Bib Baby

At that moment, Gardevoir suddenly appeared beside them.

Ralts's body stiffened, and she quickly hid behind Hu Yang, too afraid to look at Gardevoir.

Seeing Ralts's reaction, then looking at the stern-faced Gardevoir, Hu Yang suddenly felt as though he were some strange man trying to abduct someone else's daughter.

No, he had never intended to abduct Ralts!

Gardevoir said nothing. Hu Yang guessed that she was communicating with Ralts through Telepathy.

Who knew what she said, but Ralts's mood visibly grew more and more downcast.

Gardevoir paused at the sight, her eyes revealing reluctance and hesitation.

She opened her mouth and turned her gaze toward the human before her.

Hu Yang immediately straightened up, his entire body tense.

A genderless voice suddenly sounded in his mind. "Do you want to take her away?"

Hu Yang froze for a moment, then realized that Gardevoir was speaking.

In the anime, May's Pokédex had introduced Ralts like this:

Ralts, the Feeling Pokémon. The pre-evolved form of Kirlia. It can use the horns on its head to sense human emotions. It rarely shows itself before humans, but when it senses positive emotions, it will approach them on its own.

Its final evolution was Gardevoir, capable of creating miniature black holes with its bare hands, and it could even undergo Mega Evolution.

Who would not want a Pokémon with such immense potential, one that would even give up its life for its Trainer?

Thus, Hu Yang answered honestly, "I do."

Gardevoir stared at him for a while before saying, "You do not have the ability to protect her."

That was the plain truth, and Hu Yang could not refute it.

He felt that if he and Gardevoir had switched roles, he would not have entrusted his obedient, innocent daughter to the other party either.

He did not respond. Gardevoir looked at Ralts again and asked in front of Hu Yang, "Do you really want to leave with this human?"

"Ralts..." Ralts hesitated. She could feel Gardevoir's emotions: reluctance, sadness, and intense worry.

Gardevoir sighed and said softly, "Then go do what you want to do."

With that, she turned and left alone.

"Ralts..." Ralts released Hu Yang's sleeve and stood there at a loss.

Hu Yang felt exactly like some great villain, but he had clearly done nothing!

He sighed helplessly, crouched down, and said to Ralts, "Your dad is very worried about you. That's why he doesn't feel at ease letting you leave."

Thinking about it carefully, Gardevoir probably knew very well that if Ralts left, they would have very few chances to meet again in the future.

Compared to Braviary's fatherly love for Rufflet, Gardevoir's love for Ralts was entirely different.

She had protected Ralts very well. She did not want to see her suffer even the slightest harm, and wanted to keep protecting her by her side for her entire life.

"Ralts..." Ralts was terribly sad right now.

Hu Yang comforted her. "Go after him. Spend more time with your dad. As for me, I live over here. If you want to find me, you can come play anytime."

"Ralts..." After thinking for a moment, Ralts ran in the direction Gardevoir had disappeared.

After running a few steps, she looked back at Hu Yang standing where he was, then used Teleport and vanished.

Hu Yang rubbed his nose, then left the riverside with Cramorant in his arms.

"Caw!"

Cramorant let out a blank little cry.

Hu Yang wanted to cry. If Cramorant could understand commands, he would not have to worry so miserably about finding a starter Pokémon.

Perhaps Cramorant had heard his thoughts, because that very night, she returned from outside with an easy-to-catch Pokémon in her beak.

[Species: Budew ♀]

Type: Grass, Poison-type

Ability: Leaf Guard

Base Stats: 280 (HP: 40, Attack: 30, Defense: 35, Special Attack: 50, Special Defense: 70, Speed: 55)

Known Moves: Absorb, Stun Spore, Seed Bomb

Current Mood: Nervous

Physical Condition: Tense (She is so scared)

Friendship: 0 (None of you know each other)

Looking at the green creature curled into a ball on the table, Hu Yang could not help poking her with a finger.

Budew, the Bud Pokémon. Its evolution was Roserade, a Poison-type Pokémon frequently used by roadblocking NPCs in the games, while its final evolution was Roserade, with a Special Attack stat as high as 125.

Budew was terrified. Looking at the frightening bird before her, her body trembled slightly in fear.

Hu Yang: "..."

He really wanted to ask what Cramorant had done to her.

To soothe—win over—this Budew and make her willingly let him catch her, Hu Yang worked hard to put on a friendly smile and picked Budew up.

Before evolving, Budew was tiny, only around twenty centimeters tall. She looked delicate and petite.

She had two yellow-green little legs, with her body connected to the unopened flower bud atop her head. Her eyes looked half-closed, making her resemble a baby wearing a drool bib.

"Caw?" Cramorant watched this scene blankly.

Wait!

Hu Yang suddenly realized something.

Could this Budew, like that Pikachu, belong to someone else?

Before confirming that Budew did not have a Trainer, he found a ceramic flowerpot, filled it with clean soil and grass, and "planted" Budew inside.

He had read this in an ecology book borrowed from the library. Budew, who had yet to evolve into Roserade, was still immature and needed to absorb nutrients essential for growth from the soil.

Besides that, she also needed warm sunlight and a clean water source.

As Hu Yang watered Budew, he tried to communicate with her. "Little one, can you understand what I'm saying?"

Gradually, Budew relaxed beneath the water. The faint swaying of the flower bud atop her head showed that she seemed quite comfortable now.

Then Hu Yang saw her friendship rise slightly, from 0 to 5.

Huh? That worked?

Hu Yang raised an eyebrow.

"Bude~" Budew finally determined that the human before her would not hurt her, and she made an adorable sound in response.

It had to be said, Hu Yang was genuinely charmed by how cute she was.

But he could not understand what Budew was saying, so he could only ask Erika to see whether anyone at the school had lost a Budew.

By the time Erika replied, it was already the next morning.

She sat on the sofa, sipping the hot tea Hu Yang had prepared while looking at Budew sitting properly in her flowerpot by the windowsill, basking in the sunlight. Smiling, she said, "This place has changed so much compared to last time I came. It feels much more lived-in now."

"Has it?" Hu Yang looked around. He had only moved some furniture around.

"Yes, it looks very tidy." Erika smiled. "I've already looked into what you asked me about. No one at our school has lost a Pokémon. Are you planning to catch that Budew?"

So this Budew did not have a Trainer?

Excitement flashed in Hu Yang's eyes. "Yes. I want to become a Trainer too!"

When Cramorant caught Budew in her beak, Budew had used Seed Bomb on her, and then Cramorant ate every single Seed Bomb.