While Serperior was busy showing off its strength and recruiting followers, little Tinkatink dragged Lucas and ran all the way back to the cave in one breath.
Tinkatink was panting hard from exhaustion, but Lucas still felt he had energy to spare.
Compared to working a whole day in the fields, plus setting an example by running laps and doing push-ups with the Pokémon, this kind of physical exertion was nothing.
His daily nutrition was ample, and ever since bringing Calyrex back to the farm, he felt healthier each day than the last. No matter how tired he was the previous day, a good night's sleep left him refreshed, all fatigue completely gone.
It was just like a status refresh in a game.
All in all, Lucas felt he was frighteningly strong now.
Give him a few mudballs, and he could probably subdue a Tinkatink solo, just relying on strength.
Tinkatink looked at Lucas, who wasn't even out of breath, in disbelief, doubting its own judgment.
How is he even more enduring than me!?
Tinkatink fell into deep self-doubt.
Until it glanced at the hammer in its hand—Tinkatink felt it found the truth.
It must be the hammer that's too heavy, slowing me down!
Once it thought this through, a smile returned to Tinkatink's face. It looked at Lucas, who was glancing around the cave like some kind of tourist, and fell silent.
"Tink."
Is this human a bit too naturally friendly?
After inspecting the whole cave, Lucas didn't forget his purpose. He placed the insulated food container in front of Tinkatink and smiled, "Think of it as a meeting gift, and a thank-you for not leaving me behind while running."
Honestly, Lucas was surprised that Tinkatink had chosen to take him along for the escape, given they'd only met twice.
Just last night, Tinkatink had been so wary.
Setting aside the fact that Houndoom and the Houndours weren't really a threat, Tinkatink's personality was clearly very kind.
Giving Tinkatink a gift, Lucas's gesture was even more heartfelt now—not just about recruiting a suitable craftsman.
Tinkatink blinked, hesitated, then put down its hammer and went forward to lift the insulated bucket to see what was inside.
As soon as it tried to lift it, Tinkatink was stunned.
It was confident in its arm strength—after all, it needed to be able to smash rocks. It could at least pick up the bucket.
But what on earth was in this big weird bucket? It was heavier than its own hammer!
Tinkatink realized a flaw in its self-justifying logic.
Did this human really carry this thing all the way back while running with me?
Ugh, I actually lost...
Tinkatink was filled with unwillingness.
Seeing Tinkatink freeze, Lucas assumed it was surprised and delighted by the gift, so he smiled even wider.
"What's wrong? Aren't you going to open it and see?"
"Tink?" (Open it?)
Tinkatink snapped out of its daze and looked the insulated bucket over, searching for a way to open it. From its angle, the bucket looked seamless.
Lucas was about to help, but after Tinkatink inspected it up and down, feeling around the bucket, it seemed to figure out the mechanism and popped the lid open itself.
Lucas was a bit surprised—looks like that Pokédex entry about Tinkaton's high intelligence wasn't an exaggeration.
Picking up the lid and feeling its chilly surface, Tinkatink's first thought was: this lid could probably be used as material for its hammer...
But in the next moment—
Billowing steam and an incredibly fragrant aroma hit Tinkatink square in the face, completely stealing its attention.
It had never smelled anything so fresh and delicious before. Tinkatink didn't even realize there were a few sparkling beads of drool gathering at the corners of its mouth.
In other words, it was drooling with hunger.
"Tink!?"
Tinkatink looked at Lucas, then back at the steaming insulated bucket, eyes full of longing.
He's really going to give me something that smells this good?
"Go ahead and eat, there's more if it's not enough."
Lucas smiled gently, nodding to confirm Tinkatink's hopes.
Unable to hold back any longer, Tinkatink grabbed the bucket and, ignoring the hot mushroom soup inside, started gulping it down.
It was a bold sight, completely at odds with Tinkatink's cute appearance.
In no time, Tinkatink had finished all the mushroom soup in one go, not leaving a single scrap. If it had Lickilicky's tongue, it might have licked the bottom and sides of the bucket too.
Tinkatink stared at Lucas, its gaze now much friendlier.
If this were a game, it'd be like giving gifts to NPCs to raise affection—Lucas could almost see a prompt pop up:
[Ding! Tinkatink's affection has increased!]
"…Wasn't talking to you. Go play somewhere else."
[System: Okay!]
Sending away the notification system that had managed a two-day continuous appearance streak, Lucas checked the time and prepared to head down the mountain.
Before leaving, he took the (now much lighter) bucket from Tinkatink and waved coolly.
"I'll bring you more good food next time I visit. It's getting late, so I'd better go."
Tinkatink, who had wanted to spend more time with Lucas in hopes of recruiting him as its camp chef, could only wave back.
No choice—it was just as Lucas said, it was getting dark.
Once night fell, getting down the mountain would be hard, not to mention all the dangerous nocturnal Pokémon roaming around. Even before coming to this little mountain, Tinkatink had seen will-o'-the-wisps drifting at night more than once.
Even though this human was a bit stronger than it, Tinkatink decided to let him go for now—if something happened to him, who would bring it tasty food?
Once I evolve into Tinkaton, I'll go down and kidnap him!
Unaware of Tinkatink's dangerous thoughts, Lucas waved goodbye and headed down the mountain, leaving behind a dashing figure.
…
A short while later—
Bathed in the glow of dusk, Lucas reached the mountainside and, as expected, ran into Serperior already waiting there.
But when he saw all the marks in the dirt left by Serperior's tail, Lucas broke out in a cold sweat.
Thinking he couldn't just sit and wait for trouble, Lucas kept his usual smile, walked up, and under Serperior's death stare, calmly brought up his next plan.
"Do you remember that photographer Perrin, who took our family photo? She invited us to Kitakami Town for a favor. While we're there, I thought we could look around."
"Serpe?"
Serperior paused as its vines twitched, raising its head and looking at Lucas in confusion.
It vaguely remembered that person, but why bring her up now?
Seeing that he had Serperior's attention, Lucas pressed on: "About the item needed for Applin's evolution, we should be able to find some good quality ones there."
Hearing about its adopted child, Serperior's focus was fully hooked.
Its expression shifted from dark to slightly disgusted.
Tropius was fine—born at its final stage. But Applin still needed to evolve.
Curious before, Serperior had Lucas show it Applin's evolved forms. The moment it saw Flapple and Appletun, Serperior was dumbfounded.
Wait, those two chubby things are really what that cute, plump little caterpillar will turn into?
So ugly.
Serperior bluntly expressed its distaste. It just couldn't accept its foster child becoming like that.
Serperior flicked out a vine, lightly smacking Lucas's hand, not even leaving a red mark.
It looked at Lucas, urging him—was there really no third evolution option for Applin?
In the past, Lucas would have had to give a helpless answer.
But this time was different. With a confident smile, Lucas said, "Let me introduce you to Applin's third evolution branch—Dipplin and its further evolution, Hydrapple!"
Serperior perked up instantly.
Hydrapple!?
Applin could evolve into a snake like itself?
Serperior immediately wanted to see what Dipplin and Hydrapple looked like. Lucas didn't keep it in suspense and pulled out two photos for it to see.
Looking at the photos of Dipplin and Hydrapple, Serperior was finally reassured.
Thank goodness. They might look a little silly, but at least they're better than Appletun and Flapple. Besides, Applin's always been a bit dopey—maybe two negatives can make a positive, and it'll pick up some of my poise?
As Serperior intently studied the photos, Lucas quietly celebrated his success and recalled how he'd learned about Dipplin and Hydrapple.
A few days earlier, he'd asked Alder to send him the Bolt Strike training method when he returned to Unova.
Who'd have thought that, due to a slip-up, Alder, who had Blueberry Academy access, would accidentally send him some newly discovered moves and Pokémon evolutions from the Academy as well.
Among them were Applin's new evolution lines—Dipplin and Hydrapple. According to research, Applin evolved after eating a special apple found in Kitakami Town.
That apple was called "Syrupy Apple," and was said to be extremely rare among the vast apple orchards of Kitakami Town.
If not for a student from Kitakami Town bringing one to Blueberry Academy a month earlier—and just happening to have an Applin as a partner—who knows when Applin's new evolutions would have been discovered.
All of this, Lucas learned from Alder, whose info was not considered confidential.
For now, Lucas paused his thoughts. Seeing Serperior still scrutinizing Hydrapple's photo, he cleared his throat to get its attention.
When Serperior looked over, Lucas said seriously, "Don't forget, no matter which evolution it wants, we need to respect Applin's wishes."
"If you force your own ideas on it and say it's for its own good, wouldn't you be furious if that happened to you?"
Serperior froze.
That's right.
Back when it was a Snivy, it hated being managed all the time.
It had gotten into all sorts of ridiculous situations because of it. Looking back now, its outlook had completely changed.
Thinking of this, Serperior closed its eyes, as if making a decision.
A moment later, it opened them, signaling Lucas to hurry down the mountain.
If they didn't speed up, it'd be dark soon.
As for who Applin wanted to evolve into… Well, let it choose.
After all, it was the child it had raised by hand.
Once the decision was made, Serperior suddenly felt that all its previous worries were laughable—just like looking back on its Snivy days. Now, as Serperior, it looked back on its recent self with a totally different state of mind.
…
On the way home—
Serperior's good mood was so obvious, Lucas could feel it without a word.
After all, the whole way down, Serperior's vines were hooked around his wrist, just like Penny's Sylveon.
"Serpe?" (Those two Eevee—what do you think they should evolve into?)
Serperior suddenly asked.
It remembered that Eevee could evolve into quite a few types. Lucas's red-and-blue-haired student had raised several.
That made Serperior curious about Lucas's preferences for Eevee evolutions.
After grasping Serperior's meaning, Lucas thought for a moment, rubbing his chin, and replied: "Well, I'd accept whichever forms they evolved into."
"But if I had to pick a preference… Espeon, Umbreon, Leafeon, Sylveon, and Glaceon are all pretty great. Flareon, Vaporeon, and Jolteon each have their own features too. It's really hard to decide."
Serperior rolled its eyes.
What kind of answer is that—classic, "I want them all," huh?
But Lucas really seemed to be thinking hard, recalling in his mind what shiny Eeveelutions looked like.
Flareon's shiny form was yellow—barely acceptable.
Vaporeon and Jolteon, though, were an awful pinkish-purple and toxic green. Just looking at them made you want to call the police. Did Game Freak put any effort into shiny Pokémon colors?
Leafeon and Glaceon only had subtle color changes—almost unnoticeable.
After a long while, Lucas muttered to himself, troubled: "Eevee's older sister is fine, but as for shiny Eevee's little sister, most of the evolutions are a disaster. In terms of looks, Sylveon and Umbreon are the highlights, but Espeon's plant-like appearance isn't bad either…"
…
The next day—
Early in the morning, just as Lucas was about to head to class, Oranguru brought him some surprising news.
Naclstack—after all this time, and with the soil from Mt. Silver almost eaten up—finally evolved!
When he arrived at the Salt House entrance, Lucas was stunned by the three huge figures.
At the same time, he understood why Oranguru had rushed to stop him.
Originally, the Salt House doors had been built to accommodate the average height of Garganacl, with some margin—enough for a 2.6-2.7 meter Pokémon to get in and out.
Now, it wasn't enough!