Unbeknownst to them, the snow on Glaseado Mountain had stopped.
The surrounding temperature dropped a few more degrees, but fortunately, the Cold Resistance hadn't worn off yet.
It had been three hours since he left the ranch, which meant he had about two more hours to stay here.
That's enough! Naoki thought.
Koraidon was flying through the sky at a leisurely pace.
Although the snow had stopped, the sky remained a vast expanse of white, with no trace of sunlight.
Occasionally, a few Delibird would flap their wings and fly past, their tails bulging like little packages.
Naoki couldn't help but be drawn to those tails.
From what he knew, the tails of Delibird were hollow, and they would place food inside to transport.
To feed the waiting chicks in their nests atop cliffs, these Pokemon that dwelled in frigid regions were always moving food.
Compared to Pokemon like Froslass, which actively attacked humans, Delibird could be considered very kind-hearted.
They shared food with both humans and Pokemon and would voluntarily offer a portion of their food to people stranded in the snowy mountains to aid them.
It's said that every year, many people endangered in the snowy mountains are saved thanks to food from Delibird.
In real life, Delibird are quite endearing, and for some Trainers, they are great Pokemon partners.
Even in the Specials, the Delibird raised by the Masked Man Pryce once achieved the incredible feat of defeating Ho-oh.
Just then, Naoki suddenly sensed a gaze upon himself.
He turned to see a Delibird flying behind him.
When it realized it had been noticed, the Delibird waved its red wings at him, then sped up to reach his side, using its wings to pull out two Berries from its tail and handing them to Naoki.
"Hmm?"
Seeing this scene, Naoki was slightly taken aback.
His mind blanked for a second before he realized that covered in snow and dressed so thinly, the Delibird had mistaken him for a human in distress.
Thinking of this, Naoki couldn't help but find it both amusing and touching.
The Delibird chirped enthusiastically, without seeking any gratitude, and turned to fly away, continuing to gather food.
Seeing this, Naoki quickly called out, "Wait a moment, Delibird!"
"Bibi?"
The Delibird stopped in confusion.
It turned to look at the human and the creature beneath him, then suddenly seemed to realize something.
Those two Berries weren't enough for them!
For such a big Pokemon, a single Berry wouldn't satisfy its hunger.
But today, it had only found five Berries in total...
Having already given away two, it was left with three.
Finding food in the snow was extremely difficult.
Thinking of this, the Delibird felt a bit troubled.
After hesitating for a moment, it took out another Berry from its tail.
Seeing this, Naoki shook his head with a smile.
He returned the Berries to the Delibird, "Thank you very much for the food, but we don't need it. Keep it for yourself!"
"Bibi?"
The Delibird looked a bit puzzled.
Naoki looked at its grasping tail, noticing only two Berries left inside.
What a kind-hearted Delibird it was to give away more than half of its Berries at once.
Since Berries didn't grow in the snow, it meant these Berries had been plucked from far away by the Delibird.
Naoki pondered for a moment, then took out some of the food he had brought in his backpack.
This food was meant to lure the Glaceon back to the ranch.
It included honey buns, Berries, lucky puddings, and ham sandwiches.
Since there was plenty, Naoki decided to give some to this kind-hearted Delibird, thoughtfully placing the food inside its tail.
"Bibi?!"
The Delibird seemed surprised by this abundance of food.
Naoki smiled and said, "I have plenty of food. These are for you!"
"Bibi..."
Just then, Koraidon made a sound, reminding him that they were approaching their destination.
Naoki waved goodbye to the Delibird, "Goodbye, Delibird!"
He gathered his thoughts and focused on the Three-Point Pass ahead.
It was a very unique cliff, shaped like a Pokemon's hand.
For this reason, it was named Glaseado's Grasp by the people of the Paldea Region, and it was one of the "Paldea Ten Sights," the top ten proudest landmarks of the Paldea Region.
Koraidon slowly descended onto the cliff, and Naoki jumped down, standing atop it to observe the surroundings.
Here, he saw several Snorunt and a few Glalie.
But the presence of Glaceon was so much more captivating that these Pokemon didn't draw as much of his interest.
After scanning the area, Naoki found no trace of Glaceon.
After pondering for a moment, he got back on Koraidon and said, "Let's check below!"
"Aga-ss!"
Koraidon called out, spreading its wings as it glided down towards Glaseado's Grasp.
Soon, they landed in a valley at the bottom of the cliff.
This valley, too, was covered in a blanket of white snow, but being shielded by tall cliffs on all sides, it wasn't as cold as above.
Tall pine trees and some hardy plants grew in abundance there.
Near these pine trees, Naoki saw several winter-formed Deerling and Sawsbuck.
The Sawsbuck also noticed him, but given their gentle nature, they merely watched from afar without approaching.
Naoki paid them no mind and looked up to ensure they were directly under Glaseado's Grasp before beginning his search around.
Soon, he found a hidden cave entrance behind an inconspicuous snowdrift.
Naoki's eyes lit up, thinking, "This must be the cave Everett mentioned where he found Glaceon!"
He stepped towards the cave, intending to run straight in, but recalling Everett's encounter being chased by Beartic, he hesitated at the entrance, peering inside.
The cave seemed expansive; the end was not in sight, and there appeared to be forks inside.
"Koraidon, do you sense any strong Pokemon presence?" Naoki asked.
Koraidon sniffed carefully, then shook its head, "Aga-ss."
Not here? Could it be that the Pokemon residing in this cave wasn't home?
It had been snowing until just recently, and the Pokemon might have been out searching for food.
"Let's go in and take a look!"
Naoki began to venture deeper into the cave.
This cave was massive; it wasn't obvious from the outside, but once inside, a chilling sensation could be felt.
The cave was deep, and soon, a fork appeared ahead.
Standing at the fork, Naoki pondered deeply.
Which way to go?
He randomly chose a path and continued to go deeper. The cave inside was eerily silent, with only his and Koraidon's breathing audible.
If he listened closely, he could even hear a few drops of water dripping.
It was then that Koraidon seemed to have discovered something and glanced towards the downward path at the fork.
"Aga-ss?"
Naoki paused slightly and asked, "What's the matter, did you find something?"
Koraidon nodded its big head and led the way forward.
After about ten minutes of walking, they passed through a narrow, dark passage, and the space ahead suddenly widened.
This seemed to be a hidden Underground Cave.
Stalactites hung from the ceiling like icicles, and not far ahead lay a deep blue lake exuding white cold air.
In the center of the lake was a "Lake Island," upon which stood a crystal blue ice rock.
Koraidon's gaze settled on that ice rock.
It felt a powerful surge of Ice Type Energy emanating from it!
Naoki also looked toward it.
Huh? What is that?
He mounted Koraidon, and with a leap, Koraidon landed on the Lake Island.
Just as Naoki was about to take a closer look at the rock, a cold growl suddenly sounded from behind.
"Bui!"