A private space where one won't be disturbed, convenient for customers to tame new Pokémon.
Just in the Neutral Dungeon, someone provides this kind of service.
Otsuka took Baimu there, but after setting up the venue, this young guy seemed to want to join in as well.
He decisively refused and agreed to meet again in two hours.
Faced with Otsuka, who seemed abandoned, Baimu mercilessly shut the door of the venue, isolating the noise outside.
The venue wasn't very big, like a closed basketball court, with a smooth floor and slightly rough dividing lines.
In fact, there were many types of venues to choose from, such as those with a pool, lawn, or other special environments. The height, width, and length were sufficient to accommodate most Pokémon.
Baimu first released Aron and carefully reviewed the Chansey information given to him by Maruyama.
Illiteracy is tough; these strange characters were hard to read. Fortunately, he wasn't a complete illiterate; he could understand a little.
"In a moment, I'll release our next partner. If it runs around, you can try to chase it, but do not attack it, even if it attacks me, understand?"
He spoke earnestly and repeated it several times to make sure his point was understood.
Seeing Aron nod, he took out the Pokeball containing Chansey, opened it, and stepped back a couple of steps.
Bam!
"Lucky..."
The pink oval creature landed, holding its abdomen with both hands, looking somewhat helplessly around and slowly retreating.
"Hello."
Baimu didn't recklessly chase after it but maintained a distance that wouldn't make Chansey too nervous, "Don't be afraid, relax... You are safe now, no one will harm you."
"Lucky?"
Chansey halted and cast a glance at him, looking nervously at him standing still, then at Aron, who occasionally tilted its head to peek at him, trying hard to raise its head.
Since neither made any presumptuous moves, Chansey's inner fear eased a bit.
Naturally kind and gentle, it had the ability to discern malice, and the combination of human and Pokémon before it was undoubtedly friendly.
"I am Baimu, and this is my partner, Aron."
"Gu!"
Baimu and Aron introduced themselves briefly. Seeing Chansey's mood greatly calmed, he placed a can of Pokémon food on the ground, "If you're hungry, please eat."
To prove the Pokémon food was safe, he willingly pinched a piece and put it in his mouth. To be honest, the taste was not great, since it wasn't expensive.
Both retreated to give Chansey space to approach.
"Lucky..."
Chansey shook its curled hair on both sides of its body, slowly stepped forward to pick up the food, and started eating bit by bit.
While eating, it looked at Baimu.
He spread his hands to show he wasn't making any extra moves. Seeing Chansey moving from small to large bites, he let out a relieved smile.
Maruyama would definitely not mistreat Chansey by not giving it enough food.
A defect in merchandise wouldn't benefit him at all.
But for Chansey, perhaps it wasn't in the mood or had no appetite to eat those things. It could sleep in the Pokeball but often felt anxious and uneasy in the cage, making it tough to eat.
Furthermore, it was returned twice.
Once Chansey finished the can and looked at him eagerly, Baimu replied:
"Sorry, you need to eat in moderation, eating too much at once isn't good."
"Lucky~"
Chansey was a bit disappointed, but after eating, its emotions became more stable, and the relatively safe environment allowed for conversation.
"Were you kidnapped from the Pokémon Center or someone by them?" Baimu asked an important question.
Chansey is relatively rare compared to other Pokémon, so many immoral merchants choose to steal or snatch them, even stealing from Pokémon Centers.
Otsuka said the store was very clean... but Baimu couldn't completely believe it.
"Lucky?"
Chansey rubbed its cheek with its short hands, showing a confused expression, unclear if it didn't understand the question or didn't know what a Pokémon Center was.
He repeated several times, also trying to understand Chansey's response.
Communicating with Pokémon requires immense patience because they have independent thoughts; emotions like happiness, anger, sorrow, and joy are extremely apparent and very straightforwardly displayed.
In a way, their hearts are both fragile and strong.
Strong in that they can wait for countless years for a verbal promise, enduring all loneliness; fragile in that once abandoned, they can never connect with any human again, leaving a huge scar in their hearts.
How should I really think of Aron and the others?
Even though Baimu often spoke of partners and companions, from the current perspective, Aron was merely a tool in his attempt to improve his environment and status.
What exactly is a true companion?
Helping each other? Living and dying together?
Baimu didn't want to delve into this issue too deeply; the perpetually perilous surroundings forced him to temporarily overlook this problem.
Of course, if Aron had any wish it wanted to achieve, he would certainly help it fulfill it.
And when he confirmed that Chansey belonged to wild Pokémon but had been brought to the Ore Region by poaching groups for sale, he felt relieved.
Though the Ore Region is far from the imperial reach, Joy and Officer Jenny can't manage here. However, the stolen Pokémon ultimately belong to others, different from situations like abandonment or returns.
At this moment, observing the distance between the two, he noticed that Chansey had progressed from a vigilant five meters to a calm space less than one meter away.
This is a significant improvement.
Thus.
Baimu further engaged Chansey in conversation, pulling Aron into the discussion, and talked about things that might interest or relax it.
Seeing the opponent's face no longer showed signs of caution, and even with added smiles, he thought it over, reached out his hand, and said:
"Chansey, if possible, I would like to invite you to join us, join my small team with Aron."
He pulled the Aron beside him, signaling their closeness, "You know, living alone in this place is very difficult and scary, there are bad people everywhere.
"But if we advance together with companions, I believe no difficulty will remain, bad people seeing us united will also retreat. We help each other and live together."
"Goo!"
Aron nodded with a smile.
With the Pokeball in hand, there's no fear of Chansey not following his directions.
But he didn't want to be so rude, lowering his stance slightly and seeking the other's opinion wasn't something he couldn't do.
Respect.
Even if only superficial, Baimu also wanted to maintain this habit,
"Lucky..."
Chansey looked at him and Aron in confusion, its expression momentarily shining but quickly growing dim again.
"Are you considering the issue of fighting?" Baimu saw the reason for its melancholy, "Why don't you want to fight? Is it that you don't want to hurt other Pokémon; or are you afraid of fighting, afraid of being attacked and attacking others?"
Both statements seem similar at first glance but are actually vastly different; the latter is a fear of the heart that can gradually improve, while the former is a matter of ideology.
Not all Pokémon are interested in fighting.
"Lucky?"
Chansey seemed lost.
It appeared even it didn't know which category it belonged to, perhaps a bit of both.
"...So if you don't need to attack anyone or any Pokémon, just help heal injured Aron, could you accept that?"
Baimu gave Aron's head a playful slap and then winked at the latter.
Aron looked puzzled, staring at the trainer for several seconds before starting to roll on the ground with an apparently painful expression.
Chansey was startled, and a voice rang near its ear.
"Chansey! Use Healing Fluctuation on Aron!"
"Lu, Lucky!"
Its body trembled, instinctively releasing a pink light wave at Aron, enveloping the latter in circles.
"Goo-doo!"
Aron felt the vitality surging within, quite astonished.
Such a thing exists!
There's also a hidden backup source of energy! Amazing!
Chansey stopped its actions, staring at its own hands in a daze, then looking at the energetic Aron running and jumping.
"Can you accept this 'fighting' style?"
Baimu had somehow moved to its side, "No need to hurt any Pokémon, just use your skills to heal Aron, making it no longer in pain, feeling relaxed, how about that?"
If it can't be done all at once, let it progress step by step.
Get accustomed to battle first, then consider future matters. If truly unable to fight, then focus on assuming the role of the team physician.
"Lucky..."
Chansey seemed hesitant, not very confident.
"Don't worry, don't be afraid, no matter how well you do, I won't blame you." Baimu put his hand on its head, gently and slowly stroking it.
Chansey raised its head to look at him, then turned to the Aron beside it with encouragement and expectation in its eyes, closing both eyes as if making a resolution and nodded firmly.
"Lucky!"
"Very good! Welcome to our team!"
Baimu extended his hand to it with a smile, Chansey tentatively placed its little paw in his palm.
"Goo!"
Aron shouted as it rushed over, knocking them both down. They sat on the ground, staring at each other in a daze before bursting into joyful laughter.
"Fool! Don't knock people over so casually!"
"Lucky~"
"Chansey! Your weight isn't light either—ah, I'm not blaming you, don't be so downcast."