Chapter 551: A Chuunibyou Boy Who Isn't Quite Chuunibyou Enough Yet (6K)

Although startled, upon closer inspection, Luo Mu realized the boy's condition did not seem very good.

His lips were dry, and his complexion was pale.

A soft towel, soaked in cold water and then wrung out, was still placed on his forehead.

Seeming to feel cold all over, the boy curled up in the blanket like a dried shrimp.

These symptoms were clearly those of a fever.

Luo Mu frowned slightly; just as he was about to return to the bedroom to search his suitcase for the medicine he had prepared, the sound of a door opening and closing came from the entryway.

Turning to look, he discovered it was the Oranguru and Luxray, with some dew still on their shoulders, and the basket in the Oranguru's hand contained quite a few medicinal herbs.

It was one thing for others to extend a helping hand to him, but now, penniless as he was, he still harbored delusions of asking the other party for even more—

When others showed him kindness, Gladion obviously found it hard to refuse, and he awkwardly accepted Luo Mu's goodwill.

At the same time, Gladion panicked slightly, thinking he had only reported his name and said nothing else; surely Mr. Luo Mu wasn't an acquaintance of Faba? Setting aside whether Luo Mu and Faba were on the same side, he was indeed somewhat surprised right now.

Luo Mu nodded without surprise; anyway, when preparing the meat filling, he had specifically made it less greasy, and the special medicine prepared together with the Oranguru seemed effective, so letting the boy eat some would do no harm.

"Um, I may not have enough reward to thank you."

Finding it was the most important matter of Luo Mu's Alola journey, bar none.

At this moment, however, it was empty.

"While eating, we can slowly talk about your matters."

Some gifted Pokémon can innately master telepathy, and there are also acquired cases, but the common point is that they can communicate with humans, just like the Oranguru before them.

Luo Mu looked questioningly at the Oranguru walking out from behind, asking with his eyes if it had seen anything.

Speaking of which, could that Cherish Ball he valued so highly be the little Arceus, Type: Null, Silvally? The corners of Luo Mu's mouth twitched slightly; for a moment, he didn't know how to evaluate whether encountering such a thing immediately upon arriving in the Alola region was good luck or bad luck.

Fortunately, Luxray and Milotic lent a hand nearby, so nothing went wrong.

After understanding the driving force behind Gladion's runaway, Luo Mu did not press further, lest he make Gladion nervous and cause his illness to relapse.

He said with a mix of helplessness and amusement, "It's just a small matter; why would I need your reward?"

He had learned it before.

With Luo Mu's assistance, before long, the Oranguru poured the special medicine, mixed from several medicinal herbs in the bowl, down the throat of the sleeping boy.

What was this? Gladion, who could solemnly say words like "I want to become stronger," was indeed the Gladion he remembered deep down.

The Oranguru volunteered to take on the dishwashing work; Luo Mu prepared two cups of plain boiled water, placing one before himself and one before the boy, before speaking: "Let's introduce ourselves first; I am Luo Mu, from the Paldea region, having just arrived in the Alola region yesterday for a vacation."

"Rather than these small matters, are you hungry? I just prepared some porridge for breakfast; would you like to taste it?"

After the incident of arranging Clemont and Luxio's reunion in advance, he had become clear on one point.

And there was also the matter of purifying the four Treasures of Ruin in the Paldea region.

"Alright."

"I want to become stronger."

After such a long time, now that he had come to the Alola region, it was time to resolve the matter of the Dragonite leader.

After eating, sleepiness indeed returned.

It seemed their family was most likely the more "friendly" character setting from the anime, especially Gladion's mother, Lusamine.

The shadows near the sofa writhed for a moment; accompanied by a chill spreading through the living room, a Spectrier with a figure as black as the night appeared.

Gladion said with reserved dignity.

Gladion clenched his fists, his eyes full of determination.

After a hearty meal.

As the high-spirited Dragonite flapped its dragon wings, it took only a short while before Luo Mu arrived at his destination—

Just seeing its appearance, which was more robust than its kin and inexplicably made people feel pressure, Gladion was still startled, nearly falling off the sofa.

Hearing the Oranguru's explanation, which matched his own guesses almost exactly, he nodded and said, "Alright, I'll come help you prepare too."

That's right, this was the Pokémon School built on Melemele Island.

Holy crap, did Spectrier pick up a big brother-in-law (scratch that) and bring him home!? Naturally, he knew Gladion.

Gladion's heart jumped in surprise; his fingers involuntarily curled and opened, as if confirming the tactile sensation in his hand before losing consciousness.

It was simply too shameless.

This guest, who appeared only a few years older than himself, was obviously a quite powerful Trainer! A trace of excitement surfaced in Emperor Yan Di's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

After Luo Mu served the buns to Luxray and the others, and sat at the dining table preparing to taste his own portion, wanting to find a topic to chat about—

But soon, Gladion's heart was conquered by the patient Luo Mu; after hesitating for a while, he spoke the reason for his runaway.

The sense of powerlessness from three and a half years ago, that regret of being unable to do anything.

Seeing this, Luo Mu, thinking the boy should wake up in a little while, did not idle either; he ran to the villa's built-in kitchen, intending to prepare some light food.

If one were to say what he wanted to do besides restoring Type: Null, Silvally's freedom, it would certainly be to become stronger.

This was not self-satisfaction; it was merely that he could do it, and it would not produce any bad effects, so he did it.

The Dragonite landed smoothly, and Luo Mu, looking at the building before him, the corners of his mouth rose slightly.

"I want to let Type: Null, Silvally, no longer be imprisoned, and—"

At first, Gladion looked troubled, obviously somewhat unwilling to mention why he had run away from home.

After all this fuss, it was almost dawn.

Gladion repeated it in a voice only he could hear. Then, with a solemn tone, he introduced himself: "Hello, Mr. Luo Mu, I am... Gladion."

Gladion asked with an anxious yet polite voice: "Thank you for saving me; may I ask if you have seen a white Cherish Ball? It is very important to me!"

Connecting this with the obviously post-rain weather outside the window upon waking, Luo Mu immediately understood the cause of the boy's fever.

Originally, Mu De Xiang Fa was to find someone to act as an intermediary to approach Lusamine, and then find a way to hand the photograph over to her.

Luo Mu shook his head helplessly, then immediately reacted, widening his eyes to inquire.

At this moment, Dragonite was clearly a bit worked up, looking at Luo Mu with excitement.

Whether it was the question about the Dragonite chief or the question about the Treasures of the Four Calamities, both required the power of Seeing Kapu Finneon.

Upon discovering that Glazio's growth trajectory was consistent with what was shown in the anime, Luo Mu also breathed a slight sigh of relief.

They would have to find the "clear water that purifies all impurity" recorded in the wooden slips, bring it back to the Paldea region, and sprinkle it on the thirty-two stakes.

"Spectrier, you're the one who discovered him, aren't you planning to come out?"

Even though his own appearance had changed some things, as long as those people's essence remained, they would still, in their own way, become better in places Luo Mu could not see.

Luo Mu's voice paused for a moment, his gaze cast toward a shadow as he urged aloud.

Through his studies with Nurse Joy of Hearthome Town, Luo Mu had also improved considerably in identifying herbs; although he did not smell them, he could roughly tell that those herbs more or less all had the effect of treating feverish symptoms.

It was probably late last night, when heavy rain was falling outside.

Glazio seemed to sense something, stopped his wolfing-down yet still polite movements, and said softly: "At home, we were taught not to talk while eating, nor to speak while sleeping."

But thinking about how it would be hard to explain how he knew Glazio was Mo En's son, he dismissed the thought.

To avoid any misunderstanding from Glazio, Oranguru also explained through telepathy: "After you collapsed from the fever, you let go of your hand, so I put it together with the two Poké Balls from the clothes you had changed out of."

Oranguru nodded lightly and accepted the task.

After he thought for several seconds, he finally noticed the discordant point.

Moreover, looking at the set of Glazio's clothes that Oranguru had hung outside to dry, it didn't look like the kind of non-mainstream outfit from the anime or games—his hairstyle was normal, and there were no flashy ornaments on his ears either.

Over these past few years, he had been getting stronger through his own efforts, until he learned that the Silvally that had saved Lillie back then had actually been restrained and imprisoned by Zossie.

Right! The Glazio before him was neither aloof nor chuunibyou, plainly just an ordinary, polite young master from a wealthy family!

According to the contents recorded on the wooden slips that Luo Mu and Lei He had found in the tomb beneath Hokulani Desert, to purify the Treasures of the Four Calamities that had been tainted and altered by the many desires and curses of humans, restoring them to their original form as Treasures of Auspicious Fortune—

As for whether his own intended actions would interfere with the original plot, causing major shifts in the fate lines of those people, Luo Mu wasn't worried about that either.

In fact, the moment he heard Glazio introduce himself by name, Luo Mu had already considered handing the photo over to him.

Luo Mu didn't hide it either, directly nodding and saying: "Yes, after we go see an acquaintance, we'll figure out a way to find Seeing Kapu Finneon."

But as long as they were essentially still the same people, naturally there would be many, or even more, new opportunities for them to grow and break free from their immaturity.

"Then I'll trouble you to stay here and watch over him." Luo Mu said to Oranguru.

Toward the existence of the youth, they all displayed a considerable degree of curiosity.

Upon hearing Oranguru's voice, Glazio first froze, then quickly reacted.

Although more or less, from various traces, he had already figured out some of it.

It was just that, under the reminder of the Luxray standing guard nearby, they didn't disturb the slumbering youth, and simply watched curiously from the side.

Oranguru nodded lightly, waved the feather fan in his hand, and his psychic power directly grabbed the Cherish Ball and the other two Poké Balls quietly placed on the table a short distance away, controlling the balls to float toward Glazio. Covered by a light blanket, having drunk the nutritious porridge and feeling his body grow warm, Glazio fell into a deep sleep.

During the gap while Luo Mu was preparing breakfast, Milotic, the Eevee sisters, Ogerpon, and Dragonite woke up one after another; even Swampert, who had been wandering outside all night, made it back just in time for the meal.

Wearing thick heat-insulating gloves, Luo Mu carried a clay pot still steaming with hot air out of the kitchen, glanced toward the living room, saw the anxious-faced Glazio, and raised an eyebrow.

The special medicine took effect quickly; in just over ten minutes, the youth's condition had visibly improved considerably.

It's just that no matter how Luo Mu looked at the Glazio before him, he felt something was missing.

"... Thank you."

Glazio's eyes went wide, looking at the Spectrier he knew nothing about, with not the slightest memory in his mind, and was deeply shaken.

"?"

"Cherish Ball?"

Although Luo Mu had already reasoned out the youth's origins to a fair degree, after setting down the herbs, Oranguru still explained to Luo Mu why there was suddenly an extra person in the villa.

"As you can see, for certain reasons I chose to leave home, and since I didn't bring cash, I am unable to prepare sufficient payment for you."

Moreover, Glazio was still considered a patient at the moment; getting too worked up wouldn't be good either.

After all, he was a young master who had grown up in luxury since childhood; when he said those words, Glazio didn't know how much courage it took, and even the fair-skinned face he had inherited from his mother was nearly flushed red through.

"Spec... trier?"

He was also the strongest rival of the future Ash in the Alola region, the powerful trainer who contended with Ash for the first Alola Champion title.

After completely confirming the Cherish Ball had vanished, his expression changed, he abruptly sat up, his gaze urgently searching all around, and his slightly hoarse, illness-tinged voice rang out.

He hadn't expected this blond youth to bring up the matter of payment, and a clear question mark even popped up over Luo Mu's head.

It's just that compared to the him in the anime who had clearly been away from home for a long time and had been fending for himself for a while, the current Glazio was still in every respect an ordinary young master from a wealthy family who wanted for nothing, merely carrying a few burdens.

The son of Lusamine—who had the nickname "mother-in-law," was loved by some, and was also quite controversial, with a personality that differed greatly between the game and anime versions.

It might be a bit late to say this now, but he only realized upon seeing Spectrier that the quality of the Pokémon gathered in this living room was extremely high, many of which he didn't recognize at all.

Even though Luo Mu had helped him, the youth still harbored a certain degree of wariness toward the outside world.

After calming down, Glazio first solemnly thanked the Spectrier who had discovered him, then carefully and uneasily sat down on the sofa, his fingers twisting together nervously behind his back.

Whether it was delivering the photo, finding a Pokémon chef, or taking a relaxing vacation, all of it would have to be put on the back burner.

Having sorted out the situation, Glazio hurriedly apologized: "Sorry, I got too worked up."

Dispelling external pathogens, clearing heat and detoxifying.

Glazio, who had instinctively thanked them out of politeness, stared blankly at his surroundings, locking eyes with the aggressively spectating Ogerpon, the Eevee sisters, Dragonite, and the Dragonite chief beside him; for a moment, none of them dared to act rashly.

"Guraa? (Awake?)" Swampert blinked, showing the youth a smile he considered friendly.

Having laid everything out with Oranguru, Luo Mu also felt at ease returning Luxray and the others to their Poké Balls; yesterday had basically been a day of fun, and today it was time to get down to business.

"Cherish Ball, my Cherish Ball—"

A fragrance belonging to the nutritious porridge drilled into his nostrils along with the steam, instantly whetting his appetite.

Glazio was slightly surprised; he didn't know if it was because he still had a fever, but he, who normally only loved meat, actually found his mouth watering at the bland porridge.

Seeing that the rain had stopped, Oranguru called along Luxray, whose eyesight was excellent, and together they went to a nearby grove to gather some medicinal herbs, preparing to make medicine for the youth to take.

"Meat buns it is."

Strong enough to openly keep the Silvally by his side, find a way to resolve and treat Lillie's fear of Pokémon, and furthermore, find his father who fell into an Ultra Wormhole and went missing, possibly even dead.

Gladion remembered that the butler James had once said sleep is an important behavior for human self-repair, so at this time it was better to follow Luo Mu's advice, wait for the fever to subside, and only then talk about becoming stronger and the matter of Silvally.

But looking at the boy's appearance, he was indeed a child from a wealthy family; just like Hearing Hearing Nimo, except Hearing Hearing Nimo's family doted on her greatly and did not impose excessive constraints regarding etiquette.

"Please leave it to me, Young Master."

Fortunately, this Lusamine was much more normal.

Gladion's observational skills were not bad; he immediately realized this must be inside the villa, and that he had been brought into the house by Luo Mu, who lived here, to receive treatment.

It would be better to wait until Gladion himself mentioned Mo En later, and then cleverly hand over the photo to Gladion in a more suitable way, such as saying, "I also know someone named Mo En; this is a photo of us together."

Luo Mu, who had been watching Gladion's expression all along, saw his reaction and instead breathed a sigh of relief.

As for the idea prepared this morning to directly run to a nearby resort hotel for a casual meal, it was naturally temporarily cancelled.

It was suddenly woken up by Spectrier, and when brought outside, it saw a boy taking shelter from the rain under the villa's eaves; having caught a chill from the rain, his body was weak, and he had fallen into a state of coma and fever.

One must know that in the game, Lusamine could only be described as twisted and paranoid; she loved Pokémon to a fanatical, twisted degree, wanting to collect every single Pokémon, and even in her private residence, she preserved her favorite Pokémon using cryogenic stasis technology as if they were exhibition pieces.

Today was not the scheduled interview time with the Pokémon chef; apart from some particularly important preparations for this trip, it had nothing else to do and had originally planned to stay in the villa, so taking care of one more person was merely an extra task.

Surprise flashed in Emperor Yan Di's eyes, followed by a self-deprecating laugh as he said: "Alright, then we'll chat after you finish eating."

The focus of the conversation mainly centered on the reason for Gladion's runaway from home.

Seemingly not expecting Luo Mu to react this way, Gladion, who showed none of the cold, chuunibyou demeanor seen in the anime and games and looked merely like an ordinary wealthy young master, spoke weakly: "Gladion, I am Gladion."

Outside the door.

"However, I personally suggest you eat something light; that will help you recover faster."

Just now he had said he ran away from home; Luo Mu remembered that in the Sun and Moon anime, it seemed to be mentioned that Gladion maintained a state of being a runaway.

Yet at this very moment, Luo Mu still said: "By the way, I also steamed several baskets of buns; there are both meat-filled and vegetable-filled ones. Which kind do you want to eat, or do you want both?"

"What reward are we talking about now... wait, what did you say your name is?"

If that's the case then—

This is the school where Ash will study in the future; perhaps due to receiving further education, Ash directly won the title of "First Generation Champion of the Alola League" during his time at the school.

Because the Alola region does not exclude flying mount Pokémon from entering cities, this time he flew openly into Melemele Island with Dragonite, rather than landing somewhere in the wild and walking the rest of the way to his destination.

Luo Mu's gaze fell again on his own satchel hanging on the entryway not far away; inside, several photos were currently resting quietly.

Looking at it now, they could be handed directly to Gladion.

Just thinking about having to interact with such a character made Luo Mu feel as if the hairs on his body were about to stand on end.

Even if his actions caused Gladion's family to reunite early, causing Gladion, Lillie, and even Lusamine to miss out on some opportunities for growth.

He never wanted to experience that again.

Perhaps that process would be a bit slower, but in exchange, this family could reunite much earlier.

As for Gladion's side, he would check on it after he returned.

When Gladion regained consciousness, subconsciously rubbing his throbbing temples as he opened his eyes, he directly met the gaze of Swampert's pair of eyes, which looked slightly "wise" outside of battle.

"Telepathy!?"

The commotion here naturally alarmed Luo Mu in the kitchen and the Oranguru who was helping.

Apart from Suicune, the only Pokémon capable of producing "clear water that purifies all filth" was likely Tapu Fini, the guardian deity of Poni Island in the Alola region.

"It's nothing; it seems there is a very important companion of yours inside the Poké Ball." Placing the clay pot in front of Gladion, Luo Mu smiled and corrected: "Also, the one who helped you wasn't me; it was Oranguru, Luxray, and—"

"... The Paldea region."

As Luo Mu's voice fell, only then did Gladion notice the clay pot before him still emitting steam.

Although his psychological emotions were fluctuating wildly, on the surface Luo Mu still maintained his original expression and patiently began communicating with Gladion.

Arriving outside the villa, he used a Poké Ball to summon Dragonite.

Luo Mu directly arranged for him to rest in one of the still-empty bedrooms; no matter what needed to be done, it would have to wait until he recovered from his illness.

"...!?"

"What are you making noise about?"

Faced with this situation, Oranguru naturally would not turn a blind eye; it directly chose to bring the boy into the villa, first gave him a hot bath since his clothes were soaked through, dried his body, and then changed him into a set of Luo Mu's pajamas that were somewhat oversized.

Thinking of these things, the determination in Gladion's eyes grew even stronger.

"You woke up quite fast; it seems your constitution is very good."

He immediately swallowed hard.

Gladion could no longer suppress the anger in his heart; knowing it was useless to tell his mother, the Chairman of the Aether Foundation, he got carried away by a surge of hot blood, directly took away the Master Ball containing Silvally, and then came the incident of getting caught in the rain, developing a fever, and being discovered by Spectrier.

It was not until Gladion suddenly noticed something was wrong that his gaze fell upon the hand that should originally have been holding the Master Ball.

The older brother of Lillie, who was pursued by Pokémon fans and whose PTCG trading card "Go Lillie" had its price bid up to the sky.

And Kukui, the old friend Luo Mu was looking for, also successfully obtained the title of "Pokémon Professor" after ending his journey and chose to teach and nurture students here.

It was just that the timing of Luo Mu's arrival seemed not very good.

Only to see a large group of people wearing strange clothes, with hair dyed in multiple colors, looking quite non-mainstream, marching massively toward the Pokémon School.

And Luo Mu stood blocking their path.

(End of Chapter)