"3 PM, the exam is at Flame Gym?"
Lin Yu let out a quiet breath after leaving the Pokémon League.
He had way too many fans.
"It's getting late, let's go eat! I'm starving." Xue Nai pouted cutely.
She'd finally dragged him out—she wasn't going home empty-handed.
In her mind, if you like someone, you go for it.
It was already noon.
"Alright." Lin Yu was hungry too, and figured his Pokémon inside their Poké Balls probably were as well.
"C'mon, I'll take you somewhere with amazing food~"
"Lead the way, senior…"
Half an hour later…
Lin Yu stared at the Frost Gym in front of him and fell deep in thought.
Shuimu City had four official Gyms:
Flame Gym, Wave Gym, Frost Gym, and Nature Gym.
Four types, four Gyms.
So…
what did this have to do with eating?
"Mom, I'm home!"
Huh?
Lin Yu looked at Xue Nai in total shock, eyes wide with question marks.
"Hehe, I wasn't lying! My mom's cooking is the best!"
Xue Nai stuck out her tongue, grabbed Lin Yu's hand, and pulled him inside.
A wave of cold rushed at his face, making Lin Yu shiver.
The inside was like a winter wonderland. Several students were training their Ice-type Pokémon with Powder Snow.
Luckily, his physique had improved a lot lately.
A beautiful, mature woman came out to greet them—silver hair tied in a ponytail, soft curves, elegant aura.
She was the Gym Leader.
Her main Pokémon was an Alolan Ninetales.
"Xue Nai?"
The woman glanced at her daughter, then at Lin Yu beside her.
Lin Yu had no choice but to greet her politely. "Hello, ma'am."
The students in the Gym all turned to stare.
Nobody could believe their eyes when they saw Xue Nai bringing a boy back.
Xue Nai was always calm and gentle around them.
To everyone, she was an unreachable flower on a high peak!
"Look! Senior Xue brought a guy back!"
"No way… I only joined this Gym to see her!"
"Sniff… my heart's broken. Wait, I wanna duel this guy and win Senior Xue back!"
"Wait a second… does he look familiar? Isn't he the champion of this year's city high school tournament?"
(,,#ﾟДﾟ) "Suddenly they look perfect together!"
Everyone backed down at once.
Lin Yu had no idea Xue Nai was this popular at her own Gym.
She was already popular at school.
She even had a rule:
anyone who wanted to pursue her first had to beat her in their age group.
That scared off 99% of guys.
"Mom~ I'm starving, let's eat~"
The usually cool and confident Xue Nai turned into a clingy, coquettish girl.
"Alright, alright. You two come in first, just wait a bit."
The woman wanted to study Lin Yu for a moment—her daughter talked about him nonstop.
She led the two inside, while all the students watched with envious eyes, into the small courtyard behind the Gym.
The courtyard was covered in a thick layer of snow.
At the back was a cozy house.
Sitting outside was an Alolan Ninetales, almost as tall as a person when seated.
Its fur was pure white, without a single stray hair, and its eyes were bright blue like gemstones.
Lin Yu took one look.
Lord-stage Ninetales!
Incredibly powerful!
"Wait here, I'll get everything ready!"
The woman smiled and went into the kitchen.
Lin Yu hesitated for a second, then asked if he could let his Pokémon out for some fresh air.
After getting permission, he released all three!
"Charr?!"
"Frog?!"
"Kirl?!"
The unfamiliar environment stunned all three Pokémon.
"Wow! Ralts evolved too!"
Xue Nai gasped, looking at the graceful, girl-like Kirlia. She then called out her own Pokémon:
a Braixen and an Alolan Vulpix.
One fiery red, one snow-white.
Both fluffy foxes.
Xue Nai tried to hug Kirlia, but got coldly rejected.
Aside from Lin Yu, it wouldn't let anyone touch it.
None of his Pokémon had ever seen snow before. They curiously picked it up.
But Charmeleon's body heat turned the snow into water before it could even hold it.
"Braixen~"
They say a Pokémon's personality matches its Trainer's.
Braixen was outgoing and friendly, and quickly started playing with the three.
It even taught Charmeleon how to control its body temperature.
It was a fine control over inner energy—great for any Pokémon.
And the sharp Charmeleon learned it in just ten minutes.
Braixen sulked and drew circles in the snow.
It had taken her days to learn that…
Before long, the woman came out of the house and called:
"Dinner's ready."
The two exchanged looks and walked inside with their Pokémon.
Before eating, Lin Yu took out the Energy Cubes he always carried.
All three of his Pokémon were huge fans of his cooking.
Their favorite time of day was mealtime.
They dug in immediately.
"Junior."
Xue Nai leaned close to Lin Yu, watching him feed Kirlia one by one.
"Did you buy these Energy Cubes? They look really high-quality!"
She then puffed out her chest proudly. "My mom's also an Energy Cube maker—she's a Senior Breeder."
"Eat first!"
The woman couldn't believe her daughter was selling her out this fast just to impress a boy.
But when she saw the Pokémon beside Lin Yu, she couldn't help being secretly shocked.
Charmeleon, a black Frogadier, and Kirlia!
All rare, extremely powerful when fully grown!
"Your name is Lin Yu, right?" the woman asked, watching the young man feed his Pokémon.
Lin Yu nodded.
"May I see the Energy Cubes you're feeding them?"
As a Senior Breeder, she couldn't help being curious about excellent breeding work.
These Pokémon had bright, glossy fur and larger, sturdier builds than normal ones.
She had to see how Lin Yu raised them.
"They're just little things I made myself. Sorry if they're not up to your standard, ma'am."
Lin Yu held out a Water-type Cube.
The moment she took it, the woman's expression focused sharply.
Her eyes widened.
"You made these… yourself?"
This quality was even better than hers!