Chapter 475:
Struggling, panicked, bewildered, shocked—after all these emotions flashed through it, Marshadow, having overseen many Rainbow Trials, quickly pulled itself together. Emulating Kaede's method, it retrieved the Rainbow Feather from the storage capsule.
The Rainbow Feather now shone brilliantly, indicating Lord Ho-Oh was very close to the designated location.
It was startled but quickly regained a serious demeanor. "Marshadow..." (Lord Ho-Oh has chosen you. You should undertake the Rainbow Trial!)
Well, that was the general idea.
Kaede, however, looked at the glowing Rainbow Feather with surprise.
Because the name, which had previously been labeled "Rainbow Feather," had changed upon glowing—it was now Sacred Feather.
Heh.
So that's how Sacred Feathers came to be.
After completing its trial selection, it transformed into a pure energy feather.
"Marshadow?"
Seeing Kaede remain silent, Marshadow urged again.
The Rainbow Trial symbolized courage and purity of heart for humans. It was also Lord Ho-Oh's assessment of the human world.
But Kaede countered, "Do I *have to go?"
"Marshadow?" Marshadow was even more confused.
"Marshadow, Marshadow..." *(If you complete the Rainbow Trial, Lord Ho-Oh will bestow sacred power. It will bring great benefits to both you and your Pokémon!)*
It directly laid out the benefits of the trial.
This was within the rules. In past Rainbow Trials, some humans, tempted by this reward, had their hearts darken, lured by power, and fell into extreme states of mind along the trial path.
Others, upon hearing this, set out with their partners to complete the trial. But after passing the tests of Suicune, Entei, and Raikou, some became overly trusting, leading to their Rainbow Feather being stolen.
In such cases, it, as the overseer, would intervene to eliminate the current holder of the Rainbow Feather, preventing them from meeting Lord Ho-Oh.
Kaede, however, took the opposite approach. "Then let me ask you, was what you just ate good?"
"Marshadow?" Marshadow was stunned.
Kaede took the floating Rainbow... no, Sacred Feather. "If it was good, that's great. It was made using this. I think I can make another portion. How about I give you one?"
"Marshadow?!"
Marshadow's eyes widened instantly.
What was he saying?
He was saying he could make more food like that!
"That's right."
Hearing this reply, and seeing that the "Rainbow Feather" now in Kaede's hand showed no change—no fading or darkening—meant the Rainbow Feather itself deemed this action not a violation of pure-heartedness.
Marshadow hesitated.
It was conflicted.
It didn't know what to say.
It really wanted another piece, but this was Lord Ho-Oh's Rainbow Trial...
"It's fine, it's fine..."
Kaede's voice continued, like a bewitching melody tugging at its reasoning.
And then one sentence struck it like a thunderclap.
"The Rainbow Trial, Ho-Oh... If that doesn't work, how about I give you an extra piece later, and you can let Ho-Oh try it too..."
Kaede wasn't entirely sure what he was spouting, but the sudden emergence of this idea genuinely showed him its feasibility.
Ho-Oh, as everyone knew, was nicknamed the "Camera" in the Pokémon world. While this was a jest, it precisely highlighted how widely it traveled across the Pokémon world.
It shared a similar reputation with Mew, the "Street Stroller."
"Marshadow?"
Marshadow's eyes widened again in disbelief.
Because, logically speaking, this was indeed possible.
Not every Rainbow Trial participant could pass and become the Rainbow Hero. If some accident occurred, it could completely reclaim the Rainbow Feather, let it drift away, and wait for the next chosen participant.
And more than one Rainbow Feather drifted through the world...
Oh no, oh no. It felt utterly corrupted by this human, yet it was undeniably, deeply tempted.
The food just now was so effective for it. Wouldn't it also be effective for Lord Ho-Oh?
Then... Lord Ho-Oh probably wouldn't blame it, right?
Marshadow thought this way.
"So, what do you say? Huh?"
Kaede couldn't help but ask again.
Finally, after seeing Marshadow quietly reply with a single sound before sinking into the floor and vanishing.
"Marshadow..."
Clearly, it had agreed.
"Great~!"
Holding this Sacred Feather, Kaede thought, *This time, I should use this Sacred Feather with more chocolate, make about a hundred liquor chocolates. It's fine if the effects are a bit weaker; I need all my Pokémon to have a taste.*
What bad intentions could he possibly have?
He just didn't want his Pokémon to miss out on delicious liquor chocolates.
Well, he hadn't controlled the proportions well during the first attempt, ending up with only about 20 chocolates.
...
And so, on the day the Rainbow Feather shone brightest, Kaede chose to turn it into liquor chocolates.
Mmm, two hundred pieces.
Perhaps because he made so many, even with high-quality ingredients, the resulting dish's grade dropped.
From Legendary to SSS-grade.
The number of effects didn't decrease, but their potency was correspondingly reduced.
For example:
Limit Break (2) changed from "raises all IVs by 1–3" to "raises all IVs by 1."
Limit Break (3) became: "Vitality Energy: Raises the Pokémon's energy level by 1–5 levels based on its current state. (Highly appealing to Pokémon at a growth plateau. Effective only on first consumption. Note: Ineffective on Pokémon above Legendary tier.)"
The other effects, while described with more ambiguous terms, were undoubtedly also somewhat weakened.
This was within Kaede's expectations.
Of course, Kaede wouldn't fob Marshadow off with this batch.
At the agreed-upon time, he gave Marshadow the two chocolates from the previous batch and watched its figure gradually vanish...
Thinking to himself, *Would Ho-Oh dislike food made from its own plucked feather? Isn't that like humans eating their own skin?*
Ew...
Just thinking about it made Kaede feel weird, and he quickly shook the thought from his head.
.....
Meanwhile, in the Eastova region.
Atop a certain high mountain...