Chapter 73: Misty Feels the Pressure
The video began playing.
The image slowly brightened.
It showed a warmly decorated nursery. The curtains were pale purple and embroidered with tiny stars.
The camera slowly moved across the room before finally settling on a small crib.
A baby girl who appeared to have been born only recently lay inside, sleeping peacefully with her eyes closed.
Her newborn hair was black, but a small section at the ends was naturally golden, as though someone had drawn a stroke of starlight across it.
The camera gradually moved closer.
The baby suddenly opened her eyes.
One was golden, while the other was purple.
She didn’t cry. She merely stared quietly at the ceiling, the light streaming in through the window reflected within her pupils.
A simple caption appeared beside the image.
[Tiana, First Day After Birth]
[VIP Chat Group]
[Dawn]: Aaaaaah, she’s so tiny!!! She’s even a little smaller than Raina was when she was born!
[Iris]: Wait, wait! Her hair really is naturally black with golden highlights?! That’s so cool!
[Gary]: And her eyes are naturally different colors too?!
[Lance]: Dragon Force... In theory, only members of the Dragon Clan should be capable of awakening that power. How does she possess it?
[Cynthia]: ...There is no record of the Dragon Clan anywhere in my family tree.
[Professor Oak]: That makes it even stranger. Could she have inherited it from Asher?
[Lance]: Impossible! I’ve investigated every branch of the clan. None of our members ever left and established another bloodline.
[Clair]: That’s true. Even according to the family records, there’s no trace of a branch connected to Asher.
In the real world, Cerulean Gym.
Misty stared suspiciously at Asher.
Her gaze made him uncomfortable all over, until he finally couldn’t help speaking.
"Darling, could you stop staring at me like that?"
"Are you still hiding something from me?"
"You can always find a charge when you’re determined to accuse someone, darling. You can’t treat parallel-world me as though he were the current me."
Misty nodded.
"That’s true. I can’t blame you for something that happened in a parallel world."
Asher released another long breath of relief.
Fortunately, after experiencing so many reincarnations, he had accumulated plenty of experience. Fooling Misty while she was deeply in love wasn’t particularly difficult.
However, Tiana’s Dragon Force really was connected to him.
During that reincarnation, his mission required Tiana to catch the two dragons of time and space herself. He wasn’t allowed to interfere directly.
Left with no other choice, he had given his daughter an advantage by using the System to grant her Dragon Force.
The video continued playing.
Cynthia appeared inside the room. Her blond hair hung loosely over her shoulders, and she wore pale-colored clothes meant for relaxing at home.
She held Tiana in her arms, but her movements were slightly stiff, and the angle of her arms was clearly unnatural.
She frowned and adjusted her hold twice, but Tiana still looked uncomfortable.
At that moment, Asher also appeared in the video.
The Asher on the screen wore a white shirt beneath a silver-gray overcoat, with the faintest hint of a smile on his lips.
He reached around Cynthia from behind, supported her elbow, and raised it slightly.
Sure enough, Tiana immediately stopped frowning.
Cynthia turned toward Asher with a slightly dazed expression.
"Honey, you know so much~"
Asher gently tapped the tip of her nose with one finger and smiled tenderly.
"I’m your husband. Isn’t it only natural for me to know how to take care of you and our baby?"
After he touched her nose, the tips of Cynthia’s ears turned visibly red.
She lowered her gaze toward Tiana, who had finally settled down in her arms, then looked back at Asher and asked seriously:
"What should I do if she starts crying?"
"If she cries, check her diaper. If the diaper is clean, feed her. If she still won’t sleep after being fed, carry her around the room for a couple of laps."
Asher counted the steps on his fingers.
"Didn’t I already teach you all of this?"
Cynthia blinked innocently.
"I forgot."
[VIP Chat Group]
[Diantha]: Oh my~ Cynthia’s voice becomes so soft when she calls him "Honey." Forget Asher—even I couldn’t resist that~
[Diantha]: And that adorably dazed expression! So after getting married, the powerful and independent Cynthia turns into a ditzy mother?
[Cynthia]: ...
[Professor Carolina]: Your grandmother has lived a long life, but this is truly the first time I’ve ever seen little Cynthia behave like that.
[Cynthia]: Grandma? You’re watching this too?!
[Professor Carolina]: Of course I am. This concerns my granddaughter’s future, after all.
[Iris]: Come to think of it, why does the parallel-world Asher seem to know how to do absolutely everything?
[May]: Exactly! During Raina’s episode, Asher was also the one constantly taking care of Misty and little Raina. He was incredibly dependable!
[Asher]: How did you know I can do everything?
[Gary]: Wait—who was even talking to you?!
[Steven]: When it comes to shamelessly showing off, no one surpasses Brother Asher.
[Lance]: There’s something else. Did all of you notice that this child’s first Pokémon is Gible?
[Clair]: Could it be the offspring of Cynthia’s Garchomp?
[Lorelei]: ...Most likely.
[Barry]: That’s a fine! A fine! Dragon Force combined with Gible? Her starting setup is even more ridiculous than Raina’s!
[Dawn]: Isn’t having Dialga and Palkia listed under Legendary Pokémon even more ridiculous?
...
In the real world, Celestic Town in the Sinnoh region.
Cynthia sat beside a window in the Celestic Town Historical Research Center with her face buried in her hands.
Throughout her life, she had analyzed countless ancient records and interpreted innumerable myths. She could remain calm even in the presence of the two dragons of time and space.
Yet at that moment, the livestream had completely shattered every one of her defenses.
She attempted to reason with herself that it was merely her parallel-world counterpart speaking and had nothing to do with her current self.
However, the other Cynthia’s voice, tone, and the way the tips of her ears had turned red were all far too real.
Garchomp stood nearby, watching its Trainer remain completely motionless in the same position.
It was deeply confused but couldn’t understand what was happening, so it could only scratch its head and continue watching.
...
Cerulean Gym.
Misty had also seen how intimately Asher and Cynthia interacted on the screen.
Although she knew it was the parallel-world Asher, she still couldn’t prevent a faintly sour feeling from rising inside her.
Then again...
My husband looks incredibly handsome in those clothes...
Misty’s mind began racing.
She studied the video carefully.
The man was handsome and elegant, while the woman was gentle and graceful.
From an outsider’s perspective, they appeared to be a match made in heaven.
Misty suddenly felt that her usual clothes offered far too little competition.
She felt threatened!
A girl needed to learn how to dress herself properly if she wanted to keep her man firmly wrapped around her finger!
"I’m going out!"
Misty suddenly rose to her feet.
Asher’s heart immediately trembled.
Had the video provoked Misty again?
"Where are you going?"
"I’m going shopping. Don’t worry about it."
A mysterious smile appeared on Misty’s beautiful face.
"I’ll have a surprise for you tonight!"
After a moment of astonishment, Asher nodded.
As long as the surprise wasn’t some form of retaliation against him, everything was fine.
...
TL: "Dragon-Taming Power" will now be translated to as "Dragon Force." If the actual "Dragon Force" appears later, I’ll likely translate it as "Dragon Pulse" (from the Japanese translation) or something similar like "Dragon Leylines."