Tulip left in her private car.
This time, Lucas didn't stop her—she was busy enough already.
He turned to the Feebas in the tank, reaching in and wiggling his finger like bait.
"Do you want to evolve?"
"Blub blub."
Feebas blew a string of bubbles, eyes fixed on Lucas's hand.
Want to evolve?
Of course it did. Pokémon instinctively seek evolution.
There are rare cases of Pokémon resisting evolution, but Feebas is not one of them.
It just didn't know how.
Feebas had lived in the Crystal Pool far longer than Magikarp, now Gyarados.
Even so, while Magikarp managed its difficult evolution, Feebas was still at a loss.
Its new trainer was clearly skilled, and the person he found must also be competent.
Feebas felt it could look forward to the future.
What would its evolution be like?
For now, the matter was settled. Knowing Tulip's perfectionist streak, Lucas was sure her plan would be top-notch.
He left Alfornada and called out Dragonite to fly toward the Alfornada Cavern, following the system's prompts to look for the group.
The cavern was enormous—only the largest rock faces required climbing, and even Dragonite could fly inside without feeling cramped.
Torches left by townsfolk lit the way, maintained regularly. They couldn't light the entire cavern, but were enough to see the ground.
Soon, Lucas spotted four figures deeper in the cavern.
As luck would have it, the four kids were running away from... a Toxtricity?
Lucas had Dragonite swoop down, blocking Toxtricity's path. Wild Pokémon are cautious, and not sure it could win easily, Toxtricity turned and left.
"Teacher Lucas!"
Nemona and the others called out joyfully, running over like he was their savior.
They'd had a rough time—first attacked by a flock of Murkrow, then separated from their Cyclizar mounts, then stumbling into an unlit area. If they hadn't stuck together, they'd have gotten lost.
Then they were chased by wild Pokémon—utter misery.
Seeing their bedraggled state, Lucas could only sigh.
"Let's go. No need to return to town. Let's head to the beach and keep watch for that giant Pokémon tonight."
The four nodded, but Ash suddenly worried,
"What about the Cyclizars we lost?"
Before Lucas could answer, Arven said,
"The lady who rented them to us said Cyclizar know their way home. If you get separated, take care of yourself first."
Eri smiled,
"Ash, you weren't paying attention at all—just staring at the Cyclizar!"
She trailed off, seeing Nemona's identical shocked expression—she hadn't listened either!
Eri realized that, in some ways, Nemona and Ash were two sides of the same coin... except for stamina.
…
Time flowed like sand in an hourglass.
The five left the cavern, returned to the beach, and set up a large tent for the night.
Eri accompanied Ash and Nemona for battles, while Lucas and Arven prepared dinner.
While chopping veggies, Lucas asked,
"Have you been in touch with your parents on this trip?"
"Mm,"
Arven nodded as he peeled tomatoes.
"They're always in the research lab under Area Zero now, saying their research is almost complete. I've come to realize that's their dream, and as their child, I can only support them."
"That's good,"
Lucas nodded, then added,
"But you still need to communicate your own needs sometimes. They're obviously unreliable if they forget promises whenever their research advances."
"Once their research is done, make sure they make it up to you."
Lucas smiled, and Arven returned the knowing look.
"Right now, we've agreed to contact each other in the middle and at the end of each month. But there's something else that's been bothering me..."
"Oh? You can tell me,"
Lucas encouraged.
Arven nodded,
"During the exchange at Blueberry Academy, the host—Ms. Briar, a teacher there—contacted me."
"Briar?"
Lucas had to dig deep to remember—female, Blueberry Academy teacher, MC of the matches. That's it.
But why contact Arven?
Arven explained,
"Ms. Briar said she wants to meet my parents."
"She wants to meet them?"
Now Lucas understood Arven's confusion. A near-stranger from another region, with his contact info, suddenly asking to meet his parents—anyone would be baffled.
While stoking the fire, Lucas asked,
"How did you reply?"
"I've put it off for now—haven't decided."
"Then ask your parents during your next regular call. If they want to meet, fine. If not, just refuse. Easy."
Arven's eyes lit up,
"You're right!"
He could just leave the decision to his unreliable parents—why worry himself!
With that, Arven's mood brightened, and his prep work sped up.
Seeing this, Lucas slowed his own pace, quietly starting to slack off.
Time passed; after dinner, they watched Ash and Nemona's endless Pokémon battles, then set alarms for the next morning and went to sleep in their tents.
For the sake of a little surprise, Lucas didn't ask whether the giant Pokémon would appear tonight, and the system wisely said nothing.
A good night's sleep.
…
3 AM, Southwest Paldea Sea
The world was silent.
The ocean was calm under the moonlight, the moon's reflection seemingly waiting for an Infernape to scoop it up.
Now and then, some aquatic Pokémon surfaced for air—mainly groups of Paldea-native Finizen, and occasionally Wailmer and Wailord spouted water.
At this hour, there were almost no fishing boats.
Thus, no one saw a massive shape swimming beneath the waves.
It was a mysterious creature. Judging by its shadow, even the world's largest Wailord would look like a child beside it.
Perhaps loneliness had finally become unbearable.
The creature paused, then began to rise.
Splash!
Its head broke the surface, followed by its massive body, arms, wings—until two-thirds of its form was exposed, showering water all around, creating a small rainstorm and churning the sea, driving other Pokémon away.
The creature paid this no mind—it had surfaced many times before. It lifted its head, gazing at the unchanging moon, and let out a whale-like roar, heavy with the weight of time and solitude.
"Awooo—"
Even the distant Pokémon felt the sorrow in that cry, pausing to look back, but, given the size difference, none dared approach.
The creature knew this well, but didn't care—it hadn't for a very long time.
It was consumed by one goal: to find others of its kind, no matter how far or how long it took.
It began to move, tail for balance, like Godzilla crossing the sea, calling out as it went.
Until it passed a lighthouse near Alfornada.
As luck would have it, the lighthouse keeper woke up needing the bathroom. Half-asleep, he gazed at the moon while relieving himself.
Suddenly, he heard a strange noise.
The world was eerily quiet—even the usual Pokémon cries had stopped. Only the cool sea breeze and the sound of something moving through the water could be heard.
Water movement?
The keeper paused, forgetting to turn off the tap, listening intently.
He was on the third floor!
What could be making such a loud swimming noise?
Was it a lost ship?
He decided to take a look.
Running outside, he was stunned.
On the moonlit but foggy sea, a shape even taller than the lighthouse was moving—but the fog made it impossible to see its outline clearly.
No doubt, this was the source of the noise.
Before he could react, a deep, echoing call rang out.
He collapsed to his knees in shock.
"...What is that!?"
He murmured in disbelief, legs trembling.
He'd seen Wailord, the world's largest Pokémon, but next to this thing, Wailord was like a stunted child!
Especially since he realized the creature's path would take it right past the giant rock where Alfornada stood!
He didn't know if the creature was heading for the town or just passing by, but just in case, he shakily dialed the phone.
The call connected, and before the other side could speak, he stammered,
"Is—is this Officer Jenny from Alfornada?
I'm the keeper at Lighthouse No. 3—I—I saw a mon—monster—
A monster is heading for Alfornada!!!"
…
On the other end, the officer was skeptical but reported it to Officer Jenny anyway.
Moments later, a helicopter took off from Alfornada's police station, heading for the reported coordinates.
Officer Jenny, her uniform a bit disheveled from the rush, sat upright, scanning the sea below.
When they arrived, they saw only fog.
The officers began to grumble that perhaps the keeper had mistaken two Wailord in love for a monster.
But as Officer Jenny's gaze swept the area, she suddenly locked eyes with a pair of enormous eyes.
Even as calm as she was, her heart skipped a beat, cold sweat breaking out.
The others noticed her reaction and turned, freezing in shock.
The youngest officer screamed,
"It's a monster!!!"
"Idiot, don't provoke it!"
Jenny quickly clamped a hand over his mouth.
The pilot, sweating profusely, tried to fly the helicopter away.
Luckily, the creature seemed to have no ill intent—after glancing at them, it turned and continued on.
Seeing it heading for Alfornada's giant rock, Jenny anxiously used her pager,
"Sound the alarm! Evacuate the people!!!"
After notifying the police, she frowned, thought for a moment, and used her special communicator to contact the Paldea League.
As luck would have it, the Alfornada Gym Leader, Tulip, had left town after her meeting that night!
If that creature caused trouble, only a top League trainer could stop it...
…
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