"Latios, sir... are you feeling unwell?"
Lance asked with a touch of concern after noticing the expression on Latios's face.
He'd already sensed earlier that something seemed off about him.
"Hmm?"
Latios blinked, then quickly waved it off.
"It's nothing. No need to worry about me."
"I may need to step away for a bit. You two go find your friend first."
As he spoke, Latios pulled out his communicator and sent a message to Tias.
[Your brother's locked on to their location. Just sit tight and wait for the good news.]
[Mm, got it.]
Tias's reply didn't exactly radiate enthusiasm, but Latios could understand.
After all, she'd clung to that unrealistic hope for so long—so much so that, as the flute's song had grown more frequent, she'd even considered abandoning Hoenn to come investigate for herself.
Now that she'd heard the truth—that the flute was a fake—it was only natural she'd feel disappointed.
[I'll share the view when I wipe them out later—let you blow off some steam.]
Latios added a small reassurance before putting away his device, then turned to stare coldly in the direction ahead.
If he hadn't stopped her... if Latias had fallen into that poachers' trap...
He didn't even dare imagine how he could face Elias in the afterlife.
Thank Arceus... thank Arceus...
Those pathetic little tricks hadn't escaped his eyes. One by one, he'd seen through them all.
As he brooded, that same ghastly, wailing flute tone exploded in his head again, making him press a hand to his temple.
They're really asking for it.
"Apologies—I need to step away for now. I'll catch up with you both later."
Suppressing the discomfort in his head, Latios nodded to Lance and excused himself.
Before Lance could even respond, Latios had already launched himself out of the station like a missile, drawing the startled gazes of numerous tourists.
---
Outside the High-Speed Rail Station
"Milotic, how about... we give the flute a rest for now?"
Elias forced a smile as he looked at the Milotic beside him, who was still holding the flute in her mouth.
At first—
Even though she didn't have hands to work the finger holes, the tune she produced was surprisingly pleasant. Maybe the Infinity Flute had great acoustics by default.
But the longer she played, the worse it got.
By now, it sounded less like music and more like the wailing of a vengeful ghost in a horror movie.
Even Elias was starting to lose his composure.
And more importantly—he wasn't the only one. Gardevoir had also reached the end of her patience.
If he didn't stop this soon, he was genuinely worried Milotic would end up as sea-serpent stew.
"Miu..."
Hearing Elias's words, the already-frustrated Milotic let out a disappointed whimper.
She'd lost all faith in the flute by now.
That so-called jet plane clearly couldn't be relied on for anything.
If her future "mama" title ended up stolen by some other Pokémon, she'd enjoy watching him cry about it!
As Elias took back the Infinity Flute, everyone nearby let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Garde!"
With a sweet smile, Gardevoir casually used psychic power to float the eyesore known as Milotic out of the way.
Then, in one fluid motion, she draped herself across Elias's lap and scooped up a spoonful of ice cream, bringing it to his lips.
"Gar~de! (Try mine!)" she said, voice soft and sweet.
They were sitting just outside the high-speed rail station, at a dessert café with outdoor seating.
It was the perfect spot to keep an eye on people coming and going—ideal for waiting.
With Milotic out of the picture, Gardevoir wasted no time reasserting her dominance, drawing icy glares from both Mew and Sabrina.
And not just them—several male tourists nearby were staring with bitter, twisted expressions.
Why is his Pokémon a shiny Gardevoir… while mine's just a greasy Drowzee?
With a doting Gardevoir feeding him ice cream on his lap, of course Elias wasn't going to refuse.
However...
Just as his lips closed around the spoonful of ice cream, a sudden blast of air whooshed out from the train station's main entrance.
The gust tore hats from heads, sent snacks flying, and created a brief commotion among the crowd.
If Gardevoir hadn't reacted in time, Elias figured he'd be just as messed up as the rest.
"Gardevoir, what was that?" Elias asked, puzzled.
Unlike most of the confused onlookers, he could barely sense that something had just sped past.
But compared to the simulator, his real-world psychic powers were still pretty weak.
In response, Gardevoir retained her usual elegance and poise.
She scooped another spoonful of ice cream, placed it in her mouth, narrowed her eyes, and answered calmly:
"Just an invisible Pokémon. Nothing to get worked up about."
"A Pokémon?" Elias echoed.
He wasn't surprised by the answer, but something about the invisibility part...
Made him feel a little uneasy.
Seeing Elias's curiosity, Gardevoir graciously explained, glancing up at the figure hovering in midair:
"Mhm. Blue and white, shaped like a jet plane."
"Looks like it's searching for something. Probably unrelated to us."
At that moment, Elias—who had been mentally enjoying the show—suddenly felt like he was the show.
Blue and white?
Jet plane?
Latios?!
Those keywords combined made his hair stand on end.
So it wasn't that the Infinity Flute had failed... he just needed time to get here?!
Unconsciously, Elias swallowed hard.
On a normal day, he would've been fine with Latios showing up. It could've even been a joyful reunion.
But...
The way he and Gardevoir were interacting right now probably wasn't something Latios should witness.
Especially since he had no idea if Latios was currently sharing vision with Latias.
"Hey, Gardevoir... maybe you could get off me for a bit?" Elias asked cautiously.
Gardevoir blinked.
Is Elias... embarrassed?
She glanced around at the people nearby, uncertain.
But there was one thing she was certain of—getting off of him? Not happening.
"Garde garde (You've got something on your lips—let me wipe it for you.)"
She cooed, leaning her head in close, clearly not backing down.
And at the same time, Milotic—still sulking from being banished—suddenly lit up like she'd seen salvation.
Her sharp instincts had picked up on the strange airflow just now.
Clinging to a sliver of hope, she tilted her head back and called out toward the sky:
"Miu~!"
---
...
Huh. You really stuck it out all the way to the end.
Didn't think you had the patience. Guess I was wrong.
WiseTL's the one who actually made all this come together. I'm just here putting a bow on it… or, well, shoving it in a backpack and calling it a day. Same thing.
If you had fun, you know what to do:
👉 [patreon.com/WiseTL]
Heads up—Patreon's 50% off for all tiers during May. So if you were on the fence? Now's the time.
And if you're the social type, there's a Discord too. Pretty decent spot to hang out—no battles required.
👉 [discord.gg/wisetl]
Alright. That's enough standing around. Go on—before you make it weird.
—Leaf