Capítulo 1174: Yuga's Mission
The aircraft carrying Yuga quickly and smoothly arrived at Aether Paradise, allowing him to witness the largest and most luxurious conservation area he had ever seen.
One could say that Aether Paradise is a massive ecological park formed by combining various types of smaller conservation area. It includes simulated wetlands, forests, deserts, and numerous other specialized environments. In essence, it's like a community of conservation area.
Setting aside the construction costs, just the maintenance and management expenses alone are staggering, calculated by the day and even by the hour, with every second consuming funds. It's practically like burning money.
At this point, Yuga finally understood why the League needs the support of the Aether Foundation to establish a branch in Alola. This single ecological park alone hints at many underlying issues.
Aether Paradise houses many Pokémon rescued from various regions. Whether it's a common Caterpie or a rare Ralts, they can all be found here.
Additionally, there is a dedicated department focused on breeding Pokémon that are either rare or nearing extinction. The revival and breeding of fossil Pokémon is also a research project here. To achieve these goals, they have hired numerous highly skilled breeders and scientists at competitive salaries.
In terms of hardware, Aether Paradise even surpasses most of the League's breeding bases.
Led by Lusamine, Faba, and Wicke, Yuga gained a thorough understanding of the Aether Foundation's capabilities.
Having been invited to Aether Paradise as a guest, Yuga had already reported this to the League in advance. After all, as an elite League trainer, his every move often represents the League, especially when it involves an influential organization like the Aether Foundation.
The League Headquarters even make a call, expressing their hope that Yuga would do his best to foster good relations with the Aether Foundation. For certain information that wasn't particularly sensitive, Yuga could selectively disclose some details if the Aether Foundation showed interest.
Apart from this, Yuga also received an important temporary assignment.
After touring most of Aether Paradise's facilities, Faba said to Yuga, "Gym Leader Shimizu, we have a new research project here. Would you like to take a look?"
"A new project? Then I must take a good look," Yuga replied with a smile. "What area of research is it about?"
Lusamine replied, "Gym Leader Shimizu, no need to rush. You'll know soon enough when you see it."
"Then I look forward to it!" Yuga said with an expectant expression.
Led by Lusamine and the others, Yuga entered a spacious room filled with all sorts of equipment.
Faba approached a machine as tall as a person and introduced it, "Gym Leader Shimizu, you know that we've been researching Ultra Wormholes and Ultra Beasts for a long time. This machine is our greatest achievement so far. It can simulate the effect of an Ultra Aura and resonate with the Ultra Aura of another world, thereby opening an Ultra Wormhole."
"Is it that powerful?" This time, Yuga was genuinely surprised. He hadn't expected the Aether Foundation to have developed such advanced equipment. With this, they wouldn't need his help; they could simply enter Ultra Space on their own!
However, Yuga had only been surprised for a few seconds before he saw Faba's bitter expression. Faba said, "The intended effect is like that, but we don't actually know the specific properties of the Ultra Aura. The effect simulated by the machine cannot truly resonate effectively with an Ultra Aura, so this machine is still just a prototype." In fact, it could hardly even be called a prototype.
Yuga thought: So, after all this, they're still trying to indirectly ask me for help.
"I see…" Yuga forced a smile, pretending not to catch the hint in Faba's words.
Seeing that Yuga didn't respond to Faba's suggestion, Lusamine asked, "I wonder what Gym Leader Shimizu thinks about Ultra Beasts and Ultra Space?"
Hearing this, Yuga immediately made a disgusted face and said, "What's so great about Ultra Beasts? They're just like alien creatures, even abducting people! It's obvious they're bad news."
Lusamine: …
Faba: …
"Ahem… it's not quite fair to say that," Lusamine responded with a forced smile. "Ultra Beasts are a new type of Pokémon with no recorded data. If we could thoroughly study them, they might bring unexpected benefits to our world, like enhancing biodiversity."
"But introducing a new species often brings another issue: species invasion," Yuga replied seriously.
Lusamine: … Why can't this person speak normally?
"We can't look at things from just one angle; there are many benefits to researching Ultra Beasts, such as…"
Lusamine continued explaining the various advantages of studying Ultra Beasts, but Yuga acted as though he didn't understand the underlying hints in their conversation.
"Gym Leader Shimizu, no matter what, we sincerely hope you can lend us a hand…" Faba explained tirelessly, almost losing his voice.
Sensing the timing was right, Yuga spoke up, "The Alola region has been part of the League for a long time, and the League is also planning to establish a branch here. Our hope is to reach further cooperation with the Aether Foundation."
Ah, so this is what they were waiting for! Faba couldn't help but think.
"Of course, we will definitely support the League's work in Alola, and we'll also assist with the establishment of the branch," Lusamine said after exchanging a glance with Faba.
Yuga looked into Lusamine's eyes for a few seconds, pausing briefly before continuing, "That's not quite what I mean. I mean that we hope the Aether Foundation and the League can become one family."
Wow! This immediately changed the expressions of Lusamine, Faba, and Wicke. Was he trying to take advantage of the situation?
Yuga's meaning was clear: for the Aether Foundation to merge into the League and become a part of it.
Seeing that Lusamine and the others were silent, Yuga continued, "Joining the League wouldn't be a bad thing for the Aether Foundation. Going forward, the Foundation's activities across various regions would receive the League's support and facilitation."
They would also be subject to the League's restrictions! Lusamine thought to herself. But she also understood that Yuga wouldn't bring this up today unless the League had been planning it for some time.
If the Aether Foundation were just an ordinary private organization, the League wouldn't need to push them to this extent. The issue is that the Foundation's power in Alola is too significant—especially its economic influence, which controls nearly half of Alola's economy. In such circumstances, if they're unwilling to merge with the League, how could the League feel secure in establishing a branch here?
Seeing Lusamine's troubled expression, Yuga smiled and reached into his space bag, taking out the gift he had brought with him today.
He placed an incubator containing a Pokémon egg on Lusamine's desk and said, "This is a gesture of the League's goodwill."
Yuga was merely the starting point for the Aether Foundation's potential merger with the League. If the two sides did reach an agreement, the next steps, such as the League providing development assistance to the Foundation and the Foundation showing its commitment to joining the League, would be matters for the League's Department of Foreign Affairs and the Aether Foundation to handle. Yuga's role would be complete.
However, Yuga's role as the catalyst was crucial and would ultimately determine whether this merger would succeed.
Lusamine looked at the Pokémon egg on the desk and asked with curiosity, "What is this?"
"An Ultra Beast's egg," Yuga answered slowly and clearly.
"Are you serious? Is this really an Ultra Beast egg?" Lusamine asked, her breath quickening, and Faba and Wicke nearby had their eyes alight with excitement. With this Ultra Beast egg, they might just be able to unravel the mysteries of the Ultra Aura, meaning their research machine might actually be completed.
"It's the real deal!" Yuga confirmed.
Though he didn't particularly want humans to delve too deeply into studying or disturbing the Ultra Beasts, he doubted that the Aether Foundation would be able to uncover the secrets of the Ultra Aura just from a single Pokémon egg.
The Ultra Aura in the Pokémon world is akin to the divinity found in Legendary Pokémon. If humanity were capable of deciphering it, they would have already unlocked the secrets of Legendary Pokémon.
From the histories of the ancient clans like the People of the Water, the People of the Dakness, and the Dragonid People, one can see that in ancient and primeval times, the Pokémon world was imbued with divinity everywhere. There were many Legendary Pokémon, revered as totems by various clans.
However, over time, this divinity faded, the numbers of Legendary Pokémon dwindled, and the Pokémon world evolved into what it is today.
Many Ultra Beasts possess abilities akin to the Tier 2 Legendary Pokémon in the Pokémon world. Yuga boldly speculated that the history of the Ultra Space might not be as long as that of the Pokémon world; its current state could correspond to the ancient or primeval era of the Pokémon world.
Ancient humans in the Pokémon world were incredibly skilled, with unique powers and technologies that modern humans lack, and they used these to create various advanced civilizations.
Despite all this, they never managed to decode divinity. For the Aether Foundation to fully understand something akin to the Ultra Aura was going to be extremely difficult.
Staring at the Pokémon egg, Lusamine hesitated. "Could you give us some time to consider this?" No matter how powerful the Aether Foundation was, they couldn't directly oppose a giant like the League.
"Of course! We eagerly await your response at any time," Yuga replied with a warm smile. "Ms. Lusamine, you should know that joining the League would be a win-win for both the League and the Aether Foundation."
Lusamine nodded, "I understand. I'll get back to you and the League as soon as possible. I have some matters to attend to, so I'll leave you here for now." She took Faba and the Pokémon egg with her and left quickly, instructing Wicke to continue showing Yuga around the Aether Paradise.
Under Wicke's guidance, Yuga continued his tour of the Aether Paradise.
The Aether Paradise housed many rare Pokémon. Yuga spotted young forms of pseudo-legendary Pokémon like Dratini, Beldum, and Gible.
After visiting an area housing Trapinch, Yuga suddenly heard the sounds of a battle. Following the source, he saw a young man commanding an Umbreon and a Lycanroc.
Yuga immediately recognized the Lycanroc, especially the scars on its body that were etched into his memory.
"That is young Master Gladion, the son of President Lusamine and Dr. Mohn," Wicke explained to Yuga upon noticing him watching.
Yuga nodded to show he understood, but Wicke's voice seemed to draw the other side's attention, and the Lycanroc immediately noticed Yuga.
"Grr! Grr!"
In the blink of an eye, the Lycanroc charged toward Yuga, swiping a claw at him, clearly still holding a grudge against Yuga for driving it out of the pack.
Seeing this, both Wicke beside Yuga and Gladion in the distance cried out in alarm. Wicke instinctively closed her eyes, while Gladion shouted a command to stop it.
However, before the Lycanroc could reach Yuga, Gengar appeared above it, using psychic energy to lift it into the air.
"Awooo! Awooo!"
The Lycanroc struggled frantically to escape Gengar's control, but the power gap between them was too vast, rendering its efforts useless.
Seeing that Yuga was unharmed, both Wicke and Gladion breathed a sigh of relief, and Gladion quickly ran over to apologize to Yuga.
"I'm sorry, sir. My Lycanroc has never shown aggression towards people before. I don't know why it suddenly acted this way today."
"It's alright," Yuga said with a smile, shaking his head. "You must've just recently captured this Lycanroc."
"Yes," Gladion nodded.
"Well, that explains it. It holds a grudge against me because I drove it out of its pack. It's not surprising it would react this way upon seeing me," Yuga explained, gesturing for Gengar to release the Lycanroc.
Upon hearing Yuga's answer, both Wicke and Gladion were a bit stunned. How could he talk so nonchalantly about bullying a Pokémon?
The Lycanroc continued to glare at Yuga, its eyes still burning with anger. It only refrained from acting due to Gladion's calming presence and its fear of Gengar.
"We had an agreement before. Since you lost the bet, you need to stick to the terms. So why the bitter stare now? Sore loser?" Yuga said, smirking slightly at the Lycanroc, which only served to make it angrier.
Gladion didn't know what this agreement or bet Yuga was talking about, so he didn't say anything hastily. However, he was a bit curious as to why Yuga hadn't captured this Lycanroc himself.
This Lycanroc, at pseudo-Elite level, would have been quite difficult for him and his Umbreon to capture if not for its prior injuries.
Based on Gengar's earlier display, it was clear that Yuga could defeat Lycanroc with ease.
Could it be that Yuga was so powerful he didn't see a pseudo-Elite-level Lycanroc as worthy? Gladion wondered silently.
Seeing Gladion's inquisitive look toward Yuga, the perceptive Wicke quickly introduced him. "Master Gladion, I haven't had the chance to introduce him. This is the Gym Leader of Verdanturf Gym in the Hoenn region and an Hall of Fame Trainer of the League."
A Gym Leader? A Hall of Fame Trainer? That impressive!
Gladion's eyes lit up at Wicke's introduction.
"Can I challenge you?"
Gladion was eager to grow stronger, for only then would he have a chance to go out and search for his missing father—Dr. Mohn.
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