The morning air was refreshing, but unfortunately, today seemed to be overcast, and the sun didn't show up as usual.
Steven stood at the door, stretching his body and yawning slightly.
He had been standing there for most of the night, causing his clothes to become damp with morning dew, leaving wet marks on the fabric.
He took out his phone, checked the time, then glanced at the gate he had been guarding, his brows furrowing slightly.
Even though he was confident in Elias's strength, he couldn't shake off the uneasy feeling he was experiencing.
"Probably just my imagination..."
Steven shook his head, disregarding his own instincts.
Having known Elias for many years, he clearly understood just how strong Elias truly was.
Even without Pokémon at his side, Elias could handle most situations with his extraordinary psychic abilities alone.
Moreover, Elias also had a Salamence and a Milotic. How could anything possibly happen to him?
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Steven's phone suddenly rang.
Seeing that the call was coming from someone stationed by the League in Alto Mare, his grip tightened around the phone.
Taking a deep breath, Steven answered the call.
"Mr. Steven, not long ago, a massive explosion occurred on the burning solitary island."
"The blast range is extensive. For safety reasons, please recall all employees currently out at sea back to the mainland. We'll handle this matter as quickly as possible."
The League's tone was very serious, and from the slightly exhausted voice, Steven deduced that they must have been overwhelmed at the moment.
But Steven wasn't paying attention to these details now.
After hearing the message, his pupils shrank sharply, and he stood frozen in shock.
"Mr. Steven? Mr. Steven?!"
Getting no response for a long time, the person on the other end gently called out.
"Ah." Steven snapped out of his daze.
"Mr. Steven, are you alright?"
"I'm fine... Sorry..."
"We'll talk later, I have something else to deal with."
His fingers trembled slightly as he ended the call. Steven took a deep breath, gazing anxiously toward the island.
"You have to be okay..."
---
[Simulation complete. Calculating rewards...]
The mechanical voice of the system echoed inside Elias's mind, pulling his consciousness back from the haze.
Opening his eyes, he saw not an unfamiliar ceiling, but a brightly lit isolated space.
It looked like a room with white walls on all four sides.
Elias paused for a moment, quickly realizing that it was natural for him to awaken here after being collected by the system.
"Phew—"
He exhaled gently, lying on his back and silently replaying the simulation in his mind.
Traveling, Metagross, Poké Balls, Beldum...
Fragments of his experiences flashed through his mind like movie scenes.
Feelings of joy and regret alternated within him.
[Simulation completed. Overall evaluation: S- (Latias's strength has greatly increased)]
[Hidden achievement unlocked (Latios survived)]
[Overall rating raised by one level—Grade S]
Seeing the results, Elias was slightly stunned.
He wasn't surprised by the lower rating compared to last time.
After all, unlike Gardevoir, who could increase strength through sheer emotional willpower, Latias could only become stronger through despair and his dying blessings.
What surprised him was the hidden achievement he got from saving Latios.
Thanks to this, the rating bounced back up to Grade S.
[Burn away, my worthless life!]
[Perhaps, from the moment you selected your entries, you designed the ending of your own life.]
[Undoubtedly, you succeeded.]
[The fear of poachers and mourning from the League all proved how brilliant and dazzling your short life had been.]
[But perhaps... from beginning to end, all you wanted was to protect the ones you loved. Nothing more.]
[Rewards obtained: International Police Certification ×1, Steven's Token ×1, Soul Dew ×1, Latias's Gift ×1, Hoenn Region Household Registration ×1.]
"What's this?"
Seeing the last reward appear, Elias's eyelid twitched slightly.
Did the system worry he was living illegally, thus arranging a legal identity for him?
Curiously, Elias opened the little booklet.
Hmm, it was slightly different from what he'd imagined—it wasn't merely an ordinary identity document.
Because written on it was—his and Tias's relationship was "mother and son."
"Hiss—"
Elias took a sharp breath. Since when did the system start playing these kinds of pranks?
Quietly putting away the household registration, he continued focusing on the system interface.
[You may choose one Pokémon from the following.]
[Milotic (selectable), Salamence (selectable), Latias (unavailable), Latios (selectable)]
Compared to last time, when only one option was available, the selection this time was significantly better.
But Elias was somewhat shocked that Latios was available too.
Last time, even Mew disguised as Eevee wasn't selectable, so he wasn't sure how the system's criteria worked.
However, if he truly had to choose, Latios would actually be the first to be ruled out.
After all, he'd saved Latios specifically to protect Tias.
Although Latias's strength was probably far greater than Latios's now, if Latios disappeared along with him, Latias would undoubtedly plunge into madness, which Elias definitely didn't want.
After passing on Latios, Elias fell back into thought.
After a moment of hesitation, he finally tapped lightly on Milotic's option.
The reason was simple:
—Salamence might be fine, but he worried that if he left Milotic there, Latias would really catch and stew her into a seafood soup.
With a soft tap, a Poké Ball appeared in Elias's hand.
Just like Gengar's Dusk Ball, the ball for Milotic had also been replaced later with a Dive Ball.
The shallow blue color, reminiscent of ocean waves, was much more pleasing than the black-and-green combination of the Dusk Ball.
For a Water-type Pokémon, this was undoubtedly the ideal type of Poké Ball.
However, Elias didn't rush to release Milotic right here; instead, he decided to leave first.
"System?" he called softly.
[Ah, I'm here.]
Hearing Elias's voice, the system—busy showing off to its seniors how its host had unlocked a hidden achievement—quickly responded.
If she had to summarize her feelings at that moment in one phrase, it would be:
"Qin Shi Huang grabbing an electric wire—Electrifying victory!"
---
A/N:—Steven: Dear readers, I urgently need your votes and support so I can afford a soft, fluffy Swirlix from the Pokémon Nursery to heal my fragile heart after losing my friend.
T/N: LMAOOO, anyway... THE SYSTEM IS A GIRL???????? im gonna double check my translation... i dont think i messed up, she is a girl
...
Huh. You really stuck it out all the way to the end.
Didn't think you had the patience. Guess I was wrong.
WiseTL's the one who actually made all this come together. I'm just here putting a bow on it… or, well, shoving it in a backpack and calling it a day. Same thing.
If you had fun, you know what to do:
👉 [patreon.com/WiseTL]
Heads up—Patreon's 50% off for all tiers during May. So if you were on the fence? Now's the time.
And if you're the social type, there's a Discord too. Pretty decent spot to hang out—no battles required.
👉 [discord.gg/wisetl]
Alright. That's enough standing around. Go on—before you make it weird.
—Leaf