Chapter 783: Childhood Friends

All All Baimu's attention turned to the age noted in the narration.

Twelve years old!

His choice led to a young girl falling in love early!

Fine.

In the Pokémon anime world, there is no concept of early romance; Ash's earlier relationships with female side characters could be called ambiguous friendship, but by the XY arc, it was practically out in the open.

The Sun and Moon series frequently features jokes about Ash's relationship with female side characters.

He shifted his gaze back to the screen.

He saw the kimono girl and Munchlax leave through the back door of the shop, running all the way to a simple building built around a towering ancient tree.

【You decide to discuss this with your good friends】

The building looked familiar.

After a moment's thought, he remembered it was the Scented Gym.

Its greatest feature was its seamless integration with the ancient tree.

The kimono girl stepped forward and knocked; the door opened to reveal a boy in a male kimono, and All All Baimu instantly perked up.

A boy?

The current Gym Leader of the Scented Gym is Marou, a girl whose irises occupy most of her eye sockets and whose attire resembles a giant pink butterfly.

Her subordinates are all girls in long-sleeved kimonos; logically, there should be no boy in a kimono.

This suggests the simulation is set in an earlier era.

Then the boy must be…

Childhood friend? Childhood sweethearts?

A twelve- or thirteen-year-old Gym Leader is young, but not implausible.

He could also be the Leader's child.

The narration gave no answer.

Because soon a third boy appeared; unlike the first two in kimonos, his attire was ordinary.

The three gathered to chat.

Factions!?

All All Baimu's pupils dilated sharply, then his emotions calmed.

This setup is common in the Pokémon world; it means nothing.

【You told them your troubles, and without hesitation, they gave you the same suggestion—challenge the League Conference】

An expected suggestion.

In the Pokémon world, gaining fame through the League Conference is the lowest-cost, most effective method.

Their idea was simply to use the Conference to promote the kimono girl's mother's clothing shop—

But if the goal is to promote a clothing shop,

wouldn the Triple Crown Satellite Contest be more suitable?

【Triple Crown Satellite Contest】.

Known as the Kalosians' own Grand Festival, it is a dreamlike event exclusively for girls, and its ultimate winner is crowned Queen of Kalos.

All All Baimu suspected the Triple Crown Satellite Contest might not yet exist in this era.

In the scene,

the kimono girl was full of question marks.

【You know little about the League Conference; their suggestions left you confused】

Clearly, she was a complete novice in Pokémon battles, but that didn't matter—her two friends understood well enough.

The two boys conferred, decided the plan had merit, and persistently urged the kimono girl to challenge the League Conference.

Out of trust in her friends and a desire to help her mother,

the kimono girl agreed.

【You accepted their advice and followed their guidance to begin preparations for the Conference】

The so-called preparation meant learning Pokémon battles.

The kimono girl had never battled before—more of a novice than a novice—and made many blunders during practice matches with the two boys.

At this moment,

the narration displayed a few lines briefly introducing the two boys.

All All Baimu learned the kimono boy was the child of the Scented Gym Leader and a distant relative of the kimono girl, beyond five degrees of kinship; the ordinary-clothed boy was their neighbor.

The three had grown up together.

But the kimono boy and the other one—whom he would henceforth call Boy A and Boy B—had both previously competed in the League Conference, achieving quarterfinal and semifinal results respectively.

Both were deeply dissatisfied with these results and planned to use the kimono girl's strength to redeem themselves.

"Hm?"

He stared, stunned.

The boys' motivations were so… pure?

Shouldn't they be helping her because they liked her?

Something's wrong here!

All All Baimu couldn't help suspecting a deus ex machina would appear later—he'd watched very few romance anime, mostly male-targeted ones.

In those, childhood friends often lose to the new girl; he wasn't sure if the same applied from a female perspective…

"Hah."

He suddenly laughed.

He was treating a Trainer simulation like a romance anime—clearly, the tired trope of challenging Gyms lacked the freshness of romance.

"Mii~"

Shiny Milotic didn't understand why the Trainer was laughing; she watched him with concern.

All All Baimu replied: "It's nothing. I just feel the air is fresh, the moon is beautiful… sing to me, Milotic."

"Mii!"

Milotic happily nodded and hummed a melodious tune beneath the moonlight.

The beautiful silhouette bathed in silver light drew many wild Pokémon, but they dared only watch from afar, afraid of desecration.

All All Baimu treated the song as the simulation's background music.

A lyrical version.

【Your first battle was disastrous, but your friends' encouragement and Munchlax's unwavering will made you unable to say you'd give up】

【You decided to keep going】

Compared to the kimono girl, who hesitated over whether she was suited for battling due to her poor performance,

her Munchlax, even after being mercilessly defeated, never feared—it would bravely charge again.

This posture helped her shed her indecisiveness.

Pokémon always bring courage.

The kimono girl, learning the Trainer's path from scratch with the full support of her two friends, "rediscovered" her Pokémon, learned Munchlax's strengths, and how to unleash its power.

Her battle commands gradually became competent.

So,

one day,

【Under your friends' guidance, you went into the wild】

The two boys tried to teach the kimono girl how to catch Pokémon; having researched the local wild Pokémon distribution, they targeted a Fairy-type, Klinklang.

【You heard them say it's easier to train Pokémon of the same type than different types; you nodded, half-understanding】

The kimono girl preferred cute Pokémon; Klinklang barely fell within her acceptable range, so she had no objections.

The three wandered through the forest.

Soon, they found their target.

A Pokémon appeared on screen, resembling a silver key with a ring of keys hanging from it.

【You heard its type included not only Fairy but also Steel, and you grew nervous—but you still remembered how to issue commands】

The kimono girl and Munchlax faced Klinklang alone.

Clearly, the boys had no intention of intervening; a Trainer who couldn't catch a Pokémon independently had no business challenging the League Conference.

Facing a type disadvantage, the kimono girl chose to use status moves to restrict Klinklang.

She ordered Munchlax to dodge Klinklang's tackles and spray thick silk threads to bind its movements.

Then came multi-angle 【Fairy Wind】.

By the time Klinklang broke free from the silk, its HP had dropped low enough to be caught.

【You threw a Poké Ball】

All All Baimu paid special attention to the Poké Ball the kimono girl threw, hoping to judge the era by the ball type.

It was the old version.

Though the pixelated Poké Ball lacked detail, its general appearance—especially the distinct dial—allowed him to make the judgment.

The kimono girl was lucky; one Poké Ball successfully caught Klinklang, and she joyfully hugged Munchlax.

【You caught Klinklang; a new kimono design was added】

Style?

Is the kimono girl preparing to design a new kimono style based on the Keyring?

All All Baimu was surprised the kimono girl was also a designer.

But as the scene shifted, he realized she had merely adjusted the kimono's color scheme to match the Keyring.

It was nowhere near actual design work.

The addition of a new partner made the kimono girl delighted, and her enthusiasm for training with her two friends grew even stronger.

【You vowed in your heart that you would never let your friends down—you would make your family's clothing shop thrive.】

Under these circumstances.

Young Man A suddenly brought the kimono girl some good news.

【You learned that Mianmian Puff could evolve into a new form by eating whipped cream under certain special conditions.】

Evolution.

The kimono girl was unfamiliar with this term.

Upon learning that Mianmian Puff would change its appearance after evolving, she felt an inexplicable sense of fear.

But after being comforted and persuaded by her friends, and spurred by Mianmian Puff's own determination, the kimono girl decided to give it a try.

【You arrived in Cyllage City.】

The scene shifted.

The kimono girl arrived in Cyllage City.

All All Baimu looked at the simulation screen showing Cyllage City and was surprised it differed little in structure from its future version.

【You arrived at a Pokémon research institute.】

A middle-aged man in a white lab coat took away the kimono girl's Mianmian Puff and placed it on a strange-looking disc alongside whipped cream.

Above the disc was a pipe leading to an unknown destination.

All All Baimu raised an eyebrow: "Not a trade machine? Or perhaps..."

He suspected this device might be a prototype of a future trade machine—or more likely, a design variant of Professor Autumnleaf's remote teleportation device.

Behind glass.

The kimono girl watched her Mianmian Puff anxiously, while the two boys beside her continuously reassured her.

Then the man activated the machine.

Mianmian Puff vanished instantly from the disc.

【You were startled.】

The narrator said the kimono girl nearly burst into tears—luckily, Mianmian Puff reappeared on the disc the next second.

Immediately, a flash of white light engulfed the stunned Mianmian Puff.

Evolution began.

【Your Mianmian Puff evolved into Puffnuff.】

Puffnuff's unfamiliar form made the kimono girl hesitate to recognize it—but Puffnuff joyfully and warmly embraced her.

Its personality had not changed; it remained the kimono girl's closest companion.

【You looked at its expression and knew it was still your Mianmian Puff—it had not been replaced.】

The kimono girl, of course, knew her partner better than anyone; after calming down, she gradually accepted Puffnuff's new form and felt happy for it.

【You returned to Laverre City.】

With the new partner Keyring and Mianmian Puff evolved into Puffnuff.

After mastering Puffnuff's new abilities under the guidance of her two "masters," the kimono girl officially began her Gym challenges.

The first Gym was undoubtedly run by Young Man A's mother—the current Laverre Gym Leader.

Unlike Ma Xiu.

She used Bug-type Pokémon; though Fairy-type doesn't super-effect Bug-type, it resists it, giving the kimono girl a slight advantage.

【You nervously greeted the Gym Leader, who reassured you not to be so tense.】

The kimono girl naturally knew Young Man A's mother, but fighting her best friend's mother was something she had never imagined—she couldn't help feeling nervous.

This tension eased only when Puffnuff absorbed two Signal Beams from Butterfree without falling—and even turned to give her a thumbs-up.

Thanks to Young Man A's thorough teachings, the kimono girl had already understood the Laverre Gym Leader's tactics.

After a series of precise counterplays, she successfully defeated the Gym Leader.

【You couldn't believe the Gym challenge had been so easy.】

【You defeated the Laverre Gym Leader and received the Laverre Badge.】

The two watching boys were even happier than the kimono girl—they jumped and bounced in place, clapping each other's hands, then rushed onto the field to clap hers, as if they'd won the League Championship.

"Youth."

All All Baimu couldn't help but sigh.

The smooth victory at the first Gym boosted their confidence; they decided to officially begin their journey.

Yes.

All three of them.

Though Young Man A and B had already traveled once before, they chose to accompany the kimono girl again—for their friend and for their "ideal."

All All Baimu shook his head slightly.

If he were one of Young Man A or B, he would let the kimono girl grow on her own; if he were the kimono girl, he would refuse their company and set out alone.

But for the simulated kimono girl, having friends accompany her on her journey was a wonderful thing.

"The love interest is already taken."

All All Baimu had expected the kimono girl to meet a love interest after leaving home—instead, she had locked onto her two childhood friends.

No.

Not necessarily.

Who says traveling together means no chance to meet new people?

He regained his composure, never considering how terrible his thoughts were—he watched the simulation purely as if it were a harem anime.

And their first destination after setting out—Cyllage City.

【You and your friends went to the Cyllage Gym, but were turned away.】

The Cyllage Gym had for decades enforced a rule: only trainers with three badges could enter, forcing the trio to change their target.

After a pleasant shopping scene.

The eager kimono girl led her exhausted two friends down Route 4.

There,

she captured her third Fairy-type partner—

White-flower Puffbloom.

【You captured Puffbloom; a new kimono design was added.】

Puffbloom was a small, sprite-like Pokémon that hugged flower buds; its adorable appearance instantly won over the kimono girl, who chased it tirelessly for a long time.

She finally succeeded in capturing it.

With her team growing, the kimono girl arrived in Santalune City.

Her second Gym's location.

【You arrived in Santalune City and, guided by your friends, immediately began challenging the Gym.】