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In the afternoon, Lucas continued to enjoy his leisurely day, neither working nor struggling for a living.
He lay on a deck chair under the porch at the entrance, rocking back and forth, while Munchlax gently massaged his shoulders from behind.
"Munch~ Munch~" Am I doing a good job, Master?
"Comfortable~ So comfortable~" Lucas sighed contentedly.
Hearing this, Munchlax massaged even more vigorously, its skillful technique honed from daily kneading dough.
"With Munchlax's skills, we wouldn't have to worry about business even if we opened a massage parlor," Lucas said, enjoying the massage with his eyes closed.
"Munch~ Munch~"
Being praised by its master, Munchlax was as happy as a little bee, circling around Lucas excitedly.
"Munch~ Munch~" I don't want to open a massage parlor. I only want to massage Master.
Munchlax declared proudly.
After massaging for a while, Lucas felt his blood circulation flowing smoothly, so he waved his hand and said to Munchlax, "Come on, let's take a nap together."
"Munch~ Munch~"
Hearing this, Munchlax happily ran to the front, shuffled another deck chair next to Lucas's, and then lay down comfortably.
Lucas handed it a blanket. "Here, cover yourself. It's not cold right now, but it's different when you fall asleep. Be careful not to catch a cold."
"Munch~ Munch~" Thank you, Master.
Munchlax happily took the blanket, covered itself, and enjoyed its master's care.
Creak~ Creak~
The two deck chairs swayed, occasionally making a whimpering sound. Coupled with the chirping of Swablu and Fletchling from the sky, Lucas and Munchlax soon dozed off.
When Diancie walked out of the house, she saw the serene sleeping faces of the master and his little apprentice.
"These two..." She shook her head with a smile, tiptoed over, pulled the blankets up a little for both of them, and then went back into the house.
Lucas slowly opened his eyes in the mid-afternoon, and the first thing he saw was the clear blue sky—a perfect autumn day.
"Swablu~ Swablu~" Lucas, Lucas, good afternoon!
Swablu flapped its fluffy wings and landed on Lucas's lap.
Lucas smoothed its back gently. "Swablu, good afternoon!"
"Fletch~ Fletch~" Lucas, Lucas.
"Sprit~ Spritzee~" Lucas, I'm here!
Fletchling and Spritzee also landed one after another, huddling together with Swablu on Lucas's lap. Soon, the three little birds were rolling around playfully.
Happiness! Such happiness! Lucas squinted his eyes and played with the three Pokémon. Wasn't this exactly the life he had imagined when he first arrived in the Pokémon world?
It was a pity that his health hadn't been good before, preventing him from interacting freely with Pokémon. Only now was he finally able to realize his wish.
After playing for a while, Fletchling hopped into Lucas's palm. "Fletchling~" Lucas, let's go play.
Lucas couldn't understand what Fletchling was saying, and Fletchling grew so anxious that it waved its wings and chirped repeatedly.
It took Lucas quite some time to guess. "You want to go out and play together?"
Finally understanding, Lucas! You're a bit slow! Fletchling sighed deeply, spreading its wings to show its helplessness.
Lucas was amused by its dramatic reaction.
"Okay, let's go play together."
Lucas got up, and the three little birds flew up from his lap.
"Munchlax, wake up." Lucas gently nudged Munchlax.
"Munch? Munch?"
Munchlax had been dreaming of something. With Lucas's gentle push, it jumped up from the deck chair, looked around in panic, and breathed a sigh of relief when it saw Lucas.
It plunged into Lucas's arms, nudging his stomach with its head, seeking comfort.
"Munch~ Munch~" Master, I was so scared. I couldn't find you for a long time. I thought you didn't want me anymore.
Lucas patted its back gently. "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
"Munch~"
Munchlax nodded gently.
"It's okay, don't be afraid." Lucas comforted it. "With Master here, there's nothing to be afraid of."
After Munchlax calmed down, Lucas asked, "Do you want to go out and play with us?"
"Munch~ Munch~" Yes, let's go play together.
Munchlax nodded vigorously and then took Lucas's hand.
"Diancie, Munchlax and I are going out for a while," Lucas called into the house.
"Okay, don't stay out too late," Diancie's voice replied from inside.
Then Lucas set off with Munchlax, Swablu, Spritzee, and Fletchling.
"Munch~ Munch~"
Munchlax chased after Fletchling and the others, jumping and trying to reach them with its hands, but the flying Pokémon dodged and refused to let it catch them. Munchlax's cheerful cries and Fletchling's chirps rose and fell, echoing across the empty meadow.
This kid really has a big heart, Lucas thought. Just moments ago, it was scared by a nightmare, but as soon as we went outside, it started having fun.
As they walked, Lucas encountered two Gogoat grazing. The Pokémon seemed to be planning to turn around and run away, but something made them stop abruptly.
"Gogoat~ Goat~"
"Gogoat~ Goat~"
They called out to Lucas, as if they were greeting him.
Lucas was stunned. It wasn't the first time he had seen Gogoat nearby, but every previous encounter had ended with the Gogoat turning tail and running away.
Has the sun risen from the west today?
He decided to greet the Gogoat in return. "Good afternoon!"
The two Gogoat nodded very seriously to Lucas, making him feel rather flattered.
After saying goodbye to the Gogoat, Lucas continued walking forward and soon encountered a Hippopotas and a Hippowdon. Their attitude toward Lucas was exactly the same as the Gogoat he had just met.
Not only that, but Lucas then encountered Baltoy, Aron, Sawsbuck, Drilbur, Watchog, Patrat... These Pokémon who used to turn and run at the sight of him were now willing to take the initiative to greet him.
Thinking about it, Lucas felt that he had finally gained the approval of the Pokémon on Nebel Plateau and truly become a member of their community.
In fact, that's exactly what had happened.
The story of Lucas helping Gardevoir had spread across the plateau. The Pokémon on Nebel Plateau had always been closely connected, and to them, Lucas helping Gardevoir was the same as helping all of them.
They were now willing to acknowledge Lucas's identity as a resident of Nebel Plateau and treat him as a member of their extended family.
Before they knew it, Lucas and Munchlax arrived at the shore of Lake Nebel.
Spritzee was very playful. With a 'whoosh,' it quickly landed on a thick lotus leaf resting on the water's surface. Then, it stomped down hard, causing the lotus leaf to sink into the water, and the water to quickly converge toward the center of the leaf. Before the water could gather beneath its feet, Spritzee let out a happy cry and flew up again.
"Sprit~ Spritzee~"
Finding it very fun, Spritzee laughed heartily in the air and then did it again.
Fletchling and Swablu, not wanting to be outdone, followed Spritzee's example, stomping on the lotus leaves one after another.
"Fletch~ Fletch~"
"Swablu~ Swablu~"
The three little birds were having the time of their lives.
Seeing how much fun Spritzee and the others were having, Munchlax immediately started to move its legs, wanting to rush into the water and stomp on the lotus leaves like them.
"Hey, hey, hey~ What are you doing?" Lucas grabbed the back of Munchlax's neck, stopping it just in time.
"Munch~ Munch~"
Munchlax gestured, indicating that it wanted to play with Spritzee and the others too.
Lucas said helplessly, "How big are they, and how big are you? The lotus leaves can't withstand you stomping on them."
"Munch~ Munch~~"
Munchlax looked aggrieved, glancing at Spritzee and the others from time to time with envious eyes. It really wanted to join in the fun.
Lucas looked around and suddenly spotted some Marill and Azurill by the lakeshore not far away. His eyes lit up, and he said to Munchlax:
"That reminds me, don't you and Diancie both like Salveyo weed? Let's ask Marill where we can find some."
As soon as it heard something about food, Munchlax immediately perked up, completely forgetting about stomping on lotus leaves.
"Munch~ Munch~"
Munchlax took Lucas's hand and ran toward Marill and the others, waving as it ran.
The Marill were leading several Azurill in playing in the water. Seeing Lucas and the others approach, they jumped out of the water one by one and hopped over to greet them.
"Marill, Azurill, good afternoon."
"Marill~ Marill~" Lucas, good afternoon.
Lucas and the Marill exchanged greetings.
"Azurill~ Azu~" Munchlax, Munchlax, let's play together.
The Azurill surrounded Munchlax, their elastic tails causing them to bounce high like rubber balls.
"Munch~ Munch~" Okay, okay.
Lucas glanced at Munchlax, who was already playing with the Azurill, then turned to the Marill and asked, "Marill, I wanted to ask where you picked the Salveyo weed you gave me before?"
"Mari~ Mari~"
Marill gestured and explained to Lucas, pointing in another direction at the same time.
Lucas looked in the direction Marill was pointing and noticed that Spritzee and the others had somehow gotten into a confrontation with a group of Poliwag.
"Poli~ Poliwag~ Poli~~"
The Poliwag were spitting "spit" (Water Gun) at Spritzee, Fletchling, and Swablu in the air, while his bird Pokémon retaliated with Ember, Fairy Wind, and Growl.
Seeing this, Lucas quickly ran over, intending to mediate, but when he got there, he realized it was a misunderstanding. The Poliwag and the birds were just playing a game of war, having a great time, filled with laughter.
The lotus leaf had originally been a place where the Poliwag sunbathed. Spritzee and the others stomping on the lotus leaf had naturally disturbed the Poliwag hiding underneath.
After Marill's difficult explanation, Lucas finally understood that the previous Salveyo weed had all been given to them by the Poliwag; Marill had just been passing them on.
So if Lucas wanted Salveyo weed, he would need to ask the Poliwag for help.
Seeing that the Poliwag were having fun, Lucas didn't rashly step forward to disturb them. Instead, he, Munchlax, Marill, and Azurill found a soft, thick patch of grass to sit down and quietly watch Spritzee and the others play their war game.
The Poliwag had the advantage in numbers; how could the three birds be a match for them? They were quickly defeated.
"Fletch~"
"Sprit~!"
"Blu~"
The three little birds landed beside Lucas, panting heavily, lying sprawled on the grass, gasping for breath.
The Poliwag were also quite tired, lying on the lotus leaves with their bellies bulging.
Lucas smiled and asked the three little birds, "Did you have fun playing?"
As soon as the three birds heard this, they immediately jumped up like leaping Magikarp, gesticulating wildly and excitedly telling Lucas about their battle achievements.
But they were clearly the ones who had lost.
Unfortunately, Lucas didn't understand a word they were saying.
After the Poliwag rested for a while, Lucas approached them to inquire about the Salveyo weed.
In the past, when the Poliwag saw Lucas approaching, they would jump into the water and hide far away at the first opportunity, but this time they stayed put.
When they learned that Lucas wanted Salveyo weed, they didn't refuse his request either.
A Poliwag jumped into the water and gestured to Lucas.
Lucas asked, "Do you want me to follow you?"
The Poliwag nodded, then called out to the other Poliwag on the lotus leaves. Immediately, all the Poliwag lined up and jumped into the water, following their leader and swimming away.
Although they liked to sunbathe here, their actual habitat was elsewhere.
Watching the Poliwag gradually swim away, Lucas was in a dilemma. Did he have to swim after them? He really couldn't do that; this was Lake Nebel, not some small pond or puddle.
"Marill~ Marill~~"
At this time, Marill walked over and tugged on Lucas's pants leg.
Lucas asked, "Marill, are you... are you going to help me?"
"Marill~ Mari~"
Marill nodded, then jumped into the water with a splash. The other Marill and Azurill followed closely behind, disappearing into the water in no time.
Lucas and Munchlax waited on the shore for a while. Soon, Marill returned with its companions, accompanied by another Pokémon.
"It's you, Lapras." Lucas greeted the Pokémon in surprise.
"Woo~"
Lapras also squinted its eyes and greeted Lucas warmly.
Realizing that Marill had gone to ask Lapras for help, Lucas sincerely thanked it. "Marill, thank you so much."
"Mari~ Mari~" You're welcome.
Marill waved its hands repeatedly.
"Lapras, I'm counting on you too," Lucas said to Lapras.
"Woo~~"
Lapras nodded, turning its head to signal Lucas and Munchlax to climb onto its back.
In this way, Lucas and Munchlax rode on Lapras toward the Poliwag's habitat, while Spritzee, Fletchling, and Swablu chirped happily as they flew alongside.
Lapras and Marill both knew where the Poliwag lived. With them leading the way, Lucas soon saw a lush and verdant area of aquatic plants.
In the dense aquatic plants, Lucas could see Poliwag and Poliwhirl playing happily, as well as Surskit darting quickly across the water's surface and Masquerain resting peacefully on the aquatic plants.