Chapter 94: Larruthra, Joining the Team

After packing his belongings, Hu Yang sought out Principal Tongshan, Takeshi Nishida, Rika, and the others. This visit was not only to gather his things but also to bid them a formal farewell.

“Have you collected three badges already?” Principal Tongshan’s eyes sparkled brightly upon hearing Hu Yang recount the tales of his journey.

Hu Yang nodded and held up the three badges he had gathered for them to see.

Having collected three badges meant he had officially graduated from being a novice trainer. He was now truly embarking on the path from a beginner trainer to an elite trainer.

Rika beamed with encouragement, “That’s wonderful, keep up the good work!”

Takeshi Nishida, who had been silent until now, scrutinized Hu Yang from head to toe and suddenly remarked, “You seem different from before.”

Hu Yang smiled and teased, “Oh? Do you mean I’ve become more handsome?”

Takeshi propped his chin on his hand and said, “No, you’ve gotten darker.”

Hu Yang was speechless.

Seeing his expression, Takeshi added in confusion, “I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something’s definitely different.”

Principal Tongshan looked at Hu Yang thoughtfully. “It’s your aura. Compared to before, you’ve grown so much more mature.”

Hu Yang was momentarily stunned.

Aura... he hadn’t really noticed any change in himself.

But after all, things were always moving forward in a positive direction.

After bidding everyone farewell, Hu Yang stepped out of the Pokémon Junior School. At the moment he left the gates, a pang of reluctance welled up inside him.

It felt much like graduating from high school.

Three years of daily companionship, parting ways with difficulty.

But unlike high school graduation, here he could always come back to visit.

Leaving the school behind, Hu Yang entered the Orange Forest.

Compared to his last visit, the forest remained unchanged—still a paradise for Bug-type Pokémon.

As if sensing his arrival, two figures suddenly appeared deep within the forest.

One tall, one short; one large, one small.

Gardevoir released its hold and lowered its head to look at Ralts.

“Ralts...”

Ralts looked up at its father with reluctance, hugged him tightly, then ran over to Hu Yang.

Ralts officially joined his team.

Hu Yang asked, “Have you told your father?”

Ralts nodded softly, “Ralts!”

“That’s good,” Hu Yang said, gently stroking its small head.

Gardevoir stood silently a short distance away, watching the scene unfold.

Hu Yang reached into his pocket and pulled out a Poké Ball.

With a flash of white light, Gengar, Gabite, Noctowl, Slowking, and Roserade all appeared neatly behind him.

Compared to a year ago, his strength had undergone a dramatic transformation.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of her!” Hu Yang still remembered the time Gardevoir had doubted his ability to protect Ralts, so he called out to her.

“Ralts~” Ralts waved goodbye to Gardevoir.

Gardevoir remained silent, then transformed into a beam of white light and vanished from sight.

“Ralts...”

Seeing its father leave so abruptly, Ralts showed a hint of sadness.

Witnessing this, Hu Yang began to contemplate buying a house.

He still had seventeen Slowkings in his backpack, and he might meet even more companions in the future.

If he had a house with a large courtyard like Professor Oak’s, he could keep all his Pokémon there.

Later, he could invite Gardevoir over, and during festivals or holidays, bring Ralts home to reunite with her.

This way, the painful separation between trainers and their Pokémon families would be avoided.

Besides, he had plenty of money now, enough to care for as many Pokémon as he wanted, so they could all live together without parting ways.

“Looking forward to working with you, Ralts!” Hu Yang crouched down and extended his hand to the little Pokémon.

“Ralts!” Ralts reached out its hand in return.

Hu Yang stood up and began introducing his traveling companions to her.

Although they hadn’t met much, judging by Ralts’s behavior, Hu Yang could already guess her personality.

A cheerful little girl, full of curiosity about the human world, and very friendly toward humans.

Seeing Ralts shyly greet Gible and the others, Hu Yang suddenly felt the weight of being an old father settle more heavily on his shoulders.

Well then, the little son just grew up, and now there’s a little daughter!

Other trainers who come from different worlds grow up alongside their Pokémon, but here he was, starting to raise his own kids.

An eldest daughter, eldest son, little son, silly son, and little daughter—a whole big family, finally complete!

Hu Yang gazed at his Pokémon team.

Noctowl wasn’t a regular member and was therefore excluded.

That left Roserade, Gengar, Gabite, Slowking, Magikarp, and Ralts—a total of six.

Speaking of Magikarp...

Hu Yang noticed it had learned Tackle.

In the games, Magikarp learns Tackle at level 15 and evolves into Gyarados at level 20.

Thinking it over, it really should have evolved by now.

So why hadn’t it evolved yet?

Since capturing it last year, it had never gone without good food or drink. By all logic, it should have accumulated enough energy to evolve.

Maybe he should give it a kick?

Hu Yang considered it but decided against it.

He wasn’t Kojiro; his Magikarp was a true “couch potato” king, unlike Kojiro’s.

Kicking it might not cause evolution and could even wipe out months of the affection he’d built up.

Perhaps Magikarp just didn’t want to evolve.

Since he had other matters to attend to, Hu Yang didn’t spend too much time familiarizing himself with his Pokémon.

After all, their journey was still long, with plenty of time to get to know each other.

After storing them back in their Poké Balls, Hu Yang prepared to leave Orange Forest and head to the department store to buy camping supplies.

Before he could leave, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a white figure standing in the trees.

Looking up, it was Gardevoir, who had just disappeared.

Hu Yang was momentarily stunned and suddenly understood Gardevoir’s feelings.

In the human world, some fathers express their love for their children in such deep, reserved ways.

Gardevoir lowered its gaze toward him.

Hu Yang nodded at her, and in the brief moment they locked eyes, it was as if they communicated something silently.

The next second, Gardevoir’s form vanished from the tree.

This time, she was truly gone.

And Hu Yang left Orange Forest behind.

He made his way to the department store, shopping for essentials for his outdoor journey.

Items like a compass, maps, food supplies, large containers of drinking water, cooking pots for soup, tents, blankets, medicine for injuries, cold remedies, and so on.

If it weren’t for the lack of Electric-type Pokémon, Hu Yang even considered buying a rice cooker and a refrigerator.