"Nido~ nido~!"
As soon as Aven entered the poison-type training zone, a couple of Nidoran ran over to greet him.
The Nidoking tribe had fully integrated into the forest. But this place, the poison swamp was now their main settlement, hosting the most gifted poison Pokémon.
"Hello little ones, long time no see," Aven greeted the little ones.
He walked deeper into the zone, arriving at the poison mud bog where Muk once lived.
Now that the waste treatment facility was well-developed, Muk lived there permanently. This marsh had become the gathering point for many poison-type Pokémon.
"Nido! Nido!"
The Nidoking leader emerged.
Its aura was tremendous—after long training, it had recently broken through to King-level.
The excitement from that breakthrough still lingered. And all of it… this new strength… was thanks to Aven.
"Nidoking, you came just in time."
"I have something important to entrust to you."
Aven patted its shoulder. If the Dragalge and Skrelp were to live in this marsh, only Nidoking could keep them under control.
"Nido!!"
Nidoking pounded its chest confidently.
After giving instructions, Aven took out a Poké Ball and pressed the button.
A flash of white—and a roar shook the marsh.
Dragalge appeared, growling viciously despite its wounds.
The moment it looked around, its gaze fell on Lilligant, Froslass, and Gardevoir—memories surged, its pupils shrinking sharply.
Even injured, even defeated, Dragalge still snarled and threatened them.
What caught the Pokémon's attention, though, was what it said:
It had a master.
Its master would come for it.
"A master?" Aven narrowed his eyes.
The Dragalge migrating from the seas of Kalos Region to the eastern seas of Sinnoh then to its southern seas had always been suspicious.
Why would they come to this resource-poor region?
If they had a master… then everything made sense.
Aven turned toward Gardevoir—it was time to interrogate.
Soon, Mismagius arrived, holding a thick leather book, looking surprisingly scholarly.
"I'm counting on you," Aven said.
Gardevoir put Dragalge to sleep effortlessly. Mismagius drifted into its dream.
Moments later, Mismagius projected a dream-vision before Aven.
A giant ship cut across open seas. Surrounding it were numerous Dragalge, acting as guards.
At the bow stood a six-armed demon statue…
On deck stood cloaked figures in black.
"That's… Hoopa Unbound! The Sorcerer Organization!" Aven's face darkened.
It all made sense, the poison-type sea escort, the long-range voyage—they needed powerful guardians.
Because they needed obedience, these Dragalge had not been corrupted by black mist, but they were completely loyal to the organization.
Even captured, this Dragalge believed its organization would rescue it.
And the terrifying part was—they very well could.
"Maa~ Maa…"
Mismagius floated forward. It had become highly skilled in dream invasion.
Now, Aven needed to know why the Dragalge had appeared in South Sea.
Mismagius nodded and dove into the dream again.
After targeted searching, it finally extracted the answer—and projected an image of a—
Mismagius drifted closer. At this point, it had already become highly skilled in slipping into dreams—its ability to invade one's mind grew more proficient each time.
This time, what Aven wanted to learn was the existence hidden behind the Dragalge tribe—the true force controlling them from the shadows.
Thus, Mismagius continued guiding and probing within the dream, and after repeated searches, it finally found the answer Aven was seeking.
"Mismagius, you did extremely well."
"Next, help me find out why the Dragalge came to the south sea in the first place."
This was the question that Aven urgently needed answered.
The appearance of the Sorcerer Organization always signified a conspiracy—there was even a possibility that the conspiracy was specifically aimed at him.
"Maa~ Maa!"
Mismagius nodded, then closed its eyes once more and sank into Dragalge's dream.
With targeted searching, finding information this time was much easier.
After another round of guided extraction, Mismagius finally discovered the truth.
It projected an image—of a single silver feather.
The Dragalge had come to the south sea for one purpose: to search for a silver feather.
They had followed the trail all the way from the east sea, gradually moving south until they reached this region.
In fact, they had not been here for long. They had only explored a small area before running directly into Aven—and their entire tribe was nearly annihilated.
"A silver feather…" Aven frowned.
Suddenly, he remembered the silver bird he had seen within Tentacool's memories.
It was precisely because that silver bird had stirred up a massive storm that Tentacool became separated from its own tribe and drifted all the way to the Black Coast before entering the Fair River.
If that was the case, then everything aligned perfectly.
Clearly, the Sorcerer Organization had learned about the silver bird as well.
Given their obsession with hunting Legendary Pokémon, there was no chance they would ignore such news.
Of course they would search relentlessly.
The only question was—
How had they learned that a silver feather had been dropped?
There were many mysterious elements surrounding the Sorcerer Organization.
"If my guess is correct, that silver bird should be Lugia. The Silver Wing is a Legendary resource."
Aven's mind flashed back to the carvings inside the Sea Temple—the murals depicting Lugia and Kyogre.
Why would Lugia suddenly appear in the south sea?
Was it merely passing through?
Was something attracting it?
Or… was it something else entirely?
"No matter the reason, now that I've learned about the Silver Wing, I absolutely need to find it before the Sorcerer Organization does."
Aven clenched his fist slowly.
According to legend, the Silver Wing could guide its holder to Lugia's location.
If the Sorcerer Organization obtained it first, they could track Lugia down—and that would pose an enormous threat to the Legendary Pokémon.
"Maa~ Maa?"
Mismagius asked softly if Aven wanted to know anything else.
"Yes. I need more intelligence on the Sorcerer Organization."
"For example—where they set out from, where they've traveled, whom they've contacted along the way… All of this information is crucial."
Aven paused to organize his thoughts, then gave his instructions seriously.
He suddenly realized just how valuable this Dragalge truly was—
Through its memories, he had found an excellent channel to gather intelligence about the Sorcerer Organization.
By studying the Sorcerer Organization's route across the sea, he might even deduce their next destination—and possibly their next schemes.
Seeing Mismagius begin its work again, Aven understood that this round of dream interrogation would take much longer.
He wasn't in a rush.
Instead, he sank into contemplation, replaying everything that had happened recently.
First, he discovered information about Heatran.
Now, he had found traces of Lugia's Silver Wing.
And behind everything… lurked the shadow of the Sorcerer Organization.
Their ultimate goal was beyond doubt—to capture more Legendary Pokémon.
Whether it was Heatran or Lugia, both would inevitably become targets of the Sorcerer Organization.
"It seems there's no avoiding future conflict with the Sorcerer Organization."
"Especially since I crushed the Dragalge tribe this time. For the Sorcerer Organization, that's a major blow."
"They will definitely come for me again. I need to prepare far in advance."
Aven reached into his pocket and grasped several Poké Balls tightly.
Compared to the Sorcerer Organization, the Pokémon Domain was still too weak.
Without Azelf's power, he would struggle to defend against attacks from Legendary Pokémon.
Therefore, his highest priority remained the same—
to help the Pokémon Domain raised a Legendary Pokémon of its own.
(End of Chapter)