"Levitate ability and controlling vibration and tremors..."
"It seems to match perfectly with the Float-Float Fruit and the Tremor-Tremor Fruit."
"A combination between Whitebeard and the Golden Lion!"
Thinking of this, Ethan couldn't help but suck in a breath of cold air.
If Vibrava managed to gather within its body the power of those two legends...
It would be terrifying!
"Maybe I should look for an opportunity to give it a try."
The more he thought about it, the more excited Ethan felt. He practically wanted to start that grand plan immediately.
"Ethan, I'll take you to see Professor Ackerman."
At that moment, Nolan snapped out of his daze and spoke to Ethan.
"Thanks, I appreciate it."
Ethan also returned from his daydream and nodded at Nolan.
It was better to stay practical for now. No thinking about the Float-Float Fruit or the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. First, he needed to learn more sound-type moves.
Following Nolan into the lab, Ethan saw that in many rooms Pokémon were training sound-based moves.
The most common were the Exploud line and the Jigglypuff line: some based on pure noise and others on melodious singing, forming a stark contrast.
"Huh? What is this place?"
Upon entering a room, Ethan was stunned.
Because inside... there was absolutely nothing!
The scene was so strange that it gave him goosebumps.
Click!
At that moment, the room's lights came on.
And indeed, the room was completely empty.
Instantly, Ethan's mind went wild... he even thought of escape rooms or traps.
"Ethan, we're here."
At that moment, Nolan's sudden voice startled him so much that he instinctively pressed the Poké Ball at his waist. Sandslash appeared in front of him.
"Don't be scared, Ethan. The entrance to the Secret Kingdom is inside this room."
Seeing Ethan's reaction, Nolan smiled bitterly.
"An entrance to a Secret Kingdom?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes. Protected by Sandslash, he relaxed a little.
"Come out, Whismur."
Nolan smiled, took out two Poké Balls, and opened them.
Two small Whismur appeared, each timid and adorable.
"Ethan, come with me."
Nolan picked up one of the Whismur and walked directly toward a wall.
And before Ethan's eyes, when Nolan "hit" the wall... his figure merged with it and vanished.
"The entrance to the Secret Kingdom."
Ethan muttered, then also released Absol and Meltan.
Shoo, shoo, shoo.
As soon as Absol appeared, its horn began to vibrate; it had clearly detected the presence of a Secret Kingdom entrance.
At the same time, Meltan floated directly toward the wall, releasing a gentle magnetic field.
"Looks like everything is in order. All right, let's go in."
Ethan relaxed, looked at the Whismur on the floor, hesitated for a moment, then picked it up as well before walking toward the wall with his Pokémon.
In an instant, they all disappeared into the portal.
On the other side of the Secret Kingdom was a vast valley surrounded by mountains on three sides, with a dense forest behind it.
"We've entered the Secret Kingdom."
Ethan looked around, and suddenly saw a purple figure flying across the sky.
It looked like a huge bat, with enormous ears, a white fur collar on its neck, wings black on the inside and dark purple on the outside, bluish membranes, and two red claws. When it opened its mouth, a pair of fangs could be seen.
It was none other than Noivern, the sound-specialist flying dragon.
"A Noivern... no wonder a professor who specializes in sound-type moves lives here."
Ethan sighed in admiration. Noivern was extremely rare; even in the Dragon Valley he had seen very few.
"ROAR!"
The Noivern in the sky noticed Ethan on the ground. It opened its mouth and let out a fierce roar.
Sound waves burst from its ears in the form of rings that spread as if they were solid.
BOOM!
Upon contact with those waves, a violent gale exploded and kicked up a cloud of dust.
Just when Ethan thought he was in trouble and released Slowking to defend him, a sort of transparent barrier materialized around him.
The sound waves crashed into the barrier and dissipated instantly, causing no damage.
"This is... the Soundproof ability of Whismur!"
Ethan understood immediately. No wonder Nolan had told him to carry the Whismur before entering: it was to protect him from the sonic attack.
The Noivern in the air noticed the Whismur in Ethan's arms, seemed to recognize it, and then left, flapping its wings.
"Ethan, are you okay?"
Nolan came running out of the forest.
Seeing Ethan unharmed, he sighed in relief and apologized.
Ethan quickly said it was no problem; as a frequent explorer of Secret Kingdoms, he knew that entry points often had deviations.
"This place really is incredible."
Ethan looked up at the blue sky with a smile.
And indeed, in a sense, Secret Kingdoms had environments even more beautiful than famous tourist destinations.
In fact, tourism in Secret Kingdoms wasn't uncommon nowadays, but most people simply had no way to access them.
"Yes, this place is wonderful."
"Sound research is dangerous."
"If someone without protection takes a sonic attack, even a residual wave could be deadly."
"That's why the professor conducts most of his research inside the Secret Kingdom."
Nolan smiled and warned Ethan that although Whismur protected him, he still had to be very careful.
"That's true."
Ethan nodded. He looked toward the forest and saw some Pokémon covered in white clouds rising into the sky. Long birdlike songs echoed: they were Swablu and Altaria.
"The humming Pokémon, Altaria." (Translator: Altaria, the traitor of the Dragon Clan!)
Ethan murmured. It seemed that many sound-related Pokémon really did live in this Secret Kingdom. It was no coincidence that this was the most famous sound research institute in the entire country.
(End of chapter)