Chapter 185: The Flame Bird and the Brothers Who Came Knocking

Under the eaves, inside a wooden birdhouse far larger than an ordinary one, even bigger than the current doghouses of Growlithe and Mawile, a two-meter-tall Moltres curled up aggrievedly.

Though it was still daytime, the entire bird had plunged into the late-night melancholy of "NetEase Cloud Music" time.

Moreover, it had to curl its body with extreme care, controlling the flames burning on its surface to avoid setting its own nest on fire.

Thinking of this, Moltres felt even more aggrieved in its heart.

Having walked on thin ice all its life, when exactly could it escape this hollow feeling of relying on others?

Moltres pondered back and forth, feeling the only gap between itself and the farm's Pokémon was the lack of that single red-and-white Poké Ball.

Would its treatment improve once it was captured?

Yet Moltres had never imagined the day it would be captured; its instincts told it that as a legendary bird, it should be unconstrained, soaring freely, and not bound by a mere Poké Ball.

But for the sake of food, paying the price of some freedom seemed not so bad.

Moltres began to contemplate this possibility.

On the other side, watching the Pokémon devour their meal, Luo Mu looked left and right but couldn't spot Moltres, his brows slightly furrowed.

It seemed his earlier feeling wasn't an illusion; even Moltres didn't come to eat, so something must be wrong.

After a moment's thought, Luo Mu called over Dragonite, who was eating with oil dripping from its mouth, wiped its muzzle under Dragonite's bewildered expression, and said, "Take me to see the birdhouse."

Luo Mu felt that if Moltres was hiding somewhere, the birdhouse would definitely be its first choice.

Pausing briefly, Luo Mu also brought along the freshly made Fruit Cheese Snow Salt Cake; the Pokémon enjoying lunch all saw it, and even Serperior showed no intention of blocking him.

After all, this was a reward meant for Moltres.

Vying for favor was one thing, but Serperior handled matters of right and wrong very well.

Outside the wooden house, the sound of flapping wings and a helpless male voice rang out simultaneously.

"As expected, I knew you were hiding here."

Moltres, feigning sleep with closed eyes, did not move.

"Boo-wu?"

Dragonite blinked, tilting its head to look at Luo Mu on its back, then licked the food residue off its claws.

What should we do? Moltres seems to be asleep?

"Silly child."

Luo Mu patted Dragonite's head; Dragonite was still too innocent.

He saw at a glance that Moltres was pretending to sleep; this fellow had likely entered "NetEase Cloud Music" time again for some reason.

Luo Mu was very fortunate to have borrowed books on Pokémon psychology from Nurse Joy of Flat Disk Town, understanding how to handle Pokémon psychological issues.

Moltres's situation was clearly a subconscious refusal to communicate externally; it was probably tangled up in some matter he knew nothing about.

The solution was simple: first give Moltres ample private bird space to think it through slowly; if Moltres hadn't figured it out within a certain time, he could intervene manually then.

His eyes darted around, and Luo Mu smiled: "It seems Moltres is still sleeping, so this 'Fruit Cheese Snow Salt Cake,' intended as a reward for driving away wild Flying-type Pokémon, will be left outside for now, to be eaten once it wakes up."

"As for today's extra lunch meal, let Growlithe keep it warm nearby using a Fire-type move, so Moltres can go down and eat whenever it feels like it."

Dragonite cooperated perfectly as a supporting act: "Boo-wu~~"

The human and Pokémon set down the cake and left; Moltres pretended to sleep for quite a while longer, but finally, unable to bear the itching anticipation, the curled-up bird raised its head slowly like a thief and saw the exquisite cake placed on the wooden board outside the birdhouse.

Carefully picking up a piece of berry with its beak to taste, Moltres's eyes lit up, and it began to savor the cake specially made for it.

The sweet and juicy Pecha Berry, the perfectly balanced sour-and-sweet Pamtre Berry, and the refreshing Oran Berry, combined with the slightly salty yet milk-fragrant snow salt fresh cream and cheese sauce layers, perfectly hit Moltres's preferences.

As it ate, a warm current flowed through Moltres's heart.

So, he hadn't gone back on his word after all.

After some hesitation, the scale in Moltres's heart tipped, and it made up its mind.

Having dealt with Moltres's matter, Luo Mu gave it the entire afternoon in his mind; if it hadn't figured things out by evening, he would step in personally.

With the help of Politoed and the Poliwags, he quickly washed the dishes; after instructing Growlithe to maintain the temperature of Moltres's lunch, Luo Mu dragged a lounge chair out of the house, planning to slack off and take an afternoon nap.

However, just then Luxray suddenly walked over, and before Luo Mu could lie down, Luxray informed him of something.

A guest had arrived outside the farm.

Luo Mu asked puzzledly, "A guest? Recently, no acquaintances said they were coming to the farm?"

"Meow-aow~"

Luxray licked its paw, its gaze shifting toward Dragonite; those two people were specifically looking for Dragonite by name, not for Luo Mu.

Luo Mu:????

"Boo-wu?"

Dragonite, with a newly made flower ring from Comfey atop its head, looked utterly dazed and cute.

Outside the farm, a boy of about ten tugged at the sleeve of his older brother, who wore a ponytail, asking puzzledly, "Brother Lei Si, is that Dragonite really here? Isn't this just an ordinary farm?"

The young man patted his younger brother's head, smiling gently: "Didn't we ask that student named Hearing Hearing Nimo, who wore orange shorts, in Deep Bowl Town earlier? That Dragonite belongs to the owner of this farm."

"Zhou Zhou Shuren, you saw it too. Just looking at the posture, build, and aura of that Luxray just now, even though it didn't reveal a shred of energy, I, as a Trainer, can assert... that Luxray is very strong!"

Even with Lei Si praising Luxray so highly, Zhou Zhou Shuren was unwilling to believe that his older brother, who had earned eight badges across the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh regions and reached the Top Eight in the League, had been easily defeated.

An uncommanded Dragonite easily defeated his brother's six Pokémon; even jokes have limits!

"You child... sigh."

Looking at Zhou Zhou Shuren's stubborn face, Lei Si felt somewhat headache-inducing.

Since childhood, Zhou Zhou Shuren had displayed an extraordinarily stubborn mindset; once he decided on something, he would believe in it unwaveringly.

In Zhou Zhou Shuren's mind, Lei Si was the strongest Trainer, and losing a battle was merely due to poor condition.

But Lei Si knew clearly that his talent as a Trainer was limited; he could only rely on precise tactics and techniques to fight.

But such things were fragile in the face of true strength.

Lei Si remembered that before heading to the Kanto region to challenge the Battle Frontier, he had originally planned to relax and vacation in the Paldea region for a while, adjusting his and his Pokémon's condition, before going to the Battle Frontier to challenge himself and break through his limits.

He never expected that the day he had Shinji stay at the hotel to rest, while he went out and strolled aimlessly along the beach to relax his mind and body, he would see that Dragonite.

(End of this chapter)