Lucas blinked his eyes. These three people were staring at him with expressions like they had just seen a ghost—what was that supposed to mean?
Ash stared at Lucas for quite a while before finally speaking with an extremely serious expression.
"Do you… have a brother named Lucas?"
"???"
Lucas froze when he heard that.
"Well, it's like this. We met someone before who looked exactly like you, but that person was, uh…"
"A big bad guy?"
"Yes, yes, yes! That guy was really, really bad! Completely different from you!"
When Ash said this, his eyes lit up. That was exactly what he wanted to say. The Lucas in his memory was simply an unbelievably despicable villain!
On the S.S. Anne, he had toyed with his emotions, injured his brother Red, and in Vermilion City he had even forcibly taken away their companion, Green.
In Saffron City, he had openly looked down on the League and even mocked and threatened them!
Bad to the extreme! How could he possibly be like the person in front of them now, who seemed so gentle and mild?
Brock: "..."
Misty: "..."
Both of them covered their faces. This idiot was truly beyond saving. This was obviously the same person! And yet he was responding so smoothly and even blurting out his inner thoughts?
"Is that so?"
Lucas smiled at Ash. His smile was like the warm sun of early spring in March, soothing and comforting.
"Ash! Don't talk nonsense!" Brock hurriedly scolded. "Mr. Lucas is now a symbolic figure of Indigo. How could he possibly be a bad guy?!"
Seeing Lucas's smile grow warmer and warmer, the cold sweat on Brock's forehead increased instead.
He quickly covered Ash's mouth and shouted righteously.
This loose-lipped idiot!
They had been traveling for almost a year already—how could he still be so clueless about propriety?
With his mouth covered, Ash struggled frantically, trying to pry Brock's hand away, making muffled "mmph mmph" sounds.
"That's right, that's right! Mr. Lucas is the hero who represented Indigo and defeated Iris and Leon!" Misty nodded vigorously in agreement, constantly glancing cautiously at Lucas out of the corner of her eye.
Damn it, this guy used to be a super terrifying terrorist from Team Rocket!
They had already been scared half to death by Lucas last time in Saffron City. How would Misty dare provoke him now?
"Mmmph~!"
"Stop talking! Mr. Lucas is the best!"
Misty shouted this slogan with a completely serious face!
Although they knew that Lucas had already left Team Rocket and was now openly walking under the sunlight, and according to Red, Lucas no longer did bad things—
A person's reputation was like the shadow of a tree. Toward Lucas, Misty still felt a deep sense of fear in her heart.
"Mmmph mmmph mmmph!!"
"Um, I think you'd better let Ash go first."
Lucas blinked and kindly pointed at Ash while speaking to Brock and Misty, who kept sneaking glances at him.
At this moment, Ash's face had swollen into an unhealthy bluish-red color, clearly from lack of oxygen…
"Ash!"
"Ash!!"
"Pika—Pikachu!"
Brock and Misty were so frightened that their souls nearly left their bodies. Pikachu's ears instantly shot upright as well, staring at Ash in horror.
Brock immediately let go, and Ash finally managed to gasp for air, breathing heavily as his face slowly returned to normal.
"Huff… huff… I survived…"
Ash wore an expression of having narrowly escaped death. Then—
"Brock! What were you doing?!"
"S-sorry, sorry! I panicked, I panicked," Brock apologized awkwardly. He really had panicked and hadn't noticed that he had also covered Ash's nose.
"And what were you guys even saying? Lucas, that guy—"
Ash took a sip of water and was just about to complain. Hadn't they all privately agreed before that Lucas was terrifying? Why did they suddenly look like devoted fans worshiping him now?
"Ahem. Ash, I am Lucas."
Lucas coughed lightly and kindly reminded him.
The person involved is standing right in front of you, you know. If you want to badmouth someone, at least do it behind their back.
"Uh…"
Ash froze, staring blankly at Lucas.
The atmosphere fell silent for two seconds.
"I'm no longer a member of Team Rocket now, so don't demonize me anymore. I'm really, a good guy now."
Seeing that Ash was unusually silent, Lucas chuckled softly and spoke slowly.
Well, back then, he really had left a deep impression on many people.
For a pure, naive kid like Ash, it was normal to have some psychological shadow. Lucas didn't really care about outsiders' opinions anyway, but since it was Ash… teasing him occasionally was actually quite fun.
"You—"
Ash was stunned again and was just about to shout something loudly.
"Your brother is already an Elite Four member. He's left you far behind."
"What?! Red will definitely be surpassed by me sooner or later! Wait, that's not it—you jerk—"
"Not necessarily. I checked—you're ranked very low in the World Championships right now. Wanting to catch up to Red… maybe ten years?"
"Ten years?! Who are you looking down on?!" Ash glared angrily at Lucas. He was furious right now!
Even if Red really was far ahead of him, saying ten years was way too much!
Didn't that mean the gap between him and Red was a full ten years?!
How could it be that exaggerated?! He wasn't that weak!
"Your Pikachu is very cute."
Lucas smiled and suddenly rubbed the head of Pikachu, who was sitting on Ash's shoulder.
The electric mouse blinked, unconsciously showing a comfortable expression.
Mm, the feel of Pikachu really was nice.
"That's for sure! My Pikachu is the best!" Ash was immediately led astray again, puffing out his chest proudly.
"His potential is also very good. But if you want to catch up to Red, you'll still need a long time to grow."
Lucas looked at Ash with amusement. Such a simple kid. But then again, this was Ash at the beginning of his journey.
Misty and Brock remained silent. They could tell Lucas was teasing Ash, but at the same time, there was no malice in him at all.
"I won't be long before I challenge my cousin Lance."
Seeing Ash about to speak again, Lucas spoke first.
"Really?!"
Ash, Brock, Misty, and Yellow all lit up instantly. Lance held a special meaning for those born in Kanto and Johto, after all.
Ash might not have known who Lance was before, but after the World Championships appeared, who didn't know his name?
World Championships Master Class Rank No. 1!
In other words—the strongest Trainer in the world!
"Big brother will definitely succeed!" Yellow said confidently. She had watched Lucas's battle videos before.
Brock and Misty fell silent. Lucas's strength truly was astonishing.
"After I succeed, I'll be the strongest Trainer in the world—no matter how you look at it."
Lucas spoke lightly, his tone unhurried, neither arrogant nor worried.
"Tch…"
Ash clicked his tongue unhappily, but there was also a trace of envy in his eyes.
The strongest Trainer in the world…
That was the lifelong dream he had held since childhood and fought for with everything he had.
"I'll sit at that position and wait—wait for Trainers who dare to challenge me. Kid, I hope that one day, among those figures, I'll see you."
Lucas glanced at Ash, a faint glimmer flashing deep in his eyes.
Ash and Red were fundamentally the same, yet also completely different. One was a true genius; the other was pure perseverance.
Perhaps their destination was the same, but the path toward their dreams was entirely different.
The biggest difference between the two was nothing more than time.
Red could reach his limit in the shortest possible time, while Ash needed time to be tempered, moving forward step by step.
But there was no denying it—no one could deny Ash's future.
Lucas was actually looking forward to the day when Ash would challenge his position.
"Huh?" Ash widened his eyes in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"You'll understand one day. Until we meet again, if fate allows."
Lucas chuckled softly. A shrunken Poké Ball was tossed toward Yellow.
"Big brother?" Yellow caught the Poké Ball.
"This is the Ultra Beast Pokémon Pheromosa. Consider it an early reward for celebrating your future victory at the Indigo Plateau Conference. Keep it up, Yellow."
Lucas rubbed Yellow's golden hair, encouraging her gently.
Then he turned and walked toward the exit of the training field. Although Yellow was growing very smoothly now, it still wasn't time yet.
After she won the Indigo Championship, then he would invite her again.
"A champion's… reward?"
Yellow pressed her lips together, gripping the Poké Ball tightly. Lucas's departing figure was reflected in her eyes, her delicate face filled with determination and resolve.
Sure enough, she still had to work harder! She had to become even more outstanding to live up to big brother's recognition!
"Hey, Misty, what did he mean by what he just said?" Ash scratched his head, still confused.
"Why are you asking me?" Misty shot Ash an annoyed glance, though she understood perfectly well in her heart. But…
"However you look at it, it doesn't seem likely, does it?" Misty sized Ash up and down, her eyes full of scrutiny.
Whether this guy could even climb into the Ultra Class was still unknown. Even if he could, who knew how many years it would take.
Let alone challenging Lucas.
"Hey, hey, hey! Misty! Your gaze is really rude!" Ash finally exploded. "Don't tell me you really think I don't understand what Lucas meant?!"
Under Misty's stare, Ash felt his scalp tingle. That expression of "there's no way someone as weak as you could do it"—even Ash could feel that much!
"Who knows?" Brock said with a smile, resting his chin on his hand. Although he might also have doubts about Ash's future, he was still genuinely happy for him.
After all, someone like Lucas seemed to have acknowledged Ash, didn't he?
The chance encounter with Ash's group and Yellow in Viridian City was nothing more than a small interlude.
In the blink of an eye, three days passed.
Over those three days, Lucas traveled around Kanto with Irene and the other two girls, riding the White Dragon and enjoying themselves thoroughly.
And on this very day, Colress contacted him.
Reshiram flew at high speed across the sky and soon arrived outside the secret base near Lavender Town.
The moment he entered the base, Lucas discovered that most of the researchers from last time had already been dismissed. The entire base was now left with only Fuji and Colress—and…
A small Mewtwo Y floating in midair!
It really succeeded!
Noticing Lucas and the others entering, Mewtwo Y curiously turned its gaze toward them, tilting its head.
Its bright, clear big eyes were incredibly cute, filled with innocence and curiosity about the world.
But as if sensing something, Mewtwo Y slowly floated over and finally stopped behind Marnie, staring straight at her backpack.
"Marnie."
Lucas raised an eyebrow and instantly understood why, calling out to her.
Marnie nodded, turned the backpack around, and opened it. A blue turtle sleeping soundly came into view.
"Mm?"
Mewtwo Y blinked as it stared at the blue turtle, confusion flashing in its eyes. The appearance was clearly unfamiliar, but why did it feel such a strange sense of closeness?
"Hey—wake up, you lazy cat!" Lucas helplessly picked up the "Squirtle" and kept patting the big bald head of the blue turtle.
"Mew~ don't bother me… my big buns… smell so good…"
The big turtle slapped Lucas's hand away with its little paws, rolled over, and continued sleeping comfortably.
"Your daughter has been born!"
Lucas's eyelid twitched. Buns? Buns my ass.
Without mercy, Lucas gave the blue turtle a solid knock on the forehead.
"Mm… that hurts… eh? Eh?!"
"Squirtle" instantly woke up, clutching its bald head with teary eyes.
But before it could accuse a certain caretaker of abuse, it seemed to sense something. Turning its head, it met Mewtwo Y's curious gaze.
Their big eyes met.
Time seemed to freeze for a second. A flash of light passed, and Mew returned to its original form, floating up and moving closer to Mewtwo Y.
"That's not right… how… mew?"
Mew bit its little paw, its eyes scanning Mewtwo Y nonstop. It moved closer again, sniffing Mewtwo Y with its nose, looking utterly shaken.
Holy crap—why does this thing look so much like me?! Even the scent is basically the same!
"Mew?"
Hearing Mew's cry, Mewtwo Y tilted its head and earnestly tried to imitate the sound.
The voice was crisp and youthful, very similar to Mew's childish tone, though it seemed slightly more mature.
But upon hearing this sound, Professor Fuji's eyes instantly turned red. He stared at Mewtwo Y in overwhelming excitement.
"Amber! That's Amber's voice!"
Fuji grabbed Colress's hand excitedly, pointing at Mewtwo Y as his voice choked.
Amber was his daughter, who had died young in an accident. Once a genius, Fuji had left Cinnabar Island in despair precisely because of that devastating blow.
And the reason he had agreed to Team Rocket's Mewtwo Project back then was to use this advanced cloning technology to "revive" his daughter.
But his attempt failed.
Amber did not revive through Mewtwo. Mewtwo was simply Mewtwo—an independent individual.
Even Mewtwo's telepathy had been a male voice.
Yet…
This time, the newly born Mewtwo Y's cry was exactly the same as the voice of the daughter he had missed day and night!
Although Mewtwo Y clearly did not inherit Amber's memories, some traces of Amber seemed to have appeared within it.
For example—the voice just now.
Colress seemed to understand why Fuji was so emotional. He silently patted Fuji's hand in comfort.
Toward this senior researcher, Colress felt genuine admiration on a personal level.
(End of Chapter)