By midday the following day, under Drake's swift navigation, it took only a night and a morning to reach the coast near the Safari Zone.
However, the Safari Zone is a restricted area controlled by the League, and their oversight of the place is quite strict. If Cain entered directly through the back, it would be considered trespassing, which could lead to trouble with the League.
Thus, Cain could only circle around to the main entrance.
Bidding farewell to Drake, with whom he exchanged contact information, Cain flew off on his Flygon.
After Drake's guidance, Cain had a better understanding of how to raise Flygon, with a clearer sense of direction for its training.
If Flygon were trained well, it seemed it could become a useful ally.
It all depended on whether Cain had the intention and determination to make it happen.
Fortunately, Cain was now a man of resources. While his "mine" was small, its quality was high, and production was fast.
The training of Larvitar and Aron was supported by the minerals accumulated by Carbink over countless years. The minerals produced after that could be used to train other Pokémon as well.
However, the mine was rather small, but if its output could be doubled, Cain wouldn't need to seek additional resources to train his Bagon.
Riding Flygon and flying at high altitude to avoid some dominant wild Pokémon, Cain headed straight for the entrance to the Safari Zone.
The Kanto region also has a Safari Zone, another League-regulated area. Anyone willing to pay a certain fee can enter to capture Pokémon, though only special Pokéballs can be used inside.
These Pokéballs are of medium to low quality, making it harder to capture Pokémon. Often, even after using all thirty Pokéballs, one might not catch a single Pokémon.
Still, every year, many people are eager to enter.
In these hunting areas, the Pokémon levels are usually low and, compared to the outside, much safer.
Of course, due to the variety of visitors, there are some more dangerous areas in the Safari Zone. However, the League marks these hazardous zones, and most people avoid entering them.
Cain, however, was heading to one of the most dangerous areas, likely a place few had ventured before.
Today, Flygon was in a good mood. After Cain's conversation with Drake, he treated Flygon better, even conducting detailed tests to plan its future training.
For Cain, not taking advantage of Flygon's potential would be a waste. After all, Flygon would likely serve as his aerial mount for a long time, and if it was too weak, it would be embarrassing. Furthermore, Cain wanted to conduct some experiments on Flygon.
Although Flygon's Dragon-type blood was faint, it was still a Dragon-type Pokémon. Some of the breeding techniques Cain had learned from Drake could be tested on Flygon first before applying them to Bagon, which should yield better results.
But Flygon was unaware of any of this.
In good spirits, Flygon flew swiftly and avoided causing trouble with wild Pokémon.
Soon, Cain arrived at the ticket booth at the Safari Zone's entrance.
There was a large crowd, all eager to enter and catch Pokémon.
The wild Pokémon here were of good quality, and the best part was that the entry fee wasn't very high. For just 30,000 Pokédollars, one could receive thirty special Safari Zone Pokéballs.
However, before entering, everyone was required to hand over their personal Pokéballs. At the entrance, there were detection devices to ensure no unauthorized Pokéballs were brought in. If any were detected, entry would be denied.
As a League member and Gym Leader of Leafy Town, Cain didn't have to wait in line or pay the fee. Gym Leaders in the League are granted three free entries to the Safari Zone each year.
After handing over his Pokéballs and receiving thirty low-quality Safari Zone Pokéballs, Cain entered the Safari Zone.
Normally, within the Safari Zone, using Pokémon is not allowed. There are many surveillance devices, and if someone is caught using force to capture Pokémon, they will be fined and won't be allowed to keep the captured Pokémon.
However, trainers like Cain, who enter dangerous areas, are allowed to use their Pokémon in battles.
In these hazardous zones, there are no surveillance devices, and even if there were, they would likely be destroyed by the Pokémon in the area, increasing the privacy of these zones.
After entering the Safari Zone, Cain, under the envious and jealous gazes of many, mounted Flygon and flew deeper into the area.
He passed through the safe zones and entered a region marked with the League's warning signs.
Unless a trainer has advanced-level Pokémon, it's best not to enter here, as the responsibility lies entirely with those who dare.
Arriving at a familiar valley, Cain descended. Venturing further could mean encountering many advanced-level or even quasi-elite Pokémon. It was safer to proceed on foot.
He came upon a valley lush with vegetation and featuring a small waterfall.
This was the place Cain remembered. The Mega Stone was hidden among the rocks in the valley.
If all went well, no Pokémon would appear, and Cain would only need to dig through the rocks to find it.
If luck wasn't on his side, he might encounter powerful Pokémon.
Walking through the valley, Cain was accompanied by Slowking, whose full psychic power could assist in locating the Mega Stone more easily.
But Cain's luck wasn't great today.
Upon entering the valley, he encountered a powerful Pokémon.
A black Pokémon with a fierce expression.
Houndoom!
This valley was likely the only water source in the vicinity, so many Pokémon came here to drink. Cain ran into Houndoom just as it finished drinking.
As an aggressive and violent Houndoom, it attacked immediately upon seeing Cain and Slowking.
Fortunately, Slowking successfully countered Houndoom's Inferno attack using the move Psychic Water Pulse.
Had it not been for Slowking's Miracle Eye move, which allows it to bypass the immunity of Dark-types, the battle would have been much harder.
(End of Chapter)