Chapter 138: The Old Man, the Dog, and the Proof of Kings

"Then I shall be impolite." Luo Mu cleared his throat and spoke softly, "May I ask, in recent years, has any of your Pokémon reached the end of its lifespan or passed away due to illness?"

Luo Mu's question nearly made Lila and Bodie lose their composure; this was a sensitive topic, completely reopening old wounds, and it would not be strange to be beaten and chased out of the house if one encountered someone with a bad temper.

Tron paused, as if recalling something, his expression turning slightly sorrowful: "You should know I am a Ranger; after marrying my wife in my youth, for a long time I dedicated myself to protecting the environment and Pokémon, cracking down on poachers, often leaving home for ten days or half a month at a time."

"One time after returning home, I saw my wife's profile as she endured her loneliness, and only then did I suddenly realize I had completely failed in my duties as a husband. Afterwards, following a Ranger operation, I rescued a Fidough and entrusted it to my wife to raise."

"My wife loved it very much and even gave it the name 'Bean.' This Fidough had been rescued by me from a laboratory; it had been subjected to many experiments by bad people, so its health was never very good, and three years ago on a winter night, Bean still could not survive that winter, leaving my wife due to illness."

"After seeing my wife in tears, I chose to reduce my work as a Ranger, using what little time I had to accompany her."

After Tron finished recounting the past story of him and his wife, the room fell into silence for a short while.

Bodie had already begun secretly wiping away tears, Lila felt somewhat emotional, and Luo Mu also understood the deeper reason why Tron had been unwilling to act.

Although sympathy rose in his heart for Tron's wife, Luo Mu did not forget his main business; now that all intelligence had been gathered, he asked in his mind, "System, is there any problem with my train of thought?"

【No problem, Host】

Luo Mu had been pondering what function the System could still serve for him nowadays; apart from treasure hunting, probably this hint that allowed him to reduce trial-and-error steps was the most useful, capable of helping him resolve all trivial matters that might obstruct him.

As for himself, he only needed to go all out from here on.

After temporarily asking Tron and Lila to leave the small house, leaving Bodie to look after Tron's wife, Luo Mu spoke to the two with a calm expression: "I already know the cause of your wife's illness, Elder Tron."

Tron had intended to refuse Luo Mu's invitation to accompany him; calling him out specifically was generally for this kind of matter, wasn't it?

But Luo Mu's voice made Tron pause, and then he involuntarily stepped closer to Luo Mu, placing both hands on Luo Mu's shoulders, stuttering, "Y-you really know!?"

Lila was somewhat bewildered; how did Luo Mu know?

Luo Mu nodded slightly and said unhurriedly, "Elder Tron, before your wife fell ill and took to her bed, did she show more smiles on her face, or was her mood better, with frequent behavior of staying outdoors?"

Tron was stunned; carefully recalling the times he occasionally left home to go down the mountain for supplies, or used a day to briefly finish his Ranger work, every time he returned home he was greeted by his wife's smiling face.

He had thought it was because he spent more time accompanying her after Bean's departure, so she displayed more smiles.

"Indeed... what you said is not off by even a bit."

Under Lila's wide-eyed gaze, Tron slowly nodded.

At this moment, he suddenly felt this young man was a bit terrifying; he clearly had not mentioned these things, yet the other party knew so much.

Lila could not hold back and asked, "Luo Mu, judging by your words, are you trying to say that Bean turned into a Ghost-type Pokémon..."

Luo Mu nodded, then shook his head: "Yes, and also possibly no; look over there."

Luo Mu pointed to the location where he had initially discovered a candle still burning during the daytime.

That candle showed no sign of burning out at all, continuing to burn incessantly.

Lila followed the direction of Luo Mu's finger and frowned, "A Litwick...?"

Luo Mu did not speak; instead, Tron's pupils contracted sharply, saying incredulously, "That should be... the candle on top of a Greavard's head?"

Lila was not very familiar with Pokémon from the Paldea region, whereas Tron, living in Glaseado Town as a Ranger, knew somewhat about the names and characteristics of these Pokémon.

Tron could not help but move closer in that direction; after approaching within a certain distance of the candle, the Pokémon hiding in the snow seemed to notice, and a strange cry rang out, a very ethereal 'Wang Wang' sound.

Then, the Pokémon under the snow suddenly jumped out, seemingly wanting to scare Tron.

If an uninformed passerby encountering such behavior on a snowy night might be afraid, but now it was daytime, and the Pokémon's identity had already been revealed by Tron.

Greavard, a Ghost-type Pokémon, appears to enjoy scaring people, but in reality, this is merely their attempt to attract human attention.

This Pokémon has a gentle and people-loving nature, fears loneliness, and is famous for being the Ghost-type Pokémon most suitable as a companion.

The Greavard tilted its head and stuck out its tongue, seemingly puzzled as to why Tron had no reaction.

Under the silent gazes of Luo Mu and Lila, Tron, as if afraid of scaring away the Greavard, slowly squatted down and said with a trembling voice, "Bean... is it Bean?"

"Wang Wang!"

As if hearing a keyword, the Greavard's eyes lit up, and it barked several times in succession as if responding.

Tron's eyes instantly turned red.

"No wonder several doses of energy-supplementing medicine I prescribed for Lady Madam Meila had no effect; so that was the reason."

The doctor looked at the Greavard held in Tron's arms, whose eyes could not stop darting toward Madam Meila on the hospital bed, and suddenly realized the truth.

Judging by this Greavard's size, it was clearly a Ghost-type Pokémon born not long ago, and its appearance coincided very well with the timing of Lady Madam Meila's illness.

At this moment, the Greavard found it difficult to control itself, almost unconsciously absorbing the energy of humans it contacted.

Although he did not know why Lady Madam Meila would hide the fact of contacting a Greavard from Elder Tron, no matter how strong the medicine he prescribed was, it could not deal with this situation!

Looking at Tron, the doctor instructed, "As long as the Greavard is temporarily prevented from contacting Lady Madam Meila, she will regain consciousness after a period of recuperation."

Tron nodded solemnly, while the Greavard, seemingly aware that it was the cause of Madam Meila's illness, shamefully lowered its head.

After the doctor left, Tron, as if pushing away a huge rock pressing on his heart, let out a long sigh and bowed to Luo Mu and Lila, saying, "Thank you... for helping me find the cause of Madam Meila's illness, and even helping me find Bean again."

"There is no need for courtesy; we also have a request of you."

Lila stepped forward and helped Tron up.

"Yes, you are right." A glint of sharpness appeared in Tron's cloudy eyes, and his voice suddenly became much more serious, "Since Madam Meila's strange illness has been clarified, I no longer have any worries; therefore, I accept the matter of assisting you in climbing the highest peak of Glaseado Mountain. Hunter J's notorious reputation must be dealt with, and she must be captured as soon as possible."

Seeing that Tron agreed to the request for assistance, Lila and Bodie could not help but show joy on their faces.

As for Luo Mu, he was startled by something Tron suddenly stuffed into his hand.

It was a crown-shaped item; Luo Mu recognized this thing—this was precisely the King's Rock he had been considering seeking for Wen Xiang Jun!

Seeing Luo Mu's expression of surprise and uncertainty, Tron smiled and said, "Not only did you help me identify the cause of Madam Meila's illness, but you also helped us find Bean, who reincarnated as a Ghost-type Pokémon; this kindness is truly too great, so please accept this meager gift of gratitude, allowing my heart to feel slightly better."

"... I understand."

Luo Mu hesitated for a moment, but ultimately chose to accept.

"Wonderful, then I will go prepare the equipment needed for climbing the highest peak of Glaseado Mountain later."

With joy on his face, Tron walked toward the inner room with his hands behind his back.

Bodie, who had taken on the task of looking after Lady Madam Meila during Tron's absence, suddenly leaned over and asked curiously, "Is the Greavard really the reincarnation of the Fidough Bean? This is too romantic!"

Lila also cast a curious gaze over, obviously she was very curious as well.

However, Luo Mu merely smiled mysteriously, shook his head, and said, "That is not important."

For Tran and Madam Madam Meila, it sufficed that they felt and believed the Grave Puppy was the reincarnation of Puppy Bean Ding; this was their spiritual solace, their redemption in hoping to reunite with Puppy Bean Ding.

As for whether the Grave Puppy truly retained memories of the name "Ding," or whether it was due to the characteristics of its kin, combined with Lady Madam Meila's stubborn insistence on calling the Grave Puppy "Ding," leading the Grave Puppy to believe this was its own name.

Did the answer truly matter?

Sometimes, it is better not to dig to the very root of things.

(End of Chapter)