Chapter 215

Chapter 215: Chapter 215

Mike drew a deep breath, took out the Mega Stone, and held it toward Staraptor.

"What do you think of this stone?"

Staraptor stared at the Mega Stone in his palm, suspicion flashing through its sharp eyes.

It lowered its head and gently pecked the stone.

Under everyone’s watchful gaze, the Mega Stone suddenly gave off a faint glimmer.

Professor Sycamore’s eyes widened.

"!!!"

"This is..."

"Looks like my guess was right." Mike smiled. "It seems to be Staraptor’s Mega Stone."

His arm was rapidly losing all feeling, so Mike forced out the last of his strength and raised it.

Staraptor immediately understood, spread its enormous wings, and launched itself into the air.

A powerful gust swept across the hillside as it climbed toward the sky, soon disappearing into the distance.

Mike watched it vanish before quietly lowering his aching arm.

He handed the Mega Stone back to Professor Sycamore with his other hand.

"Maybe you can test whether the energy fluctuations in Staraptor respond specifically to this Mega Stone."

"I understand."

Sycamore accepted it eagerly.

"You’ve really helped me this time. Once I get back, I’ll have one of my research assistants send the Key Stone over."

"There’s no rush—"

"I should head back now. I need to test the resonance between this Mega Stone and Staraptor."

With that, Professor Sycamore turned and hurried away.

Mike watched his retreating back in silence. Cynthia, meanwhile, looked at Mike.

"You seemed to know from the beginning that it belonged to Staraptor."

"I only suspected it."

Mike answered with a guilty conscience.

"You know I’m very sensitive to certain kinds of Pokémon... fluctuations."

"Fluctuations?" Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Are you an Aura Guardian?"

"No. I can’t use Aura." Mike searched for a reasonable explanation. "I just find it unusually easy to notice emotional fluctuations and differences in the energy surrounding different Pokémon. I can’t really explain it."

He held out a hand and a Starly immediately flew over and landed on his shoulder.

"Something like that."

"I see."

Cynthia didn’t question it any further. People with unusual abilities were hardly unheard of in this world.

On the way back, however, Gengar floated quietly beside Mike without his usual enthusiasm.

Even when they passed patches of roadside grass, he no longer bothered whacking them with the thin bamboo staff in his hand.

Mike quickly noticed that something was wrong.

"What’s up?"

Gengar said nothing.

That only made Mike more curious.

"Why are you suddenly in such a bad mood? Come on, tell me."

Gengar pursed his lips.

"Gengaar..."

[That Mega Evolution thing looks really strong. Beedrill’s going to get even stronger again. I’m supposed to be the big brother, but at this rate I won’t be the strongest for much longer.]

Mike burst out laughing.

He reached over and pinched Gengar’s cheek.

"Gengar, Mega Evolution is only one part of becoming stronger. What really matters is your own strength."

He grinned.

"You think Cynthia’s Garchomp couldn’t beat some ordinary Trainer’s Mega-Evolved Pokémon without even breaking a sweat?"

Cynthia glanced toward Mike, and the Poké Ball at her waist gave a faint little shake.

"As long as you keep training hard, you can become just as strong as Garchomp. Then you’ll still be able to protect all of us."

Mike continued, "And if I ever get the chance, I’ll find you a Mega Stone too!"

Gengar’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Gaarrrr!"

[Really?!]

Mike nodded. "When have I ever lied to you?"

Gengar immediately grinned, all his previous gloom vanishing.

Mike couldn’t help shaking his head at how easy he was to cheer up.

Ever since Gengar had realized that he was the eldest of Mike’s Pokémon, he had always wanted to set a proper example for his younger brothers and sisters.

What had frightened him just now was the possibility that Beedrill might surpass him.

If that happened, what kind of big brother would he be?

Gengar tightened his grip on his thin bamboo staff and clenched his little fist.

Mike was right.

He just had to train harder.

He would definitely become stronger!

Gengar looked at Mike, who was smiling at him, stuck out his tongue, and gave him a long lick before diving straight into his shadow.

Mike stiffened.

"N-Numb..."

Cynthia stared at him in surprise.

A flash of red light appeared as Snivy jumped out of her Poké Ball and tapped Mike’s shadow with a Vine Whip.

A chubby little hand immediately emerged from the darkness, holding a Cheri Berry.

Snivy calmly took the Cheri Berry, stuffed it into Mike’s mouth with practiced ease, then returned to her Poké Ball.

Cynthia smiled.

"You all have a... very distinctive way of getting along."

Mike chewed the Cheri Berry with complete composure.

"This is nothing."

"Compared to being poisoned, I suppose it really is nothing."

Cynthia nodded thoughtfully.

Mike went silent.

’How the hell do you know about the poisoning too?!’

’Damn Gengar! Damn Beedrill!’

’Snivy really is the best!’

The moment Mike imagined just how many people apparently knew that he got poisoned on a regular basis, it felt as though the sky itself had collapsed on him!

...

"An academic summit? That’s my boy! You’re doing so well." Grandma’s voice came through Rotom’s phone, brimming with pride.

"Hehe." Mike couldn’t help grinning.

"Will they livestream the summit?" Grandma asked. "Something this important... Grandma would love to see it with her own eyes."

"Probably not," Mike replied. "Academic summits are a lot more serious than ordinary events."

"Oh, I see." She sounded disappointed.

"But don’t worry, Grandma. I’ll have Rotom video-call you so you can still watch."

"Won’t someone notice and scold you for it?"

"They won’t. I’ll just mention it to Professor Oak and the others beforehand. I doubt they’ll refuse."

"That’s good. Then Grandma will look forward to tomorrow."

"Don’t worry, Grandma. I definitely won’t let you down."

"Hahaha! My good boy has never disappointed Grandma."

After chatting with her for a while longer, Mike handed the phone to Gengar so the two of them could talk.

Beedrill and the others crowded around as well, happily joining the conversation while Mike stretched out on the bed and edited some of the footage he had taken of his Pokémon playing over the past few days.

A few days earlier, Lucian had explained in the group chat that Mike was currently attending an academic summit and therefore hadn’t been out gathering material, so the next installment of The Wide World of Pokémon would have to wait.

Since his viewers hadn’t complained much, Mike naturally continued sitting on the Ghost-type Pokémon footage instead of releasing it.

To make up for the delay, he had been uploading a short video every day—either clips of Gengar and the others playing around or videos of himself cooking.

Once the latest video had been edited and uploaded, Gengar handed the phone back.

"Finished talking?" Mike asked as he took it.

"Gengaar."

[Grandma’s going to sleep.]

"If Grandma’s going to bed, then we should too." Mike put the phone on the table and plugged it in to charge.

Then he climbed back into bed, tucked Glameow against one side and Hatenna against the other, and yawned.

"Gengar, lights out."

The room went dark.

"Good night, everyone."

"Gengaar~"

"Beedrill~"

"Snivy~"

"Meow~"

"Hatenna~"

"Good night, roto~"

...

Early the next morning, Mike crawled out of bed.

Snivy was sitting in the hammock with a tablet in her hands, absorbed in something on the screen.

When she noticed Mike getting up this early, she looked over in surprise.

"Sni?"

"The academic summit starts today. I want to get up early, eat breakfast, and make sure everything’s ready."

Still rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Mike sat on the edge of the bed.

Snivy nodded, climbed down from the hammock, and went into the bathroom to prepare Mike’s toiletries.

"Sni~"

She poked her head back out and called to him once everything was ready.

Mike got up and went to wash.

A sleepy Glameow staggered into the bathroom after him, yawned, then planted herself in the doorway and stared up at Mike while he brushed his teeth without moving an inch.

Once Mike finished washing up, he picked Glameow up from the doorway, cleaned her up as well, then returned to the bedroom and lifted the still-sleeping Hatenna from the bed.

"Hatenna..."

Her voice was soft and drowsy, and she still hadn’t properly woken up.

Mike cleaned her up too before returning to his room and changing into the clothes Snivy had prepared for him.

Once everything was ready, Mike shoved Rotom into the phone and headed out.

Rotom: ???

When Mike came downstairs, he found Lucian sitting beside the stone table drinking coffee.

"Huh? When did you get here?" Mike asked curiously.

"Just now..." Lucian answered weakly.

Seeing the dark circles under his eyes, Mike stared at him. "Did you seriously not sleep last night?"

"I came straight here overnight after I finished dealing with the League’s work."

"Aren’t you going to work yourself to death?"

"I’m fine. I’ll get a proper night’s sleep after the summit." Lucian took another sip of the bitter coffee.

"This isn’t even that bad. I’ve survived worse."

Mike’s mouth twitched before he raised a thumb toward him.

"Of course you have. That’s our Overtime Bro for you."

Lucian elegantly crossed one leg over the other and rested a hand on his knee.

"Are you ready?"

"More or less."

Lucian checked his phone. "Let’s go. Boss Lady said she’s treating us to breakfast."

Mike and Lucian went to find Cynthia, and after breakfast, the three of them headed to the venue under Cynthia’s lead.

As they drew closer, Mike immediately noticed a much heavier security presence than yesterday.

Several Officer Jennys were stationed around the area, carefully watching their surroundings.

’Did they bring in Jennys from Eterna City and the other nearby towns to help?’

"Normally, an academic summit would have at least one Elite Four member or Gym Leader stationed here for security," Lucian explained when he noticed Mike looking around.

"But things around Mt. Coronet have been somewhat unsettled lately. Apparently, unexplained tremors have been heard around the temple, and there are reports of an injured Articuno living somewhere deep in the mountain range."

"There are also several smaller incidents happening elsewhere, so we’re short on manpower. That’s why they had to call in Officer Jennys to help maintain order."

Lucian adjusted his glasses.

"But you don’t need to worry. Besides Boss Lady, I’m here as Sinnoh’s Psychic-type Elite Four member. Nothing should happen."

"Aren’t you supposed to give a presentation too?" Mike asked, looking at him strangely.

Lucian said nothing.

Mike stared at him for a few seconds.

"So... you have to give a presentation, but you’re also working security at the same time?"

Lucian: "..."

Mike blinked, then sincerely raised another thumb.

"Overtime Bro really is the perfect nickname for you. Respect."

Lucian could only look helpless.

The person primarily responsible for this state of affairs said absolutely nothing.

Cynthia simply stepped forward, pushed open the venue doors, and walked inside, with Mike and Lucian following close behind.

Compared to yesterday, the exhibition hall looked like an entirely different place.

Dedicated exhibition areas had been arranged throughout the venue.

Glass display cases held summaries and key points from the papers being presented that day, while the researchers themselves stood nearby discussing their work with interested scholars.

Everywhere Mike looked, white lab coats were gathered in conversation.

He swallowed nervously.

"Hey, Lucian... are you nervous?"

Mike poked him in the arm.

Without even turning around, Lucian replied, "You get used to it."

Mike stared after him in confusion.

’You get used to it?’

Wasn’t this Lucian’s first time presenting here?

What exactly had he gotten used to?

Or was this simply the dead-inside calm of a veteran office worker who had already stopped caring about the world?

---------

Read 30 Chapters ahead and support me on patreon.

patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator