Chapter 266: If You’ve Got the Skills, Stop Time Too!

The video continued playing.

A considerable amount of time seemed to pass once again.

A banner personally sewn by Johanna now hung outside Dawsher House Pokémon Day Care, with the words "Happy 10th Birthday, Hina!" embroidered across it in golden thread.

Today was Hina’s tenth birthday party.

Hina sat in front of the dressing table, letting Dawn fuss over her hair.

"Mom... isn’t this a little too fancy?"

"No problem, no problem! It’s your birthday! Of course you have to dress up nice and pretty!"

Dawn planted both hands on her hips, looking completely confident.

Quaxwell stood in the doorway and looked Hina up and down.

Then it raised one wing and gave her a thumbs-up.

"Ducky, even you...?"

Hina buried her face in both hands, the tips of her ears turning as red as boiled shrimp.

Asher’s voice came from downstairs.

"Wifey, Ash and the others are already here! Now we’re just waiting for Steven and Wallace. Are you two done getting ready?"

"Almost! Almost!"

Dawn grabbed Hina’s hand and pulled her toward the stairs.

"Come on, come on! Let’s show everyone our little birthday girl!"

The living room of the Day Care had been decorated especially grandly today.

Asher was standing on a ladder adjusting the balloons while Ash, Zoey, and Brock helped pass things up to him.

Just then—

The roar of an engine came from the sky outside.

A private jet bearing the Devon Corporation logo tore through the clouds and swept over the Day Care at an absurdly low altitude.

Wallace sat in the copilot’s seat with both hands gripping his seat belt for dear life, his face looking like he’d just drunk expired Moomoo Milk.

"STEVEN!!! THAT IS NOT HOW YOU FLY A PLANE!!!"

"WHO FLIES RIGHT OVER SOMEONE’S ROOF?! YOU ALMOST SHAVED THE MANGO TREE IN THEIR BACKYARD BALD JUST NOW!!"

"Relax. My piloting skills are excellent."

Steven threw the jet into another sharp banking turn, drawing an extremely questionable S-shaped curve through the air.

"Back when I flew fighter jets in Hoenn, things got way more exciting than this."

"Besides, we’re in a hurry to show our support for Brother Asher."

"YOU CAN SUPPORT HIM WITHOUT FLYING LIKE THIS!!"

"No, seriously, I’m getting airsick because of you!!"

The private jet finally landed steadily in the open space behind the Day Care.

The cabin door opened.

Steven hopped down with calm, measured steps and straightened his tie.

"Brother Asher! I’m here for my niece’s birthday!"

Wallace had to support himself against the cabin door just to remain standing.

"Flying in a plane piloted by Steven is somehow even worse than ordinary airsickness..."

"Is it really that exaggerated?"

Steven patted him on the back.

"I thought the flight was pretty stable."

"You call THAT stable?!"

Wallace looked up, the lingering terror still visible in his eyes.

"The plane was practically flying sideways! SIDEWAYS! I could see Trainers on the ground taking pictures of us!"

"Doesn’t that just prove how good my piloting is?"

Steven remained perfectly calm.

"Most people couldn’t fly sideways even if they wanted to."

"...If I ever get on another plane you’re flying, I’ll spell my name backwards."

"Ecallaw?"

Steven thought about it.

"That actually sounds pretty good."

Inside the Day Care’s living room—

The moment Steven stepped through the door, he threw both arms wide and charged toward Asher.

"Brother Asher! My best brother! I’ve missed you so much!"

Asher calmly shifted half a step to the side.

Steven sailed right past him and plunged headfirst into the pile of balloons on the sofa.

A rapid series of pops filled the room.

"Brother Asher, what was that for?"

Steven raised his head from the remains of the balloons, looking deeply wronged.

"As a good man with a family, I have to maintain a safe distance at all times."

Asher’s expression didn’t change in the slightest.

Wallace walked in behind him, straightened his collar, and gave everyone an elegant bow.

"My apologies for arriving late. We ran into a small problem on the way."

"What kind of problem?"

Dawn tilted her head.

"Steven."

Wallace summarized the entire ordeal in one word.

Once everyone had arrived, the birthday party officially began.

One after another, the guests brought out their presents and handed them to Hina, and the atmosphere gradually became more and more lively.

The final gifts were saved for last.

Asher and Dawn each pushed a small cart in from the backyard.

On top of each cart sat a Pokémon Egg, carefully protected beneath a temperature-controlled incubation dome.

"You were the one who took care of these two Eggs from the very beginning."

Asher stopped the cart in front of Hina.

"According to the examinations, they should both be close to hatching."

"So we decided—"

"These will be your tenth birthday presents."

The two Eggs trembled gently beneath their incubation domes.

A faint glow shimmered across their shells.

"Thank you, Mom and Dad."

Hina gently rested one hand against the glass.

Emerald-green Power of Viridian passed through the dome, softly nourishing the two Eggs inside.

"They’re moving~"

"They should hatch soon."

The corners of Asher’s lips lifted slightly.

"Tonight or tomorrow, you’ll probably get to meet them."

"All right, all right!"

Johanna came out of the kitchen carrying an enormous birthday cake.

"Hina’s a big girl now, and soon she’ll be old enough to head out on her own journey!"

"Come on, everyone. Let’s have her make a wish first!"

Everyone gathered around the dining table.

Hina stood in front of the cake and clasped both hands together.

She closed her eyes.

A moment later—

She opened them again and blew out every candle.

Just then—

The image on the giant screen suddenly froze.

[Ding! It’s question time!]

[Generating random question...]

[Question: What did Hina silently wish for in front of her birthday cake just now?]

[A. I hope I can become a Top Coordinator just like Mom.]

[B. I hope I can become a top Pokémon Breeder just like Dad.]

[C. The world is so big—I want to go see it!]

[D. I-I don’t want to go traveling... I just want to stay home... and inherit Dad’s Day Care...]

[Countdown: 3, 2, 1——]

[Ding! Buzz-in begins!]

[Ding! Congratulations to Tiana for buzzing in first!]

[VIP Chat Group]

[Tiana]: TIME STOP TIME STOP TIME STOP TIME STOP TIME STOP!!!! ヾ(≧?≦)ノ

[Lorelei]: I was wondering why the round ended before I even saw the button this time... So Tiana made her move.

[Steven]: Niece Tiana, why did you type all that in the chat? Is chanting "time stop" also a necessary condition for activating your power over time and space?

[Tiana]: Nope~ I just typed it while I was at it to show everyone how much room for error I had. (￣ω￣)

[Volkner]: Yep. Same familiar formula as always. Tiana is absolutely a little demon king.

[Raihan]: CHEATING!! That’s blatant cheating in broad daylight!! Screen, are you seriously going to allow this?!

[System]: Contestant @Tiana has been detected using her own special ability to buzz in. This behavior does not violate the competition rules. An ability is part of a contestant’s strength.

[Aaron]: ...The system is playing favorites here, right? It absolutely is, right?

[Professor Carolina]: Hehe. Since this is a speed round, everyone naturally has to rely on their own abilities. If the rest of you are capable of stopping time too, you’re welcome to do so.

[Leon]: ...And where exactly are we supposed to learn how to do that?

[Wallace]: I checked. The Points Shop actually has it. Power of Time and Space costs three hundred million points.

[Raihan]: THREE HUNDRED MILLION?! Even if I got two more ten-times payouts, I still couldn’t afford that!

[Cynthia]:@Tiana, since you managed to buzz in, answer properly. There’ll still be a punishment if you get it wrong.

[Tiana]: Don’t worry, Mom~ This one’s way too easy. I don’t even need to guess.

I choose D.