"Pa!", Squirtle appeared from the Poké Ball and slapped Gary in the face.
Physically interrupting the spellcasting, afraid he might say something suicidal.
Gary stared blankly at his own Squirtle.
As the grandson of Professor Oak, he naturally didn't have to wait until after the entrance exam like others to own a Pokémon.
Although not officially registered, he had already been with this Squirtle for over a month.
In Gary's view, though Squirtle was just as unruly as he was, there was no reason it should ever react by hitting its trainer.
"Squirtle! Squirtle! Squirtle!"
Squirtle showed an apologetic expression to its trainer, then turned to face Ralts.
Directly bowing its head.
Just like a little brother meeting a big boss.
Gary was even more dumbfounded.
His Squirtle usually wasn't afraid of other Pokémon.
In that one month, he had already trained Squirtle to level 12.
Even when facing wild Pokémon around level 20, Squirtle would still dare to fight.
This Ralts, though not young, had never even left the daycare center, let alone received any training.
'How can such a weakling make Squirtle apologize?'
'Squirtle, what are you even doing!'
'Wait a second!'
Gary looked at the soft and dazed Ralts and suddenly realized something.
'Squirtle must have thought Ralts was too weak and assumed I was bullying the weak!'
"Looks like Squirtle doesn't want to battle my Ralts."
Axel chuckled, giving Gary plenty of face.
'After all, this guy isn't as annoying as he is in the anime.'
"But I have another Pokémon, so I'll use that one to battle you instead."
"It's a deal!"
Gary returned Squirtle to its Poké Ball, his eyes filled with fighting spirit.
Since Squirtle didn't want to bully Ralts,
Then he would battle Axel's other Pokémon.
"I'll be waiting for you in the battle hall of the Pokémon Center, don't forget our agreement."
"Okay!"
Axel said goodbye to Gary, freed up a hand to hold the little girl's, and headed toward the area where grass-type Pokémon resided.
Before the battle with Gary, he still had to help the little girl choose a well-qualified Pokémon.
As for Axel holding the little girl's hand, Ralts didn't react much.
In their past life, during their hardest times together, it was always the little girl who used her Pokémon-raising money to support them through the hardships.
Otherwise, her evolution into Kirlia would've been delayed even further.
"Brother Axel, this Ralts is so cute, can I hug her?", The little girl was radiating with motherly glow, her big eyes sparkling.
"That depends on whether the little one is willing," Hearing Axel's words, little Ralts immediately chose to act dazed and pretend not to understand.
Playing the role of not rejecting, but also not agreeing.
She had finally seen Axel again, no way she'd go into someone else's arms.
Her past self was just too smart, pretending to be dazed was great.
"Ugh~ looks like the little one doesn't want me to hug her, so mean," Though the little girl said "so mean," she still pulled an Applin Berry from her pocket and placed it near Ralts' mouth. [TN: Aplin Berry=Leppa Berry]
"Ahh, open your mouth, this one's super tasty."
Crunch~
A crisp sound, and Ralts bit hard into the Applin Berry, showing an expression of enjoyment.
Then she buried herself into Axel's arms.
'What a good man, finding such a thoughtful little sister.'
Seeing Ralts' reaction, the little girl's face immediately fell.
'So annoying.'
'This little bit*h actually took my food and then went to suck up to Axel!'
"Axel, hurry and take me to find a Pokémon, I want a well-behaved one like that too."
"Alright, alright~"
Axel held Ralts in one arm, and with the other hand pulled the little girl along, his gaze scanning the nearby Pokémon.
There were quite a few Pokémon around, but in his eyes, not many were truly suitable.
Because the little girl was a total looks-obsessed type...
Actually, he had just seen a Nidoran with decent potential. It should fit the little girl's aesthetic, though training poison-types could be tricky.
The unbeatable and simple Toxic Spikes strategies only existed in novels and history books, they had no place in reality.
To play that tactic well, the bare minimum was being able to properly mix poisons. One misstep could ruin you for life.
Actually, Psyduck wasn't bad either. Though the early stages were rough, once that guy evolved, it became a particularly smart Pokémon.
Usually, whether training or raising itself, it could handle everything on its own. It could even help train other team members. Definitely a worry-free choice.
But...
Thinking about Psyduck's husky-like personality, Axel dismissed the idea.
'Aunt Stacy will kill me.'
Suddenly, Axel felt his arm being tugged.
The little girl's soft and sweet voice sounded, "Brother Axel, look at that Smoliv, it's so cute!"
Axel followed the little girl's gaze and saw a Pokémon that looked like an olive lying in the grass watching the three of them.
This kind of Pokémon came from the Paldea region, and was considered quite rare in Aurient.
Plus, it wasn't very strong, so few people raised them.
But the moment he saw that Pokémon's ability, Axel's eyes lit up.
Though this little one's potential was fairly ordinary, only Gym-grade, it actually had a Hidden Ability, just like Ralts. (Hidden Ability = Dream Trait)
Smoliv may be weak, but that only applies to normal Smoliv.
Dream Trait Smoliv was a whole different story.
This Pokémon's ability was called "Harvest," which allowed it to regenerate berries it had eaten during battle, for unlimited snacking.
Perfectly using its trait to solve the problem of being unable to carry many items in battle.
More importantly, its trait had been certified by the League as legal, usable in official battles.
Thus, a very nasty strategy was born.
If operated well, it could even destroy Pokémon way stronger than itself.
In the Pokémon world, there was a berry called Star Peach, which, when eaten in a crisis, randomly gave a massive boost to one stat.
With just one Star Peach, Smoliv could continuously regenerate and eat it, slowly boosting its stats.
Paired with Leech Seed, Protect, Grassy Terrain, and Giga Drain to stall for time, Infinite Star Peach strategy, anyone?
If the opponent couldn't one-shot the Smoliv, they could only watch helplessly as it grew stronger and stronger, until it eventually one-shotted them in despair.
"This little one's pretty good, you can go try approaching her and see if she's willing to go with you."
The little girl nodded vigorously and crouched beside Smoliv, "Hello, I'm a trainer here to choose a Pokémon. Would you be willing to go with me?"
"Smol!"
Seeing that Smoliv agreed, the corners of Axel's mouth lifted slightly.
If Gary loses to Pheromosa later and doesn't accept it, then he can show him the power of the grass-type too.
'Get ready to tremble, Gary.'
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