July 21st, Tuesday.
Today, Natsume-sensei was jolted awake by a loud explosion in the living room.
Startled, Natsume scrambled out of bed and rushed to the living room, where Haunter and Eevee were in the middle of a battle.
"Haunter!" Haunter rubbed its palms together, launching a small Shadow Ball at Eevee. Eevee shook its head, completely unharmed.
"Eevee!" Eevee bared its teeth and charged at Haunter with a 'Return' move, passing straight through Haunter's ghostly form.
Haunter burst into laughter, but its expression froze when it noticed Natsume standing in the corner with a look of utter exasperation.
Mutual immunity, and they're using it to train moves…
You guys are something else!
Glancing up at the ceiling, which was now shedding bits of plaster, Natsume muttered to himself:
"This house… is probably going to get blown up one day…"
After calling in some repair workers, Natsume bit into a piece of toast and noted down the '-2000' bill, sighing in relief:
"Thank goodness, it's only 2000 Pokémon Coins…"
I mean, come on, I'm already five million Pokémon Coins in debt. What's a little more?
The repairs dragged on until the afternoon.
Before Natsume could even sink into the sadness of Cynthia's departure, he was busy signing for a delivery.
"Pelipper Delivery Service, please sign here!"
Pelipper's pouch was large enough to fit even a gachapon machine, and the two small packages were no problem at all.
Under the eager gazes of Eevee and Haunter, Natsume opened the package worth five million Pokémon Coins with a sense of reverence.
"At this price, you'd think they'd throw in some freebies," Natsume grumbled, wincing at the cost. "One star, no question!"
"Huh… wait, there actually is something?"
Natsume pulled out a Exquisite card in surprise—a lifetime VIP card from the Wilds Group, the same company he'd ordered Eevee's training vest from.
The company specialized in custom made Pokémon training equipment.
From artificial exoskeletons for Pokémon to waterproof coatings for Rock-types…
In a world where even space technology was commonplace, this kind of advanced tech was no big deal.
"I wonder how Poké Balls even work," Natsume scratched his head.
"The power of science is truly amazing!"
"Eevee?" Eevee tilted its head, staring at the light pink Anklet with a little bow, clearly confused.
"I had these specially made. Cute, right?" Natsume grinned. "They'll look even better on you!"
According to the System's scan, this item had effects similar to a "Power Anklet," designed to boost a Pokémon's Speed EVs.
But in the real world, the concept of EVs was a bit vague.
According to Cynthia, these would help correct Eevee's improper movement patterns and eliminate potential risks during training.
Natsume grabbed the scruff of Eevee's neck, and while the little one struggled, he fastened the Anklet onto Eevee's short legs.
Eevee blinked, took a few tentative steps, and looked thoroughly uncomfortable.
"You'll get used to it," Natsume reassured with a smile. "Cynthia recommended these, and… they do look pretty good!"
"Eevee…（○｀ 3′○）"
Eevee puffed out its cheeks and reluctantly nodded.
"Haunter!" Haunter's eyes lit up as it eagerly rummaged through the package.
Natsume took the package and opened the exquisite wooden box.
A chilling aura immediately filled the room.
"Haunter! (′▽`〃)"
Just smelling it was enough to make Haunter look dazed.
The wooden box, worth over three million, contained only two layers: two matte-black Dusk Stones, dark as ink.
Natsume had encountered Dusk Stones before—he'd exchanged 500 BP for a small piece once, so he knew how valuable they were.
Dusk Stones were a type of Evolutionary Stone, and Red had three eternal Fire, Water, and Thunder Stones.
Natsume suddenly paused. "No wonder Red's so rich…"
"Those three eternal Evolutionary Stones must be worth billions!"
Next to the exquisite wooden box was a letter from the seller:
"It's an honor to share the beauty of minerals with you. If this sparks an interest in stones, that would be wonderful.
Steven Stone, with regards."
"No wonder the quality of these Dusk Stones is so high…" Natsume nodded thoughtfully.
"So they're from that rock enthusiast's collection!"
Steven's collection wasn't usually for sale, but at Cynthia's request, he had specially selected these two Dusk Stones.
For Haunter's Shadow Ball training, these were absolutely perfect resources.
Natsume sighed, feeling a bit exhausted:
"Practicing Shadow Ball… I bet the house is going to get wrecked again…"
"Haunter! (*⊙~⊙)"
Haunter was wide-eyed, its crimson tongue flicking out to lick the Dusk Stones, looking utterly entranced.
Meanwhile, Eevee, now wearing the anklet with the little bow and a Silk Scarf around its neck, was fidgeting nervously in front of the mirror.
"Eevee!" Eevee bared its teeth at its reflection, then quickly backed away.
Sneaking a glance at Natsume, Eevee's face turned red, and it quickly looked away, pretending nothing had happened.
Natsume smiled softly.
Well… as long as they're happy, that's all that matters.
Natsume's ambitions weren't grand—he just wanted to live a peaceful life with his Pokémon.
But if Haunter and Eevee wanted to battle…
Natsume wouldn't mind walking that path with them. It could be fun.
This was the realization Natsume had after Cynthia left, tinged with a bit of regret.
Humans and Pokémon meeting, forming bonds, influencing each other's lives…
That's probably the charm of the Pokémon world!
Of course, the training part could be left to Haunter.
Natsume thought to himself.
Even though I'm a training genius, I should probably focus on earning money and taking care of the family.
If possible, Natsume mused…
Maybe setting a small goal, like supporting a Sinnoh Champion, isn't entirely out of the question?
Natsume instinctively reached into his pocket and pulled out an IOU, his expression immediately changing.
"W-well… first, let's focus on paying off those five million Pokémon Coins…"
...
"Hoenn Region Master League, Winner—Cynthia!"
The golden-haired woman in the black trench coat instinctively glanced toward the invitation seats.
Diantha, with her gray hair and green eyes, dressed in an elegant white gown, was clapping gracefully.
Cynthia smiled and met Diantha in the contestant hallway, the two sharing a light hug.
"How was your trip to the Touran Region?" Diantha asked.
"It was wonderful," Cynthia replied with a smile.
"I thought you didn't like traveling far," Diantha said, slightly surprised.
"But meeting different people and different Pokémon…"
Cynthia thought of Haunter and Eevee, her eyes curving into crescents. "It was quite interesting."
Diantha nodded gently. "True, traveling can change your mood… but you've got a busy schedule ahead…"
Thinking of her packed itinerary for the second half of the year, Cynthia sighed, resting her forehead in her hand.
As she slipped her hand into her pocket, her fingers brushed against a piece of paper.
Curious, she unfolded it to find Natsume's bold handwriting.
She could almost picture Natsume-sensei's expression as he wrote the IOU.
For some reason, Cynthia couldn't help but smile.
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