Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

She nestled into Rowe's arms, and Rowe sighed contentedly.

"Hey, I'm about to go fight my dad, haha, to be honest, I have absolutely no confidence..."

Gardevoir walked step by step to his side, gracefully and slowly immersing herself in the water. She looked at Rowe with a smile, needing no further words, her feelings were already conveyed through telepathy.

"Yes, you are all my proud partners, but you are all Pokémon I raised with love~ As long as we work hard, there is absolutely no difficulty we can't overcome~"

As they spoke, several ribbons floated over and wrapped around Luo Wei's wrist, immediately transmitting a warm sensation.

It felt like being gently held on the arm, and Luo Wei couldn't help but reach out and grab Sylveon, pulling her into his arms and petting her a couple of times...

"...Speaking of which, Haruka and Lillie seem to have chosen a large room. Are they soaking in the hot spring together now?"

As he pondered this, Lowe suddenly caught a faint sound...

"Who?!"

Chapter 170 starts with a straightforward question?!

Lowe has a single room, while Lillie and the other two girls share a large room...

Like the hot spring room where Luo Wei stayed, this large room also has a hot spring, but it is a large hot spring that can accommodate more than ten people at the same time.

Naturally, this arrangement takes into account the composition of the people on site. After all, Luo Wei is the only man among the group, so he can only be arranged to stay in a single room.

However, Lowell seemed quite content, comfortably soaking in the hot springs with his Pokémon while petting his cat, embracing a truly blissful experience...

As for the three girls, the situation was completely different.

As Asha is a native of Fubuki Town and has visited hot springs countless times since childhood, Miss Lillie is certainly no stranger to it either. Haruka herself is a typical social butterfly and wouldn't be shy in this situation.

With no outsiders around, the three girls were completely naked and honest with each other in no time.

"Wow, that's amazing!"

Haruka and Aysa circled around Lillie twice. It has to be said that as the eldest daughter of the Aether Foundation, she has indeed received the highest level of care since childhood.

Under normal circumstances, a person's appearance is directly linked to the world's productivity and personal wealth. No matter how naturally beautiful you are, you can't become very pretty if you're exposed to wind and rain from childhood to adulthood.

This isn't an aesthetic issue; it's a very serious biological issue. If a normal person's skin can remain fair and delicate after years of sun and rain exposure, it's highly likely due to a genetic mutation. I suggest sending it to a research institute; every inch of that skin is a miracle of human civilization.

As the saying goes, "fair skin covers a hundred flaws, but being overweight ruins everything." Lillie has a whole line of professionally certified nutritionists and fitness coaches to help design and plan her diet and daily exercise. Under such circumstances, unless she is born with extremely poor physical qualities, it is definitely not hard to see anything wrong with her.

On the other hand, the world's productivity was high enough. If you were in ancient times with insufficient productivity, no matter how rich or powerful you were, it wouldn't matter. Even if the 800-li express courier service was faster than a train or an airplane, could an emperor mobilize the entire nation to produce a single dose of immunoglobulin?

Therefore, productivity, technology, financial resources... all of these factors are indispensable. In addition, Lillie's original appearance was not bad. After all, it is not rare for anime beauties and handsome men. Any random passerby drawn would be an 8 out of 10 in reality. It would be more accurate to say that it is worth mentioning if she is ugly.

Aysa and Haruka were obviously just curious; they weren't exactly envious, since their figures, honed through years of exercise, were certainly not bad.

However, the excitement of the onlookers was so great that Lillie, who was not embarrassed at first, became a little embarrassed by their actions.

"Haha, it's not that exaggerated. Rather, I'm more envious of Aysa and Haruka..."

After all, both of them are proper trainers. They have developed very fit bodies from climbing mountains and wading through rivers since they were young. Perhaps their skin and hair quality are not as good as Lillie's, but their bodies are by no means inferior, and may even be more attractive.

After all, age is a factor. A young body under twenty, relying solely on the advantage of age, exudes a youthful aura that older people can never match.

"Alright, stop standing outside the hot spring, come down now!"

With a smile, Asha pulled one person in each arm into the hot spring. With a splash, they entered the water, and the warm air enveloped their bodies, instantly making them feel relaxed.

"Phew, I feel like all the fatigue I've been carrying has melted away. Hmm, this really is a great place!"

"Yes, thank you for the compliment~"

Faced with Haruka's praise, Aya, as a member of Fuma Town, was naturally honored. The three of them immediately started chatting about all sorts of things while soaking in the hot spring.

Aysa has finally let go of her inner turmoil and is in better shape than ever before. In addition, she has successfully thwarted the Lava Team's conspiracy, which can be considered a redemption for her previous defeat.

According to the information obtained from the previous contact with Daigo, the abnormal data observed by the Meteorological Institute has weakened considerably just now, which means that the anomalies in the Chimney Mountain area have indeed begun to improve.

All of this is thanks to Xiaoyao who came to help, and Luo Wei who contributed a lot to this matter.

After a few words, the conversation naturally turned to Luo Wei...

Naturally, after a few words, the "spearhead" was turned on Xiaoyao, after all, she was Luo Wei's childhood sweetheart.

"...Well, although we're childhood friends, it's been many years since we last saw each other. I came to Hoenn with my dad, and that's when I separated from Rowe. Besides, even when we were kids... Rowe actually preferred being with Pokémon."

Speaking of this, Xiaoyao's tone was a bit helpless. Just as Luowei's biological mother said, this child has been unable to resist Pokémon since he was a child. And his father is a gym leader, so he is always surrounded by all kinds of Pokémon. Luowei's interest in Pokémon has been much greater than that of people since he was a child.

This once worried his mother a lot. She thought, "How can someone with a cute childhood friend like me be chasing after Pokémon all the time?"

Perhaps because the two families were close friends and the younger generation were childhood sweethearts, in Luo Wei's mother's mind, Xiao Yao was the pre-arranged daughter-in-law.

Unfortunately, Luo Wei just wouldn't get it, which made her so frustrated that she kept pinching Qianli's thigh...

...You raised such a fine son, he's just like his biological father!

Of course, Haruka was unaware of all this; she simply remembered that Rowe was unusually fond of Pokémon when she was little.

No, not when he was a child. Even now, Rowe still loves Pokémon. Anyone can tell from his interactions with his Pokémon.

However, in the world of Pokémon, this is the true measure of an "excellent trainer," and a truly outstanding trainer must genuinely love their Pokémon.

So……

"...Does Haruka like Lo Wei?"

As expected of the outgoing and cheerful Fire-type Gym Leader, Asa's first sentence was so direct that it made May cough up a lot of gasps.

"Ahem, why, why did you suddenly ask that?"

"Because, after seeing Xiaoyao come to help, Luo Wei's expression clearly changed..."

Upon hearing this, Lillie, who had been listening quietly, also changed her expression...

Indeed, when Luo Wei saw that the person who came to help was Xiao Yao, the change in his expression was obvious. He felt relieved and happy, which undoubtedly showed that the two had a very close relationship.

After all, they were childhood sweethearts, so it seems quite normal when you think about it.

"Hey, do you like Lo Wei...?"

Xiaoyao tapped her chin with her finger, remained silent for several seconds, and then gave her conclusion...

"...I guess...I like it~"

Chapter 171 Hot Spring Scene (A Recurring Feature) (Just kidding)

This direct question really highlights that he has no one else to rely on and dares to say anything.

However, to my surprise, Xiaoyao didn't seem shy at all. After thinking about it seriously for two seconds, she decisively gave her conclusion.

"Hmm, I guess I like it..."

"Wow, so serious!"

To be honest, such a serious answer made Aya, who had originally intended to tease her, feel a little embarrassed, while Haruka couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Because, Luo Wei is handsome, right?"

"Uh...it seems..."

Upon hearing this, not only Asha, but even Lillie was momentarily lost in thought. Indeed, in terms of appearance, Rowe could certainly be categorized as handsome.

That's only because they benefit from the world-building. Like I said, in this kind of anime world, you can't find many ugly characters. Besides, Luo Wei is playing the protagonist player role, so at least he doesn't intend to make things difficult for the players in terms of appearance.

Although he was undeniably handsome, it seemed that Lillie and Aysa had to recall something before they remembered him. This suggests that Rowe's personal style was so strong that they completely overlooked his appearance at that moment.

When one's personal abilities are strong enough, appearance is indeed just a bonus. Even if he has an average appearance, Luo Wei is still an outstanding person in terms of personal ability.

"...And she also has a very gentle personality~"

Speaking of this, May mentioned being attacked by Salamence in the back mountain. Of course, May is no longer afraid of a Salamence now, but back then, Rowe and May, who had just obtained their starter Pokémon, were no match for that out-of-control Salamence.

In that situation, Lowe's reaction was remarkably calm from beginning to end. His decision to act as bait to lure Salamence away so that May could escape further solidified May's belief in Lowe's character.

As the saying goes, anyone can say nice things, but the key is how you act when things really happen. Luo Wei's actions prove that when trouble comes, he really steps up...

Although this incident was essentially caused by Luo Wei's sudden idea to explore the back mountain, it cannot be said that it was Luo Wei's fault.

Lowell had confirmed that there were no dangerous Pokémon in the back mountain, and May also had this idea, so the two hit it off immediately.

Although Lowell had just acquired his partner Pokémon, it wasn't his first time commanding Pokémon. He had been able to command Pokémon from afar in training and battles quite well since he was very young.

In addition, the new Leafeon at that time was specially bred by the League and the Research Institute for new trainers, and its quality was much better than that of ordinary wild Pokémon.

So, under normal circumstances, this group wouldn't encounter any danger among the flowers, birds, fish, and insects in the back mountain. That Salamence was purely an accident.

So if there is any mistake, it is the trainer who released the out-of-control Salamence, not Rowe's fault.

At this point, Xiaoyao seemed to be implying something, but after realizing what she was saying, she immediately changed the subject.

"So, he's handsome, gentle, strong, and we're childhood friends, so there's nothing wrong with liking him, right?"

"...But the way you were thinking just now made it seem like you'd only just realized that?"

Indeed, there seems to be a good reason why Xiaoyao likes Luo Wei, but Xiaoyao's attitude makes it seem like she has only just realized this.

"Haha, because I really just realized it. I guess that's the downside of having childhood friends~"

Because they are so familiar with each other, their relationship has long since progressed to the mode of an old married couple through years of subtle cohabitation. Instead, they have lost the initial excitement of first love, and even feelings like "like" need to be reminded to be aware of them.

But in other words, perhaps we didn't realize it because "liking" it was something we took for granted.

"Ah, that's really enviable. If Haruka isn't interested, I'd actually be quite keen to give it a try~"

This time, it was Haruka's turn to be curious after the unexpected question: "Hey, does Aysa like Rowe?"

"Haha, I just think it's amazing, I guess I'm attracted to it. 'The more you care, the worse you do, so you might as well not think about anything and then it won't matter'..."

At that time, when Aysa talked about her troubles, Rowe's answer revealed a sense of ease. Although he was only a boy of about ten years old, he exuded the open-mindedness of a mature man.

After all, Luo Wei is essentially an "old man" in his thirties. His handsome youthful appearance combined with the essence of a mature man makes it not surprising that he is attractive.

"...But since Haruka likes it, then there's nothing more to say. I just feel that childhood friends can't beat anything else, so I don't want to embarrass myself~"

In other words, if Haruka doesn't like Lo Wei, Aya is very interested in trying to win him over. Unfortunately, since Haruka is interested, she doesn't think she's a match for her childhood friend.