Delia and Misty also came over.
Misty's eyes widened.
"Wow! This Shiny Pink Butterfree is so beautiful!"
Sister Delia didn't say anything.
But she crouched down, her gaze completely captivated by the Shiny Pink Butterfree.
The pink wings were as thin as a cicada's, shimmering with a soft pearlescent glow in the sunlight.
There was a circle of pale gold patterns along the edges, looking as if they had been painted on.
It landed on a bush, gently flapping its wings with an elegant posture.
Sister Delia's eyes were almost glowing with excitement.
Roy looked at her.
One of Sister Delia's affection line missions flashed through his mind: help her capture three Pokemon she liked.
He looked at that Shiny Pink Butterfree.
His Aura Power perception quietly expanded.
After a few seconds, Roy withdrew his perception.
This Shiny Pink Butterfree was very beautiful and gorgeous.
But its Shinny trait seemed to have only extra-enhanced its appearance.
Its aura in terms of potential wasn't even as good as his own Butterfree's when it had just evolved.
In other words, it wasn't suitable for battle.
But it was very suitable for... Roy looked at Sister Delia.
It was very suitable for following the beauty-loving and gentle Sister Delia to perform some beautiful shows.
"Delia," Roy spoke.
Delia looked up.
"Do you like it?"
Delia was stunned for a moment, then nodded.
"Mhm... it's so beautiful."
Roy smiled.
"When their breeding season is over, I'll give it to you."
Delia blinked.
"Give it to me?"
"Yes. You can try to capture it."
Delia was dazed.
Then, she suddenly threw herself into Roy's arms.
"Roy..."
She looked up, her eyes slightly reddening.
"Why are you so good to me..."
Roy lowered his head.
"As long as you like it."
Delia stood on her tiptoes.
And lightly pressed a kiss onto his lips.
It wasn't a lingering kiss.
It was a gentle, grateful kiss filled with affection.
Misty curled her lips to the side.
"Oh my, Sister Delia, it's broad daylight."
But the corners of her mouth were turned up... Delia let go of Roy and immediately turned toward the Shiny Pink Butterfree.
She rummaged through her backpack for some Pokemon food.
They were small granules of sweet energy blocks, suitable for Bug-type Pokemon.
She crouched down, placed an energy block in her palm, and slowly reached out.
"Come, have something to eat."
Her voice was as gentle as if she were coaxing a child.
The Shiny Pink Butterfree looked at her.
Its antennae swayed gently.
Then, it lowered its head.
And pecked up an energy block.
Delia's eyes curved into crescents... On Misty's side, she began an "ideological education lesson."
She crouched in front of Roy's Butterfree with a serious expression.
"Butterfree, listen up."
Butterfree tilted its head.
"Be a bit gentler with your partner."
"Take good care of your girlfriend."
"Don't bully her."
She paused and glanced at Roy.
"Don't learn naughty things like your master."
Roy raised an eyebrow nearby.
Butterfree tilted its head, looking at Misty.
Then looking at Roy.
A hint of confusion flashed through its Compound Eyes.
It remembered what happened a couple of days ago.
That night, its master indeed taught it some things.
Things like "maintaining the initiative."
Things like "don't be led by the nose by the other party."
Things like "properly playing hard to get is actually more attractive."
It had studied very seriously at the time.
Now Misty was saying these things were "naughty"?
Butterfree was confused.
Roy chuckled nearby.
He raised his hand and waved it at Butterfree.
"Just listen to whatever you want."
Butterfree's antennae quivered.
Understood.
The master's meaning was: Listen to her, but don't listen to everything.
It turned its head and continued looking at its pink girlfriend.
Misty was still nagging.
"Remember to find food for her."
"Protect her when it's windy or raining."
"Don't just think about flying all day..."
Butterfree listened patiently.
Occasionally nodding... On the other side.
Pikachu and Eevee were crouching side by side.
The two little fellows' four eyes were staring intently at the two Butterfree.
The Butterfree were being all lovey-dovey.
Antennae touching antennae.
Wings rubbing against wings.
The Shiny Pink Butterfree lightly pecked at Roy's Butterfree's antennae.
Roy's Butterfree's wings trembled slightly.
Pikachu tilted its head.
"Pika?"
(What are they doing?)
Eevee's tail wagged.
"Bui?"
(I don't know...)
The two little fellows looked at each other.
Their eyes were full of clear stupidity.
Regarding the matter of reproduction.
They were still blank slates.
They didn't understand much of what was being said.
They didn't understand many of the actions either.
But for some reason, they felt like... they were being very intimate?
Pikachu thought for a moment.
It pulled a berry out of a pocket in Roy's backpack.
And took a crunchy bite.
Forget it.
If I don't understand, I don't understand.
Eating is more important... Delia was still feeding the Shiny Pink Butterfree.
The Shiny Pink Butterfree was now willing to peck food from her palm.
It even allowed Delia to gently touch the edges of its wings.
Delia smiled, her eyes curving beautifully.
"So well-behaved..."
Misty also finished her ideological education lesson.
She came over and looked at the Shiny Pink Butterfree.
"It really is beautiful."
She paused.
"If Sister Delia takes it to a performance competition in the future, it will definitely win a prize."
Delia's eyes lit up.
She hadn't thought about this before.
But thinking about it now... a Shiny Pink Butterfree, paired with her own gentle temperament.
It was indeed very suitable for some performance competitions.
She looked at Roy, her eyes full of gratitude.
Roy was now holding a communicator, walking to a place by the sea with good signal.
He dialed Professor Oak's number.
Preparing to arrange the breeding location... The signal by the sea was quite good.
Roy leaned against a crooked coconut tree trunk, and Professor Oak's familiar face quickly popped up on the communicator screen, holding half an unfinished sandwich in his hand.
"Oh! Roy!" Professor Oak's eyes lit up, and he set the sandwich aside. "It's been a while. How is the Badge collection going?"
Roy gave an affirmative grunt.
"Three now."
"Three?" Professor Oak rubbed his chin. "You need to speed up a bit, kid."
As he spoke, a proud smile characteristic of the grandfather generation appeared on his face.
"That kid Gary has already gotten four!"
Roy's expression remained normal.
"That's quite fast."
"Hahaha!" Professor Oak laughed uncontrollably. Although he tried hard to appear humble, he couldn't suppress the corners of his mouth. "That kid is just lucky, just lucky."
"By the way, you've been making quite a stir on your journey."
As he spoke, he pulled out an academic journal from the side, flipped to a certain page, and waved it in front of the camera.
"See this? Bill's paper on ancient pokemon has been published."
Roy scanned the screen.
The journal cover was very formal, with the title font in bold.
Professor Oak flipped to an inner page.
"Here, the research section on the Ancient Giant Dragonite."
He pointed his finger at the footer.
"That kid Bill specifically added an acknowledgment—Most important data provider, Roy."
Professor Oak looked up, his gaze behind his glasses full of approval.
"This paper has caused quite a stir in the academic community. With your name listed there, many people in the circle have already remembered you."
Roy nodded.
Professor Oak continued listing things.
"Then there's the Lt. Surge incident in Vermilion City. Although the official report didn't mention your name directly, those in the know all know who settled it."
"Not to mention Lampurchi City; the title 'big bird hero' is still being used by people now."
He paused.
"You've certainly been in the limelight enough on this trip."
"Those were just things I did along the way," Roy replied humbly to Professor Oak.
"Bill is really stealing the spotlight today, and I haven't made any progress in my academic research today." Professor Oak's hint was very obvious, meaning, Roy, consider me first for this kind of data next time.
Roy listened and waited for him to finish.
Then he smiled and spoke.
"Professor, I'm contacting you this time for exactly that reason."
Professor Oak raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
"I want to transfer back two Pokemon in special states." Roy paused. "You'll definitely like them."
Professor Oak's eyes lit up.
"Special states? What kind of special states? Like that tiny Krabby from last time?"
The Krabby Roy sent back last time was ridiculously small, but it allowed Professor Oak to obtain a lot of special data and publish a short paper.
He was still thinking about it even now.
Roy didn't say much more.
He turned and waved toward the tent.
Delia was crouching and feeding the Shiny Pink Butterfree, while Misty was nearby teasing Roy's Butterfree.
Seeing Roy wave, Delia gently nudged the Shiny Pink Butterfree.
"Go on."
The Shiny Pink Butterfree took flight.
Roy's Butterfree followed suit.
The two Butterfree landed one after another on a reef beside Roy.
Roy aimed the communicator's camera at them.
Professor Oak's face froze instantly.
Three seconds.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
His glasses almost slid off.
"This... this is..."
He suddenly leaned closer to the screen, his entire face almost pressed against it.
"The one on the left! Those patterns on its wings! They aren't natural, are they?! Are those special patterns formed later?"
His breathing became heavy.
"The one on the right! Shinny pink! And it's a naturally pure pink Butterfree! This kind of rarity..."
Professor Oak clutched his chest, his heart seemingly beating a bit fast.
"Roy, kid... where did you get these from?"
Roy's tone was calm.
"The one on the left was raised by myself. The one on the right is the girlfriend it just chased down."
Professor Oak: "..."
He took a deep breath.
Then another.
"Do you know what these two Butterfree represent?"
He pointed at the screen, his finger trembling.
"The one on the left is an ultimate sample of post-natal enhancement—those patterns, those thick antennae, that size! This is living material for researching the ultimate potential of Flying-type Pokemon!"
"The one on the right is a naturally rare Shinny individual. This level of pink purity and wing luster makes it a top-tier sample for genetic research of the entire Butterfree species!"
He paused, his voice rising an octave.
"Putting these two together makes them the ultimate control group for the Butterfree species!"
Roy waited for him to finish being excited.
"Professor, it's breeding season for Butterfree."
Professor Oak was taken aback.
"breeding season?"
"Mhm." Roy pointed at the two Butterfree. "They are a couple now and need to find a suitable place to complete their breeding."
He paused.
"Can you help me arrange it? If it's too much trouble for you, I can contact Researcher Bill instead."
"Since Bill's paper was published, he seems quite free. He should have time to help."
Professor Oak's expression changed instantly.
"Wait!"
He sat up straight, his expression serious.
"What Bill! I'll do it! I'll handle it!"
Roy raised an eyebrow.
"Is it convenient for you?"
"Convenient! How could it not be convenient!" Professor Oak pounded his chest. "Viridian Forest is so big; I'll set aside a whole section of the forest just for them! I guarantee a safe environment, plenty of food, and no harassment from natural enemies!"
He spoke with absolute certainty.
The corners of Roy's mouth curled almost imperceptibly.
Professor Oak continued.
"These two Butterfree are too special; they must be given key protection! If their offspring can inherit some of their traits, then for the entire academic community..."
As he spoke, he became excited himself.
Roy didn't call him out.
Bill's ancient pokemon paper had indeed stolen all the spotlight this year.
Professor Oak didn't say it, but he was definitely feeling the pressure.
Now that two top-tier Butterfree had suddenly appeared at his door, there was no way he would let Bill have them.
"Then I'll trouble you, Professor," Roy said.
"No trouble at all!" Professor Oak waved his hand, laughing uncontrollably. "Don't worry, when the breeding season is over, both Butterfree will be sent back to you safe and sound!"
Roy nodded.
He took out two empty transfer balls and aimed them at the two Butterfree on the reef.
A red light flashed.
The two Butterfree were drawn into the balls.
The transfer device activated.
With two more flashes of red light, the transfer balls disappeared into the air.
On the other end of the communicator, Professor Oak was already rubbing his hands together, waiting to receive them.
"They're here! I see the transfer prompt!"
He turned to run off.
Then he suddenly stopped and looked back at Roy.
"By the way, kid, you said you have three Badges now, right?"
"Mhm."
"Where are you going next?"
"Saffron City."
Professor Oak's expression faltered for a moment.
"If it's Saffron City..."
"Be careful. That Gym Leader... isn't simple." After giving Roy a few more warnings, he hung up the phone... After Roy put away his communicator.
A system prompt sounded in his ear.
[Ding!]
["Refuse to release Butterfree! Help Butterfree find a girlfriend while also not releasing it" mission complete!]
[Rewards being distributed—]
[Butterfree-exclusive Potency Enhancement Berry ×1: After use by Butterfree, potential level +1. Placed in system backpack.]
[super flight berry ×1: After consumption by a Flying-type Pokemon, it gains significant positive gains in size and lifespan. Placed in system backpack.]
Roy glanced at the backpack interface.
The two berries were lying quietly in their slots. Perfect!
...Delia and Misty walked over.
Delia glanced at the communicator in his hand.
"Who were you contacting?"
"Mhm. Professor Oak to arrange the breeding grounds."
Delia nodded and looked up at the sky again.
The Butterfree swarm was still fluttering.
Densely packed wings shimmered with various colors in the sunlight.
Misty leaned in and took Roy's arm.
"Those two Butterfree are gone... I'm a little sad to see them go."
Roy looked down at her.
"It's not like they won't be back."
Misty curled her lip.
"I know, I just thought the way they were together just now... was quite sweet."
Delia laughed softly.
"Misty, are you thinking about it again?"
Misty's face turned red.
"Sister Delia, what are you saying! I—I am not!"
As she spoke, she leaned even closer to Roy's arm.
Delia just smiled and didn't say anything... The three of them stood by the sea, quietly watching the Butterfree swarm.
The sun gradually rose higher.
The sea breeze carried a salty scent, making the hems of their clothes flutter gently.
Pikachu crouched on Roy's shoulder, its little paw resting on its forehead, also watching.
Eevee lay by Delia's feet, its tail wagging occasionally.
Suddenly.
The Butterfree swarm began to move.
It wasn't a scattered flight.
It was a collective, directed movement.
The dense wings turned simultaneously, flying toward the other side of the sea.
Countless wings converged in the air into a flowing river.
Slowly drifting into the distance.
Delia said softly.
"So beautiful..."
Misty was also dazed by the sight.
Roy watched the departing Butterfree swarm.
His own should be home in Viridian Forest by now, together with its pink girlfriend.
Good.
The Butterfree swarm gradually receded.
Eventually disappearing into the line where the sea met the sky... Misty was the first to look away.
"Shall we go?"
Delia nodded.
Roy turned around.
The three of them continued forward along the coastline.
Pikachu shifted its position on Roy's shoulder, its tail swaying.
Eevee followed at Delia's feet, hopping and skipping.
The sea breeze remained.
The sunlight remained.
The road ahead led to Saffron City.