Chapter 484: Lei He and the Calamity Treasures
Chapter 484: Lei He and the Calamity Treasures
The next day, the heavy snowfall that had continued through the night showed no signs of letting up.
Peering out the window, Naoki could see the snow stretching endlessly into the distance, as if the entire world had been transformed into a winter wonderland.
Flakes drifted gently downward, and Naoki could well imagine the thick blanket of snow that must be covering their roof.
With the blizzard raging outside, there was little they could do but stay indoors. After breakfast, Naoki settled by the fireplace with a book, a rare moment of tranquility.
The Pokemon, however, seemed unaffected by the weather.
They scampered about the room as they always did, full of cheer, or lay quietly by Naoki's rocking chair, content to keep him company as he read.
For them, simply being by Naoki's side seemed to be all the entertainment they needed.
Though confined indoors, Naoki found peace in the soft patter of snow outside. It was a rare moment of stillness for him, a cozy refuge from the world with his Pokemon companions.
Just then, his Lotad phone, sitting on the table, buzzed to life.
Naoki picked it up and was surprised to see a message from Lei He.
Lei He: I've finally unraveled the mystery of the Calamity Treasures!
Naoki: Oh?
Lei He: I've been researching and gathering information, and I've finally pinpointed the location of the shrines that seal away the four Calamity Treasures! From here on, all we need to do is visit those places, release the seals, and bring those treasures back into the world!
Table City, Faculty Housing.
Lei He, brimming with excitement, shared her discovery with Naoki, sending over photos she had found.
Lei He: This is it! The ancient Pokemon emissary used sacred stakes to seal away the four Calamity Treasures within these shrines.
Lei He: Each Pokemon is sealed within its own shrine... Legend says that each shrine is surrounded by eight stakes, used to suppress the power of calamity. In other words, if we remove all the corresponding stakes, we can liberate the Pokemon known as the Calamity Treasures!!
According to Lei He's investigation, the shrines were adorned with a stylized "good fortune" character and a longevity knot pattern.
Of course, this wasn't the standard script used in the Padia League, but an ancient script from the far-off land of Dongtu, the homeland of the Calamity Treasures.
In that ancient realm, such patterns were often seen as symbols of warding off evil.
Naoki: Power of calamity? What if removing the stakes and unsealing them suddenly brings about the same catastrophe that befell the Padia Kingdom in the past?
Naoki's mind drifted back to the vision he had witnessed during his exploration of the Padia Underground Cavern with Lei He—the ancient Padia castle sinking into the earth due to an earthquake caused by the Ancient Pronghorn.
Lei He: Of course not! According to the descendants of the Pokemon emissary who sealed the Calamity Treasures, removing the stakes requires a bond with Pokemon. This bond will calm the four Calamity Pokemon and make it possible to release them.
Lei He: For someone skilled in handling Pokemon like yourself, it should be possible. So, I'm counting on you one last time! Please do me this favor, Naoki!
Naoki: "..."
He recalled that in the game, Lei He had left this task entirely to the player.
But it seemed like Lei He wanted to witness this moment herself.
Naoki: Do you want to come with me?
Lei He: Yes, I'm afraid I can't. I wanted to go, but I played hooky and went adventuring, and now the principal is keeping a close eye on me... So, everything is up to you now, Naoki!
Naoki was speechless. True to her roots as a tomb raider, Lei He had a knack for getting into trouble.
His mind wandered to the Calamity Treasures, those artifacts capable of bringing about disaster.
[Lei He: No problem! I've been waiting for a long time anyway, and a few more days won't make a difference. But after you catch those Pokemon, you must bring them to show me!]
Naoki agreed readily.
[Lei He: Then I'll send you the exact locations of the Sealing Shrines; just register them on your Map App, and your Lotad phone will automatically navigate for you. Although some of the shrines are located halfway up the mountains, with Garchomp, you should be able to reach them smoothly.]
With that, Lei He shared a link.
Naoki tapped on it, and his phone automatically opened up to the Pokemon Map app.
Four markers then appeared on the screen.
The Dust Shrine, sealing the Ancient Stantler, was located at the foot of the mountains north of Big Pot Lake.
The Frozen Crack Shrine, sealing the Ancient Saber Leopard (Ancient Raikou is not used as it is a Pokemon name and the description does not match, a more fitting name is used)
, was in the south of the Scarlet Desert, at the end of a mountain path fork.
The Fire Difficulty Shrine, sealing the Ancient Kyogre, was situated beneath one of the waterfalls in the Tumbling Falls, one of the Ten Sceneries of Padia. Naoki remembered that place, with its beautiful bamboo groves and meandering streams.
And the Rotten Wood Shrine, sealing the Ancient Palkia, was nestled beneath the cliffs in the southeast of Padia.
After a quick scan of the locations, Naoki closed the Map App and sent Lei He an OK gesture.
[Lei He: Then I'll be waiting for your good news here in Table City!]
As the communication ended, Naoki quietly contemplated his next steps.
The coming year would be busy. To repay Giratina for raising the World Tree into the sky, he needed to help Giratina "teach" Arceus a lesson.
Grass-type Lei Gongwang (Tapu Bulu)
would undoubtedly be a main force in that endeavor.
So, before that, he wanted to help Tapu Bulu improve its strength as much as possible.
One step towards that goal was obtaining the Grass Z-Crystal for Tapu Bulu.
Paired with a Z-Ring, it would allow Tapu Bulu to unleash a more powerful Z-Move, Dazzling Bloom, to deliver a full-force strike against Arceus.
Well... he mainly wanted to see how the fully evolved Tapu Bulu, now empowered by tens of millions of faith, compared in strength to Arceus' avatar.
As for the Grass Z-Crystal and Z-Ring, he could try to negotiate with the four Island Guardians of the Alola region; perhaps he could earn their recognition and obtain those items.
Thus, Naoki planned to buy a villa in the Alola region.
That way, they could spend spring, summer, and autumn in the Padia region as usual.
And when winter came with its cold, they could all travel together to that tropical paradise for a vacation.
Speaking of which, the Alola region's Hala Real Estate Company called.
"Hello, is this Mr. Naoki? This is Hala Real Estate; we've found a property that matches your requirements."
"Hmm? Where is it?" Naoki asked.
"On Akala Island in the northeast of the Alola region. There's a villa ranch for sale there."
Akala Island...
Naoki searched for it on his phone and quickly found a satellite image.
The image showed that the island was relatively flat, with a large volcano in the north, terraced waterfalls in the northwest known as the Cascading Scopes, and a jungle in the south.
The southwest of the island formed a peninsula, connected to Konikoni City by a Diglett Tunnel.
And in the central part of the island was the peaceful Ohana Town, surrounded by ranchlands and pastures.
(End of Chapter)
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