"Slowking, you're still the same as always. And you too, Shellder, how have you been lately?"
At that moment, Slowking opened its drowsy eyes, and Ethan greeted it with a smile.
Upon seeing Ethan, Shellder's eyes immediately narrowed into a thin line.
"Yadon!"
Slowking also let out a couple of cheerful cries.
Although it hadn't gone out much with Ethan recently, Slowking, lazy by nature, quite enjoyed that peaceful feeling.
"This time, I'll have to count on you again."
Ethan smiled as he took out Pokéblocks to feed both Pokémon.
As one of his signature Pokémon, Slowking and Shellder had always been the most reliable defensive core on his team.
Now he was about to face the dangerous professional Pokémon Hunter evaluation, and naturally Slowking could not be absent.
"It seems you still haven't fully woken up. Then keep sleeping a little longer. I'll call you at dinner time."
Seeing Slowking yawning again and again, Ethan shook his head helplessly.
If there was something he could be completely at ease about, it was Slowking. With intelligence far superior to that of its peers, it was undoubtedly the most self-sufficient member of his team.
It didn't need Ethan to plan its training; with its intellect, it could organize everything by itself.
Moreover, at the Pokémon Researchers Guild, Slowking had stayed by President Beckett's side, helping him enormously.
Especially in communicating with other Pokémon, Slowking possessed a natural advantage, which had greatly facilitated President Beckett's research.
If it weren't because Slowking belonged to Ethan, President Beckett might even have tried to exchange for it.
Thus, during all that time, President Beckett himself had personally taken care of Slowking. He was happy and Ethan was carefree: a perfect outcome for both.
After returning the two Pokémon that were still meditating, Ethan mounted Absol and headed toward the Emotional Energy Research Institute.
At that moment, beside the institute's lake, Alex was taking care of Feebas. Ethan had gone there precisely so that Gyarados could see Feebas.
The truth was that, since Feebas had been raised by Gyarados from the very beginning, it seemed to regard it as its father.
And Gyarados, for its part, saw Feebas as its own child. An unexpectedly close bond had formed between the two.
Upon seeing Feebas, even the fierce Gyarados showed a rare expression of tenderness on its face.
"Ethan, you finally came back."
Seeing him, Alex seemed to want to say something, but hesitated.
"What's wrong?"
Ethan was surprised; that was not Alex's usual attitude.
"I want to take Feebas with me to train and travel. Although we have already prepared all the necessary conditions for it to evolve, Feebas still hasn't managed to complete its evolution."
"So I want to take it with me and travel like a trainer. Maybe during the journey it will find the right opportunity and evolve successfully. Besides, I now have a group of Pokémon that may evolve through affinity."
"If I travel with them, I can strengthen our bond. Maybe when I return, some of them will have evolved."
Expectation shone in Alex's eyes. Perhaps this would also be the opportunity for his rank as a Pokémon Researcher to rise once again.
"I see... a journey, huh? Where are you planning to go?"
Ethan thought for a moment. An ordinary trip would not necessarily produce results.
"I'll first go to Coral City, Feebas's place of origin. From there I'll begin traveling through the southwestern region of the League, and I'll follow your path, challenging the gyms of the region."
Alex laughed. It had been a long time since he had battled, and now he felt his blood boiling with excitement.
"Challenging gyms?"
"You haven't trained Pokémon in a long time—are you sure you can?"
Ethan joked. Back in the day, Alex had also been a young prodigy, though later he delved deeper and deeper into the path of a Pokémon Researcher.
"That's why... I want you to lend me Gyarados."
As he said this, a sly smile appeared on Alex's face.
"Gyarados?"
Ethan fell into thought and looked at Gyarados, who was happily playing with Feebas.
His heart stirred slightly. The trip to Dragon Valley had been a heavy blow to Gyarados.
It had trained so hard to shine on the battlefield of Dragon Valley, yet in the end it didn't even get the chance to appear. That had left it deeply frustrated.
Even it had begun to feel that it could no longer keep up with Ethan.
"Perhaps... for Gyarados, this is also a good choice."
Ethan nodded gently. After thinking it through, he accepted.
Everything fit together naturally. Observing Gyarados's expression, Ethan sensed that it seemed to have let out a sigh of relief.
It could accompany Feebas and, with Alex's help, continue strengthening itself. Without a doubt, it was the best option for it.
"Perhaps... it's also time for Kingdra to make a decision."
Ethan looked at Gyarados, who got along very well with Alex, and held Kingdra's Poké Ball in his hand.
Before it evolved, it had been the leader of the Horsea at the Water-type Pokémon farm of Derek Ashford's house, where Ethan had captured it.
Later, under his care, that leader of the Horsea evolved into Kingdra, living moments of glory.
But as Ethan's Pokémon grew stronger and stronger, Kingdra's limitation in potential became exposed. It could not keep up with the others.
Ethan had tried to find solutions, but none proved effective.
Over time, it seemed that Kingdra itself had begun to give up. Its mindset changed, and at the Emotional Energy Institute it seemed to have recovered its original nature as the leader of the Horsea.
Although Gyarados's arrival to the team had briefly rekindled its motivation to train, in Dragon Valley that motivation was completely destroyed, plunging it into discouragement.
Now, Ethan felt that it was time to let Kingdra choose. If it wanted to return to its position as leader of the Horsea, he would not stop it.
After clearing his thoughts, in the Horsea territory of the institute, Ethan released Kingdra.
After hearing his words, Kingdra showed inner struggle, hesitation... and also longing.
In the end, it chose freedom.
It chose to leave.
It chose to return to its post as the leader of the Horsea.
(End of Chapter)