Chapter 126: Farewell, I Am About to Set Sail

After returning from Big Pot Lake, the Messenger Bird began its recovery training.

After all, it had not flown for a very long time; its movements were indeed quite rusty, and even its reaction ability had weakened somewhat.

Fortunately, Luo Mu usually had Dragonite assist it with rehabilitation training, so flying now posed no problem at all.

Seeing Luo Mu covered entirely in mud, the Messenger Bird was slightly surprised.

In its eyes, Luo Mu had always been very clean; no matter how tired he was after finishing farm work, he would drag his body to clean himself up, saying he must set an example for their Pokémon.

A sight like this, covered half in drying mud, was rare indeed.

After landing smoothly, the Messenger Bird looked at Luo Mu and the Mudbray, who had stopped walking, its expression somewhat conflicted, as if deliberating how to begin speaking.

Seeing through the Messenger Bird's thoughts, Luo Mu smiled and asked, "Is there something on your mind?"

"De-li."

In a place Luo Mu could not see, the face of the Messenger Bird, covered in white feathers, flushed slightly red; its hands twisted together as if it found it difficult to speak.

"Just say it; I'm listening."

Under Luo Mu's encouraging gaze, the Messenger Bird finally gathered its courage and boldly expressed what was in its heart through gestures and expressions.

"Is that so? Then we must hold a grand farewell party."

After repeating his understanding back to the Messenger Bird once and seeing it nod in confirmation, Luo Mu, knowing this day had finally arrived, felt a mix of emotions in his heart, yet ultimately revealed a smile.

It was only logical that the Messenger Bird would propose leaving; in the end, it was still a wild Pokémon rescued by Luo Mu, and moreover, it had expressed to Luo Mu its changes during this period and its newly formed thoughts.

The Messenger Bird mentioned it came from a high mountain covered in heavy snow and that it was the leader of the flock there, which matched Luo Mu's guess almost exactly.

If one were to speak of the large landform in Paldea most suitable for Ice-type Pokémon to gather, it would undoubtedly be Glaseado Mountain; previously, Nurse Joy had also mentioned that the Messenger Bird's tail was very large and could hold many things, and having a large tail happened to be one of the necessary conditions for becoming the leader of a Messenger Bird flock.

However, what the Messenger Bird sought was not to return to its flock; the reason it left Glaseado Mountain to come near here was that it had long since entrusted the flock to a new leader.

After experiencing a series of events, the Messenger Bird now had a clear expectation for its future goals.

The world is so vast; it wanted to go see it. Along the journey, it would enrich its knowledge and temper its body and mind until it became as strong as Dragonite.

"De-li!"

The Messenger Bird's face showed a moved expression; it had prepared itself for Luo Mu to possibly be angry or react coldly, after all, it had been picked up by Luxray while on the verge of death, and Luo Mu had spent considerable effort to heal it.

Proposing to leave without even repaying this kindness, the Messenger Bird felt it was being a terrible creature.

Luo Mu reached out his hand wanting to pat the Messenger Bird's head, but the peripheral vision of his gaze fell upon his own dirty hands, so the action halted mid-air.

Better to wash his hands first before doing anything; the Messenger Bird was so clean, especially the white feathers on its head, and he must not get them dirty.

But the excited Messenger Bird was not so particular; since Luo Mu did not extend his hand, it would just lean its head over.

It did not matter if the feathers got dirty; at least the sense of security brought by those hands would accompany the Messenger Bird throughout its journey.

Returning to the house, after tidying himself up along with the Messenger Bird and the Mudbray, Luo Mu announced in front of the Pokémon present that the Messenger Bird would be setting out on a journey.

The various Pokémon reacted differently; there was the steady Luxray stepping forward to give exhortations, and there was the Comfey planning to weave a wreath full of blessings before the Messenger Bird departed.

Luo Mu looked at the Messenger Bird and suggested, "Leave a bit later; I also have some things to prepare for you."

Dragonite also brought its three godmothers forward, expressing their desire to teach the Messenger Bird their best techniques for discerning weather and dealing with extreme weather, which would surely help the Messenger Bird avoid most risks.

The continuous flow of kindness made the Messenger Bird's eyes turn slightly red, warmth rising in its heart.

Lunch did not change much; Luo Mu had scheduled the Messenger Bird's farewell party for the night before its departure, which was still a few days away.

In the afternoon, Luo Mu took several Pokémon and walked toward the wild.

Nowadays, not many Pokémon on the farm showed an obvious desire to battle; only Growlithe and Poliwag were two such Pokémon. The Munchlax itself did not have a strong desire to battle, but as Growlithe's little follower, it joined the training as well.

Poliwag seemed busy with something and did not participate in this training session, so Luo Mu only brought Growlithe, Munchlax, and Mudbray, the three Pokémon; training always within the farm was too monotonous, so he conceived the idea of taking a few Pokémon to the seaside for training.

By the coast and on the beach, there were many Water-type and Flying-type Pokémon; for Growlithe and Mudbray, these were powerful enemies with type advantages, and battling them could increase their combat experience against foes and help them adapt to the feeling of fighting opponents with unfavorable types.

Adding to this were the Messenger Bird, who cherished the last few days of their time together very much; the Swampert acting as a bodyguard by the sea; and Dragonite, who was to teach the Messenger Bird methods for sensing and responding to weather; these constituted the entire party departing for the beach this time.

The West Paldea Sea; this was part of the vast ocean surrounding the Paldea region, and traveling a certain distance further outward would already count as leaving the Paldea region.

In this world, oceans separated different regions and continents; the seaside also possessed a rich variety of Pokémon species, the most numerous being Water-type Pokémon living in the ocean and Flying-type Pokémon soaring freely in the sky.

With Dragonite's flight speed, plus the black-technology transport capability of Poké Balls, even carrying a full set of six Poké Balls, the round trip between the farm and the seaside took virtually no time for Luo Mu.

It was almost like going out for a stroll.

The location Luo Mu headed to was a famous beach in the Paldea region where Trainers gathered; here, not only did many kinds of wild Pokémon appear, but occasionally one could also encounter Trainers who had come here to train, launching into a hot-blooded Pokémon battle.

Recalling Dragonite and releasing only Growlithe, Mudbray, and Munchlax, plus the Messenger Bird flying behind Luo Mu, Luo Mu had completely blended in with the Trainers and travelers around him challenging the Paldea League, looking just like an ordinary Trainer.

Although it was somewhat unethical, today he simply had to fry these fish.

Battles between Trainers would always attract the gaze of tourists coming to the beach for leisure, and since this place was famously a Trainer beach, there were even more onlookers.

(End of Chapter)