Bonus for 400 powerstones.
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Nighttime.
The little "family of three" was gathered around—not for shaved ice and a movie this time—but around a Pokémon egg.
In fact, this egg had been with Johan even longer than Vulpix had.
Haunter, somehow having acquired a pair of sunglasses, wore them as it gave Vulpix a sly look.
"Ka-kah~~ (😎)"
"Vulpix, you know… technically, you're actually third in line here."
Vulpix tilted its head.
"Oowu?"
Third? Then who's first?
Haunter gave a toothy grin, thumping its chest to assert its seniority.
Vulpix nodded, seeming to agree.
"Oowu?"
Then… this egg is second?
Haunter wagged a finger.
"Ka-kah~~"
Not quite.
Just as it was about to point at someone else, Johan shot it a warning look, muttering darkly:
"If you point at me, I'll challenge Cynthia's Garchomp tomorrow."
"Ka-Kah!! Σ(дlll)"
Haunter quickly waved its hands.
Perish the thought! A joke like that could send a ghost straight to the afterlife!
Vulpix rolled on the floor, laughing.
Recently, it had become much more playful. Though still shy around strangers, it had grown braver compared to before.
"Oowu!"
Suddenly, Vulpix sat up and perked its ears, as though hearing something.
It cautiously leaned toward the egg and pressed one ear to the shell.
Haunter and Johan also quieted, leaning in to listen.
Tap… tap-tap.
Faintly…
It sounded like something was tapping from inside the egg.
"Ka-kah?" Haunter whispered.
It's about to hatch?
But the tapping soon subsided.
"Ka-kah?"
Did it… suffocate?
Johan stopped Haunter before it could dive inside the egg for a look. He sighed and said, "It's just a bit of movement. It's not ready to hatch yet."
Joseph Stone hadn't specified what kind of Pokémon would emerge, but the egg had been housed in a sophisticated Devon Corporation incubator.
It didn't show the exact time remaining, but the approximate progress bar indicated that it was close—probably within the next few days.
"Alright, let's get some rest. We've got things to do tomorrow."
Johan carefully placed the egg back in its case.
Hopefully, Haunter wouldn't corrupt whatever hatched from it.
The next morning, Johan woke up to a sudden, loud crash.
Vulpix, who had been curled up next to him, leapt into the blankets in fright, pressing its cold nose against him and waking him up fully.
Blinking, Johan looked up to see Haunter sheepishly trying to hide something.
Knowing Haunter well, Johan immediately motioned for it to reveal the damage.
Reluctantly, Haunter floated aside to reveal a large hole in the couch.
"Ka-kah!"
Now, listen…
Before Johan could speak, Haunter hurriedly began to explain.
It raised one claw dramatically, and a dark sphere began to form in its hand.
Shadow Ball?
Johan blinked at the sphere's ominous energy.
Haunter had learned it so quickly?
Vulpix peeked out from under the blankets, watching Haunter's demonstration.
But then…
The initially stable black sphere began to wobble, expand, and shrink unpredictably.
Both Johan and Vulpix's expressions shifted as they realized the implications.
If Shadow Ball detonated in the room, it would be no small matter.
But Haunter reacted fast, shoving the unstable sphere into its mouth with a loud "ka-kah!"
Bam!!
The muffled blast echoed inside Haunter, whose entire body puffed up, leaving another gaping hole on the couch, faintly scorched.
"Ka-kah~~"
Haunter flashed a blackened grin, wisps of dark smoke escaping its mouth.
Johan & Vulpix: "…"
"You… okay?"
Johan asked cautiously.
Ghost-type moves deal double damage to Ghost-types, after all.
Haunter had once again strayed into Johan's knowledge blind spot.
For a seasoned Pokémon enthusiast and psychology expert, Johan sometimes found himself questioning his own expertise.
"Ka-kah Ka-kah~~"
Haunter waved off Johan's concern, insisting it was fine.
Johan shook his head and got up to wash up, warning, "Just… be careful. Don't blow yourself up."
"Ka-kah Ka-kah!"
"Oowu?"
Vulpix tilted its head, sensing something was off.
And then it dawned on it.
Ohhh~~ the couch!
Big Brother Haunter didn't get scolded?
And actually…
As Johan headed to the bathroom, Haunter's eyes filled with exhaustion, as though it could barely breathe, clutching its chest in a dramatic fashion.
Vulpix jumped back in alarm.
Are you… still with us?
But then Vulpix's ears perked again. It could've sworn it heard tapping from the egg again.
The egg seemed almost… happy?
Afternoon.
At Steven's estate.
Johan crouched in front of the now-slumbering Spiritomb.
With the combined efforts of Haunter and Spiritomb's own cooperation, lulling it into hypnosis hadn't taken much effort.
Compared to when he'd first encountered it, Spiritomb's dark green energy orbs were now far dimmer, and its overall energy seemed more lively.
Snap!
Johan snapped his fingers.
"Hiss—hiss-pop."
Spiritomb slowly awoke, and upon seeing Johan's warm smile, it flushed with embarrassment.
"How is it?"
Cynthia approached, her expression one of concern.
Originally, they'd planned to wait until they reached Sootopolis to gather additional help for Spiritomb's case.
But now that Lance was already here, with Clair, Steven, and Cynthia's Pokémon, they had more than enough strength, so they'd arranged to meet at Steven's manor that afternoon.
"It's much better."
Johan patted Spiritomb's vaporous form gently.
"A couple more sessions, and it should be okay."
"Hiss-pop~~o(////▽////)q"
"That's good." Cynthia exhaled in relief, patting her chest.
She'd been quite worried about Spiritomb.
Meanwhile…
Steven, Lance, and Clair gathered around a weathered, ancient stone tablet.
This was the second matter they had to address today.
Johan had asked Cynthia previously to help decipher the tablet's inscriptions. With her own research and assistance from her grandmother, Professor Carolina, she'd managed to decode a bit of it.
If he'd had any doubts before, the appearance of "Ancient Relicanth" in the translation convinced him completely.
This tablet was undoubtedly the "Proclamation Tablet"!
A key to the legend of the three sleeping Regi Titans!
But he kept this to himself.
Partly because there wasn't any hard evidence to back it up yet.
But mostly because Steven and Lance's gleaming eyes were giving him chills.
Waking the Regi Titans prematurely might lead to unpredictable consequences…
Seeing the group's attention shift to discussing potential battles, Johan heaved a silent sigh of relief.
Wait a minute!
A strange look crossed his face.
Lance, Steven, Cynthia…
They were all set to participate in the "Youth Exhibition Match" in Sootopolis.
Why did it suddenly feel like…this might turn into a "Patient Exhibition Match"?
Beep beep—
His phone vibrated.
[Forever Eighteen]: Got time?
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Powerstones?
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