'll already be the Champion of Indigo League."
Lance: "..."
"Alright, I'm off." Lance waved his hand, mounted his Dragonite, and the man and Pokémon shot into the sky, heading straight toward Viridian Forest.
Just moments ago, a spy he had planted within Team Rocket had secretly reported to him.
Deep within Viridian Forest, Team Rocket had discovered something extraordinary. Even their boss had personally gone there.
It was said that the thing was related to the origin of Pokémon.
Lance did not yet know exactly what it was, but anything Team Rocket wanted, he intended to take.
Not for any grand reason, simply because he had a grudge against them.
Before becoming one of the Elite Four, Lance had served as a League investigator, secretly investigating Team Rocket. Through countless clashes, hostility had long since formed between them.
Of course, with Lance's personality, conflict with Team Rocket was inevitable sooner or later.
After becoming an Indigo Elite Four member, he had even issued an official statement banning regional businesses from serving Team Rocket members and imposed strict economic sanctions against them.
Now that he had received news of their large-scale activity, he wasted no time. After saying farewell to Silas, he rode his Dragonite away from Cinnabar Island.
After seeing Lance off, Silas went to inform Blaine that he would also be leaving.
This trip to Cinnabar Island had brought him tremendous gains. Reviving Aerodactyl was actually secondary. The real treasures were the two legendary materials, Moltres feathers and Articuno feathers.
The Moltres feathers were easy enough to use. The ranch had three Fire-type Pokémon, so they would definitely come in handy.
As for the Articuno feathers, the ranch did not yet have any Ice-type Pokémon, so they could only be stored away for now.
Dragonite's speed was astonishing. Without needing to take care of Serena and the others, they returned to the ranch in less than half the usual time, arriving before noon. Dragonite landed steadily within the ranch grounds.
"Draa!" (If you don't let go, I'm going to hit you!)
As it spoke, Dragonite raised a fist the size of a sandbag in warning.
The little Aerodactyl biting onto its tail showed no fear. Instead, it bit down even harder.
"Come here, I've got something you like, poffins."
Silas took out a poffin and waved it in front of the little Aerodactyl's nose. The little one sniffed, then finally loosened its jaws and opened its mouth wide, waiting to be fed.
Dragonite seized the opportunity to escape, quickly moving away and keeping its distance.
The poffin was tossed into Aerodactyl's mouth, and it chewed noisily before swallowing.
With its stomach filled, it looked around but could not find Dragonite. Its gaze immediately locked onto Silas.
It took two steps back, lowering its body into a charging stance.
Silas reacted swiftly. He struck first, tripping the little Aerodactyl before darting away.
Once this stubborn little creature locked onto a target, it would chase until it ran out of strength.
Running toward the house, Silas noticed Cyclizar rushing toward him.
Without hesitation, he ducked behind it.
The little Aerodactyl glanced at Cyclizar, then immediately lunged forward and bit down.
Cyclizar had no time to react. It stared blankly at the Pokémon clamped onto its forelimb. "Cyc?"
"This is our new companion." Silas patted Cyclizar. "You'll be in charge of taking care of it today."
With that, Silas had already dashed more than ten meters away, heading toward the group of Pokémon gathering to welcome him.
They had seen Dragonite return and had all come to greet Silas.
"Cyc!" (Silas, wait for me!)
Cyclizar tried to shake off the little Aerodactyl to chase after Silas, but the bite was firm and unrelenting. No matter how it shook, it could not get free.
Dragging along its stubborn passenger, it switched into battle form and chased after Silas, protesting loudly.
Meanwhile, Silas was surrounded by the ranch Pokémon.
Cinccino jumped out of its Poké Ball on its own, chattering endlessly as it recounted everything that had happened outside.
At the end, it proudly showed off the Normal-type gem that Chatot had given it, which immediately drew the attention of Brionne, Jigglypuff, Alcremie, and Manaphy, who chased after it playfully.
Smiling at the scene, Silas rested his hand on Kangaskhan. "Has anyone come looking for me these past two days?"
Kangaskhan nodded its large head. It was the same human from before, who had delivered the design blueprints for the large villa.
With the blueprints in hand, construction of the villa could now officially begin.
As Silas asked Kangaskhan and the Indeedee siblings about the ranch's situation, Cinccino hid in his arms.
"You little troublemaker."
Flicking its forehead, Silas waved to the others. "Chatot brought gifts for all of you. Line up and come one by one to collect them."
The Pokémon were delighted and quickly formed a line.
Silas pulled out a handful of type gems from his spatial bag. To someone unaware of the situation, it would look as if he had bought them wholesale.
After receiving their gems, the Pokémon happily ran off, comparing and showing them off to each other.
Not far away, they were drawn to Cyclizar and gathered around it.
"Jiggly?" (Is it our new partner?)
Jigglypuff stepped forward and poked the little Aerodactyl.
"Cin!" (Don't—!)
Cinccino ran over, shouting a warning, but it was already too late.
Before Jigglypuff could react, little Aerodactyl released Cyclizar and turned, baring its teeth as it charged toward Jigglypuff.
"Jigglypuff!" Jigglypuff screamed, its round body wobbling as it ran away in panic.
The act of fleeing only triggered Aerodactyl's hunting instincts.
Flapping its small wings, it chased at low altitude, letting out excited roars as it stayed right behind Jigglypuff.
The ranch immediately fell into chaos as all the Pokémon stopped what they were doing to watch.
Kangaskhan looked worried and asked Silas whether this was dangerous.
"Don't worry, I have a solution." Silas called out, "Jigglypuff, use Sing! Hurry, use Sing!"
"Cin!"
"Arbo!"
"Crem!"
The Pokémon all shouted together as they gathered near Alcremie.
While running, Jigglypuff struggled to steady its breathing, then pulled out its microphone and began singing its signature electric rock lullaby. Notes drifted through the air across the ranch.
The little Aerodactyl's eyes immediately grew drowsy. After chasing only a few more meters, it crashed to the ground and began snoring.
"Jiggly, Jigglypuff!"
Jigglypuff patted its chest, still shaken. It had almost been scared to tears.
After all, being suddenly chased by a dragon Pokémon was frightening for anyone.
Silas quickly walked over and picked Jigglypuff up. "Alright, alright, it's okay now."
"That's just Aerodactyl's personality. Once it gets used to you, it won't chase you anymore."
"Jiggly…"
Jigglypuff calmed down, its sniffles fading.
After asking Cinccino to take Jigglypuff to play, Silas called over Perrserker, Charcadet, and Clawitzer, whispering a few instructions to them.
Then he went to prepare lunch, leaving the care of little Aerodactyl in their hands.
(End of Chapter)