Pokémon from Galar

Yuri skipped along the road, her steps light and bouncy. This area was already in the suburbs, with far fewer buildings and even fewer pedestrians than in the town center.

Listening to the conversation of passersby, Yuri suddenly turned around, put her hands behind her back, and walked backwards while saying regretfully:

"What should we do? The person who just passed by seemed to say there's no band playing today?"

"It's okay if you don't have one, it would be nice to go see the sea."

"Hehe~ I knew Mary-chan would be like this, ah—!"

"careful!"

"Gah—(Watch out!)"

Yuri, who was walking with her back turned, tripped and fell straight backward. Mary and Onion Soldier moved simultaneously.

Mary reached out and grabbed Yuri's clothes at the waist, while Cong Youbing raised his sword and held it behind Yuri.

"Hehehe... Thanks~"

Yuri, having regained her balance, paused for two seconds before realizing what had happened. She then awkwardly raised her hand and scratched her head. Her hat had long since fallen to the side.

"Be more careful next time..."

Suddenly, she pulled Yuri up with all her might, but before she could even exert any force, Yuri tumbled back into Mary's arms.

"Mmm~ I know~ I'll reflect on my actions~"

Yuri snuggled comfortably into Mary's soft embrace, uttering a statement that didn't sound like she was reflecting on her actions at all.

Chapter Seventy-Five: Howling Like Killing a Bird

That evening, the two returned to their pre-booked hotel. Because they still had a large number of Pokémon, Yuri specifically booked a larger double room, so that even someone of Bal's size could move around comfortably.

"I'm going to take a shower now~"

Yuri, wearing only her undergarments and barefoot, carrying a change of clothes, greeted Mary, who was sitting on the sofa next to her.

"Well, let's go."

Marie tried to focus her attention on the Pokémon egg on her lap, even though Yuri had recently become able to give her some "fan service" without batting an eye.

But precisely because of this, Mary's feelings were particularly complicated. This fearless attitude showed that Yuri had never had any other thoughts.

Now that things have come to this, Mary doesn't know when to reveal her sexual orientation; it's just that this is such a private matter... she really can't bring herself to talk about it.

"Ha...really."

"Eek~ (Why don't we just talk to Yuri directly?)"

Ichigo, having spent the longest time with Marie, naturally knew about these private matters. Now, lying next to Marie, after hearing her trainer's sigh, she looked up and offered an immature suggestion.

"If you could do that, you wouldn't have any worries, you idiot."

Reaching out, I rubbed the little head that had come to me; I had indeed received my Pokémon's concern.

"Chiru? (What are you talking about?)"

As always, Su-chan was clinging to I-chan's side, currently cuddling her big cat and leaning against the sofa in a simple meditation. However, upon hearing the two's nonsensical conversation, she couldn't help but break out of her meditation.

"Ee~ (It's nothing, Sis-chan, you can continue meditating.)"

“Chiru… (Oh…)”

Sijiang wasn't the type to pry, so after nodding in confusion, she shifted her body to a more comfortable position and continued her daily meditation practice.

Balu is taking care of a bunch of little guys, including the Poison Electric Baby, and feeding them snacks. Although they are huge and might be scary at first glance, Balu is gradually becoming the team's caretaker and big brother figure as they spend more time together.

The main focus was actually on taking care of the Toxel, since it was only a few days old. Although Pokémon, being egg-laying creatures, generally possess basic survival skills from birth,

However, this does not preclude providing some guidance and care to newly hatched Pokémon within one's capabilities.

Marie found Baloo's habit quite worthwhile, since the egg in her hand would eventually hatch, and having a skilled Pokémon help take care of it would make things much easier for Marie.

The little chick fluttered its wings and landed on the incubator on Mary's lap. It raised its head and swallowed a dumpling it was carrying in its mouth before saying:

"Chirp chirp—(Can I participate in that challenge this time?)"

Mary was surprised to find that what this guy said was surprisingly serious, as she had expected him to say something strange again.

Mary raised her hand and patted Little Chick's head, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Yes, we were planning to have you play in the match anyway, so don't worry."

"Chirp chirp—!! (Hehe~ Let me pet you again~ This time, watch me unleash my divine power!)"

Mary paused, then changed her touch to a gentle touch, grabbing the chubby face of the immediately smug little bird and instructing her:

"Hmm? Show your divine power? Although I hope you all have your own judgment during battles, you are different. You are absolutely not allowed to use the Divine Bird Strike, understand?"

"Chirp? (No way—boss, at least let me try it at the last minute, okay?)"

"No means no. This is about taking responsibility for your own future, and I will not back down on this point."

After saying that, realizing her tone had been a bit harsh, Mary loosened her grip, hugged Little Bird tightly, and rubbed her breasts before speaking again in a much gentler tone:

“Your talent is amazing, really amazing, so I hope you can think long-term instead of trying to overwork your body for the sake of winning or losing one or two matches. You didn’t have a choice before, but now you have your teammates, so just focus on growing.”

"Chirp...chirp~ (I...mmm~ Mary-chan feels so good~)"

"..."

Mary noticed Xiao Qiu's undisguised change in tone and knew he was just saying strange things to cover up his emotions. Even so, Mary's face involuntarily darkened.

This guy is rambling incoherently and getting more and more outrageous... He needs to be taught a lesson.

Without thinking, Mary suddenly increased the pressure on her hands.

"Chirp—!! (Aaaaaah—it hurts!! Spare me, spare me, spare me!!)"

Watching the little chirp howl like a bird being killed, yet still clinging to me stubbornly, I was both annoyed and amused. I had originally planned to give him a couple of massages to teach him a lesson, but now I thought I'd massage him a little longer.

Although she used a bit too much force, Mary guarantees, based on her years of massage research, that while it hurt a bit, it definitely wouldn't do any harm to her body.

"Bear with it, I'll massage you for a little while longer."

"Chirp chirp?! (Again?! Aww—!! I'm going to die, I'm going to die! Boss, have mercy! Aww! Aww! Aww!)"

"...Mari-chan, are you messing with Chiu again?"

Perhaps Xiao Qiu's cries were too pitiful, so much so that Yuri, who was in the bathroom, couldn't help but push open the bathroom door and peek out to see what was going on.

"Well..."

She subconsciously looked up, but the moment she saw Yuri, Mary loosened her grip, and Xiao Qiu's miserable screams came to an abrupt halt.

"Chirp...chirp...(Ha...ha...Boss, this is too intense, I can't take it anymore...)"

"Pfft..."

Although she couldn't understand what she was saying, Yuri knew from the change in Mary's expression that she hadn't said anything nice again. She held the doorknob with one hand and covered her mouth with the other, chuckling to herself.

Mary, no longer concerned with causing trouble, patted the little bird's wings and sent it to curl up on the sofa, seemingly having awakened some extraordinary hobby.

"You'd better go inside quickly. Aren't you afraid of catching a cold coming out without any clothes on? You're still on an IV drip."

Thankfully, Yuri hasn't started developing yet, otherwise, with that trembling laugh, she probably wouldn't be able to control herself. Her gaze swept over a certain area, and Mari felt both excited and relieved.

"Hehe, it's because Little Chirp is making too much noise. I can hear its bird-like howling even from inside."

Yuri also felt the chill, chuckled a few times at Mary, and then retreated back into the steamy bathroom.

"what--"

Slumped onto the sofa with a long sigh, she turned her head and met Ichigo's gaze again. They remained silent for a moment… then, somewhat embarrassed, Mary raised her hand and ruffled Ichigo's little head repeatedly.

Chapter Seventy-Six Training Arrangements

Yuri was unaware of Marie's wavering, and when they went to bed that night, she did the same thing as before, giving up her bed for the Pokémon and happily squeezing into Marie's blankets.

The next day,

Having successfully received the dojo challenge email, the two will now resume their training.

The Water Boat Arena challenge rules are 3v3, so Mary's lineup this time is Little Bird, Silky, and Ichigo. Balu played last time, so this time it's Ichigo's turn to play.

As for practice, Marie was actually considering whether to go to Sonia's house. Her Milotic was quite strong, in fact, incredibly strong. At least, Marie felt that with Pazu and Illumi's current strength...

Unless they all attack together and coordinate well, they are unlikely to win.

After all, as Sonia said, Milotic had gone through the era when they were rivals against Leon together with her.

Let's put that idea aside for now. The lack of skill within the team is also a problem Mary needs to consider. She's planned to call Sonia when she has some free time.

Mary will focus her attention on Little Chiu for now.

According to some data obtained from Sonia, the little chick that has already learned to peck should not be too far from evolving, and it has been consuming a lot of nutrients recently.

When it will evolve depends on Little Chick itself.

However, after thinking about it, Mary decided not to tell him about it, lest he get too excited and try too hard. Mary had originally been hesitant about whether or not to let Xiao Qiu participate in this challenge.

The safest course of action would have been for Xiao Qiu's treatment to end around the time they arrived back in Moto City. In other words, according to the plan, Xiao Qiu should not have been able to officially take the stage until the Moto Arena.

But how should I put it... although he's a bit of a smart aleck, it's clear he's unwilling to just be a decorative vase in the team, consuming resources but accomplishing nothing.

Little Chiu, who isn't good at hiding her emotions, seems more like a tsundere to Mary lately... although she's a bit cheeky and her gender isn't quite right either.

So, taking into account Xiao Qiu's feelings, it was ultimately decided to let him fight in this challenge.

There's no inherent advantage or disadvantage between Flying and Water types, so there's no need to rush to learn other types of skills. Focusing on practicing your own type's skills is sufficient for now.

"Okay, Xiao Qiu, calm down."

Mary raised her hand, and Little Chick fluttered its wings and landed in Mary's palm. She pinched its chubby cheek and said:

"I don't plan to do any high-intensity training on your basic abilities these next few days. If the intensity isn't high enough, you won't see much progress in just a few days. So my plan is to have real combat. Your opponents will be these three."

He pointed to the three Pokémon beside him: Palmon, Eevee, and Sirfetch'd.

Cong Youbing was easier to persuade than expected. It seemed that he had recently consumed a lot of energy cubes from Mary. As soon as he heard that he needed help with the training, he agreed without hesitation.

"Chirp?! (I'm going to fight them?!)"

The little bird was so frightened that it changed its self-identity; its feathers stood on end, and the bird appeared to grow larger.

"Don't worry, we're not planning to beat you up. The main thing is to let you integrate all the moves you've learned in a short period of time, so that you can use them to your full potential and still have the capacity to cooperate with you.

There are other Pokémon stronger than Chinchilla, but only Palmon and his friends can truly make training and guidance more effective.