On the way back with Sneasel in custody, Erika quietly asked beside Xia You's ear, "This Sneasel seems quite special. Aren't you going to catch it?"
Xia You thought for a moment, but ultimately shook his head.
"Forget it. It looks cool and it's strong, but I'm not particularly interested in this kind of Pokémon. I'll wait until I meet a Pokémon I like more."
Erika smiled at his words. After all, he had said more than once that having too many Pokémon would spread his energy too thin, so naturally, he would only catch one if he genuinely liked it.
Clearly, this Sneasel wasn't to his taste.
They were only halfway back when Dragonite suddenly gave a soft cry, clearly having noticed something.
Following its gaze, they looked up and saw a large yellow bird Pokémon, its body seemingly wreathed in flames, flash through the clouds in the distant sky.
It was so familiar that Xia You recognized it almost at a glance.
"Huh? It's actually Moltres?"
Erika was surprised too. "There's a Moltres here too?"
Xia You nodded. There were indeed legends of Moltres sightings among the peaks of Mt. Silver. He hadn't expected them to actually encounter it!
Moltres vanished from sight after that brief appearance.
After this little interlude, the two continued down the mountain and soon returned to the Ho-Oh Shrine.
When the staff member saw that Xia You really had brought Sneasel back, a hint of delight inevitably appeared on his face.
"Well then, we'll leave this Sneasel with you. We won't take up any more of your time."
At a wave from Xia You, Scizor handed Sneasel over to the man. How they communicated from here was a matter between them, and he had no wish to get involved.
To thank him, however,