Chapter 102: Daigo—Waiting for a Text Message That Never Comes

Yang was unsure whether civilizations buried beneath the earth held any charm, but he knew this much: any civilization that left behind ancient treasures for future generations was a good civilization.

Gazing at the ancient stone tablet in Dr. Metz’s hands, Yang found himself puzzled. Why would a prophecy containing information about the Kanto region appear in the Hoenn area?

That prophecy clearly spoke of the ultra-ancient ruins behind Shin-new Town—the place where the ultra-ancient Gengar, the ultra-ancient grounds, and the ultra-ancient Jigglypuff were sealed away.

Could it be that ancient civilizations, like in modern times, had cross-regional connections?

Yang was thoroughly confused.

After their conversation ended, Dr. Metz prepared to leave, warmly bidding Yang farewell.

Once the visitor had departed, Yang released several Pokémon to keep him company. Outside the ruins, he pitched a tent and hung a small lamp inside. He set out Slowking and Gengar, teaching them to recognize written characters.

Gengar clutched a small blanket awkwardly and said, “Gengar is sleepy,” before yawning widely.

Yang was speechless.

“Fine, then go to sleep,” he said.

Hearing this, Gengar immediately tried to return to its Poké Ball, but the next moment Yang had already taken it away.

With a smile, Yang said, “No going back into the Poké Ball tonight. Sleep outside!”

It was the height of summer, and Gengar’s body temperature was very low—perfect for use as a cooling air conditioner.

Better not let it study those complicated characters that would surely give a ghost a headache.

Gengar sighed in relief and didn’t insist on returning to its Poké Ball. Being larger than Yang, it could easily serve as a cool pillow.

Back to back with Gengar under the lamp’s glow, Yang began teaching Slowking to read.

Whenever Yang was serious, Gengar was always well-behaved and never mischievous.

After a while, Ralts suddenly darted out of its Poké Ball.

Yang gently patted its head and asked, “What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?”

Ralts affectionately rubbed his palm and looked toward the book. “Ralts~”

Yang was surprised. “You want to learn too?”

Ralts quickly nodded, “Ralts!”

Thus, Yang’s impromptu tutoring class gained a new student.

Compared to Gengar, Ralts was much more earnest in its studies.

Its attentive posture resembled a little girl sitting upright in kindergarten, listening carefully to the teacher.

But this posture didn’t last long.

Within ten minutes, Ralts had dozed off.

Slowking’s eyelids also began to droop.

Behind him, Gengar was softly snoring, leaving Yang somewhat speechless.

Was his teaching really that soporific?

Anyone who didn’t know might think he was using hypnosis.

Looking at the three drowsy Pokémon, Yang sighed helplessly.

“Alright, that’s enough for today.”

He recalled Ralts and Slowking into their Poké Balls and let them sleep.

He himself nestled close to Gengar and drifted into a peaceful slumber.

Though the summer heat raged on, Yang felt a refreshing coolness.

Perhaps this was the advantage of a Ghost-type Pokémon!

Just before falling asleep, Yang felt as if he had forgotten something.

What was it?

His mind went blank for a moment, unable to recall anything.

Never mind, it wasn’t important.

In the Shadow World, Marshadow quietly watched Yang drooling as he hugged Gengar.

Inside Yang’s backpack, the feathers of the legendary Phoenix radiated a faint, multicolored glow.

Meanwhile, in Canaz City, the champion of the Hoenn League, the esteemed young master of Devon Corporation, Steven, wore a look of frustration.

Outside, dusk had long settled. A crescent moon hung in the night sky, with sparse summer stars scattered like delicate ornaments.

Steven sat at his desk, distractedly flipping through a book filled with information about Steel-type Pokémon.

His eyes kept darting toward his phone resting in the upper left corner.

Why… hasn’t she replied yet?

…

The next morning, the sun rose as usual.

Light streamed into the stone chamber, bathing the walls.

The dense beams followed the patterns etched on the walls, converging upon a device in the chamber’s center.

With a rumbling sound, the device slowly moved backward, revealing an entrance leading downward.

Yang descended the staircase and moved unhindered to the deepest part of the ruins—the underground water vein where the ancient relic fish lived.

He was somewhat vexed about how to capture these relic fish.

He wasn’t planning to use them for battle, but hoped to enlist their help to unlock the seals in the bulletin chamber.

After some thought, he pulled a common Sweet Tree Berry from his backpack.

These relic fish lived deep beneath the sea and had an extraordinarily long lifespan.

For unknown reasons, their teeth had degenerated, so they fed by sucking in microorganisms from seawater.

Yang crushed the berry and scattered it into the water, then began a long wait on the shore.

Fifteen minutes passed.

With no sign of the relic fish, Yang began to doubt the truth of the legend.

Just then, ripples appeared on the water’s surface.

Soon, a spotted relic fish leapt from the water.

Then a second, a third, and more gradually emerged from the underground stream.

Yang’s spirits lifted.

The water churned as the relic fish began absorbing the nutrients from the berry juice blended in the water.

“Slowking, talk to them!” Yang released Slowking and instructed,

“Ask who’s willing to come with me and help. Afterward, I’ll return them. The reward is this kind of food every day.”

“Okay,” Slowking replied, turning to the relic fish in the water and communicating with them.

Having lived so long, the relic fish’s responses were as slow as Slowpoke’s.

After hearing Slowking’s words, the fish quieted down.

One by one, heads matching the color of the rocks poked above the surface, gazing at Slowking.

The relic fish murmured in confusion, “Is it true?”

“Are you trying to deceive us?”

“You look so strange—we’ve never seen creatures like you before.”

Slowking was speechless.

It turned to Yang and said, “They think we’re tricking them.”

Yang was at a loss.

Unconvinced, he took out another handful of berries, squeezed the juice into the water.

The relic fish stirred again.

Living deep under the sea, they had never tasted such food before.

Slowking asked again, “Do you believe us now?”

The relic fish turned their gaze toward Yang, asking curiously,

“What do you want us to do?”