Back home, Cyclizar had already gone to rest, completely undisturbed by the noise of Kabukicho, but Hoshino couldn't sleep at all.
He stared at the phone screen in front of him, at the dazzling shiny spot almost touching him, which represented the Braixen from earlier!
He had noticed this ever since the other party entered the door, which was why he had actively tried to build rapport and make the other party lower their guard so they could have a good talk.
"Two and a half years of work… has a Trainer… was remembered in the backyard… wants to work here for one last night even without pay…"
Hoshino used his phone's notepad to record all these things; this phone seemed to never need to charge, which was quite convenient.
These pieces of information were actually provided by Slowking. Combining them with what Boss Slowking said when he left, it was clear that Boss Slowking was not slow at all. Hoshino wondered when Boss Slowking had noticed that he cared so much about this…
Analyzing all this information together revealed that Braixen must have loved working at Slowpoke Izakaya very much, so much so that after waiting for so many days, it finally found a rare opportunity to come out specifically to resign.
But it wouldn't have the chance anymore because it, which had always been kept in the backyard, was finally remembered by its Trainer and was going to be taken on a journey. It would be difficult to continue working here.
"Pokémon and Trainer… So that's what it's troubled about? Being left in the backyard for so long, and then finally being remembered, it should be happy that the bond is still there, but traveling with its Trainer also means giving up its favorite job."
After this analysis, Hoshino understood. No wonder Slowking told him to mind his own business; after all, this was the other party's family matter. If he was not careful, Braixen would be the only one to get hurt.
"It is indeed a bit troublesome, so the most important thing is to help it eliminate the distress of making a choice, and the source of all this is its Trainer!"
Catching a Pokémon with one Poké Ball and then leaving it in the backyard to expand the ecosystem, and then not caring about it for two years or even longer, purely for Pokedex completion.
What should be said about such behavior? Irresponsible towards Pokémon? At least Hoshino had no good feelings for such a Trainer; he was even quite disgusted!
In fact, he also hoped that Braixen could stay and work at the Izakaya. This way, after gaining its friendship, he could ask it to subtly help promote himself while working.
But what if Braixen and its Trainer really had a good relationship? Then it would be hard to say. So he also made a decision: for now, he wouldn't act directly. He would go and see this Trainer first.
If the other party was fine, then his plan would have to be abandoned, and he would find an opportunity later to guide Braixen and provide psychological counseling.
But if the other party really had issues… then he wouldn't be polite. Depending on the situation, the Trainer could enjoy the highest treatment of being repeatedly run over by Cyclizar at high speed.
"It's better to be careful with everything. I just hope I don't end up doing more harm than good…"
After all, this should be his first time genuinely helping a Pokémon, and he was doing it on his own initiative, without the other party even knowing.
However, for the future establishment and operation of the Yorozuya, he probably needed to accumulate more experience. This operation must be taken seriously!
For this, Hoshino stayed up all night. His phone still had no internet, and he couldn't do anything else, so he just waited…
Finally, at nearly 3 AM, Braixen left Slowpoke Izakaya. It naturally wouldn't stay until dawn to go back.
"I'm really tired. Let's go!"
"Cycli~"
Hoshino woke up Cyclizar. This guy was full of energy as soon as it woke up. Then, they quietly followed a small path. There were quite a lot of Pokémon on the street now, and a human suddenly appearing would be too conspicuous.
Soon, they left Kabukicho, and as expected, they were chased by stray Meowth, but they ran fast enough that these guys couldn't catch up.
Braixen didn't notice anyone following it. After leaving the Izakaya, its mood became low again. Perhaps it had finally completed its last work, and its expression was slightly better than before.
Finally, it arrived outside an ecological park of a Pokémon Lab located south of Hau'oli City, and then it crawled through a hole in the ground. It seemed it always entered and exited from this spot.
Hoshino and Cyclizar stopped here because they couldn't get in anymore. The map showed that this place was a small Pokémon Lab.
And within this ecological park lived some Pokémon that had been stored there by Trainers who were out traveling; it wasn't just one person's backyard.
"I didn't expect it to be this kind of place. This is troublesome; I can't fit through this dog hole either."
Hoshino took off his goggles and hung them around his neck, looking at the high wall in front of him, his expression thoughtful. It wasn't dawn yet, and no one would come to work and let him in through the front gate.
"Give up, no choice, let's go back…"
He wouldn't go so far as to have Cyclizar ram a hole in the wall, otherwise, he would go straight to jail as soon as it got light. He had just written a self-criticism there yesterday; going back to jail so quickly would be too impolite.
Just as he was about to turn around, Cyclizar seemed to have discovered something. It suddenly ran over from the side and bit a branch on the ground in front of the dog hole.
"Huh? Wait! Don't bite it off!"
Hoshino quickly snatched the branch. He recognized it as the one stuck in Braixen's tail. It must have accidentally rubbed off when it was distracted and crawled through the hole…
At this moment, it seemed like some sound was coming. He immediately hid with Cyclizar behind a tree and began to observe the situation. Then, Braixen anxiously crawled out of the hole again, seemingly looking for the branch.
Just as Hoshino was about to quietly throw out the branch in his hand, a man's voice suddenly came from afar: "What are you doing here?"
"Brai!"
Braixen looked towards that direction and saw a man in a suit walking out of the dim forest with a Toxicroak.
Hoshino, using the moonlight, scrutinized the other party. He didn't know this guy, but the man's face looked quite kind.
The man walked forward, extended his hand, and gently stroked Braixen's head, saying with a worried expression, "I couldn't find you all night. You worried me to death. I thought something had happened to you."
"Brai…"
"What's wrong?"
"Brai!"
Braixen hugged its tail, calling out anxiously. The man took a look and instantly understood. After a moment of thought, he asked, "Did you lose the branch, your mother's keepsake?"
"Brai!"
"I see… Don't worry, I'll help you find it. After all, it's something very important to you. So, you should go back and rest first. Looking at how tired you are, I know you haven't slept all night, and that's not good for your health."
The man continued to stroke its head. Perhaps out of trust in its Trainer, Braixen nodded and then crawled back into the hole.
Seeing this, the man sighed helplessly and murmured, "It actually went out from here. You really worried me. But I can't rest; I still have to help it find the branch…"
Watching the man gradually walk away into the distance, Hoshino, who had been secretly observing, also sighed at this moment. This was because Braixen's shiny spot had disappeared, which meant it no longer needed helping. This was due to its trust in what its Trainer had just said.
"It looks like it's not necessary after all. I'm so tired, and I did all that for nothing. Turns out this guy is surprisingly decent. You dodged a bullet…"
Hoshino chuckled, not complaining too much. Since Braixen no longer needed help, he would just have to think of other ways, like getting on good terms with Nai-chan and then asking her for a favor?
"Given Nai-chan's personality, it should be relatively easy to gain her friendship. I can try!"
Saying that, he took Cyclizar and returned the way they came. However, in this quiet small forest, any slightly loud sound could easily be heard, such as someone's phone call…
"Has Grafaiai arrived? Then let's trade tonight. I've wanted that Pokémon for a long time; I went to Paldea twice and couldn't find it."
"…"
"Didn't we agree! I'll trade Braixen for it. Anyway, it's a Fire-type starter just like Typhlosion, no difference, and mine is much rarer than Grafaiai; it's hard to find in the wild!"
"…"
"Caught it a long time ago. Didn't you say you wanted a Fire-type starter? I even forgot I had a Braixen in the backyard, but it lost its branch, and I have to waste time helping it find one. So tiring…"
"…"
"Hmm, as long as you don't mind. Then let's meet tonight at Big Wave Beach. Don't make me wait too long!"
Listening to the man's phone call gradually fading away in the forest, Hoshino, who had stopped, revealed a mischievous smile, unknowingly clenching his fists.
"You motherf*cker! Alright!"
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