With the help of Yuga and Yuki, Haruki and Natsuhiko brought the injured little ones to the Pokémon Center. Their injuries weren't serious, so under Nurse Joy's treatment, they quickly became lively and energetic again.
After learning that something had happened to the kids, Yuga rushed to the Pokémon Center. Seeing that they were all safe and sound, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
"Is everyone alright?"
When the children saw that Yuga had arrived, the panic in their hearts finally disappeared. Yuki was also there, but since the children weren't familiar with her, they couldn't help but feel a bit reserved, unlike how relaxed they were in front of Yuga.
Although Haruki was young, he was quite good at explaining things. Bit by bit, he told Yuga everything that had happened. After listening, Yuga praised him:
"Haruki did a very brave thing today. But next time, when you encounter something like this, you must first assess whether you can handle it or not before taking action. If you can't beat the opponent, don't act rashly. Protecting yourself is the most important thing, okay?"
Haruki nodded obediently.
Seeing Natsuhiko pulling a long face on the side, Yuga praised him too: "Natsuhiko did great as well, you protected Buneary, didn't you?"
Natsuhiko didn't respond out of guilt: I was just afraid of getting beaten…
"Mr. Shimizu, it was this big sister who saved us," Haruki tugged at Yuga's sleeve and pointed at Yuki.
Yuga had already learned from Joyka's call that it was a young girl who had helped Haruki and the others, so he said gratefully, "We really owe you today, young lady! If it weren't for you, who knows what might have happened to these kids."
Yuki had already learned from Joyka that Gothita and the others were from YoYo Day Care, so she'd guessed Yuga's identity. Flustered, she quickly waved her hands and said, "It's no… no big deal. Anyone would have done the same if they saw that happen."
Yuki had never interacted with a top-level Trainer like Yuga before, so now that she was facing such a polite and grateful Yuga, she was extremely nervous inside.
"You can't say that," Yuga shook his head. "In any case, thank you very much."
He thought for a moment, then rummaged through his things and pulled out a card, handing it to Yuki: "Here, take this. It's a discount voucher for our YoYo Day Care. It might not be much, but please accept it. You're welcome to come visit us at the Day Care anytime."
"Al… alright." Yuki took Yuga's card in surprise, but she assumed he was just being polite and didn't take it to heart.
Not long after, Haruki and Natsuhiko's mothers also rushed over. Seeing their sons were unharmed, they both let out a sigh of relief.
Haruki's mother hugged him tightly and said with lingering fear, "It's all Mom's fault. I should've come with you."
The public safety in Verdanturf City had always been good. Who would've expected something like this to happen?
Natsuhiko's mother checked her son over and then looked over Buneary. Seeing they were both fine, she nodded in satisfaction and patted her son's small shoulder, saying:
"Not bad at all. Looks like you and Buneary are working more and more in sync. You're already able to face an enemy bravely!"
Buneary secretly rolled its eyes on the side: I'm the one who faced the enemy bravely all on my own!
Natsuhiko shrank his neck and stayed quiet. He certainly wasn't going to tell his mom that he hadn't helped at all.
"Looks like all my past worries were unnecessary," Natsuhiko's mom added.
She used to worry that the Buneary she bought for her son wouldn't suit his tastes and that in the end, it would be stuck with her. But now, things had turned out just fine.
Actually, Buneary didn't dislike Natsuhiko as its little Trainer. Although the kid was a bit of a brat, he was fun to be around. When Buneary was in a bad mood, it could beat him up to vent, and there was no guilt about it either.
As for Natsuhiko's own feelings? Who cared!
Natsuhiko certainly didn't dare to tell his mom that he didn't like Buneary—he was scared of being beaten up by it.
Sigh… When will the suffering end?
While Natsuhiko's and Haruki's moms were comforting their children, Yuga was chatting with Yuki nearby about the incident with Botan. Someone had dared to lay a hand on the Pokémon under his care—of course, Yuga wouldn't stand by and do nothing.
Since Yuki knew Botan, it wasn't hard to find him. Besides, he was a Coordinator who regularly participated in Pokémon Contests, so it was easy to look up his information.
After saying goodbye to Yuki, Haruki, Natsuhiko, and the others, Yuga took Gothita and the others back home, then went to the police station to file a report.
On the other side, after being scared off by Yuki, Botan hurriedly returned to his residence in a panic.
Botan's family had a bit of money, so instead of staying at the Pokémon Center, he was staying at a luxury hotel in Verdanturf Vity's new district, which was some distance away from the Pokémon Center in the old district.
After returning to his hotel room, the more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He felt that Yuki had gone too far. Just as he was thinking about how to get revenge on her, someone knocked on his door.
An annoyed Botan opened the door and shouted, "What is it—"
Before he could finish his sentence, he saw that there were two police officers standing in front of him.
"Are you Mr. Botan?" one of the officers asked.
Botan nodded in a daze.
The other officer showed his badge and said, "Someone has reported that you tried to forcibly take a Trainer's Pokémon. Please come with us."
And just like that, Botan was taken to the police station and detained. It was only then that he found out the Pokémon he tried to snatch belonged to YoYo Day Care—the most untouchable place in Verdanturf City. He immediately regretted everything.
With the evidence clearly against him, he couldn't deny anything even if he tried!
Although the punishment for attempted theft of a Pokémon wasn't particularly severe—just ten or so days of detention—it would still go on his criminal record. In the future, his profile would inevitably carry a stain labeled "attempted theft of Pokémon."
However, no one really cared about a small fry like Botan. After receiving word from the police that v had been detained, Yuga didn't bother to follow up on the matter anymore.
In the blink of an eye, over ten days had passed. Maybe it was because they had been through a hardship together, but during these days, Haruki and Natsuhiko often came to YoYo Day Care to play with Gothita and Flabébé.
Gradually, the little ones became more familiar with each other.
Even Natsuhiko, who had once clashed with Gothita, now acted friendly on the surface—mainly because Buneary was watching him, and he didn't dare cause trouble.
Thanks to being kept in check by Buneary, Natsuhiko had indeed become more well-behaved than before. At the very least, he no longer dared to go too far with pranks or bullying.
Because of her new friends, Flabébé, who had been emotionally down, slowly became more cheerful and stopped sulking at home all day like before.
She got along best with Haruki, because not only was he gentle by nature, he was also very good at taking care of people (and Pokémon).
Yuki had also stayed in Verdanturf City for more than ten days. During this time, she had been undergoing special training to prepare for the next Pokémon Contest.
She only needed one more Ribbon to qualify for the Grand Festival, and there was still some time before the Festival took place, so she wasn't in a hurry to leave Verdanturf.
However, today she was planning to leave the city. While packing up, she accidentally came across the discount coupon that Yuga had given her.
After thinking for a bit, Yuki decided to visit YoYo Day Care before she left. She knew it was a famous shop not only in Verdanturf but across the entire Hoenn region. She figured it was a good opportunity to restock the Pokéblocks she'd used up.
There were quite a few customers at YoYo Day Care today. When Yuki walked through the door, the place was filled with guests walking back and forth. She looked around in confusion, unsure of where to go.
"Welcome!"
Because they were short-staffed, Aju was temporarily brought in to act as a greeter.
Seeing that Yuki was wandering around aimlessly, Aju walked over and asked, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
Yuki replied, "I want to buy some Pokéblocks, but I don't know where to go?"
After the shop was rebuilt, YoYo Day Care's interior layout had become a lot more complex. For first-time customers, it was genuinely easy to get lost without a guide to explain things.
"So you're here to buy Pokéblocks, I see. Please wait a moment," Shuuya said upon hearing her request. Then he turned his head and called out to a young lady not far away, "Sister Ayaka, there's a customer here who wants to buy Pokéblocks. Can you take care of her?"
Ayaka was the employee currently in charge of Pokéblock sales at the shop.
"Okay, I'm coming!"
Ayaka handed over the shelf-organizing work she was doing to the Lopunny beside her, then quickly ran over with a bright smile on her face and said to Yuki, "Please come with me."
With Ayaka's guidance, Yuki quickly bought the Pokéblocks that suited her needs. When it was time to pay, she hesitated for a moment and then took out the discount coupon that Yuga had given her, handing it to Suzuki Koen and asking, "Can I get a discount with this?"
Raising and training Pokémon was an expensive undertaking, and Yuki was a thrifty young lady. Naturally, she tried to save whenever she could.
Suzuki-en took the coupon and was a bit surprised. Wasn't this one of the discount coupons the store had launched just a while ago?
The shop had given out quite a few of these coupons as a gesture of appreciation to loyal customers. However, these coupons came in different tiers, and the discount rate depended on the tier.
The one Yuki had presented was of the highest tier, granting a 50% discount.
Didn't the boss say that coupons of this level shouldn't be handed out lightly?! Suzuki Koen mumbled as she used the machine to verify the coupon's authenticity.
It was real.
"That's valid. With this coupon, you get a 50% discount for purchases under fifty thousand," Suzuki Koen said with a smile to Yuki.
A hint of surprise appeared in Yuki's eyes. A 50% discount for purchases under fifty thousand? That meant she only had to pay half the price for her purchase today?
Meanwhile, Suzuki Koen had already quickly packed up Yuki's items and handed them over. Yuki had just finished paying and accepted the package when she heard someone calling her from behind.
"Yuki?"
She turned around and saw that it was Yuga, who had just returned from the new branch of the store.
"So it really is you! I was actually thinking of inviting you to visit YoYo Day Care, but you hadn't come by in all these days."
Yuga had given Yuki the discount coupon hoping she would come by so he could properly thank her.
Only now did Yuki realize that Yuga hadn't been joking before. But not wanting to admit that she had misunderstood his intention, she could only reply, "I've been quite busy lately and haven't had the time to come."
Yuga didn't mind at all and said with a smile, "Today is good too! Since you're here, how about I treat you to a meal? If it's convenient, of course."
Yuki was naturally tempted by Yuga's invitation, but remembering that she was about to leave Verdanturf City today, she had no choice but to decline.
"I'm afraid I can't today. I'm planning to leave Verdanturf City today."
Yuga was just about to express his regret when he said, "That's a real shame. But no worries—next time you come to Verdanturf, you must drop by our YoYo Day Care!"
Yuki replied politely, "Definitely."
After that, Yuga didn't try to make Yuki stay any longer and saw her off at the entrance of YoYo Day Care.
When he returned to the shop, Yuga happened to see Haruki and Flabébé coming back, chatting and laughing together. A thought stirred in his heart: perhaps Haruki was someone truly suitable for Flabébé.
Yuga felt deeply sorry about what had happened with Chihai, so he had always wanted to make it up to Flabébé, but he hadn't found the right opportunity.
These past few days, he had been watching Haruki and Flabébé getting along, and since he had a decent understanding of Haruki, he knew the boy was indeed a rare, good child—very well matched with the gentle Flabébé.
Yuga wasn't necessarily set on finding a Trainer for Flabébé—after all, YoYo Day Care had more than enough to raise her properly.
But the reason he had chosen Flabébé as the first Pokémon from her group to be sold was because Flabébé had once said that she wanted to see the outside world.
Yuga still remembered that wish Flabébé had made, and he didn't want her to give up on it just because of one setback. The outside world was still a beautiful and exciting place.
However, thinking was one thing. Since he was considering finding a Trainer for Flabébé, it obviously had to be with her consent. So he decided to wait until he had asked for Flabébé's opinion first.
If Flabébé was no longer willing to have a Trainer, Yuga certainly wouldn't force her.
On the other side, Yuki had just left YoYo Day Care and, with her backpack slung on, began her journey. But just as she stepped beyond Verdanturf City's boundaries, a sneaky-looking person pulled out a communicator and reported her location.
It turned out that Yuki had already been targeted, and the one keeping an eye on her was none other than Botan.
Ever since Botan had been "released after serving time" from the Verdanturf City police station, the more he thought about it, the more stifled he felt. The one who had reported him to the police was Yuga—he didn't dare mess with him, so he put all the blame on Yuki.
If it weren't for Yuki, he would have escaped Verdanturf City with Gothita and Flabébé already. Wouldn't that have been freedom to roam as he pleased?
But Botan didn't dare cause trouble within Verdanturf anymore. So he spent money to hire a group of people to follow Yuki's every move, planning to teach her a lesson once she left the city.
Yuki was walking leisurely with her Delcatty on a small path that led out of Verdanturf. They chatted as they walked, enjoying themselves, when suddenly a group of people jumped out from the woods and surrounded her and Delcatty. The one in the lead was Botan.
"Botan, what do you think you're doing?" Yuki asked warily, glaring at him.
"What do you think?" Botan sneered smugly. "I'm here to let you know that there are some things you shouldn't meddle in!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he gestured to the people beside him. One of them waved his hand and shouted, "Get her!"
Immediately, over ten people directed their Pokémon to charge at Yuki and Delcatty. Yuki hurriedly pulled out Poké Balls and released the rest of her team.
But two fists were no match for many hands. Even though Yuki was strong, she couldn't withstand the ferocious attack of over ten opponents.
"Sylveon, Fairy Wind!"
Just when Yuki was about to falter, a sweet and clear voice rang out. In the next moment, a powerful gust of wind blew away all the Pokémon attacking Yuki.