Chapter 219: Gardevoir's Past

Chapter 219: Gardevoir's Past

Meanwhile, on the way back to Xiang Province—

Hikaru glanced at his phone, replying with a simple "Got it" before breathing a sigh of relief.

Seems I was right. That principal from Zhongqing University, whom I've yet to meet, seems like a decent person.

Checking the Green Bubble app again, he noticed plenty of messages from both Sakura and his senior.

Sakura's messages were mostly casual, asking when he'd return or sharing her daily moments.

For example:

[Sakura]: Brother, look! This is Dragonair after learning Outrage. Its head is all dizzy, and it's seeing stars!

[Sakura]: (Image: Dragonair with spiraling, confused eyes.jpg)

[Sakura]: Hahaha! Dragonair is glaring at me for taking that photo. So funny…

Scrolling through the messages, Hikaru couldn't help but smile.

But that smile froze when he reached the last message.

[Sakura]: Brother, I miss you so much.

The text was accompanied by a crying face emoji.

Seeing that, Hikaru immediately responded.

[Hikaru]: Soon! I've already cleared two gyms. I'm heading home now. Once I finish my third gym challenge, I'll head straight to Kyoto.

After sending the message, he waited briefly.

When no reply came, Hikaru figured Sakura must be busy with something else.

Exiting the chat, he switched over to his senior's conversation.

Unlike Sakura's frequent texts, his senior rarely messaged.

Her messages were usually short updates about her location, accompanied by selfies.

Opening one at random—

The photo was clearly taken with careful composition.

Hikaru could almost picture the scene:

Under the golden sunlight, his senior wore a white hoodie, gently brushing aside her silver bangs. The breeze lifted her hair, strands flowing toward the horizon.

She smiled sweetly at the camera.

This angle… Definitely taken by Ninetales.

Her caption read:

[Yuki]: Hikaru, I've reached Wind City. The wind here is so strong!

After skimming the chat, Hikaru replied:

[Hikaru]: Stay safe. I'm heading home for a bit.

Again, there was no immediate response.

Seeing no other pressing messages, Hikaru turned his attention to a pending friend request.

The request message read:

"I'm Hayashi Meishuang. Thank you so much for your help last time."

The request had been sent a month ago.

Has it really been that long since I connected with the outside world?

Truth be told, Hikaru wasn't someone who spent much time on chat apps.

He casually tapped Accept, put away his phone, and stared at the sky.

From his current location, reaching Shuimu City would still take a bit of time.

Suddenly, curiosity struck him.

"Why not ask Gardevoir how it escaped the secret realm?"

And while at it, he could ask how Ralts got separated from Gardevoir in the first place.

After all, understanding the world's intricacies could only benefit him.

With that thought, Hikaru promptly summoned Gardevoir.

"Garde?"

The moment Gardevoir appeared and realized they were flying high in the sky, its expression turned curious.

Hikaru turned around to face it.

Seeing his serious demeanor, Gardevoir gracefully sat down on Latias's back.

"Let's chat for a bit."

"Garde?" (What's up, Hikaru?)

Naturally, Gardevoir had no objections to such a simple request.

Hikaru took a deep breath, organizing his thoughts.

"I've always wondered… Back when we first met, how exactly did you escape that secret realm?"

The origin of secret realms was shrouded in mystery.

Clearly, they were linked to another world—a world inhabited by Pokémon.

Some unknown force must have caused a spatial convergence, allowing Pokémon to appear in the human world.

Moreover, traces of human activity were frequently discovered in various secret realms.

It was evident that, long ago, a flourishing civilization had existed in that world.

But for reasons unknown, that civilization had collapsed.

Hikaru's question seemed to touch a nerve.

Gardevoir's eyes dimmed slightly.

The sight made Hikaru's heart tighten.

"Garde…" (I don't really know why either. That day, I was in the forest with my mother. She went out to find food and told me to stay put… But in the blink of an eye, the whole sky turned black…)

"Garde…" (Next thing I knew, I was inside the secret realm. I waited there for so long, but my mother never returned… So, I had to search for her myself.)

"Garde…" (I couldn't find her. Eventually, I had no choice but to search for food alone…)

"Garde…" (I was so hungry when I saw you feeding Charmander…)

For the first time, Hikaru understood how the young Ralts had experienced hunger.

Too shy and scared to ask for food, it had stood quietly in the corner, watching him with longing eyes.

Only after sensing Hikaru's harmless intentions through telepathy had it dared to accept the offered food.

"Garde…" (Also, my mother and I got separated while returning to our tribe…)

"That's enough."

Hikaru gently patted Gardevoir's head, signaling her to stop.

Clearly, this topic stirred painful memories.

But Hikaru had learned enough.

Any further details would be hard for Gardevoir to recall, given that she had been a young Ralts at the time.

"Garde~" (It's okay! I actually feel really lucky. After all, I met you instead of some other trainer!)

Saying this, Gardevoir leaned against Hikaru's shoulder.

Hikaru stiffened slightly but didn't push her away.

Instead, he gazed at the landscape speeding past below.

Secret realms involved spatial distortion.

There might even be temporal distortion at play.

But Hikaru knew far too little about such matters.

He lacked the confidence to assure Gardevoir:

"Don't worry. I'll find your mother someday."

Making promises about uncertain outcomes only led to disappointment.

For now, it was better to stay silent.

Feeling Hikaru remain still, Gardevoir smiled in relief.

With Latias's speed, the journey from Guizhou Province to Xiang Province—

A distance of several thousand kilometers—

Took just over thirty minutes.

To avoid triggering the air defense systems of various cities, Hikaru had to instruct Latias to bypass urban areas.

Even with those detours, Latias swiftly brought Hikaru back to Shuimu City…

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