novelhk Chapter 298 The Solution – The Full Picture of the Mechanism Mystery
Chapter 298 The Solution – The Full Picture of the Mechanism Mystery
"This is a kidnapping case."
Ignoring the astonished expressions of everyone present, Sinnoh Champion Cynthia spoke on her own.
"The victim of the kidnapping was this giant Electrode from the Green Age. As a descendant of a hero Pokémon, it was cruelly imprisoned in the underground cave of the Forest Mansion and slept for over a hundred years."
"The culprit in the whole case is the builder of this Forest Mansion. In order to continue the kidnapping, this person built the Forest Mansion to supply electricity to the underground, which allowed the device that sealed the mischievous Raiden to operate on its own for the past hundred years, allowing the kidnapping to continue to this day."
"As for the target of the criminal's attempt to intimidate and extort, it is Arceus, the creator of Pokémon, who has long since departed from the human world in mythology and still looks down on all things from the distant void."
The motive behind kidnappers' crimes is to bring the high and mighty gods back to earth.
"Arzetus once personally acknowledged the heroic deeds of heroes. So, when such a god learns that the descendants of past heroes are in danger, will he once again show a shred of mercy?"
The builders of the Forest Mansion were betting on this slim, almost fantastical possibility.
"Champion Bamboo Orchid, are you serious? Even if, according to the Alliance's intelligence, the descendants of the King of the Emerald Cave did indeed disappear without a trace a hundred years ago, isn't it a bit too crazy to connect this to Arceus?"
Even Officer Jenny, who had overheard some of the details of the deduction in the underground cave, was still struggling to process this sudden accusation.
"If this had happened before yesterday, I don't think I could have possibly come to this conclusion under any circumstances..."
Zhu Lan looked around at everyone, then sighed and said—
"However, when I was in this forest mansion that seemed to inspire fervor, when I heard firsthand Director Hayden's wild ideas about creating science fiction creatures, Professor Medan's obsession with scheming against the gods, and finally saw with my own eyes the intricate mechanisms that were scattered throughout the mansion..."
"I've found that I'm gradually able to understand the mindset of the person behind the scenes when they orchestrated everything."
"It sounds like your mental state is a bit dangerous, Zhulan Champion."
Officer Jenny looked the Sinnoh Champion up and down with suspicion, and only stopped staring after seeing that he was behaving as usual.
Professor Mei Dan, sitting across the long table, immediately and clearly questioned the decision.
"Miss Zhulan, even research related to mythology requires factual evidence, right?"
"Based on the information we have, all we know is that there is a giant, mischievous thunderbolt that has been sleeping deep underground in the Forest Mansion. And the strange things about the Forest Mansion that you told us after you came out of the basement."
"So, even if everything you said is true, and there are indeed some shady things hidden in the architectural structure of this Forest Mansion, why are you so sure that these fragmented clues are neither a chance encounter nor traces left by some large-scale experiment, but will ultimately point to that ethereal existence in the sky?"
You didn't just make up this answer on the spot after hearing my research, did you...?
—Although Mei Dan didn’t say it outright, the way he crossed his arms and raised one eyebrow made his attitude quite clear.
"Rest assured, this is certainly not some baseless conjecture. This imprisonment incident from a hundred years ago must be related to Mythical Pokémon, Legendary Pokémon, or something even higher than them. This is an undeniable fact. The evidence is this—"
The mythologist reached into her pocket and took out what she and Officer Jenny had found at the end of the underground tunnel.
It was a feather.
The light feathers curved like a crescent moon, as if they would float away if you let go of them, and the whole thing emitted a beautiful fluorescent green light.
Its luster is so vibrant and dazzling that it's hard to believe it's an ancient artifact with at least a hundred years of history.
The fluorescent green light was so dazzling that it not only shone brightly in the poorly lit Forest Mansion, but also completely overshadowed the original color of the feathers.
Apart from Cynthia and Officer Jenny, everyone present immediately felt a sweet and relaxed atmosphere the moment they saw the feather.
The comforting atmosphere enveloped her like a soft veil, and even though everyone had stayed up late until nearly dawn, the maid, Zina, couldn't help but let out a long yawn.
Yawns spread like wildfire, and one by one, everyone present fell asleep and collapsed to the ground... Of course, such a thing could not possibly happen.
"Togekiss just used the 'Mystic Guard' move, so there's still a Mystic Curtain here that grants immunity to status ailments. It should minimize the effect of the feathers."
"However, if you really can't stand it anymore, you can rest for a while in the reception room. But please don't go to other parts of the mansion, as Pokkis and the others can't take care of that far."
Despite the champion's understanding words, no one in the audience intended to doze off at such a time.
Even the maid Zina, who had been yawning earlier, was now curiously examining the glowing prop in the champion's hand, looking quite interested.
Vinissa peeked out and asked, "Cyndaquil Champion, what Pokémon's feather is this? It looks so beautiful, just like the aurora borealis shimmering in the polar sky."
The mythologist nodded, the feather he held fluttering slightly in the air.
"We found it where Volibear was originally sealed. It was an altar the size of a room, with a large hole torn open into the first level of the tunnel. Countless chains made of magnetite and a large amount of building materials were scattered around, which should have been left behind when Volibear broke free of its seal. This glowing feather was discarded near the very center of the altar, indicating that it was originally used as the core of the sealing device."
"Based on the characteristics that this feather currently exhibits, the origin of this strange ability to make people feel so comfortable that they can't help but want to sleep is not hard to guess."
"Among the mythical Pokémon that fits the description in ancient myths and legends, Cresselia, known as the 'Goddess of Dreams,' is probably the first one. Legend has it that Cresselia is the embodiment of the new moon, and if you fall asleep while holding its feather, you will enter into a sweet dream."
Zhu Lan shook the feather again, and the fluorescent green light trailed an elegant arc in the air.
Scientists in the Unova region are said to have developed a technology that can solidify dream energy into a physical form. I wonder if that technological creation can compare to this magnificent, crescent-shaped feather?
At this moment, that pleasant sense of weariness intensified, and everyone couldn't help but nod in agreement—at this moment, the authenticity of this phantom item was beyond doubt.
"Of course, if people still have doubts about the condition of the underground space, they can also take a look at the photos we took on site."
Before Miss Champion could finish speaking, Rotom the Cellphone eagerly emerged from behind her.
While making a lot of noise, a series of photos of the scene were projected in the dimly lit conference room.
The holographic images were incredibly clear, capturing not only the chains forged from magnetite in the darkness, but also the steel columns extending down from the walls of the mansion in the distance.
The most eye-catching of all is the altar that stands at the center of the confluence of countless curved steel pillars.
The so-called "altar" is actually just the personal interpretation of the Bamboo Orchid Champion. To technologists like Mei Dan and Hayden, it looks more like the core of a steampunk-style device.
Compared to mythological heraldry and religious decorations, the altar is filled with more steel frames and mechanical gears. These savage-looking metal components intertwine to form a huge and hard cocoon within the dark cave, creating a visual impact that is neither ancient nor modern.
On the cocoon shell with a large hole, more than ten Thunder Stones emitting faint electric light, along with the same number of Ice Stones, were joined like screws to the connection between the steel frame and the chain.
"Although there are more than a dozen ice stones embedded inside, you can't actually feel much cold air at the scene."
The mythologist pointed to the image in the air and explained.
"Based on on-site observations, the mechanical gears inside originally appeared to be movable. Under normal operating conditions, they would use the static electricity unconsciously emitted by the Washing Jade Naughty Thunder Bomb to slowly drive the entire altar to rotate at a speed that was almost imperceptible to the naked eye."
"In addition, the distribution of these minerals containing Pokémon energy on the altar is also very interesting. Unlike the Thunder Stones, which are evenly distributed around the front, back and all sides of the device, the Ice Stones are concentrated on one side of the device."
"Although the quality of the stones varies, the fact that the prisoner was able to acquire so many evolution stones a hundred years ago suggests that he was probably a super-rich businessman, just like Hayden."
Officer Jenny glanced teasingly in a certain direction. Hayden, whose name had been called, looked around indifferently.
Why would the kidnapper do this? Was such a setup necessary?
Professor Mei Dan stretched out his finger and fiddled with the air, zooming in and out of the photo in front of him until he was sure there was absolutely no trace of forgery. Only then did he ask with a lot of suspicion.
"Probably to prevent the mischievous underground bombs from sensing the changing seasons."
Zhu Lan speculated—
"Although I didn't see how the mischievous Thunderbolt was trapped inside, the electricity from the Thunder Stone, combined with the surrounding magnet chains, should be able to levitate it in mid-air, thus causing it to lose its sense of space."
"When the underground temperature rises in summer, the slow gears will drive more ice stones, turning them closer to Electrode, preventing the sealed Electrode from experiencing the changing seasons and thus depriving it of its perception of time."
"No time, no space, leaving a sleeping Electrode in the dark world... How should I put it, this arrangement, which almost perfectly matches the Sinnoh creation myth, really reflects the ironic style of the owner of this Forest Mansion. At the same time, there should be another reason why the kidnappers made the altar rotate, which is to prevent Electrode from remaining in the same sleeping position for a long time."
"Isn't the Mischievous Thunderball round? Does it need to roll over and stretch periodically?"
The old professor couldn't help but reveal his sarcastic and cynical nature, asking sarcastically.
Mythologists shook their heads.
"Stretching is not the case. But just like when we sleep for too long, we sometimes feel muscle soreness when we wake up, if Raiden stays in the same sleeping position for the past hundred years, there is no guarantee that Raiden's body or the surrounding magnetic field environment will not undergo some kind of change. If this causes Raiden to feel something is wrong with itself and thus break its slumber, then the kidnapper's goal will be completely unfulfilled."
"So, the final key still lies in this crescent feather. Was it originally in this position?"
Meidan pointed to the base at the bottom of the cocoon, where there was a hole about the thickness of a finger in the very center.
“I found this glowing Cresselian feather from far away in the whole device, right here,” Zhu Lan said, pointing to a spot on the side of the center.