Yuyou: I can come. Let me have a battle with the leek man.
Lu Ze: Sure.
Wang Quan: Master! I want a battle with you too!
Su Tingxi: Count me in!
Sui Yan: Me too!
Tang Yunqin: I'll sit this one out and watch you guys.
Tang Yunqin: [image]
Yin Hanling: Wow! Eevee is so cute!
Lu Ze looked at the Eevee picture Tang Yunqin had posted and smiled. Eevee really was cute.
Though Tang Yunqin, holding the Eevee in her arms, wasn't bad to look at either.
The thought made Lu Ze's face heat up, and his fingers flew across the keyboard at record speed.
Lu Ze: Battle Center this afternoon, then.
Yuyou: OK.
Yin Hanling: OK.
Wang Quan: OK.
Su Tingxi: Sure.
Tang Yunqin: Sounds good.
Sui Yan: Let's go!
Lu Ze smiled faintly, set the phone down, and reached over to ruffle Farfetch'd's head.
Farfetch'd's head flicked aside — it was still eating — and Lu Ze's hand missed entirely.
Lu Ze blinked, then laughed and shook his head, returning to his wonton.
After breakfast, he spent the whole morning lazing on the sofa with the non-adventurous Pokémon. After lunch, he headed out with a few of them.
Mini Dragon was perched on his left shoulder; Huhu was on his right. Farfetch'd with its leek walked behind him. And invisible in the air overhead was Deoxys, its presence masked by bent light.
Lu Ze only brought those four. Charizard was still out with Crobat. Crawdinator and Elekid had gone with Snorlax.
Lu Ze arrived right after lunch — so he was the first one there.
"Hi, I'd like a training room please."
"Of course."
The receptionist smiled sweetly and handed Lu Ze a keycard.
"Thanks."
Lu Ze took the card, snapped a photo, and sent it to the group chat.
A string of "Got it!" replies later, he walked into the training room first.
"Okay, Farfetch'd — first, let's see what moves you can perform."
Lu Ze stood before a move-practice target and addressed Farfetch'd.
"Yan!"
Farfetch'd answered crisply, then fixed the target with a sharp stare. Right now, thattarget was its enemy.
"Let's start with Peck!"
Lu Ze gestured grandly. Farfetch'd flicked its leek, launched into the air, and its gleaming beak collided with the red spot on the target dead center.
"Nice work, Farfetch'd! Now Quick Attack!"
Farfetch'd dropped from the air, then immediately shifted into Quick Attack.
Bathed in white light, it shot forward across the room at high speed.
"Right now — Night Slash!"
As Farfetch'd approached the target again, Lu Ze barked the command with excitement.
"Sshhk!"
The leek cleared its sheath. A flash of white — the tip of the leek stabbed clean into the target.
"Incredible, Farfetch'd! You'll be today's champion for sure!"
"Yan!"
Farfetch'd merely raised its leek slightly. Its expression was unmoved.
"It looks like the Pokémon Virus really has had a significant effect on Farfetch'd. Through that whole string of moves, it shows no sign of fatigue whatsoever."
Lu Ze watched Farfetch'd with growing excitement.
When Crobat had first been born, just a single Air Slash had drained most of its energy.
And that was without mentioning the charging time Crobat needed before every Air Slash.
Farfetch'd, by contrast, had none of that problem — its moves flowed smoothly, one into the next, with zero stamina issues.
"Hey, diligent of you, Lu Ze."
"Hey, getting here this early? Not like you."
Lu Ze didn't even turn around as he shot back at Sui Yan's teasing.
"If I hadn't dragged him, he'd probably be the last one to show up again."
Sui Yan shot Su Tingxi an exasperated look. "Oh, I'm so grateful, you really didn't have to drag me — I just finished eating and you grabbed me right away."
Su Tingxi shrugged without a trace of embarrassment. "Hey, we're close, what's a thank-you between friends?"
Sui Yan: …
Sui Yan dropped it and turned his attention eagerly to Farfetch'd.
"Farfetch'd looks really lively."
He released his Bulbasaur and Ralts at the same time.
The moment Ralts appeared, it immediately drew Farfetch'd's attention.
"Yan?"
*A young one with a big head, huh?*
No wonder Farfetch'd thought so. Sui Yan's Ralts really was something else.
Ordinary Ralts were incredibly shy — most of them would hide behind their trainer the moment they appeared, like a little girl.
But Sui Yan's Ralts was different. Sui Yan's Ralts was like a rich kid who had never faced the cruel realities of the world.
The moment it appeared, it stuck its chin up, revealing the pink pupils beneath its thick bangs, hands planted on its hips, looking down at everyone from above — the classic nose-turned-up-at-you stare.
The entrance had flustered not just Farfetch'd. Even Lu Ze and the others, the first time they'd seen it, had been left staring blankly.
"Laa Ru!"
*So what!*
Ralts planted its hands on its hips, thrust its chest out, and stared Farfetch'd down challengingly.
"Yan!"
A little "#" sign popped above Farfetch'd's head. This guy was way too arrogant.
Su Tingxi glanced from Farfetch'd to Ralts with arms folded, then looked back at the two of them. "They seem really compatible."
Lu Ze nodded. "Yeah. So compatible they're about to fight."
"Hahaha—"
All three of them burst out laughing.
"Here — how about we let them have a go first?"
Lu Ze stared at Sui Yan. "Are you sure? Does Ralts even have any battle capability yet?"
Sui Yan snickered. "Pssh, don't sell me short. I've been doing targeted training with Ralts these past couple days. And Ralts has been working hard too — it absolutely has the chops to be this arrogant!"
Looking at Sui Yan's confidence, Lu Ze couldn't help but pull up Ralts's stat panel.
Pokémon: Ralts
Gender: Male
Type: Psychic / Fairy
Ability: Trace (can sense an opponent's feelings; cannot be hit by ally attacks)
Quality: Red
Base Moves: Disarming Voice, Growl, Fire Punch
Egg Moves: Power Trip, Shadow Sneak, Misty Terrain, Synchronoise
"Oh — Fire Punch."
Lu Ze caught that detail and a knowing smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
No wonder Sui Yan was so confident. He'd already gotten Ralts to learn Fire Punch.
"All right then — let's do this."
If Sui Yan wanted to jump straight into a battle, fine. Lu Ze had some trust in Farfetch'd — he'd just seen it tear through those target drills.
"Come on, Su Tingxi — you be the ref for a second."
Sui Yan was practically vibrating with excitement now that Lu Ze had agreed.
Su Tingxi nodded, grabbed a dumbbell bar from the side, and held it like a referee's flag.
"Ready, you two?"
—
Brothers, I'm begging for monthly votes… I really want to make the monthly chart… wuwuwu~
(End of chapter)