After the Brionne left, several small Fletchling visited. Though they brought no gifts, they delighted everyone by singing and performing aerial acrobatics on the balcony of Flabébé's room.
Even the little Larvitar made an appearance, doing nothing more than strutting mysteriously in front of the Flabébé with its hands behind its back and chest puffed out — leaving them utterly puzzled.
The little one departed with a proud expression, believing it had been of great help to Cole.
Under the Pokémon's warm hospitality, the Flabébé truly felt the welcoming spirit of Mt. Ascendant.
In the afternoon, Kiara and Sara returned to visit Cole.
The sisters had developed a routine: mornings were spent exploring Coumarine City's famous sights, while afternoons were reserved for visiting Cole's orchard to exchange cultivation knowledge. Since Coumarine was a renowned tourist destination in the Kalos region, they naturally wanted to make the most of their stay.
During these exchanges with Kiara, Cole always gained valuable insights from her extensive cultivation knowledge — a clear reflection of her great family's expertise.
While they discussed cultivation techniques, Sara would explore Mt. Ascendant with her Pokémon. She even challenged Captain Talonflame to a battle.
The mighty bird proved too powerful, defeating her soundly. Still, Sara vowed to return one day for her revenge.
Despite being a top student in Crown University's Battle Department and coming from the prestigious Dragon Tamer clan, Sara's talent didn't quite match Diantha's.
Cole doubted she would ever catch up to Captain Talonflame.
Though Sara would certainly improve, Captain Talonflame would only grow stronger. After all, their Captain had faced legendary battles — even confronting Articuno itself!
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That evening, after escorting the sisters back to the West District's Pokémon Center, Cole returned to Mt. Ascendant. Daisy informed him that Alfred had visited and left a package.
The package, which he found in his room, peculiarly had no sender listed — only his name as the recipient. Its delivery method remained a mystery.
"Who could have sent me this package?" Intrigued, Cole opened it to find a Poké Ball inside.
As he reached for the Poké Ball, a piece of paper fluttered out. It contained a chibi drawing of a masked figure in a red cape, alongside an equally cartoonish Blaziken.
The pair struck matching, embarrassingly dramatic poses.
Cole immediately recognized the sender — who else but the Blaziken Mask?
He recalled the chunnibyou's mention of an apology gift, though he hadn't taken it seriously at the time and had forgotten about it until now.
But something puzzled Cole: how had Blaziken Mask discovered where he lived?
Though Cole hadn't actively concealed his identity, he'd never shared personal details with Blaziken Mask. How had they managed to deliver to Blue Bird Orphanage so quickly?
Clearly, Blaziken Mask was remarkable not only in strength but also in influence.
However... Cole crumpled the paper and tossed it aside, turning his attention to the Poké Ball.
Why would they send him a Pokémon? The Ball surely wasn't empty, and he wondered what kind of Pokémon Blaziken Mask had chosen.
With these thoughts, Cole lifted the Poké Ball and pressed its switch.
A flash of red light revealed a small, adorable Pokémon that barely reached his knee.
Being only twelve years old and standing about 1.5 meters tall, Cole's knees weren't particularly high off the ground.
"Chiko~ Chiko~ Chiko~"
The Pokémon was bursting with energy, not showing a hint of shyness as it bounced and jumped around Cole.
"Chiko~ Chiko~" — Are you my trainer? Hello! Are you my trainer? Hello!
The excited creature kept repeating these words at his feet.
"This... this is incredible!"
Cole could never have imagined that Blaziken Mask would send him a Chikorita!
Was this... really the kind of Pokémon someone could simply give away?
Unlike his Brionne, which had come with a troubled past, this Chikorita seemed perfectly fine. Surely Blaziken Mask wouldn't give away a problematic Pokémon as an apology gift.
The casual gifting of a starter Pokémon spoke volumes about Blaziken Mask's extraordinary status.
But could Cole really accept such a precious gift?
From a practical standpoint, he did need a Grass-type Pokémon to help with his berry tree cultivation, and Chikorita would be perfect for this.
Meganium, Chikorita's final evolution, was said to possess a remarkable talent: its breath could revive withered plants and flowers — an ability perfectly suited for Cole's work. However, Meganium with such powers were both extremely rare and powerful.
Cole had only read about such Meganium in Ramos's book collection; he wasn't even sure if any existed in reality.
He suspected that Blaziken Mask had chosen this Pokémon specifically after learning about his profession.
While Cole pondered these thoughts, Chikorita continued its energetic bouncing.
"Chiko~ Chiko~" — Are you my trainer? Hello!
Cole had a feeling that if he didn't respond, Chikorita would keep bouncing forever.
"Ah~" He sighed, picking it up, "That's right, from today on I'm your trainer."
Now that Chikorita had been sent and they'd met, Cole couldn't bear to return it — that would be too cruel.
As for Blaziken Mask's generous gift... he'd address that when they met again.
Upon hearing Cole's confirmation, Chikorita's eyes softened as it nuzzled against his neck, releasing a sweet fragrance.
Like its evolved forms Bayleef and Meganium, Chikorita was known for producing aromatic fragrances. Their leaves, which could fall off and regrow, were often used to make various spices.
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