Chapter 149: The Hoenn Iron Triangle
The video continued playing.
Miori stood outside the waiting hall at Castelia City’s ferry terminal, pulling a suitcase with her left hand while Emolga perched atop her head.
The sunlight was intense, the sea breeze smelled of salt, and Miori was in an excellent mood.
She took a deep breath and spread her arms wide.
"Hoenn!! Here I come!"
Emolga raised both paws in cooperation.
"Emolga~"
After briefly savoring the feeling of freedom, Miori began searching for the person who was supposed to meet her.
Several ships were docked at the harbor. There were ordinary passenger ferries, sailboats, and even an extremely luxurious private yacht.
Miori’s gaze lingered on the yacht for a moment.
"Uncle Steven probably came on that ship, right? Mommy and Daddy said his family is extremely wealthy."
Just as Miori was about to walk toward it, a deafening roar suddenly came from above her head.
A helicopter emerged from the clouds.
Its cabin door was pushed open while it was still in flight. Steven leaned half his body outside, holding a megaphone while his tie streamed straight behind him in the wind.
"MY DEAR NIECE MIORI—! YOUR UNCLE IS HERE TO PICK YOU UP—!!"
Miori’s sunglasses slid halfway down her nose.
Her mouth fell open as she watched the helicopter slowly descend with two banners attached to its sides.
The violent wind generated by the rotor sent Miori’s long hair whipping wildly behind her. Emolga had to cling desperately to her hair to avoid being blown away.
Steven jumped down from the helicopter, straightened his tie, and strode toward Miori.
"My dear niece Miori! It’s been a long time!"
He took her suitcase from her.
"Come on. Your parents are getting impatient waiting for you!"
Miori pointed toward the helicopter.
"Uncle Steven, isn’t this welcome a little too extravagant?"
"This is nothing!"
Steven waved grandly, looking exceptionally proud.
"Let me tell you something. Back when your father, Wallace, and I traveled around Hoenn together, our displays were far more impressive than this! The name of the Hoenn Iron Triangle was famous throughout the entire region!"
"The Hoenn Iron Triangle?"
Miori blinked.
"Who came up with that name?"
"Me, of course!"
Steven looked immensely proud of himself.
"What do you think? Doesn’t it sound cool?"
Miori thought about it seriously.
"It sounds like the name of a washed-up band."
Steven’s smile froze.
He then turned around and pulled open the helicopter door.
"Children shouldn’t make careless judgments about things they don’t understand. Get in—no, board the helicopter!"
[VIP Chat Group]
[Gary]: The Hoenn Iron Triangle? Steven, Asher, and Wallace? Just imagining those three together is enough to make me laugh myself to death.
[Steven]: That title is unbelievably cool! Shouldn’t we start using it in the real world too? @Asher @Wallace
[Wallace]: I refuse.
[Asher]: I also refuse.
[Steven]: Why?! It sounds so powerful and imposing! It’s incredibly distinctive!
[Wallace]: If people hear the words "Iron Triangle," they’ll assume we’re three miners.
[Diantha]: I think it sounds more like the slogan from a low-quality advertisement.
[Raihan]: Something like, "The Hoenn Iron Triangle—mining without a break"?
[Steven]: That slogan is quite good, Raihan. I’m writing it down.
[Raihan]: Remember to pay me royalties.
[Leon]: You two truly are remarkable talents.
The video continued playing.
The helicopter landed on the rooftop helipad of the Devon Corporation headquarters in Rustboro City.
The moment Miori stepped out of the cabin, she saw three people standing ahead of her:
Elesa, Asher, and Wallace.
"Mio, sweetheart!"
Elesa spread her arms and rushed forward.
"Mommy missed you so much!"
Elesa pulled Miori into a tight embrace.
Caught off guard, Emolga fell from the top of Miori’s head and became wedged between the mother and daughter.
"Mom, loosen your grip! You’re going to flatten Emolga!"
Miori struggled to free one hand from Elesa’s embrace and rescued Emolga from between them.
Emolga lay limply in her hands with an unfocused stare.
"Emolga~" (I almost got squashed into a mouse pad~)
"Oh, sorry, sorry."
Elesa released Miori.
"Mommy hasn’t seen you in so long that I got a little too excited."
Asher approached from behind and reached out to ruffle Miori’s hair.
"You’ve worked hard."
Miori looked up at her father and was about to say something when she noticed Wallace studying her with an intrigued expression.
His gaze remained fixed on her Emolga graphic T-shirt.
"Miori, that shirt of yours has quite a distinctive style."
"Th-thank you, Uncle Wallace."
Miori instinctively took half a step backward.
"I’m not merely being polite."
Wallace supported his chin with one hand.
"Such a bold graphic design is rarely seen in Pokémon Contest performances. Wearing that shirt during a performance would certainly attract considerable attention."
"Wait, wait, wait!"
Miori crossed her arms protectively over her chest.
"I never said I was entering a Pokémon Contest!"
"All right, that’s enough standing around on the roof. It’s windy up here."
Steven jumped out of the helicopter’s cockpit.
"Come on! Let’s head downstairs! I’ll show all of you around the Devon Corporation’s Pokémon habitat!"
The group then took the elevator down to the Pokémon habitat inside the Devon Corporation headquarters.
The moment Miori stepped out, she was stunned by the sight before her.
It was a carefully constructed Pokémon habitat. Rough layers of stone covered the ground to imitate the terrain of a cave, while an artificial cavern ceiling stretched overhead. Numerous pieces of fluorescent ore embedded within it glimmered like stars.
Several Beldum floated above rocky platforms at different heights, while a few Aron playfully bumped their heads against one another.
On the central platform floated a Beldum whose coloring was noticeably different from all the others.
Its metallic body was silvery white, making it particularly striking among the ordinary Beldum.
Miori stared at the Shiny Beldum and took a step forward.
As though sensing something, it stopped chasing its companions and slowly turned to face her.
"Hello."
Miori crouched until she was at eye level with Beldum.
"My name is Miori."
Beldum didn’t respond. It merely hovered in place and stared at her.
Miori thought for a moment before removing a fragment of ore from her backpack. She placed it on her palm and held it out.
"This is for you. Consider it a greeting gift."
The Shiny Beldum stared at the fragment for quite some time.
Then its body slowly descended, and it magnetically drew the fragment toward itself.
Steven immediately spoke.
"It has accepted you. Go ahead and catch it."
Miori took out a Poké Ball and gently placed it in front of Beldum.
The Shiny Beldum touched the button.
Red light flashed, and the Poké Ball shook only once before producing a clear click.
"Thank you, Uncle Steven."
Miori held the Poké Ball in both hands, a brilliant smile blossoming across her face.
"Don’t thank me yet. I still have something else to give you."
Steven reached into the inner pocket of his suit and removed an exquisite black box.
When he opened it, two rainbow-colored stones lay inside.
"This is a matching Metagrossite and Key Stone—the highest-quality set in the Devon Corporation’s inventory. Consider them a welcome gift from your uncle."
Miori accepted the box, took a step backward, and bowed deeply to Steven.
"Uncle Steven, I promise I’ll make good use of this gift."
Steven reached out and ruffled Miori’s hair.
"All right, all right. There’s no need to be so formal. Considering the friendship between your father and me, giving you a few things is nothing."