Pokémon: Raising Abandoned Pokémon into Legends

Chapter 334: Unlocking Lucario (Two-in-One)

Remembering what Rio had told it, Mewtwo didn’t press the issue. After all, its name was Mewtwo — "beyond Mew" — so being stronger was only natural. Now that Mew had admitted it, that was perfect. Rio had also said that Mew was bound to the World Tree — if Mewtwo actually hurt it, winning would still be losing.

"After all, my strength also comes from you." Mewtwo gave Mew a way out as well.

Mew found those words very pleasing. A Pokémon created from its genes — of course its strength came from it.

Rio’s eyes lit up. Mewtwo has grown. It finally understands what emotional intelligence is.

"Come, come — let’s bury the hatchet with a drink! After this glass, we can all be friends, and direct all our anger at Team Rocket!"

"Let’s raise our glasses and toast!"

Rio seized the moment, using the wine to ease the tension between the two. Mewtwo and Mew each used Psychic to lift a bottle.

"Let’s shout our toast!"

"To beating Team Rocket!!!"

Rio raised his glass and looked at Mewtwo and Mew. The two exchanged a glance, then joined in.

"To beating Team Rocket!"

"Mew~" — To beating Team Rocket!

Their glasses clinked, and both downed their drinks. Rio nodded with satisfaction, then kept pouring.

"Today is a great day — the day we resolved our misunderstanding! Let’s have another round! I’ll finish mine — you two can drink as you like."

He said this while pretending to drink, but in reality, he used the classic "chin-drip" technique — most of the wine ended up on his clothes. Afterward, he wiped his mouth with enthusiasm and shouted: "Good wine!"

The naive Mewtwo and Mew didn’t notice. They downed another bottle each.

"Don’t just drink — have some food too! Wine goes with food, and food goes with wine. Here — eat some food, then finish another bottle!"

Rio kept them drinking, round after round. After three or four rounds, Mew was the first to cave. It flopped down into Rio’s lap, pink and tipsy.

What if I caught Mew in a Poké Ball right now? Rio’s heart raced — it seemed like a great opportunity. But after a few seconds, his rational mind told him not to. That would be taking advantage of Mew’s trust. It would hate him for it, and his other Pokémon might lose respect for him too.

"Hahaha! See? I’m stronger than it — in both battle and drinking! How many did it have before it passed out?" Mewtwo, half-drunk, was delighted.

Mewtwo really was better than Mew at everything. From now on, if anyone called it Mew’s clone, it would pound them into the ground.

"Of course — you’ve always been stronger. Let’s keep drinking!" Since Mew was down, Rio could speak freely now, happily praising Mewtwo. He managed to restore the friendship points Mewtwo had lost — and even gained two extra. That’s the power of emotional validation.

After another three or four rounds, Mewtwo began to waver.

"Rio, you’re drinking well today — you’re still standing. Also, how did you get so wet?" Mewtwo, flushed and tipsy, looked at Rio with unfocused eyes.

"It’s not that I’m drinking well — it’s that you’re too happy today. We humans have a saying: ’It’s not the wine that makes you drunk, but your own heart.’ You’ve resolved a deep-seated grudge, so you’re getting drunk on your own." Rio wasn’t about to admit he’d been using the chin-drip technique all night.

"Is that so?" Mewtwo believed him.

Just then, Rio noticed Lucario walking out of the castle. It looked up at Rio, Mewtwo, and Mew — especially Mew. Seeing that Mew was safe and sound, it turned and walked toward a small building beside the castle. Queen Irene and her attendants followed.

Seeing this, Rio took out a Poké Ball.

"Gengar — keep Mewtwo company. I need to step away. Use Psychic to float me down."

A flash of light — Rio released Gengar. He had been using the chin-drip technique all night so he could talk to Lucario later. It was still one of his targets.

"Don’t worry — Old Ghost doesn’t have a leaky mouth like some people." Gengar immediately saw through Rio’s wet clothes.

Rio laughed awkwardly, glanced at Mewtwo, who was oblivious, and breathed a sigh of relief. A moment later, with Gengar’s help, Rio landed beside Queen Irene.

Irene smelled the alcohol on Rio and frowned slightly, but still asked: "Have you resolved the conflict between Mewtwo and Mew, Mr. Rio?"

"Of course. They won’t be fighting anytime soon." Rio smiled.

"Good." Irene nodded. Then she added: "Are you here to see Lucario too?"

"Yes."

A minute later, Rio and Queen Irene followed Lucario’s trail into the small building. Inside were many old objects, covered in glass cases.

"This was Sir Aaron’s residence. These items in the cases are things he once used. Lucario doesn’t seem to realize how long it’s been sealed away." Irene explained.

Rio nodded and followed Irene to the back of the room, where Lucario was looking at the items in the moonlight. Their footsteps caught its attention. It turned, saw Rio and Irene, and knelt on one knee.

"Queen Irene."

"Queen Irene was my ancestor." Irene shook her head. "My name is Irene."

As she spoke, Irene approached Lucario and embraced it gently.

"Lucario, you’ve been asleep all this time."

"Asleep?" Lucario looked confused.

"Yes. Time has passed. It’s been a long time since my ancestor’s era." Irene explained.

Lucario was shocked. "That’s impossible... yesterday, this was still Aaron and my room."

"It may have been yesterday to you..." Irene shook her head sympathetically. "To us, it was long ago."

Lucario stood up, horrified, and backed away until it bumped into a glass case. It turned and stared at the items inside — desperate for proof to refute Irene’s words. But the more it looked, the more it realized how aged everything was.

Twenty minutes later, everyone returned to the castle. Queen Irene sat on her throne and asked Lucario: "Legend says you went missing in battle. Can you tell me what happened?"

"The two armies were about to clash, and the castle was about to be drawn into the war. I was sent on reconnaissance — but I could find no way to stop the war." Lucario explained, kneeling.

"But didn’t Sir Aaron stop the war?" Irene asked.

"What?!" Lucario looked up in shock — it hadn’t known that.

"According to the records left by my ancestors, Sir Aaron stopped the war and saved the castle." Irene explained.

"That’s impossible! At the time, Sir Aaron was fleeing the castle — and he sealed me away so I couldn’t stop him." Lucario recalled painfully.

"Your account seems to differ from the legend." Irene frowned.

Lucario’s version was new to her. "But we can’t know the truth now. Lucario — please stay here. Rota will always welcome you."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Lucario bowed again. Then it looked at Rio for a long moment.

"What is it?" Rio asked.

"Your Aura is the same as Sir Aaron’s." Lucario replied.

Rio raised an eyebrow. That felt off. His Aura was the same as Aaron’s? In the original story, it was Ash who shared Aaron’s Aura. When did he get it? Could it be that he had taken Ash’s place? If so, that made it even easier to bond with Lucario. Once its inner knot was resolved, it could see Rio as a substitute for Aaron — someone it would always want to be near.

"I just remembered something." Rio said.

"What?" Irene asked, confused by the sudden shift.

"The League might have records about Rota from back then. I think I came across them a few months ago. I didn’t think of it until Lucario mentioned it." Rio said.

Lucario stared at him intently. "What records?"

"Records of an ancient stone tablet translation — it said that the crisis back then was resolved because Sir Aaron gave his life to the World’s Beginning Tree, using its power to force the war to stop." Rio said.

Lucario’s eyes widened. "That’s impossible! Sir Aaron told me he was fleeing! How could he have given his life to the Tree?!"

"Mm..." Rio feigned deep thought. "What if he did that on purpose? He sealed you away so you wouldn’t stop him — or follow him to die. Otherwise, why would the war have suddenly stopped if he had fled?"

Lucario froze, as if struck by the realization. Rio continued: "If you don’t believe me, you could ask Mew. As a being bound to the World Tree, it would certainly know what happened a hundred years ago. And it’s still here."

Lucario immediately turned to leave, but Rio stopped it. "Wait — ask tomorrow. Mew is drunk right now. You won’t get any answers."

Lucario stared at Rio for a long moment. "I hope you’re not lying to me," it finally said.

The next morning, Mew woke from its drunken stupor. Next to it were Mewtwo and a human. Leaning against the wall nearby was Lucario, eyes closed, cool and composed.

"Mew~" — Wake up, wake up! The sun’s up!

Mew puffed its cheeks, ready to shoot a tiny Water Gun at Rio and Mewtwo — but before it could, a voice came from behind.

"Lady Mew, may I ask you something?"

Mew turned to see Lucario standing with its eyes open. Mew already liked Lucario — it had tried to help Mew against Mewtwo yesterday.

"What do you want to ask?" Mew tilted its head.

"Lucario wants to know about the battle near Rota hundreds of years ago — how it was stopped. Was it because a human went to the World Tree and gave his life?" Rio’s voice suddenly interjected, still groggy.

"Hundreds of years ago?" Mew looked at Lucario.

"Please tell me." Lucario placed its hand over its chest and bowed.

"Let me think — it’s been so long." Mew floated in circles. After about five minutes, it stopped.

"Oh — I remember! There was a human who came to the World Tree, calling my name. I had just finished borrowing Ho-Oh’s form and traveled around Kanto. He said he was willing to offer all his Aura power and asked me to tell the World Tree to stop the war."

"I agreed. He gave his Aura — but after doing so, his life ended. He collapsed at the heart of the Tree. I admired what he did."

Lucario was frozen. It seemed Rio’s story was true — Sir Aaron had sacrificed himself to stop the war and save Rota.

Rio’s eyes remained fixed on Lucario, waiting to see if its level information would change. But the "heart knot" marker was still there.