The little one had just been born, yet it was already chugging down a big bottle of cola.
This made Lu Ye seriously question himself.
"Am I really that much of a slacker?"
He rubbed his chin, looking puzzled. "That doesn't seem right!"
"Gulp, gulp, gulp~~"
Togepi kicked its tiny feet, its eyes squinting into crescents as it happily held up the large bottle of cola.
"Tchugki-brie! (๑＞ڡ＜)☆"
With its round eggshell body and chubby little cheeks, it really did resemble a hamster.
Lu Ye watched Togepi for a moment, feeling a strange sense of realization.
"...I might not be much better than Gold, huh?"
The newborn Pokémon was full of energy, happily darting around the house.
"Gengarr! Σ(っ°Д°;)っ"
Gengar frantically ran after it, using Psychic to move chairs and tables out of the way, making sure Togepi didn't bump into anything.
Lu Ye looked up at the floating furniture and swallowed nervously.
Boom!
A cloud of dust filled the air. The living room was a mess, but Togepi was completely unharmed.
Both Lu Ye and Gengar let out a breath of relief.
"Togepi loves playing with kids and is quite mischievous," Lu Ye said, patting Gengar on the back. His gaze was sincere. "I'll be counting on you to keep an eye on it!"
"Gengarr!" Gengar patted its chest confidently—then suddenly turned pale.
A mountain loomed before Togepi.
Growlithe lowered its head, baring its fangs as it greeted Togepi.
"Arrooo~ (¯﹃¯)"
Lu Ye: ???
Is that how you say hello?!
The Intimidate ability activated. Togepi took a step back, its eyes brimming with tears.
A blue glow shone from its tiny fingers.
Metronome!
Lu Ye's expression changed. He instinctively glanced at the ceiling.
The house had just been renovated—please don't let it explode again!
Togepi hopped on the spot, then plopped onto the ground, kicking its little feet in frustration.
"Tchugki-brie! ˚‧º·(˚˃̣̣̥᷄⌓˂̣̣̥᷅)‧º·˚"
Togepi used Splash.
Nothing happened.
An awkward silence filled the room.
Lu Ye looked up at the sky.
Was this… the infamous unlucky curse?
But on the bright side, at least nothing got destroyed. Maybe Togepi really did bring good luck.
"Quantum luck fluctuations?" Lu Ye muttered.
The round Togepi rolled across the floor like a tiny ball.
Growlithe stuck out its warm tongue, giving Togepi a quick lick. The little egg immediately stopped crying.
"Arrooo~~"
Growlithe nudged Togepi onto its back, playfully bouncing around.
"Tchugki-brie~~ (๑ᵔ⌔ᵔ๑)"
Lu Ye sighed in relief, smiling helplessly.
"As long as they get along, that's all that matters."
Sylveon stood to the side, glancing at Togepi before huffing and looking away.
"You were even more of a troublemaker when you were little," Lu Ye teased.
"And look at you now, all grown up."
Sylveon blinked its deep blue eyes, lost in thought. In the end, it simply wrapped one of its ribbons around Lu Ye's arm.
"Veeon! o(´^｀)o"
---
In the chat group, Lu Ye asked:
[Lu Ye: Who's the best person to ask about raising a Togepi?]
Even though he was a breeding expert, he still believed in learning from others.
Crystal admired his dedication and replied.
[Crystal: Miss Jasmine from Johto has raised two Togekiss. I can ask her for you.]
Lu Ye nodded.
[Lu Ye: Thanks a bunch~ (bashful face jpg)]
[Gold: Hey! Am I invisible to you guys?! I literally saved Johto, you know!] Gold protested.
"Kisse~!" (I wanna see my little sister!)
An enraged Togekiss screeched into the voice chat.
The once lively chat suddenly fell silent.
Yellow weakly chimed in,
[Yellow: I think... it's better if we don't ask Gold for advice.]
[Lorele: Agreed.] Lorelei adjusted her glasses.
[Blue: Seconded.] Blue nodded.
[Gold: You guys—!]
Gold sniffed and @mentioned Red, his longtime training buddy.
[Gold: Red, say something!]
[Red: Haha, Gold's Togekiss is pretty interesting. A very energetic physical attacker.]
[Gold: Exactly!] Gold nodded in satisfaction.
Lu Ye looked up at the sky.
That… didn't sound like a compliment at all.
And then, it hit him.
Was this what they called the 'The Fighter's' emotional intelligence?!
---
Lu Ye closed the chat.
Meanwhile, Crystal reached out to Jasmine for advice on raising Togepi.
Jasmine, the Steel-type Gym Leader of Johto, actually had an Ampharos named "Light" as her ace.
"I… I'm not very good at talking… A-anyway…"
In the video call, Jasmine, a girl with chestnut-colored hair tied into twin braids, took a deep breath.
"If it's Teacher Lu… entrusting Togepi to him… should be no problem!"
Jasmine had heard of Teacher Lu before.
While looking after the lighthouse, she enjoyed watching his Midnight Diner with Teacher Lu series.
Despite her shy and reserved demeanor, Jasmine had an enormous appetite—she could even be considered a foodie queen.
Though… that was something she was always embarrassed to admit.
"I've received the training documents!"
Crystal smiled. "By the way, Miss Jasmine, would you like to join our chat group?"
"A ch-chat group?"
"Oh, it's Teacher Lu's fan community… I noticed you follow his Twitter."
"P-please!" Jasmine took a deep breath, still sounding nervous. "I… I'd love to join!"
---
[Group member 'Crystal' has invited 'Light' to the chat group!]
Lu Ye approved Light's join request, still feeling a little dazed.
Good grief… They were recruiting new members on their own now?!
Was his chat group secretly turning into some kind of collectible card game?!
[Gold: Ah! That beautiful older sister from Olivine City!]
Lorelei's temple twitched.
Why was she just an "old lady," while Jasmine got to be a "beautiful older sister"?!
This grudge… the Ice-type Elite Four would remember this!
Lu Ye opened Jasmine's profile and skimmed through it, confirming that she was the same girl who used Steelix.
Back in the GBA era, he had even searched for healing items for her Ampharos. That part of the main story had kept him stuck for ages…
Jasmine was extremely shy. After greeting Lu Ye briefly, she quietly went into "lurker mode."
Following the formula Jasmine provided, Lu Ye crafted some Pokéblocks suited for Togepi.
—
In the living room, the little one quickly blended into the family.
"Tchugki-brie~~~(❁´◡`❁)✲ﾟ*"*
Snuggled on the couch, Togepi was watching TV.
Perhaps influenced by Lu Ye's live streams, Togepi somehow managed to dig out a game controller, effortlessly connecting it to the console…
Lu Ye: …
Just as he thought Togepi was about to start gaming and take another step down the path of a shut-in…
Togepi opened the Protect TM, navigated to "#175 Togepi," and started watching the tutorial with great focus.
Lu Ye: ???
What the hell?!
Self-learning…
Was this how Pokémon transmitting knowledge to Pokémon started?!