Chapter 789

Eat your fill, drink your fill, and sleep soundly.

Alolan Rattata and Rattata lay sprawled everywhere.

"Ratta…"

The Alolan Rattata lay with wild abandon, its brownish belly fur fully exposed without a care, ignoring the fact that All All Baimu leaned against its waist and rested his head on its belly.

"Didn't expect you to be so clean."

I assumed this fat, gluttonous Pokémon would smell terrible.

But it didn't.

Its scent was far lighter than that of the Wearing Bear, and likely due to all the fruit juice splashed on its fur, it carried a faint fruity aroma.

"Ratta."

The Alolan Rattata responded casually.

The glowing meal seemed to soften its temper, or perhaps it knew it would likely never see him again and didn't bother holding a grudge.

Habit is the most powerful force in the world.

All All Baimu held the Luminous Stone up, examining it repeatedly; Luminous Stones vary slightly in color depending on their origin.

Luminous Stones from Melemele Island are white, Akala Island's are pink, Ula'ula Island's are black, Poni Island's are gold—different colors, same effect.

With the Z-Ring he'd long desired about to be his, he couldn't help but feel pleased.

With this, his trip to Alola was worth it.

But…

Should he bother striving for the Strong Z-Ring?

Its difference from the regular Z-Ring lies in whether it can use certain exclusive Z-Moves—some exclusive Z-Moves aren't standard in shape and can't be loaded onto a regular Z-Ring.

Beyond that, there are no other bonuses.

We'll see later.

He stood up and looked at his Pokémon, especially his flying mount, Charizard: "Guys! Get ready—we're leaving!"

While the Alolan Rattata and Rattata feasted heartily, Bonsly and the others had spent the whole time helping out.

They'd just eaten breakfast—they wouldn't get hungry from digging a little dirt.

And the sole designated hero of this trial—Shiny Milotic—under the help of Happiny, removed the golden laurel crown symbolizing supreme status and stored it safely.

This thing was a gift from the fan club; every Pokémon that ever participated in a Super Contest had one.

That's right.

Including Bonsly and Charizard, who only appeared in early Super Contest battles.

The fan club hoped he'd keep entering higher-level Super Contests, but words spoken are like water spilled—announcing a pause in Super Contests was already done; retracting it?

Completely unnecessary.

We'll talk about it when he becomes number one in the world.

Freed from the hero's halo, Milotic swam over and affectionately rubbed its head against All All Baimu's face; it was delighted to have helped—since the Super Contest ended, it hadn't lent a hand in anything outside battle for a long time.

It had even caused him trouble due to homesickness.

Today, at last, it had its moment of pride.

Foolish people have foolish luck; foolish snakes do too.

"Mii~"

"We'll continue the mii later." All All Baimu wiped the water off his face, then kissed its forehead, making Happiny blush and cover its face, while Charizard grew envious.

Deep in the forest.

Tapu Koko stared at the pot, now no longer glowing—it had lived so long and had never before seen food that glowed.

To experience…

Tapu Koko decided that if the chance arose, it would fight All All Baimu.

—

Lili Town.

Hala was away again.

The Machoke left in charge held up the familiar sign—

【Island King is out; please return later (Note: Participants of the Island Challenge may proceed to the Ruins of War）】

Ruins of War.

All All Baimu turned back to look at the distant peak and thanked it.

Before the Great Trial, praying to the Island Guardian is a necessary step in the Island Challenge, and usually the Island Guardian does not appear…

That usually means under normal circumstances.

With Ash around, Tapu Koko would definitely sneak a peek at him—but Ash is currently on the neighboring Akala Island.

So the chance of Tapu Koko spying on him is very high.

But for him, as long as it didn't withhold the Z-Ring, whether it spied or not didn't matter.

"Let's go."

All All Baimu prepared to walk up.

Charizard followed quietly behind; after days of traveling, its arrogant nature had softened considerably—it no longer snarled at everyone like before.

It understood that being too showy would only land it back in the Poké Ball; better to keep a low profile.

Mahalo Road.

Thick wooden stakes stretched all the way into the high mountains; All All Baimu reached the end of the wooden steps, where a sleeping Snorlax blocked the narrow mountain path.

"A wild Snorlax…"

He poked its fluffy, round belly curiously—it was springy and even softer than the Wearing Bear.

As if sensing the disturbance, Snorlax's body twitched.

Hnnn~~

Loud snores erupted.

All All Baimu smiled.

As everyone knows, Snorlax is a gentle Pokémon that loves to eat and sleep—even if you attack it, it's hard to wake up.

In the anime, there was even a scene where only the Poké Flute could awaken it.

Come to think of it…

In the plot, a wild Snorlax was drained into a skin-and-bones husk by Parasect—could that have been this one?

"If I make it in time, I'll come save you."

He rubbed Snorlax's pointed ears, then rolled over its belly.

A few steps further.

A magnificent waterfall and suspension bridge came into view.

The Ruins of War lay across the way.

He could faintly make out the triangular entrance of the ruins—

Huh?

Did Hala just come out?

Before he could cross the bridge, the rotund Island King emerged from the ruins' entrance—and spotted him on the other side of the suspension bridge.

"Ah—la—ka! Island King! I found the Luminous Stone!"

All All Baimu announced loudly.

Though the waterfall roared, it couldn't drown out his booming voice; his joy infected Charizard.

The big guy joined in with a howl.

Hala blinked slightly, then grinned and raised his right hand in response: "Ah! La! Ka!"

The old man with streaks of white hair had a strong, resonant voice.

Beneath the cliff.

A yellow shadow flashed by.

Charizard sharply sniffed something, all three heads turning in different directions, its fierce face flickering with confusion.

But it saw nothing, and its Trainer had already stepped onto the suspension bridge.

It refocused and roared as it flapped its wings to chase after.

They met.

"Didn't expect you to bring me the Luminous Stone in just two and a half days." Hala glanced at the Luminous Stone in All All Baimu's hand.

Definitely white, from Melemele Island.

All All Baimu smiled: "Lucky break—I might've searched much longer otherwise."

He'd even ordered a Luminous Stone detector from Junior, but who knew Milotic was so effective—or perhaps his approach to finding Luminous Stones was just right.

Hala asked: "Oh? Where did you find it?"

"Ten Carat Hill."

He answered frankly: "I borrowed the Pokémon School's library and found some clues there…"

"Let's discuss the details later," Hala interrupted All All Baimu's account, gesturing for him to return to Lili Town.

Hala interrupted All All Baimu's narration, signaling him to return to Lili Town before continuing.

This...

Aren't you going into the War Relic?

All All Baimu felt a slight pang of disappointment; he had hoped Harala would take the Luminous Stone and immediately open the Great Trial, then give him a ready-made Z-Ring.

It seems he must wait another day or two.

Return to Lili Town.

The two sat as usual, sipping tea and chatting; mostly, All All Baimu recounted the process by which he obtained the Luminous Stone, while Harala listened in silence.

Of course, he omitted certain details.

For instance, how he used his identity as Island King to bluff and threaten the Overlord Raticate.

In All All Baimu's account, Overlord Raticate was a stubborn but soft-hearted fellow; once caught with a small leverage, a few pleas were enough to make him cooperate.

Only—

Though Harala was surprised that All All Baimu had manipulated an Overlord Pokémon, what shocked him even more was All All Baimu's theory on the origin of the Luminous Stone.

"The Luminous Stone originates from the light emitted by the Luminous Deity, Solgaleo, and Lunala upon the Alola region… Excellent! Very excellent! Hahaha!"

He slapped his thighs twice and laughed heartily, then said seriously: "I declare you qualified!"

"I am deeply grateful."

All All Baimu bowed in acknowledgment, then asked eagerly: "After the trial is complete, the Great Trial should be overseen by you, correct? I wonder if you…"

Harala said: "Three days to prepare. Come here at seven a. m. three days from now, and we will conduct the Great Trial! During this time, I will use the Luminous Stone you obtained to craft a Z-Ring—you'll receive it if you pass the Great Trial!"

"Good."

He stood up and said: "I look forward to your guidance in the coming Great Trial, Island King."

Harala also stood, even extending his hand to shake All All Baimu's:

"Please guide me, All All Baimu."

The two parted.

—

Three days…

All All Baimu sat atop Charizard, wondering what to do during these three days.

Wander around?

Team Rocket's second-in-command still needed time to build the device for searching Z Crystals, and Ash and the others were holding an outdoor class on the neighboring Akala Island.

Why not apply for a job at the Aether Foundation?

Returning Pancham to Pancham's side sooner would repay the Z-Ring favor.

Decided.

Return to the seaside cabin.

All All Baimu opened his computer and searched for Alola's job portals, then had Poliwhirl II find the Aether Foundation's office phone number.

Moments later.

He dialed the number.

Click.

The call was answered instantly.

A sweet voice came through.

"Hello, this is the Aether Foundation Rescue Center. Where is the injured wild Pokémon?"

Huh?

All All Baimu blinked, then quickly said: "Sorry, I'm calling to apply for a job. Do you have any current openings?"

The Aether Foundation was an organization conducting various research activities.

It rescued injured wild Pokémon, brought them back to Aether Paradise for treatment, and provided them with comfortable habitats.

Poliwhirl II had obtained this number from their official website—he hadn't expected it to be the rescue line.

The sweet voice continued: "We're very sorry, but we're not familiar with recruitment matters. If you'd like to inquire about that, please call the Aether Foundation's Kandō Office. I'll transfer you now~"

Beep!

The call transferred immediately.

The voice changed to a man's: "Hello, this is the Aether Foundation's Kandō Office. How may I assist you?"

"I'd like to apply for a job."

All All Baimu scrolled through the job portal but found no relevant listings.

No recruitment?

Fortunately, the man's voice said: "What position are you interested in?"

"I have considerable experience caring for Pokémon. I believe I can look after injured ones." He directly stated his intent to apply for a position at Aether Paradise.

The man said: "Alright, let me record your name and contact details. If possible, please bring your resume…"

He rattled off a long list.

In short, he scheduled an interview—but the earliest possible date was the day after tomorrow.

All All Baimu only intended to take temporary work; he had no intention of formally joining the Aether Foundation. Would all these roundabout steps even get him to Aether Paradise?

He didn't want them to send him out on field missions rescuing wild Pokémon!

He didn't reveal his name and hung up immediately.

"Try my luck in town? But even if I meet Zao Bo, how would I even ask him to hire me?" All All Baimu scratched his head.

What if I just show up?

Yes!

Instead of making it so complicated, why not just bring Pancham to Aether Paradise to find Pancham?

As for how to explain—

Reasons were easy to find; even if the excuse was weak, once Pancham actually found Pancham, would it care about the details?

Whether the Aether Foundation cared was none of his concern.

"Let's go—wait, first have lunch."

All All Baimu was about to head into the forest but paused, glancing at the time on his computer's lower-right corner.

Full and satisfied.

Out of kindness, he packed a meal for Pancham and Team Rocket, then rode Charizard into the forest.

And this time,

He didn't recall Charizard into its Poké Ball; instead, he warned: "Behave yourself. Don't say I didn't warn you—seize the opportunity!"

"Shaa!"

Charizard nodded all three heads vigorously.

It roughly guessed that the wild Pokémon they'd soon meet had a problematic personality—otherwise, its Trainer wouldn't be acting this way.

It couldn't possibly be worse than Overlord Raticate.

It had endured Overlord Raticate's vile, shameless, weak, and arrogant behavior.

Charizard felt it wouldn't make a mistake…

Right?

It stared at the pink, massive creature facing away from it inside the tree hollow; intense danger and warning signals from its senses made its lips curl, revealing sharp fangs.

A powerful, dangerous creature!

"Shaa—"

SMACK!

A huge palm slammed onto its forehead; its Trainer's voice barked in its ear.

"What did I tell you?"

"Ugh…"

Charizard whimpered pitifully, then turned its gaze again to Pancham, who had turned to face it—and forcibly looked away.

Don't look.

If it kept looking, it would surely lose control.

To Charizard, Pancham's presence was an insult; its subconscious refused to remain indifferent before a wild Pokémon radiating such an aura.

"Gumu gu?"

Pancham tilted its head.

It too sensed Charizard's hostile aura, but due to All All Baimu's presence, it refrained from attacking.

"Good afternoon. Have you eaten?"

All All Baimu greeted it, then called toward the tree: "Jessie! James! Meowth! Are you in there?"

Team Rocket's secret base lay inside the tree—invisible from the outside—

No response.

He pulled out the lunchbox he'd prepared for Pancham, opened it, and said: "This is the glowing meal I made for you. Try it."

"Guma…"

Pancham sniffed, stared at the golden-glowing food, then looked at All All Baimu's beaming smile—and rushed forward to hug him tightly.

With great force.

He nearly dropped the lunchbox.

Fortunately, Pancham had no intention of tormenting him—it was simply expressing affection. After releasing him, it took the lunchbox but didn't eat; instead, it resealed the lid.

All All Baimu knew it was meant for Team Rocket's trio, and hurriedly said, "I've prepared something for them! Look!"

Precisely because he considered this, he had specially prepared a portion for Team Rocket.

Cook for them?

Dream on!