The three Seadra let out mournful cries, desperately pleading for their king to calm down.
Finally...
Marshadow couldn't bear to watch any longer.
"Lord Ho-Oh... Marshadow wishes to borrow a little of your power."
The Rainbow Wing hidden within Chen Mo's body gave a faint tremble.
An almost imperceptibly gentle power flowed through the giant black hands and into Kingdra.
The next instant...
Kingdra's body shuddered.
The fury in its eyes gradually faded, clarity returning.
Without hesitation...
Seizing the opportunity, Marshadow used telepathy to repeat everything Chen Mo had just said.
Its tone, however, was far from polite.
After finishing...
Marshadow had barely relaxed when it suddenly noticed someone looking in its direction.
"He noticed me?"
Hidden inside Gengar's shadow, Marshadow instantly panicked.
But almost immediately...
It realized something was off.
I'm only hiding the Rainbow Wing.
Why am I scared?
Having figured that out...
Marshadow immediately straightened Gengar's posture, puffed out its chest, and pretended to be perfectly composed.
Meanwhile...
Listening to the mournful cries of the three Seadra below...
And replaying Marshadow's words in its mind...
Kingdra slowly lowered its gaze toward the members of its tribe gathered on the deck.
Every Horsea.
Every Seadra.
All wore exhausted expressions.
Just as that human had said...
They were tired.
Tired of this endless war over territory.
Tired of watching companions die before their eyes...
Unable to do anything.
"..."
Seeing Kingdra finally fall silent...
Chen Mo beckoned to "Gengar," signaling it could release Kingdra now.
A strange silence settled over the deck.
Chen Mo slowly walked toward Kingdra.
The proud ruler who had once bowed to no one now lay on the deck without even lifting its head.
Quietly...
It asked,
"...King."
"Human... was I wrong?"
Chen Mo answered sincerely.
"There's nothing wrong with defending your own territory."
"You led from the front."
"You fought until the very end."
"Kingdra... you've already earned everyone's respect."
"If anyone is to blame..."
"The root of all this..."
"...was simply that you weren't strong enough to end the conflict quickly."
Kingdra remained silent.
But inwardly...
It agreed.
It had grown complacent.
Ever since evolving into Kingdra...
There had been almost no opponent in the sea capable of defeating it one-on-one.
Gradually...
It stopped training as diligently.
After all...
Not every Pokémon dreamed of becoming the strongest.
Kingdra's original dream had been simple.
To secure a homeland...
A place where the Horsea clan could safely live.
Once that dream had been achieved...
Its naturally lazy disposition slowly resurfaced.
Thinking back on those peaceful, leisurely days...
Kingdra couldn't help regretting them.
If only...
If I'd trained just a little harder...
If I'd practiced a little longer every day...
Would so many of my people still have suffered?
But...
There were no "ifs."
"Kingdra."
"Let's make a deal."
A voice came from above.
Kingdra slowly looked up.
The strange human crouched before it.
One hand disappeared into his coat...
Searching for something.
The next second...
Chen Mo pulled out three mysterious scales.
They shimmered with brilliant rainbow colors.
Beautiful.
And...
Exceptionally familiar.
"...King."
Kingdra's pupils contracted.
Chen Mo placed the three scales before it.
"You recognize these, don't you?"
"I'm willing to trade three Dragon Scales..."
"In exchange..."
"For your Horsea clan ending this war."
Kingdra stared blankly at the Dragon Scales.
It seemed as though Chen Mo's words had completely escaped its notice.
In truth...
Not only Kingdra.
The moment those three Dragon Scales appeared...
The entire Horsea clan erupted into commotion.
Chen Mo wasn't in any hurry.
He knew...
Kingdra needed time.
Meanwhile...
The livestream exploded.
[HOLY CRAP! Professor Mo has become just like Professor Gengar! Why does he keep pulling random treasures out of nowhere?!]
[Professor Mo: Since I'm Gengar's Trainer, sharing its four-dimensional storage space is perfectly reasonable.]
[So THAT'S why Professor Mo changed clothes before coming here! I thought he was just cold!]
[So what exactly are Dragon Scales? Every Horsea looks like it's about to faint from excitement!]
[Easy. Dragon Scales must be the matching item to Gible's Dragon Fang!]
[Dragon Fang... Dragon Scale... Dragon Horn... Dragon Eye... Dragons really are walking treasure chests.]
Watching the wildly speculative comments...
Chen Mo noticed through Eye of Detection that Kingdra's emotions were rapidly changing.
His mood brightened.
Taking advantage of the moment...
He quietly began another educational segment.
After all...
Jirachi had consumed an enormous amount of his accumulated Popularization Points through all those Comet Shards.
Although the remaining total was still astronomical...
Chen Mo had grown accustomed to watching the number constantly rise.
Seeing it suddenly decrease by so much...
Made him instinctively want to earn it back.
"...Simply put..."
"Dragon Fang and Dragon Scale are two completely different items."
"According to current research..."
"If Horsea wish to evolve from Seadra into Kingdra..."
"Dragon Scale is absolutely essential."
"The function of this item is straightforward."
"It allows Seadra..."
"Whose dragon bloodline remains incomplete..."
"To undergo a true transformation."
"Changing from a pseudo-dragon..."
"Into a genuine Dragon-type Pokémon."
"...Hm?"
"Can Dragon Scales help Gyarados or Charizard become 'true dragons?'"
"...Interesting idea."
"But both Gyarados and Charizard have their own unique evolutionary paths."
"Based on what I know..."
"They probably don't require Dragon Scales."
"And..."
"Even possessing a Dragon Scale doesn't automatically guarantee Seadra will evolve into Kingdra."
"It must also occur..."
"Within a special environment."
Exactly.
Just like Haunter evolving into Gengar...
Seadra's evolution into Kingdra...
Required not only a Dragon Scale...
But also a trade evolution.
Kingdra quietly listened to Chen Mo's explanation.
This human...
Understood their species astonishingly well.
Looking down at the three Dragon Scales before it...
Kingdra found itself thinking.
Just as Chen Mo had said...
Everything that had happened...
Stemmed from insufficient strength.
If...
Before the Tentacruel had invaded...
There hadn't been just one Kingdra...
But four...
Then...
The Tentacruel would never have become a threat.
And...
Kingdra looked toward its three oldest companions.
Back then...
They had willingly given up their own chance to evolve...
So that it could become Kingdra.
Now...
Three Dragon Scales...
A future for the entire clan...
Lay before it.
I...
Kingdra's emotions became incredibly complicated.
Slowly...
It stood back up.
Chen Mo stopped speaking.
"...King."
"I have one question."
"And one condition."
Looking directly into Chen Mo's eyes...
Kingdra was utterly confused.
"...King."
"You're a human."
"Why would you go this far?"
Now that it had calmed down...
Kingdra accepted its tribe's explanation.
Chen Mo wasn't working together with the Tentacruel.
But that only made everything more incomprehensible.
Why...
Would someone completely unrelated to this conflict...
Go to such lengths?
He had exhausted himself saving countless Pokémon that had nothing to do with him.
He was even willing to offer priceless Dragon Scales...
Simply to stop two wild tribes from fighting.
What...
Was this human trying to gain?
Not only Kingdra...
Every Horsea.
Every Seadra.
Shared the same question.
Yet...
On the opposite side...
The Tentacruel watched the entire scene.
From Chen Mo healing everyone...
To producing the Dragon Scales...
Not one of them looked surprised.
It was as though...
Everything had unfolded exactly as they expected.
"Why?"
Chen Mo smiled gently.
"When we first met..."
"Kingdra."
"I could tell from your attitude that you disliked humans."
"It seems humanity has left you with many unpleasant memories."
"Am I right?"
"The truth is..."
"We humans know that many wild Pokémon view us as destroyers of nature."
"And honestly..."
"They aren't entirely wrong."
"But humanity is complicated."
"You can't judge us all the same way."
"There are certainly people who destroy nature for their own benefit."
"But..."
"There are also those who devote themselves to protecting nature..."
"And maintaining ecological balance."
"As for me..."
"I'm one of the latter."
"The conflict between your Horsea clan and the Tentacruel..."
"Has already severely disrupted the survival of other Pokémon..."
"And ordinary marine life in this sea."
"So..."
"I wanted to stop the war."
"As for everything I've paid..."
"If it allows this sea to regain its former peace..."
"Then it's all worth it."
"I know..."
"It probably sounds strange."
"But whether you believe me or not..."
"That's my only goal."
Kingdra said nothing.
Its crimson eyes stared fixedly into Chen Mo's face.
For nearly a full minute.
Searching...
For some hidden ulterior motive.
In the end...
It found nothing.
"...King."
"You're a strange human..."
Kingdra muttered softly.
Then continued.
"...King."
"If our clan is to stop fighting..."
"There is one condition that absolutely cannot be negotiated."
"Tell me."
Chen Mo answered immediately.
"If it's about evolving..."
"I can promise you this."
"If your clan lacks the proper conditions to use Dragon Scales..."
"Then humanity..."
"Within ten years—"
"No."
"Within three years..."
"We'll make sure all three of them can evolve."
Among the Top Sixteen contestants of the Pikachu Cup...
Xiao Fan's Graveler...
And Qiao Cheng's Electabuzz...
Both required trade evolution.
Likewise...
The Bureau already possessed many Pokémon...
Such as Rhydon...
That also depended on trade evolution.
Chen Mo had long been considering...
Handing the design plans for the Trade Machine over to the authorities.
Of course...
Since he'd already submitted so many pieces of "advanced technology" to the Bureau...
He still needed...
The right opportunity.
And the right scapegoat.
Three years...
Shouldn't be a problem.
Kingdra froze briefly.
Then slowly shook its head.
"...King."
"Dragon Scales are enough."
"We'll figure out the rest ourselves."
"As for my condition..."
"They..."
"Must leave our territory."
"That is the only thing that cannot be negotiated."
As it spoke...
Kingdra looked toward the Tentacruel behind Chen Mo.
"Naturally."
Chen Mo agreed without hesitation.
Turning toward the Tentacruel...
His expression grew serious.
"You were the invaders."
"I'm not going to compensate you with items the way I did the Horsea."
"But..."
"Since your invasion happened because you were searching for a suitable habitat..."
"I do have a proposal."
"We humans..."
"Will help you find another suitable territory somewhere else in the ocean."
"When the time comes..."
"You won't have to give up anything."
"You'll simply need to follow our guidance..."
"And complete one or two migrations."
"What do you think?"
Silence filled the deck.
The ruby-like gems atop the Tentacruel's heads flashed continuously.
They looked toward one another.
Their tentacles waved rapidly beneath them.
Clearly...
An intense discussion was underway.
Because of their unique communication method...
Even Pikachu, the master translator...
Was completely useless.
Only Marshadow...
And Jirachi...
Could understand what they were saying.
Just as Chen Mo was wondering whether he should ask Marshadow to slip into their shadows and secretly gather information...
The flashing red gems gradually stopped glowing.
One Tentacruel...
Noticeably larger than the others...
Likely the leader...
Glided forward using its tentacles.
Its face carried an expression of quiet resignation.
Yet...
Its voice was incomparably respectful.
"Gruu..."
"Honored Envoy of Aura..."
"We are willing to follow you."
"From this day onward..."
"We shall listen to the guidance of Aura."
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