As August held Dratini in his arms, Kaiser stood frozen, his gaze fixed on the Dragonair floating in the air.

  "…Is it really you…?"

  Above, Dragonair also noticed Kaiser.

  The image in its memory overpped with reality, and it slowly descended from the sky.

  As it drew closer, Kaiser finally saw the distinct X-shaped scar on its forehead—

  A perfect match to the Dratini he once knew.

  "Wuuu~"

  Dragonair let out a soft cry and lowered its head toward him.

  "It really is you…! You've grown so much…"

  With a trembling hand, Kaiser gently stroked Dragonair's head.

  He had thought he would never see it again in his lifetime—Yet fate had granted them this reunion.

  Tears welled in Dragonair's eyes as well.

  When it was still a Dratini, it was Kaiser who had protected it.

  Now, man and dragon embraced, crying openly.

  After the emotional reunion, Kaiser wiped his eyes and took a deep breath to steady himself. He turned to August with genuine gratitude in his voice:

  "Thank you, August."

  If not for him, who knew when he would have ever seen Dragonair again?

  "Thank me for what?" August shrugged, holding up the Safari Ball in his hand. He gnced at the Dratini curled up comfortably on his shoulder and said casually,

  "I'm just here to keep my promise to Dratini."

  He didn't think he deserved any credit.

  Even if he hadn't been involved, someday a certain spiky-haired kid with a Pikachu would have come along and reunited Dragonair and Kaiser anyway.

  Dratini was probably Dragonair's child…

  That reminded Kaiser of something.

  "You mentioned a promise earlier—what was that about?"

  "Oh, that's a long story." August thought for a moment.

  "Let's see… about a year ago, this little guy sneaked into the Gyarados territory in the nature reserve by following the river. It almost got eaten."

  "I happened to be passing by with Gardevoir, so we saved it. Since then, it got really attached to me and stayed with me for a while."

  "But at the time, I was busy chasing down poachers, so I sent it back to Dragon's Valley. Before I left, I made a promise—if I ever left the nature reserve to travel, I'd come back and take it with me to see the world."

  Kaiser listened, finally understanding the bond between August and Dratini.

  It was almost like history repeating itself—

  Just as he had once protected Dratini, now August had done the same for its child.

  Dragonair, standing beside them, wore a helpless expression.

  Of course, it didn't want its child to leave… but at the same time, it had never been able to control its little troublemaker.

  August noticed its hesitation and reassured it with a grin.

  "Don't worry—I'll take good care of this kid."

  "Wuuu~" Dragonair let out a long cry, as if giving its final instructions.

  Thanks to the Aura of Viridian, August understood it perfectly.

  "You want me to keep an eye on Gardevoir, so she doesn't bully Dratini…?"

  August's face froze.

  He turned to his Gardevoir, who was pretending to admire the scenery as if she had nothing to do with this.

  He let out a heavy sigh.

  "…Gardevoir, oh, Gardevoir."

  "I've told you so many times—don't go around bullying wild Pokémon. Try to act like a proper dy for once! Have you even noticed what people say about you in the Safari Zone?!"

  "Have some shame!"

  Gardevoir lowered her head, looking pitiful and remorseful.

  If this had been any other Trainer, they might have softened at the sight.

  But August?

  He knew exactly what kind of Pokémon Gardevoir was.

  Every time she got scolded, she would apologize immediately… only to do it again the next time.

  He had lectured her countless times—had she ever truly changed?

  No.

  At most, she switched tactics.

  Now that she was Elite Four-tier, her legend had spread throughout both the nature reserve and the Safari Zone—

  The fearsome "Demon Lady" Gardevoir.

  Still, August knew better than anyone that changing Gardevoir's personality wasn't something that could be done overnight.

  "…Sigh." He let out a long breath before turning back to Dragonair.

  "Don't worry, she won't bully Dratini."

  Gardevoir nodded immediately, putting on her sweetest, most elegant smile.

  "…Really?"

  Kaiser, a victim of Gardevoir's antics, was highly skeptical.

  For a brief moment, he felt two piercing gres lock onto him.

  He immediately shut up.

  Dragonair hesitated.

  It gazed at Dratini, who looked up at it with bright, hopeful eyes.

  In the end…

  It nodded.

  As a mother, it couldn't bring itself to say no to its child's eager dreams.

  Besides, it trusted August.

  Dratini would be safer and grow stronger under his care.

  "Mi-chuu~!"

  Dratini let out a cheerful cry, rubbing its white snout against Dragonair in farewell.

  Then, it turned and hopped toward the Safari Ball.

  "Wait—don't use a Safari Ball."

  Kaiser suddenly stopped August.

  "…Why?" August raised an eyebrow.

  "If people find out you caught a Dratini here, those lunatics will swarm the Safari Zone again."

  "This goes against the official rules, but… screw the rules."

  Kaiser rummaged through his bag and pulled out a Poké Ball with a yellow lightning bolt symbol.

  "…A Fast Ball?"

  August recognized it immediately.

  "You know about these?" Kaiser was a little surprised.

  Then, he shrugged it off.

  "This was made by an old friend of mine back in Johto when I was younger. It's supposed to make catching fast Pokémon easier. I don't need it anymore, so take it."

  "…Ehh."

  August hesitated.

  Technically speaking, Dratini's final evolution, Dragonite, only had a base Speed stat of 80—which meant it didn't meet the 100 Speed threshold for a Fast Ball's increased effectiveness.

  But then again—

  Considering that real-world Dragonite could fly around the pnet in 24 hours, speed stats were probably meaningless anyway.

  Besides, the Fast Ball looked cool.

  Even if it wasn't effective, it was aesthetically pleasing.

  With a smile, August gently tapped the Fast Ball against Dratini's forehead.

  SHWOOP.

  A red light enveloped Dratini, pulling it inside.

  Thud.

  The ball wobbled once, then fell still.

  A notification popped up.

  [Pokémon Caught]

  Dratini (♀)

  Type: Dragon

  Ability: Marvel Scale

  Friendship: Trust

  Level: 9 (Beginner Rank)

  Moves: Twister, Extreme Speed, Aqua Jet

  Held Item: None

  Compared to Gardevoir's ridiculously overpowered stats, this was what a normal Pokémon's profile looked like.

  But August wasn't worried.

  He was sure that, with time and training—

  Dratini would grow just as strong as Gardevoir someday.

  "Welcome to the team, Dratini."