Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 493: Discovery of a Stone Plate!

"Mm..."

Johan's eyelids twitched slightly. After letting out a faint hum, he slowly sat up.

"Oowoo~~"

Ninetales gently placed her tail behind him, offering a soft cushion for support.

"Bwooo..."

Shadow Lugia had already awakened before him but stayed still, not wanting to disturb Johan's rest.

It was clear that Shadow Lugia had calmed down completely. With Johan's help, the lingering effects from the Shadow Ball and the Red Chain had mostly subsided.

Johan had dealt with both the Shadow Ball and Red Chain before, making him well-acquainted with their side effects.

Even so, Lugia's feathers hadn't yet returned to their original silver color. The black had receded, but this showed that its psychological trauma couldn't be resolved in just one counseling session.

Through his conversations with Lugia, Johan pieced together the full picture.

While out at sea with the young Lugia, they had been targeted. The attackers triggered seabed upheaval to lure Lugia away—and while Lugia was busy calming the ocean, they kidnapped the young one.

Using it as leverage, they ensnared Lugia with the Red Chain.

The chain amplified negative emotions, plunging Lugia into turmoil. Though they couldn't subdue Lugia immediately, they escaped, and Lugia took refuge in the Sea Temple to suppress the chain's influence.

During the chaos, Looker managed to rescue the young Lugia and entered the Sea Temple searching for Manaphy.

Lugia tried using ocean currents to send Manaphy's egg away, but the pirate ghost crew still found it.

Then came everything Johan experienced—the Red Chain amplified Lugia's buried negative emotions, while the Shadow Ball generated new ones, completely stripping it of self-control.

Now its mind was back, but that storm of darkness still simmered underneath. If left untreated, it could eventually become a creature of destruction like Yveltal.

Fortunately, Johan had managed to guide some of that darkness out. With time and continued therapy, healing was possible.

Especially since, even at its most violent, Lugia had stopped at the sound of its child's voice. As long as the two lived peacefully together and Johan provided support, recovery would come.

Johan reached out and gently patted Lugia's smooth head.

To be honest...

Lugia had done nothing wrong, yet suffered so much. The fault lay with humans.

"You've been through a lot," Johan murmured.

"Bwooo..."

Lugia lowered its gaze.

But it wasn't surprised—after all, it had seen humanity's darker side during the Burned Tower incident centuries ago.

Still, this event taught it something else.

Among humans, there is evil... but also good. Johan, Cynthia, Caitlin, Drake, Looker—they weren't the same as the ones who had harmed it.

Just as in the Pokémon world, there were kind and pure ones, and also cruel and vile ones.

"If possible, once my child grows a little older, I hope you can help it see more of this world," Lugia's voice echoed in Johan's mind.

The young Lugia had been through kidnapping and danger, but thankfully, being rescued and spending time with Johan and his Pokémon had kept it joyful. No lasting trauma remained.

Lugia hoped that, in time, Johan could help its child see the human world—the world of Trainers—and broaden its experience.

To a long-lived Legendary, human lives are fleeting. A short while of learning could help its child grow immensely.

Johan, hearing that, was startled.

His first thought?

If pseudo-legendary Larvitar could eat that much, how terrifying would a baby Legendary's appetite be?

Fortunately, that would come later.

For now, the young Lugia was still small—barely capable of battling.

By then, Johan hoped to be earning more.

And surely Lugia wouldn't leave him with the kid without... a little allowance?

Touched by this gesture of trust, Johan smiled and agreed.

"As long as it's okay with it, I don't mind."

After all, it's a real Legendary!

Even if it didn't carry the authority of a fully realized Legendary yet, it was still a big deal.

Of course...

If the baby Lugia ended up picking up Gengar's bad habits...

Cough, cough.

"It'll be happy," Lugia said warmly, glancing toward its child.

As a mother, it could feel how fond its little one was of Johan and his Pokémon.

"Bwooo~"

Sensing their gaze, the young Lugia paused its play with Gengar and friends, then cheerfully waved.

Seeing this, Johan and Lugia both smiled.

"But let's talk about you now," Johan said, shifting the topic.

Sitting upright, he faced Lugia.

"Your condition is mostly stable, but for now, it's best you don't travel. Stay calm and grounded."

Post-traumatic stress wasn't easily shaken off—even if Johan's intervention minimized it, it would take time.

After a brief pause, he continued:

"How about this? I'll visit once a week for a month-long short therapy course, and then—"

"No need to go through all that. You can use the feather to communicate with me," Lugia interrupted.

Hum...

As it spoke, Johan's Silver Feather began to glow faintly again.

While not as "lively" as the Rainbow Feather, now that Lugia had imbued it with energy, the Silver Feather had become a channel for their communication.

"Well, that's convenient."

No more weekly sea voyages? Works for Johan.

"Still, considering your condition, I should visit in person once a month for the first three months. Direct communication helps me monitor your state."

Johan took his patients seriously, even Legendary ones.

"Thank you."

Lugia nodded, then added, "And here's a small token of gratitude."

Its eyes shimmered with psychic power. Suddenly, a hole opened in the island's center, and a fist-sized, earthy brown stone floated toward Johan.

"Yoji?"

Larvitar, mid-play, lit up and drooled at the sight. The stone was calling to it.

Huh?

Even Johan felt a jolt.

"This is..."

He reached out, and even as a human, he could feel the immense Ground-type energy from it.

"The Earth Plate?!"

His eyes widened, and his voice raised with disbelief.

He stared at the stone in shock—Lugia had given him something this valuable?

Weren't all the Plates supposed to be in Arceus's possession?

Wait, no.

In the movie "Arceus and the Jewel of Life," Arceus relinquished five Plates—Earth, Water, Grass, Lightning, and Dragon—to form the Jewel of Life. That was what made it furious.

It was also part of Johan's theory—that Arceus's current reawakening was due in part to that betrayal.

Still... the five Plates had been fused into the Jewel of Life, not scattered.

Then Lugia explained:

"The Plates are fragments born of the universe itself."

Johan understood instantly.

If they were fragments, there would be large and small ones. Arceus took the big ones, but the small, unassuming bits scattered across the world.

He then remembered other things.

Like how Team Galactic's remnants obtained a "Flame Plate" to try and open a space-time portal and retrieve Cyrus.

Or how the Aether Foundation in Alola made their "true Arceus"—Silvally—and used Drive modules based on Plate fragments.

So... there were indeed Plate fragments out there.

A gift from nature.

This Earth Plate shard was definitely a valuable treasure!

"Thanks."

After a brief moment of thought, Johan accepted it.

After all, it wasn't useful to Lugia. But to Johan, it could mean a lot.

Lugia seemed pleased.

They chatted for a bit longer. Once Johan was certain Lugia's condition had stabilized, he prepared to leave.

There was still a mess to clean up at sea.

Their rented sailboat had been damaged by Larvitar. There was also Hunter J, the ghost pirate, their massive submarine, and the pirate crew's identities...

"I can't just let the League skip reimbursing us for the ship. That sub is worth a fortune. No way Gengar's gonna just 'eat' it."

With that, Johan called for Dragonite.

"I won't see you off," Lugia said. It was best if it stayed on the island for now.

"Bwooo..."

Young Lugia, on the other hand, was visibly reluctant.

It thought Lugia brought Johan to stay! It had already arranged sleeping spots with Gengar and the others...

Johan chuckled and picked it up by one foot, saying:

"We're not gone forever. We'll be back soon. Let's see how much you've grown by then."

"Bwooo?"

Dangling upside down, it blinked happily.

He set it down, rubbed its head, and whispered, "Lugia needs you right now."

It paused, then nodded firmly.

Though it hated to part, Johan was right. It had to stay with Mom.

"Next time, I'll bring something fun for you guys," Johan smiled.

Pokémon needed entertainment too—and humans had plenty of interesting stuff.

He left behind a supply of Pokéblocks and medicine for Lugia.

Then, with his slightly reluctant companions—especially Larvitar—he soared into the clouds, waving farewell to Lugia and its child.

As long as he didn't reveal the location, the island was likely to remain hidden.

"Easy there, Dragonite. We're in no rush."

Back at sea—

Johan and Dragonite didn't get lost like Leon and quickly returned to the scene of the earlier conflict.

The Sea Temple had submerged once more, as per its design. It drifted across the oceans, location unknown. Without a precise signal, it was nearly impossible to find again—until Manaphy hatched and emerged.

On the sea's surface, aside from Johan's sailboat and the massive ghost pirate sub, were dozens of League ships—including Drake's flagship.

League agents were hauling pirate crew members from the sub. Cynthia, Caitlin, Drake, and Looker stood on deck.

They immediately noticed Johan's return.

He landed gently on the deck, greeted by collective sighs of relief.

"You're back," Cynthia stood and patted the tired Rotom on the head before returning it.

"Mm." Johan gave a soft nod. "Thanks for holding the fort."

"We should get going," Caitlin said, rising.

With Team Galactic implicated, there was now work to be done back in Sinnoh.

Bertha hadn't come this time.

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Partly because, as a Ground-type Elite, she wasn't suited for ocean work. Partly because she was staying behind in Sinnoh to coordinate response efforts.

Now that they'd followed the trail, big moves were coming.

"Not going to rest a little more?" Johan asked.

Cynthia smiled gently. "We've rested enough."

"...All right."

"Be sure to visit Sinnoh sometime."

"Definitely!"

Caitlin hugged Cynthia's arm, wrinkled her nose at Johan, then teleported them both away.

"Johan..."

Drake, bandaged and seated, spoke up.

"Hm?"

Drake gave him a teasing smile. "We in Hoenn always welcome folks from Sinnoh."

He raised his brows meaningfully.

If Johan could bring Cynthia to Hoenn...

Johan, Steven, Cynthia, Wallace—Drake would die happy.

Johan gave him a sidelong glare.

"Shameless old man."

Then he sat down beside him.

"Bwahaha!"

Drake wasn't offended in the least. Laughing heartily, he slung an arm around Johan's shoulders and said:

"So, have you made up your mind?"

He was asking about Johan succeeding him.

Letting Johan fill in at that meeting was already a signal. Drake had no attachment to power—he was more than willing to step aside for the next generation.

"What's there to think about?" Johan scoffed.

It's not that he didn't want to be an Elite Four.

What Trainer wouldn't?

But the way he'd become one mattered.

If he took Drake's place, he'd be swamped with work immediately.

That's why Glacia kept trying to pull him in!

But Johan wanted to be the kind of Elite Four like Cynthia—one who could slack off and take vacations. Not like Looker, who was always on the job.

Cynthia could relax. Looker could not.

So the best plan?

Let Steven and Wallace take the spotlight first. Once they were done handling the mess, he could slip into a "light" position like Flint.

Not shirking responsibility—just... not overdoing it.

And if the positions filled up?

So what.

His student would be Champion. That's more impressive than being Champion himself.

He'd be the Champion's mentor!

Plus, with friends in Kanto, Johto, Sinnoh—and a student ruling Hoenn...

That's what you call status.

He already had the influence. The title mattered less.

And as for future crises like Groudon or Kyogre?

You couldn't dodge them.

So why not enjoy the ride?

Drake didn't know all that, but he seemed to get it.

"You've still got the tournament, after all."

The Youth Masters World Championship!

If he became Elite Four, he couldn't compete.

"Huh?"

Johan hadn't made that connection, but now that he thought about it...

The championship had a $50 million Pokédollar prize, not to mention all kinds of items and perks.

Even runner-ups earned a fortune.

To someone like Johan—always one step from broke—it was extremely tempting.

Of course, the competition would be fierce. Lance, Steven, Cynthia... they'd all likely compete.

He'd need to train harder.

As he pondered, he changed the subject.

"Old man, we need to investigate that ghost pirate's identity."

"Got any leads?" Drake asked.

Johan adjusted his monocle and said calmly:

"I suspect it has something to do with Galar."

Galar?

Drake looked surprised.

That's pretty far from Hoenn.

"I'll keep an eye on it," Drake agreed.

"Oh, and..." Johan smirked. "That sub's worth a fortune."

The two foxes exchanged a smile.

Heh.

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Powerstones?

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