Elf: Who told him to be an investigator!

Chapter 276 Repaying the Life-Saving Grace

"cooperate?"

"I do not know your purpose in joining forces with me."

When faced with the "cooperation" suddenly proposed by the campfire, Ze Shu immediately expressed his doubts.

The campfire opened its mouth: "I...."

Ze Shu suddenly asked, "Did you burn down the weather research institute?"

The campfire glanced away slightly, then admitted, "I started it."

Her nine-tailed fox raised its elegant head beside her and whimpered, "Whoa!"

Rather, I said I burned it!

Ze Shu asked again, "Did you catch those floating bubbles?"

The campfire lowered its head and admitted, "I caught it."

Her nine tails unfurled, displaying nine long, elegant tails: "Whoa!"

Then I'm an accomplice!

Ze Shu: "Then what makes you think you can convince me that you genuinely want to cooperate with me? What if you're just trying to lure me to your Lava Team's hideout and then ambush me?"

Hmm... Ze Shu thought that this might not be a bad idea.

"And your Nine-Tails seems quite proud of doing this kind of thing," Ze Shu added.

"Huh...."

'

Campfire glanced subconsciously at the Nine-Tailed Fox, which was standing to the side with its head held high and nine tails raised, and felt a little embarrassed.

The nine-tailed fox quickly lowered its head: "Ugh..."

It simply wanted to share the blame for the campfire, so that the campfire wouldn't be subjected to too much condemnation.

But it seems to have the opposite effect...

The campfire naturally didn't blame the Nine-Tailed Fox, but faced with Ze Shu's questioning, she opened her mouth and said weakly and palely, "I used to be... bewitched, but now... I want to be a good person."

"My purpose in joining Team Lava was simply to fight against strong opponents and improve myself, but it seems..."

This lava team isn't what I initially thought...

"Please believe me, since I joined Team Magma, the only action I've ever taken that could truly be called a crime is... this time, the fire at the Weather Research Institute."

"After doing that... my conscience has been bothering me ever since, which is why I went back to the destroyed weather research institute three days ago, and that's how I met you guys who were camping there... It was that encounter with you that gave me the opportunity to calmly reflect on whether my actions were right or wrong..."

'

Zeki: "Really? I don't believe it. I've heard that criminals often return to the crime scene to admire their masterpieces. I doubt that kind of behavior stems from any guilt."

bonfire:"----"

She lowered her head and fell silent, as if she had nothing more to say.

But Ze Shu looked at the campfire, biting her lower lip tightly. Her slightly depressed black hair covered her eyes. Compared to the confident, elegant, and older sister-like image of the Lava Team cadre "Fire Goose" in my memory, she was now more girlish, more naive, and more confused.

"Alright," Ze Shu said, "I believe you."

The campfire looked up in surprise.

Ze Shu said, "As you said, let's rescue those floating bubbles first, and then make further plans. So, where did the Fire Goose go? And why did your Lava Team capture so many floating bubbles this time? Can you tell me?"

The campfire nodded heavily.

"Because you destroyed our Team Magma's base on Mt. Chimney, Team Magma's research on the legendary Earth Pokémon, Groudon, was interrupted, so we had to resort to other methods... to awaken Groudon."

"This method, compared to before, is somewhat simple and crude..."

"Groudon is asleep, it seems... because the natural energy within its body is scarce, making it unable to break the seal."

"And the Float Bubble Pokémon, which can freely switch between sun, rain, and snow cloud forms, and can conjure up sunny, rainy, and snowy scenes, is the most natural" Pokémon... and also the Pokémon with the most abundant natural energy within its body...

'

"So...they wanted to capture so many floating bubbles, and in the place closest to Groudon's sleeping cave, to make the floating bubbles release their natural energy, allowing Groudon to absorb it, awaken, break the seal, and then unleash its power to fill every corner of the world..."

"This is Team Lava's plan."

"Currently, the floating bubbles have all been moved here, northeast of Chimney Mountain—Akiba Town."

"If Huoyan wants to escape, she will most likely escape here."

In front of Autumn Leaf Town, a man chewed a piece of bubble gum by the campfire, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

Akiba Town is an agricultural town adjacent to Meteor Falls. Its color is brown, and the volcanic ash that occasionally drifts from Chimney Mountain makes the crops grow very lush, allowing the residents to live a good life. Izawa remembers that the first time he came to Hoenn, he went straight here to ask Dr. "Meteor Maniac" Solans for a meteorite.

However, the people of Qiuye Town now have a faint look of worry on their faces.

"It's...it's you..."

An elderly man who had stopped by the roadside saw Ze Shu arrive and his eyes widened instantly. He awkwardly rushed forward, then grasped Ze Shu's hand with trembling fingers, his eyes fervent: "My...my benefactor! Do you remember me?"

Ze Shu was taken aback; he genuinely couldn't recall who the old man in front of him was, so he asked, "You are...?"

'

The old man said excitedly, "Back then, when I was almost killed by a large wolfhound, you and this young lady saved me from its clutches. You are both my benefactors!"

The "Miss" he was referring to was Xiao Lan.

Ze Shu and Xiao Lan looked at each other.

It was only then that I gradually began to recall.

When they came to Autumnleaf Town to find Dr. Solans, they rescued an old man who was being attacked by a giant wolfhound released by Team Lava. The old man was a fossil fanatic, and he had argued with Team Lava because they had blocked Meteor Falls. So, Zeki learned about Team Lava blocking Meteor Falls from him.

"So it was you!"

Seeing Ze Shu and Xiao Lan brought back memories, and the old man was very happy.

"You left in such a hurry back then that I didn't have a chance to thank you properly, but this time... this time we must make sure to thank you properly! If you have time, could you please come to my house for a visit..."

The old man asked expectantly.

Ze Shu and Xiao Lan exchanged a glance and then nodded.

After all, the campfire only knew the location of the fire goose's hiding place; she had never been there before and needed to observe it further. The old man's house was a good place to stay temporarily.

During our casual conversation on the way to the old man's house.

Ze Shu also learned the reason why the people of Qiuye Town were frowning.

"The weather has been so unpredictable lately, sometimes it rains, sometimes it's dry, and sometimes it even snows! Despite the help of Grass-type Pokémon, the crops in the fields are still wilting, so we're really worried..."

"But this is the warm Hoenn region! Not the cold Sinnoh! Why is the weather like this?!"

"Especially in my house, the effects are even stronger whenever the weather changes! Oh dear! What misfortune has befallen me! My rheumatoid arthritis, which I developed from years of fossil digging, is flaring up again..."

'

At this point, the old man subconsciously clutched his knee, his eyes filled with unspeakable bitterness.

Ze Shu seized on the blind spot and asked, "That change in weather was particularly noticeable in your home..."

"

The elderly person said, "Yes! My family is always the first to sense any changes in the weather."

'

When the group arrived at the old man's house in the northwest corner of Qiuye Town, the situation inside was quite different from that of a normal home.

On the wall of the old man's house, there was a large hole pointing downwards, exposing rocks and soil. Looking into the hole, it seemed bottomless.

Higana stared in disbelief. "Old man, was your house bombed?!"

The old man scratched his head and chuckled, "This... I dug this myself. I'm very interested in fossils and often go to Meteor Falls to dig for them. But that wasn't enough; I thought there should be fossils under my house too, so I dug this hole..."

This old man is a "fossil fanatic".

Higana asked, "Did you find it?"

The old man replied matter-of-factly, "Not yet! Fossils aren't that easy to dig up! That's why I'm still digging!"

"Enough of that, my two benefactors. Come and see, these are all treasures I've accumulated over my life." The old man led everyone to a shelf in the corner of the room and said, "Pick whatever you like! I... I don't mind the cost!"

Ze Shu looked at the pained expression on the old man's face.

No, you're clearly heartbroken!

He turned to look at the shelf. Although the old man had said that "fossils are not so easy to dig up," there was a fossil on every shelf, which was quite a sight to behold.

There are fossils that look like carapaces, fossils that look like seashells, and even a piece of amber that gleams with a light.

In addition to these "native" fossils, there are also skull fossils, shield fossils, and a fossil that looks like a feather.

It's clear that the old man truly loves fossils, and this is a collection he's accumulated over a lifetime.

Ze Shu wasn't very interested in these fossils, since he didn't even have enough Pokémon to raise. He said, "These are all things you've accumulated over your life, so I think I'll pass."

The old man said firmly, "This is me repaying the life-saving grace I owe you! You choose!"

Ze Shu explained, "It was just a small favor at the time, and we were lucky to be able to save you. Treating us to a meal and letting us rest here is enough..."

The old man persisted, saying, "I not only want to treat you to a meal, but I also want to give you this fossil! Choose whichever you like!"

"I can choose as many as I want!"

No, the pain in your eyes when you said "anything is fine" was palpable!

Ze Shu shook his head helplessly.

Xiao Lan, standing nearby, covered her mouth and chuckled.

Then the old man said to Xiao Lan, who was watching the scene, "You should choose this benefactor too!"

Xiao Lan's smile faded, and then she hesitated before asking, "Ze Shu, shall we choose?"

So Ze Shu thought for a moment and said to Xiao Lan, "How about I help you choose?"

Xiao Lan naturally wouldn't refuse; she smiled and agreed, "Okay!"

Then she saw Ze Shu, with an extremely clear goal, reach out and directly take down a feather fossil from the very edge of the fossil shelf and hand it to himself.

"This must be a fossil of Archaeopteryx, perfect for you, Little Blue!"

Ze Shu smiled and said this to Xiao Lan.

Xiao Lan's whole body stiffened.

Is it... suitable?

'

She suddenly stammered.

Feathers, plumage... and birds...

This just doesn't suit her at all!

Xijiana had never seen Xiaolan stutter and panic like this before, and she was looking at her in amazement.

Ze Shu whispered, "Little Blue, didn't you say you weren't afraid of birds anymore? And this little proto-bird that was resurrected from a feather fossil is just so cute..."

Xiao Lan looked at Ze Shu with a resentful expression: "I...of course I'm not afraid!"

She then somewhat stiffly put the feather fossil into her small bag.

After she went to the Masked Base and developed ornithophobia, she never imagined that one day she would catch a bird Pokémon.

But this time, the cunning Sawaki made her catch a bird Pokémon!

Xiao Lan puffed out her cheeks, which was rare for her.

However, she also knew that although there were Articuno and Lugia on the spaceship, and she had gotten used to having bird Pokémon around, her symptoms had eased considerably. But she still stiffened up completely whenever she touched a bird Pokémon.

Ze Shu probably wanted to give her a breakthrough to completely cure her ornithophobia by having her accept this feather fossil.

"We've made our selection, thank you."

Upon seeing the fossilized feathers beneath Xiao Lan's hands, Ze Shu said this to the old man.

But the old man persisted: "This young lady has chosen, but you haven't! Hurry up and choose!"

Ze Shu: "————"

He told the truth: "Actually, I... didn't have much to choose from."

But upon hearing this answer, the old man became agitated. His previously clumsy hands and feet suddenly became nimble, and he darted to the shelf, grabbed the only piece of amber on it, and forcefully shoved it into Ze Shu's hand.

"I've chosen one for you! This is Secret Amber," a fossil capable of resurrecting the ancient ruler of the skies—a pterosaur.

"This is the most precious fossil I have here, and I'm giving it to you! Even if you don't use the fossil resurrection technology to bring back a pterosaur, this amber is still excellent as an ornament!"

"Don't give it back! Even if you do, I'll throw this amber away! Throw it into the sea! It's not mine anymore anyway!" the old man said, though it pained him.

Ze Shu: "————"

Well, he silently accepted the amber.

Then, he glanced at the large hole in the old man's house and exchanged a look with the campfire that had been silently following him.

The campfire nodded in agreement.

So it seems that this hole... is most likely one of the reasons why the elderly person's house was the first to experience changes in temperature, triggering a rheumatism and bone disease flare-up. Another reason...

"This place must be very close to there."

Perhaps, the tunnel that the old man dug to find fossils will lead directly there.

"What?! You want to go down into the tunnel and take a look?!"

Faced with his benefactor's sudden request, the old man's eyes widened, and he said, "What if it collapses! These man-made tunnels are very prone to collapse!"

Higana spotted the blind spot: "Since this place is prone to landslides, old man, you just said you're digging in there yourself?! Aren't you afraid of a landslide?!"

The old man said, "Because I'm digging for fossils!"

Higanbana: "But what if there's a landslide?"

The old man said, "But I want to dig for fossils!"

Higana:

'

In the end, Ze Shu and the others convinced the old man to let them into the tunnel by promising that he was a "powerful trainer." The old man originally wanted to come along, but they forcibly refused.

The tunnel was pitch black, with faint "tap, tap, tap" sounds.

According to the old man, the tunnel he dug seemed to be inhabited by many Dittos.

They hadn't been gone long.

In this narrow and long tunnel, Ze Shu and the others suddenly heard a man's voice calling for help coming from behind the rock wall.

-

"Help...help me..."

'

The sound came from the direction the campfire had indicated: the location of the Lava Team's temporary base in Autumnleaf Town where they were keeping the floating bubbles.

"Why would we hear someone calling for help?" Higana asked, puzzled. "Shouldn't we be hearing the floating bubbles calling for help?"

Campfire thought for a moment and replied, "I heard that the Lava Team arrested someone who was investigating them. That person should be imprisoned here too."

Ze Shu suddenly asked, "Who is that person? Do you know?"

Campfire: "Looks like an Interpol agent, what's his name... handsome guy?"

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