Chapter 178: Uchiage Hanabi
One Week Ago
"The End of Heat has passed, and White Dew is near. Zhuqing City will be holding a three-night Fireworks Festival starting this Sunday." The announcement for the fireworks festival looped on the giant screen atop the Zhuqing Radio Building.
A graceful blonde woman withdrew her gaze and turned to the sunglasses-wearing woman beside her. "Are you free that day?"
The short-haired woman nodded slightly. "I can make time, but it'll be a bit rushed."
"Having company is enough," Cynthia smiled softly, then murmured, "Fireworks in Sinnoh… it's been a long time since I last saw them."
"You're free all the time, aren't you?" Kalos Champion Diantha teased, lowering her sunglasses.
"Which is exactly why I worry about getting recognized." Cynthia loosened her shoulders, stretched her arms above her head, and let out a lazy sigh. "If I weren't the Champion, maybe I wouldn't feel so much pressure in my free time."
Diantha gave a knowing nod, then after a brief pause, suggested, "It's a rare opportunity. Want to try launching fireworks yourself?"
"Eh?"
Time flew by. Under the cool night sky, crowds gathered by the coastline, the clack of wooden sandals echoing against the pavement. Cynthia let Diantha pin up her golden hair, fidgeting uneasily. "Are you sure we won't get recognized?"
"Trust my makeup skills." Diantha stowed her brush, took a step back to admire her work, and smirked. "This outfit suits you well."
Cynthia's deep purple yukata was elegant and regal, her golden hair styled into an intricate updo, with a few strands gently framing her face. Standing up, she glanced around uncomfortably. "This feels… restrictive."
"As long as it looks good, that's all that matters!" Diantha chuckled. "Now come on, let's go set off some fireworks~~"
No one recognized the two Champions. Or maybe, everyone's attention was simply drawn to the fireworks bursting in the sky. The night was illuminated by dazzling flames, glowing like countless stars. Cynthia gazed at the fireworks, lost in thought. She remembered a much younger version of herself, standing beneath a grand fireworks display, hand in hand with her grandmother.
The scene felt uncannily familiar—even the warmth beside her felt just as comforting. Absentmindedly, Cynthia reached out her hand.
"Hm?"
"Nothing," Cynthia shook her head, watching the fireworks with a gentle smile. "Just… thinking of an old friend."
Present Day – Lu Ye's Recording Studio
Recording took two days. Each instrument—guitar, piano, drums, violin—was recorded separately. Then, all four tracks were combined into a single video, creating the illusion of a one-man band. After completing the vocal track, Lu Ye took off his headphones and rubbed Sylveon's ears.
"Not bad… I think I've got some real singing talent," Lu Ye grinned.
"Sylveee…" Sylveon yawned, curling up on his lap while softly humming the song's melody.
Lu Ye froze for a moment. Sylveon, as a species, had an exceptional sensitivity to sound-based moves. Its signature move, Hyper Voice, was nothing short of a devastating weapon. Listening to Sylveon's soft, lilting hum, Lu Ye's expression turned complicated. "This is just a cute little hum… totally not Hyper Voice… yet!"
With the final video exported, Lu Ye did a final review. The first part was a pure instrumental arrangement. The second part was the full cover version with vocals added. While he wasn't a professional singer, it was a decent cover.
Glancing at the clock, he saw it was already 9 PM. After preparing some Pokéblocks as a snack for his Pokémon, Lu Ye sat back in his gaming chair. Logging on, he uploaded the video with the title: "Teacher Lu's Midnight Radio 01: Uchiage Hanabi".
Satisfied, he nodded. "One step closer to conquering all content categories!"
[Uploading Video…]
[Ding! Your video has been successfully uploaded. Click to view…]
Meanwhile – Kanto, Viridian City
"The Goldenrod City Fireworks Festival will conclude tomorrow. Tourist attendance has surpassed 50,000…" A girl with a straw-blonde ponytail lay on her stomach, legs kicking as she scrolled through her phone. Then, with a frustrated sigh, she buried her face into a pillow.
"Pikachu?" A small Pikachu, adorned with a flower on its head, poked her gently with its tiny paws, looking concerned.
Yellow scratched her head, blushing, before sighing again. "I just… I just can't seem to say it out loud!"
"Pika…" Pikachu shook its head, letting out an exaggerated sigh.
Yellow hugged her pillow, eyes teary, staring at Pikachu. "Do you have any advice?"
Pikachu shook its head, then, mimicking its Trainer, it flopped onto the bed in defeat.
"Figures… Even Chuchu doesn't have any good ideas. o(╥﹏╥)o" Yellow slapped her cheeks, trying to hype herself up. "I-I'll just ask Red out next time!"
Just then—her phone buzzed. "Huh? Teacher Lu updated?" Resting her cheek on one hand, Yellow continued scrolling. "He hasn't uploaded in a while… is it a new battle strategy?" Her eyes skimmed the title: "Teacher Lu's Midnight Radio…"
"Wait… this is a song?" Yellow clicked on the video.
The screen split into four corners, each showcasing a different instrument—and in each one, the performer was Lu Ye. As the gentle piano intro played, followed by the drum beats and guitar harmonies, Yellow's eyes widened in amazement. "Teacher Lu… can play this many instruments?"
Her curiosity quickly faded into focus as she immersed herself in the melody. Then, as the chorus hit, a grand violin section soared in—and somehow, Yellow felt herself completely relax. Before she knew it, the video seamlessly transitioned into the vocal version.
For a few seconds, a black screen appeared with white subtitles:
[Lyrics & Composition: Teacher Lu]
[Instruments: Teacher Lu]
[Vocals: Teacher Lu]
[Editing: Teacher Lu]
[…Everything: Teacher Lu]
Yellow's jaw dropped. "He… he did everything?!"
As the vocals began, the same familiar melody was now woven with lyrics and emotion—instantly painting a vivid scene of a fireworks festival. "It's… about the fireworks festival…" Yellow's gaze softened. Unconsciously, she gripped her phone a little tighter.
She murmured softly, as if the fireworks display had come to life before her eyes. As she became lost in thought, the song gradually neared its end, leaving behind only the soft piano outro. "Reaching out, touching the bright future… Silently watching over the two of them…"
Yellow lingered on the lyrics, her breathing quickening, fingers slightly trembling. Outside, the night had deepened—a time when emotions were most vulnerable. Or as Teacher Lu would put it, this was "the perfect hour for melancholic cloud music." With music as the catalyst, people often found themselves making impulsive decisions.
Taking a deep breath, Yellow hesitated before opening Red's chat window. For several minutes, she typed, deleted, and rewrote her message over and over. Frustrated, she sighed and was just about to delete it when—her finger accidentally tapped send.
[Senior, would you like to go to the fireworks festival with me tomorrow?]
"Ah—!" Panic-stricken, Yellow frantically searched for the recall button. But just as she found it, she saw the dreaded "Read" notification pop up. Her heart stopped. Five seconds of pure suffocation. Covering her face with both hands, Yellow peeked through her fingers, anxiously waiting for Red's reply. Then—
[Red: Sure.]
Yellow exhaled deeply—so deep it felt like she had inhaled an entire lifetime's worth of breath. Brushing away the tears welling up in her eyes, she quickly typed back with a bright smile.
[See you there!]
On its first day of release, "Uchiage Hanabi" shot to the top of the music charts. The shares and favorites skyrocketed. But when people saw the uploader's username, everyone collectively gasped. "T-Teacher Lu?!"
Composing, arranging, performing—every step was done by Teacher Lu alone.
"He's literally leaving no room for anyone else to make money!"
"As expected of Teacher Lu!"
Many content creators had branched out into different fields before. But no one did it quite like Teacher Lu, who could seamlessly jump between categories while maintaining top-tier quality. This song alone instantly earned him a wave of "mom fans."
"Cooking was one thing, but now he's a full-blown independent musician?"
"I need to figure out a way to marry this man."
"Lu Bao, Mommy loves you!"
Then, people noticed Teacher Lu's video description, which sparked an entirely different discussion. [For a friend in Sinnoh.]
"So that's why it's a Japanese-style song…"
"Shocking! Teacher Lu wrote this… for her?!"
"A friend from Sinnoh? Could it be Cynthia? Hahaha!"
Lu Ye glanced at the skyrocketing stats but didn't think much of it. After all, copying songs was just something he did for fun. His main goal was still raising his Pokémon. He even turned down multiple record label contracts, rejecting all attempts to package and sign him as an artist. "No one's making a single cent off me!"
Teacher Lu's Chat Group
Yellow: [Image Attachment] Fireworks Festival! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ
Gold: "Oh oh! Crystal and I also went to the Johto Fireworks Festival!"
Steven: "If you ever visit Hoenn, I'd be happy to take you as well."
Lu Ye examined the photo Yellow uploaded. Besides Yellow and Red, there was also Green, standing awkwardly to the side. Lu Ye smirked and clicked his tongue. "As expected of a true 'Battle Legend'!"
Erika: @Teacher Lu, your new song is amazing! (Covers mouth, giggling.)
On the Sevii Islands, the Ice-type Elite Four Lorelei awkwardly cleared her throat. "…+1." She definitely wasn't about to admit that she spent last night crying under her blanket. (…Her bedsheets were still damp.)
Receiving so much praise from his chat group, Lu Ye nodded in satisfaction. Then, he opened another chat window and forwarded the song to "Cabbage Ice Cream."
"I wrote this for you," Lu Ye said.
Autumn Equinox – Sinnoh
Diantha bid farewell to Cynthia and returned to Kalos for her new movie shoot. Cynthia resumed her usual routine—research, training, and the occasional slacking off. That day, she lounged in a vine-woven chair, sipping a fresh fruit juice handed to her by Roserade. Her mind was blank, relaxed. Then—a notification sound broke her tranquility.
Glancing at her phone, Cynthia clicked the link and put on her earphones. The moment the piano and gentle vocals began—her heart inexplicably calmed.
"Fireworks fill the sky—summer hasn't ended just yet…"
"Unraveling unspoken feelings, tightly bound together—wishing tonight would never end…"
As the song ended, Cynthia's heart skipped a beat. A strange, unfamiliar feeling slowly surfaced within her. She sat in silence for a long time. Then, finally—she smiled. "It's beautiful."
"When's the research summit?" Cynthia asked.
"Next week."
"I'll definitely be there," Lu Ye replied. "To see you."
Cynthia froze. A rare hint of pink dusted her usually composed, pale face, partially obscured by her golden hair. CRACK! Her gaze drifted downward—where the glass cup in her hand had just shattered against the floor.
"Uh… well, there's also that debt I still need to pay back…" Lu Ye added awkwardly.
"No rush." Cynthia snapped out of it, a soft smile returning to her lips. "I can lend you more if you need it."
Lu Ye immediately choked. "Ahem… yeah, no need for that—"
"Next time, for sure!"
[Inorin Note:
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