Pokémon: Raising Abandoned Pokémon into Legends

Chapter 338: Lance vs Molly (Two-in-One)

"Eev~" — Little Froggy.

Zoroark, transformed into Eevee, blinked its big, adorable eyes and stared pitifully at Greninja.

"Koga~" — Stop transforming. I know you’re not Eevee. I promised Rio I’d supervise you seriously, and that’s exactly what I’ll do. I won’t let him down.

Greninja was unimpressed.

"Eev~" — Really?

Zoroark-as-Eevee tilted its head. The next second, its body flashed with evolution light — transforming from a regular Eevee into a Flareon.

"Eev~" — It’s me, Little Froggy. Won’t you even give me a hug?

Greninja’s eye twitched. It hadn’t expected Zoroark to mimic Eevee’s evolution. But then it shook its head — it was all an illusion. Rio had said Zoroark’s greatest skill was its illusions, so convincing that they seemed real. Even if it looked like Eevee evolving, it was all fake.

Seeing Greninja still unmoved, Zoroark frowned and flashed white again — this time transforming from Flareon into Jolteon.

"Eev~" — Little Froggy, I’m so disappointed. You really won’t even hug me.

"Koga~" — Stop pretending. Little Eevee would never act as disgustingly as you are. Your acting is way too fake.

Greninja scoffed. "Koga~" — All this does is make me monitor you even more strictly.

Zoroark pouted, glaring at Greninja with displeasure.

Meanwhile, Rio had vanished from the office with Mewtwo and reappeared above Indigo Plateau. He pulled out his phone to check the location of Green Town — it was situated between Cherrygrove City and Violet City in the Johto region.

Following the map, Rio and Mewtwo took an hour to fly from Indigo Plateau to Green Town. This place had been voted the number one most desirable destination by the women of Johto — because of its fragrant flowers and singing birds, where the gentle breeze could calm both human and Pokémon hearts.

But now, the entire area had been crystallized by a strange power. Flowers and lakes alike had frozen into crystal. While it wasn’t appropriate for the Kanto Champion to say so, at a glance, this bizarre phenomenon had a strange beauty to it.

"Old Ghost, I’ve got a task for you." A flash of light — Rio released Gengar.

"What, another one of those shady, underhanded jobs for Old Ghost?" Gengar mocked as soon as it appeared.

Rio: "..."

He wanted to argue, but upon reflection, Old Ghost wasn’t wrong. This task, if you really thought about it, did count as shady and underhanded.

"Can’t argue with that, can you?" Gengar grew even more smug. "I knew you’d only call me for something dirty. Spill it — what do you want this time? You want me to sneak into Green Town and film what’s happening inside?"

Rio raised an eyebrow. That was exactly what he’d been thinking — sending Gengar in to scout the situation. It had the highest level, the best stealth, and plenty of experience in... observation. It was his most qualified infiltrator.

But judging by Old Ghost’s tone, it didn’t want the job anymore.

"Alright, just hand over the camera. Consider it Old Ghost paying off a debt." But the next second, Gengar changed its tune and agreed. Because Rio had been about to press the Luxury Ball’s button to recall it — while also pulling out a black feather.

"How come? I thought you said I never call you for anything good?" Rio raised an eyebrow. He had been about to call in another infiltrator — Darkrai. The one he’d caught in Sinnoh wasn’t with him, but he had a way to summon it.

"Didn’t you hear me? I said consider it Old Ghost paying off a debt. Since I owe you, of course I have to repay." Gengar said matter-of-factly. Though it didn’t want to do this shady peeping work, it wanted even less for some other Pokémon to steal the job — that would make it seem useless.

"Tsk tsk, you say you owe me, but you sound like I owe you." Rio clicked his tongue, then pulled out a phone and a Wi-Fi-enabled camera. After turning on the livestream function, he handed them to Old Ghost.

"Once you’re inside, I need you to check two places carefully. First, where the Unown are in the castle. Second, where Entei is. Entei has kidnapped Ice-type Elite Four Lorelei to be a little girl’s mother. I need to know what’s going on inside." Rio instructed.

"Got it, got it. Old Ghost’s work speaks for itself." Old Ghost took the phone and camera with Psychic and flew toward the deepest part of Green Town — the castle that was the most heavily crystallized.

After it left, Rio looked beyond the meadow. All the town’s residents had been evacuated and were camping outside. Many media crews were also working there. Where there were people, there was business — vendors had set up shop as well.

Rio grabbed a pair of sunglasses and a hat from his bag, then walked over to a bubble tea vendor. After ordering two cups of milk tea and two sandwiches, he moved away from the crowd, sat under a tree, and pulled out his tablet connected to the livestream camera.

By then, Old Ghost had already infiltrated the castle. The interior, like the outside, was crystallized. Following Rio’s instructions, Old Ghost first located Lorelei — in the castle’s largest bedroom.

Lorelei was sitting on a large bed, holding a little girl, gently stroking her head and humming a lullaby, like a devoted mother. Entei lay beside them.

"I can’t imagine what kind of uproar this would cause if the trainers of Kanto saw this." Rio marveled. As the Ice-type Elite Four, Lorelei was practically a goddess to many Kanto trainers. Her suitors could line up from the westernmost city in Johto to the easternmost in Kanto — beautiful, strong, and with a great figure. Who wouldn’t want to marry her? But few had the ability. Well, actually, in Kanto, there was only one person who did. Who that was, no need to explain.

"Alright, Old Ghost, go find the Unown now." Rio spoke into the phone.

Receiving the command, Old Ghost left the cozy family of three and began wandering the castle, showing Rio room after room. Finally, in the study at the castle’s deepest part, it found what they were looking for.

Unown. Not just one, but many. The study was packed with at least a hundred Unown, surrounding a purple glowing orb. They emitted an incomprehensible sound and continuously released psychic energy outward.

"If I remember correctly, all of this was created by the Unown — even Entei is a product of their psychic power." Rio muttered. "They originally lived in another dimension."

"In the original story, when Dialga and Palkia fought, Unown were seen drifting there."

"Wonder what would happen if Gengar touched that purple orb..."

"Forget it. Let’s hold off on that for now. Once the Elite Four handle this, I’ll step in and take the Unown."

Rio withdrew his focus. After all, this mission was assigned by him — or rather, by Zoroark impersonating him. He’d let the Elite Four handle it first.

Old Ghost returned to the bedroom and continued observing Lorelei, Entei, and the little girl named Molly. Back in the bedroom, Entei was standing with Molly and Lorelei on the balcony, looking down.

At that moment, the crystallization phenomenon was still spreading outward. From the balcony, it was like standing in a beautiful crystallized world. Entei said proudly:

"Molly, do you see? Your world is growing wider. One day, the entire world will become your crystallized kingdom."

"It’s so beautiful." Molly’s eyes sparkled. She tugged Lorelei’s hand. "Mommy, don’t you think it’s beautiful too?"

Lorelei’s pupils were unfocused. Hearing Molly’s question, she nodded blankly: "Yes, very beautiful."

"You’re happy, and I’m happy too." Entei echoed.

Just then, Rio heard rumbling nearby. He turned — bulldozers were heading toward the meadow. The local government had assembled them to deal with the crystallization. Upon arriving at the camp, Officer Jenny assigned them tasks. When night fell, they advanced toward Green Town.

The beautiful crystal was crushed to rubble under the massive bulldozers. Journalists broadcast the scene live.

"No! You can’t destroy this beautiful world!" Molly, watching TV in the castle, was furious. Her anger reached the Unown in the castle’s depths. Soon, sharp ice spikes erupted from the ground in front of the bulldozers, flipping every single one. The government’s first attempt had failed.

Just then, all the large screens outside Green Town’s camp suddenly displayed a video. It showed Molly. She looked serious.

"Mommy and Daddy are home. I’m very happy. This is perfect. Don’t any of you come in. But if you insist on disturbing our family, Daddy will punish you."

The video ended. The crowd outside erupted in shock — they hadn’t expected Green Town’s crystallization to be caused by a little girl. Soon, the video spread rapidly through Johto and Kanto. People began questioning what the League was doing — unable to handle even a little girl.

As public attention grew, things escalated. By dawn, Flying-type and Dragon-type Elite Four Lance arrived at Green Town. The locals breathed a sigh of relief. Lance declared to the media:

"Rest assured. With me here, this will be resolved tonight."

So Lance, the foremost of the Elite Four, didn’t wait for Ghost-type Elite Four Agatha or Fighting-type Elite Four Bruno. He rode his Dragonite and flew straight in.

Rio watched in exasperation. "Lance, could you be a little less arrogant? Do you really have to show off alone?" He didn’t think this was a good idea. Although this Entei was created by the Unown from Molly’s dreams, its strength was almost on par with the real Entei. Through Gengar’s livestream, Rio had checked its level — 80. Lance, could you really handle that alone?

Meanwhile, Lance’s words reached Molly and Entei in the castle.

"Molly, I’ll drive him away." Entei rose to leave.

But just as it stood, Molly spoke: "Daddy, can I battle him? I recognize him — he was once the strongest trainer in Kanto. I want to fight the strongest trainer."

Entei turned, looked at Molly’s expectant eyes, and nodded slowly. "Of course. Whatever Molly wishes, I’ll do my best to grant."

"Thank you, Daddy!" Molly said excitedly, then looked up at Lorelei, who was playing the mother role. "Though I’m still young, when I grow up, I’ll definitely be able to beat him."

With that, Molly fell asleep in Lorelei’s arms. Entei rose and leaped out of the room. Gengar, the stealth camera operator, followed. Before long, it caught up with Entei — and saw a figure forming on its back, made of light, taking on the shape of the sleeping Molly.

Once fully formed, Molly said nervously: "Daddy, this is my first Pokémon battle. Do you think I can do it?"

Entei looked back and gave her a reassuring nod: "Molly, Daddy believes in you."

With that, Molly’s body began to glow. Within three seconds, she transformed from a little girl into a beautiful young woman — with a cape just like Lance’s. Her eyes were now full of confidence.

"Right. I can do this. I can beat that Flying-type Elite Four."

Soon, Molly rode Entei out of the Crystal Tower. At that moment, Lance, riding Dragonite, flew into view. He was stunned to see a young woman riding Entei.