Elias was awakened early the next morning by a burst of commotion.
He opened his eyes drowsily, noticing that aside from Mew, all his other Pokémon had also been disturbed from their sleep. Gardevoir rubbed her sleepy eyes, a visibly irritated expression on her face.
What's going on…?
Elias sat up slowly, realizing the source of the noise was coming from outside.
Given the ancient wooden construction of Jubilife's buildings, the soundproofing was naturally poor—any loud noise outside would easily penetrate the walls.
Frowning slightly, Elias quietly got dressed, placing a Psychic shield around his Pokémon's ears to encourage them to sleep longer. He intended to step outside to see what exactly was happening.
Seeing Elias prepare to leave, Gardevoir decided she wasn't sleepy anymore.
"Garde~" she murmured softly, sliding gracefully from the bed.
Seeing Gardevoir following Elias, the other Pokémon relaxed again, returning to their slumber.
Smiling faintly, Elias gently took Gardevoir's hand and opened the door.
Creak…
As the wooden door opened, a familiar figure stood directly outside, looking uncertain.
"Irida?"
Elias voiced his surprise at her hesitant posture.
"Oh!" Irida jumped slightly, clearly startled by the door opening unexpectedly. Her expression quickly shifted into one of urgency.
"Elias, perfect timing! An unknown Pokémon just appeared in the village. Akari's battling it right now, but it doesn't look like she can hold out much longer…"
Irida pointed anxiously toward the left side of the village.
Hearing this, Elias narrowed his eyes slightly.
That explains the early-morning chaos.
However…
"This unknown Pokémon…," Elias carefully asked, "is it perhaps black and white, with a body like smoky shadows?"
Irida blinked slowly in confusion, then nodded instinctively before realization dawned on her face.
"Wait, Elias, how do you know that? You just woke up, didn't you?"
"Because I'm the one who caught it last night."
Irida: ?!
...
A short while later, the crowd that had gathered in the village slowly dispersed.
Standing in the center, Cyllene pressed her fingers to her temples in quiet exasperation. Only she knew how startled she'd been seeing a shadowy ghost-like figure drifting through the village streets first thing in the morning.
Who could have guessed it was a Pokémon Elias had casually captured?
And not just any Pokémon—it was precisely the one that had been attacking them all this time.
Thinking this, Cyllene cast a glance at Darkrai, who was currently hiding meekly behind Elias, looking thoroughly pitiful. Its previous ferocity had completely vanished.
Meanwhile, nearby, Akari appeared deeply shaken.
She'd been hoping to challenge Elias's Pokémon aside from Zoroark. After all, she had been convinced her own strength was now quite formidable.
But…
The Pokémon Elias had casually caught the previous night had just effortlessly dominated her in battle. Akari's carefully built-up confidence had once again crumbled in an instant.
Furthermore, her original plan had been to personally drive off Darkrai. Without Elias's timely intervention, she didn't even want to imagine how that encounter would have ended.
"Elias, are you leaving today?" Cyllene asked, temporarily ignoring the Darkrai situation.
"Yes," Elias nodded. "I need to return to the Alabaster Icelands—there's something I still have to do there."
Cyllene gave a soft hum of acknowledgment, having already expected this response.
"That's fine. In the meantime, I'll take the opportunity to thoroughly reorganize the Galaxy Team."
This was something she'd long wanted to do. Previously, she'd held back, lacking overwhelming support. But now that Elias was back, things were different.
If anyone refused to step down willingly, she'd just send Giratina to have a "friendly chat" with them.
At Cyllene's statement, Cynthia quietly pursed her lips. From her perspective, the biggest future disaster associated with the Galaxy Team was undoubtedly Cyrus, several hundred years later.
After finishing breakfast in Jubilife Village, Elias departed for the Alabaster Icelands.
Since most of his Pokémon could fly, he easily reached the Pearl Clan's settlement at the outskirts by afternoon.
"I'll head back to the settlement first, then," Irida said cheerfully, hopping off Salamence's back and waving goodbye to Elias. Judging by her expression, she'd thoroughly enjoyed the exhilarating high-speed flight.
Elias nodded with a smile. "I'll be back as soon as I've met with an old friend."
With that, he gently patted Latias's back, signaling her to continue onward.
Soon enough, a familiar mountain range appeared in sight. Thanks to his memory, Elias easily found the entrance to the ruins.
"So, this is the place?" Cynthia took a deep breath as they landed, excitement glittering in her eyes.
Back then, she'd left Hisui without having the chance to accompany Elias to meet Regigigas. To someone passionate about archaeology, encountering Regigigas personally was of monumental importance.
The colossal Pokémon was practically synonymous with ancient ruins themselves, responsible for constructing a great many of them. Finally about to meet the legendary giant itself, Cynthia's heart raced slightly.
Beside her, Darkrai raised its head confidently. During its previous visits, it had entered the ruins nervously, fearful of provoking Regigigas. But today, things were entirely different—Elias's presence granted it new confidence.
"I'll go ahead and inform it first," Darkrai announced, per Elias's instructions, quickly slipping into the tunnel ahead of the group.
Elias and the others followed from a slight distance.
"Elias," Cynthia asked curiously as they walked, "who has a more imposing presence—Regigigas or Arceus?"
As one of the few people in the world who had personally encountered both Pokémon, Elias's answer greatly intrigued her.
Though Arceus was revered as the Creator, Cynthia held Regigigas in equally high regard.
Elias hesitated briefly, uncertain how best to respond.
A llama versus a Pokémon with [Slow Start]…
Truthfully speaking, Giratina was probably the one who held the most imposing aura of them all.
"You'll see for yourself in just a moment," Elias finally replied.
Cynthia nodded eagerly, anticipation growing even stronger.
Meanwhile...
Darkrai emerged from the narrow passage into the open cavern, instantly spotting the enormous figure of Regigigas.
The giant Pokémon turned slowly upon sensing Darkrai's arrival, its body markings briefly lighting up in recognition.
"Darkrai?" The slow, rumbling voice resonated through the cavern in surprise.
Regigigas hadn't expected its reluctant errand-runner back so soon. As far as it remembered, Darkrai had only just departed.
What reason could possibly have brought it back so quickly?