"It's a pity... I can't hold you anymore..."
"Look at your face... it's all muddy... You're impossible..."
"The handkerchief is still here..."
"You've been a forgetful child since you were little... always losing things..."
"That's why everything I gave you... had the word 'Silver' engraved on it..."
"That way, if you got lost... others could call you by the correct name..."
"You have to survive, Silver..."
In a daze, Silver vaguely heard a soft murmuring constantly near his ear.
Although slightly indistinct, the tone was gentle and warm.
"Boom!"
A violent jolt occurred, instantly waking Silver.
"Where am I?"
Searing flames permeated the surroundings, but within these flames, a Blaziken was carrying him, stepping out towards the non-flaming area.
"Silver!"
Green quickly ran over, wanting to check on Silver's condition.
"Don't worry. For my Blaziken, this temperature is no problem at all."
Ace also walked over, nodding as he looked at the Blaziken that had rescued Giovanni and Silver from the flames.
Green watched the Blaziken set Silver down. She scrutinized Silver from head to toe, confirming he was unharmed, and then slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
But just then, the Blaziken set down another person. Green only glanced at him and instantly froze.
Because they all recognized this man: it was Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket!
"Silver, why were you two together?"
Green looked at Silver, her face filled with disbelief.
Red and Blue also ran over at this moment. Seeing the scene before them, they fell silent.
"..."
Silver was silent for a moment, looking at Giovanni, who had been set down by Blaziken. His expression was complicated as he said, "That's because this man... is my father..."
"..."
Green was silent, a look of unbearable sympathy surfacing on her face. She opened her mouth as if to say something comforting, but found that she couldn't utter any words of solace.
"Pat!"
Ace sighed, walked up to Silver, and placed a hand on his head. He spoke calmly: "Children don't have the right to choose their parents. Like you, and like me."
Silver looked up at Ace.
He had heard about Ace's past from Green.
Sold by his biological parents, who later even tried to force Ace to die.
Comparing his own parents to parents like that, Silver suddenly felt that he wasn't the most miserable person.
At least, Giovanni had searched for him, and his feelings for him were purer than Ace's parents.
"Besides, compare your injuries with Giovanni's."
Ace's words brought Silver back to reality.
He examined his body up and down, finding that apart from some scorch marks on his clothes, he himself was virtually unscathed.
Conversely, Giovanni had extensive burns all over his body and was covered in blood. Though he was lying flat on the ground, Silver could see from the exposed areas that Giovanni's back was largely torn up. It was obvious he had used his back to shield himself from a significant portion of the attacks.
Recalling that he had passed out from the explosion and the murmuring he had heard earlier, Silver's eyes widened. He suddenly understood.
"When we arrived, we saw your body was being held up, clear of the flames."
Ace sighed and said, "So, within those flames, he was propping up his own body, protecting you."
"The actions of Team Rocket are wicked. No one will ever forgive the things Giovanni has done."
"However, I once found a book your father wrote about the profound secrets of Ground-type Pokémon in the Viridian City Gym a few years ago."
"Just looking at the broad-mindedness required to possess strength unattainable by ordinary people through training and passing on his experience gained from that training to others—that is worthy of admiration."
Ace gently rubbed Silver's head, his expression complex as he continued, "No, setting all that aside, just looking at his actions of ceaselessly searching for your whereabouts for the past ten years, and protecting you from harm even when scorched by fierce flames—he is absolutely a great father worthy of praise."
Listening to Ace's words, Silver's body began to tremble uncontrollably. Ace could feel the emotional barrier between father and son gradually dissolving.
"Fa... Father..."
Finally, Silver knelt beside Giovanni, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes.
"Alas..."
Ace sighed and closed his eyes.
"Host, have you decided?"
The system's voice sounded in Ace's ear, prompting him.
"I've decided. There's no penalty anyway. I'm not doing this mission."
Ace silently spoke in his mind, ultimately canceling the side mission.
He no longer harbored any killing intent toward Giovanni, so he didn't want to strike at him anymore.
Perhaps it was because he had fought Giovanni and defeated him.
Perhaps it was because they had rushed here after stopping the airship from crashing and saw the figure in the blazing fire.
Perhaps it was... Ace thought of his own tragic background in this world.
"Still too soft-hearted."
Ace sighed again. He opened his eyes, turned, and started to walk away.
"Ace."
Green pulled Ace's hand, calling him back.
"Mwah."
The instant Ace turned around, Green quickly planted a kiss on his cheek.
"Consider it a thank-you gift."
Green said, her face flushed: "Also, your Pokédex is too old. This is a new model. Professor Oak asked me to give it to you."
With that, Green pressed a new Pokédex into Ace's hand.
"Oh, the beauty is won."
Red couldn't help but laugh when he saw this.
Green, on the other hand, looked at Red and Ace, shook his head, and commented, "Such a complicated social circle."
Ace was stunned, looking with a complicated expression at Green, who was shyly retreating to the side to check on Silver.
Red waved towards the distance. Red's Bulbasaur and its evolved forms were carrying the unconscious Yellow, running towards them.
Looking at the gathering group, Ace came back to his senses, giving a helpless smile. He then put away the new Pokédex and recalled his Blaziken and other Pokémon.
The matter was over. It was time to go home.
Ace looked up at the sky, where Mewtwo was hovering.
Seeing Ace look up, Mewtwo smiled and waved at him.
Ace also waved back at Mewtwo as a farewell gesture.
But just when Ace thought Mewtwo was about to leave, he saw Mewtwo's expression suddenly change. Its figure shifted, and it quickly darted towards Ace and the others.
"Huh?"
Ace paused. A scene suddenly flashed in his mind. The next moment, he immediately turned and looked in the direction Mewtwo was rushing toward.
But at that moment, it was already too late.
Sird, covered in injuries, had arrived here at some unknown time. The Poké Ball in her hand opened, and a beam of black light instantly shot rapidly towards Ace.
"Die!"
This was the last voice Ace heard. Immediately following, a light flashed, and Ace instantly lost consciousness...
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