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"So it only left now… Is it because it realized the villagers are far too weak to protect themselves, and chose to leave because of that?"
Watching the tiny figure quickly fade from his field of vision, Sato pondered thoughtfully. If his guess was correct, the small figure that had just flown out of the flower fields was Shaymin.
It did indeed seem to be the guardian deity of the village. After realizing that its presence would only bring trouble to the village—and after seeing how weak the villagers were—it had deliberately appeared before him to make one thing clear: it no longer belonged here.
"Sigh… I really just keep making things worse. I already said I wasn't here to catch you—so why did you run off anyway?"
Once Shaymin had completely disappeared from sight, Sato let out a sigh and muttered helplessly.
"Big brother, I know you're not a bad person. Tell me—will the guardian deity come back?"
Just as Sato finished speaking, the little girl he had met at the village entrance earlier—wearing a floral dress—popped her head out from the nearby flower field. She walked up to him and asked with a puzzled expression.
"Tss~"
At the same time, a Treecko leapt out of the flower field and positioned itself protectively beside the girl, staring at Sato with clear vigilance.
"I'm not too sure either. It probably won't come back anytime soon. Your village is too weak and can't protect its guardian deity—and your guardian deity itself doesn't seem strong enough to fend off powerful enemies."
"So, if you want it to return sooner, you'll have to work hard to become stronger yourselves."
"You've got a pretty decent Treecko. Maybe one day, you'll become the guardian of your village's guardian deity."
Seeing that the gluttonous little girl still wasn't afraid of him, Sato smiled slightly and answered her seriously.
After that, he gently patted her head, handed her two bags of potato chips, mounted his off-road bicycle, and quickly rode away.
"Have a safe trip, big brother! My name is Mela—I'll definitely become really strong someday!"
The little girl happily clutched the two bags of chips. Seeing Sato leave, she waved enthusiastically to him.
Not long after Sato departed, Mela's mother hurried over from their home, snatched the snacks from her hands, and began scolding her again.
However, Mela wasn't listening at all. Hugging her Treecko, she stared in the direction Sato had gone, her bright eyes spinning as if lost in thought.
Seven or eight minutes later, Sato returned to the plot of land where the Day Care had been built. He stopped, staring at the once-barren ground with confusion.
At some point, the land had become overgrown with wild grass, and many flowers were now in full bloom. Among them was even a Gracidea flower.
"..."
Sato stood there for a moment. After confirming through psychic detection that there was nothing unusual, he silently turned and left.
Yet the moment he departed, a tiny figure suddenly emerged from the center of the Gracidea flower, looking smugly in the direction Sato had gone.
Back on the road, Sato continued to encounter Trainers hiding in tall grass, eager for battles. Unable to refuse their enthusiasm, he sent out Wartortle and his newly evolved Kadabra to fight.
After several battles, both Pokémon improved noticeably. Wartortle reached level 29, while Kadabra rose to level 22.
Around sunset, Sato finally arrived at the destination of his promotion mission—Verdanturf Town.
Because Verdanturf Town lay deep inland and in a remote location, its permanent population was small. Economically, it was worlds apart from neighboring Mauville City.
That said, the climate here was mild and the greenery lush, making it an excellent place for recuperation and retirement. On his way into town, Sato spotted several expensive private villas, though most looked long abandoned.
After entering Verdanturf Town and questioning several residents who appeared rather sickly, Sato finally found a restaurant that was still operating.
The service there was good. While eating, Sato tipped the staff generously and gathered quite a bit of information about the cave to the northwest of town.
What surprised him greatly, however, was that he heard nothing at all about stone statues.
"Did I guess wrong? No… more likely, these people are too low-level to have access to information about the statues."
After carefully observing their expressions and confirming they weren't lying, Sato briefly doubted himself—then quickly dismissed the doubt and reaffirmed his original conclusion.
Aside from restaurants, taverns were the easiest places to obtain intelligence. After finishing his meal, Sato headed to a nearby tavern.
Under normal circumstances, bartenders often served as the eyes and ears of information brokers. They overheard secrets from drunk patrons and paid close attention to unfamiliar faces.
Whenever they learned something valuable—or spotted someone resembling a wanted criminal—they would record it and pass it on to intelligence dealers.
When Sato entered the tavern, he was still disguised as Tyler. Being underage, he immediately drew attention, and some drunken patrons even mocked him aloud.
Sato ignored them. He was only here to gather information about the stone statues and had no interest in unnecessary trouble.
"What would you like to drink, sir? Even though this is a tavern, we do have juice and milk."
After Sato sat at the bar, a bartender polishing a glass asked with a smile.
Sato said nothing. He simply took out an item and placed it on the counter, staring impassively at the bartender.
"Please come this way, honored guest."
The bartender's smile vanished the moment he saw the item. He immediately bowed slightly and spoke with utmost respect.