"Did it split into two?"
Ethan looked at the two identical Meltan and was momentarily confused.
Could this be a special ability obtained after absorbing another Meltan?
"Wait... could it be Double Team or Substitute?"
Suddenly, Ethan reacted. He reached out and touched both Meltan, discovering that both were physical entities.
"Substitute?"
Ethan's eyes lit up. Comparing the moves Double Team and Substitute, the latter was undoubtedly a higher-level move and far more practical.
Paf!
Just as Ethan's thoughts were wandering, one of the Meltan disappeared, confirming his assumption.
"It really is Substitute!"
Ethan was quite delighted.
One had to know that moves like Substitute, Rest, or Teleport could only be learned through personal comprehension; so far, there was no systematic method to teach them.
However, for Meltan to comprehend the move Substitute was unexpected, yet at the same time logical—after all, Meltan could be considered as having fused with another Meltan.
"Zzzt!"
Meltan cried out excitedly.
Then it used the move Substitute again, splitting into a clone once more, playing around nonstop and clearly having a great time.
"It really is Substitute..."
"In that case, Meltan's training plan seems like it can be adjusted a bit."
Ethan stroked his chin thoughtfully. Almost all Pokémon could learn the move Substitute, and he had already reflected on this move before.
For example, Meltan had a very special body structure; it could use Substitute and then use those substitutes as avatars to carry out a wide variety of tactical arrangements.
Moreover, with the ability Magnet Pull, it could achieve extremely flexible control over its substitutes. It was like the art of controlling flying swords: thanks to magnetism, Meltan no longer needed to transform itself into a flying sword to attack, but could instead control its substitutes and turn them into offensive flying weapons.
"That's right, and also the Electromagnetic Cannon. The Substitute Meltan can be used as the carrier; that way, the side effects the Electromagnetic Cannon has on the body can be completely ignored."
Thinking of this, Ethan's eyes shone brightly. Many ideas emerged in his mind; if he could bring them all to fruition, even without evolving into Melmetal, Meltan could perfectly become a powerful Pokémon capable of standing on its own.
"Then the main focus of Meltan's training will be the move Substitute. And the collection of Meltan's nuts can't stop either; this is the key to rapidly increasing its strength."
Very quickly, Ethan preliminarily established Meltan's training plan for this period, filled with anticipation.
"Meltan, is there anything else here worth staying for?"
Ethan put away his notebook and asked the Meltan that was observing its own substitute.
"Zzzt!"
Meltan shook its head, indicating that it had already found what it was looking for.
"Alright, then let's leave here for now."
Ethan nodded, then called Vibrava to position itself behind him.
"Viiibbrraa!"
Vibrava immediately used the move Tailwind. Gusts of wind roared inside the cave; Vibrava grabbed onto Ethan's back and, following the airflow, moved rapidly through the cavern.
Truth be told, flying with Vibrava was much more comfortable than with Charizard, and its ability as a mount was excellent. Even in places like mountainous forests or caves, it could carry Ethan at high speed. In a sense, it could be perfectly used as a ground mount—and did so even better than an ordinary one.
Very soon, Vibrava carried Ethan out of the cave.
The entire journey was smooth; aside from a Metagross with terrifying strength blocking the way, there wasn't a single other Pokémon inside. It seemed that this cave was the nest of that Metagross.
Thinking of Metagross, Ethan reflected for a moment and took out his Poké Ball.
Now that the matter of Meltan had been resolved, the next thing was to deal with Metagross.
If Metagross was willing to follow him, Ethan naturally wouldn't mind at all.
"Come out, Metagross."
After thinking it over a bit, Ethan released Metagross to observe its reaction.
"Mettaagrrsss!"
As soon as Metagross emerged from the Poké Ball, it let out an angry roar and immediately fixed its gaze on Meltan, which was floating beside Ethan.
But in the next instant, Metagross's body trembled violently, and an expression of uncertainty appeared in its eyes.
It cautiously examined Meltan, sniffed the air, and a blue glint shone in its eyes as it released its psychic power.
Suddenly, its body trembled again; its pupils slowly dilated as it looked at Meltan beside Ethan in disbelief, especially when it saw the nut on Meltan's head, showing even greater fear.
Then, before Ethan's astonished gaze, that Metagross directly prostrated itself on the ground, adopting a posture of submission.
"Huh... what's going on?"
Ethan was stunned, somewhat unsure.
However, the Meltan floating beside him looked very happy; it directly rose up to Metagross's head and sat down on it without hesitation.
And Metagross, with Meltan sitting on its head, showed not the slightest trace of anger; on the contrary, it squinted its eyes with an expression of enjoyment, leaving Ethan dumbfounded.
"Meltan... the nut..."
"I see. The reason this Metagross occupied that place must have been the nut left behind by a Meltan after it died. Although the Meltan died, an enormous power was still preserved within the nut, and it was precisely that power that attracted Metagross."
"Now that Meltan has fused with the nut, it naturally also possesses its aura. Therefore, what Metagross fears should be that aura—the aura of that nut, or even... the aura of a Mythical Pokémon?"
Although Ethan was only speculating, the facts showed that this Metagross seemed to have displayed submission toward Meltan.
"Metagross, do you want to follow me and leave this place?"
Ethan thought for a moment and asked symbolically.
"Mettaagrrsss!"
Seeing Ethan approach, a clear expression of disdain appeared in Metagross's eyes.
When it had previously fought one-on-one with Meltan, it was precisely this guy who had directed a group of Pokémon to gang up on it; Metagross was very resentful and had not forgotten it.
Bam!
However, immediately after, Metagross received an iron punch to the forehead from Meltan.
Metagross hesitated for a moment, then looked at Ethan, then at Meltan floating in front of it, and fell silent.
Evidently, it also knew that if it accepted, it would have to become the Pokémon of that unpleasant guy—something hard to accept.
But if it refused, it would have to part with Meltan. Feeling that comforting aura emanating from Meltan's body, it hesitated once again.
(End of chapter)