Chapter 104: Restoring the Lawn and Exploring Raven City

“You bunch of bastards.”

The Pokémon all froze at the sound of Cheng Cheng’s voice, obediently lining up like children caught in the act.

Cheng Cheng’s anger wasn’t because the Pokémon hadn’t trained or because their battles affected him directly. What truly infuriated him was the state of the battlefield after their skirmishes.

“You guys really outdid yourselves. Look around—just look at this place.”

The surrounding area was utterly ruined: numerous trees and grass trampled, even patches of earth overturned.

“Alright, you’re all full of energy, huh? Then forget about dinner tonight.”

With that, Cheng Cheng walked away, leaving behind only the woeful cries of ten Pokémon.

After Cheng Cheng left, the Pokémon began bickering again. Eventually, they fought once more—but this time, it was no chaotic free-for-all. Instead, it was a brutal eight-against-two gang-up. The unfortunate victims were Boldore and Slowpoke.

Cheng Cheng didn’t blame them, truly. They were just playing, and this kind of roughhousing was actually beneficial training, especially for fine-tuning control over their strength. It seemed that, under safe conditions, he could let the Pokémon continue practicing this technique of passing Hydro Pumps mid-air for training purposes.

Watching Boldore and Slowpoke get roughed up by the others, a smile crept onto Cheng Cheng’s lips. Those two deserved a harsh lesson to behave properly. Cheng Cheng knew he couldn’t take them on himself, so he had no choice but to enlist the others to gang up on them.

“Alright, enough already.”

Cheng Cheng stepped forward and stopped the beating. It wouldn’t be worth it if someone got seriously hurt.

“This time, I’ll let you off. But you need to find a way to restore this grassland as best you can. If you do well, I’ll prepare a feast for you tonight.”

“Jirachi!”

Hearing the promise of dinner, the Pokémon brightened up. They quickly began using their abilities to repair the lawn.

Cheng Cheng pulled out his cooking utensils and started preparing dinner. Since he promised a feast, it had to be generous.

By the time the Pokémon had made a rough restoration of the grass, Cheng Cheng’s food was ready.

“Alright, everyone, thanks for your hard work today. Let’s eat.”

Cheng Cheng dined alongside his Pokémon, then looked up at the moon and stars. Life like this was truly pleasant.

The next morning, Cheng Cheng gathered his Pokémon and set off toward Raven City. After a day’s journey, he finally arrived.

Entering Raven City, Cheng Cheng headed straight to the Pokémon Center and handed over his Pokémon to Nurse Joy for their usual checkup. While they were being examined, Cheng Cheng went to the public computer area to search for information about Raven City.

Raven City was a technologically advanced metropolis, boasting numerous battle facilities, the famous underground railway, and Raven Park. Overall, it was one of the largest cities in the Unova region, with excellent infrastructure.

Cheng Cheng then looked up the details of the city’s Gym. The Gym Leader was Miss Violet, who specialized mostly in Electric-type Pokémon. Moonstone would be the optimal choice for the challenge. However, Cheng Cheng planned not to use Moonstone this time; he wanted to give his other Pokémon some good training as well.

After finding the Gym’s location, Cheng Cheng shut down the computer and retrieved his Pokémon.

“Nurse Joy, please book me a room.”

“Certainly, no problem. Here’s your room key.”

Cheng Cheng took the card and returned to his room. After dropping off his bag, he set out with his Pokémon toward the Raven City Gym.

Since the Gym was quite a distance from the Pokémon Center, Cheng Cheng decided to take the subway.

At the station, he bought a ticket and boarded the train. Overall, Raven City was the most technologically advanced city Cheng Cheng had seen recently, with all kinds of excellent facilities. Take the subway, for example—most other cities didn’t have one.

After a ten-minute ride, Cheng Cheng got off. The Gym was just a short walk from the station.

He entered the Gym and found a staff member.

“Hello, I’m Kiriki Cheng Cheng, here to challenge the Raven City Gym.”

“Alright, no problem. We can make a reservation now. However, Miss Violet has a fashion show tonight, so no Gym battles can take place today. You’ll have to schedule your match for tomorrow.”

“That’s fine.”

Cheng Cheng handed over his Pokédex and made the battle reservation.

A day earlier or later didn’t matter much. Cheng Cheng was even curious to see how impressive this fashion show might be. Before that, he decided to explore Raven City properly.

From his earlier research, Cheng Cheng knew there was an amusement park in the city. He decided to check it out. The park wasn’t far away, so he chose to walk.

“Come out, Jirachi.”

Since the streets were crowded, Cheng Cheng preferred to have the smaller, less intimidating Jirachi accompany him rather than his larger Pokémon.

Together, Cheng Cheng and Jirachi headed toward the amusement park. Along the way, Cheng Cheng strolled through the streets like a shopper, sampling various famous local snacks. Raven City had many renowned delicacies that Cheng Cheng wasn’t about to miss. By the time he finished walking, he had eaten a substantial amount.

Naturally, Jirachi also got a sweet skewer treat. If Slowpoke had been with him, Cheng Cheng wondered how much food he’d have to buy. Jirachi was definitely more low-maintenance.

Soon, they arrived at the amusement park. To Cheng Cheng’s delight, admission was free. However, upon entering, he realized that it hardly mattered. The park was small and had few attractions, but everything inside was exorbitantly priced—so much so that even the owner of the breeding house Cheng Cheng knew would find it unaffordable. Fortunately, Cheng Cheng had stocked up on food outside; buying here would have been a rip-off.

After leaving the snack vendors, Cheng Cheng began to enjoy the park. The most famous attraction was the Ferris wheel, though that was typically a couple’s spot. As a bachelor, Cheng Cheng felt it might be a form of self-torment to ride it alone.

Besides the Ferris wheel, the park’s flowerbeds were also well-known.

“Jirachi.”

Jirachi flew straight toward the blooming flowerbeds, clearly delighted by the blossoms.

Indeed, Cheng Cheng thought, he should plant some flowers in his ecological garden. Pokémon like Jirachi would surely appreciate them.

The flowers were beautiful, with a faint, pleasant fragrance—not overpowering at all. However, these particular flowers wouldn’t suit his ecological garden. He’d have to look harder for the right ones.

“Jirachi!”

Suddenly, Jirachi vanished into the flowerbed. Although Cheng Cheng could sense Jirachi’s psychic energy and easily track him down, that would spoil the fun.

He suppressed his psychic senses and began searching for the hiding Jirachi. Since Jirachi wanted to play hide-and-seek, Cheng Cheng saw no reason to refuse.

Jirachi darted swiftly through the flowerbeds, making it impossible for Cheng Cheng to find him. Circling the flowerbeds, Cheng Cheng noticed a cluster of flowers shaking ahead. He hurried over and parted the blooms, revealing a green Pokémon.

Cheng Cheng had thought it was Jirachi, but instead it was an Elgyem. Though green, Elgyem was a Psychic-type Pokémon. Its cute appearance made Cheng Cheng quite fond of it.

He wondered if this Elgyem had a Trainer. Even if it didn’t, Cheng Cheng couldn’t just capture it here.

Apparently, the Unova region had several unique Psychic-type Pokémon. Perhaps he should visit Professor Juniper and see if she could help him access some new channels. That way, he could expand his stock.

In the end, Cheng Cheng didn’t find Jirachi; the little Pokémon emerged on its own. Both Trainer and Pokémon had enjoyed themselves immensely.

Next, Cheng Cheng decided to try the Ferris wheel. Indeed, solo riders were rare; mostly couples or adults with children rode it. So Cheng Cheng took Jirachi along for the ride.

To his surprise, there was an admission fee for Pokémon as well. Cheng Cheng wasn’t short on money, so he paid for two tickets without hesitation.

Once inside the cabin, the Ferris wheel began to turn. At the highest point, Cheng Cheng could see almost all of Raven City. The sky had darkened, and the streets were illuminated with sparkling lights—truly beautiful.

Despite the advanced technology, much of the city was still surrounded by forest, creating a comfortable atmosphere.

“Jirachi, do you like the view?”

“Jirachi.”

Jirachi twirled happily, clearly enjoying the moment.

After the Ferris wheel ride, Cheng Cheng headed to the venue for Miss Violet’s fashion show. He entered smoothly and found a seat. Soon, the show began.

First came the ubiquitous host, who rambled on with some meaningless words and thanked everyone for attending. Then the show officially started.

All the models were women, and their outfits were indeed beautiful—made even more stunning on them.

Finally, it was Miss Violet’s turn. Undeniably, she had the best figure and was the most captivating of all. When she appeared, the audience erupted in the loudest cheers.

After the fashion show ended, Cheng Cheng returned to the Pokémon Center.

A good rest awaited. Tomorrow was the Gym battle.