Early autumn had arrived.
The sky was a deep, crystalline blue—so clear it seemed freshly washed—and the sunlight at this time of year was no longer harsh, but gentle and brilliantly warm.
After lunch, Ash headed straight to Professor Oak's Laboratory.
"Ash, you're here," the doctor who had assisted with Pidgey's earlier treatment greeted him, leading the small Pokémon forward. "I've already completed Pidgey's full physical examination. And your guess was correct."
"The reason Pidgey met the level requirement but failed to evolve isn't due to any hidden condition—it's malnutrition."
"I've designed a personalized diet plan based on Pidgey's current physical condition. As long as you prepare its meals strictly according to this plan, its body should gradually recover to a healthy standard. Once that happens, Pidgey should be able to evolve naturally."
"However, there's one thing you need to pay close attention to." The doctor's tone turned serious.
"During this recovery period, training is still allowed—but the intensity must not be too high."
"Moderate exercise will help Pidgey absorb nutrients more efficiently. But excessive training will instead hinder its ability to absorb the nutrients from food, which would be counterproductive."
Ash stepped fully into the lab just as the doctor finished speaking. He gently handed Pidgey over.
"Thank you, Dr. Silas," Ash said politely as he accepted Pidgey and let the little bird hop onto his shoulder.
"Pidgey, you should thank Dr. Silas too."
"Gu-gu~."
Hearing Ash's words, the Pidgey perched on his shoulder nodded earnestly in acknowledgment.
"This little one is really adorable," Dr. Silas chuckled as he gently patted Pidgey's head, his fondness obvious.
"It honestly makes me want to catch a Pidgey of my own and raise it."
"Haha, Dr. Silas, you could always find time to catch one," Ash replied with a smile. "There are quite a lot of Pidgey in the forests around Pallet Town."
"Ah, that's the problem." Dr. Silas sighed helplessly.
"I barely have any time as it is. I'm afraid if I caught one, I wouldn't be able to spend time with it or take proper care of it."
"Dr. Silas is just as busy as Professor Oak…" Ash said with understanding.
"Well then, I won't disturb you any longer. I'll take Pidgey home first."
"Pidgey, say goodbye to Dr. Silas."
"Gu-gu~!"
"One more thing," Dr. Silas added. "Bring Pidgey back to the lab every one or two days. I'll perform follow-up examinations to track its recovery."
"Alright."
Seeing that Professor Oak and Dr. Silas were both busy, Ash didn't linger. With Pidgey retrieved, the medical report in hand, and the specially designed diet plan secured, he prepared to head home.
However, just as Ash stepped out of the laboratory entrance with his three Pokémon, the sound of hurried footsteps came rushing toward him.
"Ash—!"
"Gary?" Ash turned in surprise, looking at the boy who was panting heavily, sweat all over his forehead.
"Why aren't you at home studying this afternoon? What are you doing here?"
"I came specifically to find you," Gary said, walking up and bumping Ash's shoulder with mock indignation.
"You've really been hiding things well. Making such a big move without a word! You actually helped a Magikarp learn Tackle, and you didn't even tell me!"
"That's really not cool of you."
"It all happened pretty suddenly," Ash shrugged.
"But what's with that tone? Don't tell me you want to raise a Magikarp too? Weren't you the champion of the Pokémon Summer Camp? Didn't you already get plenty of Pokémon from that?"
"Tch—so you're allowed to ask Grandpa to open special permissions and remove your Pokémon holding limit, but I'm not?" Gary snorted.
Ash laughed. "Professor Oak is way too strict. There's no way he opened the permissions for you. It must've been Uncle Thorne, right?"
Ash's gaze was sharp.
The "Uncle Thorne" he mentioned was Professor Oak's son—Gary's father. Unlike Professor Oak, Thorne didn't become a researcher. Instead, he held a high-ranking position within the Pokémon League, wielding considerable authority.
And unlike Oak's strictness, Thorne doted shamelessly on his son.
"Hehe~" Gary scratched his head, grinning sheepishly after being called out.
"Well then," Ash said calmly, "since you've got spare Pokémon slots, if you're serious about raising a Gyarados, go find yourself a high-potential Magikarp. Once you do, I'll help you solve the Tackle issue."
"Good brother! That's real loyalty!" Gary's face immediately lit up with a huge grin.
After chatting a bit more, Gary hurried off again, saying he was going to figure out how to get his hands on a high-potential Magikarp.
As for Ash, even though he could already help Magikarp learn Tackle—and with the Viridian Blessing capable of improving Pokémon potential—it would be extremely easy for him to raise a Gyarados of his own.
But Pokémon weren't meant to be collected endlessly.
At present, he already had Pichu, Frogadier, and Pidgey. For the near future, these three were more than enough for focused training.
Only after their strength matured would Ash consider capturing and training new Pokémon.
"Hello, this is the Viridian City Pokémon League Official Pokémon Food Store. How may we assist you?"
"Hello," Ash replied.
"I'd like to place an order for the highest-quality Pokémon food—Normal-type, Flying-type, Electric-type, and Water-type—three days' worth each. Also…"
"…three days' worth of standard-quality Normal-type Pokémon food."
"This is Ash. The delivery address is 25 Pallet Town. You should already have my information on record. Please arrange for delivery before 6 p.m. today."
"Ash, sir? Understood. You're one of our long-term customers. We'll apply a 5% discount to this order and waive the delivery fee entirely."
"Thank you."
After returning home, Ash placed the food order with Viridian City, including the nutritional supplements required for Pidgey's recovery.
Once he finished purchasing food for Pidgey and his other Pokémon, Ash also checked on the situation with Rotom Storage.
The three Trainers who had placed orders earlier that afternoon had already sent their Magikarp over.
…
[Pokémon: Magikarp]
Level: LV.5
Type: Water
Nature: Timid
Ability: Swift Swim
Potential: White
Moves (Copyable): Splash
[Pokémon: Magikarp]
Level: LV.11
Type: Water
Nature: Cowardly
Ability: Swift Swim
Potential: Green
Moves (Copyable): Splash
[Pokémon: Magikarp]
Level: LV.16
Type: Water
Nature: Hasty
Ability: Swift Swim
Hidden Ability: Rattled
Potential: Red
Moves (Copyable): Splash
…
Three Magikarp.
As expected, all of them only possessed a single move—Splash.
However, when Ash saw the third Magikarp—with Red potential and already trained to LV.16—he couldn't help but feel genuinely surprised.
After all, Magikarp had no real offensive moves. Its leveling speed was so painfully slow it could drive any Trainer to despair.
Yet this Magikarp had still reached LV.16.
Ash didn't even need to imagine how much effort its Trainer had poured into it.
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T/N:
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