Chapter 70: I'd Call You the Strongest
After the Dragonair mentioned the very, very big ship, everyone present, both humans and Pokémon, quickly thought of the same target.
The luxury cruise ship that Arthur and the others had seen at Guhuang Island on their first day entering the reserve.
Purely in terms of armed capability, that luxury cruise ship certainly had the means to accomplish this—the ship was currently filled with wealthy individuals, naturally equipped with top-tier protective forces, including powerful trainers and security teams.
The goofball Dragonite Three immediately roared in anger.
"Roar! Damn humans!! I told you earlier we shouldn't have let you in!!"
Judging by his appearance, if no one held him back, he seemed ready to unleash the powerful move "Outrage" on the spot and go on a rampage.
However, Arthur remained calm; he instinctively felt that something was wrong with this situation.
There were still many unexplained suspicious points.
Unexpectedly, before he could even speak, one of the production team uncles couldn't hold back any longer and decisively came forward to pull him aside.
"I say, shouldn't this be enough? Let's not get involved in this matter. Anyway, the Dragonair has been saved, and our suspicion has been cleared. Let's change direction and leave quickly."
Even though their show's popularity had exploded since the three Dragonite arrived, with the live stream chat flooding like tidal waves, one after another without stopping, and Star Blog undoubtedly trending again...
The uncles in the production team were genuinely scared now.
It's true they sought good program effects, but not at the cost of their lives!
Seeing how deep the waters were getting: on one side, it involved the strongest intelligent Pokémon family in the reserve, and on the other, it implicated that grey market cruise ship with its immense background and influence.
They felt that Arthur really should listen to an uncle's advice this time; this was something they couldn't handle!
In their agitation, they even ignored the restriction about support staff not appearing on camera, desperately wanting to persuade Arthur to abandon the idea and pack up and run.
However, Arthur was now completely immersed in his thoughts, feeling increasingly that something wasn't right, paying no attention to the persuasion attempts from the others in the production team.
"This shouldn't be right. That ship ought to be the party most interested in maintaining the existing order."
Attacking the Dragonite family, especially targeting young Dragonair and Dratini, indeed offered high rewards, that much was true. But would that ship really disrupt the existing order for such gains?
Although Arthur had never boarded that ship, as a former Heavenly King member two hundred years ago, he had at least heard something about such activities.
Back then, after ascending to the position of Heavenly King as a young genius in his twenties, many wealthy individuals vied to curry favor with him. Among them, some had taken him to similar "floating cities of eternal night" at sea.
There, the exchange value of even the smallest chip started at five figures. Since the cruise ships constantly sailed in international waters beyond the jurisdiction of various leagues, free from the constraints of league laws, these crazed tycoons dared to gamble on stakes of any size.
Compared to the daily turnover generated on that ship, the value of a single young Dragonair perhaps wasn't quite so maddeningly tempting after all.
Most crucially, such cruise ships should logically care most about the regular opening of the reserve.
Because if the order here were to change, and the reserve no longer opened on a fixed schedule, their losses would far exceed the value of one Dragonair.
After all, outside the reserve areas, league laws certainly wouldn't permit them to operate such gambling ventures so flagrantly.
Subsequently, Arthur pursued the point further, asking, "Did you have any plans recently to close the reserve's open month?"
Dragonite One shook his head, his voice rumbling, "No, we don't concern ourselves with that. Such decisions are usually handled by those Milotic. They are particularly fond of beauty and skincare products from the human world."
A love for beauty is inherent in Milotic's nature, so that was quite normal.
But this only deepened Arthur's confusion.
He asked again, "Then what is your relationship with the Milotic family?"
At this moment, the irritable Dragonite Three could finally bear it no longer.
"Enough, human! Stop changing the subject!! The relationships between our Pokémon clans are none of your concern! Since it has been confirmed that the culprit who harmed Little Sis is a human from that ship, then they must pay the price!! If you try to stop us, I will throw you into the sea right now!"
The furious Dragonite Three soared into the air, a flap of its wings stirring up a fierce gale.
Although a Dragonite's wings appear small, like mere ornaments, they are Pokémon, legendary creatures nonetheless. Summoning wind and rain relies on their elemental energy; the small size of their wings doesn't really matter.
The terrifying pressure once again made the production team members on the boat tremble uncontrollably.
"Young man, that's enough, don't say any more, let's just go!"
They truly felt they were about to break.
That initial "Dragon Rush" which failed to connect had already nearly scared the courage out of them.
Everyone came out here just to make a living, not really intending to create some huge news. This wasn't the time for grandstanding; stop dallying and let's run!
But Arthur still persisted, looking at Dragonite One with a calm, clear gaze.
"I won't stop you from seeking an explanation. I just want to advise you to remain calm. There are obvious suspicious points in this situation. I don't want you to be manipulated."
Dragonite Three hovered menacingly in mid-air, glaring at him, itching to strike him down with a Dragon Claw on the spot.
Dragonite One, however, gradually became lost in thought.
He certainly wouldn't abandon seeking revenge simply because of a few words from Arthur—Pokémon personalities are mostly simple and direct, with clear likes and dislikes. They repay kindness with kindness and vengeance with vengeance, disliking overly convoluted matters.
But at the same time, Dragonite One quite admired the calmness and courage of the human before him.
It had been a long time since he had encountered a human who could maintain such composure under the pressure exerted by adult dragons.
Thus, he proposed a compromise.
"How about this then: we will go find that ship immediately, and you will all come along with us."
The subtext was: we'll handle the physical part, and you'll handle the thinking part.
This way, everyone would be happy. Dragonite One couldn't help but mentally give himself a thumbs-up for his cleverness.
He even added reassuringly, "Don't worry, we will protect you if there's danger. That kid knows the move 'Wide Guard'."
He pointed towards Dragonite Three hovering above.
At this, Dragonite Three, still suspended mid-air and glaring, was suddenly stunned.
What's happening?
What kind of situation is this?
Not only do I not get the chance to sink this detestable human into the sea, but I actually have to protect him?!
Is there any justice left in the world?
At this moment, Dragonite Three felt as if it had swallowed a bitter fruit named "IQ Arrears."
The other humans on the boat also gasped collectively.
"This... doesn't seem right, maybe we should just—"
Before one of them could finish speaking, Arthur cut in, "Okay, take us there. You should have abilities to speed things up, right? 'Tailwind'? Or 'Extreme Speed'?"
The uncle standing beside him looked at him with a face full of resentment.
Unfortunately, the three Dragonite now only acknowledged what Arthur said.
This demonstrated the importance of having the right to speak.
Dragonite One also rose into the air at this point, stating coolly, "Neither is necessary. Just raise the sail on your ship. I will use 'Hurricane' to push you there."
"..."
At that moment, even the widely experienced Arthur had to concede superiority.
Using "Hurricane," one of the top-tier Flying-type moves, purely for propulsion assistance... this was truly understated flexing, the most lethal kind.
It had to be said, when it came to understated flexing, he would declare this Dragonite the strongest.
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