Chapter 153. Release, Ancient Alakazam vs. Ancient Gengar
Very soon, Eve finished counting.
During the count, Eve had considered this.
These inscriptions were carved once every year.
She had also thought that by adding up the number of segments, she could deduce how long these two implements had existed.
However, when all the dust settled and she finished tallying everything, she realized none of that held up.
This was simply carved continuously by someone, with no special meaning.
It even ran out of space at the end, so the final segment was made more concise.
"Ah—there's just no way to tell."
Eve drooped her head, her eyes aching, and she only wanted to collapse bonelessly onto the chair.
Natsume felt that in many professions, as long as you put in the effort, you will gain something in return.
Except research.
Sometimes all you get is blowback.
"What is this thing?"
On the table, Natsume picked up a tapered, wedge-like object.
Its color scheme matched the spoon: entirely golden with flecks of dark brown.
At the center of the wedge was a flat little hole.
"That? It looks like a lock," Eve rubbed her brow.
"I see." Natsume pulled out a piece of wire.
"What are you doing!"
Seeing Natsume about to jab it in, Eve rushed over and snatched the wedge away.
"I've got a locksmith license, and I'm pretty good at the job. If you don't believe me, ask the Pokémon at Professor Oak's Laboratory."
Natsume produced a certificate.
Pokémon at the Day Care always liked to quietly latch the lock and trap him outside.
"It's not about your line of work—"
The corner of Eve's mouth twitched; she felt Natsume was a little dangerous.
"In any case, Mr. Natsume, this is our expedition team's assignment, and I'm very grateful for your help."
Saying that, Eve placed the wedge into a glass case and set it beside the black orb and the spoon.
The instant the wedge drew near, Natsume saw black patterns seem to surface on the spoon.
His gaze moved to the flat end of the spoon.
Noticing Natsume's eyes constantly roaming between the spoon and the wedge, Eve nervously blocked his view.
"Ms. Eve, don't you think this spoon looks like a key, and this wedge looks like a lock?"
Natsume suddenly spoke, making Eve pause.
She turned around, picked up the glass case holding the spoon and wedge, and examined it closely.
"It really does!"
Eve's eyes lit up.
"Well then, let's find an open space—huh?"
Natsume stepped closer, only to find Eve had already aligned the spoon's handle with the hole at the center of the wedge.
Young people are so hasty!
Natsume was speechless, ghostly blue light flashing in his eyes as he set a hand on Eve's shoulder; together with the spoon and wedge in her arms, he teleported away.
"Honora, we're at the foot of that snow mountain from before. Bring the black orb and Bronzong over."
Natsume's voice rang in her mind; Honora froze for a moment, then hurriedly grabbed the black orb and Bronzong and ran outside.
At the foot of the snow mountain.
A ghostly blue light flickered, and two figures appeared.
"Ah—"
In Eve's hands, the spoon and wedge—now joined—glowed with blue light and began to rise.
"Ms. Eve, please back away."
Natsume pulled out a Poké Ball, eyes fixed, blazing, on the spoon and wedge as they rose.
As expected, what was about to be released should be an Ancient Alakazam.
If this was a Dynamax Alakazam, perhaps people in ancient times had developed some kind of Dynamax technology using Eternatus.
That would be extremely valuable for research.
It might even lead to a whole chain of systematized topics.
"Okay. Be careful."
Eve blinked, feeling a bit flushed at her own impulsiveness.
She placed a collar-like device around Natsume's neck.
"Isn't this the kind of ecological recorder you put on wild Pokémon?" Natsume's expression turned odd.
"Sorry. My teacher's long-held wish was to see Ancient Pokémon again. I'm entrusting this to you."
Eve turned back with an earnest plea on her face.
"Your teacher has passed away—how is he supposed to see it?"
Natsume looked odd, though his face didn't show much urgency.
Ancient Alakazam wouldn't come out right away.
And judging by how it played out in the anime, the other party would very likely only brawl with Ancient Gengar.
He had brought it out to the foot of the snow mountain precisely to minimize the area of damage as much as possible.
"Uh, I set up a satellite dish at my teacher's grave. Every time I get some ancient-related implements, I record a video and send it over."
Eve scratched her head, a little embarrassed. She knew her method was niche.
But this kind of metaphysical approach had indeed blessed her with a smooth road to earning her doctorate.
Natsume: "…"
A satellite dish… won't it get struck by lightning on rainy days?
"Alakazam—"
A violent blue radiance flashed; Natsume bore the brunt of it, and he could feel a powerful psychic force sweeping across the area.
"Bang!"
The tiny camera on the collar was crushed and blew apart.
What a pity!
Eve felt reluctant, but she knew the priority was still to leave here first.
"Alakazam?"
Perhaps it had been confined for too long; Alakazam was a bit dazed.
For quite a while after appearing, it just stood there rubbing its head.
Taking advantage of this interval, Natsume took in the giant Alakazam's appearance.
Its body was covered all over with dense black patterns, as if it were an enlarged patterned statue.
The golden wedge had vanished, while the golden spoon had grown in size and was now gripped in Ancient Alakazam's hand.
Also, judging by the length of the mustache, this Alakazam was female.
Ancient Alakazam moved.
As if it had sensed something, Natsume could clearly feel its psychic power probing up toward the snow mountain.
But when it reached that zone compressed into solid ice, Ancient Alakazam's body suddenly jolted, and only then did it timidly retract its psychic power.
It turned around; the lingering psychic presence left by Mewtwo on the snow mountain made it uneasy, and it instinctively wanted to flee this place.
"Center-parted, look—Mewtwo is that strong."
Natsume picked up the sleeping center-parted.
"Pika?"
Center-parted blinked awake in confusion, yawned, touched the Poké Ball at Natsume's waist, and then returned to the ball to go right back to sleep.
Following the direction Ancient Alakazam was heading—back to the mountain, straight toward Professor Oak's Laboratory—Natsume suddenly felt that something big might go wrong.
"Mr. Natsume!"
Luckily, at that moment, Honora burst out from the nearby dense woods, carrying the black orb and Bronzong.
"Geng—"
As if it had sensed something, Alakazam glanced this way with a puzzled look.
"Mr. Na-Natsume!"
Honora's voice trembled a little; in her arms, the black orb was shaking violently.
"Let it go."
Natsume spoke, using telekinesis to draw Honora over to his side.
The next second, the glass case shattered, and beneath the black orb, one footprint after another appeared.
Those footprints grew larger, and larger, ever more massive, and the direction they pointed was precisely toward Ancient Alakazam, who stood there looking around.
"Mr. Natsume, these look like Gengar's footprints?"
Honora stared, heart pounding, at those two rows of ever-growing footprints, and spoke without thinking.
"Yes, those are Gengar's footprints."
Natsume raised his head and looked toward the sky.
Dark clouds massed, the heavens pitch-black.
A purple fatty covered head to toe in black markings appeared facing Alakazam.
The pitch-black orb also began to expand, finally forming something like a dumbbell, which dropped into Ancient Gengar's hand.
"Gengar!"
"Alakazam—"
Ancient Gengar gripped the little dumbbell tight, and Alakazam raised the golden spoon.
The air between them went taut as a drawn blade.
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