"What's wrong?" Aron asked with concern, sensing Ralts' strangeness.
In the next moment, the red feelers on Ralts' forehead began to glow faintly white, releasing a powerful psychic wave.
Suddenly, a strange vision appeared before everyone present, as if time and space had warped, projecting an unknown place right before their eyes.
"Future Sight!" Takashi gasped, his eyes wide in horror.
As a Psychic-type Pokémon, Ralts possessed the ability to see into the future.
But for a Ralts this young to have mastered it… such talent was truly extraordinary.
Aron sighed to himself and focused on the vision in his mind.
First, he saw a dense forest, and as the scene moved forward, a wooden cabin came into view.
Inside, a tall man in a dark red uniform sat on a wooden bench, staring at an iron cage in front of him.
Inside the cage stood a Pokémon in a flowing white dress, with slightly curled green hair and sparkling red eyes.
Yes, it was the Queen of Psychic Pokémon — Gardevoir!
The vision slowly faded, and after a moment, disappeared completely.
"Ralts… Ral…"
Ralts tugged on Aron's sleeve, looking up at him with a pleading expression.
"Do you want me to save her?" Aron asked gently.
"Ralts~!"
Ralts nodded firmly.
"Don't worry, I will," Aron reassured, patting Ralts' head. Then he turned to the Pokémon hunter who had seen the vision as well. "That wooden cabin we just saw, is that your camp?"
The hunter nodded. "Yes, that's our temporary camp in the Peace River Forest."
"Who was that man we just saw?" Aron asked,with a cold gaze.
"That's the leader — a Gym-level Trainer." The hunter smirked, revealing a sly grin.
Aron wasn't willing to tolerate this attitude. Without hesitation, he immediately struck him with a Psyshock, causing the hunter to clutch his head, begging frantically for mercy the very next second.
"Please, please, have mercy! I'll tell you everything!" the hunter pleaded.
Lian glanced warily at Aron. With such calm look on his face, Aron almost seemed like the real villain...
Aron stopped the Psyshock and watched the hunter silently.
"During the day, the Commander stays at the camp to keep an eye on Gardevoir while the rest of us search the forest for traces of Ralts and other valuable Pokémon."
"But at night, everyone returns to the camp."
"If I don't return tonight, the Commander will realize something's wrong and start looking for me. If you're still in the Peace River Forest, you'll definitely be found."
The hunter swallowed nervously, stealing glances at Aron, trying to gauge his reaction. "If you let me go back, I swear I won't say a word about what happened today."
"By tomorrow, in the daylight, you could reach the camp and free Gardevoir."
Aron scoffed. "You think I'd believe that?"
And even if he did wait until tomorrow, how would they defeat a Gym-level Trainer?
"This seems like a dead end," Takashi muttered, frowning.
Everything else could be dealt with — except that Gym-level Trainer, who was like an insurmountable mountain.
Without beating him, it was impossible to rescue Gardevoir. To Takashi, it felt like a trap with no way out.
"Ralu…"
Ralts clung tightly to Aron's sleeve, unwilling to let go.
"Don't worry, I'll figure something out."
After comforting Ralts, Aron turned to Takashi and Lian with a grateful smile. "Thanks for your help just now, but I won't trouble you with the rest."
"Aron, what's your plan?" Lian asked without hesitation, while Takashi watched with a puzzled expression.
To him, this was an unsolvable dilemma. Unless Aron could somehow beat the Gym-level Trainer, what could he do?
Meeting their questioning gazes, Aron smiled, pulled a satellite phone from his backpack, and said, "Call for backup."
---
As night fell, lights were still on in the Psychic Gym in South River City. A discussion could be heard from the Gym Leader's office.
"Dad, how long will you stay home this time?" Lukas asked, looking at his father, Hugh Smith, who was lounging comfortably in his chair.
Hugh took a sip of tea, replying calmly, "About a week."
Lukas smiled. "Good, you deserve a break."
He paused, adding, "Honestly, I don't understand the League. Why do they keep sending you on these missions? You're in you're almost 70! Don't they have anyone else?"
Hugh Smith chuckled. "Can't blame the League. I volunteered for it."
He straightened his neck. "Our Smith Family doesn't have as deep a heritage as other families,so we can only rely on continuous accumulation from generation to generation."
Lukas rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah,I get it. Alakazam will definitely reach semi-Elite soon."
Hugh glanced at Lukas but didn't comment. Instead, he asked, "How's Aron doing?"
"He's officially a Intermediate Rank Trainer," Lukas answered casually.
"Oh, Intermediate Rank Trainer…" Hugh nodded. Then, realizing what he'd heard, he sat up, his tone rising in surprise. "Intermediate Rank?!"
Lukas grinned, amused by his father's uncharacteristic reaction. "Yes, his Combusken reached Intermediate recently, and he got certified as a Intermediate Rank Trainer yesterday."
"Impressive." The old man regained his composure, but the corners of his mouth rose slightly completely exposing his inner emotions.
"And Beldum?" Hugh asked.
"Almost at Intermediate," Lukas replied.
"Excellent!" This time, Hugh clapped his thigh in satisfaction.
Lukas chuckled, "Guess I raised a pretty good son, huh?"
Hugh shot him a look. "He's progressing quickly,perhaps it is because of his solid theoretical knowledge."
Lukas nodded. "By the way, didn't Aron come to the Gym today?"
"He's training in the field. He'll be back tomorrow," Lukas explained.
"Which field?"
"The Peace River Forest."
"Peace River Forest…" Hugh's gaze turned thoughtful.
"It's a safe spot for beginners, and I had Kirlia go with him."
Hugh nodded approvingly. At that moment, Lukas' phone began to vibrate on the desk. He glanced down — it was Aron calling.
"Dad, it's Aron."
"Go ahead."
Lukas picked up the phone, putting it on speaker.
"Hey, Aron?"
"It's me. I have something very important to tell you," Aron's voice came through clearly.
Hugh straightened, listening intently.
"Here's the situation…" Aron recounted everything that had happened with Ralts.
"Dark red uniform…" Lukas murmured, glancing at Hugh, who nodded knowingly.
"So, that's the gist of it.I was hoping to get your help," Aron concluded.
"No problem."
Aron paused, recognizing the calm voice of his grandfather.
Before he could reply, Hugh continued, "Aron, stay where you are. Keep your location on. We'll be there soon."
The call ended abruptly.
"Dad, the dark red uniform Aron mentioned…" Lukas began.
Hugh stood up, his tone cold. "A poaching group that roams across regions. Their leader is a semi-Elite."
"They operate carefully, only in mountain regions. Tracking them is very difficult."
A faint smile appeared on Hugh's face,and he said" But in the final analysis, it is just that there is no need to eliminate this poaching group, because the effort is not directly proportional to the harvest."
He dialed another number and ordered, "Assemble. Meet me at Peace River Forest."
Lukas hesitated. "Dad, isn't this a bit much? It's only a Gym-level Trainer…"
Hugh didn't look back. "I said, this poaching group is going down tonight."
Seeing that Lukas didn't move for a long time, Hugh turned. "What's wrong? Are you coming?"
"Right away!" Lukas replied.
They headed outside to an open area. Hugh released a Poké Ball into the air.
"Roar!"
With a mighty roar, a massive Pokémon hovered above them, its blood-red wings beating against the night sky.
The pseudo-Legendary, Salamence!
"Let's go."
As Salamence landed, Hugh and Lukas climbed onto its back.
With a powerful beat of its wings, Salamence took flight, disappearing into the night, headed toward Peace River Forest.