Chapter 393: Don’t Sing, We’re on the Same Side!
February 11th, Thursday, overcast.
Early in the morning, Lu Ye received a call from Professor Oak.
“Rotom Pokédex can make its own training plans?”
Still groggy, Lu Ye immediately woke up.
“Professor Oak, why didn’t you say so earlier?!”
“Haha, it’s just a plugin, no need to get so excited.”
Professor Oak chuckled, “Exercise volume, diet, heart rate… these are hard for Trainers to monitor closely, but the Rotom Pokédex can cover that and adjust training plans accordingly.”
“With a scientifically detailed plan, the training results will be twice as effective with half the effort!”
Lu Ye scratched his head.
I have a training plan? Why didn’t I know about it?
Then, Lu Ye looked around the empty room.
Lu Ye slowly put the pieces together.
The newly arrived Rotom was in charge of adjusting the training plan.
Gengar handled execution, Sirfetch’d provided sideline coaching...
Plus, Sylveon tracked wild Pokémon, Arcanine taunted enemies, and Blastoise provided AOE sweeps.
Not to mention Togepi's cute-style buff support...
Lu Ye looked up at the sky, feeling a bit conflicted.
You guys are teamfighting—do you even need me at all?!
…
Flashback to the night before.
The Rotom Pokédex was dozing on the wireless charger.
Suddenly, it felt a poke.
“Roto? (*･ω-q)” Rotom opened its eyes, blinking blankly.
A group of menacing ‘dark silhouettes’ surrounded it.
“Quack!” Sirfetch’d pulled back its leek and nodded with heroic resolve.
Helping out a new little bro is my solemn duty!
“Gengaa~!” Gengar bared its teeth in a friendly grin.
After some back-and-forth, Rotom finally understood.
Midnight training sessions were a traditional skill in Teacher Lu’s household.
However, for Pokémon like Duck Duck and Arcanine who specialize in daytime moves, they couldn’t perform at full strength at this hour.
Blastoise, on the other hand, was doing push-ups on the spot no matter the time...
“We need to adjust the training plan!”
Rotom waved its Pokédex arms and whispered, “I’ll take charge of customizing a training routine for everyone, Roto~!”
In that moment, glints of light flashed in the dark.
As a wail of ‘ghostly howling’ was about to break out, Sylveon bared its teeth fiercely.
“Bui! (#｀皿´)”
I dare you to disturb his sleep!
The room fell silent again.
Rotom dove into the circuitry and silently unlocked the door’s code lock.
“Gengaa~!” Gengar’s eyes lit up, giving the little bro a thumbs-up.
The little ones lined up behind Rotom Pokédex and sneakily slipped out the door.
Togepi walked at the tail end, ‘pia-pia’-ing along.
“Chagi dooyi~ ヾ(◍°∇°◍)ﾉﾞ”
Let’s all train together~!
Time flew by and the sun rose like usual.
The little ones had gained a lot overnight.
Duck Duck was furious, then teary.
“Gaa! (´థ౪థ)σ”
I was gonna use this first night to show the new bro how it’s done…
Now by morning, he’s almost caught up to my status!
This isn’t fair, quack~!
As the yawning little ones returned home,
They locked eyes with Lu Ye.
“Beep beep… training plan completed at 130%, Roto!” Rotom floated forward, proudly reporting.
Lu Ye opened his mouth but didn’t speak.
One night, and...
The Rotom Pokédex got assimilated?!
Aren’t Pokémon supposed to become more like their Trainers?
Your assigned bond target was… oh, Gengar. Well, never mind then!
Lu Ye had long known that the little ones would sneak out at night.
But better to manage than to block it…
If Rotom can strictly control the training duration, it’s way better than staying up all night like this.
Lu Ye rubbed his temples and sighed, “Then I’ll leave the planning to you, Rotom!”
“Roger that! (◦˙▽˙◦)”
Rotom Pokédex spun in the air.
“I’ll definitely give it my all, Roto!”
You were just moping around yesterday…
So making new friends even changed your personality?
Lu Ye scratched his head.
But… that’s actually pretty common.
Look at Duck Duck, such a slacker, even he started following Gengar’s lead.
(Sirfetch’d: Gaa! (´థ౪థ)σ That’s slander!)
It was worth celebrating that Rotom was willing to be part of the family.
“Rotom!” Lu Ye called out, intending to say he just ordered it a lawnmower this morning.
Turning his head, he saw Rotom already fast asleep on the charger.
“Chagi dooyi~” Togepi tugged its tiny blanket up the desk and carefully covered Rotom’s body.
“Dooyi!” Togepi beamed with a proud smile.
Lu Ye smiled softly at the dozing Rotom.
Just a nap—no need to hook up the Electric Booster, right?
It’s only been like five minutes… how much power could you use?
Unless you’ve got hyper-speed charging that’s about to wipe out my entire monthly electric bill?
Suddenly, the ceiling light above Lu Ye flickered, then returned to normal.
Lu Ye: “…No big deal!”
Near noon.
Lu Ye cooked personally to welcome the new member.
On the sumptuous dining table, Gengar stood atop the tablecloth, pulled out a mic from who-knows-where, and cleared its throat.
“Gengaa~!”
I’ve prepared a special performance for everyone!
Lu Ye had been laughing happily.
But the moment Gengar started singing—
Crack!
A glass on the table shattered.
Lu Ye’s eyelid twitched. Demonic sound straight to the brain.
“Sound pollution alert, pollution alert, Roto!”
“Bui! (〃＞皿＜)”
“Ka-meh!” Even Blastoise triggered “Torrent” from the shock.
Lu Ye: “Don’t sing—we’re on the same side!”
“Gengaa?” Gengar looked around in confusion.
He saw Lu Ye and the little ones sprawled pale-faced on the table, twitching from time to time.
“Gengaa~! ︿(￣︶￣)︿” Gengar shrugged.
Geez, you guys are impossible~
Since you insist so much, I guess I’ll just have to keep singing—
Lu Ye pulled out a Poké Ball: “Return, Gengar!”
Perish Song.
Gengar’s first singing performance.
Huge success!!
…
Afternoon.
Pop!
Rotom’s snot bubble burst.
Floating off the charger, Rotom stretched lazily: “Roto~!”
Haven’t eaten this well in ages~!
Lu Ye was preparing content for the next livestream.
If he could match up with Steven-san… maybe he could troll him a bit.
And once he ‘clears the game’—
With the Rotom phone around,
Teacher Lu could livestream his battles from now on.
Like that ‘selfie freak’ Raihan—he loved bringing Rotom phones to matches.
Not just streaming, it was great for taking commemorative photos too.
Rotom didn’t bother Teacher Lu and floated to the sunny outdoors as the skies cleared.
“Gengaa~” Gengar was pushing the newly arrived lawnmower, wiping sweat from his forehead.
“Roto!” (I’ll help you!)
“Gengaa?” Gengar watched as a current of electricity dove from the Pokédex into the mower, which began to buzz.
“Rotom-brand Lawnmower, starting up now!” the mower spoke in Rotom’s voice.
“Gengaa~!” Gengar grinned and started carefully tending the yard.
“Ka-meh…” Wearing sunglasses, Blastoise watered the plants with his Squirtle watering can.
Noticing the innovative lawnmower, he nodded in approval.
Teacher Lu also came out to the balcony, drawn by the noise.
“Getting strong Plants vs. Zombies vibes here.”
Lu Ye murmured, “If someone raids us at night… one shot from this mower’ll blast them away!”
Plus, there’s our Aura-wielding turtle…
Teacher Lu nodded confidently.
Then the machine suddenly stopped.
“Gengaa?” Gengar stared at the silent mower, scratching his head.
Next thing they knew, the mower glowed with explosive white light!
BOOM!
“Gengaa! Σ(っ°Д°;)っ” Gengar dodged in time, but the lawn was scorched black.
Rotom flew out of the mower and back into the Pokédex, scratching his head sheepishly.
“Sorry… I spaced out for a second, Roto!”
A breeze carried the smell of burning grass.
Lu Ye looked to the sky.
Wasn’t it supposed to have a 99% lower self-destruct rate?
“This probably isn’t bad luck…”
Lu Ye muttered, “It’s karma, huh…”
Teacher Lu had gotten used to it.
He dialed a number, and before he could speak, the voice on the other end said alertly:
“We’ll be right over!”
Lu Ye: ???
Now I don’t even have to say anything?!
See, that’s what you call customer service.
It’s honestly a shame you guys aren’t in this business full-time!