Chapter 272: Anville Town and Preparations Before Departing for the Unova League

Completely ignoring Peper and the others' protests about being kept in the dark, Luo Mu led the four of them to a well-tended, cozy detached cottage.

At this moment, Mr. Tron was tending to the plants in the yard with his old partner, the Pidove; seeing the silhouette of that Pidove, Luo Mu recalled the Pidove that had left the farm to travel the world.

With no instant method of contact, he didn't know in which corner of the world the Pidove was currently traveling, but in a certain sense, this was a good thing, indicating the Pidove had not yet encountered a difficulty it couldn't handle.

If there was truly an emergency, the Pidove would definitely find the red-roofed house he had mentioned and ask Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Center to contact him on its behalf.

As an experienced Ranger, Tron was extremely sensitive to changes in the environment; the moment the five of them stood at the door, he noticed someone had arrived.

Setting down his watering can, Tron looked up before Luo Mu could speak and said, "You've arrived?"

The greeting words were stifled back; Luo Mu changed his phrasing and said, "We have arrived, Mr. Tron."

After sending the Pidove inside to deliver the news, Tron smiled and said, "Welcome to my humble home as guests."

The four students also politely greeted him: "Hello, Mr. Tron."

Tron stepped aside to invite everyone into the house: "Come inside quickly; it's still quite cold outside, but the fireplace inside is burning brightly, and my wife and Dou Ding are already waiting indoors."

Peper and the other two pricked up their ears, obviously very curious about this matter as well.

Standing in the entryway, Luo Mu asked curiously, "It seems, Mr. Tron, that you are quite familiar with Peper and the others?"

Luo Mu shook his head: "It was just a small favor; as long as the Lady's illness is cured, I am very happy."

Seeing Tron leading everyone inside, Madam Meila revealed a gentle smile and said warmly, "Please sit, please sit!"

Tron's motion of changing shoes paused; he exchanged a glance with Peper and the others, revealing an expression of mutual understanding: "Nothing much, I just took them for some training; they helped me a great deal too, they are all very good children."

Although they already knew Dragonite was strong from that time on the beach, the fact that such a cute Dragonite could shatter an aerial battleship all by itself simply exceeded her understanding.

Fortunately, he was becoming stronger and stronger; as long as he became even stronger, Ao Ao Jiaofu would always, for a lifetime, stay by his side.

Unable to resist the overflowing curiosity of the four students, under Hearing Nimo and the others' focused expressions, Tron and Madam Meila slowly began to recount how, several months ago when Luo Mu participated in the mission to capture Hunter J, he had casually helped them identify the cause of Madam Meila's strange illness.

Rather, it was precisely because they bore the title of Champion on their heads that achieving this level was considered normal.

Hearing Nimo looked deeply moved: "Being able to see Dou Ding again must mean your fate is not yet exhausted!"

Speaking thus, Tron led everyone into the living room, where an elderly woman in good spirits had already placed hot tea and snacks on the table; in the warm room, the firewood burning in the fireplace emitted crackling sounds, full of the breath of life.

Tron and Madam Meila exchanged a glance; Madam Meila stroked the fur of the Rockruff and smiled lightly, "Speaking of which, we must thank Luo Mu for this matter; if not for him, perhaps I would still be bedridden now."

Once everyone was seated and began tasting the tea and snacks clearly prepared with care by Lady Madam Meila, the curious Hearing Nimo asked, "How did Teacher Luo Mu get to know Mr. Tron?"

Pipa covered her mouth, looking astonished.

So the incident of Hunter J's capture, which had sparked a wave of discussion worldwide several months ago, actually involved Luo Mu as the one who caught Hunter J?

"Dragonite actually smashed straight through the massive aerial battleship."

Peper remained silent; putting himself in the other's shoes, if something happened to Ao Ao Jiaofu, he would surely feel immense pain.

Time slowly passed with the replacement of tea and snacks; after hearing the entire story, Hearing Nimo and the others exchanged glances, seeing shock in each other's eyes.

The group had no intention of declining and followed behind Tron into the house.

The elderly woman was unmistakably Lady Madam Meila, who had been bedridden just a few months prior; seeing her spirit completely restored to normal made Luo Mu very happy.

Mudan's expression, however, was quite calm; her silly old father, as a former Champion, should unsurprisingly be capable of such things.

The pleasant conversation continued until the sun was about to set, followed by a sumptuous dinner at Tron and Madam Meila's home.

Just as Luo Mu rose to prepare his departure, Madam Meila suddenly spoke up at the dining table: "Husband, is there any way to send out that letter now?"

Tron's motion of clearing the bowls and chopsticks paused; he said helplessly, "The Unova region is still too far from Paldea; the post office in Glaseado Town doesn't have service covering such a distance, so I can only go down the mountain to Mesagoza in a few days to try my luck."

Hearing the keyword, Hearing Nimo pricked up her ears and asked in confusion, "The Unova region?"

Madam Meila was slightly stunned, then nodded: "Yes, is there a problem?"

Mudan, looking blissful as she rubbed her slightly protruding lower abdomen, said lazily, "We are departing for the Unova region the day after tomorrow, burp~~"

Tron asked, "May I ask, which city in the Unova region are you going to?"

After thinking for a moment, Pipa answered, "It seems to be an academy built on the sea, called Blueberry Academy."

Upon hearing this, Tron frowned and fell into thought; he quickly returned inside to fetch a very new map of the Unova region, placed it on the dining table, and searched diligently. When he saw Blueberry Academy located very close to Anville Town, his eyes lit up.

"Blueberry Academy is right next to Anville Town!"

Hearing the keyword, Luo Mu, who was picking his teeth with a toothpick over on the sofa, suddenly sat up straight.

Anville Town... Anville Town... he seemed to remember this name!

Peper looked astonished: "Eh, what a coincidence?"

Tron nodded gently; even he hadn't expected such a coincidence in the world: "In a few days, a Harvest Festival will be held over in Anville Town; I wish to send this letter to a 'People of the Earth' in that city."

Madam Meila added with an unhappy expression: "And she's a girl younger and prettier than me, right?"

Anyone could hear the obvious jealousy in Madam Meila's words; Mudan immediately became interested, wanting to gossip but daring not to make a sound due to politeness, feeling stifled and uncomfortable.

Tron waved his hands in panic, striving to explain: "That child is now a mother with a daughter of her own; furthermore, she was merely someone I saved back when I was serving as a Ranger..."

Madam Meila was only pretending to complain to tease Tron; covering her mouth, she smiled lightly: "Alright, alright, I believe you, okay?"

Hearing Nimo touched her chin and fell into thought: "What is the Harvest Festival?"

Seeing at a glance that this young lady Hearing Nimo knew nothing about festivals unique to ordinary commoners, Peper explained: "It's a festival to celebrate the harvest; generally, a very lively festival is held, and if Anville Town is a large city, the scale of the festival will likely be huge."

Hearing Nimo's eyes seemed to sparkle as she said excitedly, "What is that? I really want to go!"

Mudan and Pipa exchanged a glance and proposed: "Since Hearing Nimo wants to see the Harvest Festival and Mr. Tron needs to deliver a letter, why not combine the two? After the matter at Blueberry Academy is concluded, we can go to Anville Town to deliver the letter and enjoy the Harvest Festival while we're at it?"

Hearing Nimo nodded frantically: "That's a great idea!"

Mudan revealed a meaningful smile: "However, the final decision rests with that teacher over there who is currently picking his teeth with a toothpick."

Instantly becoming the focus of everyone's gaze, Luo Mu's fingers loosened, and the toothpick fell into the trash can.

After recalling, he finally remembered where Anville Town was.

In the ancient Unova region, there were legends of the Legendary Dragon Pokémon; after a long passage of time and changes in worldly affairs, the "Divine Dragon" split, transforming into the empty shell "Kyurem," the Dragon seeking Truth "Reshiram," and the Dragon seeking Ideals "Zekrom."

The two great dragons chose two princes of the "Land of the People" at that time, supporting them as their own heroes, but because the two heroes' ideals clashed, they went to war; ultimately, both exhausted their power and turned into two stones, sinking into slumber within the castle "Sword of the Earth" in the city now known as Anville Town.

The Mythical Pokémon Victini should now also be trapped within Anville Town; it is known as the Pokémon that brings victory, and it is said that a Trainer carrying Victini will win every single battle.

Victini can also generate infinite energy within its body; the chairman of a certain region in neighboring Galar would probably be drooling with envy if he heard about this.

Luo Mu did not know whether the stones formed by the two legendary dragons were currently in Unova; if they were, he wondered what the situation was regarding Team Plasma and N.

Ash should still be traveling through the Orange Islands or the Johto region right now, so a trip to Unova probably wouldn't get him entangled in any strange affairs.

Ending his thoughts, Luo Mu looked at his students, who were gazing at him with expressions of eager longing, and offered a helpless smile: "I will try to apply to the director; however, even if the application is approved, you must behave yourselves well during your time at Blueberry Academy."

". ヽ(^Д^*)/. Awesome~~!"

The few of them immediately cheered, while Tron and Madam Meila stood rooted to the spot, completely bewildered, their minds filled with confusion.

Wait, they hadn't even said a single word yet, and these children had already chattered back and forth, taking this matter upon themselves?

After a long while, under a night sky dotted with sparse stars.

"Please deliver this letter to a member of the People of the Land named Jiang Ta; she has a daughter named Carlita, who should be about the same age as you, Luo Mu. The mother and daughter operate a mobile jewelry stall, assisted by a Golurk."

Tron solemnly handed the letter over to Luo Mu.

"We will deliver it intact to Ms. Jiang Ta."

Having already obtained Geeta's consent over the phone to take the four students to the Unova Harvest Festival for some fun, Luo Mu also accepted the letter with due solemnity.

Hearing Nimo and the others wore equally determined expressions; in order to go play at the Unova Harvest Festival, they would do their utmost to deliver the letter!

After securing the letter, Luo Mu waved goodbye to Tron, Madam Meila, and the messenger birds and Greavard seeing them off, saying, "Then we shall take our leave."

"Travel safely!"

After escorting Hearing Nimo and the others back to their inn and instructing them to wait until dawn before descending the mountain, urging them to stay safe and not rush, and telling them he would wait for them in Mesagoza, Luo Mu rode his Dragonite and flew all the way to Mesagoza.

He then handed the Ultra Ball containing Iron Bundle to his dejected older brother Brother Qingmu; only when Luo Mu saw Brother Qingmu sporting those heavy dark circles under his eyes did he suddenly realize something.

Could it be... that the sleep he got at Observation Station No. 4 was the most delicious, deepest, and longest sleep Brother Qingmu had enjoyed all year?

Feelings of respect and guilt flashed repeatedly across Luo Mu's face; after watching his overworked older brother Brother Qingmu depart, Luo Mu casually found an inn in Mesagoza to stay in for the night and slept soundly and deeply.

The next day, Luo Mu picked up the four students who had arrived in Mesagoza, treated them to a grand meal at the Treasure Eatery, and then, after safely escorting them back to Orange Academy, returned to the farm.

Today was May 30th; tomorrow was the day to depart for Blueberry Academy, and before that, he had to arrange the farm's affairs properly.

After all, he would likely have to stay in the Unova region for about a week again.

The farm's infrastructure construction over this past month had cost him nearly six hundred thousand League Dollars in liquid funds; now his small treasury was approaching a state of depletion, yet the most expensive power generation and storage facility set had not even been installed yet.

Five hundred thousand League Dollars; only by going to Blueberry Academy on this trip to challenge them—no, to visit and spar—and defeating them, could he then obtain the commission—no, the prize money—from Geeta to fill this hole.

Regarding the matter of supervising the Machamp construction team installing the facility set, Luo Mu delegated full authority to his Oranguru butler.

The Unova region he was visiting this time had an evil organization known as "Team Plasma" operating there; it would be one thing if Luo Mu were going alone, but he was also bringing four students.

To be on the safe side, Luo Mu would bring as much of his combat strength and logistical support as possible this time, leaving only the necessary forces to guard the farm, lest an unexpected accident occur and, due to insufficient strength, lead to some irreparable disaster.

Since they were going to Unova, Luo Mu felt he absolutely had to bring his Serperior along.

Fortunately, the Applin and Tropius had now left the Juvenile Phase; if he explained the pros and cons to them and entrusted the Pokémon staying behind at the farm to look after them, they should be able to endure the short week.

Before departing, Luo Mu went to Thunder Lake once more, summoned the Politoad that had been training for a long time beside the giant damp rock, and checked on the current condition of the Dragonite matriarch, the mother of his own Dragonite.

Fortunately, with three Dragonair taking care of the Dragonite matriarch, her condition was currently stable; next, he needed to consider when to make a trip to the Alola region, for compared to the elusive Celebi and Dialga, Tapu Fini, who had a fixed residence, would be easier to find.

May 31st was the last day of May, and simultaneously the final echo of spring.

Inside the Orange Academy hall, four students dressed neatly and brimming with vitality gathered before Luo Mu; it was evident they had made ample preparations for this journey.

Since Geeta was busy with League official duties and could not extricate herself, soon Principal Clavell arrived before the five of them, accompanied by an elderly man with dark skin and white hair, wearing a white top hat and formal attire.

Clavell pushed up his glasses and smiled lightly: "Let me introduce you; this is the principal of Blueberry Academy, as well as the designer of the Ecological Dome, and an old acquaintance of mine—Cyrus."

(End of Chapter)