Chapter 713: A Leaky Cotton-Padded Jacket
When the four Pokemon arrived at the foot of Mt. Haruka.
A full six days had passed.
In the middle of this, because Diancie and Floette were running around everywhere, a lot of time was truly delayed.
Volcanion would occasionally get into the mood and frolic around with the two girls.
Kazuya, who initially felt this was somewhat out of character, only suddenly recalled later that Volcanion was actually only one year old.
Right at the playful age.
Such childish behavior was considered normal.
It was Volcanion's deep, middle-aged man voice that affected Kazuya's judgment, making him often forget that Volcanion was also a child.
Although the time spent getting here was a bit long.
But seeing the three little ones so happy, he felt this journey was quite worth it.
"The next stretch of the road won't be easy to walk."
Kazuya looked up.
This Mt. Haruka truly deserved to be called the highest mountain in Kalos; the peak couldn't be seen at a glance.
"Hmph, just bring it on. It's merely a mountain!"
Volcanion snorted disdainfully.
"Hula!"
"Bring it on!"
The two princesses echoed loudly beside Him, looking exactly like they had formed a "Three Musketeers of the Plateau" squad.
"Is that so? Then let's set off."
Kazuya glanced at Them and grinned.
Six hours later.
"Hey~ Are we not at the top yet~ How much further do we have to climb~"
Volcanion's feeble voice came from behind.
"This isn't even a quarter of the way. Weren't you three very tough? How come you can't take it anymore?"
Kazuya kept climbing without turning his head.
While controlling his psychokinetic energy to float his skirt, he used his legs to climb up. This could be said to be experiencing a dual tempering of mind and body.
Coupled with the fact that his current level wasn't high, and his base stats weren't strong enough.
So after these six hours had passed.
He was already drenched in sweat.
Among the four Pokemon, he was the one in the worst condition.
As for the other three...
"I never said I couldn't take it! It's just a bit boring!"
Volcanion wasn't just talking tough.
He truly didn't feel tired.
It was just too boring.
A mere six hours of climbing meant nothing to Champion-level Pokemon like Volcanion and Diancie.
And that little brat Floette.
Less than ten minutes into the climb, she had already collapsed flat on Volcanion's head.
"Hula~"
Floette let the wind blowing from the mountain peak brush against her face, her gaze occasionally wandering leisurely to the bushes and woods beside the Mt. Haruka path.
Her little life was more than just leisurely.
Only when she saw flowers and plants she had never seen before would she float down from Volcanion's head.
"Boring... Master, let's go back, shall we?"
Diancie hopped over to Kazuya and tugged at Kazuya's skirt with both hands.
"How can we give up halfway through a task? Go, go! Stop talking nonsense, or else I'll tell Dango when we get back and have it beat you up."
Kazuya reached out and swatted Diancie aside.
He was struggling to maintain his psychokinetic control over his skirt, and with Diancie grabbing his skirt like that, his psychokinetic energy directly collapsed.
As the saying goes: the first beat of the drum rouses the spirit, the second time it wanes, and the third time it is exhausted.
A long run cannot be stopped; once stopped, it is hard to regain momentum.
Kazuya was in this very state just now. Being interrupted by Diancie, trying to re-use his meager remaining psychokinetic energy to keep his skirt floating felt somewhat beyond his ability.
However, this little girl.
Her calls of "Master" were becoming increasingly practiced and pleasant to the ear.
It's just that her perseverance was too poor.
One must know that the Diancie three thousand years later not only never mentioned giving up from beginning to end, but also frequently encouraged the decadent middle-aged man.
One could only say.
Even among Diancies, there are differences.
Ultimately, it was because Dango suffered from the disadvantage of not having read books or traveled. In the matter of educating the princess, compared to Makima, it still lacked some skill.
"Nooo! I'll climb!"
Upon hearing Kazuya bring out Dango, Diancie immediately lowered her head and charged upwards.
A teacher's name is just that terrifying.
Just like going out to play on the weekend, the most terrifying thing is running into a school teacher.
Even just hearing the wind of it is enough to make an elementary school student lose their courage.
Diancie ultimately couldn't withstand being scared.
A casual bluff was enough to frighten her.
It was quite cute though.
"...Phew."
Kazuya looked up at Diancie's back and couldn't help but start panting heavily.
The fatigue he didn't feel when climbing Mt. Haruka in his fifth life, he felt entirely in this life.
Looking up.
The sun was still within sight.
They had arrived at the foot of Mt. Haruka in the morning.
Six hours had passed.
It was still the middle of the afternoon with the sun shining brightly.
"Do you want to rest for a bit?"
Volcanion took two quick steps to catch up and reached out to support Kazuya.
"No, let's take advantage of the daylight to climb a bit further. We won't be able to climb at night."
Kazuya shook his head, continued to move his legs upwards, turned his head, and said to Volcanion, "Help me lift my skirt."
He was just short on psychokinetic energy.
But he still had some stamina left.
"Oh, it's rare to see you being stubborn."
Volcanion nodded, reached out, and grabbed Kazuya's skirt, following behind like a skirt-bearing attendant. "I really don't understand you. Since you can't hold on anymore, just rest for a bit. At worst, we spend two more days and let that guy wait a little longer."
"Hula hula!"
Floette nodded vigorously.
She had a big fight with AZ earlier and still hadn't cooled down.
She wanted to go back a few days later to make AZ worry for a couple more days.
"I have many stubborn moments, you'll slowly see them in the future. As for now, I'm using this process to exercise my leg strength."
Kazuya shook his head, feeling quite helpless inwardly.
These guys who were born as Champions, of course, wouldn't understand the hardships of ordinary Pokemon.
The starting line for Volcanion and Diancie could be said to be higher than the finish line for many Pokemon.
Ordinary Pokemon.
Must undergo arduous polishing and training to possibly reach the Champion level.
Kazuya generally didn't engage in close combat in this life.
In close combat, a Gardevoir's legs are more useful than its fists.
Climbing Mt. Haruka is a rare leg-training activity. Of course, he had to make good use of it to strengthen the physical attack power of his legs.
Moreover.
It was still the early spring season.
Who knows how freezing cold Mt. Haruka would be at night.
That kind of weather is not suitable for continuing to advance.
Volcanion and Diancie might be able to endure it, but Kazuya and Floette definitely couldn't.
It wouldn't be too late to rest when night falls.
Continue climbing.
About another five hours passed.
Kazuya finally couldn't hold on much longer and chose to rest halfway up the mountain, with about half the distance to the peak remaining.
One day.
Climbing continuously for eleven hours.
Even with a Pokemon's body, Kazuya felt his legs were so sore and numb that they had almost lost all sensation.
Volcanion dug a cave into the rock wall nearby.
The four Pokemon gathered some food and entered inside.
"Hula~"
Floette was the only one who didn't feel tired; she was even quite energetic up to now.
Experiencing camping in the wild with friends for the first time, her eyes still revealed a heavy sense of excitement.
"Has Floette known AZ since she was born?"
Seeing Floette like this, Kazuya opened his mouth and asked.
While asking.
He didn't forget to use Heal Pulse to massage his legs.
Hoping to alleviate the pain he would feel upon waking up tomorrow morning.
"Hula!"
Floette smiled and nodded.
Although they had a fight, bringing up AZ still made her very happy.
Beside the campfire created by Volcanion, the four of them sat in a circle, eating wild berries picked casually along the way while listening to the story of Floette and AZ.
After dinner.
Diancie ran out alone.
After a while, she returned hugging a large clump of bushes, spread them out on the ground, and motioned for Kazuya to lie down on them: "Master, sleep here."
"Hm? You are quite well-behaved, knowing to show filial respect to me."
Kazuya paused for a moment, his heart warming. He smiled, reached out, and rubbed Diancie's rock-hard head.
I have to say.
This female disciple is much more heartwarming than male disciples.
Just like a little cotton-padded jacket.
Thinking about his several male disciples...
Forget it.
Better not think about it.
Kazuya curled his lip, lay down on the soft bushes, and gradually closed his eyes.
Diancie and Floette also ran over.
The two little ones lay down beside him, using his skirt as a blanket.
"..."
Kazuya's face twitched. He only felt his two feet getting a bit cold from the blowing wind.
This cotton-padded jacket.
Is leaky.
Fortunately, Volcanion finally lay down next to them, blocking the howling cold wind, which allowed Kazuya's body to warm back up.
This was an ordinary night.
But it was enough to leave a profound memory in the minds of the four Pokemon.
The next day.
Waking up in the early morning.
Kazuya thought his legs would be in a lot of pain.
But he didn't expect.
The place that hurt was actually his stomach.
"?"
Kazuya raised his head in confusion.
He saw that Diancie had lain on his chest at some unknown point in time, and the hard, poking jewels on her body were intimately jabbing right into his waist.
Smack!
He swatted this leaky cotton-padded jacket away with a slap.
After standing up.
Kazuya immediately felt the pain in both of his thighs.
Exhilaratingly sore~
A delightful expression appeared on Kazuya's face.
Returning to his senses.
He saw Volcanion staring at Kazuya with a horrified gaze.
"...Let's set off."
Kazuya adjusted his expression without changing his demeanor, grabbed Diancie and Floette who hadn't fully woken up yet, and embarked on the journey.
The sky was still dark at this moment.
He could only catch a glimmer of light on the distant horizon.
Considering that winter had just passed.
It should be around six o'clock in the morning.
"Can we arrive today?"
Volcanion opened His mouth and asked.
"Just about. If we hurry a bit, we can."
Kazuya considered for a moment, then nodded.
Yesterday, they covered half the distance in eleven hours, and it was entirely on foot.
Today, if they utilized Teleport and Volcanion's flying ability...
Perhaps they could reach the peak by the afternoon or even evening.
By nighttime, they might have already finished mining the mineral materials and be on their way down.
"Then let's hurry up, shall we?"
Volcanion glanced at Kazuya with anticipation.
"Alright, since that's the case, you carry the three of us and fly for a stretch."
"..."
Volcanion opened His mouth and looked Kazuya up and down.
Kazuya was 3.2 meters tall, He was only 1.9 meters tall.
Letting Kazuya ride on His body.
It seemed a bit weird?
"You're not saying you can't, are you?"
Kazuya deliberately revealed a suspicious look.
"Who are you saying can't do it?! Get on! Let's go!"
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