Night fell, and the moonlight dappled the shabby apartment. The air was thick with the smell of alcohol. Toyokawa Sakiko walked heavily through the door, looking helplessly at the scattered liquor bottles on the floor, a wave of indescribable pain washing over her.
"I'm home, you damn old man."
This damn old man was dead drunk again. She thought of her studies during the day and her work at night to make a living, only to come home to this.
"Sigh~"
Sakiko let out a deep sigh.
After leaving the great Toyokawa family, their lives had been in a slump, and now her father was dragging her down with him.
Toyokawa Sakiko would never forget why she quit her band, CRYCHIC.
Back then, the members of the Toyokawa family had a fierce Pokémon battle with her father over the right of succession.
As a renowned family of Pokémon trainers, they chose to decide the heir through a Pokémon battle.
It was a full-force 6v6 battle. On the stage were her father and another heir.
Toyokawa Sakiko's father was an Elite Four-level trainer who had risen from grassroots on his own strength.
In the Toyokawa family, he was undoubtedly an unparalleled powerhouse, absolutely qualified to inherit everything.
But he lost...
He lost without any suspense. It couldn't even be called a Pokémon battle.
Afterward, Sakiko learned that the day before, her father had been attacked by Team Rocket. His six Pokémon were overwhelmingly defeated, suffering severe injuries that left them with lasting damage. There was no time to recover.
Even if her father wanted to postpone, it wasn't a valid reason to shirk the succession battle.
The result was a complete defeat.
"What a joke!" At the time, Toyokawa Sakiko clenched her hands, unable to accept the result.
They should have realized that an Elite Four-level trainer wouldn't be so weak, yet they paid it no mind.
With her mother having passed away unfortunately early, if her father couldn't obtain the inheritance rights, he would face being kicked out of the family.
Toyokawa Sakiko was already completely isolated in the Toyokawa family, suffering cold stares day after day.
She still had inheritance rights, but if she stayed, she would probably be constantly drawn into family disputes and encounter Team Rocket again.
In the year since leaving the Toyokawa family, Sakiko had given up her dream of becoming the League Champion. She worked a part-time customer service job at the Tera Dome, learning things she never would have as a young lady of a great house.
In terms of academics, she was still a student in the Pokémon Battling Department. After all, her only specialty left was Pokémon battling, and Niji-no-Hane offered many scholarships that could help her become self-reliant.
Toyokawa Sakiko crouched down and began to clean up the liquor bottles. Her fingers gently touched the cold glass, the chill making her feel the pain in her heart even more clearly.
Thump~
"Hoo~" Milotic came out of its Poké Ball on its own and helped clean up the bottles.
After dealing with one bottle, Milotic nuzzled Sakiko's cheek, as if telling her not to be sad.
"Thank you." Sakiko forced a smile. Even though life was so hard, having her Pokémon by her side still brought her immense warmth.
Milotic was Sakiko's first partner. When she was still the young lady of the Toyokawa family, she had more Pokémon.
However, due to the changes in her life, she eventually decided to entrust her Pokémon to the care of the Toyokawa family.
Sakiko was gradually losing heart. After taking care of the basic chores, she lay down on her futon. Her Milotic closed its eyes beside her. Sakiko took out her phone.
Her mind was on her battle with Satoru.
'Raichu' and 'Milotic'. The full-force battle between the two Pokémon had made Sakiko's blood boil. In that battle, Sakiko could strangely feel Satoru's heart.
Pure, passionate, a combination of all sunny, good qualities.
Just thinking back to that cheerful smile made her heart race.
At school, she was always striving for her studies, accumulating stress. At her customer service job, she often faced malicious situations, and the pressure piled up like a mountain, leaving her mentally and physically exhausted.
And then she met this boy who was gentle to both people and Pokémon, and so incredibly sunny.
Generous and strong, he had made a very good impression on Sakiko.
"I have to give him a thank-you gift next time."
Toyokawa Sakiko's gaze lingered on Satoru's profile. She didn't know what to say.
As a customer service rep, she had mastered the art of apology, but she hadn't had a proper conversation with anyone in a year. At school, she had only three words for her classmates: "We're not close."
If she had to say, the only time she talked more was when she crushed the Tauros with her Milotic in practical skills class.
Toyokawa Sakiko:Is this all a Tauros has got?
Thinking back to her words now, it was truly absurd. Fortunately, the practical skills teacher had a humble personality.
As a normal person...
I should probably start a conversation first, right? Slowly close the distance.
After thinking, Sakiko silently typed on her screen.
Toyokawa Sakiko: You there?
[What is this woman up to? Starting with "You there?" isn't that a guaranteed jester move? Or is she interested in my Satoru-baby? She has good taste! (●'?｀●)]
"Don't be such a love-brain. She probably just wants to return the favor."
Satoru guessed her intentions and couldn't help but smile. The Pokémon battle had gradually brought their hearts together. Through their conversation, he could clearly feel that Sakiko had strong self-esteem.
Since yesterday, Satoru could faintly feel a power welling up from deep within himself.
It allowed him to roughly understand others' feelings during a Pokémon battle.
Although he wasn't entirely sure, it was most likely...
Aura!
The power of Aura from the Pokémon world.
Of course, this was just a guess for Satoru.
He was just an ordinary human. How could he possibly fire an Aura Sphere from his hands?
If he could, he might as well be a Pokémon himself, shouting "Rasengan!" and see who could still fight him!
Oh, contestant Satoru has lost all six of his Pokémon.
Not a moment of sadness for losing the match, immediately arriving on the battlefield is the Super-Masaran—contestant Satoru!
Satoru didn't want to encounter such an absurd situation.
Not paying too much mind to this strange ability, Satoru temporarily treated it as a form of telepathy.
And right now, the most important thing was talking to Sakiko.
Satoru: Yeah? What's up? （＾?＾●）
With that, the two started chatting. During the conversation, Sakiko briefly mentioned her experience as a customer service rep at the Tera Dome, expressed her desire to repay Satoru, and told him not to be so formal.
[Teacher Sakiko, so pitiful~~ Bwahaha, a corporate slave caring so much about others.]
"What's with that weird nickname?"
[Ehehe~]
Satoru: Are there any Pokémon there? Preferably strong ones. If you don't know, don't force yourself to say. I'll wait for you, no need to rush to repay me.
[Satoru-baby, when did your EQ get so high?]
"Huh? Isn't this a normal conversation? If I make things awkward, how can I battle Pokémon with Sakiko again?"
Satoru didn't push Sakiko. They were both students, after all, and for some reason, Sakiko had become a corporate slave.
Thump-thump Thump-thump
On the other side, Sakiko was curled up in her blanket, not wanting Milotic to see her current state, as she slowly typed on her phone.
Her words made Satoru's eyes widen.
"Actually, I know a place where you can catch a Rillaboom."
-------
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