Legend of the Lake

The ancient stone slab inscriptions in the Sinnoh region tell of a legend: each of the three vast lakes harbors a legendary Pokémon.

However, this rumor has never been confirmed—no one has seen these Pokémon with their own eyes.

Because there is an additional part to the legend:

To see the legendary Pokémon residing in the lakes, one must either share a deep bond with it or possess a matching quality and be recognized by it.

Over the years, very few have met these requirements and coincidentally arrived at the lakes.

But those familiar with Pokémon know that the legends in the Pokémon world are rarely baseless or mere fabrications; they are generally grounded in truth.

Reid was aware of this, too.

Though he hadn't personally gained such recognition or seen them, being a transmigrator has its perks—knowing bits and pieces of great and trivial matters alike.

Yet now, Mr. Justin had informed him that he had seen the silhouette within the Lake Verity, one of the three lakes behind the Rowan Research Lab.

"Not just me. The Professor and everyone else present from the research lab saw it as well."

While they were en route to Lake Verity on a Dodrio, Justin continued: "It would have been reasonable if only the Professor had seen it, but how could someone like me get recognized by a legendary Pokémon?"

Noticing Justin's tone full of self-awareness, Reid responded, "And you've never seen it before, but suddenly now everyone can? That in itself is a problem."

"Exactly."

Reid began to ponder.

The Professor and Justin hadn't undergone any significant change, so the only logical variable was the legendary Pokémon in the lake.

As Justin recounted the events, Reid got a clearer picture of the situation.

At first, the Professor and the others were thrilled. After all, much of the information about legendary Pokémon is shrouded in mystery, so they intended to study it without causing any disturbance.

But as time passed, the Professor began noticing something was wrong.

The Pokémon's appearances became more frequent, and more people and Pokémon could see it. Within a few days, it started flying around the lake day and night without rest.

Most recently, it had begun emitting powerful bursts of psychic energy.

Justin had referred to this as the Pokémon being "sick."

When it involves a legendary Pokémon, everything requires extreme caution. After much consideration, the Professor decided to summon Reid back.

Whether as a former assistant or as the current Sinnoh Champion, Reid was clearly the most suitable candidate.

Still... Reid couldn't help but question it all.

What kind of sickness makes a Pokémon behave like it's having mental breakdowns with occasional outbursts?

As far as he recalled, none.

Besides, do legendary Pokémon even get sick? Especially the ones from Sinnoh's mythology?

To Reid's questions, Justin gave a firm response.

Firm enough to feel rather dubious.

It was then that Typhlosion, who had been walking silently, lifted its head to gaze into the distance before turning to Reid.

"Typhlosion," it grumbled.

Reid understood.

He turned to Justin and asked, "How frequent are these outbursts of psychic power?"

"They happen both day and night, roughly every 12 to 24 hours..."

Before he could finish speaking, another wave of psychic energy surged from the distant forest.

Justin's eyes widened.

"But it's only been ten minutes! How could it happen again so soon? Strange…"

Barely had the words left his mouth when the psychic energy exploded for the third time.

BOOM!!!

This time, the wave was even stronger than the previous two. Despite the distance between them and the source, they could clearly feel the psychic energy in the air, thick and palpable.

"T-T-The third time... how is this possible...?"

Justin swallowed nervously.

These repeated, inexplicable events were unmistakable signs that something major had happened at Lake Verity.

Something big!

Justin wanted to tell Reid about the situation and let him go ahead on his own, but when he turned around, Reid and Typhlosion were already gone from the back of Dodrio.

Meanwhile, at the mist-enshrouded shores of Lake Valor, a group of researchers in lab coats huddled under the trees, nervously watching the distance.

After confirming no immediate danger, they breathed a sigh of relief, though their expressions remained tense.

The youngest among them looked particularly shaken, panting heavily.

"How... how did it leave its usual territory so quickly? And... why did it attack us?"

Though the others weren't as visibly panicked, they were equally unsettled.

Even they couldn't understand why things had escalated this way.

Why had the legendary Pokémon left its designated area and launched an attack, despite them showing no signs of hostility?

They had even taken special care not to carry any Pokémon with them and had temporarily relocated all the Pokémon living nearby to ensure its peace of mind.

But clearly, their efforts hadn't been appreciated.

The thought of being "chased" by a legendary Pokémon was enough to make them all feel uneasy.

"Everyone, calm down. Panicking won't solve anything," came a strong, authoritative voice.

The researchers immediately looked up, eyes fixed on the tall figure who hadn't shown much emotion throughout the ordeal, still observing the lake with a sharp gaze.

Relief washed over them, as if they had found their pillar of support, or perhaps they were simply more afraid of the elderly, white-haired figure than of the legendary Pokémon itself.

"Professor Rowan, what should we do next?"

"Should we retreat? Or continue monitoring?"

"Should we contact Officer Jenny in town?"

The researchers fired off their questions, but Professor Rowan remained silent, his eyes still fixed on the lake.

Based on his vast experience, he judged that the attack they had narrowly avoided was likely not intentional; it just happened to land near them.

The fact that the Pokémon hadn't launched another attack confirmed his theory.

But knowing this didn't make much of a difference.

Because the Pokémon's "condition" had clearly worsened.

In this state, they had no way to approach it safely, let alone calm it down.

It seemed their only option was to retreat.

But if they left it alone...

Professor Rowan thought for a moment and said, "Take all the equipment and leave the area immediately. Return to the lab."

"What about you, Professor? We can't just leave you here..."

Before the question could be finished, a deafening roar drowned out their conversation.