Chapter 239: Manaphy's Blessing

'When the time comes, I'll hand these photos over to my aunt for her research. With her brilliant mind, she might uncover some groundbreaking findings.'

Of course, photos alone wouldn't be enough. Julian also measured Manaphy's weight and height, then took a small cotton swab to gently collect a sample from inside Manaphy's mouth.

The little one was sleeping so soundly that even after all of Julian's actions, it showed no sign of waking up. Instead, it shifted into an even more comfortable sleeping position.

After finishing all this, Julian turned his attention to the secret room. A quick glance revealed that the space was about 300 square meters, filled with shelves.

But instead of books, the shelves were lined with boxes of various sizes.

The boxes themselves were exquisitely crafted, exuding an air of high value.

Curious, Julian picked up one of the boxes and opened it, finding a Hollow stone about the size of a fist.

Opening another box, he discovered a top-grade Moon Stone inside.

Looking at the shelves lined with over a hundred such boxes, Julian's eyes lit up with excitement.

He had struck gold.

It didn't matter who these boxes originally belonged to—there was no one else alive in this secret room except him. So, these items now belonged to him.

With the help of his system storage, Julian packed all the boxes inside. He didn't bother opening the rest, deciding to enjoy the thrill of unboxing them later when he returned to his villa after this incident was over.

Julian left no stone unturned, sweeping the secret room clean. To ensure he didn't miss anything valuable, he even took out the Dowsing Machine.

The Dowsing Machine showed some red dots, but they weren't significant. Those were likely items in the massive mansion above ground.

All the truly precious treasures had been hidden in this underground secret room.

An hour later, Julian decided it was time and instructed Metagross, "Take us to the West Coast."

Using Teleport, Metagross brought Julian and the still-sleeping Manaphy out of the secret room.

Back on the West Coast, Duke had been growing increasingly anxious. It had been an hour since Julian and Mewtwo left, and they still hadn't returned. Could it be that even a first-class legendary like Mewtwo couldn't locate Manaphy?

The sense of relief he had felt earlier quickly gave way to renewed tension. Especially when he glanced at John, who stood idly by without a care in the world, it only made his frustration boil over.

"Call your grandson and ask if he's found it yet. If not, I'll send more people to search!"

"If my grandson can't find it, do you really think your useless subordinates can?"

Before Duke could explode with anger, John quickly added, "Relax. Haven't you noticed that Kyogre has already calmed down? That means my good grandson has definitely found Manaphy."

Duke, who had been too focused on Julian, Mewtwo, and Manaphy, hadn't paid much attention to Kyogre. Hearing John's words, he looked up and saw that Kyogre's mood had indeed stabilized.

Swish!

Julian and Metagross appeared in front of the two men, with Julian holding a small, sleeping Pokémon in his arms.

"Is that Manaphy?" Duke asked.

Julian nodded and walked forward, carrying Manaphy to Kyogre. Kyogre's expression remained calm, but the countless Water-type Pokémon around it were visibly excited.

After all the chaos, they had finally found Manaphy.

Kyogre's gaze settled on Julian. It didn't sense Mewtwo's presence nearby, nor its aura.

'Has it already left?'

"Wake up, your ride is here," Julian said, patting Manaphy gently.

Manaphy let out a faint, displeased whine, puffing its cheeks. But after a few more soft pats, it finally opened its eyes.

After waking up, Manaphy appeared a little groggy, but its gaze soon landed on Kyogre and the swarm of Water-type Pokémon surrounding it.

Despite being born only recently, Manaphy instinctively understood the significance of its presence to the ocean and its Pokémon.

So it showed no signs of fear.

Kyogre lowered its head slightly, and Julian took the cue, placing Manaphy on top of it.

"You'd better take Manaphy back to the Sea Temple quickly," Julian said.

"Thank you, human," Kyogre replied with a nod.

"No need to thank me. Just promise to lend a hand if there's ever a major disaster in the seas near Drakoria."

Julian was mildly surprised that Kyogre expressed gratitude. After all, it was humans who had imprisoned Manaphy in the first place.

The blame lay with them, not Kyogre.

Kyogre nodded once more and was about to leave with Manaphy when the little Pokémon suddenly called out.

"Mana!~"

Manaphy leapt off Kyogre's head and landed in front of Julian.

A surge of excitement welled up in Julian's chest.

'Could it be that Manaphy wants to follow me willingly? If so, I can only agree'

"Mana~" Manaphy said again.

"You're asking if I have any Water-type Pokémon?" Julian asked, puzzled.

Manaphy nodded.

It seemed things weren't going the way Julian had imagined.

Though a bit disappointed, he quickly released his only Water-type Pokémon: Slowking.

"Slow!~"

Slowking stood with its hands behind its back. When it saw Manaphy, its eyes lit up slightly. With a calm motion, it removed the crown from its head, pulled out a bag of walnuts hidden inside, and handed it to Manaphy.

Manaphy happily accepted the offering.

Julian couldn't help but facepalm.

'Slowking, don't overdo it! Manaphy has Kyogre backing it up, you know!'

"Mana!~"

Manaphy called out to Slowking, and a faint blue light began to radiate from its small body. The light coalesced into a walnut-shaped sphere, which then floated over and merged directly into Slowking's body.

'You gave me a walnut; I'll give you one too.'

Julian immediately used his Probing Eyes to check on Slowking. It wasn't out of fear that Manaphy might harm Slowking, but rather curiosity about what kind of changes would occur.

Pokémon: Slowking (Water/Psychic)

Level: 55

Potential: Blue

Ability: Oblivious

Held Item: Twisted Spoon

Gender: Female

Moves: Tackle, Curse, Water Gun, Confusion, Yawn, Disable, Water Pulse, Power Gem, Swagger, Headbutt, Slack Off, Psychic, Psych Up, Rain Dance, Heal Pulse, Nasty Plot, Surf

TMs: Mega Punch, Low Sweep, Pay Day, Hyper Beam, Thunder Wave, Light Screen, Protect, Icy Wind, Dive

Egg Moves: Scald, Trick, Calm Mind, Psyshock

Note: Blessed by Manaphy, the Child of the Sea. Water-type moves gain a 20% power increase.

---

Julian froze for a moment, stunned. The changes in Slowking were immense. Its level had jumped from 45 to 55, but more importantly, its potential had risen from Cyan to Blue. On top of that, its Water-type moves now had an extra 20% power boost.

Clearly, all of this was thanks to Manaphy.

However, after performing this act, Manaphy looked visibly drained. Its body wobbled as it nearly collapsed, but Slowking quickly steadied it with its arms.

Seeing such generosity from Manaphy, Julian wasn't about to be stingy. He promptly purchased a Full Restore medicine from the system shop.

"Here, eat this. It'll help"

Manaphy, trusting the one who had rescued it, didn't hesitate. It swallowed the medicine in one gulp.