The cause of the incident had actually started last night.
Ordinary Poké Balls cannot fully isolate Pokémon from the outside world.
Because of that, Servine could clearly sense the presence of Dragonite nearby, and with just a little thought, she could easily guess why Hayashi Kaede had chosen to put her into the Poké Ball.
Wasn't it obvious? He had sensed Dragonite's presence and, fearing danger, had decided to keep her safe by recalling her.
Because of this…
When they got home last night, Servine had dragged Hayashi Kaede into a "meeting" that lasted quite a while.
Her meaning was roughly: "You actually put me in the Poké Ball at a time like that? Am I not your Pokémon? I should be the one protecting you!"
Then she had glared at him angrily.
Hayashi Kaede was still feeling the weight of that anger this morning.
"Alright, alright, I'll admit my fault—this is the last time!" Hayashi Kaede said earnestly.
"Servine…"
She rolled her eyes at him again but finally gave a small nod, temporarily forgiving him.
Kaede let out a relieved sigh—finally, he could turn his attention to the system rewards he had received.
Holy Ash plus an Individual Value Breakthrough Potion?
He swallowed hard.
He'd thought Mewtwo might react to his actions, but he hadn't expected such a big reaction—big enough to gift him something this heaven-defying.
He sighed inwardly. "If only I could enjoy this every day…"
Deciding not to waste time, he took out the Individual Value Breakthrough Potion.
A glass bottle filled with a milky-white liquid materialised in his palm. Pulling out the cork, a faintly hypnotic fragrance drifted into the air.
"Here, Servine—this is your reward. Something tasty."
"Servine?"
She eyed the bottle suspiciously, half-convinced this was just a bribe. Still, trusting Hayashi Kaede, she drank it down in one gulp.
…Delicious. As good as that candy!
The liquid slid down her throat, and she immediately felt her entire body strengthening. Clearly satisfied with this "apology gift," she even stuck out her red tongue to lick the last drops from the bottle.
[Pokémon: Servine]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Contrary]
[Aptitude: Gold]
[Individual Stats: HP (25+2) / Attack (21+1) / Special Attack (26+2) / Defense (25+1) / Special Defense (24+2) / Speed (31+3)]
[Level: 23–26]
Seeing the data revealed by the [Eye of Exploration], Hayashi Kaede nodded in approval.
She had truly broken past the limits of ordinary Pokémon—her Speed had reached [31+3], and even her level had gone up.
As for why he didn't give the potion to Milotic… well, Milotic already had the Water Stone and Ocean Crystal.
When it came to his Pokémon, he believed in treating them equally—never favouring one over another.
"Loto~ Rotom reporting: someone's waiting outside the door~"
The cheerful voice of Rotom drifted in from outside, interrupting his thoughts.
"So soon?!" Kaede glanced at the clock, a little surprised.
Sure, yesterday's performance had been quite the sensation, but for people to come calling this early? It was only six o'clock! The shuttle bus to Aogiri City had just departed.
"Yes, Master~"
A red, smartphone-shaped Rotom zipped into the air, speaking in its crisp tone.
[Pokémon: Rotom]
[Gender: None]
[Ability: Levitate]
[Aptitude: Blue]
This was the Rotom Hayashi Kaede had bought yesterday. When linked to his phone, it could pull up any online information without restriction, and it could also emerge from the device to possess various electronics, briefly changing its typing.
For example, in a refrigerator, it would become Electric/Ice and chill automatically; in a washing machine, it would become Electric/Water and wash clothes on its own.
"Master, your performance in the Baby Cup yesterday was truly dazzling. Many short video creators have already posted clips to social media. Would you like to see them?"
"Hmm? Show me," Kaede replied as he headed downstairs to wash up.
One of the main reasons he'd chosen this Rotom was how proactive it was—it could handle social situations almost as well as a person.
"Yes, Master."
Rotom projected the video directly from the phone. On screen, Hayashi Kaede could be seen directing Servine to release the energy stored within Lapras step-by-step.
"What the…?"
He checked the upload time and the number of likes—and froze.
The video had been posted last night, but it already had over 100,000 likes and tens of thousands of comments. Judging from the typical like-to-view ratio, that meant at least a million people had watched it.
"Open the comments."
"Opening now~"
A flood of messages appeared:
[Bunkazukai: Holy crap! Awesome!]
[Mokuyō Shoseki: This has to be fake—absolutely fake. I've read plenty of books, but I've never seen such a young, high-level trainer.]
[Gurō: Idiot above—confirmed, this is an official broadcast from Aogiri City's TV station. How could it be fake?]
[Trainer: What incredible technique! The precision in releasing Lapras's energy and healing Pokémon injuries is unmatched. And that Servine's aptitude is top tier!]
[Midori Seiji: Please, Pokemon league—send me a Servine. I need to know if this is real.]
[Aka Hiroshi: I was curious why this video had such highly-rated comments. Now I see—you really played amazingly.]
[Charizard MyGod: Charizard is the best! I've always wanted to see a big red Charizard in my life—please give me a chance…]
After reading through them, Kaede exhaled in relief. Most comments were positive; only a handful were the usual thoughtless naysayers.
What surprised him most was that even Midori Seiji, a well-known breeder, and Aka Hiroshi, a fighter, had commented.
A quick glance at their profiles showed tens of millions of followers.
No doubt about it—these were the real deal.
As he finished washing up, an idea struck him:
With all this attention, maybe it was time to start building his own social media account.