Chapter 154: I Can't See a Future
"I learned about Pokémon through these books," Milo said, picking up a thick volume from the floor.
Will took it and opened it. He couldn't read the text, but there were some hand-drawn pictures of Pokémon. The books looked quite old.
"Besides these, I also learn from the Pokémon that wander into the village from the wild. I learn about the outside world from their descriptions."
"Why don't you go and see it for yourself?" Will asked, frowning at Milo. The descriptions from most Pokémon would be vague at best. To truly understand the beauty of this world, you had to see it with your own eyes. That was what he and Liz were doing.
"For an ordinary person to walk out of this camp and see the outside world... it's just too difficult," Milo said, shaking his head. A complex look was in his eyes, and he said no more.
"Have you heard of Liz from the Johto region?"
"Of course. That founding queen's fame is immense. The first monarch in human history to rule over three regions... who doesn't know her? Oh, it should be two regions now," Milo said, grabbing another book. Will didn't even have to look to know that's where he had learned about Liz.
"Does that book say where she went after she left the Dragonite Kingdom?"
"Who knows? Probably even the Dragonite Clan itself doesn't know."
"She went to travel the world."
"...What?"
Milo was stunned, his eyes gradually widening. He immediately shook his head. "Impossible! Even now, it's not an easy thing for a human to travel the world, especially when crossing the oceans between regions. That's almost no different from the Era of Primal Beasts, let alone a thousand years ago."
"I was just in the Dragonite homeland two years ago. A Dragonite who has lived for over a thousand years told me."
Will's words completely silenced Milo. After a long moment, he sighed. "A great person is a great person. With that kind of courage, no wonder her name has been passed down for a thousand years... I don't have that kind of courage. The wild is a scary place," Milo shook his head and slumped onto a chair, his whole body slouched over the table like a salted fish.
"You want to see the world, but you don't dare to set out. Then you'll be imprisoned in this camp for the rest of your life," Will said, shaking his head. He had met so many people with incredible courage since coming to this world. To suddenly meet someone like Milo was a little strange.
"I know. Of course, I know," Milo said, turning to look out the window. The small log cabin didn't get much light. It was just like his life—he couldn't see the light, and could only hide in this dim but safe little house for the rest of his life.
"I'm not... purely human."
"...What?!"
Hearing this, Will's hands trembled, and the book he was holding fell to the floor. Not purely human. When an ordinary person heard that, they would probably think of one's bloodline. So that's what Will was thinking. Could Milo be the child of a human and a Pokémon?
You couldn't blame him for thinking that. In the history of the Pokémon world, there were many recorded cases of humans and Pokémon getting together. In the future, movies about such romances would be very popular. So, in this world, it wasn't strange for humans and Pokémon to marry. As for whether they could have children... it seemed not. There were no historical records of it.
"Meow?" The Meowscarada beside him tilted her head, confused.
"Don't misunderstand. I was just raised by a Pokémon," Milo said, as if sensing what Will was thinking. "You came from Johto, so you must have crossed that giant mountain range, right?"
"Yes," Will nodded. Even if he had ten more lives, he never wanted to enter that mountain range again.
"My biological parents traveled north from Johto, trying to cross that mountain range by carriage to start a new life in Sinnoh. But halfway through, their two horses were accidentally injured by some Pokémon fighting over territory. All their supplies were destroyed. They could only travel on foot. My parents weren't the lucky ones. They left their lives there, and they also left me, who was only one or two years old at the time."
Milo's eyes were devoid of emotion as he said this. He really didn't have any feelings for his biological parents. At most, a little gratitude that they hadn't abandoned him, even in death.
"And then I was found by a Mr. Mime. She was the one who raised me. Her cry was 'Milo, Milo,' so I thought my name was Milo," he continued. "Later, under her care, I accidentally learned to use psychic powers. Just a little. I can't do anything amazing, but it's enough to communicate with other Pokémon. And then... she abandoned me."
Milo looked up and smiled, no negative emotion in his eyes. "She didn't abandon me on purpose. I know that. She just felt that I should live with humans, so she left me outside this camp."
"Do you want to go back to the mountains and live with her?" Will asked curiously. He now roughly understood why Milo was so afraid to go outside.
Anyone who can learn psychic powers through training is a genius. Their IQ is naturally higher than others. Milo, who had learned it as a teenager... or perhaps even as a child... must have an extremely high IQ. It was probably because of this that the memory of watching his parents die was so crystal clear. As he grew up and thought back on it, it would only feel more terrifying.
"I don't," Milo shook his head decisively.
"Why?" Will frowned. From the way he spoke, he clearly cared a great deal for the Mr. Mime.
"Meow," Meowscarada glanced at Milo. Hearing his words, she had already begun to look down on him. To be raised with such care by the Mr. Mime, only to not want to return to her side... no matter how nicely he put it, in her eyes, he was an ungrateful child.
"I don't want to go back to that mountain... but I want to take her with me to see the outside world. To see the human world," Milo said, smiling, unconcerned by Meowscarada's thoughts.
"Meow? Meow," she turned to look at him, then nodded in approval.
"Then why don't you go?"
"I know where she is. But I can't get there alone," Milo shook his head. He got up, walked to the window, and looked outside. "Everyone says psychics can see the future. But from here, I can't see a future at all."
"People who say they can't see a future have actually already seen their only future," Will said, picking up a book from the floor and tossing it to him. It was the biography of Queen Liz.
"But the future has many variables. If you don't dare to take the first step, then the future you see is the correct one. But if you dare to challenge it, then the future you see might be wrong," Will said, crossing his arms with a grin. "What the future becomes depends on fate. But whether you take that first step or not... that depends on you."
He had once thought he would never be able to fulfill his promise to Liz. He had even thought about just staying in Ever Grande City with Granny Sola. But until he had set foot in that flower garden, he never would have known that the future was so changeable. If he had stayed in Ever Grande and wasted the power of the Time Ripple, that would have been a true failure.
Fortunately, he had taken that step.
Milo looked down at the book in his hands. On the yellowed cover, the hand-drawn portrait of Liz was blurry, just like her life's work—unfathomable.
"If you're still afraid, then first go find a Pokémon who is willing to walk with you. Trust it, rely on it, and you will gain infinite courage."
"Meow!" Meowscarada pounced to Will's side, hugging his arm and nodding vigorously.
"Just like Liz and Lan, right?" Milo said, a little light returning to his eyes. He held up the book. On the cover, Liz was leaning against a giant Dragonite, who held her gently in its arms.
Perhaps it was because of him that she could be so fearless.
"Right."
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