Ash, with his invincible physical body, wants to become a Pokémon Master...

Of course, before she could carry out her plan to possess the Rockets, Higanbana would have to make Giovanni bleed a lot more.

I wonder what Giovanni's expression would be if he found out that the money he originally gave his subordinates to poach rare Pokémon was ultimately spent by Sisley on doing good deeds.

After the rocket landed, Ash received a text message from Higanbana agreeing to be his girlfriend in a smug tone, and he smiled knowingly.

"I haven't even made any requests yet, and they've already come to me on their own initiative... That's great, very considerate, they deserve praise!"

Ash happily decided that when they met next time, he would reduce the number of times he planned to use Greatsword Attack on Higanbana from 7 to 3!

He was moved by his own chivalry and compassion.

"Seriously, how can you be so kind, Xiao Zhi!" The muscular man shamelessly praised himself.

At this moment, the people who had run to the landing point to greet him finally arrived.

His companions, Haruka, Shun, and the trio, ran in the lead, followed closely by the mayor, Naki, and the staff at the command post.

Ash essentially saved the entire Hoenn region this time, so he naturally deserves flowers and applause.

Mayor Fall Guys kept holding Ash's hand, crying and saying he wanted to award him a certificate of honor and a citizen's medal.

However, Ash immediately declined all of them.

"Hey, Mayor. Why all this formality? I didn't decide to step forward for this kind of thing!"

"I'm so surprised, Xiaozhi! Your indifference to fame and fortune is truly touching!"

He truly lived up to his prophetic promise as the savior, possessing profound wisdom and righteousness. The mayor was deeply moved.

But then Ash continued.

"That's right, just convert all your extra honors into money!"

"..." The mayor blinked.

"If the alliance comes to me later asking what kind of reward I need, please tell them that I want money!"

"Uh, kid, you're really... honest!"

Mayor Fall Guy wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and managed to squeeze out a compliment with great difficulty.

He thought he had misheard. This savior was quite different from what he had imagined.

He was clearly a person with such a strong demeanor just a moment ago, but this also shows that he is a wonderful person who doesn't care about worldly stereotypes and is honest.

For some reason, the mayor's admiration for Ash deepened even further.

Meanwhile, Xiaoyao and the others were wiping their sweat sheepishly.

"Haha, I hope you don't mind, that's just how Xiaozhi is."

These empty titles are really secondary to Ash, after all, he already has enough fame from the past.

What he cares about most now is still that beautiful, mature woman who stands out from the crowd.

He took off his already damaged spacesuit, stared intently at her, and walked towards Naki.

Then, amidst everyone's astonished gazes, Ash shouted loudly.

"Gym Leader Nakia, please accept my challenge! What I really wanted to do in Lilycove City was, as expected, to challenge the gyms!"

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have triggered a new main quest, "Challenge the Vermilion City Gym!": Defeat Vermilion City Gym Leader Nakia to obtain the White Feather Badge!]

【奖励：联盟币+3000；攻击+2；防御+2；自由属性点+3；技能“羽栖”+1】

Ash's intense gaze left Naki somewhat overwhelmed.

However, she eventually nodded in agreement, but after staring at Xiaozhi's serious expression for a while, she couldn't help but chuckle.

"They just recently accomplished the great feat of saving Hoenn, and now the first thing they want to do is challenge the gyms...?"

"Xiao Zhi, you're a really interesting person."

[Ding! Naki: Affection +5]

Naki doesn't dislike such a pure-hearted boy.

Of course, loving money purely and loving battles purely are both pure.

"It's just not suitable to have a gym battle today, because there are still some things to do to clean up the aftermath of the meteor impact that I, as the gym leader, need to handle."

"So let's make a promise to have a formal gym challenge tomorrow!" Nagi winked at Ash playfully and then smiled sweetly.

"The Wings Carnival in Limau City is still one day away. This is an event that you absolutely cannot miss when you come to Limau City."

Naki suggested that Ash and his friends go sightseeing, get some rest, and enjoy the hospitality that Lilycove City was offering them.

Moreover, the mayor will pay for everything!

The muscular man's affection for the mature female pilot increases by 10.

"Little Naki, when you say you'll pay the bill, you don't mean you'll use my salary to offset it, do you?"

"Mayor~" Naki narrowed her eyes, her tone still sweet but sending a chill down one's spine.

She slowly approached, then immediately punched the mayor of Fall Guys again.

"Stop talking nonsense! I haven't even settled the score with you for the citywide power outage you caused before!"

"Whoa, whoa..."

In short, Ash and his friends split into groups and went to the carnival to visit the fair.

The trio of Kojiro also received an extra bonus from Ash.

They contributed significantly to this event, and their contribution to the timely and successful launch of the rocket alone was immense.

Making those who have made contributions suffer afterwards is not something a good boss should do.

Although the three of them usually cause Ash a lot of damage, now is the time to celebrate, so let's not think about those painful past events.

(The trio: Thank you, boss, for sparing our lives. Loyalty is rising.)

The Carnival in Lilycove City is truly unique, with attractions everywhere related to Flying-type Pokémon.

Moreover, these facilities are very Pokémon-friendly; many do not require trainers to accompany them, and Pokémon can explore on their own.

Ash also decided to let his Pokémon out to relax after a long time.

Jirachi, this adorable little creature, would sit on one of Ash's heads for a while, lie on another's shoulder for a while, and finally perch on Pikachu's back, enjoying all the rides with him.

It was a great time for Little Star to have fun.

Seeing how happy the Pokémon were, Ash's mood immediately improved as well.

However, for some reason, he felt as if he had forgotten something very important.

Before he could think it through, Xiaoyao dragged him away to a roadside stall to sample some food.

Then, in the evening, he received a call from the Odamaru Research Institute.

"Ash—! I knew it was you who did this!"

"Professor Oak and I were both hit all over the head, and my beloved living room... I spent so much time decorating it, and now it's all gone, sob sob."

Watching the round-faced, bearded man on the other end of the video call crying and complaining to him, even Xiao Zhi, with his thick skin, felt embarrassed.

"Sorry, Dr. Birch, I forgot."

"Don't worry, I've already arranged for people to take those stones away in air taxis right away."

After the initial panic yesterday, Professor Oak and Professor Birch's two brilliant minds quickly came to their senses.

"This situation seems very similar to the scene when Kira made a wish before!"

They quickly identified Ash as the culprit, which is why they called to confront him.

Of course, "punishing" is an exaggeration. Given Professor Oak's relationship with Ash, even if he's covered in bruises right now, he'll at most just complain about Ash a few times.

Dr. Birch, whose house collapsed, harbors more resentment.

However, Professor Birch, the Hoenn Ruby Lin, is a kind-hearted person, both in appearance and in spirit, and wouldn't really want Ash to do anything.

Out of guilt, Xiao Zhi took the initiative to request that after the League prize money was distributed, he immediately add two brand-new scientific research devices to the research institute.

This can be considered Ash's small contribution to the scientific development of the Pokémon world.

"These are all secondary issues. I'm not really angry with you..."

Although he couldn't stop smiling when he heard about the new equipment, Dr. Birch still had to put on a polite, elder-like demeanor.

"But Ash, I want to talk to you about those crystals."

“Logically, those are spoils of war that you helped the Alliance resolve the meteor crisis, but Odori and I would like to ask you to leave two for us to study. We are also willing to pay for them.”

"Of course, no problem. It's free for you. You can always come back for it if you need it later."

Both professors are on his side. Although Ash is usually stingy, he will give Professor Oak anything he asks for.

After all, he owed Professor Oak so many favors. These are all minor matters; he can buy more crystals from the system shop when he runs out.

Although it's expensive, Xiao Zhi will feel the pinch for a long time if he buys one.

At that moment, Professor Oak spotted Jirachi chasing after Pikachu behind Ash and exclaimed in delight.

"Oh, Jirachi, all lively and energetic! It's really awake. It seems my theory was correct."

Ash then realized that he had forgotten to tell the two professors about Jirachi, so he immediately picked up Star and introduced it to them.

"Although the giant meteorite successfully awakened Jirachi, it will only be able to stay awake for 7 days, just like during the Millennium Comet."

"However, on the way back, I discovered that Jirachi can absorb the natural energy inside the crystal just as perfectly as Rayquaza."

"For every crystal Jirachi absorbs, it will stay awake for one more day."

"Really? That's great news for Jirachi." Professor Oak nodded with satisfaction.

"It seems that entrusting Jirachi to your care was an absolutely correct decision."

Ash has obtained nearly ten thousand standard-sized energy crystals from the giant meteorite, just half of which are currently in his possession.

In addition, there's the other half currently with Professor Odori...

That amount of crystals, even if Jirachi were fed one a day, would be enough to keep it conscious for nearly fifty years.

If Jirachi is kept asleep in its Poké Ball during the day and then woke up in its favorite place where it can play, the relative time Jirachi can stay awake can be extended even further.

This is also the promise Ash made with Jirachi.