Though Ye Lan could not see the Champion's face from this angle, his broad back still left a deep impression.
Before long, however, the sea, which had gradually begun to calm, churned once more. The cruise ship rocked violently, and Ye Lan would have fallen onto the deck if Rillaboom had not been beside him.
"Uh-oh, looks like negotiations broke down..."
Once Ye Lan regained his footing, he found three pairs of eyes in the sky fixed on him: Manaphy's angry gaze, Mega Charizard's amused one, and his senior's questioning look.
Realizing what had become the sticking point in their negotiations, Ye Lan gave the three figures overhead—none of whom he could afford to offend—a sheepish smile and raised the "piece of rubble" in his hand. "Would you believe me if I said I actually picked this up?"
"Mana!!!"
"Don't get angry! Seriously, we can talk this out! Go explain things! You've gobbled up so many resources—you can't get me killed now!"
After bouncing the Blue Orb Fragment twice in his hand, Ye Lan put some force into his arm and hurled it toward Manaphy in the sky.
Watching the arc traced by the Blue Orb Fragment, Xia Ren's eyes flickered with surprise. He had not expected someone as young as Ye Lan to have such impressive arm strength.
As though it still had a shred of conscience left, the Blue Orb Fragment glowed pale blue again in midair, swerved around Mega Charizard, and returned to Manaphy's hand on its own.
Given Ye Lan's penny-pinching nature, he was reluctant to lose a Legendary Pokémon's item like the Blue Orb Fragment, which held a measure of authority. But circumstances left him no choice. When it was time to let go, he had to let go.
With such a large piece of