Chapter 140: The Richest Man in Cherrygrove
"Meow," the Floragato on the sidelines curled her lips into a small smile. She loved seeing these humans and Pokémon looking so stunned and shocked. It made her feel very proud, as if their amazement was directed not at Will, but at her.
Thinking of this, she looked at Will as he walked over, her eyes full of a well-hidden admiration. The more she trained, the more clearly she could sense the gap between them.
"Meow..." Floragato looked down at her own paws. She no longer dreamed of surpassing him. But at the very least, she wanted to have the strength to follow behind him, or even to stand by his side.
"Now that was a much prettier fight," Will said, returning to her side with a grin, quite satisfied with his own performance. He also felt that his decision to expand his movepool had been an extremely wise one. It was always good to have more moves. You weren't afraid of never using them; you were afraid of not having them when you needed them.
Just like in the battle today. His best offensive moves were all Grass and Bug-type, which would have only done 1/4 damage to a Charizard. Even a Fighting-type move like Brick Break would have been halved, and a Ground-type move like Dig would have been completely nullified. At the same level, it would have been like trying to stab someone with a one-centimeter dagger.
The Electric-type [Thunder Punch], which was super-effective, had become the only sharp blade in his arsenal.
"Meow," Floragato reminded him, nudging up against him, her eyes full of vigilance. The once-noisy environment had become eerily quiet. The young man from the Dragonite Clan, Jace, had already recalled his Pokémon and was heading for the Pokémon Center. For a time, no other trainer dared to step forward and challenge Will.
"It's normal. Give them some time to process," Will said, not at all surprised. He had seen it during the battle. The culture of battling had only just begun to blow through these two regions. Although many trainers were eagerly trying it and discovering its fun, the pace of development was still slow.
"Worse than those who came before, and worse than those who will come after," Will summed up the current era in one sentence.
In the past Era of Primal Beasts, humans and Pokémon fought wars every day. They may not have had much theoretical experience, but their practical experience was maxed out. Some humans could even fight Pokémon on the battlefield themselves. But in this era, the frequency of battles was low, and humans had no experience fighting Pokémon personally, so their practical experience was accumulating slowly.
And in the future Era of Leagues, new trainers would have already watched countless battle recordings and studied plenty of materials before even starting their journey. The League would have already prepared a wealth of theoretical knowledge for the children. Most new trainers were like Shooty from the Hoenn region, who already had a detailed understanding of Pokémon before he even set out. Even a hothead like Ash was watching the Indigo League Conference when he was introduced.
So, the trainers of this current period were still in a stage where even their theoretical knowledge had to be slowly accumulated and explored. And into this era, Will—a Pokémon who carried the theoretical memories of the future and had personally fought his way out of the past—had suddenly appeared. It was normal that he would cause a shock.
"But, it's precisely because everyone is weak that the Pokémon League had the chance to be established so quickly and bring an end to the wars," Will sighed. You had to admit, everything in this world really did exist in a state of balance.
When people's power is weak, everyone hopes for peace, and everything is beautiful. But when some people gain the power to break that balance, more extreme and dangerous ideas begin to appear in their minds.
"That Sceptile is amazing! That physique isn't just for show. It looks so strong."
"Why does a Sceptile know the Electric-type move Thunder Punch? There's no record of that in the school!"
"Is a Sceptile's jumping ability and speed really that ridiculous? This is a beach, not a forest!"
"Shouldn't Charizard have a type advantage over Sceptile?!"
The crowd, having come to their senses, suddenly erupted. The things Will had displayed in the battle had been too shocking. Even the Pokémon by their trainers' sides were chattering amongst themselves, though they were just simply marveling at how strong he was.
Rumble, rumble.
Just then, the clear sound of wooden wheels turning came from the distance. Many people instinctively looked in that direction. Two Gyarados were charging towards them, and behind them was a massive, luxurious-looking carriage.
"It's that guy, Leaf!"
"Only he would use two Gyarados to pull a carriage."
"Who's Leaf?"
"The son of the richest man in Cherrygrove. A second-generation rich kid who spends all day thinking about fishing."
"What's he doing here? He's not thinking of challenging that Sceptile, is he?"
"Him? Forget it. What's a fisherman going to do against a Grass-type Sceptile? Even a Charizard got beaten."
The newcomer seemed to be quite famous in Cherrygrove City. Many of the locals recognized him.
"Oho? Looks like I won't have to wait for the police after all," Will's ears twitched, and he grinned. His goal in coming to Cherrygrove was to find a young man named Leaf who liked to fish. And the fact that Tom had told him to find this person most likely meant that Leaf could help him get to Blackthorn City more easily. If his family was rich, then that would indeed be very easy.
So, Will was almost certain that the rich kid arriving now was the person he was looking for.
The Gyarados charged forward with great momentum, showing no signs of avoiding the crowd. The people quickly scrambled to either side. No one wanted to bet on whether the Gyarados would stop in time. After all, their reputation wasn't the best; they were famously ill-tempered.
"Gyarados, stop!" a young man's voice called out. The carriage stopped beside Will and Floragato.
"Greetings. Sceptile, and this cute little cat. This is not a convenient place to talk. Please, come aboard," a young man with black hair, dressed in a somewhat mismatched outfit, appeared.
His features were a little rough; he didn't look like a rich kid at all, more like a fisherman who spent all day in the sun and wind. He wore a fitted white short-sleeved shirt on top and loose, pure white breeches on the bottom. At first glance, it had a bit of a gentlemanly style. But the problem was the pure green, bamboo-woven straw hat on his head.
But his attire was a minor issue. In the world of Pokémon, no one's fashion was strange.
"Looks like he knew I was coming," Will muttered. He saw from Leaf's attitude that he was expected, and he led Floragato onto the carriage. The interior was very spacious, not at all crowded even for Will.
"Gyarados, turn around. Home," Leaf said, and the carriage quickly started moving. The speed was not slow, but the ride was so shaky it was painful. Floragato tried to act calm, but in reality, the shaking had made all her fur stand on end.
Cherrygrove City was huge, at least five times larger than Will remembered. The Leaf family's mansion was on the southwestern coast of the city, not far from the beach they had been on, but at the Gyarados's speed, it still took them about twenty minutes to get there.
When Floragato got out of the carriage, she nearly fell to her knees. This was her first time riding in a carriage. Or rather, a Gyarados-carriage. Will's condition was a little better; he had ridden in carriages in his second life.
"Follow me," Leaf said, getting out first and leading the way.
Will and Floragato followed him into a large estate. Inside was a mansion, over twenty meters wide and only three stories tall. Outside was a large garden and a small fountain. It was a classic Central European-style noble estate. Will had never seen one in real life before and found it quite novel, taking a few extra looks.
Floragato was even more stunned. The first human settlement she had ever seen was a poor little place like Azalea Town. She couldn't even imagine that humans would live in such a beautiful, large house. And there was even a fragrant flower garden in the front. For most Grass-type Pokémon, this was a very tempting sight.
"If the little cat likes it, you can go and play in the garden. Some wild Grass and Bug-type Pokémon often wander into the estate. Maybe you can make some friends," Leaf said. His powers of observation were very keen. He had noticed at a glance how much Floragato wanted to go and see the flowers.
"Meow," Floragato hesitated, a little tempted. But she stubbornly turned her head, pretending not to care.
"Go on. It's not often you get to see such a beautiful garden. I'll come and play with you later," Will said.
"...Meow," hearing this, Floragato reluctantly nodded. Since you put it that way, I'll do you a favor and go.
With this thought in her mind, she wagged her little tail and disappeared into the garden.
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