After that, Yuto Sundae and her grandfather argued for quite a long time, negotiating various conditions before finally reaching a full agreement.
“Oh, I almost forgot, Tianlin, what about you?
Would you be willing to help me with this?
Oak and I are very good friends,” Matsumoto Hiroye said.
The scheming old man was clearly trying to play the emotional card.
You finally remembered me, Tianlin thought, a dark line appearing on his forehead.
In truth, it wouldn’t be a problem to travel with Yuto Sundae, but now there was an extra young lady to look after.
Tianlin didn’t know what kind of personality she truly had—if she turned out to be willful, that would be troublesome.
“Are you worried?
Don’t worry, Sundae is just a little proud.
She’s actually a very kind and cute girl at heart,” Matsumoto Hiroye said, noticing Tianlin’s hesitation.
“Alright then,” Tianlin agreed.
After all, it was a request from an elder and a friend of his mentor, so he couldn’t refuse.
“Haha, thank you.
I knew I wasn’t wrong about you—you really are a good kid.
But as an elder, I can’t let you help for free, right?” Matsumoto Hiroye said with a smile.
“Wait here a moment, I have a gift for you.
I’ll go get it.
You can chat with Sundae for now.”
With that, he left the room.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward.
As a man, Tianlin decided to break the silence first.
“Um… let’s reintroduce ourselves.
I’m Tianlin from Pallet Town.
Sorry about earlier.
Actually, your Pokémon are very well-trained in terms of potential—I was just a bit angry and spoke too harshly.
I apologize.” He didn’t want any conflict between them, especially since they would be traveling together.
“Hmph… fine.
What you said did make sense, otherwise Grandpa wouldn’t have asked me to travel with you.
I forgive you!” Sundae replied.
Her grandfather was right—she was only a little proud, but at heart, she was kind.
“My name is Yuto Sundae.
I’m from Lavender Town.
I specialize in Ground-type Pokémon, and my dream is to become one of the Elite Four—or even the Champion of Ground-type Pokémon,” she introduced herself properly.
Lavender Town was, in fact, a place known for its Pokémon cemetery, where Ghost-type Pokémon were often found.
“It seems you’re getting along well.
Good, good!” Matsumoto Hiroye returned, holding a box.
“Tianlin, I brought your gift.
Take a look.”
Tianlin opened the box—and immediately froze in shock.
Inside was a Stone. Find the original chapter at g.com.
But not an ordinary one—a rare and legendary Key Stone.
When paired with a Pokémon’s Mega Stone, it enables Mega Evolution, dramatically increasing a Pokémon’s power.
It was incredibly precious.
Tianlin felt a bit embarrassed accepting it.
“Haha, don’t worry about it,” Matsumoto Hiroye said.
“It’s rare, but my family has a few.
We originally prepared it for Sundae.
When she grows up, you can give it to her.
Your Beldum will definitely be able to use it in the future when it evolves into Metagross.”
“What exactly is your family?” Tianlin asked in surprise.
Even a wealthy family wouldn’t casually possess multiple Key Stones.
“Well… my name might not mean much to you,” Matsumoto Hiroye said with a smile, “but you might have heard of my wife—Sundae’s grandmother.
Her name is Bertha.”
“Bertha… you mean Lady Bertha, one of the Elite Four of the Sinnoh Region’s Ground-type specialists?” Tianlin asked in shock.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“But earlier Sundae said she’s from Lavender Town, and her surname is different from yours… so you’re married into the family?” Tianlin asked, confused.
“Oh, Bertha was originally from Lavender Town,” Matsumoto Hiroye explained.
“And by the way, her sister is Agatha.
You might have heard of her too.”
Tianlin was stunned.
Of course he had heard of her—the famous Ghost-type Elite Four member, the legendary ghost woman Agatha.
That meant Sundae was actually the niece of Bertha… and related to Agatha as well.
No wonder their family didn’t even care about a Key Stone.
With two Elite Four members backing them, such items were probably nothing special.
Tianlin was completely speechless now.
This wasn’t just a young lady he was traveling with…
This was basically a princess.
In the afternoon, Tianlin and Sundae said goodbye to everyone at the academy and to Matsumoto Hiroye, preparing to set off.
“Damn it!
Lady Honor is actually leaving with this guy!
Hey, listen up—if you dare bully her, we’ll never forgive you!” the academy students warned.
“Thank you, everyone!
Study hard at the academy.
I’ll definitely come back stronger!” Sundae said as she waved goodbye.
“Alright, let’s go.
There’s no reunion without separation.
When you return stronger, they’ll all be proud of you,” Tianlin said.
“Mm!” Sundae nodded.
This guy… he’s not bad.
He can actually comfort people, she thought.
“By the way, Tianlin, why does your Beldum know so many moves?
The books clearly say it only uses Tackle, and no one has ever seen a Beldum break that rule,” Sundae asked while traveling.
Second, it’s not that no one else has achieved it—it’s just rare.
And I just happen to know about it,” Tianlin replied.
“Who else?” Sundae asked, surprised.
“The former Hoenn Champion, Steven Stone.
He once had a shiny Beldum, and even before it evolved into Metagross, it could already use moves like Iron Head and Zen Headbutt.
Those things aren’t written in books.
Only people who battled him would know,” Tianlin said, improvising.
In his past life, he had read about it.
“There’s actually such a thing…” Sundae murmured.
“It really seems like traveling was the right choice.
Things you experience on a journey can’t be fully written in books.”
“Then where are we going next?”
“To Professor Bill’s Lighthouse.
I need to pick something up—and there’s a very special Pokémon that will appear there.
I have to see it for myself.”
“Alright, you’re the leader.
I’ll follow you,” Sundae said with a smile.
Her cheerful expression was indescribably cute.
Even Tianlin almost lost focus for a moment.
He quickly steadied himself.
Dangerous… two Elite Four families behind her.
If Bertha or Agatha misunderstand this as kidnapping their precious granddaughter, I’m doomed…
At that time, inside the academy, Matsumoto Hiroye was on the phone with Professor Oak.
“Oh?
You asked your granddaughter to travel with my disciple?
You made the right choice.
My disciple is excellent,” Professor Oak said.
“Yes, he really is a good kid.
I trust him with Sundae,” Matsumoto replied.
“But aren’t you worried my disciple might abduct your granddaughter?” Oak teased.
“It doesn’t matter.
First, he’s a good boy.
Second, even if that happens… then Tianlin would have to call me Grandpa.
That means I’d be one generation above you too, wouldn’t it?
Hahaha!”
“You bastard!” Professor Oak gritted his teeth.
“Achoo!”
At that moment, Tianlin sneezed on the road and shivered.
“Who’s talking about me…?”