Sinnoh Region.
Sitting at her desk, Cynthia was idly flipping through docunts she'd retrieved from ancient ruins.
But from her distracted gaze, it was clear she wasn't paying much attention.
"Haa..."
After a long mont, realizing she'd drifted off again, Cynthia lifted her head and gently massaged her temples.
Even though she'd been back ho for two days, she still couldn't shake the surreal, fractured feeling.
Everything that had happened in the Hisui region lingered in her mind like a dream, constantly stirring her emotions into chaos.
Bzzt, bzzt—
Just then, the phone on her desk vibrated.
Soone had ssaged her.
Cynthia wasn't inclined to respond.
In the past two days, she'd received countless ssages—colleagues checking in from work, friends concerned about her. But without exception, she hadn't bothered replying.
Not even the courtesy of empty pleasantries felt necessary.
For now, all she wanted was peace and quiet at ho, allowing her troubled heart ti to heal.
Still, Cynthia picked up the phone almost automatically.
Seeing the sender's na—"Lance"—she paused.
Both Champions serving in the Pokémon League, she and Lance had a friendly yet competitive relationship.
But in her mory, he rarely reached out first.
Yet lately, he'd contacted her frequently for so unknown reason.
Just days earlier, before her journey to Hisui, Lance had ssaged her seeking information about Team Galactic—though she'd ignored it, given the poor timing.
Now he was reaching out again.
Reluctant as she was, Cynthia felt she couldn't simply ignore him again.
After a mont, she responded with a single question mark.
Almost instantly, Lance replied—as if he'd been anxiously waiting for her response.
[Cynthia, a friend of mine was dragged into the Distortion World by Giratina.]
[Giratina is a legendary Pokémon from your Sinnoh region, so I wanted to ask if you have any relevant information.]
[If you do, please send it over—I'll personally make sure you're compensated fairly. Thank you.]
It was clear Lance was desperate; he'd skipped the usual formalities and gotten straight to the point.
Holding her phone, Cynthia's beautiful eyes grew distant.
It wasn't Lance's offer of compensation that caught her attention, but rather the ntion of Giratina itself.
Giratina…
Seeing that na again filled Cynthia with nothing but bitter rage.
As a historian, she'd always maintained a neutral, objective view of legendary Pokémon.
But Giratina, the Renegade Pokémon, was the one legendary she'd love to destroy with her own hands.
If not for that vicious, cunning Pokémon, Elias would never have died.
At the sa ti, Cynthia rembered sothing equally important: Zoroark.
Lucario had returned ho with her, but Elias's other Pokémon had been left behind in the Distortion World.
After hundreds of years, she wondered how that Pokémon had fared.
"I suppose it's about ti to do sothing productive," Cynthia murmured, taking a deep breath.
She'd just realized she'd left many matters unattended.
Allowing herself to continue wallowing would only cause problems to pile up.
Resolved, Cynthia picked up her phone again, replying decisively:
[I'll compile the information on Giratina as soon as possible.]
[In exchange, I'd like a full account of your friend's encounter with Giratina.]
Sending the ssage, Cynthia slowly reached for the Poké Ball resting on her desk.
It was Lucario's ball.
Her gaze darkened slightly as she traced the hand-painted patterns on its surface.
Indeed, she still desperately wanted to exact revenge on Giratina.
Even if… it ant resorting to so unconventional thods.
---
Distortion World
"Gar...de...voir."
Inside the cabin, Gardevoir glared at the Zoroark seated across from her, teeth grinding in frustration.
After Elias had explained everything, Gardevoir finally understood.
The fox in front of her was the sa as her, Latias, and w.
And the trainer Zoroark kept ntioning was, undoubtedly, Elias himself.
Gardevoir should have been used to this scenario by now—she'd certainly dealt with it enough tis. She'd thought she'd built up at least so resistance.
But…
What really stung was realizing she'd personally brought Zoroark here.
She'd trusted the fox so completely at first, even believing she'd found a rare companion who could safely stay by her side.
But the reality was that this new rival was far more troubleso than Latias and w combined.
At least those two fools were weaker than her, hardly a threat even together.
And they weren't exactly bright, easy enough to fool with just a little effort.
But this newly-arrived Zoroark was different.
From their brief earlier encounter, Gardevoir had confird one worrying fact: she might not be able to defeat this Pokémon.
Moreover, Zoroark was clearly clever and calculating.
Gardevoir certainly didn't buy her "inability" to distinguish dreams from reality for one second.
"Elias, my head hurts."
Glancing at Gardevoir, Zoroark held her head with exaggerated distress, whining sweetly.
As expected, Elias's [Power of Viridian] promptly arrived, easing her discomfort.
"Feeling better now?" Elias asked gently.
Although Zoroark's expression didn't exactly convey genuine pain…
Well, there was no harm in releasing the soothing energy if she enjoyed it.
Yet seeing this interaction caused Gardevoir's delicate cheeks to redden with fury.
"Elias, my head hurts too!"
Puffing out her cheeks indignantly, Gardevoir declared.
She realized if she didn't act soon, her beautiful blue hair might turn permanently green from sheer jealousy.
Helplessly, Elias offered her so energy as well.
But instead of calming her down, seeing that erald glow resting on her own head made Gardevoir even angrier for so inexplicable reason.
"Elias, we've been in the Distortion World long enough."
"We should find a way out soon."
Gardevoir stepped back, regaining composure as she addressed Elias with righteous dignity.
Originally, she'd hoped to spend a little more private ti alone with Elias.
Unfortunately, Zoroark's appearance had spoiled everything.
Now it seed smarter to leave imdiately and call in reinforcents—like w and the others.
That'll even the odds, Gardevoir thought shrewdly.
She glared aningfully at Zoroark, a clear warning in her eyes.
---
If you've enjoyed this chapter, consider supporting the translator's efforts—hard work deserves recognition, after all.
Patreon: patreon/wisetl
(Legal note: the Patreon exists purely for voluntary support—with the added benefit of reading ahead.)
Powerstone Rewards:
Every 100 Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter.
100 ps = 1 chp • 200 ps = 2 chp • 300 ps = 3 chp …and so on.
Your support ensures more chapters, delivered faster. Simple, effective, elegant.
—Weiss Schnee
User Comments
0 comments from readers