Chapter 452:
Kaede couldn't help but feel curious. If this Bounsweet was already caught now, that meant by the time Ash came here for vacation, it still hadn't evolved. That was quite a long time span.
[Pokémon: Bounsweet]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Oblivious]
[Aptitude: Green]
[Level: 11~12]
[IVs: ....]
[Moves: Splash, Play Nice, Sweet Scent...]
Hmm, alright. It seemed this Bounsweet didn't have anything particularly special.
Kaede withdrew his gaze, then took out his own Poké Balls. "The other Pokémon are three Eevee, which evolved into Leafeon, Umbreon, and Sylveon, then Alolan Ninetales, Primarina, Serperior, Milotic, Steenee, and Tsareena."
"Wow, they all sound like really amazing Pokémon!"
"Can I see them? Can I, can I?" Mallow's eyes sparkled, her face full of anticipation.
"Ahem..."
Kaede gave a light cough. He suddenly felt this Mallow was a bit different from the one he'd imagined.
The Mallow from his memories, within the Sun & Moon protagonist group, felt like a brave, strong, and warm-hearted girl. But right now, she also seemed a bit childish.
*Maybe it's because she hasn't met Ash yet*, Kaede thought to himself.
"You can, but Milotic and Serperior are too big to let out easily. As for the other Pokémon... come on out, everyone."
He didn't refuse such a request.
Because right now, Mallow truly needed something else to distract her, to keep her mind from being completely consumed by her mother's condition. It wouldn't be good if, before her mother recovered, she herself became sick with worry.
"Ninetales?"
"Sylveon? Sylveon?"
"Primarina?"
"Steenee?"
Alolan Ninetales, the Eeveelutions, Primarina... after coming out, they looked around at their surroundings, all wearing expressions of confusion.
"We're about to rest for the night. Come out and stretch your legs. This is Mallow, a friend I met back in Alola who helped me out quite a bit," Kaede explained.
"Ninetales?"
"Sylveon?"
Hearing Kaede's words, the first to approach were Alolan Ninetales and Little Nine (Sylveon). The two of them had long become the social butterflies of the Breeding House, the most outgoing by nature.
Yet, paradoxically, they both had rather proud personalities. At the Breeding House, customers could often see them and wanted to come pet them, but humans who hadn't earned their approval basically couldn't get a touch.
In that regard, Leafeon and Umbreon were much more approachable.
However, interestingly, in current Pokémon evolutionary studies, while Umbreon had been documented, Sylveon actually hadn't been recorded yet.
So, whenever people saw Sylveon, they were often shocked, amazed at what kind of Pokémon it was, wondering why it had such an ethereal, fairy-like aura.
"So amazing!"
With so many Pokémon appearing at once, Mallow's eyes widened in surprise, her face full of astonishment. She half-crouched, looking at the Alolan Ninetales before her. "Alolan Ninetales, Steenee, Tsareena, and... what is this Pokémon?"
Looking them over one by one, she felt her eyes were about to be dazzled. She reached out, wanting to pet the Alolan Ninetales. Most people had no resistance to cute creatures, especially at first sight.
Alolan Ninetales thought for a moment and didn't refuse.
"Ninetales..."
"And Steenee and Tsareena, see, Bounsweet? This is what you'll evolve into someday," Mallow said, picking up the Bounsweet on her shoulder and showing it Steenee and Tsareena.
Then, as if remembering something, she turned to Kaede. "Is this the mother of the Steenee you came to Alola to find back then, Mr. Kaede?"
Seeing Kaede nod, Mallow exclaimed in wonder again, followed by a whole bunch of compliments.
Things like, "Mr. Kaede, you really are a great Trainer," "so kind-hearted," "so amazing, being able to take care of so many Pokémon and raise each one of them so well!"
"Ahem..."
To this, Kaede could only smile in response.
But then, a question Mallow asked made Kaede pause for a moment.
"Then, Mr. Kaede, are you that good to your fans too?"
"Huh?"
Kaede was taken aback, then immediately realized that some of his reputation in the Eastova region might have spread here?
But how?
Alola was very far away.
"Because I was just curious, after I called you, I used my Rotom Phone to search a bit, and then I found out some things about you in the Eastova region," Mallow said, standing up and blinking as she asked.
Before finding a doctor, it was natural to want to search for some information about that doctor, especially regarding medical skills.
But of course, nothing about medical skills came up; instead, she found "Mr. Kaede's" video channel and learned some things about him.
The youngest Trainer to win the Pokémon League Conference in the Eastova region, running his own Breeding House. Within Eastova, the reviews for this Breeding House were almost entirely positive, even praising the Energy Cubes and food he made, saying they seemed to have special effects, capable of curing Pokémon of various status conditions—poison, confusion, burn—in a very short time using different Energy Cubes.
"I see," Kaede nodded, then couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why do you ask that?"
"Because... because Mr. Kaede and I aren't really related or anything, and yet you came so far to... to help me... Even though the doctors said Mom has a high probability of being successfully treated, you still came."
Mallow slightly lowered her head, looking at her own toes. She didn't really know what she was asking either.
"Didn't I promise you before? When I left last time, I said I would..." Kaede replied with an amused tone.
"But... but..." Mallow clearly wanted to ask more.
Kaede interrupted her, smiling.
"...Just think of it as me helping my past self. Because when I was little, my mother left me."
"Ah? I'm sorry, I didn't know."
Mallow realized she might have said something wrong and immediately apologized.
"It's alright, it's fine. That was a long time ago. It's getting late, time to rest..." Kaede shook his head, not making anything of it.
"Oh, oh... okay... let me show you the way."
On the remaining walk, with the several Pokémon walking beside Kaede, Mallow didn't ask any more questions.