Falkner and Feng

A thick bolt of electricity grazed past Heiduo's ear and shot high into the sky.

Heiduo glanced sideways and saw Elekid's eyes blazing red. It was clearly furious.

"Hold it!"

A loud shout came from the distance.

Hearing it, Heiduo patted Elekid's shoulder and shook his head at it.

Elekid looked terribly aggrieved, but it still stopped its windmill-like arms.

"Bee-bee..."

"Don't worry, they'll give it back to you." Heiduo winked at Elekid. "I promise!"

Only after receiving his promise did Elekid's expression improve.

The sound of rushing wind came from beside them.

A huge bird resembling an owl, half a head taller than Heiduo with an enormous wingspan, flew over from afar and stopped in front of them.

A boy a few years older than Heiduo jumped down from the bird's back.

[Pokémon: Noctowl / Gender: Male / Level: 48]

[Ability: Insomnia / Type: Normal + Flying / Trainer: Falkner]

[Moves: Air Slash lv4 / Shadow Ball lv4]

[Fly lv4 / Roost lv4 / Foresight lv5]

So it really was you! Falkner, carrying on the family business!

"Pidgeotto! Get down here!"

Falkner called out to the Pidgeotto circling overhead.

"Pidg—"

A bird cry came from the sky, and a dark shadow landed on Falkner's arm.

Without another word, Falkner snatched the pebble from Pidgeotto's claws, rapped Pidgeotto on the head, then returned it to Elekid. He apologized to Heiduo, "Sorry about that. Pidgeotto can be a little mischievous. It caused you trouble."

Heiduo neither agreed nor disagreed, merely saying flatly, "The one it should apologize to is Elekid, not me. And the one apologizing shouldn't be you, but your Pidgeotto."

He had no intention of picking a fight, but neither would he let Elekid suffer this indignity for nothing.

After all, Pidgeotto had been the one causing trouble, not Elekid. Heiduo had the moral high ground here.

Falkner might have been a Gym Leader, but he was also a police officer. If the police in this world really were so righteous, he shouldn't do anything unreasonable.

Sure enough, Falkner's expression did not change after hearing Heiduo's words. He reached out and scratched Pidgeotto beneath the beak.

"Did you hear that? He's talking about you!"

Upon hearing that, Pidgeotto lowered its proudly raised head, looking dejected.

"Pidg—"

Heiduo could not understand Pokémon speech, but he could understand Elekid's dismissive hand wave.

After getting its pebble back, the little fellow could not even be bothered to give Pidgeotto a proper look. Its attitude was utterly perfunctory.

Its contemptuous expression instantly enraged Pidgeotto.

Heiduo smiled and gave the arrogant little fellow a push. Then he took the initiative to extend his hand to Falkner. "Hello, I'm Heiduo."

Falkner soothed the angry Pidgeotto before shaking Heiduo's hand. "Hello, I'm Falkner! A police officer from Violet City!"

Suddenly, he froze slightly and asked, "What did you say your name was?"

"Heiduo. What about it?" Heiduo found it rather baffling. They had only just met, so why did Falkner look like he had heard of him before?

Lorelei couldn't have told him, could she?

Once Falkner received confirmation, his expression immediately returned to normal. He smiled. "Oh, it's nothing. I just didn't hear you clearly, so I wanted to confirm."

That definitely wasn't what your expression just said.

Heiduo gave Falkner a suspicious look, but he could not discern anything.

"I have something urgent to deal with, so I'll be going! See you!"

Falkner climbed onto Noctowl's back. After greeting Heiduo, he flew into the sky and departed.

From beginning to end, he never asked for Shuangye's name.

Yet Heiduo vaguely noticed Falkner casting a glance at Shuangye before leaving, seemingly intentional yet casual, sweeping over her as though inspecting his territory.

Heiduo keenly sensed that there was definitely something off about this Falkner.

Well... whatever. I'm going to Violet Gym for my First Badge anyway. I'll see what happens when I get there.

He opened his map and found that Violet City was already not far away.

He should definitely reach Violet City before sunset.

Violet City, Falkner's home.

Falkner recalled Noctowl and Pidgeotto into their Poké Balls and entered through the back door.

"Young Master!" An elderly woman stood on the tatami behind the door, holding out a white towel to him.

Falkner removed his shoes and accepted it, carefully wiping the dust and sweat from his face before returning it to her. "Thank you, Grandma! Has Father returned?"

"Master is training in the dojo." The old woman gave a bow and withdrew.

Having learned where his father was, Falkner strode swiftly to the entrance of the dojo.

"Father!" Falkner called out.

Inside the dojo, a middle-aged man with silver-gray hair and a tank top heard him. He set down the dumbbells in his hands, exhaled, and wiped away his sweat with a smile. "What is it, my proud and beloved son?"

Hearing that form of address, Falkner's cool, handsome face grew a little embarrassed. "Father! Could you please stop calling me that? I'm already sixteen!"

"All right! My proud and beloved boy!" The middle-aged man laughed heartily and continued teasing Falkner.

Falkner covered his face helplessly.

The man before him was none other than Falkner's father, Feng, who had appeared in Pokémon Adventures!

Feng was a renowned Flying-type "master" throughout Johto, admired by countless people. He was extremely powerful, but he loved traveling everywhere and hated staying in one place for too long. That was one reason he later handed the Gym over to his son.

"Father, I have something very important to tell you." Falkner grew serious.

Seeing this, Feng became serious as well. "What happened?"

"Father, do you remember the person Elite Four Lorelei mentioned at the Association headquarters meeting five days ago?"

"I remember... You mean he has come to Violet City?" Feng was slightly startled, then quickly understood and asked.

Falkner nodded. "Yes! I saw him on Route 30 just now!"

"Tch, I thought it was something important." Hearing that this was all Falkner wanted to discuss, Feng shook his head and plopped down onto the wooden floor.

Falkner froze. "Father, what are you planning to do?"

"What should I do? Isn't he collecting Badges to enter the tournament? Just give him a Badge." Feng waved a hand, pulling a towel over his head with both hands.

"Give it to him directly?" Falkner's voice instantly rose an octave.

"How did you get that idea? Of course we can't just give it to him directly!" Feng felt that he did not quite understand Falkner's train of thought. But after thinking for a moment, he added, "How about this? When he arrives, you battle him with Pokémon."

Falkner pointed at himself in disbelief. "Me?"

His main occupation was being a police officer, so he did not often engage in professional Pokémon battles with others.

Feng nodded, stood up, and rubbed Falkner's head. "You're not getting any younger. It's time to hand the family business over to you!"

He spoke with immense grandeur, as though he were handing over a throne.

Falkner felt his blood boil. Just as he was about to agree, he suddenly remembered something and said with a dark expression, "Father, you just want to go traveling again, don't you?"

Five years ago, Feng had been unable to restrain himself and secretly left to travel for half a year. As a result, Violet Gym had gone without anyone to hand out Badges for a long time, prompting complaints from countless Trainers. Feng, as the Gym Leader, had nearly become a wanted man.

At those words, Feng burst into laughter and stroked his thick hair. "You saw through me so quickly?"

Falkner: "..."

"Father! This won't do! If our Gym fails to meet the Pokémon League's requirements again, Violet Gym will be shut down! Grandfather will be very disappointed!" Falkner could not help arguing. He had always been proud of his father, but Violet Gym was an inheritance passed down through generations. They could not simply abandon it!

"That's why we have you!" Feng's eyes became incomparably profound as he gave Falkner's shoulder a meaningful pat.

Falkner's body stiffened.

"F-Father, I'm a police officer—" Falkner looked miserable. He loved being a police officer deeply and had never imagined that one day he might have to give it up.

"It's fine. You can do both jobs. You're in Violet City, after all, so it's very convenient." Feng spoke softly, like a demon tempting a mortal.

He could only leave to travel once every three months while staying at Violet Gym. As a traveler, a Flying-type master, and a man whose name meant freedom, how could he willingly allow a single Gym to bind him?

Only adventure! Only the vast mountains and rivers were his ultimate pursuit!

In his lifetime, he was destined to travel across every corner of the land!

And according to rumors, there was a place called Kalos with an extremely unique method of Evolution!

How could that not leave Feng restless with anticipation?

"Father..." Falkner considered the matter from every angle, but he could not find anything to refute.

As the only son of their family, Falkner would inevitably inherit the Gym someday. It was merely a matter of time.

"Then it's settled! No later than next month!" Feng declared without room for argument as he walked out of the dojo.

If he had not been worried that Falkner did not understand the process, he would have practically handed the Gym over to him today and run off immediately.

"I..." Falkner stared blankly at his hands. He had only come to deliver a message, so why had such a heavy burden suddenly landed on him?

Heiduo...

Thinking of the culprit behind it all, Falkner's professional ethics as a police officer kept him from casually taking out his anger on others, but they also solidified a certain belief in his heart.

He would treat Heiduo as the first stumbling block on his path to becoming a Gym Leader!

The most important principle for a Gym Leader—education first, victory and defeat second!

Those eight words were the philosophy emphasized when Gyms were first established.

Yet now, few Gyms still followed it...

In this era, when everyone was obsessed with the outcome of a match, no one remembered why Gyms had been created.

Gyms existed to help the Pokémon League cultivate outstanding and reliable talent.

The passage into Violet City.

"Achoo!"

Heiduo rubbed his nose. A sudden chill had crawled up his back, making him sneeze.