Bringing Mewtwo back to the Alliance was not without risk.
As Giovanni himself had said, the Alliance was not composed solely of upright, righteous individuals. Ash had simply been fortunate, so far, to encounter mostly good people. That did not mean everyone within the Alliance shared the same integrity.
If those with ulterior motives learned of Mewtwo's existence, her fate might not be much better than it had been under Giovanni's control.
However, with Lorelei's personal guarantee, Mewtwo's safety was assured. No matter how ambitious or greedy someone might be, they would not dare cross Lorelei's line.
After some discussion, everyone agreed that Ash should be the one to take out a Poké Ball. After all, he was the Trainer who had defeated Mewtwo. Even if this was not a formal capture, having her placed in Ash's Poké Ball was the most reasonable choice.
Once Mewtwo was secured, Lorelei and Agatha prepared to depart.
"Actually," Lorelei said with a knowing smile, "there are many things we'd like to ask you. Your Lucario's sudden leap in strength, and your Venusaur's ability to evolve beyond conventional limits, both are extremely intriguing."
She paused briefly.
"But there are more urgent matters right now. We'll discuss these when there's time."
Lorelei's interest was genuine. Whether it was MEGA Evolution or Lucario's inexplicable step into the God/Divine Realm, both represented heights that every Trainer dreamed of, yet almost none could reach.
Even for Champions, such realms were distant legends.
Still, Mewtwo took priority.
She needed to be returned to the Alliance immediately and given the highest level of medical treatment available. Once she recovered, her future, and the genetic secrets she carried, would become key points of discussion within the Alliance. The mystery of whether ordinary Pokémon could advance into the Divine Realm might very well be tied to her existence.
As members of Kanto's Elite Four, Lorelei and Agatha could not remain uninvolved.
After parting ways with them, Ash and the others headed straight to the Pokémon Center.
Both Gary and Ash handed their Poké Balls to Nurse Joy.
Gary's Pokémon had been thoroughly battered by Mewtwo; none of them had escaped serious injury. If Ash hadn't been caught in the chaos earlier, Gary would have rushed to the Pokémon Center long ago.
Ash's Venusaur and Lucario, on the other hand, were largely unharmed. They were still energetic, though their stamina had taken a hit, especially Venusaur, whose massive attack had nearly drained him completely.
Once their Pokémon were settled, Ash and his three companions found seats in the waiting area.
Since Ash wasn't wearing a mask, he was quickly recognized.
Although he had recently lost to Lorelei, that defeat only reinforced his reputation. Losing narrowly to a Champion proved that his strength was real, not exaggerated. At his age, he was unquestionably one of the most formidable Trainers around.
The public opinion Giovanni had once manipulated to discredit Ash had instead become a springboard, pushing his fame even higher.
The people who recognized him were considerate. They asked politely for autographs and photos, then left happily.
For them, that was more than enough.
After all, if Ash truly became a member of the Elite Four one day, these signatures and photos would become far more valuable. Even if that wasn't their original intention, it still validated their good judgment, and naturally made them even happier.
In the Pokémon world, Trainers were the most admired profession.
And powerful Trainers?
They were celebrities.
Ash, and Lorelei, were living proof of that.
Three beautiful women performing synchronized swimming, tickets were cheap, and under normal circumstances hardly anyone paid attention. Only during holidays would a slightly larger crowd show up.
Yet Ash's battle with Lorelei was an entirely different story.
There had been no advance promotion. The match was announced almost casually in Cerulean City, and still, the news spread like wildfire.
Within moments, it was known throughout the city.
The massive Cerulean Gym filled to capacity in the blink of an eye.
That was the influence of truly powerful Trainers.
"Alright, what exactly happened with Lucario? Don't tell me this is another Victini thing. Even Victini itself probably couldn't pull something like that off!"
This was the question that truly mattered to him.
How did Lucario become so strong?
Gary might not understand God/Divine Realm levels, but even a fool could tell that Lucario's power far exceeded that of an ordinary Champion.
And Lucario had just evolved.
There was no way that level of strength made sense.
The curiosity clawed at Gary's chest like an itching cat.
As Ash's childhood friend, surely asking about one little secret wasn't too much?
Ash, hearing this, immediately pulled out the excuse he'd already prepared.
"Ahem… actually, this method really can't be taught to you guys," he said with a sigh. "And this time, it wasn't Victini. It's related to Lucario's origins."
"Origins?!" ×3
Misty, Brock, and Gary spoke in unison, their faces filled with confusion. How had the conversation suddenly shifted to origins?
"Well… it's like this," Ash continued. "Misty, Brock, you both know that my Lucario hatched from a Pokémon Egg obtained by Dr. Cerise."
He paused for emphasis.
"And the predecessor of that Egg, was the legendary Lucario that once protected Rota Kingdom."
"A thousand years ago, the Rota Kingdom faced a catastrophe that nearly wiped it from existence. At that time, the hero Sir Aaron stepped forward with his Pokémon, Lucario, and used overwhelming power to forcibly stop the war."
"According to legend, Sir Aaron and his Lucario possessed power comparable to that of gods, meaning they had already stepped into the Divine Realm, a level ordinary Pokémon can no longer reach today."
"In the end, Sir Aaron and his Lucario were revered by the people of the Rota Kingdom for generations, and my Lucario is the reincarnation of that Lucario."
Gary and the others: !!!
Ash's Lucario... the reincarnation of that Lucario?
Reincarnation sounded unscientific, but in a world filled with Legendary Pokémon, time distortion, alternate dimensions, and god-like beings, it wasn't entirely impossible.
As for whether it was actually true…
Of course, Ash made it up.
More precisely, Aura Ash made it up.
The power Lucario had displayed this time went far beyond Champion level and had completely crushed Mewtwo. That kind of strength couldn't be explained by something as simple as Victini's blessing.
It needed an explanation that was outrageous, but still plausible.
Reincarnation fit perfectly.
Vague, grand, impossible to verify, yet rooted in known legend.
Aura Ash was familiar with the legend of the Rota Kingdom because he had personally experienced that era, and had even met that Lucario himself.
That Lucario's strength was beyond question.
At the time, Aura Ash was far from his peak, and his own Aura was still immature. Compared to him, that Lucario's Aura felt like an endless ocean, vast, unfathomable, terrifying.
There was no doubt: the legendary Lucario of the Rota Kingdom had reached the highest realm known in the Pokémon world, the Divine Realm.
Later, at the World Tree, that same Lucario had fought fiercely against the three Regi Pokémon to protect others. Its strength and character were unquestionable.
Of course, that Lucario and Ash's Lucario had no actual reincarnation connection.
If there was any link at all, it was more accurate to say that Ash's Lucario had inherited a trace of that legendary Lucario's talent and latent power.
But now, that legend made for a perfect shield.
"Because of reincarnation," Ash continued, "Lucario's body contained the dormant power of that legendary Lucario from its previous life. I already noticed it when it was still a Riolu. The power was enormous, but before evolving, Riolu couldn't access or control it at all."
"As for how strong that power really is…" Ash hesitated, then shook his head. "I don't know. But I do know this, an ordinary Champion's power isn't even close to it. So I decided to gamble."
"Originally, that gamble was meant to deal with Giovanni's main Pokémon. I didn't expect things to spiral this far, or for the opponent to turn out to be Mewtwo. I had no choice but to push through."
"The result surprised even me. That power from Lucario's previous life was… too fierce. But after using it this time, the last remaining trace of that past life completely dissipated."
Ash's expression darkened slightly, showing regret, and a hint of sorrow, for the legendary Lucario's final disappearance.
Gary, Misty, and Brock exchanged glances, all wearing complicated expressions.
If Ash was lying, the explanation was coherent and airtight. If he was telling the truth… it sounded completely insane.
Reincarnation? Past-life power? Divine Realm inheritance?
You wouldn't even dare write something like this in a novel.
And yet, if it wasn't this explanation, then what else could possibly account for what they had seen?
Compared to Victini's blessing, this story actually made more sense.
Even setting aside whether Victini possessed such terrifying power, the Arceus Contract explicitly forbade external forces from interfering. No matter how strong Victini was, it couldn't have affected what happened inside the barrier.
Ash's explanation, however, neatly bypassed that restriction.If the power came from Lucario itself, from a past life, then the contract wouldn't block it.
As for verifying the truth?
They couldn't exactly travel to the Rota Kingdom to confirm it.
So, in the end, Gary and the others chose to stop digging deeper.
No matter how unbelievable the power Ash displayed. As long as he was still Ash, that was enough.