Beldum spun in midair, turning round and round. Then, almost as if someone had pressed a pause button, abruptly stopped right in front of Tyrunt. Its red crystalline eyes sparkled with eagerness, a clear sign that it wanted to "bump heads" again and test just how powerful its newly mastered Zen Headbutt really was.
The moment Tyrunt saw that posture, its head shook like a rattling drum. It frantically backed away, even raising both of its tiny claws to cover its forehead.
The dull ache from their earlier collision had not completely faded yet, and it had no intention of suffering more right after eating.
It pitifully swayed its tail and rubbed its head against Theo's pant leg, letting out a soft "wu wu" sound—a plea for help written all over its face.
Theo couldn't help laughing. He reached out and gently pushed Beldum aside.
"Alright, leave Tyrunt alone for now. Go play with Feebas for a bit."
Feebas had already returned to its water tank and was swimming gracefully within the clear water. Faint circular ripples of water-energy surrounded its body—the early form of Aqua Ring.
From time to time, it would rise to the surface to blow a bubble, then sink back to the bottom to flick its tail fins, clearly enjoying the gentle, continuous recovery this new skill brought.
After being nudged away by Theo, Beldum obediently drifted toward the water tank like a little silver bean.
Its red eyes stared fixedly at the Feebas swimming inside. It leaned down curiously, tapping the water's surface and sending small ripples outward.
It tilted its body, as if wondering what "being in the water" would feel like.
Seeing that Beldum's attention had been successfully diverted, Tyrunt immediately climbed back to its feet. It began grinding its little teeth, eyes rolling mischievously as it clearly started plotting something new again.
Theo instantly understood what this troublemaker was thinking. He nudged its backside with the tip of his foot.
"What now? Go play by yourself, and stop bothering them."
Exposed on the spot, Tyrunt let out an embarrassed "Tyrr," its tail flicking in shy annoyance. Then it trotted back to Theo's side and rubbed its head against him, whining softly as it lifted its neck—asking to be held.
Theo chuckled and leaned down to pick it up, rubbing his chin gently against the top of its head, feeling the small creature's warm body and slightly hardening skull.
Still holding Tyrunt, he opened his phone. The map on the screen clearly marked the locations of shops in Mauville City that sold desert supplies.
The outdoor equipment shop was on the east side of Central Park, the pharmacy stood beside the food street, and the supermarket was near the gaming arcade.
The distribution was convenient enough.
"Tomorrow we'll buy a tent first, then stock up on potions and antidotes. After that, we'll be ready to leave."
He tapped the screen lightly as he murmured to himself.
After speaking, he swiped to another app and opened the detailed desert map he had downloaded from Devon Corporation's database. Slowly, he zoomed in on the marked desert area.
Only then did he realize—Route 111's desert was far larger than he had imagined.
From the outer edges of semi-grassland and semi-sand terrain, all the way to the deep, fully arid sand belts, the map labeled each area with different danger levels.
Pale yellow marked areas with low sandstorm occurrence.
Orange-yellow marked places where small sandstorms were frequent—requiring caution.
And the deep red areas were clearly circled with bold warnings:
"High sandstorm frequency. Numerous wild Pokémon inhabit this zone. Do not enter lightly."
It seemed he would have to start training in the yellow safe zone first.
Only after Tyrunt adapted to the desert environment would he consider venturing deeper.
Theo mentally planned his route and circled several small green dots labeled "Oasis."
As for equipment, besides tents, potions, and antidotes, he would need desert goggles as well.
Without them, encountering a sandstorm would be a huge problem, obscuring vision and making travel dangerous.
Theo opened his memo app and carefully listed every item he needed to buy tomorrow.
Each time he added something, he silently reviewed its purpose—afraid to overlook even a minor necessity.
In the harsh environment of a desert, every bit of preparation meant more safety, and smoother training.
By the time he finished, the sky outside the window had already turned completely dark.
Mauville's night scene was livelier than its daytime streets. Neon lights shimmered and the bright signs of the arcade flickered, turning the whole city into something resembling a sleepless metropolis.
Theo walked to the window and gently pushed it open.
The evening breeze carried the vibrant, unmistakable scent of Mauville City.
Below, brightly lit streets bustled with people and Pokémon weaving through the night.
A trainer strolled past with a Poochyena trotting happily at their side.
A couple posed with their camera, cuddling their Plusle and Minun—their symbols of love.
The two little Electric-type Pokémon snuggled together, emitting a faint, warm blue glow as laughter and camera clicks lightened the air around them.
At the street corner, a vendor pushed a food cart. The sizzling aroma of grilled snacks mixed with the sweetness of berry drinks drifted upward through the open window.
Theo inhaled deeply.
The air was warm, filled with traces of food, the grassy or electric scents carried by passing Pokémon, and the lively energy unique to a city at night.
It was comforting—soothing, even—enough to make anyone's heart soften.
Behind him, however, the room had long since turned into a playful mess.
While Theo was focused on reviewing locations and studying the desert map earlier, Tyrunt had long slipped from his arms and run off to play by itself.
Now it was chasing after Beldum around the room.
Beldum seemed to be teasing it on purpose—speeding up with psychic power, drifting onto the table, then hiding behind the curtains, making Tyrunt roar excitedly as it chased.
At one point, Beldum even used its psychic power to gently lift Tyrunt off the ground by a few centimeters.
Startled at first, Tyrunt soon became thrilled, waving its tiny arms and cheering, clearly enchanted by the floating sensation.
Once the psychic force was released, it plopped onto the carpet, only to immediately jump up and run over, rubbing its head against Beldum's body and begging for "one more time!"
Not wanting to be left out, Feebas splashed in the water, using water currents to propel itself and join in their lively chaos.
By the time Theo finished writing his checklist and looked up, he couldn't help but smile warmly at the sight in front of him.
He walked over and gently patted each of their heads.
"Alright, that's enough. Tomorrow morning we'll go buy what we need for the desert, and then head for Route 111. Tyrunt, you'll be busy once we get there."
Tyrunt seemed to understand the word "desert."
It let out an excited "Tyrrr!" and wagged its tail rapidly, clearly full of anticipation for the upcoming training.
Beldum didn't quite know why Tyrunt was so happy, but it swayed its body and sparkled its red eyes as if saying, "I'm ready too!"
Theo gave a few more warnings, telling them not to play too wildly—lest they accidentally break the hotel room apart.
…
That night, he turned off the main lights, leaving only a soft, warm night lamp glowing gently.
The yellow light washed over the room as Tyrunt let out a long yawn and curled up on the carpet. Within moments, it was emitting faint snores.
Feebas rested at the bottom of its tank, water flowing gently around its body like a soft blanket.
Beldum drifted slowly toward Theo's pillow, blinking its red eyes once, confirming that Theo was indeed right beside it, before finally closing them in peace.
The room grew quiet.
Only the small Pokémon's calm breathing mixed with the distant hum of Mauville's neon-lit nightlife.
Theo lay in bed, listening to those tiny sounds with a faint smile at his lips.
Once they finished tomorrow's shopping, they would finally set foot into that vast, golden desert.
Everything… was moving exactly in the direction he hoped for.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Hey guys, sorry for flaking on you. Was too busy this whole 2 weeks from going back to the hospital, house renovation and new job. Was too stressed out from all of it that I picked up and translated to many fucking novels that I dread uploading it here. I scheduled update for most of my novels for the week so you guys safe this week. Man my hands cramps.
Anyway I uploaded two new Pokémon Novels here, check it out on my profile you guys are interested. Also, I noticed that this novel has another translator, I'm ok with it since its my fault for not updating but I'll continue mine anyway since I spent so much time google lensing 70 chapters of it that I'm too stubborn to give it up. Not a lot of raws for this novel still sadly only up to 99 last I check, so you guys free to read ahead on your own.