Chapter 7: A Chance Encounter on the Plane

Zhao Fang ended up staying in the Sinnoh region for four days, a full day longer than he had planned. But there was no other choice—the progress Gyarados was making in mastering Hurricane was truly disheartening. Even Yujia’s hair had been tousled by her, and she bluntly admitted she had never seen a Gyarados with such poor aptitude. Zhao Fang, however, had a slightly different perspective.

Gyarados had been Zhao Fang’s companion from the very beginning, so he knew this Pokémon intimately. In his view, Gyarados was also a Pokémon with a severe specialization imbalance. Didn’t everyone see how, even as a Magikarp, it had been training its Iron Head move? And after evolving into Gyarados, it had mastered Iron Head as well.

More importantly, Zhao Fang noticed that Gyarados seemed to possess an extraordinary talent for physical attack moves, but when it came to special attack moves…

Considering that Yujia, a Pokémon scholar, had spent a full seven days just teaching Gyarados Hurricane, Zhao Fang could clearly see how poor Gyarados’s aptitude for special attack moves was. This led him to focus on the move Bounce. Although he wasn’t sure whether Gyarados had the talent to learn this flying move, if it could, then Zhao Fang’s plans would finally have a chance of coming to fruition.

Meanwhile, under the guidance of Milotic, Ice Dragon had also shown some progress, which made Zhao Fang even more envious of Cynthia’s instruction. If he could receive training from Cynthia, it would undoubtedly be a huge help in battles—and who knows, he might even pick up some valuable breeding techniques and methods.

“Your WeChat is pretty handy! Next time you come to Sinnoh, just let me know. If Cynthia’s unavailable, I’ll come pick you up,” Yujia said with a smile as she saw Zhao Fang off onto the plane. She also mysteriously slipped a small box into his hand, warning him sternly not to open it until he was on the plane.

Though curious, Zhao Fang resisted the impulse to peek immediately. Only after boarding did he open the box, and he couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Inside were several small umbrellas, a packet of medicine labeled “Kidney Tonic,” and a strange magazine.

With an expressionless face, Zhao Fang put the items away. He planned to throw them all in the trash as soon as he got off the plane—only the trash bin was the proper place for such things.

“My seat… it’s right here!” A girl’s voice caught Zhao Fang’s curiosity. He looked up to see a young woman with blue hair holding a boarding pass and dragging a small suitcase, happily standing beside him.

Zhao Fang glanced down at his ticket; his seat was by the window at the far end of the plane, and the aisle seat next to him was still empty. So this must be her seat.

“I’ll help you with that,” Zhao Fang stood, noting that the planes in the Pokémon world were not much different from those of the past world, except for slightly more spacious seating and some rather peculiar rules.

For example, you weren’t allowed to release your Pokémon on the plane. He thought to himself how nice it would have been if such a rule existed in his previous life.

Since the luggage compartment was a bit high, Zhao Fang didn’t mind lending a hand to the unfamiliar girl.

“Thanks! But no need—I’ve been taught by my grandfather that girls should be independent!” The blue-haired girl quickly waved off his offer and struggled to hoist her suitcase up. Seeing this, Zhao Fang could only sit back down.

After securing her luggage, the girl visibly relaxed. She clapped her hands and then took the seat next to Zhao Fang. Maybe because he had tried to help, she boldly extended her hand.

“Hello, I’m Hikari from Sunyshore City. I’m heading to Hoenn to watch the Pokémon Contest Showcase. How about you?” Seeing her outstretched hand, Zhao Fang was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t expected to meet a Hikari from Sinnoh on a flight.

Though she shared the same name as the Hikari from Vermilion City, this was a different person. Zhao Fang recalled that this Hikari was someone passionate about Pokémon Contests.

“Ah, hello. I’m Zhao Fang from Ecruteak City. I’m heading back to Hoenn to continue challenging gyms,” he introduced himself.

“Ecruteak City? So you’re from Hoenn?” Hikari’s eyes lit up with curiosity.

Zhao Fang nodded. Unless there was an Ecruteak City in Sinnoh, he was indeed from Hoenn.

“Wow, that’s amazing! Do you like watching Pokémon Contests?” Hikari asked enthusiastically. Zhao Fang hesitated briefly but nodded. Though he hadn’t watched Contests before, he had raised Pokémon specifically for contests when playing the games, so he considered himself somewhat of a fan.

“Really? That’s great! I’m so happy to meet you on the plane. Who’s your favorite Coordinator?” Hikari’s excitement was palpable, and Zhao Fang immediately regretted mentioning his interest. He should have said he wasn’t interested at all.

“Um… Maylene,” Zhao Fang replied with the only Coordinator he knew.

“Oh my gosh! The noble Maylene! You like her too? I love Maylene’s performance in the…” As Hikari began to gush nonstop, Zhao Fang forced a smile and chimed in occasionally.

His plan to take a nap on the plane was thoroughly dashed. Enthusiastic Hikari chatted incessantly about Pokémon Contests, teaching Zhao Fang quite a bit about something he had little knowledge of.

When they finally disembarked, Hikari quieted down for a moment. She happily exchanged contact information with Zhao Fang, who took the opportunity to promote his WeChat.

Currently, WeChat was used by a handful of people in Hoenn but was not yet approved by the Sinnoh League, so only Cynthia and Yujia had access—now plus Hikari.

“Zhao Fang, Zhao Fang, are you going to watch the Milotic Cup Pokémon Contest?” Hikari asked gleefully.

“Yes, yes,” Zhao Fang replied blankly, already anticipating a barrage of questions to come. He could only pray the bus arrived soon.

“Zhao Fang, Zhao Fang, do you want to go watch the Pearl Pokémon Contest with me?” Hikari added.

“Sure, sure… huh?” Zhao Fang answered instinctively, but soon realized he had just agreed to something troublesome.

Watching the delighted Hikari beside him, Zhao Fang twitched his mouth. For the first time, he truly understood how complicated it was to obey without thinking. Was it too late to regret this?