Caleb had originally planned to go to the Tree of Beginning anyway, so he accepted the quest without hesitation...
Facing the earnest gazes of Queen Ilene and her ministers, he cleared his throat and asked, "Where is the Tree of Beginning located?"
Queen Ilene raised her scepter, which was adorned with a large gemstone, and slightly turned her body, pointing through the ruined walls toward the direction of the rising sun.
Caleb understood...
Now that he had the general direction of the Tree of Beginning, there was no need to linger here any longer. He withdrew from the special world revealed by the Aura detection.
When he opened his eyes, everything before him had vanished. The bustling crowd was replaced by utter silence, and the spot where Queen Ilene had stood was now occupied by a collapsed stone pillar.
The wind howled like the cries of lonely souls in the darkness.
Caleb wasn't particularly bothered. He wasn't afraid of ghosts or spirits. That's because he firmly believed that every ghost one feared was someone dearly missed by another.
Compared to Queen Ilene's spirit, the state of merging with Lucario's Aura was far more intriguing.
He released Lucario's thick, warm paw and looked at his own hand, pondering the cause of what had just happened.
The Pokémon world had a diverse power system. Beyond the eighteen different elemental attributes of Pokémon, some humans possessed supernatural abilities that transcended the ordinary.
Among them, Viridian Power and Aura abilities were two of the most notable.
As a wielder of the Viridian ability, Caleb was far more familiar with its functions and limitations than he was with Aura. When it came to the Viridian Power, the first thing that came to mind was healing.
It consumed the user's energy to restore a Pokémon's physical and mental condition. In gaming terms, energy was like a mana bar... once depleted, the ability could no longer be used.
Unless of course one overdrew from their own vitality, but that would severely impact the user's health. Under normal circumstances, no one would willingly do so.
Compared to the Viridian ability, Aura abilities had a much broader range of applications; combat, telepathy, environmental detection, projection creation, and more...
Caleb recalled the sensation of entering that vision earlier. In that state, he had been able to clearly perceive Lucario's thoughts and emotions.
'Could it be that the Viridian Power and Aura had some kind of chemical reaction?'
He mused silently before looking up to see Lucario, Dragonite, and Mimikyu staring at him.
He checked the time on his wristband and realized he had been standing there, lost in thought, for nearly ten minutes...
Caleb: "…"
He apologized to Dragonite and Mimikyu before turning to Lucario, "Can you pull me into that state again?"
Lucario nodded, closed its eyes, and first used its Aura to scan the surroundings. Once it detected the drifting spirits, it shared them through Aura.
This time, Caleb did not use his Viridian ability, nor did he hold Lucario's paw. As a result, he did not enter that state again.
For the second attempt, he held Lucario's paw but still refrained from using the Viridian Power.
Again, nothing happened...
On the third attempt, Caleb activated the Viridian Power. This time, instead of physically touching Lucario, he maintained some distance and carefully controlled the green energy within him, directing it toward Lucario.
Then, he saw his entire body emit a strange, glowing green light.
Caleb: "…"
But before he could complain, his surroundings abruptly transformed once more...
The moment the energy of the Viridian Power and Aura's telepathic abilities made contact, a peculiar spark ignited.
Lucario had already intended to share its spirit-detection vision with its trainer through Aura. And Caleb, through the Viridian Power, had coincidentally sensed Lucario's thoughts.
'Wow...' He raised an eyebrow slightly.
He could clearly feel that, in this state, he didn't need to issue verbal commands. He could direct Lucario through their merged consciousness.
In battle, there was always a delay between a command being spoken, the Pokémon hearing it, processing it, and finally executing the move.
But in this special state, no such delay existed...
When Caleb closed his eyes, he saw the world as Lucario shared it with him. When he opened them, he saw his own perspective. This was an unexpected boon for him.
He knew exactly how valuable this ability could be in battle. Of course, it would have been even more perfect if he wasn't glowing green.
Caleb didn't want to settle down in the Pokémon world one day, compete in the League, and hear spectators ask, "Why is that guy glowing green?"
After a brief test, he deactivated his ability.
He mounted Dragonite and flew in the direction Queen Ilene had indicated. He didn't want to waste time... the sooner he found Mew, the sooner he could bolster his faction's strength.
Just then, his player panel belatedly popped up.
[Congratulations, Player! You have created an original Trainer Skill!]
[Rewards will be distributed after the Instance concludes!]
Caleb, who had been absentmindedly doodling on Dragonite's back with his finger, paused in surprise before opening the panel as prompted...
On Lucario's status screen, the words Unnamed now appeared in bold letters.
- Unnamed: An original Trainer Skill created by Player Caleb Chase. Exclusive to Lucario...
[Stage 1 (Unlocked): Initial fusion of Viridian energy and Aura grants a new ability. Trainer and Pokémon can fight as one, with a synchronization rate of 10%!]
[Stage 2 (Locked): ???
- Unlock condition: Achieve 50% Aura synchronization!]
[Stage 3 (Locked): ???
- Unlock condition: Achieve 100% Aura synchronization!]
[Stage MAX (Locked): ???
- Unlock condition: Unknown]
«Note: The above assessments are based on the Infinite World's overall evaluation and ability prediction. For reference only...»
Caleb: "…"
He really hadn't expected the Infinite World to have this kind of function... But what exactly did Aura synchronization rate mean?
Before he could ponder further, Dragonite (with Mewtwo's assistance) soared over the towering mountain ranges and broke through the dense clouds obscuring their view.
Before them stood an enormous, towering tree-like structure that pierced the heavens.
Caleb's attention was instantly captured by the majestic sight. However, the lush, vibrant scene he had imagined did not materialize.
The Tree of Beginning before him was entirely cloaked in a monotonous and lifeless gray, exuding an aura of desolation.
Caleb and Dragonite hovered directly above the tree. He opened his mouth slightly, staring in disbelief at the sight before him.
The Tree of Beginning, the cradle of countless lives, had turned to stone...