And so...
"Bi..." Celebi hesitated for a moment, then cautiously nodded its tiny head.
"Alright." Caleb, lost in his own thoughts, didn't notice Celebi's response.
Naturally assuming he had been rejected, he continued pondering while trying to negotiate, "If you don't want to come with me, that's fine. But could you do me a favor? Just don't leave this era yet. One week is all I need."
He figured that as long as he didn't throw a Poké Ball at Celebi, and Celebi didn't vanish from this timeline, the Infinite World wouldn't trigger the quest completion prompt and force him to leave the Instance.
"Bi?" A question mark popped up above Celebi's head.
Entei: "..."
Garchomp: "..."
Lucario: "..."
"Huh?" Only then did Caleb snap out of it, "Wait, you're saying you're willing to come with me?"
Celebi nodded its little head.
Caleb hesitated briefly, then checked his quest panel again. There was still no departure prompt.
After a moment of thought, he said, "Then... let's go? We should leave this place first?"
Celebi, accustomed to drifting through different eras without a fixed home, had no objections.
With Ho-Oh's crisis resolved, it was time to part ways with Entei.
Standing a short distance away, Entei watched as Caleb approached with Celebi. It gave him a slight nod, then stood and vanished into the forest without another word.
'Goodbye.' Caleb silently bid farewell in his heart.
Just then, Officer Jenny arrived on her motorcycle.
The entire Jenny family had mobilized for the Ilex Forest incident, working alongside League trainers to combat Team Rocket members throughout the woods.
Lorelei took charge of briefing Officer Jenny on the remaining tasks.
Lance looked at Caleb and asked, "The situation here is mostly resolved. What are your plans now?"
At this, Caleb glanced toward Cynthia, who was standing not far away. Coincidentally, Cynthia was also looking at him.
Lance subtly noted the exchange and was about to say something when Bruno suddenly leaned in, grinning enthusiastically, "Hey, Caleb! Coming to our victory celebration?"
Caleb politely declined, "Sorry, but there's someone waiting at home for a reunion dinner. Next time though. I promise!"
"Alright." Bruno looked a little disappointed, but didn't press further.
Lance glanced at Cynthia again, then asked hesitantly, "Will you be coming back to Kanto... ever?"
Caleb: "??"
Lance: "I mean, uh... just glad you're back."
What he really wanted to say was: 'Whatever Sinnoh can offer you, we can too.'
After that cryptic remark, the Dragon Master turned away to deal with the remnants of Team Rocket's operations.
Team Rocket's influence in Johto was no smaller than in Kanto, and cleaning up their mess would take considerable time and effort. Before leaving, Lance and Bruno hauled away the Masked Man as well.
Meanwhile, Lorelei, having finished her briefing with Officer Jenny, walked over. She cast a distant glance at Cynthia, arched a delicate eyebrow, and fired off three rapid questions: "Since when did you know the Sinnoh Champion? How come none of us knew? Are you leaving Kanto to work for the Sinnoh League now?"
Caleb: "..."
"Alright, alright, I'll stop teasing you." Lorelei chuckled softly, "Still, we owe you a lot this time. No matter what, Kanto will always welcome you back. Go on, she's been waiting for you long enough."
Cynthia had already recalled Garchomp into its Poké Ball. Though Garchomp had successfully intercepted the two Mega Pokémon earlier, it had taken some damage in the process.
So, Cynthia let it rest in its ball while she stood there, lost in thought.
Only when Caleb approached did she snap out of it, asking gently, "How long can you stay this time?"
Caleb thought it over before answering, "At least a week, maybe several years."
As long as the Infinite World didn't detect the loophole of him not capturing Celebi in a Poké Ball, he could theoretically stay here indefinitely.
"I see." Cynthia nodded thoughtfully, "Heading back to Sinnoh now?"
She had overheard Caleb mentioning a reunion dinner earlier.
But the young man in front of her shook his head.
Though she had searched for him for so long, now that she'd actually found him, Cynthia suddenly didn't know what to say. Faced with a mature man taller than herself, she couldn't possibly treat him the same way she had that adorable three-year-old.
Just remembering her past actions made her cheeks burn...
She'd bought him dresses! She'd forced him to drink milk every day with the excuse that he wouldn't grow tall otherwise!
Cynthia truly didn't know how to interact with this 'little brother' who had lived with her for three years.
Her thoughts churned, but her expression remained as composed as ever, "Is there anywhere you'd like to go?"
Caleb then told her about Lily. After all, that house was Cynthia's home, not his. Bringing someone along required her permission.
More importantly, Lily, a little girl who had crossed fifteen years just to find him, couldn't simply be left behind at the studio while he went off to enjoy himself.
This was the dilemma weighing on him...
He looked at Cynthia apologetically.
She listened in silence, her delicate brows knitting together in confusion.
"Why would you think it's not your home?" she asked, "That house has your room, your bed, your closet, even the treehouse where Dragonite and the others stargaze. All these years you've been gone, Grandma missed you terribly. She cleaned your room every day, aired out your blankets on sunny days, just so you'd have everything ready when you returned."
Caleb froze, suddenly recalling the scent of sunlight on the sheets that night.
Seeing his expression, Cynthia, who had been unsure how to face him earlier, felt her tension ease slightly, "We can't just leave that girl alone there, can we?"
Caleb was deeply moved, "Thank you."
A gentle smile curved Cynthia's lips. She said, "Let's go to Mahogany Town. And on the way, tell me your story with her."
She knew of Lily...
A year ago, while investigating Caleb's whereabouts during her travels in Hoenn, she had met that resilient little girl.
At her words, Caleb sank into memories.
Slowly, he began, "The first time I saw her was on a scorching summer day. Back then, she was just a little girl who didn't even know how to tie her own hair. I never imagined she'd believe that offhand story I told her about Celebi. And I definitely never thought I'd see her again here."
Cynthia's gaze softened. She whispered, "Meeting you was probably the luckiest thing that ever happened to her."