"No!"
But to Adrain's surprise, Lorelei did indeed refuse, shaking her head and saying, "You stay here and don't move. I'll come to the edge of the cape to pick you up."
After saying that, Lorelei hung up the phone directly.
"Miss Lorelei is coming to pick me up? That's too kind of her!"
Thinking of this, Adrain couldn't help but chuckle.
The islands of the Seven Islands are not far apart, and the second and fourth islands are also far apart.
Therefore, it wasn't long before Adrain saw a Pokémon with a blue body and a gray shell on its back, covered with many uneven bumps, swimming towards the sea in the distance.
It was the Water/Ice dual-type Pokémon—Lapras!
On Lapras's back sat a stunningly beautiful red-haired woman with legs crossed, wearing mesmerizing metal glasses.
"Miss Lorelei!"
Adrain waved enthusiastically from the cape shore.
Lapras truly lived up to its reputation as the best Pokémon for sea riding; it swam incredibly fast, yet its body remained remarkably stable, without a single bump.
Before long, Lapras reached the cape's shore.
Tap tap!
The crisp sound of high heels clicking on the rocks of the cape was undeniable.
Lorelei's long legs were simply too eye-catching!
"Come back, Lapras!"
Seeing Lorelei recall Lapras, Adrain immediately grinned and stepped forward to greet her, "Long time no see, Miss Lorelei. Have you finished dealing with things at Dovecote Harbor?"
"Yes! I've been staking out there for over half a month, but haven't seen a single trace of the Giant Tentacruel. There's no point in staying any longer, so I applied to the League to return."
Lorelei pushed up her metal-framed glasses and smiled, "Adrain, wait here for a moment. I'll go visit the Move Tutor first. Speaking of which, he's practically my mentor—"
With Lorelei's explanation, Adrain learned that Lorelei had trained under the Move Tutor for a period when she was young.
With that, the two went to the small house at the end of the cape to visit the Move Tutor.
Seeing Lorelei arrive, the Move Tutor immediately brewed tea to serve her.
While the two chatted, Adrain released Slowpoke and fed her Pokémon food.
"Huh? It's a red Slowpoke?"
Lorelei took a sip of tea, her eyes lighting up when she saw the little Slowpoke.
Although pink and red aren't that different, as one of the Elite Four, Lorelei's eyesight was incredibly sharp; she immediately recognized the little Slowpoke's extraordinary nature.
*Snap!*
Just then, a Poké Ball in Lorelei's pocket suddenly opened.
A flash of red light appeared, and it transformed into a giant seashell.
It was none other than one of Lorelei's main Pokémon—Cloyster!
"Tap~"
Cloyster appeared, sniffing the air a few times, its eyes filled with fascination.
Seeing this, Adrain's expression changed.
He knew that Lorelei's Cloyster must have smelled the strange fragrance on Slowpoke's tail.
Although Slowpoke had concealed its scent, Lorelei's Cloyster was too powerful; even the faintest trace of the fragrance couldn't escape its olfactory sense.
"Tap~"
And just as Adrain had predicted, Cloyster quickly focused its attention on Slowpoke's tail, the source of the strange fragrance.
"Tap~"
Cloyster's face was full of infatuation as it opened its mouth and bit Slowpoke's tail.
The process seemed slow, but in reality, it only took a second or two. Adrain didn't even have time to take out a Poké Ball to recall Slowpoke, let alone stop it.
oreover, given Cloyster's strength, even if Gyarados were here, or if Slowpoke tried its best to stop it, it would probably be futile.
Fortunately, Slowpoke's tail can regenerate; even if one is eaten, it can grow back, although it will consume some energy.
But to Adrain's surprise, Slowpoke's scream did not ring out.
When he opened his eyes again, he found that Cloyster was stuck less than a finger's width away from Slowpoke, unable to move an inch.
Beside Lorelei, a pink, bipedal Pokémon had appeared, its belly striped with cream-colored bands, and a spinning shell with spikes and dark markings hanging from its tail.
It was Slowbro, a Water/Psychic-type Pokémon!
Slowbro's eyes glowed a pale blue, and terrifying psychic power surged from its body, immobilizing Cloyster.
Compared to Adrain, Lorelei, one of the Elite Four, reacted much faster, releasing Slowbro as Cloyster struggled to break free of its Poké Ball.
"Taku~"
Immobilized by Slowbro and seeing its trainer's cold gaze, Cloyster's instinctive agitation towards Slowbro's tail was immediately suppressed, and its eyes regained their clarity.
It closed its shell, as if too ashamed to face Lorelei, and dared not show itself again.
"I'm so sorry, Adrain, I'm sorry to have startled you and Slowpoke!"
Lorelei quickly stood up and bowed to Adrain and Slowpoke in apology. "To be honest, this is the first time my Cloyster has ever acted like this—"
Although she is one of the Elite Four, when not battling, Lorelei is as gentle as a girl next door, truly without any airs.
"Miss Lorelei, your reaction was incredibly quick."
Adrain quickly waved his hand, praising Lorelei's quick reaction while saying it was alright.
He knew it was because Slowpoke's tail smelled so good.
Which shell could withstand such a test?
Lorelei's Cloyster regaining its composure after being stopped was already quite remarkable.
Besides, in the end, nothing serious happened; it was just a false alarm.
Even though Adrain didn't pursue the matter, Lorelei kept apologizing and said, "Adrain, aren't you going to the Frozen Waterfall Cave? I can make the decision; you can catch any Pokémon except Lapras."
"Huh? Why not Lapras?"
Adrain looked puzzled.
He had been eyeing Lapras for a long time; how could it be excluded?
"Lapras is an intelligent and kind-hearted Pokémon. It is very cold-resistant and unafraid of icy seas. It has a high intelligence that allows it to understand human language, and it likes to carry people across the sea. When it's in a good mood, it seems to sing in a beautiful voice."
Hearing this, Lorelei explained helplessly, "However, because it hardly participates in battles, it has been captured in large numbers, and its population once plummeted to the brink of extinction. For this reason, the League has established protected areas in many places, and Frozen Falls Cave is one of them. Capturing Lapras is strictly prohibited in Frozen Falls Cave."
Seeing Adrain's disappointed look, Lorelei smiled sweetly and added, "However, according to my investigation, the intensive protection in recent years has been very effective. Lapras's population has not only increased, but it has even shown signs of becoming an overpopulation problem. In the waters where there are too many Lapras, the number of Fish Pokémon has decreased significantly."
"So I've already proposed that the League cancel the special protection for Lapras. It should take a month, maybe a few months, for a new bill to be passed and approved by the League, and there will be no more restrictions on capturing Lapras. But right now, it's not possible yet!"
Adrain shook his head helplessly upon hearing this: "Then I really came at the wrong time!"
The group then chatted for a while longer.
Finally, Lorelei prepared to leave, taking out her Poké Ball to recall Cloyster and Slowbro.
Seeing Cloyster's dejected appearance, Adrain had a sudden thought: "Miss Lorelei, please wait a moment!"
Lorelei, confused, obediently stopped recalling her Pokémon.
Seeing Lorelei and the Move Tutor's puzzled expressions, Adrain quickly explained, "I know Cloyster is obsessed with the sweetness of Slowpoke's tail. While my little Slowpoke can't eat its own tail, it can still taste the sweetness, which isn't a big deal."
With that, Adrain took out his fishing tackle and bait, aiming the bait at Slowpoke's tail: "Slowpoke, secrete some sweetness!"
"Okay!"
Slowpoke nodded, and a unique fragrance immediately filled the air from its tail, as it secreted a crystal-clear, sweet liquid.
"Tap~ Tap~ Tap~"
Smelling the aroma, the previously withdrawn Cloyster immediately reopened its shell, looking eager.
This was Cloyster's instinctive reaction!
Although it could suppress its instincts, it couldn't completely control or eliminate them.
"Eat up, Cloyster!"
Adrain held the bait to Cloyster's mouth, smiling broadly.
The reward for the cheat system is based on a combination of factors related to Pokémon, but strength is undoubtedly the most important one.
As one of the Elite Four's main Pokémon, Lorelei's Cloyster's strength is undeniable.
Adrain is now very curious about how generous the reward will be for catching this Cloyster.
"Taku~"
Glancing at Lorelei and seeing that it didn't stop him, Cloyster immediately swallowed the fragrant bait dipped in the sweet taste of Slowpoke's tail.
Ah~ So delicious!!!
[Caught Cloyster, Reward: 1 piece of "Millennial Ice"]