Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

This is different from the game. When Pokémon are thrown into a computer, they are just a string of data. Here, each child is a real life. Once you make them your partners, you should put enough effort into raising and taking care of them.

Otherwise, it would be better to let them live peacefully in the wild than to capture them and then leave them to languish.

Having figured this out, Luo Wei felt relieved, and he gradually explored Route 102 to its end.

Besides encountering wild Pokémon, there were naturally many other encounters along the way.

For example...

"...New Leaf Cat, Flash of Lightning~"

With a wave of his hand, Luo Wei sent Xin Ye Miao accelerating and disappearing in a flash, knocking away a snake-patterned bear in front of him.

Snake-patterned bear, unable to fight~

As the outcome became clear, the stylishly dressed girl in the miniskirt stuck out her tongue, reached into a Poké Ball, and recalled her Pokémon.

There are pictures here, which can be viewed after the updated version

"Haha, that's impressive! I didn't expect my snake-patterned bear to not even last one move!"

Despite being instantly defeated by Luo Wei, the girl in the miniskirt opposite him showed no sign of frustration.

She casually pulled out her Pokémon Navigator from her pocket, scanned it against Rowe's Navigator, and Rowe's account immediately gained 80 (to clarify for those who might have questions, Navigator isn't rare; what's rare are the limited edition models. There are several generations of Navigator, so older models aren't unusual. That's all)...

This is where Pokémon battles take place. In the wild, you might encounter other Pokémon Trainers anytime, anywhere. "When your eyes meet, it's time for a duel!" After the battle is decided, the loser will pay a certain amount of money as a wager.

The exact amount depends on the other party's financial situation. In other words, if you're betting against the world's richest person and he accepts, he has to pay you if you win...

That's the rule of this world, provided you can win...

This earned the "Four Heavenly Kings" in the later stages of the game the nickname "ATMs," as they were repeatedly exploited by countless players...

In short, the stakes for a duel between trainers are usually not very high.

After all, a red and white ball costs 200 in the store, and a bottle of refreshing soda is worth 300... A match against the miniskirt in front of you would only cost 80, which, if you convert that to a bottle of soda costing three yuan, is equivalent to only 80 cents in purchasing power...

The productivity of the Pokémon world is definitely much higher than that of Earth, so the actual value conversion of goods between the two worlds may be even lower.

Therefore, neither side would be affected by this small amount of money. On the contrary, the strength shown by Luo Wei piqued the interest of the girl in the miniskirt.

"Wow, you're amazing! How about we get each other's numbers? Let's play against each other again sometime!"

This is obviously not a new situation in the Pokémon world. Faced with the enthusiastic appearance of the girl in the miniskirt, Luo Wei readily took out his Navigator and exchanged numbers with her.

"Hmm, nice to meet you~"

After adding the other person as a friend, Luo Wei waved goodbye, and Orange City was already in sight.

Seeing this, Luo Wei naturally quickened his pace immediately. As soon as he entered Orange City, the navigator made a "ding" sound. The account of the miniskirt girl he had added just a few tens of minutes ago had a new post on her Moments.

I lost another battle today o(╥﹏╥)o, but I met a really handsome trainer and even managed to add him as a friend, so I was lucky (*^▽^*)~

"..."

Xin Ye Miao, perched on Luo Wei's shoulder, read the message with him. Luo Wei was both amused and exasperated, while Xin Ye Miao turned her head away angrily. Luo Wei sighed, realizing that he had just managed to cheer Xin Ye Miao up a bit, only to be betrayed the moment she turned around.

"Haha, they're just friends I recently met~"

Luo Wei ruffled Xin Ye Miao's hair, while his gaze swept over Orange City in front of him.

This is where his father works. At first glance, it is a very quiet and peaceful city. In fact, the city is only slightly larger than a small town like Mobai Town.

The city shows little trace of industrialization. Although it has all the necessary infrastructure, the building density is very low, and a lot of natural scenery is preserved everywhere.

In short, it's a place that looks perfect for retirement...

...Hmm, at first glance, it perfectly matches Luo Wei's biological father. Qianli really dislikes crowds, and this kind of slow-paced small city suits his temperament.

With that in mind, Luo Wei's gaze fell upon the most prominent building in the entire city.

It was a martial arts arena filled with Japanese style, the Pokémon Gym of Petalburg City. Besides being the Gym Leader, Rowe's father was also the Gym Leader of this martial arts arena. In addition to Pokémon battles, he also taught martial arts such as karate.

Even from a distance, Luo Wei could hear the unified shouts coming from the martial arts hall, which meant that the students were carrying out their daily training.

Luo Wei composed himself and immediately set off towards the dojo.

As soon as I entered the dojo, a young man in training clothes came up to me.

"Welcome. Are you here to challenge the dojo or to register for their training?"

Just as Luo Wei was about to answer, a very familiar voice rang in his ears...

"No problem, I'll take care of it..."

Upon hearing the voice, Luo Wei immediately waved in the direction it came from, "Dad, I've come to see you!"

Chapter Sixteen: First Encounter with Man Chong

Luo Wei looked in the direction from which the sound came. The familiar man was standing in the courtyard in front of the dojo, and in front of him stood two figures who looked like a father and son.

The father seemed to say something to Qianli, nodding repeatedly with a joyful expression, while the boy who appeared to be his son carefully stayed by his father's side.

"Then, I'll leave this child in your care for the time being..."

The father patted the boy on the head, and Qianli nodded decisively in response.

"Don't worry, leave this to me..."

Seeing that they seemed to have finished speaking, Luo Wei immediately waved and called out, "Dad, I've come to see you!"

As soon as these words were spoken, they naturally attracted the attention of most people present. The young man in training clothes who came to greet him was also taken aback for a moment, but then immediately understood.

"Oh, are you Mr. Senri's son? Haha, I've heard Mr. Senri talk about you a lot. Are you planning to start challenging the Pokémon Gyms?"

As he spoke, he immediately stepped aside. Luo Wei smiled and nodded, then quickly ran to his father.

Qianli still maintained his stern and imposing demeanor, but upon seeing Luo Wei arrive, a slight smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.

"Oh, it looks quite promising..."

After looking Luo Wei up and down, Qianli nodded. At the same time, Luo Wei also recognized the father and son who had been talking to his father earlier.

Especially the boy, who looked to be about the same age as Luo Wei, with green hair, a rather restrained expression, and a very thin figure, as if he were somewhat malnourished.

When the father saw Luo Wei, he greeted him warmly, "Are you Mr. Qianli's son? Please take care of me... You seem to be a very talented young man!"

"Haha, thank you for the compliment~" Luo Wei could tell that this was just a polite remark, but he didn't pay too much attention to it. Instead, he quickly focused his attention on the boy and extended his hand with a smile, "Hello, hello, my name is Luo Wei~"

"Eh?"

The boy was taken aback, seemingly not expecting Luo Wei to greet him first. After a two-second silence, he cautiously extended his hand. "I, my name is Man Chong... nice to meet you."

There are pictures here, which can be viewed after the updated version

His tone was very polite, but also very restrained, clearly indicating that he was a very timid boy...

After a friendly handshake, Luo Wei asked with a grin, "Manch, do you like Pokémon?"

"?" Mitsuo looked puzzled, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes, I really like Pokémon, I've always liked them!"

"Great! There are no bad people who like Pokémon. We'll definitely become good friends!"

"Ah, thank you, thank you..."

It's estimated that Manchong had never met a social terrorist like Luo Wei in his life, and he was momentarily stunned by Luo Wei. However, Manchong's father seemed to be very happy.

Qianli knew Luo Wei's temperament very well and understood that Luo Wei was just that kind of straightforward and generous person. Seeing this, he suddenly thought of something.

Then he looked at Manchong's father.

"Oh, right, we were just talking about that. Why don't we have Luo Wei take Manchong along? People of the same age should have more in common to talk about..."

Upon hearing this, Manchong's father asked with delight, "Really? Won't it be too much trouble..."

"no problem……"

So, Luo Wei had no idea what was going on; it seemed that his father had simply arranged some kind of work for him.

"Ahem, Dad, can you explain this to me first?"

Qianli nodded calmly, then gestured to Manch, "This child wants to learn about catching Pokémon, and also hopes to ask me to catch a partner Pokémon for him..."

"Eh..." Luo Wei asked, puzzled, "In that case, why not just go to the research institute and get one?"

Upon hearing this, Manchong's face immediately showed a hint of sadness, and his father also looked troubled. Qianli, however, continued calmly, "Manchong is physically weak and has a congenital genetic disease, making him unsuitable to become a trainer... Therefore, he cannot pass the Pokémon Academy's test..."

"That's it..."

Only by passing the Pokémon Academy test can one receive a partner Pokémon. Although the test was extremely easy for Rowe, who passed all the tests when he was 4 years old, it was still somewhat difficult for ordinary people in this world.

Mighty's situation is even worse. He seems to have some congenital illness that results in extremely poor physical condition. Although the Pokémon League actively encourages children of the right age to become trainers, Mighty's physical condition makes him prone to accidents when traveling.

Therefore, he failed the academy's test and was not qualified to become a trainer and receive a partner Pokémon.

“We know this is against the rules…” Manchong’s father chimed in, “…so we don’t expect anything, we just hope that this child can get even one partner Pokémon. This child really loves Pokémon and will definitely take it seriously.”

After saying this, the middle-aged man bowed deeply to Qianli and Luo Wei, "Please, as long as this child's dream can be fulfilled, I'll pay any price..."

"OK, stop it~" Luo Wei quickly raised his hand to stop the other person, "...It's no big deal, no need to exaggerate, Manchong, since we're friends now, I'll take care of this little thing~"

As they were talking, Luo Wei generously reached out and hooked his arm around Man Chong's neck, pulling him directly to his side. He then chuckled and playfully punched Man Chong's chest. The incredibly friendly and natural gesture made Man Chong a little embarrassed.

"Eh, ah, um..."

He seemed a little incoherent for a moment, but he could sense that Luo Wei's intentions were genuinely good, so he didn't resist...

"Well then, we'll head out now. Don't worry, it'll be done in no time!"

Luo Wei waved to his father and Man Chong's father, then walked out of the dojo with his arm around Man Chong's shoulder. Man Chong was clearly completely intimidated by Luo Wei's aura and followed him without saying a word.

Watching the two leave, Manchong's father was happy but also a little worried. He probably felt that Luo Wei was still too young and was not very confident in Luo Wei's abilities.

Qianli clearly sensed his worry and immediately answered calmly.

"Don't worry, although that kid still has a lot of room for improvement, he's definitely got real skills. There won't be any problems leaving him in his care..."