Chapter 455:
Question marks seemed to materialize above Kaede's head.
Following him all along and even greeting him.
A greeting... that only left Bewear from earlier... Who could have guessed *that* was Mew?!
Kaede could only nod helplessly. "You win, you win."
φ(゜▽゜*): "Mew~..."
Ignoring Mew's continued giggling in the air, Kaede looked back at Lugia. After Mew reverted to its original form, Lugia's temper had clearly subsided.
But in its heart... shock was mixed with speechlessness.
Shock because this little kitten could actually transform into its appearance; speechlessness because it had done so just because Lugia had blocked this human's path.
Then again, it was strange that this little creature would be willing to engage in battle with it over such a small matter.
It had even helped Lugia before.
"It's alright, it's alright. Lugia didn't mean any harm; it just wanted to ask some questions," Kaede explained, patting Mew, who had happily flown onto him.
"Mew~!" (Hmph!)
Mew broke free from Kaede's hold, flew onto Lugia's head, and looked down at it, "mewing" and "chirping" what could only be described as "taunts."
The meaning was clear: *Why did you block his way?*
Kaede facepalmed.
Mew was being so arrogant.
[I merely wished to inquire about certain matters.]
The seemingly more "good-natured" Lugia replied.
Of course, this telepathy was directed solely at Mew.
It really had no way to handle this little creature either.
"Mew?" (Fine, then ask.)
Only then did Lugia turn its gaze back to Kaede.
It voiced its confusion.
[Why do it and the Salamence from before possess a portion of My power?]
Kaede didn't beat around the bush and answered directly. "When the Sea Guardian was at Shamouti Island, the three Legendary Birds once ran amok due to human interference. Afterward, you gifted one of your feathers to Mew, and Mew also collected feathers related to the three Birds in that area.
Based on the existence of these feathers, I created various dishes—food. My Pokémon, by eating the related food, can gain powers associated with you all."
Lugia: "???"
At first, Lugia found the explanation plausible, but the more it listened, the more absurd it sounded.
The Silver Wing—Mew had indeed asked for one back then, and Lugia had indeed left some scattered across the world.
If intelligent, brave humans found a Silver Wing and, with courage earning its acknowledgment, challenged it, Lugia would fly across the oceans to accept their challenge.
If they truly had the skill to earn its recognition, Lugia wouldn't even mind fighting alongside them for a time.
While the Silver Wing was imbued with its relatively abundant energy...
That didn't mean... eating it could grant its power, right?
This sounded a bit... a bit...
"Though it sounds odd, my special ability is like this."
Yes, *odd* was the right word.
Lugia felt this human had chosen the term well.
"Mew~!" (That's exactly how it is!) Mew chimed in agreement from the side.
Because its own fur had been "borrowed" too.
"..."
Lugia fell into silence, clearly not quite believing this.
"For example, this Shape Shifting Energy Cube. If you eat it, you can become smaller." Seeing its expression, Kaede could tell Lugia definitely didn't believe him.
But that was fine. Those who had tried his Energy Cubes knew their effects.
Kaede took out a Shape Shifting Energy Cube, then flew down from Dragonite, landing right in front of Lugia's head.
Hmm, it had to be said, though Lugia's body seemed so massive, its head actually looked quite small, even about the same height as his own body.
"Mew~" (Try it, try it!)
Mew above also urged.
Lugia glanced at Kaede, then looked sideways at the Mew on its head. Finally, unable to resist its curiosity, it used Psychic to levitate the Energy Cube from Kaede's hand into its mouth.
The tiny Energy Cube, entering its mouth, was like a mere speck, slipping down instantly.
Before it could even register the taste, the next moment, Lugia's expression turned strange.
Because it truly felt a sensation that it could change size at will.
Immediately, its form rapidly shrank, shrinking all the way down to a height of about five meters. The immense oppressive presence brought by its previous colossal size weakened accordingly.
"Lugia?!"
Lugia looked at the changes on itself in shock, then instinctively looked down.
Sure enough, its reflection on the sea surface had become several times smaller than before, with no other abnormalities.
"Mew~!" (See? See?!)
Seeing the shock on Lugia's face, Mew looked pleased, as if it had made the Energy Cube itself.
Lugia's expression, after the initial shock, turned complicated.
This human... really possessed such an ability.
That was terrifying!
It meant he could borrow the special authority of all Legendary Pokémon through this method!
"Eating another one will change you back."
Kaede took out another Energy Cube.
[Then can one become even smaller?]
Lugia posed an odd-angle question that made even Kaede pause for a moment.
He seemed to have a sudden realization.
In the description of the Transform & Adapt Energy Cube's effect, it didn't state exclusivity. That's why his Pokémon, after shrinking, could eat another to return to their original size.
Lugia's question just gave him a new insight.
Mainly because his own Pokémon usually only needed to change size once; rarely did they need to do so twice.
Upon realizing this, an idea immediately popped into Kaede's mind.
After going back, give Giratina another Transform Energy Cube.
Then it could shrink a little more.
"Theoretically, yes," Kaede said.
But in truth, Kaede wasn't sure.
Because while changing size reduced the energy consumption, the total energy within the Pokémon didn't change.
If the degree of change was too great, whether side effects would occur was also unclear.
However, if Lugia was willing to try and be the test subject, that would be even better.
[Very well!]
Lugia used Psychic again to take the Energy Cube from Kaede's hand and put it in its mouth.
The same sensation arose in its heart. Lugia's size began shrinking again, but this time the degree was much smaller than the last.
It shrank only a bit more than half its current size before stopping.
Thus, the originally over-five-meter-tall Lugia became just over two meters tall, about the same size as Dragonite.