Healing Heart

A private space where customers could tame new Pokémon without being disturbed.

The Neutral Underground City happened to offer that kind of service.

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Otsuka took Baimu there, but after booking the field, the young man seemed to want to come in and join them.

He decisively refused and arranged to meet again two hours later.

Faced with Otsuka, who looked as though he had been abandoned, Baimu mercilessly shut the door to the field, blocking out the noise outside.

The field was not particularly large. It resembled an enclosed basketball court, with a flat floor and slightly rough boundary lines.

There were actually many types of fields to choose from, such as special environments with pools or lawns. Their height, width, and length were also enough to accommodate most Pokémon.

Baimu first released Aron, then carefully flipped through the Chansey information Maruyama had given him.

Being illiterate was miserable. These strange words were terribly difficult to read. Fortunately, he was not completely illiterate and could understand bits and pieces.

"Later, I'll release our next companion. If she runs around, you can try to chase her, but don't attack her, no matter what. Even if she attacks me, understand?"

He spoke earnestly, deliberately repeating himself several times so Aron would understand.

Only after seeing Aron nod did he take out Chansey's Poké Ball and open it, stepping back slightly.

Bang!

"Lucky..."

The pink, egg-shaped creature landed on the ground, clutching her belly with both hands as she looked helplessly around and slowly backed away.

"Hello."

Baimu did not rashly approach her. Instead, he kept a distance that would not make Chansey too nervous. "Don't be afraid. Relax... You're safe now. No one will hurt you."

"Lucky?"

Chansey stopped and looked at him nervously. Then she looked at Aron, who occasionally tilted his head to glance at Baimu while trying hard to hold his head high.

Neither of them made the slightest inappropriate move, and Chansey's panic eased somewhat.

Kind and gentle by nature, she possessed the ability to distinguish malice. The human and Pokémon before her were undoubtedly friendly.

"I'm Baimu, and this is my partner, Aron."

"Guh!"

Baimu and Aron briefly introduced themselves. Seeing Chansey's emotions settle considerably, he placed a can of Pokémon food on the ground. "If you're hungry, please eat."

To prove there was nothing wrong with the Pokémon food, he took one pellet and put it in his mouth. Honestly, it did not taste very good, considering how cheap it was.

The two of them stepped back, giving Chansey room to approach.

"Lucky..."

Chansey shook the curled fur at her sides and slowly stepped forward, picking up the food and eating it bit by bit.

As she ate, she kept looking at Baimu.

He spread his hands to show that he had no intention of doing anything else. When he saw Chansey go from taking small bites to large ones, he smiled in relief.

Maruyama definitely would not abuse Chansey or deny her enough food.

There was no benefit to him if the merchandise had problems.

But for Chansey, she probably had neither the mood nor the appetite to eat. Inside the Poké Ball, she could at least sleep. In a cage, she was constantly anxious. How could she possibly eat?

Especially after being returned twice.

When Chansey finished the can and looked at him eagerly, Baimu replied:

"Sorry, but you need to eat in moderation. You can't eat too much all at once."

"Lucky~"

Chansey was a little disappointed, but after filling her stomach, her emotions became even more stable. The relatively safe environment gave them a chance to talk.

"Were you abducted from a Pokémon Center or from someone else?" Baimu asked an important question.

Chansey was somewhat rarer than other Pokémon, so many unscrupulous merchants chose to steal or rob them, even taking them from Pokémon Centers.

Otsuka had said that shop was clean... but Baimu did not dare believe him completely.

"Lucky?"

Chansey rubbed her cheeks with her little hands, looking utterly confused. Either she had not understood the question, or she did not know what a Pokémon Center was.

So he repeated himself several times and tried to understand Chansey's responses.

Communicating with Pokémon required tremendous patience. They possessed independent thoughts, and emotions such as joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness were extremely obvious, displayed with great honesty.

In a sense, their hearts were both fragile and strong.

They were strong enough to wait countless years for a verbal promise, enduring every kind of loneliness and solitude.

Yet they were fragile enough that, after being abandoned, they might never again be able to approach another human, leaving a massive wound in their hearts.

How exactly should he view Aron and the others?

Although Baimu had always called them partners and companions, at this stage, Aron was merely a tool he was using to improve his own circumstances and status.

What, in the end, was a true partner?

Helping each other? Living and dying together?

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Baimu did not want to dwell too deeply on that question. The dangerous environment he lived in forced him to temporarily ignore it.

Of course, if Aron had any wish he wanted to fulfill, Baimu would certainly help him achieve it.

And when he confirmed that Chansey was a wild Pokémon who had merely been brought to Orre by a hunting group to be sold, he felt relieved.

Orre might be remote, beyond Joy and Jenny's reach. But stolen Pokémon ultimately belonged to someone else, unlike cases of abandonment or returns.

Looking at the distance between them now, he realized Chansey had moved from a wary position five meters away to a comfortable space less than a meter from him.

That was a huge improvement.

So...

Baimu continued talking with Chansey, drawing Aron into the conversation and discussing things that might interest or relax her.

Seeing that the wariness had vanished from her face and been replaced with a faint smile, he thought for a long time before extending his hand and saying:

"Chansey, if you're willing, I'd like to invite you to join us—to join my little team with Aron."

He pulled Aron over and showed how close they were. "You know, living alone in a place like this is difficult and frightening. There are bad people everywhere.

"But if we move forward alongside our companions, I believe no hardship will remain a hardship. When bad people see us sticking together, they'll keep their distance. We'll help one another and live on together."

"Guh!"

Aron smiled and nodded.

With the Poké Ball in hand, he was not worried about Chansey refusing his commands.

But he did not want to be so rough. Lowering himself a little and asking for her opinion was not something beyond him.

Respect.

Even if it was only superficial, Baimu wanted to maintain that habit.

"Lucky..."

Chansey stared blankly at him and Aron. For an instant, her expression lit up, but it quickly dimmed again.

"Are you thinking about fighting?" Baimu saw the reason for her low spirits. "Why exactly are you unwilling to fight? Is it because you don't want to hurt other Pokémon, or because you're afraid of battle—afraid of being attacked and attacking others?"

At first glance, those two ideas sounded similar, but they were vastly different. The latter was fear rooted in the heart and could gradually be improved, while the former was a matter of belief.

Not every Pokémon was interested in battling.

"Lucky?"

Chansey looked utterly lost.

It seemed that even she did not know which one she was, perhaps both.

"...Then how about this? If you don't need to attack any person or Pokémon, and only need to help heal an injured Aron, would you be able to accept that?"

Baimu gave Aron's head a smack, then winked at him.

Aron looked completely bewildered. After staring at his trainer for several seconds, he finally groaned and rolled around on the ground, putting on a pained expression.

Chansey jumped in fright as a voice rang out beside her.

"Chansey! Use Heal Pulse on Aron!"

"Lu, lucky!"

Her body trembled, and she instinctively released a wave of pink light toward Aron. The light surrounded him like a ring.

"Guh-doh!"

Aron felt vitality surge through his body and was greatly amazed.

There was something like this?

A hidden reserve of energy! Amazing!

Chansey stopped moving and stared blankly at her hands, then at Aron, who was brimming with energy as he ran and jumped around.

"Can you accept this kind of 'battle'?"

Baimu had somehow come to stand beside her. "You don't need to hurt any Pokémon. You only need to use your moves to heal Aron, ease his pain, and make him feel better. How does that sound?"

If it could not be done all at once, then they could take it step by step.

Once she got used to battling, they could consider what came next. If she truly could not battle, then she could focus on serving as the team's medic.

"Lucky..."

Chansey hesitated, looking somewhat unconfident.

"Don't worry, and don't be afraid. No matter whether you do well or badly, I won't blame you." Baimu placed his hand on her head and gently, slowly stroked her.

Chansey raised her head to look at him, then looked at Aron, whose eyes were full of encouragement and expectation. Closing her eyes as though making up her mind, she nodded forcefully.

"Lucky!"

"Excellent! Welcome to the team!"

Baimu smiled and extended his hand to her. Chansey tentatively placed her little paw in his palm.

"Guh!"

Aron shouted as he rushed over and tackled them both. They fell to the ground, stared at each other blankly for a moment, then burst into cheerful laughter.

"Idiot! Don't just ram into people!"

"Lucky~"

"Chansey! You're not exactly light either—ah, I'm not blaming you, don't look so downcast."