Gossifleur and Eldegoss

Luo Mu called out, "Serperior."

Serperior gave a slight nod. A Vine Whip emerged from its collar, instantly snagging a small white object from the air and bringing it back before placing it in Luo Mu's hand.

Luo Mu carefully pinched the tiny white object between his fingers, feeling its uniquely fluffy, soft texture as a gleam of delight flashed through his eyes.

His original targets had been Grass-type Pokémon with fixed habitats in Paldea, such as Smoliv, Skiddo, Scovillain, Toedscool, or Tropius.

He had not expected such an unexpected delight from this outing. The owner of those mysterious white cotton fluffs scattered through the air was a Pokémon perfectly suited for a farm.

It was also the signature Pokémon of the hugely popular Milo's Farm online.

"A Pokémon from the Galar Region is quite rare in Paldea."

Smiling, Luo Mu patted Arven on the shoulder to signal for him and Mabosstiff to follow, then led Serperior toward the direction from which the cotton fluff had drifted.

Before long, they entered a broad grassland.

Lush grass about calf-high carpeted the ground. From time to time, tiny Combee and Yanma skimmed low through the air, while in the distance, a red figure like a musician let out sharp cries.

Following Combee gave one a chance of finding Vespiquen's location and obtaining sweet honey. Under normal circumstances, Luo Mu would have tried to follow them, but he had more pressing business now. After sweeping his gaze over the grassland, he quickly locked onto his target.

Two tiny Gossifleur, each with five-petaled yellow flowers and five red sepals resembling hair, were happily basking in the sunlight as they played together.

Behind them, an Eldegoss with a large ball of cotton fluff piled atop its head and a yellow cape draped over its body watched over the two Gossifleur with a smile.

Arven had just been about to speak when Luo Mu stopped him. Luo Mu pressed a finger to his lips, using both his gestures and eyes to tell Arven to keep his voice down so he would not scare off the Eldegoss.

Arven nodded repeatedly with a tense expression. He grabbed Mabosstiff by the tail and began shaking it furiously as it tried to leap out and pounce on butterflies, then asked softly, "Brother Luo Mu, what Pokémon are those?"

Arven had never seen Pokémon like these in all his life, and his curiosity was thoroughly piqued.

Without taking his eyes off the three Pokémon, Luo Mu answered quietly, "Those two smaller Pokémon that look like flowers are called Gossifleur. The one looking after them is called Eldegoss. They're all Pokémon from the Galar Region."

"They barely have any distribution in Paldea. Being able to encounter them here means the Goddess of Luck is smiling upon us."

Arven nodded in sudden understanding. The Galar Region... he had never been there before.

At the mention of the word "goddess," Serperior's body immediately tensed, and the tip of its tail began lashing about in displeasure.

Goddess!

Where is this goddess?

Come out and fight me! (furious)

As Serperior indiscriminately radiated its terrifying jealousy, Arven let out a stifled cry. "They're flying away!"

A rustling sound arose across the tranquil grassland as a strong gust swept through. The two Gossifleur cried out excitedly and were carried away by the wind, spinning in circles as they sang cheerful little tunes.

Eldegoss seemed completely unbound by gravity as well. Its body, much larger than the Gossifleur's, rose into the air with the wind and closely followed behind the two Gossifleur.

Arven stared in admiration. "That's amazing! How does that Eldegoss fly?"

That was because, as Gossifleur's evolved form, Eldegoss changed very little in height and weight. It only appeared heavier because of the extremely light cotton fluff atop its head, so it could still be blown along by the wind just like Gossifleur.

Luo Mu had no time to explain all that to Arven. He swiftly rose to his feet, ignoring the numbness in his legs from crouching in the grass for so long, and called in a low voice, "Let's chase them!"

"Huh? Oh!"

Arven watched in a daze as Luo Mu and Serperior shot off like arrows released from a bow. Before he could react, they had already run far into the distance.

No longer caring about his confusion, Arven released his grip and took off after Luo Mu and Serperior's retreating figures. The excited Mabosstiff stayed close at his side, dutifully fulfilling its role as protector.

After a bout of chasing, Arven braced his hands against his knees and panted heavily, feeling as though his heart was about to leap out of his chest.

Luo Mu slowly calmed his erratic heartbeat and laughed. "You're not much good, kid. You're already tired after running such a short distance."

Arven was displeased and shot back, "Brother Luo Mu, you... weren't any better. You even lost Eldegoss and the others. What right do you have to criticize me?"

Unable to save face, Luo Mu stubbornly argued, "That's different. Who knew a violent gust would suddenly blow up? They just happened to drift into this forest too. We only lost them because of those two uncontrollable factors."

Only then did Arven have the chance to examine their surroundings. Tall trees filled nearly everywhere his eyes could reach. With so many obstructions and such complex terrain, it was not surprising that they had lost track of them.

After finally catching his breath, Arven blinked and asked, "So what do we do now? Did we come all this way for nothing?"

Luo Mu crossed his arms and thought for a moment before sighing. "Let's search nearby a little longer. The wind has stopped, so with Eldegoss and the others' movement speed, they shouldn't have gone too far."

"Of course, if we still can't find them after an hour, we'll head back. It's getting dark, and it's easy to lose one's way in the wilderness at night."

Arven nodded as if he understood, though he did not truly grasp the dangers of the wilderness at night.

Luo Mu did not split up from Arven to expand their search area and improve efficiency. After all, they were in the wild, where unexpected accidents could happen at any moment.

Arven was not yet the senior Arven of the future. When facing danger, he still lacked many important things and much necessary awareness.

As Arven's senior and future teacher, Luo Mu believed he needed to shoulder that responsibility.

It might be less efficient this way, but at least nothing unexpected would happen.

Over the next half hour, the two continued searching with Mabosstiff and Serperior, yet they still found nothing.

Looking up at the sky gradually turning dusky yellow, Luo Mu knew it was time to leave.

In the end, they simply were not meant to be.

Luo Mu smiled helplessly, turned to Arven, and said, "Let's go. It's time to head back."

Arven nodded and followed Luo Mu's steps.

"Serp!"

Serperior suddenly raised its head, its crimson eyes looking toward the distant woods.

"You noticed their scent?" Luo Mu paused and looked at Serperior.

Serperior nodded in confirmation, its deep gaze fixed unblinking on that direction.

Besides the scents of those three Grass-type Pokémon, it had also noticed an unfamiliar scent. There was a high chance it did not belong to Eldegoss and the others.