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Meanwhile, in her own room in Cerulean City, Misty was experiencing her own moment of self-reflection.
"Do I... actually like him?" Misty wondered aloud after ending the phone call.
Misty lay on her bed, constantly thinking about Erika's words and their implications.
To be completely honest, she did have feelings for Eddie, but she wasn't entirely certain whether those feelings constituted genuine romantic interest.
While Erika's affection for Eddie had clearly developed into "like," Misty found herself stuck in that uncertain stage of "more than friends, but less than lovers."
This perfectly demonstrated Misty's confusion about her own emotions. This stage was essentially just friendly ambiguity—nothing more substantial than that. At best, they were good friends who could share some playful jokes, but it wasn't truly a romantic relationship between a man and woman.
To put it realistically, this kind of relationship meant she was unwilling to remain just friends, but too afraid to pursue something deeper.
Eddie didn't particularly concern himself with these relationship dynamics, because what he had done during their encounters was simply what any normal person would do in similar circumstances. Misty's growing favorability had developed somewhat mysteriously from his perspective.
Since he was genuinely confused about the situation, he wouldn't take any initiative to address it directly. He was content to leave things as they were for now.
Meanwhile, Misty found herself in a genuine dilemma. She thought Eddie was a good man who had fought bravely on her behalf against Team Rocket, even though they had just met.
After their battle, he had still considered her feelings and comforted her with a gentle, caring voice.
He was young and promising, strong, brave, and resourceful. He was helpful to others and had a strong sense of justice.
With so many positive qualities, any normal woman would develop a favorable impression of him. Even if she wasn't immediately attracted, she would at least consider him as a potential romantic partner.
Erika had started with similar feelings, but she had quickly realized that Eddie was exactly what she wanted in a partner, so she had stopped hesitating and immediately began pursuing him actively.
However, Misty was still caught in indecision, which was why her favorability hadn't yet reached the level of "liking," despite her courage in asking about Eddie's destination earlier.
Her original purpose had simply been to meet Eddie again and train with him to improve her skills.
After all, she was currently only at gym leader level, technically stronger than Eddie at the moment, but she still needed considerable practice to reach quasi-elite status.
But Erika's words had directly addressed her indecisive heart, causing Misty's pulse to race and making her too embarrassed to use training as an excuse to see Eddie.
"Even so, I want to see him again, which means that I probably..." Misty blushed deeply, unsure what to do with these newfound realizations.
She wanted to meet him, but now she felt too embarrassed to use Pokemon training as her excuse. However, it would seem strange to travel to see him without any clear reason.
"It seems like I'm really caught up in these feelings. Well, in that case... Wait! I know what I can do!"
Misty had figured it out at last. Even now, she wanted to see Eddie, so she probably understood her own feelings quite clearly.
And she had just thought of a perfectly good reason to meet Eddie—one that she considered quite clever!
Erika was absolutely right. If Eddie wouldn't take the initiative, then she would have to do it herself!
The next morning, Eddie woke up early and immediately noticed a notification message that left him completely puzzled.
He sat motionless, adopting the classic pose of a deep thinker contemplating life's mysteries.
He genuinely didn't understand what had happened. He really couldn't comprehend what he had possibly done to receive such a message first thing in the morning.
"Ding! Because of your words and actions, Misty's favorability towards you has greatly increased, and is now at 'like' level!"
Yes, that notification was the exact reason for Eddie's current state of bewildered meditation.
"I didn't understand why Misty and Erika's favorability increased so mysteriously before. I thought maybe I was just imagining things," Eddie mused to himself.
"But what happened this time? Misty isn't even here, and I haven't seen her for a week. How did her favorability increase?"
"And this happened last night. Didn't I log off last night? What could have possibly occurred?"
Eddie's head was spinning as he tried to understand the situation.
This wasn't him being overly dramatic or anything like that. He was naturally pleased that someone liked him, especially such an attractive woman.
However, that didn't mean he wouldn't wonder why this had happened. He genuinely couldn't understand what was going on. Having favorability improve for no apparent reason seemed extremely strange to him.
Eddie, who had no idea that Erika and Misty had engaged in their "gunpowder-free confrontation" the previous night, continued to worry about the mystery.
"Mr. Eddie, are you awake? Miss Erika would like to speak with you about something," came a voice from outside his bedroom.
Just as Eddie was pondering why this had happened, Erika's maid knocked on the door and made her request.
"I'm awake and will come see Erika shortly. Please let her know," Eddie replied to the maid.
Eddie set aside his confusion for the time being and responded to the maid. Then he got up and gathered his belongings.
Ten minutes later, in the living room of Erika's house, Erika and Eddie were having their final conversation before his departure.
"Eddie, here is my contact information. If there's any emergency, please notify me immediately. We can also exchange information about Team Rocket activities during normal times," Erika said in a businesslike manner.
"Of course, here's mine as well. Team Rocket's activities definitely require ongoing information sharing. If I encounter them, I'll notify you when necessary," Eddie agreed.
Erika exchanged contact information with Eddie calmly, as if this were purely for Team Rocket-related business purposes.
Naturally, this was indeed a serious matter, but Erika's thoughts weren't entirely focused on Team Rocket affairs.
"You'll be leaving soon, so I won't see you off personally, but I do have a parting gift for you," Erika announced.
Erika had many responsibilities to attend to, so she wouldn't accompany Eddie to see him off. However, she still had something special prepared for him.
"What kind of gift?" Eddie asked with curiosity.
"Close your eyes first. I want to give you a surprise," Erika said with a slightly playful expression.
This was another example of her charming personality contrast, and Eddie found himself momentarily captivated by her appearance.
However, he immediately closed his eyes, which not only covered his slight embarrassment but also followed Erika's instructions.
At this moment, he was quite curious about what parting gift Erika had prepared for him.
Then, he sensed a fragrant presence approaching him, and cool hands gently held his face.
"I really want to have someone I can rely on. I think you're very suitable for that role, Eddie. So, the next time we meet, may I rely on you?" Erika asked softly.
Then, Eddie felt his lips being gently touched—a sensation that carried a floral scent and warmth.
However, before Eddie could fully process the moment, Erika had already stepped back.
Eddie opened his eyes to see Erika's face flushed with color. She wasn't looking at him directly at that moment, but rather gazing at the scenery outside the window.
It seemed that Erika wasn't as composed as she appeared to be. Perhaps she was trembling with shyness inside her heart.
"You don't need to give me an answer right now. The next time we meet will be after we've achieved victory in our war against Team Rocket," Erika said, leaving that statement hanging in the air.
Then she gestured as if to say he was welcome to leave whenever he was ready.
Eddie remained silent for a few seconds, then smiled with genuine warmth.
"Alright. The next time we meet should be at the celebration party after we've defeated Team Rocket," he replied confidently.
After leaving that assured statement, Eddie departed from Erika's house.
Upon hearing Eddie's words, Erika felt that everything she had done was absolutely correct.
"How could I possibly let such a wonderful man slip away..." she thought to herself with satisfaction.