Chapter 146: The Immortal Strokes My Crown, and I Receive Eternal Life Upon Binding My Hair

Bugsy had gone completely blank. “Y-you—you said what? Say that again!”

“Threaten them with force, then win them over with reason.”

Leaning against the control console, Zhusu Bian twisted open a bottle of soda and casually tossed another to Bugsy from the incense burner.

“I mean the frying pan and the Heavy Ball.”

The corner of Bugsy’s mouth twitched. “I think that once this is over, I should send you to Officer Jenny for some uplifting ideological education.”

“Entirely unnecessary.”

Zhusu Bian handed drinks and Energy Cubes to the three little ones so they could replenish their strength in time.

“What are the others saying? Has anyone run into a situation they can’t handle?”

“Overall, things are still stable.”

Bugsy gave Zhusu Bian a suspicious once-over. “Pardon me for asking, but those gas masks really weren’t your idea, were they? Everyone is carrying one. It’s almost too uniform.”

“The Officer Jennys have a special arrangement through the academy, so they could simply requisition masks from the warehouse. But for all your classmates to be carrying them too is a bit much.”

Zhusu Bian laughed. “Then that can only mean the riot-control drill was a great success. From the sound of it, someone’s already had to use one?”

“They have. One Nurse Joy encountered a severely injured Venomoth. Since it couldn’t fully suppress its instincts, it sprayed some scales into the air.”

Bugsy shrugged. “She and her Chansey put on their gas masks right away and managed to hold out until the treatment was complete.”

Zhusu Bian frowned. “No one was hurt, right?”

“No. Once the treatment was over, rinsing everything off with water was enough. Fortunately, those scales weren’t specialized for attacking enemies. Otherwise, we’d be talking about Poison Powder and Stun Spore.”

Bugsy looked at the Volcarona with its eyes closed. “This kind of Pokémon really is rare. No wonder so many people are watching this migration.”

Zhusu Bian nodded. Even in the resource-rich Paldea region, viewed from the perspective of an all-knowing observer, the number of pseudo-legendaries and other precious Pokémon was nowhere near as high as one might imagine.

For one thing, Paldea was simply an unusual region.

For another, there were countless other regions, along with many places that had never been incorporated into the League’s principal territories.

Spread across the world, the numbers might not seem so outrageous. But if word got out, Paldea would become a paradise for poachers.

Reality was reality, and games were games. In games, a Pokémon would respawn after being caught. In the real world, once you took a Pokémon away, you could forget about it ever respawning—unless there happened to be Pokémon eggs left behind in some secluded place.

Aside from normal hatching, the only ones likely to stumble upon such remnants by chance would be chosen children like Ash.

The sort of thing that made for an adventure.

And for someone like Ash, the final choice might well be to release the Pokémon back into the wild, or settle it in a nature reserve inhabited by its own kind.

Zhusu Bian smiled as he remembered that foolish, earnest face.

That really was the style of a Pokémon Master.

“By the way, did you recover the drones I smashed?”

Zhusu Bian suddenly remembered. “Can you trace them backward and locate the people behind them?”

Bugsy shook his head, sounding slightly regretful.

“Normally, we could have. But your partner smashed those drones into pieces. The key chips and electronic circuits were all rendered useless.”

Mewtwo shook his head. 【I didn’t expect them to be that fragile either. They probably reduced the weight to keep following the Pokémon migration continuously.】

“Never mind. It’s not a major issue.”

Zhusu Bian clapped his hands. “Go take care of whatever you need to. I’ll keep watch here.”

“No. I’m staying here to watch the Volcarona too.”

Bugsy’s eyes gleamed as he stared at the Pokémon in the treatment chamber. “This is a rare Bug-type Pokémon. Of course I’m going to guard it without taking a single step away!”

The Volcarona in the chamber gave a small shudder in its sleep, as though it were having a nightmare.

“Genius, you’re the person in charge here. If you stay here watching it, who’s going to coordinate everyone’s movements?”

Bugsy came to his senses and left the treatment room. Zhusu Bian told Lapras and Milcery to close their eyes and rest for a while.

“Mewtwo, has anything happened around the perimeter?”

【A battle ended two minutes ago. Two Arcanine sent in as reinforcements from the transfer station used Flamethrower to roast the people and Pokémon on the other side.】

Mewtwo offered his assessment. 【Humans really are fascinating creatures. They were charred black and still bursting with energy. In the end, the Machoke and Machamp had to tie them up with ropes before they finally settled down.】

【Wait. It looks like the Officer Jennys used some kind of spray to knock those people out. Was that your instruction too?】

Zhusu Bian glanced over the life readings on the panel and confirmed that the Volcarona’s condition was steadily improving.

“Yes. Take the villains’ path, and leave the villains nowhere to go.”

Just imagining a team of well-trained Officer Jennys wearing gas masks, sleep spray hanging from their belts, with fierce-looking Arcanine and Machamp at their sides, made Zhusu Bian want to laugh.

If the Machamp were replaced by Pokémon such as Nidoking, Kingambit, or Crobat, it would truly have the style of a villainous organization.

The uniforms?

They were simply outlaws who had disguised themselves in uniforms after breaking out of prison!

【After everything is settled on a plain this large, I think you should finally be able to sleep without relying on that strange method of yours.】

“Not necessarily. Besides, aren’t we resting right now? I’m thinking up a particularly interesting plan.”

Zhusu Bian looked toward Mewtwo. “I’m done being human!”

Mewtwo: ?

【Speak plainly. At the very least, give me an explanation I can understand.】

“I mean that I want to do something earth-shattering, so I’m briefly setting aside a few meaningless nicknames and labels.”

Zhusu Bian clenched his fist. “If there’s no legend, we’ll create one. If there’s no fun, we’ll create that too.”

“If anyone asks why I’m doing this, just play them the speech Giovanni gave in Viridian Forest. The source of all this isn’t me, after all.”

Mewtwo: 【.】

Indeed, humans were fickle creatures. Before coming to the Silver Plains, this white-haired monkey had still been complaining about how others misunderstood him.

And now, he actually wanted to deepen those misunderstandings of his own accord!

【What are you planning to do?】

“I’ll need your help, and I’ll need everyone else to cooperate too. No rush. We’ll talk about it after things here are settled.”

Zhusu Bian took a sip of fruit wine. “After all, everyone may be reaching their limits before long.”

Human and Pokémon chatted idly to pass the time. Once the treatment was complete, they once again tied the Volcarona up like a fiery mummy and carried it away.

The injuries suffered by the other Bug-type Pokémon were more or less similar, and after getting through their initial panic, the Nurse Joys had become quite familiar with the process.

Even so, physical and mental exhaustion could not be avoided. Both could be overcome, but once they reached a certain point, things would no longer be simple.

The result of stretching oneself too tight was that, upon reaching the limit, the line of danger would snap with a sharp twang.

“So, I’ve come up with a plan.”

Zhusu Bian addressed Bugsy and the other people in charge. “I’ll handle the remaining treatment. Everyone else can rest where they are.”

“How?”

He was only a first-year student, but Zhusu Bian’s words still carried considerable weight.

After all, he was a genius researcher—and infamous besides.

“It’s simple. Have every Pokémon use Heal Pulse. You have a loudspeaker system here, right? Just make sure everyone can hear me.”

“I’ll take care of the rest.”

Using Heal Pulse once was simple enough to be acceptable, and still fell within everyone’s capacity to provide backup.

“Hello? Can everyone hear me?”

Zhusu Bian stood in midair. “When I finish speaking, use Heal Pulse. Release it however you like. Whatever strange phenomenon happens next, don’t panic.”

The moment he finished speaking, the classmates—who already trusted Zhusu Bian completely—acted in unison. One by one, the pink little eggs raised their hands and began to sing, their Heal Pulses condensing into beautiful notes that spiraled through the air.

“Your turn, Mewtwo.”

Blue light surged in Mewtwo’s eyes. 【Come to me!】

Under the force of his psychic power, all the pulses were forcibly drawn together, gathering in the sky into a gigantic pink sphere of light.

“Draco Meteor—except this is the Heal Pulse version.”

Zhusu Bian looked at the Volcarona mummy before him and placed a hand against its head.

“You did well.”

“A hero is always lonely. But the road you walk is not traveled by you alone. There are other humans and Pokémon who share this same devotion.”

Zhusu Bian smiled. “Do you remember what I taught you? At least indulge my little desire to make a grand display in front of everyone, will you?”

The Volcarona slowly closed its eyes.

“Moth.”

The immortal pats my crown.

With a bound strand of hair, I receive eternal life.

Power surged forth in wave after wave, as turbulent as a tsunami, yet entirely under the Volcarona’s control.

Firelight flared to life!

The bandages wrapped around the Volcarona came loose layer by layer. As its wings slowly unfurled, the warm firelight grew brighter and brighter, until it became dazzling.

Mewtwo scattered the “healing meteor swarm” in the sky. Firelight and the power of Heal Pulse intertwined, pouring into the entire Silver Plains like a shower of meteors.

Even the Pokémon belonging to the Officer Jennys and investigators stationed around the perimeter received the restorative effects of Heal Pulse. Disheveled fur and cracked armor slowly began to mend.

“Moth!”

A piercing cry rang across the entire plain. Warm orange-red light transformed into waves that spread in every direction.

They needed light, so I never allowed the flames within me to go out, no matter how badly I was wounded.

They needed a powerful leader, so I remained undefeated.

For their sake, so that their numbers would never diminish again!

Every subject raised its head to watch the scene before them. With all the strength in their voices, they cried out to their sun, pouring their reverence and gratitude into the sound.

The incarnation of the sun—the Volcarona!

The Volcarona’s wings spread fully open. Surging firelight nearly concealed its body, making it seem as though it had truly become the sun hanging high in the heavens.

Zhusu Bian whistled. “The holy brother is making his limited encore appearance. Looks like the effect is pretty good?”

Mewtwo glanced at the Volcarona. 【One more step, and it should reach the level of those two in the rear mountains. By outside standards, that would be regional Champion level.】

“With strength like that, the journey ahead should be a little easier.”

Zhusu Bian put both hands in his pockets. “Keep it up, little one.”

“Moth.”

This time, the Volcarona approached Zhusu Bian and the three little ones of its own accord, slowly circling once around the family.

Its body lit up again with dazzling firelight, and it shot straight into the sky!

The sun was dancing.

This was how a taciturn little creature expressed its gratitude.

The signature technique of the Volcarona line.

Fiery Dance!

Zhusu Bian glanced at the three little ones. Then the whole family turned their eyes back to the Volcarona.

Above and below, every human and Pokémon fell silent, appreciating the mysterious dance that was rarely seen in ordinary times.

Not the sun, nor some powerful and precious Pokémon.

In Zhusu Bian’s eyes, this was merely a little creature whose body would vanish if Arceus struck it with a single Judgment, yet whose mouth would remain stubborn to the very end.

Perhaps, in the future, one line might be added to the family’s Pokémon encyclopedia, forged from the bonds between them:

Volcarona, the stubborn-mouthed Pokémon. Afraid of threats of force.

(End of Chapter)