Gary fell silent when he heard the system's explanation.
"So Heatran only counts as a standard Legendary Pokémon, not a Mythical Legendary one…" he muttered to himself.
He glanced at the Poké Ball in his hand and sighed inwardly.
"Seriously, Heatran, look at how unfair this is. You clearly have the same level of existence as many other Legendary Pokémon, yet your reward value isn't even close to Shaymin's. That's really tragic."
Of course, complaining wouldn't change anything. Gary quickly put the matter aside and focused on what truly mattered—the Pokémon he had just conquered.
He walked forward, bent down, and picked up the Ultra Ball. A faint warmth could be felt through the shell, evidence of the Fire- and Steel-type energy sealed inside.
"Let's take a look at your data."
A translucent panel unfolded before his eyes.
[Pokémon: Heatran]
[Type: Fire / Steel]
[Level: 65]
[Potential: Quasi-Legendary]
[Ability 1: Flash Fire (When hit by Fire-type moves, absorbs flames and increases the power of Fire-type moves. Fire-type attacks also boost Physical and Special Attack ×1.5.)]
[Ability 2: Flame Body (When an opponent makes contact, there is a 30% chance of causing burn.)]
[Moves: Magma Storm, Metal Claw, Scary Face, Iron Head, Lava Plume, Metal Sound, Heat Wave, Stone Edge]
[TM/Tutor Moves: Flamethrower, Overheat]
[Friendship: 115 / 255]
Gary stared at the Ability section for several seconds.
"Two Abilities…"
He rarely showed obvious surprise, but this time he genuinely couldn't hide it.
"Flash Fire and Flame Body at the same time."
In theory, Pokémon only possessed one standard Ability, or sometimes an alternative Ability. Hidden Abilities existed as well, but only one could be active at any given time. Yet Heatran, standing in front of him now, clearly possessed two Abilities simultaneously.
This wasn't something the system had created artificially. This was Heatran's natural configuration.
"That means… Pokémon in this world really can have multiple Abilities," Gary murmured. "It's not just a system-exclusive phenomenon."
The number of such Pokémon must be extremely small, but the possibility clearly existed.
His thoughts drifted to another familiar example.
"Ash's Infernape…"
Gary narrowed his eyes slightly.
That Infernape was strange. Not only did it possess Blaze—possibly even an enhanced version—but it also displayed signs of Iron Fist.
During its battle with Paul, Infernape had defeated Aggron and Ninjask even when Blaze had not activated. Aggron's physical defense was extremely high, and Mach Punch, even with Fighting-type STAB, should not have been enough to overwhelm it so easily.
Against Ninjask, it was even more unreasonable. Fighting-type moves were resisted by Bug/Flying types. Logically speaking, Mach Punch should have done pitiful damage.
Yet Infernape had knocked Ninjask out with a single blow.
There were only two plausible explanations:
One—critical hits.
Two—Infernape possessed Iron Fist, and possibly even an enhanced version of it.
"If that's true…" Gary muttered darkly, "then Ash really did get absurdly lucky."
A Pokémon with dual Abilities and possibly an EX Ability on top of that—such a treasure should have been trained into a true pillar Pokémon.
Yet what happened?
Infernape was used only during the Lily of the Valley Conference, then stuffed into storage.
A waste.
A complete waste.
"Such a good Pokémon… and it ended up in Ash's hands," Gary sighed. "What a tragedy."
He shook his head, forcing himself back to the present.
A hesitant voice interrupted his thoughts.
"You… you really conquered Heatran…"
Buck stared at Gary as if he were looking at something unreal.
His eyes were wide, his lips trembling slightly.
"That's a Legendary Pokémon…"
Gary glanced at him.
"So?"
Buck almost choked.
"So?!" he exclaimed. "That's Heatran! A Legendary Pokémon that lives in Stark Mountain! People in Survival Area grow up listening to its stories!"
To Buck, this was like witnessing a myth walking out of a fairy tale and calmly being stuffed into a Poké Ball.
Gary, on the other hand, looked completely unconcerned.
"It's already been convinced," Gary said. "There's nothing left to do here. I'm leaving."
"W-Wait!" Buck suddenly shouted.
Gary paused.
"I… I haven't taken any pictures yet!"
Gary looked at him silently.
Technically speaking, Buck hadn't fulfilled any prior agreement. Heatran had appeared on its own, and Gary had found it through his own effort.
There was no obligation to help Buck at all.
But Gary thought for a moment.
"Finding Heatran might actually have had something to do with this kid's luck," he admitted inwardly.
After all, he had searched for a whole week without success. The moment Buck appeared, Heatran showed up at the volcano entrance.
It would be petty to refuse over something so small.
With a flick of his wrist, Gary released Moltres.
Flames flickered as the majestic Fire-type Legendary Pokémon spread its wings.
"WRAAAH!"
Moltres let out a proud cry, its feathers glowing like molten gold.
"Wow… Moltres…"
Buck's eyes sparkled as he stared at the magnificent bird Pokémon.
Its wings were broad and powerful, its body covered in plump, flame-like feathers that seemed to radiate life itself.
"Come on," Gary said impatiently. "Take the photo. I still need to send Heatran for treatment."
"R-Right!"
Buck hurriedly took out his camera and stood beside Moltres, snapping several photos in a row.
Click.
Click.
Click.
Satisfied, he lowered the camera and grinned.
"Thank you… really!"
Gary didn't reply. Instead, he walked up to Moltres, plucked a single feather from its wing, and handed it to Buck.
"Take this as a souvenir."
Buck froze.
"A Moltres feather?!"
Such an item wasn't just rare—it was priceless to collectors.
Moltres immediately squawked in displeasure.
"WRAAAH!!"
It flapped its wings angrily, sparks flying from its feathers.
Even Legendary Pokémon treasured their wings. Moltres would only willingly give feathers to humans it recognized.
And Buck was definitely not one of them.
"Don't be angry," Gary said calmly, patting Moltres' neck. "I'll teach you a new move later."
Moltres tilted its head.
"..."
It didn't look convinced.
"What use is a Fire-type Pokémon learning Rain Dance?" Moltres's expression seemed to say. "That just weakens my own attacks."
Gary ignored its resentment.
"If you don't broaden your skill pool, you'll regret it someday," he replied flatly.
There was no such thing as a useless move. Only useless situations.
After that, Gary mounted Moltres and flew back toward the Survival Area.
"WRAAAH…"
Moltres was clearly unhappy the entire way.
At the Pokémon Center in Survival Area, Gary handed Heatran's Poké Ball to Nurse Joy.
The Pokémon Center wasn't just a hospital—it was also a data collection hub for the Pokémon League. Every Pokémon treated there would be registered in the Alliance's database.
Once Heatran's data entered the system, Sinnoh League headquarters would inevitably notice.
But Gary didn't care.
Stark Mountain wasn't a protected area. Trainers were legally allowed to capture Pokémon there.
Heatran was fair game.
Sinnoh League knew Heatran existed in Stark Mountain, but they didn't know where it lived, nor did they restrict Trainers from challenging it.
There were even Heatran in other volcanic regions, some under Ranger protection.
This one simply chose Gary.
That was all.
After Heatran finished treatment, Gary took it away from the Pokémon Center to avoid unnecessary attention.
He found a remote area outside Survival Area and released Heatran.
"Come out."
"HRR… DUO…"
Heatran looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings but didn't panic.
It had already acknowledged Gary as its Trainer.
With a friendship value of 115, it was already willing to obey his commands.
That was also why Gary hadn't needed to fight Heatran until it completely lost consciousness.
Heatran had entered the Poké Ball of its own will.
At that moment, Heatran could have broken free.