Chapter 5: Paldea Batman

The next day.

In South Province Area One, before the Lighthouse Lab belonging to the renowned Pokémon Professor couple of the Paldea region.

Dressed in casual attire, Luo Mu knocked on the laboratory's main door.

Thump, thump, thump.

Luo Mu's three light knocks quickly received a response; a voice came from behind the door.

"Coming!"

Luo Mu's hearing was quite good; he could tell this was the voice of a young boy, and the owner of that voice was currently trotting toward the door.

Soon, the laboratory's main door was opened by a boy who looked to be about ten years old, with a head of smooth, beige-brown hair.

Luo Mu's eyebrows raised slightly, and information about this ten-year-old boy instantly surfaced in his mind.

Batman—Paldea Style (x)

One of the main characters in the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet games, Arven!

"Welcome home... Dad?"

Arven, who had opened the door with a joyful expression, froze the instant he saw Luo Mu; a flush of red instantly spread upward from his neck, and his ears turned completely crimson.

He had mistaken someone due to being too excited!

"Mmph..."

Arven emitted a series of nasal sounds from sheer embarrassment.

Over here, Luo Mu couldn't believe he had suddenly become a father either, his calm expression gradually turning strange.

Before the two awkward figures, one tall and one small, could recover their senses, another sound of running footsteps emerged from within the laboratory.

In just a few breaths, a short figure came charging straight at Luo Mu with a low growl.

Luo Mu focused his gaze and saw it was an Mabosstiff harboring hostility toward him; it must have mistaken him for a bad person with ill intentions toward Arven, thus revealing its aggressiveness.

All these thoughts occurred in a flash of lightning; Arven simply didn't have time to stop the Mabosstiff from attacking Luo Mu, and when he tried to open his mouth to speak, he realized the Mabosstiff was already only one body-length away from Luo Mu.

Arven could only close his eyes guiltily.

Luo Mu was no stranger to sudden attacks; during the past year, in order to save funds and provide sufficient resources for his Pokémon, he had frequently camped out in the wild, having experienced countless ambushes from the shadows.

However, since this situation was slightly different, Luo Mu didn't even have the thought of dodging; he said softly, "Don't hurt it, Mimikyu."

A eerie laugh suddenly rang out from beside Luo Mu's feet; a massive Shadow Claw, radiating dense Ghost-type energy as if emerging from a deep abyss, suddenly rose up and seized the protective Mabosstiff mid-air.

The fiercely imposing Mabosstiff froze for an instant; when had that Pokémon draped in tattered cloth appeared?

The Mabosstiff couldn't figure it out, but it knew it needed to protect its young master and began roaring, struggling with all its might.

Yet no matter how the Mabosstiff struggled or what moves it used, the Shadow Claw remained utterly motionless, as if the Dark-type Mabosstiff were the one being suppressed by the Ghost-type.

The Mabosstiff's roar caused Arven to open his eyes.

Seeing the scene before him, he quickly understood that Luo Mu must be a Trainer, and that the Mabosstiff was no match for that Mimikyu which had appeared out of nowhere.

Arven looked at Luo Mu with a pleading gaze: "Mister... could I ask you not to hurt the Mabosstiff? It..."

"What's all this noisy commotion... What are you doing!" Seemingly noticing the clamor outside, a woman with an imposing aura walked out from the laboratory.

Her words were only halfway out when she saw the Mabosstiff suspended in mid-air and Arven's face full of unease; a mother's fury instantly erupted, and she directly took a Poké Ball from her white lab coat, looking at Luo Mu threateningly.

No matter who this person was, Sada would not tolerate anyone bullying her son and the Mabosstiff.

Moreover, she recalled those unpleasant rumors from recently.

With things developing to this point, Luo Mu felt that if this continued, the misunderstanding would only deepen.

Furthermore, who knew what unexpected incidents might occur; it was better to clarify things as soon as possible.

Let it be stated beforehand, he was not afraid of the red-and-white ball in the hand of this spirited woman, who was clearly Professor Sada; even if a Cover Legendary might pop out of that ball, he would not be afraid.

"I bear no ill will; this is all a misunderstanding."

As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Mu had Mimikyu release the Mabosstiff to show his goodwill.

Afterwards, he looked toward Professor Sada, who, despite wearing a white lab coat, had underneath an outfit of unknown beast hide that seemed to proclaim a wild charm, her gaze sharp and stern.

Sada lightly stroked the beast-tooth necklace around her neck, and the wariness in her eyes diminished slightly.

Protecting them like a hen shielding her chicks, she placed the speaking Arven and the frightened Mabosstiff behind her, then said slowly: "Please explain, young Trainer, why you attacked my son and Pokémon at the entrance of my laboratory."

Luo Mu did not feel that Sada's reaction had offended him; these were things any mother should do, and moreover, thinking of what this family would experience in a few years, he simply couldn't bring himself to be harsh.

After slightly organizing his words in his mind, Luo Mu said slowly: "Chairman Geeta introduced me to come here..."

After hearing Luo Mu's account, although Sada believed seven parts of it, she still looked toward Arven, who had been trying to speak but failing to attract her attention, and asked: "Arven, is this true?"

Seeing that his mother had finally noticed him, Arven nodded heavily, opening his mouth to tell Sada that all of this was a misunderstanding arising from a series of coincidences.

"Really, you little brat scared me to death." Sada let out a sigh of relief, her demeanor becoming carefree and bold, and she ruffled Arven's smooth hair punishingly.

This caused Arven to squat down to one side, hugging the Mabosstiff and sulking.

After doing all this, Sada looked at Luo Mu and said apologetically: "My apologies; the three of us reacted too intensely. Please allow me to apologize to you."

As she finished speaking, Sada immediately intended to bow to Luo Mu in apology.

"There's no need, there's really no need." Luo Mu hurriedly stopped her action.

Since she was stopped, Sada did not insist further; after all, her style of conduct was always efficient and generous.

Skipping over the topic smoothly, Sada smiled: "Chairman Geeta has already mentioned this to my husband and me; leave the matter of crafting the Tera Orb to us with peace of mind!"

"However, my husband happens to need to go out on business, so with only me here, the original seven or eight days will likely need to be extended to about half a month; do you mind?"

Luo Mu shook his head to indicate he did not lack this bit of time; thinking that since he was already here, he might as well take a look inside the laboratory of these two Professors who never truly appeared in person throughout the game's storyline, he stated directly: "May I tour your laboratory?"

He was very curious about the daily working environment of the two legendary Professors who could research time machines in the future and had already researched Terastallization now.

Sada paused for a moment, then agreed readily: "Please follow me."