Granite Cave

The pier remained bustling after the match ended. Quite a few townspeople and tourists gathered around Lin Mo, their gazes all fixed on the Feebas in his arms—

Most of them were seeing this kind of Pokémon for the first time. They quietly discussed its appearance with curiosity while taking out their cameras and carefully adjusting their angles, afraid of startling the well-behaved Feebas.

Feebas seemed unaccustomed to being the center of attention. It squirmed uneasily in Lin Mo's arms, its little tail lightly tapping his wrist as though seeking reassurance.

"Thank you all for your support."

Lin Mo smiled and nodded to the people around him, adjusting his position so that the camera could capture both him and the Feebas in his arms.

"Getting second place today was entirely thanks to Feebas's own efforts, as well as everyone's constant companionship in front of the screen."

He lowered his head to look at the Feebas in his arms, gently brushing his fingers over its somewhat rough scales. "See? Everyone's happy for you."

Feebas seemed to understand. It tilted its head, blinked its protruding eyes, then suddenly flicked its tail hard, splashing the remaining droplets onto Lin Mo's face.

That familiar action made everyone around them laugh, while the livestream chat was instantly flooded with "hahaha" and all kinds of reaction stickers.

"Feebas is still as mischievous as ever!"

"That was definitely deliberate. It's getting revenge because the streamer held it too tightly just now. [doge]"

"Why do I suddenly think Feebas is so beautiful? Is there something wrong with my taste?"

"+1. The more I look at Feebas's face now, the more pleasing it gets..."

Lin Mo wiped the droplets from his face with his sleeve and looked helplessly yet fondly at the little one in his arms. "All right, I know you're amazing. Stop fooling around."

He turned to the camera, a trace of excitement in his voice.

"I just checked the backend. The peak viewer count for this stream surpassed twenty thousand. Next, I'll be doing a giveaway for everyone. Thank you all so much for your support these past days!"

The chat immediately exploded.

"Twenty thousand! The streamer's finally made it!"

"Congratulations, streamer! Those Popularity Points are rising way too fast!"

"It's been almost a year already. Why hasn't Feebas evolved yet? I want to see what it'll evolve into! Does anyone know? Come explain!"

At the mention of evolution, the livestream discussion grew even livelier.

"Yeah! Can Feebas evolve? What does it look like after evolving?"

"Any Trainers who've raised a Feebas? Come say something!"

"..."

Lin Mo looked at his phone screen, his gaze sweeping over the questions about "evolution." He did not explain anything, merely gently stroking Feebas—

It was nibbling on a small piece of Pokémon Food, occasionally looking up at Lin Mo with an exceptionally obedient appearance.

A new plan had already formed in Lin Mo's mind.

Now that Feebas could skillfully use Water Pulse and Icy Wind, it was strong enough. Next, he could take it to explore Granite Cave in Dewford Town.

Lin Mo smiled, cleared his throat, and held up the giveaway wheel prop toward the camera.

"All right, everyone, stop arguing about evolution for now. Let's do the giveaway first—

This time, I've prepared twenty sets of universal Pokémon nutrient supplements and five limited-edition sets of Pokédex stickers, as thanks for all the encouragement you've given Feebas and me over the past year. Just send 'Feebas is so beautiful' in the chat for a chance to enter the draw!"

"You actually have the nerve to say that, streamer?"

"Yeah, yeah. For rewards like these, I absolutely won't betray my conscience!"

"..."

The viewers in front of their screens all teased him, but before long, the screen was flooded with densely packed "Feebas is so beautiful" messages, scrolling so quickly that the individual IDs were nearly impossible to see.

Feebas seemed to be drawn in by the lively scene in the livestream chat. It wriggled restlessly in Lin Mo's arms, poked its little head toward the camera, and curiously stared at the constantly jumping messages with its protruding eyes. Its tail lightly tapped Lin Mo's arm again, as though urging him to hurry up and take a screenshot for the draw.

"Don't rush, don't rush. We're starting now."

Once all twenty winning IDs had appeared, the livestream was immediately filled with cheers and wails.

The winning viewers excitedly spammed "Thank you, streamer," while the losers wailed, "I'm the ultimate unlucky one," and "Next time for sure"...

"All right, the giveaway's over. It's time to tell everyone something serious."

Lin Mo's tone became a little more serious as he aimed the camera back at himself.

"For the next while, I'm planning to take Feebas to explore Granite Cave."

"Granite Cave in Dewford Town? I've read about it on the forums. Apparently, that cave is really deep and really dark, and there are Zubat swarms inside too. They're pretty aggressive, so be careful!"

"Are you looking for opponents to train Feebas? But the terrain inside is complicated. Don't let Feebas get hurt!"

"I've been there once. There are so many forks in the path, and it's easy to get lost. Streamer, you'd better bring a guide or download a map!"

Lin Mo looked at those concerned messages.

"Thanks for the reminders, everyone. I've already prepared a simple map of the cave, along with lighting equipment and plenty of supplies. I won't go too deep into dangerous areas.

"The reason I'm going there is, first, to let Feebas train its practical combat ability in a more complex environment. Second... maybe we'll run into a suitable partner."

He paused and lowered his head to stroke Feebas's little head.

"Having Feebas train and compete alone all this time feels too lonely. If we can find a Pokémon in the cave whose personality and abilities are a good match, then whether it's daily training coordination or future Gym challenges, the two of us will have more confidence."

At the mention of Gyms, the atmosphere in the chat instantly surged again.

"Gyms? Is the streamer going to challenge Gyms now?!"

"Are we finally starting the Gym challenge? I've been looking forward to this for so long!"

"Are you challenging Dewford Town's Gym first? I think you could challenge Gym Leader Roxanne in Rustboro City first. Feebas is a Water type, so challenging Roxanne should be easier!"

"Above, are you sure you aren't telling the streamer to challenge Rustboro City just because you want to see Gym Leader Roxanne?"

"What Pokémon is the streamer going to catch? I recommend Aron. Aggron is ridiculously cool!"

"Hahaha, that'd probably eat the streamer into poverty. The money he's saved from nearly a year of streaming probably wouldn't even be enough for Aron's food!"

"..."

Lin Mo smiled and replied.

"I'm not sure yet. Let's see what Pokémon we run into in Granite Cave first! As for which Gym to challenge, we'll see what everyone in the livestream wants and decide then!"

Lin Mo looked at the sky. "That's all for today's stream. We'll set out in two days, and I'll start a livestream then to show everyone what Granite Cave looks like."

After saying goodbye to the viewers, Lin Mo ended the stream. The surrounding townspeople gradually dispersed as well, leaving only a few children still discussing the match from earlier.

After Feebas swallowed the Water Gem, Lin Mo played with it for a while longer before returning it to its Poké Ball and heading home together.

By the time Lin Mo and Feebas returned to the little seaside house, the setting sun had already dyed the ocean gold and crimson.