"Cheers—"
Clink!
Glass rang out with a crisp chime.
Baimu drew back his champagne glass with a smile, his gaze drifting from the people before him to their surroundings.
Long banquet tables filled the once-empty street. The shops on either side glowed with light, their interiors packed with food anyone could help themselves to.
Familiar faces and Pokémon enjoyed the food together, laughter rising now and then.
Young children romped freely with the Pokémon.
Aggron and the others were right in the thick of it. Aside from Mawile, who was focused on dessert, and Corsola and Dragapult, who disliked crowds and were waiting at the villa for Baimu to bring them food, they were all playing with the children.
Shiny Gengar and the Dreepy siblings were especially rambunctious, leading a pack of rowdy kids on a mad dash everywhere.
The lively atmosphere felt like a festival.
And it wasn't just this street. Several streets in the distance, even the farthest ones, were brightly lit and ringing with noise.
A welcome banquet.
Shan Ren hadn't gathered the heads of the companies helping Pyrite Town into some lavish banquet hall to introduce Baimu and help him build connections. Nor had he held a small gathering at his villa with only the Rainbow Team comrades and friends Baimu knew.
Shan Ren had chosen to celebrate with everyone.
He wanted everyone who knew Baimu to share the joy of welcoming him home.
The dragon slayer would become the dragon...
That saying didn't necessarily hold true in the Pokémon World.
"What? Not used to it?"
Seeing Baimu lost in thought, Shan Ren took a sip of champagne. "It was my idea, but I only planned to do this on Azure Iridium Street. Even if we have money, we can't just throw it around.
"Then a