Chapter 290: Creating a God?
On the sea.
"Lorelei, you even know Ho-Oh and Lugia?"
Steven looked at the Lorelei beside him, his eyes filled with shock.
Even though he was too far away to hear the conversation between Will and Ho-Oh...
He could see it.
Will and the two Legendary Pokémon clearly knew each other.
At this moment.
He felt this woman was unfathomable.
Turns out Champions are just little brothers; the real rulers are hidden among the Elite Four.
"?"
A question mark popped up over Lorelei's head, and she was slightly confused.
Yes, only slightly.
After all, she was the Rainbow Hero and had completed Ho-Oh's Rainbow Trial with Will.
So Ho-Oh appearing to help them made sense.
But she really didn't know Lugia.
As a high-ranking official of the Indigo League, she knew the true history from over a hundred years ago. Honestly, her impression of Lugia wasn't great. Why would she go out of her way to contact Lugia?
Even if she wanted to, Will wouldn't let her do something so dangerous.
She didn't understand why Lugia came to help. She could only assume it was because of Ho-Oh.
On the sea.
With Kyogre gone and Manaphy calmed down, the gloomy sky gradually cleared, and light returned to the world.
The battle was over.
The Water-type Pokémon occupying the area began to disperse.
Only a few remained, floating on the surface, unconscious from Kyogre's attacks.
At this moment, the Eon Duo and Manaphy looked at Will with curiosity.
What kind of existence...
Could be acquainted with such incredible Pokémon?
They had lived for a long time and naturally knew of Ho-Oh and Lugia's existence.
But that was all—they just knew they existed.
Making friends with such lofty Pokémon wasn't easy. Some Pokémon were naturally incompatible and destined never to be friends. Most First-Tier Legendaries wouldn't lower themselves to befriend weaker beings.
"Friends I knew in the past."
Will pursed his beak, not explaining much. Instead, he pointed to the Pokémon floating on the sea. "Let's heal everyone."
The three Pokémon nodded.
After several rounds of Heal Pulse and Aqua Ring...
The Pokémon floating like corpses on the sea gradually woke up.
Although these Pokémon hadn't been useful in the fight, their intentions were good.
Kyogre's issue was resolved.
But the issue with the three little ones wasn't completely over.
"Manaphy, although you had a reason, what you did at the start was wrong. If you had asked the Eon Duo for help properly, they would have helped you retrieve Phione."
Will put his flippers on his hips and poked Manaphy on his head.
He wasn't wrong.
Latios and Latias were Psychic-type Pokémon capable of sensing human hearts.
They could sense who was good and who was bad even better than Will.
If Manaphy had asked them for help properly from the start...
None of this mess would have happened.
"Maaa."
Manaphy lowered its head apologetically.
Mythical Pokémon weren't as hard to communicate with as Legendaries. If its child hadn't been stolen, Manaphy was actually a very kind and easygoing Pokémon, even more innocent than Mew.
"Lias~"
Kind-hearted Latias forgave Manaphy immediately.
Latios still had some complaints, but for his sister's sake, he didn't hold it against Manaphy.
"You are Pokémon distributed in the same region. If you become friends, you can help each other when you encounter dangers like today."
Will looked at the three of them and added, "Just like me, Ho-Oh, and Lugia."
"Lias!"
Hearing this, Latias nodded eagerly.
She thought Will was super cool just now. She wanted to be like that too, so she wanted to make lots of friends!
Latias dragged her reluctant brother over to Manaphy and greeted it warmly.
"Maaa~"
Manaphy waved its hand, smiling in friendship.
"Lios."
Latios echoed casually.
Although his tone still sounded a bit unhappy, he didn't mind that much anymore.
Today's events made him realize that he and his sister alone might not be able to protect Alto Mare forever.
Making friends was indeed important.
However...
Latios turned to look at Will.
He still wanted to be friends with Will more.
Not because of Ho-Oh and Lugia.
But because Will had helped them deal with Manaphy and Kyogre successively.
Regardless of whether Will came specifically to help them... the fact remained.
Will had helped them protect Alto Mare's guardian deity (the Soul Dew/city itself).
So Latios had a very good impression of him.
"Lias?"
Latias, always telepathically connected with her brother, naturally sensed his feelings.
Her thoughts were the same as Latios's.
Just now, Will blocking Kyogre's Ice Beam for her had completely charmed the young-girl-at-heart Latias.
Unlike her awkward, tsundere brother...
If she had a thought, she acted on it immediately.
So she rushed up to Will and asked if he would be their friend.
"If you're willing."
Will grinned.
Of course he was willing to be friends with the Eon Duo. Being friends with Legendary Pokémon was a prestigious thing.
Besides.
Today's events proved it.
Friendship Power... is strong!
Even if he was weak as a goose in a future life, he wouldn't be afraid. As long as he had enough friends, he could still be invincible!
"Maaa~"
"Mhm, you too." Will smiled and nodded.
Pokémon who were almost beating each other bloody just moments ago were now loving friends. The Pokémon world was always so simple and easy to get along in.
"Lias~"
"Lios."
The Eon Duo wanted to keep Will, inviting him to play in Alto Mare for a few days.
"Mm, I should be free for the next few days. I'll stay here for a while." Will nodded unceremoniously.
"Maaa."
Manaphy planned to leave for a bit.
It wasn't comfortable leaving Phione alone in Samiya.
"Maaa?"
Manaphy asked the Eon Duo.
Before Phione hatched, could it hide Phione with them? It was afraid something else might happen elsewhere.
With the Eon Duo's protection, Phione would definitely be born safely.
The Eon Duo agreed without hesitation. Especially Latias, who seemed very interested in taking care of a baby, circling excitedly around Will and Manaphy.
"Let's disperse here for now and meet up later." Will spoke first.
Unless something unexpected happened, people from the Hoenn League would soon arrive to investigate and record the aftermath of the battle.
The fewer people who knew about the Eon Duo and Manaphy, the better.
Otherwise... who knew when the next group of pirates would appear?
The Eon Duo nodded, shook their wings, turned invisible, and flew away.
Manaphy dove into the water and vanished.
The chaotic sea suddenly became quiet, leaving only Will.
"Piplup!"
Lorelei swam over riding Dewgong. Steven and Skarmory followed behind her.
"My name is Empoleon the Great!"
"...Pfft, that doesn't sound good at all. I'm still calling you Piplup."
"Whatever."
Will rolled his eyes, feeling exhausted.
He wanted to collapse into Lorelei's arms, but he couldn't do that anymore. He was afraid of accidentally crushing her.
"Lorelei, I plan to give your Empoleon some good publicity when we get back."
Steven stroked his chin, staring at Will with burning eyes.
"Huh?"
Lorelei raised an eyebrow, quickly realizing something. She wasn't the naive little girl anymore; she could figure some things out.
"You know, over a hundred years ago, a 'Leaf God' appeared at the foot of the Indigo League. Since then, the Kanto region has been the focus of the world. Especially Rota City, which never lacks tourists. The neighboring Johto region also became popular."
Steven looked at the metallic luster on Will's body and shook his head. "Just so happens, this incident was quite big too. I think Empoleon might become the second god after the Leaf God!"
Steven didn't dare say for sure.
Because this incident was far less significant than the Leaf God incident over a hundred years ago.
Although the battle was fiercer and more Legendaries appeared...
From beginning to end, they didn't really go to war. It was mostly stalling until the gods regained their reason and stopped. The danger level was incomparable.
Moreover...
The Leaf God incident affected the entire world, involving every region and every League.
But this time... it only affected the city of Alto Mare.
The difference was significant.
So Steven could only say "might."
But regardless...
Hoenn would definitely gather some heat, and Alto Mare would become a global focal point for the next few years.
The Hoenn League wouldn't give up this great promotional opportunity for anything.
"'Leaf God'..."
Lorelei was dazed for a moment, turning to stare at Will.
She hadn't expected her little penguin to be this amazing. Capable of becoming a god.
But...
Was that really good?
Lorelei foresaw that for the rest of their lives, she and Will would face countless trainers visiting and challenging them. It seemed annoying.
"Lorelei, how about you come up with Empoleon's title?" Steven added, seeing Lorelei hesitate.
"...Deal!"
Lorelei pursed her lips and clapped her hands.
Compared to the two excited humans, Will was indifferent.
A god.
It wasn't his first time being one.
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