A substantial harvest, no doubt!
"Congratulations, Entei, on breaking free from your predicament."
Seeing this scene, Nathan offered his congratulations without hesitation.
He had already reaped the benefits of Raikou's reward—there was no way he'd let Entei slip by!
Unfortunately, Nathan didn't have any Water-type Pokémon. Otherwise, he wouldn't have passed up the opportunity to ride Suicune's coattails either.
[This is all thanks to you, Trainer Nathan.]
Huddled within the eggshell, Entei was clearly not completely unaware of the outside world.
Unlike Raikou's voice, which had been filled with admiration and approval, Entei's tone carried a more approachable and humble air.
Of course, calling it a "voice" wasn't entirely accurate.
After all, communication between Raikou, Entei, and Suicune was conducted entirely on a spiritual—or even telepathic—level.
If they didn't want you to hear, all anyone else would see was Nathan praising rainbows into thin air.
"I'm flattered. Compared to the reward Raikou gave me, what I did was barely worth mentioning."
Nathan rubbed the bridge of his nose and replied honestly.
Ho-Oh's mark had never been a blessing for him—in fact, it had made him feel uneasy more than once.
If Entei wanted to remove Ho-Oh's mark, Nathan would've gladly agreed even without any reward.
Let alone the fact that Raikou had even gifted Zeraora a Seed of Power.
[No need to say more. Since Raikou gave Zeraora a Seed of Power, I can't afford to be stingy either.]
Shaking its head, Entei responded exactly as Nathan had expected—it seemed even more generous than Raikou.
After all, Raikou had offered its reward as both a thank-you and an investment. Its real interest was in the potential of Nathan and Zeraora.
But Entei was different—it had directly benefitted from Nathan's help.
Calling Nathan Entei's benefactor was no exaggeration!
"Volcarona, go on!"
Watching the fiery moth circling around him, Nathan chuckled lightly.
"Vol~!"
Volcarona affectionately looped around Nathan before flying over to Entei's side.
Unlike Raikou's gift, the red-and-white speck of light that emerged from Entei's forehead was both larger and more potent in quality!
As it merged with Volcarona, the flames on its wings began shifting—gradually turning pure white!
[Nathan, I shouldn't need to remind you again, but I hope you never forget this: only the bond between humans and Pokémon can shine with the brilliance of miracles!]
After passing the Seed of Power to Volcarona, Entei seemed even weaker. Its voice now carried a distinct trace of frailty.
Still, Entei was a Legendary Pokémon.
Now that the danger of going berserk had passed, it wouldn't take long for it to recover.
There was no need for Nathan to worry about that.
As he listened to Entei's words, Nathan couldn't help but think of a certain "Super Newcomer" from his past life.
The one with the "Pikagod"—a Pikachu whose power levels ranged from terrifyingly low to ridiculously high!
And the Greninja that could mega evolve without a stone!
In his previous world, these were merely jokes and memes.
But in this world of Pokémon, they clearly demonstrated the power of bonds.
"Don't worry, no one understands the power of bonds better than me!"
Nathan—also known as The Bond Master™—patted his chest with confidence.
Even though this world's Pokémon industry was thriving, it still fell far short of the near-utopian harmony shown in the anime.
Most people still saw Pokémon as pets.
In such an environment, calling himself The Bond Master wasn't an exaggeration at all!
[Then… I'll leave the future in your hands…]
After saying this cryptic line, Entei teleported Nathan away before he could even respond.
Seeing the distant, Elite-level Butterfree, Nathan returned Volcarona and Zeraora to their Poké Balls and left the Wandering Mountains.
The overlords here were undoubtedly powerful.
But with only six Elite -level Pokémon in the area and none being particularly overwhelming, staying longer would just be a waste of time.
Back in Emerald City, Nathan headed straight to his hotel for a refreshing shower.
Only then did he pull out his phone to check his messages.
There were plenty of greetings, but most of them were from Lily.
…
Lily: Son, son, hurry up and call your mom back!
Lily: If you don't call me back, I'm gonna stir-fry you with my belt!
Lily: CALL! ME! NOW!
...
Looking at the dozens of messages, Nathan couldn't help but laugh.
He could already picture Lily's frustrated face in his mind.
Nathan: Say "Daddy!"
As soon as he sent that message, Lily responded instantly—she must've been waiting for it.
Lily: Oh? Our boy's finally back in the city? Done playing wild man out in the wilderness?
Nathan: Say "Daddy," or I'm not replying!
Lily: … You looking for a beating?
Lily: Did you grow a pair of bear guts while you were gone?
Lily: Reply now!
Before Nathan could even leave her on read, Lily called him directly.
Seeing the incoming call, Nathan smiled and answered, "Didn't think my daughter would care so much after a few days apart. I'm touched!"
Back at home, Lily rolled her eyes and muttered, "Cut the crap. Tell me everything that happened over there!"
"Say 'Daddy!'"
"Screw you!"
...
After goofing around with Lily for a bit, Nathan finally started recounting what had happened in the Wandering Mountains.
It wasn't a very exciting retelling—Nathan wasn't exactly a professional storyteller.
But Lily still listened intently, playing the role of a perfect audience.
Their call lasted over two hours before they reluctantly hung up.
Putting his phone away, Nathan let Volcarona out of its Poké Ball.
"Vol~!"
With a loving cry, Volcarona appeared and instantly warmed the entire room.
Not too hot, not too cold—just incredibly cozy.
But this time, something was different.
One pair of Volcarona's wings had turned pure white—like they were burning with sacred white flames!
Compared to before, Volcarona now carried a sense of divine majesty. Its pure white wings resembled those of a seraph!
"Volcarona, how do you feel now? Anything different?"
Nathan asked, curious about the differences from Zeraora's transformation.
Although Entei hadn't spelled it out, he had a gut feeling that Volcarona's transformation would far exceed his expectations.
"Vol~ Vol~"
Volcarona eagerly replied, its pure white wings gradually reverting to their original color as time passed.
It took about three minutes for Nathan to fully understand what Volcarona meant.
Simply put—Entei hadn't just given Volcarona a Seed of Power.
It had also infused it with another type of strength.
You could call it another seed—a second power!
To put it plainly: once Volcarona had absorbed enough white flames, it would be able to undergo Shiny Mega Evolution!
Nathan wasn't sure if Volcarona could Mega Evolve in the official lore of his past life.
But he did recall that in one remake, Volcarona did have a Mega Evolution form.
Thanks to Entei's gift, his Volcarona would be able to achieve both a Shiny form and Mega Evolution simultaneously!
Of course, aside from the quantity of white flames required, there would likely be a bond requirement as well.
But for Nathan, that kind of requirement was no big deal—he immediately disregarded it.
If, before, Volcarona was thought by many to look like a Legendary Pokémon but wasn't even pseudo-legendary in truth…
Then once it achieved Shiny Mega Evolution, it would surpass every pseudo-legend!
Maybe it wouldn't reach true Legendary status…
But it could be called a "False God."
"Hahaha! Then let's evolve into that form before the National Championship—and show everyone what you're really capable of!"
"Volcarona, your future is limitless!"
Hugging Volcarona's soft, warm body, Nathan burst into laughter.
"Vol~!"
Blushing slightly, Volcarona nestled into his arms, face glowing with shy happiness.
…