"Are you sure this is the direction?"
Diantha poked Silas lightly and asked in a low voice.
They had already come here yesterday. If they continued forward, it would just be the ocean.
Cynthia did not speak, but she also cast a questioning glance.
"Don't worry, let me ask."
Silas called out to Shaymin ahead. The little one was happily hopping along in front, its tiny hooves making soft tapping sounds.
"Shaymin, are we sure we're not going the wrong way?"
"Miii~!"
Shaymin let out a cheerful cry, indicating that this was indeed the right path. It was not stupid, it would never forget the way home.
After walking forward for a few more minutes, the three of them stopped at the shoreline. Six eyes turned simultaneously toward Shaymin.
Then they saw Shaymin's body glow with a vibrant green light. The ocean in front of them suddenly split open from the middle, revealing a path covered in flowers that stretched toward an unknown distance.
So this was the Seabreak Path that led to the Flower Paradise. The legend had been true all along.
"Mii~"
Shaymin turned around and urged them forward, telling them to hurry up and follow.
Coming back to their senses, Silas tugged Diantha along, snapped Cynthia out of her thoughts, and led the two women after Shaymin.
No wonder they had not been able to find this path before. It had been hidden beneath the sea all along, only emerging when called upon by Shaymin.
"How magical."
"Indeed."
The two women murmured softly to each other, walking along this path formed by the sea and flowers, each expressing their amazement.
The only regret was that they had not brought a camera. Otherwise, this moment would definitely have been worth capturing forever.
As they continued forward, Silas put Litten down so the little cat could walk on its own.
Soon, at the end of the path, an island appeared out of thin air.
Though there was still some distance to go, they could already smell the fragrance of flowers.
The island was covered in blooming flowers of all kinds, with clusters of Gracidea flowers gathered at the center.
"Mii~"
Shaymin did not stop, leading them straight to the highest point of the island, right into the middle of the Gracidea flowers.
There, a stone monument about half a person's height stood quietly. The text engraved on it was clearly visible, though it was not modern writing. Just one glance was enough to give Silas a headache.
On the contrary, Cynthia hurried forward, her eyes lighting up with excitement.
"This is… this is a monument recording the deeds of an ancient hero. I never thought the Flower Paradise would have one too!"
"What is that?"
Silas and Diantha both showed confused expressions, clearly out of their depth.
Quickly pulling out her notebook, Cynthia began recording while explaining.
"Long ago, during the Hisui era, the ancient people of Sinnoh migrated to this land. At that time, humans and Pokémon were hostile toward each other."
"It was an ancient hero and his partner who received the blessing of a Pokémon called Arceus. From then on, humans and Pokémon stopped opposing each other, gradually adapting until they could live together on the same continent."
Cynthia pointed at the monument.
"These kinds of monuments were erected by early settlers to record the deeds of that ancient hero. They can be found in ruins all across the Sinnoh region."
"And recently, I've been researching them, hoping to uncover the identity of that hero."
Circling around the monument, the symbols carved into it resembled Unown characters.
As Cynthia recorded everything, she also translated.
As a qualified mythologist, being able to interpret Unown script was a basic skill.
Meanwhile, she released the three Pokémon she carried with her to play in the Flower Paradise. Shaymin circled around Dragonite, repeatedly observing it, as if it looked exactly the same as the one in its memories.
After a long while, Cynthia finally completed the translation.
Silas set Litten down, and together with Diantha, leaned in to take a look.
"What does it say?"
"This is big news," Cynthia said, suppressing the shock in her eyes. "It speaks of an ancient hero who called himself the 'Kangaskhan King'…"
"Wait, what? On what basis does he call himself the Kangaskhan King? Did he even ask for my opinion?"
Silas raised an eyebrow, immediately forming a bad first impression of this so-called ancient hero.
He, Silas, was the true Kangaskhan King.
"Don't interrupt," Diantha rolled her eyes at him.
"He quelled the conflict between time and space, restoring light to the Sinnoh region and allowing all living beings to thrive."
Fighting the Dragon of Time and the Dragon of Space?
The veins on Silas's forehead twitched.
Fine, you can have the title of Kangaskhan King.
Ancient Hisuian superhuman, definitely not someone to mess with.
"It also mentions a Shaymin. The ancient hero borrowed its power to open a gate to another world."
All three of them turned to look at Shaymin at the same time, a thought forming in their minds.
Could that Shaymin… be this little one?
"Shaymin~"
Silas called out gently, waving to the small Shaymin that was currently being chased around by Litten.
The little one ran over and hid behind Silas.
"Miii~~"
Silas reached out and scratched under its chin, earning a soft, content sound.
"Are you the Shaymin mentioned on the monument?"
Though it was phrased as a question, his tone carried certainty. It was almost definitely the case.
"Mii~"
Shaymin nodded ambiguously, then lifted its head proudly. If it had not helped back then, Silas would never have been able to deal with that terrifying ghost dragon.
Cynthia stared at Shaymin.
If that were true, then according to the timeline of Sinnoh mythology, the Hisui era was over a thousand years ago.
Which meant this Shaymin was over a thousand years old, and had even known that mysterious ancient hero.
Although Cynthia had just become the Sinnoh Champion, that was merely her side occupation. Her main profession was being a mythologist.
Faced with an opportunity to uncover the identity of the ancient hero, she stepped forward eagerly and began asking questions like a rapid-fire barrage.
"Do you know the ancient hero?"
"Can you tell me which Pokémon followed him?"
"What exactly happened back then, and why did the temple on Mount Coronet collapse?"
Her excitement caused her to lose composure slightly.
Startled, Shaymin shrank back into Silas's arms, letting out a timid cry.
There was none of the imposing aura of a thousand-year-old mythical Pokémon. It was more like a frightened little deer.
"Cynthia, you're scaring it."
Cynthia quickly regained her composure, an apologetic expression appearing on her face.
"Sorry, I got carried away."
Taking a deep breath, she clasped her hands together and pleaded with Silas to help ask.
For a mythologist, uncovering mysteries buried in history held an irresistible allure.
With a helpless expression, Silas first calmed Shaymin before asking,
"Shaymin, do you know where that ancient hero went in the end?"
Shaymin, which had been cheerful moments ago, suddenly showed a sad expression.
"Mii… mi~"
With Litten translating from the side, Silas roughly understood and relayed the answer.
"Shaymin says that after resolving the crisis of time and space, the ancient hero left the region and went to a distant place."
"He left…"
Cynthia looked disappointed but quickly recorded the information.
Silas asked a few more questions, but this time, anything related to the ancient hero's interactions with Pokémon was met with refusal.
Only then did they learn that Shaymin had promised the ancient hero not to reveal such information to others. Shaymin would never break that promise.
"Oh, right!"
Silas lifted Shaymin's head and made an invitation.
"Shaymin, would you like to come to my ranch? I also have a field of Gracidea flowers there."
(End of Chapter)