At four-thirty in the afternoon, the ecological research tour of the wild Pokémon officially came to an end.
Albus, who had been walking all day, was completely exhausted. After grabbing a quick meal at the cafeteria, he returned to his dormitory and immediately fell into a deep sleep. He was so tired that he didn't even notice a small white figure quietly poking its head out of his backpack.
"Gah?"
Will Young slowly turned his head, his dull eyes locking onto the Lalu Lasi sitting on the table.
Startled, Lalu Lasi quickly retracted into the backpack.
Will Young tilted his head curiously.
After waiting for a while, and seeing no new movement from outside, Lalu Lasi carefully peeked out again, nervously observing its surroundings.
Once Will Young confirmed that the little creature posed no threat, he flew to his usual spot on the bed and closed his eyes.
Lalu Lasi sighed in relief. Slowly, using its psychic powers, it floated out of the backpack. Its eyes sparkled with curiosity as it looked around at all the human objects in the room.
It floated over to the desk, stretched out a small hand, and poked the lamp.
Click!
Bright light instantly illuminated the entire desk.
Lalu Lasi froze, then immediately disappeared in a blink.
The person sleeping on the bed didn't stir.
After a moment of hesitation, Lalu Lasi reappeared and slowly returned to the desk. Sitting atop a pile of books, it swung its legs leisurely, then turned to observe the human teenager sleeping soundly.
Late at night, Albus was jolted awake by a loud noise.
Opening his eyes, he was shocked to find an Albert standing in his room.
Not far from Albert, Lalu Lasi stood with its head lowered, looking extremely guilty—like a little girl caught sneaking out by her strict parent.
Albus was momentarily stunned.
Did something happen while he was asleep?
Albert's eyes were filled with stern emotions.
Albus instinctively used his ability to analyze the situation.
[Pokémon Analysis]
Species: Albert ♂
Type: Psychic, Fairy
Ability: Telepathy
Base Stats: 518 (HP: 68, Attack: 65, Defense: 65, Special Attack: 125, Special Defense: 115, Speed: 80)
Moves Known: Psychic, Teleport, Double Team, Moonblast, Healing Wish, Calm Mind, Psyshock, Future Sight
Current Mood: Angry
Physical Condition: Perfect
Friendliness: 1 (Barely acknowledges you)
Albert… Lalu Lasi…
Could they be the same ones he had encountered before?
Albus turned his attention to Lalu Lasi.
[Pokémon Analysis]
Species: Lalu Lasi ♀
Type: Psychic, Fairy
Ability: Synchronize
Base Stats: 198 (HP: 28, Attack: 25, Defense: 25, Special Attack: 45, Special Defense: 35, Speed: 40)
Moves Known: Growl, Double Team, Confusion, Teleport
Current Mood: Sad
Physical Condition: Perfect
Friendliness: 40 (Sees you as a hero who fell from the sky)
Albus was now certain—this was the same Lalu Lasi he had met before.
But he remained frozen, unable to move under Albert's intense aura. With a level over sixty, this Pokémon was not one to be trifled with.
A father and daughter… No, to be exact, it was a father and his child.
Albert was male.
The two Pokémon faced each other, seemingly communicating telepathically.
After a moment, Lalu Lasi let out a pitiful cry, looking utterly dejected. It hesitated for a moment, casting one last glance at Albus before finally turning away.
Then, in an instant, both figures vanished.
Albus sat there, completely lost.
He had just woken up—what exactly had he missed?
Judging by Albert's reaction, Lalu Lasi had probably sneaked out again, much to its father's disapproval.
But why did it appear in his dormitory?
Could it be that after he had saved it, it now wanted to be caught by a human, just like in the anime?
That kind of thing was common in animated stories, but experiencing it in real life made Albus feel a strange mix of excitement and disbelief.
He belatedly realized what he had let slip through his fingers.
Still, even if Lalu Lasi was willing, Albert probably wouldn't approve.
Albus could tell—Albert clearly didn't trust humans.
If he wanted to catch Lalu Lasi, he'd have to deal with its father first.
And considering Albert's level… that wouldn't be easy.
Unless he somehow managed to catch both father and daughter.
But wouldn't that be a little strange? A trainer capturing both a Pokémon parent and its child?
Not to mention, Albert was far too strong for him to defeat at the moment—unless he deliberately put himself in danger to activate Powerful Duck's protective instincts.
Albus sighed regretfully.
But he didn't have much time to dwell on it.
The next morning, chaos erupted once again.
Albus woke up to the sight of Will Young gripping a struggling Pikachu in its beak.
His brain short-circuited.
"Let it go!" Albus shouted, horrified.
Unfortunately, he was already too late.
Pikachu, which had been putting up minimal resistance, suddenly decided it had had enough.
"Pika-Chu!"
A powerful bolt of electricity burst out, lighting up the entire room.
For the first time, Albus truly understood what it meant to feel "shocked."
"Gah!"
Will Young opened its beak wide in surprise, giving Pikachu the chance to wriggle free and leap onto the floor, glaring at the bird.
When the 100,000-volt attack ended, Will Young remained perfectly unharmed.
Albus, however, was not so lucky.
Surprisingly, though, he didn't pass out.
Wait… shouldn't a human faint from that much electricity?
Was this proof that humans in this world were basically a special kind of Pokémon?!
In reality, most of the energy had been absorbed by Will Young. The shock Albus felt was just residual static.
"Pikachu!"
A voice suddenly called out from outside.
"Pikapi!"
Pikachu's ears twitched, and it quickly hopped out of the open window.
Albus, still scorched black from the shock, lay sprawled on the floor, groaning, "Stop bringing back random Pokémon!"
Will Young blinked, tilting its head. "Gah?"
Just then, the door burst open.
A girl holding Pikachu rushed in and gasped at the sight of Albus.
"Mr. Albus, are you okay?!"
Albus exhaled, looked up, and recognized her—one of his students.
"I'll be fine once the paralysis wears off," he muttered.
Five minutes later, after recovering, he listened as the girl explained.
"I was playing with Pikachu by the river when that bird swooped down, grabbed Pikachu in its beak, and flew off!"
Albus gave a sheepish smile. "I'm really sorry. I wasn't paying enough attention."
"It's okay," she sighed in relief, hugging Pikachu. "As long as everyone's alright. Mr. Albus, I'll head back now!"
Albus personally saw her out before turning to face Will Young, who was still wearing an innocent expression.
"Seriously?" he muttered.
Will Young tilted its head again. "Gah?"
Albus sighed heavily.
Yesterday, Will Young had caught a Magikarp. Today, it had grabbed a Pikachu.
What would it bring back tomorrow?
A Kyogre?
He didn't even want to imagine it.
No—if this kept up, he'd wake up one day with a legendary Pokémon in his dorm room.
It was time to put some serious restrictions on how much time Will Young could spend outside of its Poké Ball.
He sighed again.
"From now on, you're staying in the Poké Ball more often."
Will Young let out a disappointed "Gah…" but Albus wasn't budging.
For his own sanity, this had to stop.