Chapter 505:
"Celebi?" (Hmm?)
"Celebi??" (Huh??)
Celebi tried to look at Kaede, but the Pecha Berry in its hands was simply too big, completely blocking its face. It could only tilt its head to the side and look at Kaede with one eye.
"Well..."
Kaede didn't state the request immediately. Instead, he first used his Aura Sense to call Zoroark over.
Moments later, Zoroark's figure leaped into view. Upon seeing Celebi in the sky, its expression froze, then its eyes lit up as if seeing hope.
It was about to rush up close to Celebi, but a light cough from Kaede instantly brought its reason back.
"Ahem..."
"Celebi?!" (Eep?!)
And Celebi, of course, was startled by Zoroark's sudden appearance.
It was no wonder—the Hisuian form of Zoroark, with the fierce expression in its eyes and the intense, wild coloration and flow of its fur, appeared quite intimidating.
Most Pokémon would definitely be frightened by it.
"Here's the thing. This Pokémon, I don't know if you still remember, isn't from this timeline. It was you, back then, who allowed it to travel to the present. Now, it wants to go back. That's why I tried to create a Time Ripple."
Kaede explained the reason, doing his best to let the friendly aura of the Viridian Power settle over both himself and Zoroark, to make them appear more approachable.
After all, meeting Celebi wasn't easy. He couldn't scare it off in one meeting—finding it again wouldn't be simple.
"Celebi..." (I see...)
Hearing this, Celebi first placed the Pecha Berry on the tree trunk, then carefully floated closer. Placing a hand above Zoroark, a grassy green energy flowed over it. Soon, from the currents of time, it understood the whole story.
It also remembered where this Zoroark came from.
Zoroark's appearance had just changed too much; it hadn't recognized it.
"Celebi?" (It seems... that's how it is...)
"Then, can you please help it?" Kaede asked sincerely.
"Celebi..." (I... I need to) Being asked so earnestly seemed to make Celebi a bit shy. Its fingers poked at each other. "Celebi..." (We need to go to the original place... to ensure it gets sent back...)
"The original place. Meaning the location before the time travel occurred."
"Celebi." (Mhm, mhm.)
Celebi nodded at Kaede, but its eyes never left his face.
So strange. It felt a very, very comfortable aura from this person, making it want to get closer.
A little closer... just a little bit more...
Still holding and nibbling the Pecha Berry, Celebi slowly drifted until it was right in front of Kaede's face, then took a deep breath.
Simultaneously, the system notification sounded in Kaede's mind.
[Congratulations, Host. Celebi's Happiness Points have increased from 10 to 45. Reward: Five bags of Special-Grade Fertilizer, two Special-Grade Rare Candies, one Time Fruit (a fruit ripened within the flow of time. Consuming it will plunge the user into temporal turbulence. Please consume with caution.)]
The special reward from the affection increase made Kaede pause, but what puzzled him more was Celebi's "shy" behavior—sniffing his face, then quickly flying away.
It left him somewhat baffled.
While activating Viridian Power did have some attraction for Pokémon, it shouldn't be *that* strong.
Hmm...
Strange.
But whatever. Getting the Happiness reward was what mattered.
"Celebi..."
Just as Celebi was thinking about getting a little closer, two small figures, similar in size to itself, appeared, interrupting its thoughts.
Clearly, it was Mew and Victini.
They flew to the base of the tree and immediately circled around Celebi, looking it over as if inspecting it.
This situation clearly flustered Celebi, who was used to traveling alone.
"Celebi?" (You... what are you doing...)
Clearly, while Mew knew Celebi, Celebi didn't know Mew.
Moreover, being scrutinized by two other Pokémon like this made it feel even more bashful.
"Mew~"
"Victini~" (I'm Victini!)
However, the main intention of the two Mythical Pokémon was simply to say hello and get to know this new Mythical Pokémon.
"Mew, mew~"
"Victini!"
Upon meeting a new Pokémon, Victini still struck its signature "V for Victory" pose with its fingers.
Mew was a bit more mischievous, darting around Celebi left and right.
They were all Mythical Pokémon with special powers and seemed to get along particularly well in this regard.
Once Celebi sensed that Mew and Victini meant no harm, it immediately started playing with them, chasing and being chased through the air.
As for games like these, Lugia naturally wouldn't participate.
Since arriving here, it had been acting like a retiree, nesting on the villa's roof and sleeping all day. It only came down for meals, just like Salamence.
Interestingly though, its Happiness threshold was actually quite low.
Hmm…
At first, he thought Lugia seemed a bit unhappy because, during the battle with Dialga, it got caught in a time loop by accident.
And he hadn't asked Mew, Victini, or Giratina to step in and help, which might have caused some displeasure.
But later, he found that a single good meal was enough to dispel Lugia's unhappy mood. After that, Kaede's mind became active.
He thought of various ways to prepare delicious food to increase its Happiness points.
After all, opportunities to have a Legendary Pokémon like this stay at his home were rare.
He had to seize the chance while he could.
Over these past few days…
He had acquired two more Silver Wings…
Not to mention various rewards related to Psychic and Flying types.
It kept Kaede quite pleased.
One reward that stood out in his memory was a type of incense seed.
[Mystic Incense Seed – Can be planted to grow a peculiar incense flower. Its fragrance can increase the rate at which Psychic-type Pokémon grow stronger.]
After receiving this reward, Kaede planned to plant it in the special flower garden.
And now…
Kaede turned his gaze to Zoroark. "You heard. We need to go to the place where you first arrived through time travel to return you to your original timeline."
"Zoroark." (Yes.)
"Wait a moment. I'll pack a few things, then go with you. Over a decade has passed, and the forest has changed so much. Without Aura Sense, it's hard to navigate. I'll go with you. Oh, and Serperior will come too~"