Chapter 262: Just a Formality
"...Well, we can try."
"Phew."
Will sighed in relief.
He had finally coaxed Lorelei into becoming the Rainbow Hero.
It was impossible for there to be no benefits to being the Rainbow Hero. Ho-Oh liked to show off, but it wasn't stingy. For a Rainbow Hero who completed the trials and stood before it, Ho-Oh would definitely give some benefits that ordinary people could never touch.
And there was another point.
As the chosen candidate, before Lorelei personally reached Mount Tensei with the Rainbow Wing to meet Ho-Oh...
Raikou, Suicune, and Entei.
These three Legendary Beasts were not only the ones testing Lorelei but also her protectors.
As long as Lorelei passed their respective trials and still held the Rainbow Wing, she would receive the protection of the corresponding beast.
Simply put, she would get three Legendary bodyguards. That was a rare privilege.
"So what do we do now?"
"Head for Mount Tensei."
Will thought for a moment. He couldn't say for sure where Ho-Oh was right now. But with the Rainbow Wing, going to either the peak of Mount Tensei or the Bell Tower in Ecruteak City would work. One of them would definitely lead to Ho-Oh.
"Oh, where is Mount Tensei?"
"The Cloudsea Mountain Range."
Will turned to look northeast, toward Mt. Silver.
Over a hundred years ago, when Leaf was leading him to the Dragonite territory, he had heard her mention this place.
The Cloudsea Mountain Range was actually the southern section of the Mt. Silver range. Geographically, it was classified as part of the Kanto region, but in reality, it sat right on the border between Kanto and Johto.
Overall, Mount Tensei was closer to them than Ecruteak City.
"Let's go!"
The ship docked just then.
Lorelei tucked the Rainbow Wing into an inner pocket of her clothes, picked up Will, and leisurely walked east.
"Rargh."
Lucario turned to look at a corner of the Cherrygrove port. In the shadows, a pair of red eyes like small flames were staring at them.
He withdrew his gaze and followed Lorelei. Now that he knew what it was from Will, Lucario wasn't as curious. Since the gaze held no malice, he let it be.
This wasn't Lorelei's first time in the Johto region. As a child, she had come with her father on his business trips. Especially Cherrygrove City, the southern port city of Johto; it wasn't unfamiliar to her.
So, Cherrygrove didn't hold much allure for Lorelei.
They had some afternoon tea, bought supplies, and set off on the journey to Mount Tensei.
Having Lucario around was great. He could carry an extra large backpack filled with all sorts of living essentials—tents, sleeping bags, pots, pans, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar... they had everything.
Leaving Cherrygrove from the east, on the way to the Mt. Silver range, they had to pass through a barren, rocky mountain area.
This rocky mountain was a paradise for certain Electric, Rock, and Steel-type Pokémon.
Passing through, they saw many Geodude, Magnemite, Diglett, Skarmory...
Probably because this rocky mountain was rich in minerals and generated a special magnetic field, it attracted these Pokémon.
Will patted a large rock by the road, then turned to look at the peak of the rocky mountain.
"Piplup, come on! What are you doing over there?" Lorelei walked over and picked Will up.
"Raikou."
Will pointed a flipper.
"?" (x2)
Lorelei and Lucario looked in the direction he pointed. The peak was empty; there was nothing to see.
"The Tree of Beginning told me. Raikou is waiting for us ahead." Will grinned. With the Tree of Beginning as his eyes, he was basically a penguin with a mini-map hack.
Forget Raikou; he knew roughly where Entei and Suicune were, too.
"Oh? So what do we do?" Lorelei looked down at Will.
"Go find it, of course. Raikou's trial should be 'Courage.' You don't lack that, do you?" Will spread his flippers.
Since Lorelei had been chosen by Ho-Oh, it meant Ho-Oh believed she could pass the three trials.
Besides, the trials of Raikou, Entei, and Suicune tested 'Courage,' 'Justice,' and 'Kindness,' respectively.
Will felt Lorelei didn't lack any of these qualities, so he wasn't worried about her at all. Nothing to be afraid of. Just charge forward.
"Oh! Of course! I don't even know how to write the word 'fear'!"
Lorelei laughed, hugged Will, and charged toward the peak. Lucario followed closely behind.
Fifteen minutes later.
A startling roar came from above, accompanied by a bolt of lightning.
CRACK!
The lightning struck right in front of Lorelei, scaring her pale.
She looked up and met Raikou's fierce red eyes.
"Damn it! How dare you scare me! Piplup, use Hydro Pump!"
"...Are you serious?" Will raised an eyebrow, looking at Lorelei.
"What are you afraid of? Hit him! If he dares to hit me, I'll take this out. If he's got the guts, let him destroy this too!"
Lorelei pulled the Rainbow Wing from her chest. In the sunlight, the feather's rainbow light shone brilliantly.
"Fine."
Will thought about it, then nodded. He opened his beak and fired a massive Hydro Pump at Raikou!
Raikou hopped backward, easily dodging Will's attack.
It looked down at Lorelei and Will, its gaze shifting to the Rainbow Wing in Lorelei's hand. It raised an eyebrow.
Normally, its trial wasn't this simple. It was actually the hardest of the three beasts. At the very least, it would fight a few rounds with the candidate, pushing them to desperation to test if they could rise again.
But... it was afraid of accidentally destroying the feather with a lightning bolt.
Although Raikou couldn't see it, it knew very well that the little lunatic (Marshadow) was hiding in the shadows nearby. If Raikou broke the feather, that little lunatic would definitely pounce and bite it.
After a moment's thought, Raikou swished its tail and leaped away casually.
Anyway, the Rainbow Trial was just a formality. When a person held the Rainbow Wing and the feather hadn't lost its light, they had effectively already passed the final test: Ho-Oh's test.
As for the trials of the three beasts, they were just for show, a procedure.
Someone chosen by Ho-Oh couldn't possibly fail such simple trials.
Besides, Lorelei had already shown her courage. And not reckless courage, but intelligent courage. Even if that "intelligence" was a bit of petty cleverness.
That was enough to earn Raikou's approval.
"ROAR!"
With another thunderous roar, Raikou's trial ended abruptly.
"He just left?"
"Mm." Will nodded.
He had to admit, Lorelei was smart this time. Even he hadn't thought of using the Rainbow Wing as a shield.
However, this probably only worked on Raikou, who disliked trouble. Entei and Suicune wouldn't be passed so easily.
But their trials weren't hard to begin with. Especially Entei's.
A companion acknowledged by two "Aura Guardians"... did her level of justice need to be judged by a mere Legendary Beast?
"Tch, boring. By the way, Raikou is so ugly."
"Shh! Keep your voice down, do you want to die?" Will quickly covered Lorelei's mouth, looking around nervously.
Raikou had the most explosive temper of the three. Calling Entei or Suicune ugly, they might not care. Calling Raikou ugly? Be careful he doesn't come back and zap you.
And... Raikou actually wasn't ugly. His coolness was just... niche. He might not be popular among the three beasts, but someone liked him.
"Piplup, where is Suicune?!"
Having succeeded once, Lorelei looked at Will eagerly. She just wanted to meet Suicune and try to catch it!
"Suicune is still far away. You have to pass Entei first. He's down there."
Will shook his head and pointed to the low plains below the rocky mountain.
"Oh, Entei. Entei is kinda cute too. Let's go find him."
Will was speechless but let Lorelei have her way.
An hour later.
They met Entei on a somewhat desolate grassland. The two-meter-tall lion stood directly in their path.
"Alright! How do we do this trial!"
Lorelei stuck the Rainbow Wing in her hair, then strode up to Entei, looking up at the warm, big cat.
Entei looked down at her.
"Not talking? Playing cool?"
Lorelei jumped up and placed Will on top of Entei's head. Then she reached out and rubbed the thick fur on Entei's neck.
Will: "$_$"
Entei: "..."
"Pardon the intrusion," Will said to the Entei beneath him.
"...Why do you follow her?" Entei sighed, his eyes helpless.
It was a good thing he had a good temper and a gentle personality. If it were Raikou, a thunderbolt would have definitely come down by now.
"No reason. She's my friend. Besides, the trials of you three are a piece of cake for her. How about you let us pass?"
Will started negotiating with Entei. Mainly because in this situation, Entei had no way to verify if Lorelei was "just" in a short time.
"Wielders of Aura... I recognize your judgment."
Entei nodded slightly. Like Raikou, he didn't want to waste time on this. Having Will and Lucario by her side was proof enough of Lorelei's justice.
"Any hints on Suicune's trial?"
"I do not know his thoughts, but the theme is nothing more than 'kindness, peace,' and the like. You need not worry. Since ancient times, no one chosen by Ho-Oh has ever been stuck at the trials. Nowadays, we are basically just going through the motions."
Entei shook his head and took a step back, dodging Lorelei's increasingly presumptuous little hands.
Given the contributions of Aura Guardians to the world since ancient times, and their bonds with many gods, he could treat Will and Lucario as equals in conversation.
~~~
Get early access to 30+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
~~~
Every 5 new reviews = 1 extra chapters
Every 150 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter