Jubilife Breeding Center.
Cynthia breathed a sigh of relief when she learned that Feebas was still eating regularly.
Regardless of everything else, it was good that the Pokémon was eating.
Then, she threw out a Poké Ball with practiced grace.
Without a doubt, the Pokémon Cynthia released was her beautiful Milotic.
Milotic's appearance resembled an elegant sea serpent, with two flowing fins that hung down like long red hair.
Its body was cream-colored and serpentine, with a predominantly blue tail covered in distinctive black markings. Its tail fin looked like a gorgeous blue and red fan.
Under the afternoon sunlight, Milotic's scales shimmered with different hues from various angles.
It was said that this very radiance gave Milotic the mystical power to quell anger, hatred, and conflict.
Whether the legend was actually true or not, upon seeing Milotic's beautiful form, Wayne did indeed feel his spirit genuinely healed.
Eevee immediately ran to Milotic's side, looking up at the Water-type with eyes full of admiration and envy.
Cynthia gently picked up Eevee with caring hands.
This particular Eevee usually disliked being held by strangers, but in Cynthia's arms, it became soft and completely pliable.
"Eev." ⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄
Eevee was unable to resist!
"Milotic, I'm counting on you to help," Cynthia said softly.
"Mil~" Milotic vocalized.
Milotic nodded with understanding and gracefully dove into the fish pond.
This fish pond was eight meters in diameter and less than one meter deep.
The pond itself had originally been intended for Goldeen, but because Feebas had arrived on the very first day of opening, it had remained empty until now.
Like other adorable Pokémon such as Furfrou and Glameow, Goldeen were also commonly used for aesthetic display purposes.
Ripples spread across the previously calm water surface.
A large visitor had entered the water!
Feebas, hiding beneath the rockery formation, had actually witnessed the entire process since Cynthia first arrived.
After Milotic entered the water, Feebas darted into a narrow crevice in the rockery with lightning speed.
Milotic could only see a small portion of Feebas's body, especially its trembling tail.
Feebas seemed to have absolutely no sense of security. Upon realizing its tail was exposed, it frantically tried to change its position.
Because it had barely moved for over a month, Feebas had actually gained some weight.
The end result was that it couldn't cover both ends of its body at once.
"Feeb~ Feeb~" Feebas whimpered.
(Don't touch me! Just leave me alone!)
Milotic truly couldn't say this situation was somewhat cute, and it didn't even feel like laughing.
Milotic only felt profound sadness.
While inside its Poké Ball, Milotic had heard about Feebas's situation.
It just hadn't expected Feebas to be frightened to such an extreme extent.
"Lucario!" Wayne's Lucario called out excitedly.
(Feebas just spoke!)
Lucario communicated this exciting news to Wayne through Aura.
Cynthia's delicate brows furrowed slightly with concern. "Feebas originally didn't speak at all?"
Wayne shook his head. "It refused to communicate with anyone. I had Lucario try multiple times, but it wouldn't communicate at all."
Cynthia's brows furrowed even more tightly. "It's serious to this extent? What exactly did it go through?"
Below the rockery, Milotic extended its elegant head into the cramped space, softening its tone as much as possible.
"Milotic~" Milotic said gently.[Don't worry. I won't touch you, and I definitely won't hurt you. I promise.]
To demonstrate its sincerity, Milotic retreated a bit further away.
From Wayne's viewing angle, he could see Milotic maintaining a coiled posture in the shallow water.
Milotic's average species length exceeded six meters.
According to Wayne's estimation, Cynthia's Milotic was even longer than average.
It was actually quite unfair to Milotic to have it stay in a pond only eight meters in diameter with a rockery in the middle.
But Milotic had no complaints whatsoever, even while maintaining a very uncomfortable posture.
After Milotic withdrew, Feebas relaxed just a little. At least it wasn't completely hidden in the rockery anymore.
"Mi?" Milotic asked gently.(Can we talk? For example, where were you originally staying)
"Feeb~" Feebas responded weakly.
(I don't know.)
This question was ineffective, so Milotic tried asking another.
(Then how did you end up here?)
After asking this question, Milotic didn't rush for an answer, waiting patiently for Feebas's response.
Feebas didn't answer. Only its tail swayed gently, and a visible hint of pain flashed across its face.
"Never mind. If it's too painful, let's not think about it right now," Milotic said compassionately.
While communicating, Milotic's tail gently swished through the water, releasing the healing move Aqua Ring.
Milotic hoped to reduce Feebas's pain this way.
Seeing Feebas relax slightly, Milotic began to communicate with it again.
"Mil mil~~" Milotic vocalized soothingly.
"You should know this, right? You've been free for a long time now. If you want to leave, I can take you anywhere."
"Feeb feeb~" Feebas responded.
(I don't want to leave here.)
This was another answer that puzzled Milotic greatly.
It didn't want to leave here, yet it stayed hidden under the rockery all day.
"Mil mil~" Milotic continued.
(But staying in a place without sunlight is not good for your health.)
Feebas's scales appeared somewhat dull because they hadn't been exposed to sunlight for such a long time.
However, Feebas's overall condition was still quite good, which also greatly puzzled Milotic.
By the fish pond, Wayne pointed toward a distant pond across the property.
"Have Milotic relay this: I can have Feebas moved to that pond, if it's willing," Wayne suggested.
That pond had other Water-type Pokémon residing in it, which was an issue, so Wayne hadn't moved Feebas before.
But Wayne could dig a new one if needed, since there was a river from which water could be easily drawn.
"Milotic, please relay Wayne's message," Cynthia requested.
(Did you hear what Wayne said?) Milotic asked.
(I heard. I'll just stay here,) Feebas replied stubbornly.
Milotic and Feebas talked for nearly an hour before Milotic finally emerged from the fish pond.
As soon as Milotic surfaced, it saw a large face looming close and almost couldn't resist spraying Water Gun defensively.
"How is it? What did Feebas say?" Alan asked urgently.
Alan was even more anxious than Wayne himself.
Alan already knew that the elegant woman before him was Champion Cynthia.
Fortunately, there had already been Champion Blue here before, so Alan's psychological endurance had been trained and prepared.
Because everyone else was still lying around recuperating in their dorms or homes, very few people knew Cynthia had arrived.
"Mil." Milotic vocalized.
(It should still take some time.)
The two Lucario translated the meaning for Wayne and Cynthia respectively through Aura.
Cynthia looked around the Breeding Center thoughtfully.
"Since it still needs some time to heal... then I'll stay here. There should still be available rooms, right?" Cynthia asked.
Cynthia's family and Wayne's family already knew each other well.
Wayne's grandfather Professor Oak and Cynthia's grandmother, Professor Agatha, were also good friends.
It was just that Cynthia had been particularly busy after completing her journey and becoming Champion for some time.
So Wayne and Cynthia hadn't actually seen each other in person for four or five years.
Although they hadn't seen each other for quite some time, Wayne and Cynthia didn't seem estranged at all.
Since Cynthia had taken on this task, she wanted to do her absolute best.
If she left before Feebas was cured or at least showed initial progress, it would be too irresponsible.
Cynthia couldn't do such a thing—it went against her character.
Cynthia's current vacation period was quite long.
Her next obligations wouldn't be until the Champion Challenge tournament and the research summit where professors from various regions would attend.
If a Legendary Pokémon suddenly appeared and brought disaster to humanity, Cynthia would also be duty-bound to respond immediately.
This was the heavy responsibility borne by a regional Champion.
"Yes, of course there are available rooms," Wayne confirmed warmly.