Maiden's Peak.
The heavy rain continued to pour.
Silas stood quietly in the rain, listening attentively as Gastly explained the solution. There were two steps.
First: They needed to find a human who was born with exceptionally strong soul power!
Now that Yu's wish had been fulfilled, Maiden's Peak could no longer keep providing her protection. Most humans' souls simply weren't strong enough—a soul that had survived two thousand years like Yu's wasn't something just anyone could handle! Finding such a human was nearly impossible; even among millions, you might not find a single one.
Second: The Sea God's Tear!
This was, in fact, a tear shed by Lugia. And not just any Lugia—it had to be one that had inherited the title of Sea God. But here's the catch: a true Sea God Lugia would never help Yu. Her very existence was defying the laws of nature, and as a deity tasked with upholding order, Lugia would sooner erase her from existence than lend a hand.
After hearing these two requirements, Silas fell into silence.
To most, these steps would be absolutely impossible. But for him, maybe not so much!
As for the first requirement—he didn't even need to think about it. He himself was the perfect candidate. With the soul power of two lifetimes combined, if he couldn't handle it, no one could!
The second step, though, was a massive headache. He knew where the Sea God was, but the only way to get its tear would probably mean defeating it in battle. That was the real thorn—any Pokémon worthy of the title "god" wasn't going to be a pushover. If Silas tried to pick a fight with something on that level now, it would be instant game over for him!
Seeing Silas lost in thought, Gastly said hopelessly, "Now you get why I said 'almost impossible'? Let's ignore step two for now. Just the first step alone is basically unachievable. Even if she weren't still being hurt by sunlight, her very existence drains her soul power. If we can't find the right human in the next six hours, she'll vanish for good!"
"No," Silas shook his head, his tone firm. "I already have the right person. The real issue is the Sea God's Tear."
"You do?" Gastly was stunned, then yelled at Silas, "If you've got someone, stop wasting time! We can worry about the Sea God's Tear later. The top priority is to get Yu into a human soul right now! Do you even have any idea how much every extra second out here is hurting her?!"
Every extra second is torture?!!
Gastly's words snapped Silas to attention; he forgot all about the Sea God's Tear for the time being. "Alright—let's do it!"
"Where's your candidate?"
"Me," Silas pointed at himself.
"You?!" Gastly stared at him in disbelief, "You've gotta be kidding."
"No joke," Silas replied, dead serious.
"No way!" For the first time, Yu's gentle expression changed, and she spoke up in protest, "Absolutely not!"
"Kid," Gastly now looked Silas straight in the eye, voice grave. "This isn't a game. If your soul isn't strong enough, you could kill yourself and Yu both. Are you really sure?"
"I'm sure!" Silas nodded with conviction, his tone certain. "I would never gamble with Yu's life—or my own!"
"No!" Yu shouted, her voice trembling with emotion, "I absolutely won't allow it!"
"Alright!" Gastly ignored Yu's objections. Its eyes flashed purple, and a violet glow enveloped Yu. In an instant, Yu froze mid-protest—her body paralyzed, floating still in the rain. Gastly turned to Silas. "Last chance: are you sure? Because if you are, I'll send Yu into your soul right now!"
"Go ahead!" Silas spread his arms wide.
With that… Yu transformed into a violet beam and shot straight into Silas's body!
As the purple light merged with him, Silas's mind was flooded with Yu's memories—centuries of longing, loneliness, and confusion. What struck him most was the final memory, the happiest one—the memory they'd just made together last night, talking until dawn.
He couldn't help but sigh. Yu was truly the embodiment of devotion…
"Hey, kid!"
While Silas was lost in emotion, Gastly's voice rang in his ears. "You dead yet?"
"It's done?" Silas opened his eyes, confused. "That's it?"
"Duh!" Gastly rolled its eyes, looking at Silas like he was an idiot. "What? You expected more?"
"How come it didn't hurt at all?" Silas was baffled. In novels, this was supposed to hurt like hell before succeeding, right?
"Heh…" Gastly sneered. "You want pain? That's easy. I might be a Gastly, but after two millennia, I've mastered every Ghost-type signature move. If you want to hurt, I could curse you up good—you'll wish you were dead!"
"No, thanks!" Silas shook his head quickly, ignoring Gastly. Instead, he turned and bowed sincerely to Dragonite and Charizard, who had stuck with him in the rain. "Thank you. If it weren't for your help, I'd be lost now."
'Charizard~'
Charizard flashed a thumbs-up and patted its chest—like it was saying, "No worries, leave everything to me!"
"No need." Dragonite shook its head, speaking in a low, steady voice. "You're our Trainer. Helping you out is our duty. If you truly want to thank us, give us double rations tonight!"
Dragonite's request left Silas half-laughing, half-helpless. He never expected Dragonite to turn into a foodie, just like Charizard. Still, grateful as he was, Silas was happy to oblige, "You got it. Dinner's on me—double everything for you tonight!"
10 a.m.
Pokémon Center.
Silas dragged his soaked body back to the Center.
Right then, Lorelei, Suzie, and Giselle were already waiting for him at the door. Suzie and Giselle looked anxious, and as soon as they spotted Silas, they both rushed over. Suzie asked, nearly frantic, "Silas, are you okay? Do you feel sick or anything?"
"What's up?" Silas shot her a puzzled look.
"Are you sure you're not feeling weird anywhere?" Suzie pressed, not answering his question.
"I'm fine." Silas shook his head, tugging at his rain-soaked shirt. "Other than being a bit wet, I'm perfectly normal."
"Thank goodness." Suzie and Giselle both visibly relaxed. Giselle chimed in, "You have no idea—we were scared out of our minds! Brock and that Team Rocket guy disappeared last night, just like you, and when they finally made it back, they passed out cold. Even the doctors at the hospital couldn't wake them up. Ash and the others are with them now."
Passed out cold?
Silas was surprised, but then just shrugged it off.
That was likely Gastly's doing; with Yu gone and Gastly's mood tanking, he probably went all out on them. Silas smiled, "Don't worry. Those two were just scared stiff. Give them a couple days' rest and they'll be fine."
"How would you know?" Suzie pressed.
Silas just chuckled, offering no explanation. "I'm gonna get out of these wet clothes and take a long nap—I was up all night and I'm wiped. Let's take the day off and head out tomorrow. Sound good?"
"Sure."
"No problem."
Lorelei and Suzie nodded, but Giselle kept pushing, "Silas, how do you know Brock and the other guy were just scared?"
"Just a guess," Silas called over his shoulder as he walked off.
Inside the room.
Normally, the Pokémon Center's dorms are packed since they're free. But perks are perks, so Silas had a room to himself.
"All done?"
As soon as Silas finished showering and walked out of the bathroom, Lorelei's teasing voice drifted over.
"What are you doing in here?" Silas asked, wrapping a towel around his waist.
"Heh…" Lorelei grinned. "Are you really that shy, little man? You're only ten."
Ten years old…
Silas's face darkened. "Can't a kid get embarrassed, too?"
"Fair enough," Lorelei laughed. Then, with a serious look, "So where'd you go last night?"
"What's up with that?" Silas's eyes narrowed, his tone cold. "Do I need to report to you, now?"
"You don't." Lorelei shook her head. "If it's personal, it's none of my business. But if it involves the League, I have to know. Right now, you're not just acting for yourself. You represent a lot of people, and every decision you make has ripples. Part of my job is to give you advice and help keep things quiet—so there aren't any loose ends."
Lorelei's explanation softened Silas up a little. "It was just personal business last night."
"Good."
Lorelei breathed a small sigh of relief. She hadn't expected Silas—just a kid—to already be this sensitive. It made her realize she'd have to rethink her approach around him from now on.
"Tut tut tut…" While Silas and Lorelei lapsed into silence, a mocking voice interrupted: "Just the two of you, alone in a room—are you sure nothing R-rated is about to happen?"
The voice was abrupt, and to Lorelei a total stranger. As she turned to look, her eyes widened in surprise—because the speaker was a Gastly!
What shocked her even more was how Silas seemed to know this Gastly already, asking directly, "What are you doing here?"
"Following you," Gastly replied bluntly.
That answer left Lorelei speechless—and even Silas a little dumbfounded!
He'd already given up on catching Gastly… but now Gastly was volunteering to follow him? What was up with that?
"Kid." As Silas froze, Gastly added nonchalantly, "Don't get me wrong—I'm only following you because of Yu. She was my friend, and I want to help when you go after the Sea God's Tear."
"For real?" Silas frowned. Something felt off about Gastly's tone.
"Why would I lie?!" Gastly snapped, instantly offended. "I'm Gastly, a top-tier Legendary Pokémon! I'm way too awesome to need to trick you—a snot-nosed br—"
Listening to Gastly rant, Silas was sure there was more to it—but he didn't bother to dig. Considering Gastly's relationship to Yu, he wasn't too worried. So he just pulled a Master Ball from his bag and chucked it right at Gastly, mid-rant.
Ding! Ding! Ding! DING!
The Master Ball rolled on the floor three times, then clicked—catch successful.
"I… I caught it just like that?!" Lorelei stared at the Master Ball in disbelief.
"What else did you expect?" Silas picked up the Master Ball, giving Lorelei a puzzled look. "How hard did you think it'd be?"
"…"
Lorelei was speechless. This was a Legendary-level Pokémon, and Silas had caught it without breaking a sweat? If the League ever found out—after all their grinding to get their hands on Legendary Pokémon—they'd be spitting blood...