Blaire left after she made the announcement. With that, the tournament was officially over.
The mayor had organised a party for everyone who participated, to close the day.
Eric, after some hesitation, decided to attend. He had never been to a party before. And he really needed to learn to socialize more.
The Pokemon eggs were stored in the Pokemon Center, under Nurse Joy's care.
---
Eric was in a great mood as he stuffed some takoyaki in his mouth. It was a great idea to attend the party, he thought.
While he was blissfully eating, he heard a loud crash a little further to his right. Then he heard a shout.
"IT WASN'T BELLE!"
He turned around to see that Belle was running in his direction. Behind her, was a huge mess. A table that had fallen over, dozens of shattered plates and what not.
Belle then reached him and said,
"Belle is hiding here. Don't tell Big sis Blaire."
She then crouched besides the counter where Eric was standing.
Eric just ignored her and continued eating.
"Oh! You're that scary guy! The one with the spooky Gastly!"
After calming down a bit, Belle commented.
"…Scary?"
"Uhuh. Belle saw it. The moment Gastly appeared, the entire area got chilly. It was so spooky! Belle loved it!"
"…I see"
"What's your name?"
"Eric"
"I'm Belle"
"…I know. You just said it."
"I did? Anyways. This is Sparkles. He is the Vice Leader of Belle's ultimate adventure party."
Pichu jumped over Belle's head and waved her small hands, as if to say hello
"Pi Pichu!"
Eric was in a good mood because of the takoyaki, so he had no problems in humouring Belle for a little bit. He returned pichu's Hello and said,
"Isn't that name too big for an adventurer party?"
"You think? Then Belle's Ultra Adventurer Party?"
" It's the same thing."
" What? Then you suggest a name!"
" Idk, like the Belle pirates?"
"But Belle's not a pirate."
"Why not become one. They're cool."
"Really?"
Eric found it much easier to deal with Belle than Alan. Perhaps due to him never having a childhood, his social skills were closer to a kid than an adult. Also, kids weren't messed up, like adults.
Eric wasn't good at naming things. That's why he didn't give his pokemon any nickname. In the end he convinced her that pirates were cool, and she changed her party's name to The Great Belle Pirates.
"There you are."
" Oh shit! It's Big sis Blaire! She found me."
" Belle, care to explain what that mess is over there?"
Blaire came up to them as she was eating some snacks. Behind her was a big orange Pokemon, that looked like a dragon but wasn't one. Eric was shocked to see its stats.
Pokémon: Charizard
Gender: Male
Level: 49
Type: Fire/Flying
Ability: Solar Power
Held item: Charcoal
Potential: Purple
A level 49 Charizard! With purple potential to boot. This was by far the strongest Pokemon Eric had seen till now. Even the Butterfree from the forest doesn't compare.
Blaire then removed her gaze from Belle and looked at Eric.
"I remember you. You were at the reward ceremony."
"This is Eric. He has a spooky Gastly. And he helped Belle change her party name. We are now the Great Belle Pirates!"
Belle shouted cheerfully.
"Is that right? Looks like our little Belle has been troubling you. My apologies."
"It's fine."
Eric then hesitated for a brief moment, considering whether to ask her or not.
"Hmm? Do you wanna say something to me?"
Blaire noticed his hesitation and asked directly.
"…About the Mission Hall, why is the League suddenly in favour of helping the ordinary trainers? Till now they didn't care so why now?"
Eric decided to ask. He was curious and chose not to worry if this is ok for him to ask or not. He didn't want to live a life full of hesitation and worry.
"Oh that? The normal answer to that is that the league had a change of heart. That's all I am allowed to say, but since I don't like having my words restrained, I'll tell you the internal secrets behind this"
Blaire smiled mischievously. In comparison to Belle, she was the real troublemaker.
Even her words 'the normal answer' gave away more than the League wanted.
She then continued,
"The truth is, the league is in the midst of an internal strife! As you know, the league was originally founded by many influential families coming together. Since then they've kept an elitist attitude towards normal people. Now, however, there is a faction in the league that is dissatisfied with how it is running. They've been making moves to change how the league works."
"An internal faction?"
" Yes. It's still very small. Only 10% of the League support it. Normally, such a small faction would be instantly crushed. But…its backing is quite strong."
She paused, her smile deepening,
"For its leader is none other than the leading Pokemon researcher in the world, and also the former champion of Kanto, Professor Samuel Oak!!"
Eric's eyes widened in surprise. If you are a Pokemon fan, there is no way you haven't heard the name Samuel Oak.
Eric was internally happy that Professor Oak wasn't some evil scumbag like the rest of them. At least from what Blaire is saying. He won't believe her 100%. But he wanted to.
" That's the face! You're shocked right? Professor Oak is very important to the league. Not only is a former champion of Kanto, his work as a Pokemon researcher is very important to the league. But even though he's brought some change, his influence is still not enough. So he's spending his efforts to get younger trainers on his side. They are the future after all."
"…I didn't expect to hear that."
"Haha. It's not so much of a secret. Everyone with a little influence knows this. By the way, I am also part of his faction. I don't like how the league is running either."
"Belle will join it too!"
Despite her acting fearful towards Blaire, the fact was that Belle idolised her. She wanted to do the same thing as her in the futurez whatever that is.
Blaire pats Belle on the head, then excuses herself.
"Well, I'll get going. Belle, don't cause anymore trouble. And…Eric was it? Don't be so pessimistic about everyone. There are all sorts of people, even good ones."
Eric was surprised. He didn't think he said anything that showed how he feels about people.
"You could tell?"
"Of course I can. You're like an open book, kid. You should improve upon your social skills some more. Remember, you can only go so far alone."
"Don't call me kid. I don't think you're that much older than me."
"Perhaps next time we meet, I won't. But for now you are a kid to me. Gain some experience. Life is full of wonders if you give it a chance."
Blaire said that and walked away. She truly read Eric like an open book.
Eric had a lot to think about, but he put everything at the back of his head. For now, he will continue enjoying his food.