Chapter 162: Preparations for the Future
Milotic swam to the edge of the ice mass and shattered it with a single blow of its Iron Tail, releasing Bagon. Bagon shivered from the cold, its eyes sparkling as it gazed at the now-evolved Milotic, nuzzling it affectionately.
Ryan walked over, patting Bagon's head and saying, "Don't get the wrong idea. My Milotic is male. You don't swing that way, do you little one? Because my Milotic doesn't. He has a partner."
Bagon collapsed to the ground, its body turning pale and gray, its sorrow evidently overflowing. Ryan produced a Great Ball, intending to catch it first and then slowly train it later.
He recalled Milotic and released Charizard, which then carried Ryan to Fallarbor Town.
By the time they arrived at their hotel in Fallarbor Town, it was already dark. However, when Ryan opened the door, he found all three of them awake.
Ryan was initially touched that everyone was waiting for him, but then he looked over and saw three people gathered around a Pokémon, discussing something.
He approached and saw a Munchlax in the middle of them, with everyone debating who would catch it. To entice Munchlax to follow them, the three offered it delicious treats. Munchlax happily ate everything offered. Ryan looked at the Munchlax helplessly. Was it really that much of a glutton? Such an enormous appetite!
"By the way, I'm back," Ryan said.
The three glanced back and said in unison, "Ryan, don't start cooking yet! Wait until I catch this Munchlax!"
Ryan was helpless: "Are you guys afraid I'll steal your Pokémon?"
"No need to worry about that. Take your time deciding. I just caught a Bagon, and Feebas evolved into Milotic. I'm not interested in Munchlax," Ryan said, shaking his head.
Then he released Bagon, who still looked devastated. Ryan patted Bagon's head and said, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, so why fixate on just one? I'll introduce you to a beautiful Salamence later."
Bagon looked at Ryan pitifully, feeling deeply wronged: "My first love! It's over before it even began! And he's male!!!"
Ryan looked at Bagon with amusement. He first treated Bagon's injuries with medicine, then prepared to cook dinner; he was still hungry.
While the three of them were still arguing about Munchlax, Munchlax suddenly froze, sniffed the air, and then stood up excitedly and ran to the kitchen.
"Oh no! Ryan's cooking!" Ruby shouted, seeing Munchlax running away.
"Ah! Ryan's cheating!" Sapphire cried.
Lillie's eyes lit up, and she gently said to Munchlax, "Munchlax, this food smells great, doesn't it? If you follow me, you can..."
Before Lillie could finish her words, Sapphire covered her mouth. Sapphire yelled, "Lillie, no cheating!"
Ryan walked out with two plates of food and said, "Stop fighting. Let's play rock-paper-scissors. It's all about luck. How about that?"
"Okay," the three said.
Then they played rock-paper-scissors, and Ruby won. But Sapphire and Lillie insisted that Ruby's last round wouldn't count. Watching the three quarreling again, Ryan finished his food and said, "Stop arguing. I have three chopsticks here. Each of you draw one. I've left a tooth mark on one of them. I won't participate, so you won't suspect me of cheating. Whoever draws the chopstick with the tooth mark gets to catch this Munchlax."
Munchlax ate its food, waving its arms casually. It didn't matter who caught it; it just wanted something delicious.
The three nodded and approached Ryan. Each of them selected a chopstick, counted one, two, three, and pulled them out together. Looking over, Sapphire excitedly waved the tooth-marked chopstick and exclaimed, "Yeah! Little Munchlax is mine!"
Ruby and Lillie sighed helplessly. After all, little Munchlax was indeed quite adorable; no one would refuse to catch it. Of course, those who couldn't afford to feed it certainly wouldn't catch it.
Sapphire produced a Poké Ball and gently touched the now-satisfied Munchlax. The little Munchlax was caught without resistance, shaking briefly before remaining still.
"Yeah, I caught Munchlax!" Sapphire exclaimed excitedly.
"Burp. So full," Ryan said, rubbing his belly. Bagon also sprawled on Ryan: "With such delicious food every day, life will be great from now on."
"Wait! Ryan, why did you eat all the food?!" Ruby finally realized and exclaimed.
"Yeah! Where did this Bagon come from?!" Lillie exclaimed.
Ryan was helpless: It seemed they hadn't listened to what he'd said before.
Ryan had no choice but to recount what had happened. Ruby frowned and asked, "A meteorite disaster? Then why didn't Celebi tell me about it?"
Ryan shook his head and said, "I don't know, but it's difficult for Celebi to modify the timeline directly. They only facilitate different events, not participate in them personally. It's good enough that it told you one thing, so there's no need to dwell on the rest."
"So, does my goal remain the same?" Lillie asked.
"It remains the same, but I'll still try to bring the League into this. After all, our power here is simply not on the same level as the League's. If we want to completely resolve the situation, bringing the League in will probably make things much easier," Ryan said.
"Team Magma and Team Aqua are too slow. They still haven't found Groudon and Kyogre," Sapphire said.
"It's probably going to happen soon. Zinnia has already informed Maxie about the orbs' location. Team Magma is already sending people to retrieve the Red Orb from Mt. Chimney, and Team Aqua is preparing to seize the submarine in Slateport City," Ryan said. "It's estimated that soon, the two teams will cooperate to reach the Seafloor Cavern. If the information is correct, they'll awaken Groudon and Kyogre."
"Then, Sapphire and I will go and take those two orbs, right?" Ruby said.
"Yes. I'll have Mewtwo and Darkrai work with you to seize the orbs, and then control Groudon and Kyogre to go to Sootopolis City," Ryan explained. "Lillie and I will go to the Sky Pillar to bring Rayquaza over. From then on, it's up to me to handle it."
"But I'm worried the League will interfere. After all, the League has been wanting to study Rayquaza for a while," Sapphire said with some concern.
"Then we'll fight if necessary," Ryan said with a confident smile. "Don't assume the League's leadership is unified. The League can't afford to let the Legendary Pokémon fight each other. I'll summon all my Pokémon. Apart from anything else, we'll have no problem holding off their attacks."
Ryan smiled confidently, "Besides, Team Magma has Courtney to help, and Zinnia will also help us. Let's not even talk about defeating the League—we just need enough time to stall them."
"Courtney?" Lillie's eyes flashed. "Female?"
Ryan was speechless: Women have a strong sixth sense about these things, whether they're experienced or not.
At this point, explanations were useless; action was everything!
Ruby's eyes widened, and Sapphire blushed. She dragged Ruby away quickly.
After a deep kiss, Ryan smiled, "Very sweet."
Lillie's head was spinning, and she was completely stunned. She was dazed as Ryan guided her to the living room to sit down. He still had to prepare their dinner.
(End of Chapter)
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