Axel and Lacey had no idea that Kyurem was about to arrive.
Originally, Axel had thought about just tossing Lacey fifty million in cash and then walking away.
But after thinking it over, he felt that would too easily cause trouble.
So Axel decided to change tactics, and instead use buying gifts as a way to repay this favor.
Under Lacey's guidance, they arrived together at a nearby small town.
This little place was called Twin Dream Town, the kind of insignificant town in the Pokémon world where you could probably find several with the same name anywhere.
Gyarados slowly descended, setting the two of them down in the central square of the town.
Maybe because all the young trainers had already set out on their journeys, there wasn't a single figure in sight within their field of vision.
Only landmarks like the Pokémon Center and Poké Mart could be seen, along with the sound of waves crashing.
"Axel~"
"What is it?"
Facing the distant sunset, Lacey's light-purple hair shimmered with a faint golden glow under the sun's rays.
In the ocean breeze, it carried a unique fragrance.
"Do you know why this place is called Twin Dream Town?"
Axel's heart skipped a beat.
'Damn, this kind of atmosphere, this kind of opening line...'
'No matter how you looked at it, it feels abnormal!'
'I didn't choose to throw money directly because I was afraid you'd hunt me down like Iono, not because I wanted to develop some romantic storyline with you.'
Axel decided to go on the offensive, making sure not to fall into Lacey's trap.
"How about we grab dinner together, talk while we eat?"
He remembered very clearly. These rich young ladies either liked eating at the fanciest hotels, or buying out a few shops when they went shopping.
As long as he wolfed down the meal quickly, and afterward directly loaded fifty million onto Lacey's VIP card, he could retreat in one piece.
This was the best strategy Axel had concluded after countless failures.
As for whether the small town had any high-spending places?
Axel wasn't worried at all.
As Clay's daughter, wasn't it normal that Lacey would know some hidden spots that looked ordinary but were actually very expensive?
"Right, there's a place here I often come to eat at."
Sure enough, Lacey's attention was easily caught, and she clapped her hands excitedly.
"There's something I've wanted to eat for a long time, but never got the chance."
Hearing this, Axel let out a long sigh of relief, straightening his back almost imperceptibly.
Something even Lacey had wanted to eat but hadn't had the chance to, there's no way it was cheap, right?
'This wave, ah, I, Axel, won't lose to you!'
———
A few minutes later, Axel stared in disbelief at the rundown little shop in front of him, along with the single old granny inside.
"Lacey, this is the shop you were talking about?"
"Of course!", Lacey nodded.
Axel glanced at the menu posted on the wall:
Spicy Eggplant Hotdog: 7
Reuben Sandwich: 7
Smoked Bagel: 9
"These prices are cheap even for the entire Unova region. How could you possibly have had no chance to eat them?"
"Because I can't finish them!", Lacey clasped her hands behind her back, blinking lightly at Axel, then tugged his sleeve and pulled him toward a window seat.
"Yo, little Lacey is here," The granny chuckled as she looked at Lacey. It was clear the two of them were already very familiar.
"Having a sandwich again today?"
"Nope!", Lacey crossed her arms in front of her chest, shaking her head, her gaze falling onto Axel.
The sunset shone through the glass, perfectly masking the flush on the girl's face.
"I... I want...", Lacey said "I want" for a long time, but still couldn't bring herself to say what she wanted to eat.
Axel shook his head lightly. No matter what Lacey wanted, the tactic he had just devised was now a complete failure.
Using fifty million for this... she could eat for a lifetime and never finish.
Axel could only grit his teeth and accompany Lacey for this meal, then move on to the next place to spend.
'Since that's the case... better make food for the pokemons first.'
"Lacey, help me order in a bit, I'll go out and prepare some food for the pokemons."
Axel released his pokemons, borrowed a big pot from the granny, and headed outside to start cooking for them.
Seeing Axel leave, Lacey finally gathered her courage and looked at the last item on the menu.
It was a picture, not beautiful, not ugly, just plain to look at.
A heart-pierced-by-an-arrow-shaped sandwich.
"Granny, I...", Halfway through, Lacey's face flushed red again.
She wanted to order the couple's meal set, to express her feelings to Axel.
But with her personality, it was really difficult to put it into action.
Just as Lacey hesitated, a soft dragon's roar suddenly came.
The Archaludon had quietly slipped into the room at some point, lying on the floor like a giant bridge.
Confirming that Axel was peacefully focused on cooking and not looking inside, the little fellow stood up neatly and tapped the menu where that heart-shaped sandwich was.
"You want this?", The granny was surprised at first, then gave a knowing auntie's smile, casting a teasing glance at Lacey.
"Looks like little Lacey has grown up."
"If you don't object, I'll go make it for you two?"
"Mm~", Lacey nodded, face still red, but her heart leaping with joy.
'Axel is really thoughtful.'
'He knows I am too shy to order, so he specially arranged for a pokemon to order for me.'
The Archaludon also grinned, laughing with a couple of growly chuckles.
'O Dragon God, your general has once again perfectly completed the mission.'
'This time, the couple's set meal you wanted, I'll definitely deliver it into your hands!'
———
"Gardevoir, what do you think about me taking Lacey to the Poké Mart later to spend some money?", While cooking, Axel discussed with Gardevoir how to get rid of Lacey, this potential threat.
Gardevoir nodded gently.
As Axel's Pokémon, she didn't want Axel getting involved with anyone else either.
From the granny's thoughts, she could sense the people of this small town were very simple and kind.
Other than the Poké Mart, there were likely very few places where Axel could repay Lacey's favor just now.
"Alright, that's settled then!"
Seeing that Gardevoir also thought his plan reasonable, Axel immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Just then, the distant calm sea suddenly surged into a monstrous wave.
The blue ocean turned pitch black, and the rolling waves rose dozens of meters high.
And that wasn't all.
A freezing, bone-chilling aura instantly swept across the whole sea, turning those giant waves into frozen sculptures.
Snowflakes drifted from the sky, and a dragon-shaped pokemon completely wrapped in ice crystals, exuding a terrifyingly savage presence, appeared above the frozen waves.
["You crawling insects on the ground, hand over Reshiram and Zekrom, those two bastards!"]
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