Year 798 of the League Calendar, September 15th.
The weather had cooled a little recently—the sun less intense, the temperature a few degrees lower.
At least people no longer felt like they were sitting in a giant steamer outdoors.
Naranja Academy Battle Hall.
Penny nervously swallowed, gripping her Terastal Orb so tightly her fingers turned white.
With Lucas's encouragement, she took a deep breath and, for the first time, threw the Terastal Orb in battle.
In an instant, Sylveon's head was crowned with a beautiful, pink, heart-shaped Terastal crown with little wings.
Nearby, the Eevee sisters in Shizuka's arms looked on with awe and longing.
So pretty!
Opposite her, Aliquis's forehead was dotted with sweat as he muttered, "No wonder Terastalizing is so powerful... What pressure."
And his Meowscarada was weak to Fairy-types, too.
After a fierce battle...
Meowscarada let its guard down for a moment and was struck head-on by Sylveon's Hyper Voice, which she'd been charging up.
With the Pixilate ability, Hyper Voice became a Fairy-type move with boosted power.
Add Terastal Fairy's bonus, and the type advantage over Dark-type Meowscarada...
Even if Meowscarada had a hundred thousand lives, she couldn't withstand that hit.
Seeing Meowscarada instantly go down, Aliquis rushed to pick her up, muttering, "Terastalizing is so unfair!"
But before he could say more, a vine whipped out and pulled him aside—Comfey had started treating Meowscarada.
Floating mid-air, Comfey sang as she spun, scattering healing light over Meowscarada, quickly restoring her lost strength.
Shizuka paused her petting of the Eevee sisters and looked at Lucas, who was leaning against the wall with a smile. "Teacher Lucas, why does Comfey look so happy today?"
As a former Nurse Joy, Shizuka was familiar with Comfey. She remembered that many of her sisters in Alola worked with Comfey, and after a few encounters here, she had to admit that Comfey was an excellent medical Pokémon—just like Chansey.
Combining "Floral Healing" to heal wounds and "Aromatherapy" to soothe status conditions, Comfey was as good as a Chansey with Heal Pulse and Heal Bell.
But what she really wanted to know was why Comfey, who usually healed everyone as a routine, was in such a great mood today.
Lucas picked up the Eevee sisters from Shizuka's arms and grinned, "Because the farm is going to expand, and construction on the new house started today. When Comfey heard her medical office would get bigger, she was thrilled."
Shizuka nodded thoughtfully, "I see."
Watching the singing Comfey, Lucas was in a good mood too.
With Comfey on the farm, there was finally a competent healer, and Luxray and the others could train harder.
Even if they got banged up, Lucas didn't have to treat each one himself—just let Comfey handle it.
Not to mention, Comfey was also the head of the Grass-type support team; as a key farm member, giving her a bigger workspace was only fair.
After Comfey healed Meowscarada, the next battle was finishing up.
Paul's Fuecoco and Ortega's Jigglypuff were having a rather clumsy duel.
Again, Comfey treated both Pokémon, and Lucas set down the Eevee sisters, who followed him closely.
Coming up to Paul, Lucas picked up Fuecoco and examined him.
Then he said, "From the looks of it, Fuecoco's energy reserves are nearly full, and his body is developing well. Evolution should happen soon."
"Take it easy with battles and training for now—forced breakthroughs can be risky. I recommend letting evolution happen naturally."
"Gentle evolution helps Pokémon adapt to their new strength and energy quicker, and avoids some risks."
"I understand, Teacher Lucas."
Paul nodded earnestly.
Lucas patted his shoulder. "If you have questions, call me, or your brother—didn't he want to open a breeding center?"
Paul nodded, "Yes, he just got his Breeder's license and is looking for a location."
Just then, Penny approached with Sylveon. The moment she let go, Sylveon ran off to play with the Eevee sisters, leaving Penny unsure who to be jealous of.
She walked over to Ortega, who was fiddling with his phone, and said, "So you did come."
Ortega froze, ears turning pink. "Hmph, you talk too much. My dad and the butler heard about this from those two and forced me to come."
Penny smiled in silence, making Ortega even more flustered.
For some reason, whenever he faced Penny, he always felt this odd "bloodline suppression"—like an older sister over a younger brother, or a boss over a subordinate.
Damn it! Could I really be Penny's little brother or subordinate in some parallel world...?
After a while.
When the battles were over, Lucas gathered everyone to announce something.
Before that, he glanced at the slightly awkward Aliquis and Ortega, smiling kindly. "If you ever want to train, just come on over. The more people, the better you'll get at battling different opponents."
He planned to have the two of them practice with Penny and the others. After all, he couldn't devote all his time to teaching.
He'd do his best in class, be reachable by phone after, and answer questions when he could—that was the most effort he'd give.
"Thank you, Teacher Lucas!"
Aliquis and Ortega responded, one excited, one still a bit shy.
Lucas nodded at them, then turned to Penny and the others. "I'll be away from Paldea for a few days. If you have any problems, call me, or talk to Ms. Dendra or Director Clavell."
Penny's eyes lit up with envy. "Teacher Lucas, are you really going to Kitakami Village?"
Lucas nodded, "Yes, why?"
Penny shook her head, "Nothing—I just heard the hot springs there are famous, with different springs having different effects."
Shizuka chimed in, "Yeah, and the apples there are unique! They're in demand even here in Paldea!"
Lucas grinned, "Let me check it out first. If you all do well, maybe I'll take you for a trip—a special kind of field trip."
"Yay!"
The students cheered excitedly.
Paul didn't respond; there were hot springs in Sinnoh, and his brother had taken him before, so he wasn't that curious.
But seeing their excitement, Lucas seriously considered the idea.
Soon, Blueberry Academy would come to Naranja Academy for their annual "Gym Battle Exchange." Maybe after Nemona and the others returned, they could have another event.
Clap, clap, clap—
Lucas clapped to get everyone's attention.
His gaze lingered on the calm Paul for a moment before announcing, "In a while, I'll bring a traveler about your age to the battle hall for training. Be friendly, okay?"
"That kid should have just finished the Johto League's eighth badge challenge."
With that, the atmosphere changed instantly.
Battle-lovers like Paul and Aliquis were clearly eager to meet a Johto League badge-holder.
Lucas, however, looked a little regretful.
Nemona and her friends had already cleared Levincia's gym and were on to the next city, but at their pace, it was unlikely they'd meet Ash—a fellow battle fanatic—anytime soon.
Ash had just completed the Ecruteak Gym a few days earlier and should be arriving in Paldea for special training soon.
Lucas only knew this thanks to his contact with Lance.
"The Dragon Fang in the Dragon's Den was almost stolen by a gang of thieves. The Dragonite guarding the place nearly turned the entire den to ashes in his rage."
Clearly, the thieves were Team Rocket, and Ash's group should have just gotten their Ecruteak badge.
Even if Nemona wouldn't meet Ash, at least Paul would still be there.
Lucas was curious what would happen when a not-so-extreme Paul met a not-yet-mature Ash.
After class, Lucas returned to the farm.
Construction workers in hard hats moved around, measuring the expanded area and calculating materials for new fences.
According to town documents, the League had approved a significant expansion—the farm would be more than double its previous size, including the little hill.
Soon, not only would they have a bigger house, but business could expand, too.
"Hmm... Time to consider new farm members."
"What other Pokémon would fit?"
…
Year 789 of the League Calendar, September 16th.
Early in the morning, Lucas arrived at the airport in Porto Marinada.
He still didn't understand why there wasn't an airport in Mesagoza, which was closer to Los Platos Town.
Muttering that he'd have to ask Geeta to build one, Lucas boarded a flight to the city nearest Kitakami Village.
He wasn't flying on Dragonite because there was no urgent business, and after a quick trip, he'd still be stuck at the farm with all the noise—so why not enjoy some time in Kitakami?
Plus, he wanted to help Sada investigate the truth behind the "Blood Moon" legend—he was curious what Pokémon was behind it all.
With Oranguru and Calyrex watching the farm, Lucas felt completely at ease—no need to worry like in the early days.
Large and medium Pokémon weren't allowed out on the plane—only ones the size of Pikachu or smaller.
So, Mimikyu and Applin (only the size of an apple) could come out.
First class wasn't just better service—it gave more space.
With the stewardesses' gentle care, Lucas realized money really could move mountains. Mimikyu and Applin were soon covered in all sorts of cute accessories given by the stewardesses.
With their little flowers and trinkets, even Mimikyu's slightly creepy vibe was softened for the other passengers.
Lucas, who'd meant to sleep, lost all drowsiness—instead, he took photos of Mimikyu and Applin nonstop.
As a girl, Mimikyu loved being dressed up in the hand-sewn Pikachu outfit Lucas had made her.
But Applin, being a boy, felt shy and reluctant—he was a proper little man!
After playing around, Lucas wrapped them in a thin blanket and fell asleep with Mimikyu and Applin in his arms.
…
About a day later, the plane's announcement came—the flight was about to land.
During the flight, Lucas had mostly slept, waking only for meals when the stewardesses quietly brought his pre-selected food.
After landing, Lucas left the airport with just a backpack, called the farm to check in, and then pulled out a map and Kitakami Village brochure he'd bought at the airport to confirm its location.
Kitakami Village was indeed remote—deep in the mountains, quiet and sparsely populated.
Lucas was looking forward to some peaceful days of sightseeing.
He went to the city outskirts, released Spectrier from its Pokéball, and set off for Kitakami Village.
...
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