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Chapter 51 - Lost in Translation

| Rio POV |

The Divine Dogs are real. They're mine. They're glorious.

Also, they're now aggressively sniffing Null's plates like he's a chew toy made of anxiety and duct tape, wondering if what they're staring at is alive or a statue I bet.

"I don't know if they like you," I whisper.

Null whimpers and tries to back away, but Divine Dog – Black just leans in closer, tail wagging like a metronome set to threatening. Yeah, he can deal with them, I have a date with some goodies!

"System," I mutter quietly, "go ahead and hit me with the quest wrap-up."

[Master of Shadows (Stage 1): Completed!]

Objective:

Manifest and tame the first two Shikigami.Optional Objective:

Do it without exploding the lab again.

Rewards:+2 IV Points+1 Summoning Slot+??? Reward Unlocked!

Ooh, mystery prize!

[??? Reward: All-speak]Effect: You can now understand and speak to all Pokémon and humans alike.Note: Good luck explaining this to your team.

"Wait wha—"

I stare at the pop up as if someone just told me that they ran over my mother with a scooter over text, honestly, not far off...

"Does this mean I can actually speak now..."

I grin as I hear actual English leave my mouth. Not mental words. Not mimed emotions. Speech.

The world… feels smaller all of a sudden.

"...Oh crap," I whisper. "I can actually talk now."

Then the grin comes back.

Oh, May is going to lose her mind.

I glance at the people watching us from the lab's window, discussing amongst themselves the sudden appearance of the divine dogs probably "Good, they haven't heard me yet..."

I turn towards Null, who is getting dogpiled, pun not intended, by my two new summon, "Hey buddy, could you say something out loud?"

"Of course master, but could you ask these two... children, to back off of me?" A grin split my face in half.

IT WORKS!!!!

"IT WORKS!!!" I shout out this time, just to drive in the point.

Null freezes, ears flat.

Divine Dog – Black barks once, which I now realize also translates to:

"Oh cool! Talking chew toy!"

Null groans. "Please tell them I am not food…"

I throw my arms up. "Ladies and gentlemon, we have COMMUNICATION!"

From behind the lab glass, I spot May and Sada turning at once.

Oh no.They definitely heard me that time.

I spin around fast enough to sprain my neck and start dramatically petting Divine Dog – White like I've been doing that the whole time.

"Who's a good eldritch death beast? You are! You are!"

Null raises a brow. "You are extremely suspicious right now."

"Shh," I whisper. "No words. Only plausible deniability."

The door hisses open behind us.

"RIO," May calls, in the voice of someone who knows something just happened and hates that she doesn't know what.

I freeze, gently sliding behind Divine Dog – Black like she's a riot shield.

"Yes, dear trainer-mine?" I chirp, still fully pretending to be mute.

There's a long pause.

"...Did you just speak?"

"Me? Pssh, of course I'm speaking! Thanks to our adorable Star here, mental communications are still going strong!"

"No…" May narrows her eyes. "I meant actual speech. Like… words. With your mouth."

I blink innocently. "...You can hear telepathy audibly now? Star, you've been leveling up without me!"

Kirlia's eye twitches. Her head tilts ever so slightly. That's her liar alarm.

May crosses her arms. "Rio. I. Heard. Your voice. Not in my head. Out loud."

I gasp. "May! That's a dangerous accusation to make without any scientific evidence!"

Sada, still scribbling furiously, hums. "Strange. He's definitely not speaking out loud — no vibrations on the lab's sensors."

"THANK YOU—!"

Everyone freezes.

I freeze.

…That was not in my head.

Kirlia lifts a hand.

ZAP.

"WAAH—OKAY, FINE, I CAN TALK NOW!"

Silence.

I raise my paws slowly, offering a sheepish grin. "Surprise?"

May glares. "Since when?!"

"Since, uh… just now?" I glance at Kirlia. "Right, Star? You were there."

She doesn't say anything. Just… stares.

"Look," I say, backing up a step, "it's like—evolutionary growth! You know, latent potential kicking in, emotional threshold reached, dramatic power-up! Shōnen logic!"

"Bullshit logic," May mutters.

Professor Oak hums thoughtfully. "Fascinating. If this is tied to his 'cursed energy,' perhaps it was a psychological unlock! Triggered by... canine Pokémon exposure?"

"They're not Pokémon," I offer, glad for the topic shift. "They're cursed spirits."

Pause.

May runs a hand through her hair. "Of course they are."

Kirlia floats a bit farther back, still silent.

Still watching.

And somehow, that's more worrying than anything.

"Yeah so... I can speak now! I don't need you to order a Miltank hamburger for me anymore!" I say, beaming at May.

May does not beam back.

In fact, she just gives me a look. The kind of look you give someone who just told you they installed a jet engine in a microwave.

"…Good for you," she says, voice flat.

Kirlia still doesn't speak.

Still doesn't blink.

Her head tilts again. Just slightly.

I shift in place. "Star?"

Nothing.

"Star? Are you mad?"

She blinks once. Then floats a little higher and says softly, "I'm glad for you."

I blink.

Wait. That tone—why did that sound like a goodbye?

"Star, hey—" I start, stepping toward her, but she turns away midair.

"I'll be on the roof," she murmurs, and vanishes with a soft pop of psychic light.

My ears droop.

"...Did I just get dumped?" I whisper.

"You weren't even dating," May says, already pinching the bridge of her nose. "But whatever it was… yeah, you got dumped."

I sigh and flop backwards onto the grass, arms outstretched.

"Why is getting stronger always so emotionally expensive?"

Sada, scribbling notes on a datapad nearby, doesn't even look up as she says: "Science is sacrifice."

(To be continued)

Felt like it was you that dumped her.

MC: What did I even do?!

Nothing. And that's the wrong choice.

MC: I will never understand women.

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