LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 1296: The Season of Love Has Arrived
After bidding farewell to Bianca, Yuga had breakfast at the Pokémon Center and then left Accumula Town by boarding a flyer at the airport.
A few days later, Yuga returned to Verdanturf Town. As he stepped out of the airport, he took a deep breath, looked around at his familiar hometown, and said contentedly, "It's good to be back!"
Just as Yuga was about to leave the airport, a Delibird suddenly flew over and blocked his path. It waved at him, seemingly signaling for him to follow.
Puzzled, Yuga followed the Delibird. It led him to a secluded spot and then pulled a communicator out of its small pouch. The bird pressed a few buttons, and with a beep, a holographic screen appeared, displaying the image of Giovanni.
Giovanni had been waiting there specifically for Yuga.
"Well, Shimizu Yuga, we meet again," Giovanni said from the other side of the communicator. Sitting in a swivel chair, he stroked his Persian with a calm demeanor, his tone familiar and easygoing, showing no trace of the hostility one might expect given their past conflicts.
Yuga narrowed his eyes. "Giovanni…"
Giovanni smiled. "You don't seem very pleased to see me, Shimizu Yuga. After all, you've sabotaged so many of Team Rocket's operations. If anyone has a reason to be unhappy, it should be me."
Yuga cut him off. "Get to the point. For the esteemed leader of Team Rocket to wait here just to chat with me—it must be something important."
Giovanni chuckled, unfazed by Yuga's cold demeanor.
"I truly admire you. I thought I had already overestimated you, but what you accomplished in Unova made me realize I had still underestimated you."
"And so?" Yuga replied tersely. He had no desire to be on Team Rocket's radar. Unlike other criminal organization leaders, Giovanni was a genuine powerhouse—on par with master-level trainers. Being targeted by him was not a favorable situation.
"That's why I'm extending my invitation to you once again. Join my Team Rocket," Giovanni said sincerely. "This time, I'm offering my utmost sincerity. Any condition you name—I'll meet it."
Giovanni's admiration for Yuga was genuine. The more he learned about Yuga, the more he valued him. He envisioned Yuga as a vital ally in his quest to elevate Team Rocket to surpass even the Pokémon League in power and influence. Giovanni was an ambitious man who wanted to develop the organization his mother had left him into a force unrivaled.
"My answer is the same as before. I'm sorry to disappoint you," Yuga replied firmly, rejecting the offer outright.
This time, Giovanni didn't try to persuade Yuga further. Instead, he gazed at him intently before saying, "I see. Well, I hope you won't regret this decision. I, too, can hold a grudge, you know."
With that, the holographic screen flickered, and Giovanni's projection vanished.
The Delibird nonchalantly tossed the communicator back into its pouch, flapped its wings twice, and disappeared into the sky.
Yuga didn't bother watching the Delibird leave. It was just a small messenger—capturing it wouldn't achieve anything meaningful.
Watching the Delibird fly away, Yuga rubbed his temples in frustration. He'd officially been marked by Giovanni, and that was far from good news! But overthinking wouldn't help—he'd have to deal with problems as they came. With that in mind, Yuga turned and headed toward home.
On the way, he encountered many of his neighbors, all of whom greeted him warmly.
Midway home, Yuga ran into Audino, who had just finished grocery shopping and was heading back. Seeing Yuga, Audino beamed with joy and happily grabbed his hand, insisting on preparing a feast to nourish him properly.
Poor Yuga had apparently lost some weight while he was away.
There's a saying: "If Audino thinks you've lost weight, you must have lost weight." Yuga touched his face, wanting to protest, "I haven't lost any weight!"
By the time Yuga got home, it was nearly noon. Audino cheerfully carried the groceries to the kitchen while Yuga sat down to listen to Suzuki Koen's report on the store's business over the past few days.
During Yuga's absence, Suzuki Koen and his aunt had managed both the old and new stores exceptionally well.
After a delicious meal, Yuga took Audino to the Ecopark.
Once inside the main park, Yuga grinned mysteriously and said to Audino, "I've brought you a surprise!"
A surprise? What kind of surprise?
Audino looked at him with curiosity, though a hint of excitement flickered in its eyes.
Yuga, grinning widely, took out four Poké Balls. With a flash of red light, four Audino appeared in front of the original Audino.
"Look, I brought you four assistants! How's that? Do you like it?" Yuga said with a big smile.
Before returning, Yuga had already explained the situation at home to the four new Audino, so they now stood obediently, awaiting Audino's "inspection."
Audino stared at the four newcomers, stunned for a moment. Then, its face turned cold as it looked back at Yuga, its earlier excitement vanishing completely.
Seriously?
(°°) I think having Miltank and Blissey as assistants is plenty. More Audino are totally unnecessary!
Yuga didn't notice Audino's expression and instead pondered aloud, "Now that there are four new Audino, it might be hard to tell you apart. Why don't I give you a name? That would make things easier."
Hearing this, Audino's heart skipped a beat. This could work! A name sounds like a way better gift than those so-called assistants.
Seeing Audino nod in agreement, Yuga furrowed his brow in thought. "What name should I give you? Do you have any ideas?"
Audino shook its head: If I come up with a name, what would I need you for?
After thinking for a moment, a flash of inspiration hit Yuga. "How about 'Duo Duo'?"
Audino froze: I should've known better than to have high expectations.
At that moment, Audino thought of Nan Nan and Sha Sha. Ah, we're all in the same boat… fellow Pokémon with unfortunate names.
Noticing Audino's sudden loss of enthusiasm, Yuga asked, "What's wrong? Don't you like it?"
"Audino~ Audino~"
No, it's fine. I like it very much. Duo Duo it is.
Audino shook its head and quickly accepted the name "Duo Duo," worried that Yuga might come up with an even worse name if given the chance.
The name "Duo Duo," though chosen casually, at least didn't sound bad.
Seeing that Audino had no objections, Yuga said, "Alright then, take these four to familiarize themselves with the surroundings. I'll go check on the other Sub-Ecopark."
"Audino~"
Go, go!
Audino waved nonchalantly, not particularly wanting to see Yuga at the moment.
After leaving the main Ecopark, Yuga went to the other Sub-Ecopark to settle the Pokémon he had obtained from Team Plasma.
Purrloin and Liepard were naturally sent to the Grassland Sub-Ecopark, which was a habitat for various land Pokémon and perfect for them.
Originally, Yuga wanted Liepard's father or sister to help manage the newly arrived Liepards and Purrloins, but neither of them was willing to help—they were too captivated by the newly arrived Zoroark.
The arrival of this new Zoroark was warmly welcomed by the entire Zoroark family, especially Zoroark's mother and younger sister.
Zoroarks were incredibly rare, so encountering one of their kind was a rare delight.
The new Zoroark, upon seeing Zoroark's family, finally believed Yuga wasn't lying. Its wariness toward the Zoroark family was much less than its initial suspicion of Yuga, and it quickly bonded with the family.
Among them, Liepard's sister was the most enthusiastic.
Despite repeated failures in love, Liepard's sister was more determined than ever!
After her unrequited crush on Luxray ended, she developed feelings for Arcanine, her "hero" who had once saved her. However, Arcanine, being rather oblivious, consistently ignored her overt advances, forcing her to give up.
Now Liepard's sister wondered if perhaps Zoroark might be her perfect match! After all, her mother was also a Zoroark, and this type of roguishly handsome demeanor was undeniably charming.
Sure, Arcanine was dashing, but it was a bit too righteous-looking—perhaps not quite her type.
Ah, how she longed for a sweet, romantic love!
Meanwhile, Liepard's sister continued her daily envy of her sibling's love life...
After leaving the Grassland Sub-Ecopark, Yuga headed to the Dragon Den Sub-Ecopark to settle Scraggy and Scrafty.
Although Scraggy and Scrafty were not Dragon-types, their egg group included dragons, so they could breed with Dragon-type Pokémon, making the Dragon Den Sub-Ecopark an ideal home.
After settling Scraggy and Scrafty, Yuga released Hydreigon.
Thanks to these past few days of "training," Hydreigon had become extremely obedient, dutifully listening to Yuga's instructions without a trace of its former arrogance.
Yuga had prepared Hydreigon as a mate for Goodra, so he left Hydreigon in Goodra's care.
Although Goodra wasn't as strong as Hydreigon, Yuga's prior guidance ensured Hydreigon didn't dare to disrespect Goodra in the slightest.
Of course, that was only from Yuga's perspective.
In truth, the moment Hydreigon laid eyes on Goodra, it felt as though an arrow carrying a pink heart had pierced its heart.
To Hydreigon, Goodra's round face, large eyes, and gentle gaze were simply too adorable!
Like, like, absolutely love it!
Despite its fearsome reputation and fierce appearance, Hydreigon was a hopeless romantic at heart.
When Yuga introduced it to Goodra, Hydreigon's heart pounded wildly, and it couldn't even look Goodra in the eye, stealing only timid glances out of the corner of its eyes.
Yuga, unaware of Hydreigon's internal turmoil due to its intimidating appearance, left after giving instructions, leaving Hydreigon flustered and at a loss.
Oh dear, what do you do when you fall in love at first sight? Asking for advice online—this is urgent!
After leaving the Dragon Den Sub-Ecopark, Yuga went to the Insect Paradise Sub-Ecopark to settle Scolipede, Whirlipede, Venipede, Accelgor, and Escavalier.
Later, he went to Lake Island No. 3 at the shallow sea beach to settle Ducklett and Swanna in the island's central lake.
Lake Island No. 3 is home to Flying-type Pokémon like Togekiss, Mandibuzz, and Braviary. Adding Swanna to the mix enriched the diversity of the ecosystem.
After arranging for all the Pokémon, Yuga returned to the main Ecopark and found Dou Dou patiently introducing the Ecopark to the four Audino. They seemed to be getting along well.
"Hmm~" Yuga nodded his head in satisfaction.
Not wanting to disturb Dou Dou and the others, Yuga took out a Pokéball and released Granbull.
When Granbull came out, it looked around in confusion. Seeing the unfamiliar environment, it quickly realized that it had been brought to Yuga's home.
"From now on, this will be your home. That Audino over there is the manager. If you have any questions, feel free to ask it," Yuga said, pointing to Toto in the distance.
Granbull nodded obediently, indicating that it understood.
Yuga continued, "If you're bored, you can explore freely. Just don't cause any trouble, and you'll be fine."
Granbull was delighted to hear this. It had been uneasy about coming back with Yuga, but now, seeing Yuga's friendly attitude, it felt much more at ease.
After giving Granbull a few simple instructions about living in the ecological park, Yuga prepared to leave.
However, before he could take a few steps, he was stopped by Meowstic, who informed him that Mewtwo wanted to see him. He followed Meowstic to the Haunted House Sub-Ecopark.
After Yuga left, Granbull looked around again. Seeing only unfamiliar Pokémon, it didn't feel like approaching any of them to chat. Instead, its gaze fell on the row of light gates nearby.
Yuga had already explained the function of the light gates, so Granbull casually chose one and stepped through it.
But the moment Granbull stepped out of the light gate, it bumped into something head-on and fell to the ground with a thud.
"Hey! Who bumped into me? Take this punch!" A voice belonging to the middle-school-girl-like Azumarill rang out, as she raised her fist and glared fiercely at Granbull.
However, after getting a clear look at Granbull's appearance, Azumarill awkwardly lowered her fist. "Ahaha… haha… The wind sure is noisy today…"
It's not that I'm scared of it; if it were a dragon that bumped into me, I'd definitely teach it a lesson! Azumarill thought, trying to justify herself.
Granbull stood up, dusted itself off, and looked at Azumarill with a strange expression, thinking, Does this guy have a screw loose or something?
While Granbull had its unexpected encounter with Azumarill, Yuga received good news from Mewtwo at the Haunted House Sub-Ecopark. Mewtwo had successfully improved the Innovation Potion, increasing its success rate for enhancing Pokémon potential by nearly ten percent.
Yuga was thrilled to hear this.
The Innovation Potion was originally developed by the three Malamar based on their research on top-grade evolution stones.
Top-grade evolution stones could almost guarantee a 100% success rate in improving the potential of Pokémon below the blue potential by one level, with very little chance of failure.
However, the Innovation Potion had significant limitations. It could only be used on Pokémon with an potential below the green potential, and its failure rate was quite high.
Now that Mewtwo had successfully improved the potential, could it mean that one day the Innovation Potion could achieve the same effectiveness as top-grade evolution stones?
Yuga thought this was a fantastic research direction. Even if it couldn't entirely match the effectiveness of top-grade evolution stones, increasing the success rate further would still be a huge improvement.
Yuga had great confidence in Mewtwo.