Regieleki? Just a Simple One! (Two-in-One Chapter)

"Regi?"

Hearing Johan's words, Regieleki immediately forgot its pain and whipped around, seemingly searching for Regigigas's figure.

But how could it find Regigigas like this? Behind it was only the power plant and empty space.

In an instant, Regieleki felt like it had been tricked, and its anger flared even higher.

"Eleki!!"

However, for Johan, this was good news.

Regieleki indeed hadn't become so furious that it completely couldn't listen to reason - it wasn't at the point where it needed to be beaten into submission first.

After all, it was a legendary Pokémon, and an even rarer Electric Pillar compared to the three legendary titans. Plus, having absorbed the entire Kalos Power Plant's electricity, its displayed strength was considerably stronger than that rampaging Regice from before.

You had to know, Kalos Power Plant was later targeted by Team Flare, with Lysandre planning to use its energy to activate the Ultimate Weapon!

Although the operational method was different from Team Flare's, it was enough to prove the massive electrical current of Kalos Power Plant. Having received such enhancement, the current Regieleki could be said to have both attacks at +6, and that was conservative.

No wonder its current size was so exaggerated - nearly ten meters tall.

"Elite Four Wikstrom, Lance, I want to get a bit closer," Johan called out loudly.

Get closer?

Wikstrom and Lance exchanged glances.

Wikstrom was somewhat puzzled by this, but Lance understood.

Right.

Johan was a Pokémon psychologist - he was best at calming rampaging Pokémon, and he had unclear, mysterious relationships with numerous legendary Pokémon.

If Johan could calm Regieleki, there would be no need for a life-or-death battle.

After all, this was Kalos Power Plant - if any part got damaged, repairs wouldn't be easy.

"Good!" Lance grinned heartily. "Dragonite, Dragon Rush, tie it down!"

Seeing Lance's reaction, Wikstrom seemed to understand as well, waving his hand: "Aegislash, show the unyielding spirit of a knight - full power King's Shield!"

With Lance and Wikstrom's help, amid the racing thunder serpents, they opened a safe path for Johan to approach.

Armarouge and Urshifu followed at his sides, preventing any stray electrical arcs from getting through.

However, everything went quite smoothly.

After all, there were Wikstrom and Lance providing distraction.

Johan's aura rose again.

"Regieleki." He called out once more, silently regretting in his heart.

Too bad Regigigas hadn't given him any credentials. If he had some kind of token that would make all the legendary titans bow down when brandished, that would be interesting.

However, while Regigigas hadn't given him so-called credentials, someone else had.

Johan took out the Wheel of Time that Arceus had given him, injected aura into it, and summoned a dim glow.

"Regi?"

This time, Regieleki sensed Arceus's aura and looked intently toward Johan.

It saw Johan's gentle smile, and through his aura came full goodwill and friendliness.

"Sorry for interrupting your 'meal.' How about I compensate you with a proper feast?"

"Eleki?"

"Regigigas has eaten it too, the three legendary titans have eaten it too. Everyone who's tried it says it's good."

"Regi..."

Regieleki's seven signal lights flickered, slowly changing from purple back to red, then gradually fading from red until they became bright white.

The scattered electrical arcs also slowly gathered and finally returned to Regieleki's body.

Its massive form gradually shrank.

Lance and Wikstrom exchanged glances, watching the originally seven-to-eight-meter-tall towering giant gradually become this less than 1.5-meter height, both showing surprise in their eyes.

This small?

And...

It was settled?

They felt like they hadn't even fought much.

Lance and Wikstrom both had a feeling... like they were about to engage in a three-hundred-round battle, only for the opponent to surrender in just a few rounds. There was an uncomfortable feeling of not being able to use their strength.

Although it was a good thing, it wasn't... satisfying.

"Regi..."

Honestly, Johan hadn't expected Regieleki to become this small either.

Didn't this mean... Professor Oak's Pokédex was finally accurate for once?

However, that said, the seven-to-eight-meter Regieleki looked intimidating, but the less than 1.5-meter Regieleki bouncing on the ground... actually looked somewhat cute?

Even Larvitar came forward and patted its own head, then stood on tiptoes trying to reach Regieleki's head.

"Yoji~!"

Hey, we're about the same height!

Zap—

Regieleki got "annoyed" and shot out a small electrical current that hit Larvitar.

It still remembered Larvitar's provocative behavior from earlier.

However...

Pop!!

The electrical arc exploded on Larvitar's chest. The little one tilted its head and touched its chest.

"Yoji?"

What's this? Giving me a massage? Hey, don't mention it, it feels pretty comfortable~

"Regi?"

Regieleki tilted its head, showing some confusion.

No reaction?

Could this little thing really be a master?

Johan's mouth twitched.

His Larvitar was a Ground-type Pokémon - even if you were Regieleki, just that little bit of electrical current really couldn't shock it.

However, Johan didn't dwell on this matter. He was more curious about how Regieleki had appeared here.

So he used his aura to transmit this question.

"Eleki..."

Toward Johan, this being with powerful aura who was also an "Arceus messenger," plus having promised to treat it to a meal, Regieleki's attitude was quite friendly.

Its signal lights slowly flickered, as if it too was thinking about how it had ended up here.

The reason Regieleki had run to Kalos Power Plant was actually quite simple.

It was hungry and needed electrical current to replenish itself.

As for why it had awakened from its sleeping state... it seemed like a group of people had rashly intruded into its resting place and woken it up.

This differed from Johan's guess that it had been awakened by Arceus's revival.

"A group of people?"

In Johan's memory, Regieleki and Regidrago slept in the "Split-Decision Ruins" in the Crown Tundra of the Galar region.

Of course, while Regieleki and Regidrago weren't as numerous as the three legendary titans, there definitely wouldn't be just one of each.

Having Regieleki explain it itself, it couldn't say where exactly it had been sleeping.

It only knew... it was quite far from here, and it had even crossed a large body of water. The reason it hadn't eaten at its awakening location was because there simply weren't many electrical currents and electrons there.

There was quite a bit of snow though.

Hm?

Snow?

Could it really have awakened in the Crown Tundra of the Galar region?

Crossed the ocean to reach the Kalos region?

Crown Tundra naturally wouldn't have much electrical current for it to eat.

Not just Crown Tundra - actually the entire Galar region didn't have much, because Galar region's energy was provided by Macro Cosmos Energy Company, using Galar particles as raw materials.

This made Johan somewhat troubled.

Where should this Regieleki go?

Take it home?

It would probably drain all of Rustboro City's electricity in minutes.

While thinking, Johan sat cross-legged on the ground and took out his most skilled "communication tool" - energy cubes!

Johan felt like being called a "Pokémon psychologist" was somewhat undeserved. He should probably be called... an energy cube communication specialist.

However, that said, energy cubes - this high-energy and delicious food created by modern human technology - held tremendous appeal for Pokémon like Regieleki who had slept for hundreds or thousands of years.

Not just Regieleki - didn't even Darkrai from Alamos Town get completely mesmerized?

A truckload of energy cubes was enough to take on Arceus.

It wasn't that the Pokémon weren't strong enough or brave enough - purely that the "payment" wasn't tempting enough.

"Regi~"

Obviously, after tasting the energy cubes, Regieleki's mood immediately became happy and pleasant.

And once its mood improved and it calmed down, it sensed Johan's aura - besides the Arceus aura from the Wheel of Time, there were other legendary Pokémon auras remaining.

Among them were ones Regieleki recognized, like their creator Regigigas, and ones Regieleki didn't recognize, such as space, time, antimatter, ideals, reality...

This sensing didn't matter much, but once it sensed them, Regieleki immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

Its eyes instantly became clear.

Regieleki: ('Θ')

Good heavens!

Big brother, have you eaten yet?

Johan suddenly sensed thick goodwill from Regieleki.

Hm?

Your attitude changed a bit fast there.

I actually prefer your previous rebellious appearance.

Were energy cubes really this powerful?

Johan was starting to suspect whether he had accidentally put some inappropriate ingredients into the energy cubes while making them...

However, the "legendary titan family" had simple minds or thinking patterns due to Regigigas's influence.

That was understandable - after all, it was an XP system.

So Johan didn't think much about it. Simple thinking made communication easier.

And with Regieleki's improved attitude, Johan began thinking again about where to place this guy.

He certainly couldn't personally escort it back to Crown Tundra, right?

Actually, that wasn't impossible either.

Taking it home was definitely out of the question - he couldn't afford to feed it.

Don't look at how small Regieleki was after shrinking - it was still an "ancient giant." Didn't you see how it drained the entire Kalos Power Plant's electricity in one go?

Even if it didn't absorb electricity and just ate energy cubes, that would still be a huge expense.

How about sending it back to Sinnoh to reunite with Regigigas?

Or... partner with the League to build a power station?

Feed Regieleki energy cubes and have it produce electricity?

Supposedly, the electricity Regieleki could produce could meet the entire Galar region's power needs.

After thinking for a moment, Johan decided to respect Regieleki's own wishes.

No matter what, Regieleki was still a Pokémon. It had the right to choose its own path. They couldn't imprison or confine it just because humans feared its power.

They could restrict it from causing destruction, but they couldn't imprison it.

When it felt human goodwill, it would naturally return goodwill.

After all, Regieleki wasn't an inherently evil Pokémon - it was neutral.

So Johan transmitted his thoughts to Regieleki.

"Regi?"

Regieleki tilted its head.

Where to go?

Don't know...

But if it really had to say, it still wanted to go "home" to sleep.

Home...

Crown Tundra in the Galar region.

Leaving it here definitely wouldn't work. Send it to Professor Sycamore's lab?

If Regieleki threw a tantrum, Professor Sycamore definitely couldn't stop it.

Hand it over to the Kalos League?

That wasn't much different.

Moreover, while the Kalos League was used to being laid-back and easygoing, seeing such an "obedient and well-behaved" legendary Pokémon, they might not resist having some ideas.

So it could only be carried along?

But that raised a new problem - how to carry it?

Although Regieleki was entirely composed of electrons, it could theoretically enter electrical equipment like Rotom.

But those blue rings on Regieleki's body weren't electronic.

Short-term travel through circuits might be fine, but extended periods... probably wouldn't work.

Moreover, with Regieleki's electrical intensity, what electrical equipment could stably contain it? A little too much force would probably cause an explosion.

So... Poké Ball?

It seemed like only Poké Balls would work.

Johan asked Regieleki's opinion again and took out a pristine Luxury Ball from his pocket, explaining the pros and cons clearly.

"When I eventually get to Crown Tundra, I'll send you back. Or..."

"If friends are going to Crown Tundra, I'll have them take you there."

"Eleki!"

Regieleki nodded and directly reached out to touch the enlarged Luxury Ball in Johan's hand.

Buzz—

In an instant, red light shot from the Luxury Ball, enveloping Regieleki before flying into the Luxury Ball.

Click!

The Luxury Ball didn't even flash red light - it directly "clicked" shut.

And this scene was perfectly witnessed by Lance, Wikstrom, and Officer Jenny, who had finished checking the power plant.

"Ca-captured?" Officer Jenny's eyes widened.

The legendary Pokémon Electric Pillar Regieleki, which had absorbed the entire Kalos Power Plant's electricity, was just captured by Teacher Johan like that?

Officer Jenny had the strongest reaction, but Lance and Wikstrom's reactions weren't small either.

Wikstrom murmured: "Is this Teacher Johan's 'charm'?"

He'd only heard about Teacher Johan's "legendary Pokémon man" reputation before but never seen it. This time... he'd witnessed it.

Lance took out his phone, trying to capture this scene to use as future evidence of Johan's "legendary Pokémon man" status.

But when he pressed the shutter, he found the photo was occupied by a tongue-sticking-out Gengar.

Lance: "???"

Buzz—

After being captured, Regieleki came back out on its own to continue eating the unfinished energy cubes.

"Regi~~"

The more contact they had, the more Johan felt these "ancient giants" had simple thoughts.

Didn't it consider that he might "sell" it?

But looking at Regieleki rapidly eliminating the food, Johan broke out in a cold sweat.

Oh no, he'd overlooked something.

How would Regieleki's meals be handled during the time it was with him?

Meanwhile, the eating Regieleki's signal lights flickered, transmitting its joyful emotions.

Free "boat ticket," plus room and board, not to mention how delicious this food was...

I, Regieleki, am quite clever, you know!

Should he ask the Kalos League for reimbursement?

After all, he was helping them solve their problems.

Johan's gaze inevitably looked toward Wikstrom and Officer Jenny.

Before Wikstrom could speak, Officer Jenny quickly straightened up, her cheeks flushed as she said:

"Te-Teacher Johan, about the simulation exercise..."

Simulation exercise?

If Officer Jenny hadn't mentioned it, Johan would have almost forgotten about this.

Previously, Johan hadn't quite understood why the League Police or Officer Jenny's simulation exercise was arranged in the Kalos region.

But after seeing the Kalos region's Officer Jenny, Johan understood...

Each region's Officer Jenny dressed differently. If you asked which was the "ugliest," it was probably Unova, but if you asked which was the best-looking... Kalos definitely ranked high.

Cough cough, jokes aside, since Officer Jenny had brought it up, and Johan's pursuit of Pokémon hunter groups really did need Officer Jenny's help, plus he was already in the Kalos region, he nodded:

"No problem."

Speaking of which, what was he trying to say earlier? It slipped his mind for a moment.

With the Kalos Power Plant matter resolved, on the return helicopter, Johan briefly recounted the information he'd obtained from Regieleki, including his arrangements for it.

"So it wasn't actually captured?" Lance said, surprised.

Johan shrugged. "We still need to respect the Pokémon's own wishes."

If the Dragon Tamer clan was willing to reimburse meal expenses, he wouldn't have said that.

"Exactly!" This statement earned Wikstrom's approval.

He said seriously and solemnly:

"Pokémon will respond to us wholeheartedly. They are our friends. Since that's the case, to live up to the name of 'friends,' I believe we should treat each other sincerely!"

Johan's mouth twitched.

Fine, this reimbursement is coming from you Kalos people.

"However," Lance frowned, "there are several issues here."

He held up a finger.

"First, how did Regieleki get from Galar to Kalos? This can't be simple flying through the air, and the League couldn't have had no detection at all."

He held up a second finger.

"Second, if it was Crown Tundra, then what people - and moreover, a group of people - would go to that extremely cold place? What was their purpose?"

Then he held up a third finger.

"Third, and finally, if there really are an Electric Pillar and Dragon Pillar, then where is the Dragon Pillar Regidrago?"

These were all questions.

Actually, not just Lance - Johan was very curious about the answers too.

But obviously Regieleki couldn't provide much substantial information, unless they made a trip to Crown Tundra.

"In any case," Johan pressed his lips together, "let's report this matter and have everyone pay attention to traces of the Dragon Pillar Regidrago."

He'd already decided to call Leon later, and Peony who was investigating in Crown Tundra, to briefly explain the situation.

"Mm."

Lance and Wikstrom both nodded in agreement.

When Johan and the others returned to the Battle Chateau, the castle's lights had already been restored.

This was because Regieleki hadn't caused much damage to Kalos Power Plant - it had just been crouching in the depths of the power plant "eating," and the previous battle had been stopped in time by Johan without destroying much.

This was also why Johan hadn't scolded Regieleki much.

It was just hungry, and the power plant had the most "food." It didn't know its eating would have such a big impact on humans. It could only be said that ignorance wasn't a crime.

Moreover, later when the power plant was able to quickly resume operation, Regieleki had also contributed some effort.

After Johan and the others returned, under butler Hennessy's arrangements, they stayed at the Battle Chateau.

The spacious, comfortable rooms were honestly quite a bit better than Pokémon Centers. No wonder so many people were willing to register at the Battle Chateau.

Johan summoned all his little ones, including Regieleki.

"From now on, you can't randomly 'eat' electricity. If you really can't help it, just hug Rotom and suck a couple mouthfuls."

"Ro-Rotom?! Σ(°Д°;)"

"Regi?"

Regieleki looked toward Rotom, its signal lights flickering as if it was smacking its lips, looking quite interested.

It had sensed earlier that the electrical current and electrons on Rotom weren't simple...

"Cough, just kidding."

Johan quickly waved his hands, almost forgetting that Regieleki, like his Larvitar, was simple-minded by nature. Don't let it actually hug Rotom and drain it dry.

"Yoji?"

Larvitar, sitting on the ground, looked up puzzledly and glanced around twice.

It felt like someone was talking about it.

Hearing this, Rotom breathed a long sigh of relief but still quickly hid behind big brother Gengar.

It felt... this guy's gaze toward it wasn't quite right.

I consider you a brother, but you can't actually want to "eat" me, right?

"If you're hungry, find Rotom or Gengar for energy cubes."

Rotom's Electric-type energy cubes were perfect for feeding Regieleki and suited its taste.

"Eleki—"

Regieleki nodded repeatedly.

In summary, find Rotom for meals.

Sure enough, not having eaten enough earlier, it immediately got another box of energy cubes.

In terms of eating effort, Regieleki and Larvitar were exactly the same.

"Rotom, record how much Regieleki eats," Johan instructed.

Having him temporarily raise such a one, he could barely manage it. After all, it had eaten an entire power plant's worth of electricity and was at least half full even if not completely satisfied. But raising it long-term would be real pressure.

Fortunately, in Johan's view, the expenses for feeding Regieleki could all be reimbursed.

As for who to seek reimbursement from, that could be discussed later.

"Understood, Rotom!"

Rotom nodded seriously.

Watching Regieleki eat a crystalline pale yellow energy cube, it immediately recorded in the Pokédex—

July 19th, evening, Regieleki consumed Electric-type energy cubes... ×1 (crossed out) ×10.

Mm, seeing that final "×10," nearby Gengar nodded with satisfaction.

Right on.

Reimbursement, especially for food items, having some fluctuation was very normal.

Regieleki saw Rotom busy recording and turned its head, realizing this was the "quartermaster"?

Zap—

A thin golden electrical current shot from its body into Rotom.

"Ro-Rotom?"

Initially Rotom was startled, thinking it was going to attack, but slowly realized...

This felt good?

What was this?

Buzz buzz buzz—

The signal lights on Regieleki's body rhythmically jumped, as if winking at it.

Rotom understood - this was "bribery"?

It immediately perked up, deleting the previous "×10" and changing it to "×20."

Perfect!

Regieleki and Rotom looked at each other and simultaneously smiled.

For this, Regieleki indicated that being simple was just an appearance - it was actually quite clever!

Watching the two Electric-types "communicating" with electrical currents, Johan just felt...

They got along quite well.

Who said Pokémon only fought each other?

Wasn't this just social etiquette?

"...Congratulations Marquis Johan on your victory!"

Hennessy stood at the edge of the ruined battlefield, adjusting his monocle and suppressing his twitching eyebrow as he announced the battle result.

This was Johan's first victory in a Marquis-level battle after advancing to Marquis.

"Yoji!"

Larvitar stood in the center of the field with hands on its hips, happily grinning with its blunt horn gleaming.

"Vii~"

Victini, invisible on Johan's shoulder, happily ran from his left shoulder to his right, making a victory sign.

Yeah! Helped out again!

The opposing Battle Chateau Marquis wore a helpless expression - the strength gap was still too large.

Being fellow Marquises, the strength difference between them was too great.

This was inevitable.

People like Johan, Lance, and occasionally visiting Cynthia and Steven belonged to the typical category of "rank might not be high, but strength should at least be Duke level or higher."

Meanwhile, as Kalos natives without Gym Leader or other League responsibilities interfering, with enough battles fought, their rank might be somewhat inflated.

Because the points gained from victories were considerably more than points lost from defeats, as long as you kept matching and had a win rate above 40%, you could gradually improve your rank.

Of course, once you reached Marquis level, this method became somewhat unworkable.

Marquis was like a threshold.

However, for most trainers, reaching Marquis was already sufficient.

This current Marquis, while having a high rank and being much older than Viola, actually had weaker strength than yesterday's Viola.

To put it in more mystical terms...

Johan's current rank was "newly entered Marquis," his opponent was also a "newly entered Marquis" who had mixed points to get there, so they were "evenly matched."

Within Marquis, there were things like "veteran Marquis," "Marquis peak," "half-step Duke," etc., which was another matter entirely... cough cough.

Once reaching Duke level, those were all ranks earned through real, solid strength.

During lunch.

"Johan, you've got people scared. I've already heard several Marquises quietly saying they hope not to get matched with you," Lance said with a grin.

Johan shrugged, indicating there was nothing he could do about it.

The joy of seal-clubbing - you wouldn't understand.

He wasn't like Lance, who had previously come to Kalos on missions and fought a few battles, with rank and strength rising in sync.

"It's fine. Challenging the strong is also a manifestation of knightly determination!"

Armored Wikstrom also joined their "dining brigade."

Johan looked at these two grinning guys in front of him and understood their thoughts perfectly.

They were just waiting for him to advance to Duke so they could come "designate challenge" him.

"Everyone, today's dessert is Abomasnow in the Snow."

Head chef Siebold led several servers carrying plates to the dining table, presenting today's after-meal dessert to Johan and the others with considerable ceremony.

Lifting the cover, white frost and cold air wafted up. A lifelike Abomasnow stood among ice fragments, emanating a faint grassy fragrance mixed with the coolness of cold air - truly one of summer's most refreshing desserts.

"Yoji..."

Larvitar looked at the Abomasnow dessert with sparkling eyes.

"Ka-kaah~"

Gengar also smacked its lips and stuck out its tongue, looking eager.

Seeing their expressions, Siebold's smile grew even broader.

Nothing made a chef happier than seeing smiles at their food.

"This smile, this anticipation - this is the best moment to experience cuisine! Smiles can enhance food's taste by dozens of times!"

Johan deeply agreed with this.

If Cynthia were here and saw this dessert, she'd probably eat it very happily too, right?

"Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Siebold," Lance and Wikstrom said in unison.

Honestly, the reason Siebold's cuisine was so famous in the Kalos region was inseparable from his serious attitude toward food.

Siebold smiled slightly, then paused before saying: "Actually, today there's also a 'hidden menu item.' I wonder if Teacher Johan would be interested in 'tasting' it?"

Hm?

Johan, who had just spooned a bite of dessert into his mouth, looked up somewhat bewildered.

Hidden menu?

Others might not know what Siebold meant by this "hidden menu," but how could he not know?

Oh no, was Cynthia's "backstab" going to take effect today?

Castle butler Hennessy appeared beside the dining table at some point, adjusting his glasses with a smile: "May I ask, Marquis Siebold, are you issuing a 'designated challenge'?"

Noticing the commotion, many people in the hall perked up their heads.

Designated challenge?

Elite Four Siebold challenging Teacher Johan?

Oh right, both Elite Four Siebold and Teacher Johan were currently just... Marquises!

Siebold nodded with a smile. "Yes."

He looked seriously at Johan. "I just heard that Teacher Johan is also an excellent chef. Although I'd love to compete with Teacher Johan in culinary skills, this is the Battle Chateau after all..."

He took a deep breath and struck a pose: "But I think for us, who are both chefs and trainers, demonstrating our respective culinary arts through Pokémon battles is the same thing!"

"I wonder what you think - would you be willing to taste my 'hidden menu,' Teacher Johan?"

Johan: "..."

He bit the spoon and gently smacked his lips.

So it wasn't Lance and Wikstrom waiting for him at "Duke" - it was Siebold waiting for him at "Marquis"...

Taking out the spoon, Johan looked toward Gengar and Larvitar.

"Yoji! (＾◡＾)"

"Ka-kaah~"

Gengar even showed a wicked grin, taking Johan's spoon and, through mysterious power, slightly bending it.

Eating someone else's cooking, then beating up the cook - this is my first time too!

Johan smiled helplessly and rubbed his temples, then stood up with a smile: "In terms of 'culinary arts,' I do have some confidence."