Steven stood behind Aoki, watching him work. Although he didn't understand what Aoki was doing, he neither interrupted nor questioned him, patiently observing.
Magmar accepted the high-quality Pokeblock from Aoki's hand. Carefully, he placed one into his mouth, tasting it as if it were a delicacy. After eating one, he stopped and hid the remaining Pokeblocks somewhere even Aoki couldn't discern.
Now, it was time to witness the miracle.
In Aoki's vision, a sign of psychic power appeared. The eyes are the windows of the soul, and psychic abilities are a combination of the brain and heart. The most visible sign of psychic power is the eyes.
A blue light flickered in Aoki's eyes, and a thin thread of psychic energy extended toward Magmar's head.
Telepathy.
More advanced than simple communication, this form of Telepathy allowed direct understanding of the other's thoughts.
Magmar could now understand Aoki, and Aoki could clearly understand Magmar.
After all, Pokémon were not human. They lacked the ability to structure language as humans did.
Steven, watching from the side, stared at Aoki with wide eyes, as if he had seen a ghost.
"What… what am I seeing?"
Psychic powers?!
Was Aoki a psychic?!
Was this what Aoki had been hiding?!
A genius Breeder who also possessed psychic powers?!
This was beyond belief!
Steven's shock was expected.
But Aoki didn't have time to pay attention to it. He had only recently refined his ability to use Telepathy.
His psychic precision was high, but his overall control over his powers was not yet strong. This ability was difficult for him to maintain.
Slowly, he reached out to communicate with Magmar's mind.
"Magmar, can you hear me?" Aoki said telepathically.
Magmar jumped in surprise, looking around. No one else was there.
Where was the voice in his head coming from?
"Don't look around. It's me—the one in front of you. The one who just gave you something to eat," Aoki explained calmly.
Magmar eyed Aoki with suspicion.
He had never encountered such an ability before!
It took Aoki five minutes to make Magmar accept the situation.
Now came the crucial part—the actual communication.
Magmar's ability to express himself was lacking. While he may have been skilled at communicating with other Pokémon, Aoki struggled to understand him.
Fifteen minutes later, after a rough exchange, Aoki retracted his psychic power and wiped the sweat from his brow.
He felt lightheaded. This special use of Telepathy had pushed him close to his limit.
"Hah…" He let out a long breath.
Just then, a handkerchief appeared before him. Steven, now composed, held it out.
Though surprised by Aoki's display of psychic power, Steven knew Aoki had likely kept this hidden for a long time. The fact that he revealed it now was a sign of trust.
As a nobleman, Steven always carried a handkerchief—an essential habit.
"Thank you," Aoki said simply, taking the handkerchief and wiping his forehead.
Then he added, "I just had a brief conversation with Magmar. Wild Pokémon have terrible organization and expression skills." Aoki couldn't help but complain.
If it had been Honchkrow, the entire situation would have been explained in three minutes. But with Magmar, it was a struggle.
Not to mention Pokémon like Slowking, whose intelligence rivaled that of humans.
There was no comparison.
He had expected it to be difficult but not this difficult.
"From what Magmar conveyed, some creatures resembling humans appeared at the top of the mountain. They brought Pokémon he had never seen before. While they did not actively attack, they damaged the environment. The Magmar rebelled but were easily repelled," Aoki summarized.
Such a simple event, yet so difficult to explain!
Hearing Aoki's words, Steven rested his chin on his hand in thought.
Based on Aoki's account, a group of unknown humans had appeared at the peak of Mount Chimney, causing environmental destruction and disturbing the Pokémon habitat.
Was this why the two Magmar they had encountered earlier had been so panicked?
With Steven's intelligence, Aoki didn't need to explain further.
For Steven, however, the more pressing matter was that Aoki possessed psychic powers.
Seeing Steven's expression, Aoki sighed. He knew this would be difficult to explain.
After a moment, he said, "I know you must be surprised that I have psychic powers. Yes, I do. But they are very weak. I can only use Telepathy and a few basic techniques. With my talent, I may never improve further."
Aoki's words made Steven fall silent.
The atmosphere between them grew tense.
Skorupi and Aron, standing nearby, looked between their Trainers, confused by the sudden shift in mood.
"Unacceptable!"
Steven's voice broke the silence.
Aoki's heart tensed slightly. His hand instinctively moved toward his Pokeball.
This was something he had to face. He had prepared for the worst. He wasn't Steven's match, but with Slowking's Teleport, he could escape if necessary.
"This is ridiculous, Aoki! You're a psychic! And I'm only finding out now? That's too much! When we battled last time, you didn't use your abilities!" Steven said, breaking into his signature confident smile.
Steven was shocked and maybe a little envious, but he had no resentment toward Aoki for keeping it a secret.
Why wouldn't he hide it?
Aoki was a genius. Exposing his powers would bring no benefit—only danger.
So this was Aoki's hidden ace.
As expected of someone Steven respected!
A true genius!
Seeing Steven's easygoing expression, Aoki exhaled in relief.
That was close.
For a moment, he thought he might have to sever ties with the League.