Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

"Okay, I'll collect as much data as possible while ensuring I can escape."

Rowe casually joked, which amused Professor Birch. "Haha, that's right, that's right. No matter what, you must prioritize the safety of yourself and your Pokémon partners. That's what makes a qualified trainer!"

After saying that, Professor Birch continued, "...Well then, to celebrate Rowe and Haruka's upcoming journey, here's a little gift for you~"

Professor Birch brought out two backpacks and handed them to the two of them. When Rowe took them, he saw that they contained ten empty Poké Balls and a dozen healing sprays.

While it's not exactly expensive, it's definitely an essential piece of equipment for trainers.

"Hmm, thanks, Doctor~"

Luo Wei naturally accepted it without hesitation; this could be considered one of the rewards for helping him collect the illustrations.

After finishing packing, it was already getting late. Luo Wei said goodbye to the professor and Xiao Yao and headed back home.

"So, it's been three years since we last saw Xiaoyao, you must have a lot to say, right?"

As soon as he walked in, his mother crowded around him, her face beaming with gossip. Luo Wei could only helplessly reply, "It's nothing much, just a really fun Pokémon battle. Yeah, May was really good, I almost lost..."

"...You silly child, who would want to ask you that!"

Luo Wei's mother was naturally helpless. How come this child is already this age, and all he talks about is Pokémon?

But there was nothing we could do but let him be. His temper was definitely like his father's; he was definitely his biological son.

Over there, dinner had already been prepared, and in the very center of the table was a cake with twelve lit candles.

"Well then, let's put everything else aside for now. Anyway, happy birthday, Rowe!"

Because Qianli was too busy with work, he couldn't celebrate Luo Wei's birthday with him this time. However, Luo Wei was already used to it, since his father did have a lot of important things to do.

As he watched the candle burn halfway down, and blew it out to make a wish, Luo Wei finally made up his mind.

"Ahem, actually... I have something very important to say today..."

Taking this opportunity, Luo Wei, who had fully prepared himself mentally, finally spoke out about his dream that had been brewing for two years.

He picked up the new leaf cat beside him, and the little guy seemed to sense Luo Wei's feelings, nestling obediently in Luo Wei's arms.

"I want to become a great Pokémon Trainer like my dad, so I'm going to start challenging Pokémon Gyms, and my goal is... to become a Pokémon Master!"

Although he had prepared himself mentally and had thought of various excuses beforehand, in the end, all Luo Wei did was simply state his thoughts directly.

Listening to Luo Wei's words, Luo Wei's mother did not show any extra emotional changes, but simply replied with a light laugh.

"I see, so Luo Wei has indeed reached this age."

"so……"

Luo Wei looked at his mother, seemingly waiting for her reply. However, Luo Wei's mother did not answer directly. Instead, she got up and walked to the corner of the living room, opened the package that had been unopened before, and found two beautifully wrapped gift boxes, one large and one small.

Before answering, let's take a look at the birthday gifts that Dad and Mom gave to Rowe!

These two gift boxes were the twelfth birthday gifts that Rowe's parents had given him. Rowe was stunned, and seemed to have vaguely understood what was going on.

He excitedly accepted the gift boxes. The first one was from his mother. Inside the larger gift box... when he opened it, there was a brand new pair of sneakers.

In addition, there was a handwritten note on the sneakers...

I hope this gift will accompany you on a wonderful and memorable journey.

This note and this gift speak for themselves; there's no need for further words. I looked up and saw my mother's gentle smile. Everything was clear and needed no further explanation.

Luo Wei thought that he, as an older office worker, was long past the age of being moved, but when he saw this gift, he still felt his eyes well up with tears uncontrollably.

"Thank you, this is truly the best gift!"

"Haha, don't be too sure of yourself! Look at Dad's gift; he put a lot of thought into it!"

Upon hearing his mother say that, Luo Wei immediately perked up, picked up the relatively small gift box, carefully opened it, and found a palm-sized device resembling a mobile phone inside.

"This is... Pokémon Navigator!"

Chapter Fourteen: I twisted my ankle at the very first step of the journey!

"The latest Pokémon Navigator? And this is the flagship version, a limited edition released by Devon Corporation. Only a thousand units were made in the entire Hoenn region. Dad actually managed to get his hands on one?"

While it might not be impossible to obtain it with the Gym Leader's influence, Devon Corporation is one of the top companies in the Hoenn region, with an influence comparable to Silver Corporation and the Aether Foundation. Even the Gym Leader's influence might not be that effective.

At this point, Luo Wei suddenly understood something. Qianli had attended Devon's new product launch event before. Based on Luo Wei's understanding of his father's temperament, he had never been interested in such purely commercial activities. Why would he go to attend this event this time?

Thinking about the gift in his hand, the answer is obvious. Clearly, one of the rewards for Qianli's participation in Devon's event was this precious gift.

The Pokémon Navigator embodies Devon Corporation's latest technological advancements. Its main function is similar to a smartphone, but it also includes many convenient features for Pokémon Trainers, such as map navigation.

Having such a convenient tool when you're out and about makes things much easier.

Luo Wei opened the Navigator and found that several numbers had already been recorded inside.

"These are Daddy's, Mommy's, and Professor Birch's numbers. That way, even if Rowe is out, Mommy can contact him anytime she wants to talk to him!"

Upon seeing this, Lowe immediately understood. Dr. Birch's number was here, so he must have known in advance that Senri had prepared this gift.

Indeed, that was the case. When Qianli spoke with Dr. Oda Birch earlier, telling him about the upcoming move of Rowe and his mother, he also explained that he had decided on this gift, acknowledging and encouraging Rowe to embark on his journey of pursuing his dreams.

That's why Dr. Birch felt that the family of three were truly in sync when he learned that Rowe was planning to make his wish on his birthday that night.

No, in fact, it may not be a telepathic connection, but rather that as family members, they naturally understand each other's feelings. Luo Wei's desire to embark on a journey had already been noticed by his parents, but he hesitated because he cared about his mother.

This sentiment was naturally noticed, and as parents, how could they not support their child's wishes?

These two gifts, once presented, were more persuasive than a thousand words. Just as Rowe said, they were the best birthday gifts he had ever received in the world.

If we include his previous life, we should also add the GBA and the pirated Ruby cartridge that led him into the world of Pokémon on his twelfth birthday.

Xin Ye Miao patted Luo Wei's hand, and Luo Wei immediately understood what she meant, and immediately turned on the navigator and switched to camera mode.

"Come on, come on, it's such a wonderful day, let's take a group photo to commemorate it. It's a pity Dad isn't here..."

"Haha, he thought of this beforehand and recorded a video in advance. Let's just use the video as a makeshift solution for now~"

Although she was too busy with work to get away, she couldn't forget her son's birthday, so she recorded a video in advance and sent it to Luo Wei's mother.

As the video played, Luo Wei was holding Xin Ye Miao in his arms, and his mother gently wrapped her arms around his shoulders from behind. The navigator clearly recorded the appearance of the family of four.

Even the usually stern and tough father showed a rare, faint smile as the photo was captured with a click, and Luo Wei looked at it with satisfaction.

"Okay, now everything's ready!"

………………

…………

……

The next morning, Luo Wei and Xin Ye Miao woke up at the same time. Xin Ye Miao stretched and yawned, while Luo Wei rolled over and couldn't wait to get out of bed.

After washing up and eating his last breakfast, Luo Wei changed into brand new sneakers, carried a Pokédex and a Pokémon Navigator on his waist, and slung a backpack containing Poké Balls and healing spray over his shoulder. Completed, he stepped out to greet the rising sun and gave a thumbs-up.

This adventure (story) begins here!

As for the travel route, it was naturally planned in advance. First, we would go to the old town of Rosewood, which we had passed through before, and then head west along Route 102 to say hello to the Petalburg City Gym where my father is located.

Naturally, Luo Wei knew perfectly well that he was no match for his father, so he simply went over to say hello.

As for the first gym I really want to challenge, it's Rustboro City, which is located near Petalburg City. It's an industrial city that produces minerals, and its gym leader has Rock-type Pokémon.

This is also the largest and most prosperous city in the vicinity. It goes without saying that it is much larger than the town of Midnight where Rowe currently lives, and it is also several times larger than Orange Blossom City where Rowe's father works.

But that's normal. Rowe's dad doesn't like noise and trouble. Big cities don't suit him. He prefers a smaller, more natural city like Orange Blossom.

The road to Rosewood was familiar to him, and with an empty Poké Ball in hand, Rowe considered whether to expand his team.

However, they didn't encounter any good opportunities to capture it along the way. Of course, this might also be because Lowei had just expressed his desire to expand his team, and New Leaf Cat immediately understood...

And so we saw the little guy displaying incredible power all the way, with no Pokémon she encountered being a match for her. The specifics were roughly like this...

"...Oh, a snakeskin bear! That fluffy tail must feel amazing!"

New Leaf Cat used a leaf, and the Snake Bear collapsed...

"...Oh, Wurmple. Its evolved form, Beautifly, is also very beautiful. Bug-type Pokémon grow very quickly, so they should be easy to train, right?"

New Leaf Cat used its claw attack, and the Stinging Tail Worm fell down...

"...Oh, an acorn berry! That's a rare Pokémon, not bad luck!"

Shin-chan used Quick Attack, hitting a vital point, and the acorn fell down...

"..."

Luo Wei's lips twitched, and after a long silence, he looked at Xin Ye Miao slowly licking her feet, and suddenly felt an unprecedented surge of urge to complain.

"Hey, Shin-chan...do we have some kind of communication problem? I think we should expand our team before challenging the Gym Leader. You took him down in one move, what am I supposed to do..."

However, halfway through the conversation, Shin-chan turned her head and gave her a disdainful look, as if to say...

...You already have me, so why do you need to raise other children, meow?

At that moment, Luo Wei fully experienced the sadness of being henpecked...

Oh no! I twisted my ankle the moment I took my first step on this journey!

Chapter Fifteen: We're Just Ordinary Friends Who Have Just Met

Luo Wei never expected that his confident first step on the journey would result in him twisting his ankle.

He fully experienced the sadness of being henpecked, and between laughter and tears, Luo Wei could only reach out and gently poke Xin Ye Miao's chin with his finger.

"...Don't worry, don't worry, even if new kids join, I'll still love Shin-chan the most~"

Of course, Loewy knew what Newleaf was thinking. To put it bluntly, it was just that Loewy was worried that once he got a new Pokémon, it would divert his attention from her.

Thinking back to her previous life, after completing the game, she had a bunch of Pokémon on her computer that she had caught but never used again, so perhaps Newleaf's "worries" can't be considered unfounded.

After all, a trainer can only carry a maximum of six Pokémon, while there are hundreds of Pokémon. It's impossible for a trainer to distribute their preferences equally among all Pokémon.

So, Shin-chan is probably just worried that Lo-Wei will become less affectionate towards her after catching more new Pokémon, and this can only be resolved through communication.

Rowe knew that his cat was mostly just being aloof and acting tough, but as long as Rowe was willing to coax it, it would eventually give in.

Let her sulk for a while; there's no rush. After all, none of the Pokémon we've seen so far have really suited Rowe's taste.