Chapter 150:
[Pokémon: Darkrai]
[Gender: Genderless]
[Ability: Bad Dreams]
[Potential: Gold]
[IVs: HP (24) Attack (31) Sp. Atk (31) Defense (28) Sp. Def (31) Speed (31)]
[Level: 93—97]
[Moves: Disable, Quick Attack, Hypnosis, Feint Attack, Night Shade, Double Team, Haze, Dark Void...]
[Friendship: 0]
[Happiness: 0]
Darkrai hadn't revealed itself, remaining hidden in the shadows, but this couldn't escape Hayashi Kaede's Eye of Exploration.
Seeing its level, Hayashi Kaede breathed a sigh of relief.
A Darkrai below level 100 wouldn't be much of a problem for either Mewtwo or Gardevoir.
"You are the owner of this plantation?"
Looking at the Dragonite Hayashi Kaede was riding, Kazephyr was inwardly shocked.
This Dragonite's strength was already on par with an Elite Four member's Pokémon, even slightly stronger than some.
Moreover, there were the Gardevoir floating beside him and a light pink humanoid Pokémon he had never seen before.
Its aura felt unfathomable, and its face bore an expression that seemed to look down on all living things.
He had a feeling, this humanoid Pokémon didn't even regard his Moltres as a threat.
Was this an ordinary plantation owner?
"Mhmm." Even though he was riding Dragonite and accompanied by Mewtwo, Hayashi Kaede's attitude remained respectful.
The other party was the Champion. Not only was his combat strength formidable, but he also had a good reputation.
During his tenure, Kazephyr had been the epitome of a workaholic. Whenever anything major happened anywhere, his presence was almost always seen.
This was also why the public cooperated with him so readily in such matters.
Hayashi Kaede respected people like him.
"Plantation owner? Hisss..."
Kazephyr repeated the term, then sucked in a cold breath.
In his mind, he was screaming, "This is utterly absurd."
Even with his experience, he had never heard of a plantation owner like this?
Wasn't this strength enough to be a Champion?
Of course, that was just in terms of power; being a Champion required more than just strength.
However, he suppressed his astonishment and asked, "It's like this. I sent an official League message that should have been received by all recent residents of Aogiri Town. May I ask if you have recently experienced any..."
Before he could finish, Hayashi Kaede interrupted him. "Yes, phenomena where other Pokémon or humans have nightmares. And I can probably guess why you've come to me, Champion."
"It's because the owner of the nightmare energy has come looking, right?"
As he spoke, Hayashi Kaede looked behind Kazephyr.
Gardevoir was right beside him. Darkrai couldn't possibly fail to sense the nightmare energy within it.
"..." Kazephyr fell silent for a moment, then nodded, growing even more suspicious of the young man's identity.
"It's right behind me."
"Won't you come out?" Hayashi Kaede addressed the space behind Kazephyr.
Darkrai, hidden in the shadows, remained silent.
It had thought the power it left behind would, at most, allow that Pokémon to live quite comfortably in the wild. But now...
The Gardevoir beside that human was almost as strong as it was now, wasn't it?
Lost in thought, Darkrai gradually revealed itself.
Its form overlapped with the figure in Gardevoir's memories, prompting a thoughtful expression.
The Darkrai that had seemed immensely powerful, like a deity, in its childhood now didn't appear as strong as imagined.
Darkrai glanced at Gardevoir, then turned its gaze to Hayashi Kaede. "Was it you who helped it absorb my energy?"
It had some impression of this Shiny Gardevoir.
Back when it was just a Ralts, it had thought it was some homeless child.
"Well... its own growth played a part too." Hayashi Kaede didn't claim all the credit.
Darkrai fell silent again, seemingly pondering something, before shifting its gaze to Mewtwo. "Who are you? I've never seen you before."
The longer a Pokémon lived, especially if it enjoyed wandering, the broader its knowledge became.
But Darkrai had never encountered such a formidable Pokémon.
Facing Darkrai's inquiry, Mewtwo replied indifferently, "You don't need to know."
Having never known defeat since its "birth," Mewtwo's character was filled with unparalleled pride.
"..."
Darkrai was clearly rendered speechless by this response, but it didn't lose its composure. After a moment's hesitation, it didn't press further and instead looked at Gardevoir. "You seem to wield my power quite well."
Gardevoir shook its head. "Gardevoir..." (No, before meeting my Trainer, I avoided using your power as much as possible, even showing no inclination to use it actively.)
After being driven away, it had come to see this power as ominous and had never used it voluntarily.
It was only occasionally activated by the power itself.
Hearing this, Darkrai couldn't help but show a trace of surprise.
Before coming, it had assumed that to fully master its power, one must have used it extensively to gain such proficiency.
But cursed power was still cursed power.
If Gardevoir had used it frequently, it would have gradually been covered by the cursed energy, becoming tainted whenever it focused, thus suffering nightmares.
Living in such an environment for long would surely drive most Pokémon to mental collapse.
But now, it sounded like this human had directly resolved this issue for it?
At this point, Hayashi Kaede also spoke up. "Darkrai, you see, this power has already been absorbed by my Gardevoir and integrated into its own strength. Taking it back would undoubtedly cause some harm to Gardevoir. So, could I ask you not to reclaim it?"
"In return, I can offer appropriate compensation."
Seeing Darkrai's silence, Hayashi Kaede paused. "Of course, if you disagree, I still won't allow Gardevoir to surrender this power."
Courtesy before force.
Hayashi Kaede felt he had handled this quite well.
If Darkrai refused, then he would have to resort to his own methods.
Kazephyr stood to the side, listening to their conversation, suddenly feeling as if the world had become somewhat surreal.
In this dazed state, a "Pidgeotto" quietly flew up and landed beside Moltres, looking at it curiously.