Etorre was clearly subdued by Mao, with no temper left, so he could only order another set meal.
Truthfully, Luther thought the two of them suited each other quite well. Ettore was a free spirit who only cared about Pokémon battles and travel, and Mao made up for everything he didn't care about, such as social interaction and logistics. This allowed Ettore to focus entirely on what he loved.
"Have you collected enough Badges?" Etorre took the set meal from the waiter and began cutting into the steak with his knife and fork.
Luther took out his badge case and said with a smile, "After replanning my travel route, I became much more efficient. You were right, if I deliberately challenged certain gyms, I'd just keep taking detours. I probably wouldn't even have made it here by now."
Ettore glanced at the badge case, his eyebrow twitching slightly, and continued eating his steak.
"The White Wind Badge from White Wind Gym. Not bad. I didn't dare provoke Hakuya. He's way too troublesome. Just watching his battles makes my heart clench."
"Your heart clenches?" Luther echoed.
"When you watch his battles and put yourself in the challenger's shoes, it's honestly miserable. You get this suffocating feeling of having your operating space constantly compressed by him. So, after watching, I went straight to Duckweed Town to get a badge instead."
Just as his own meal arrived and he was about to pick up his knife and fork, Luther noticed Espurr lying at the edge of the table, looking up at him.
"Want some?" Luther asked.
Espurr shook her head, then floated up onto the table. Using her psychic powers, she lifted the knife and fork and began cutting the steak Luther had ordered.
Like an elegant waiter.
How could he forget that? Espurr was a self-reliant Pokémon who had worked at Diantha's villa to support herself. During that time, she had probably done servant work for Diantha, too.
Soon, the entire steak had been cut into small, easy-to-eat pieces. Espurr put down his knife and fork, looked at Luther, and blinked.
"Praise me! Hurry up and praise me."
With her meaning so obvious, how could Luther not praise her?
'Too cute. Too capable.' If Etorre and Mao weren't here, Luther would kiss her right now.
Praising her still wasn't enough. Luther even fed Espurr some of the food personally.
Espurr enjoyed Luther's attention and was helpful, too. She helped Mao cut up her steak, too. After hearing Mao cheer her on for an encore, she went ahead and helped Mao, too.
But when Espurr was about to help Etorre, Mao stopped her.
"He can't even say nice things. Espurr, be a good girl and don't help Etorre. Come over here to big sis."
Mao's eyes practically shot out hearts as she beckoned Espurr over.
Ettore had just been about to say something to Espurr when Mao's words hit him squarely. The praise he had prepared got stuck in his throat.
Watching Espurr wriggle out of Luther's arms and run to Mao, Etorre could only do the same.
Espurr was pulled into Mao's chest for a hug, instantly messing up the fur Luther had just tidied.
Feeling the soft sensation behind her back, Espurr looked awkwardly at Luther, seeming a little regretful about coming over. Mao's enthusiasm was overwhelming.
"I went back to Viridian City once."
Ettore glanced at Espurr with a complicated expression, then turned his head toward Luther.
Luther paused with his knife and fork and looked up.
Etorre's expression was relaxed. "It was just wishful thinking. I just hoped I might see Mewtwo. I knew it was impossible to meet her, but buying a plane ticket was enough to let me let go of this obsession. Totally worth it!"
"As long as I keep traveling, I'll eventually have the chance to see her, right?" Etorre smiled faintly.
Luther was infected by his smile. He speared a piece of meat with his fork and replied, "Who knows what kind of encounters you'll have on the road?"
The two laughed loudly, picked up their juice, and clinked glasses. They were both in great spirits.
Why do most Pokémon trainers prefer to travel on foot rather than use convenient transportation to collect badges? It's not because they want to see more scenery; it's because they're waiting for an unknown encounter.
The same reasoning applies to Trainers who don't plan to participate in the League but still insist on traveling.
The S.S. Ticket Etorre had booked was for more than half a month later, only two days after Luther's. Since they had run into each other, Luther planned to take another trip the next day to change his ticket.
"Funny coincidence. I don't intend to spar with other Pokémon Trainers either. If you go to the Battle Arena in Twilight Sea Town, you'll find lots of people recording battle information."
They're the information peddlers who show up at every League Conference. They make money by selling intel. They find ways to obtain any data that the Pokémon League doesn't officially record. At times like that, the last thing I want is to expose my own information."
Luther was curious and asked, "Don't the trainers who spar know about this?"
"They do. But most people think that hard work is always rewarded, practice a bit more, and you'll improve. Everyone has a different approach, so what we see as a sensible move looks like laziness and excessive caution to them."
Espurr finally escaped from Mao's grasp. She jumped down under the table and joined the other Pokémon.
Milcery was happily playing with the sugar decorations they had bought. The sweet fragrance clinging to them made her unable to put them down. She had long forgotten that they might be the key to her evolution, treating them purely as toys.
Houndoom slept, Kirlia and Mismagius chewed slowly and elegantly, and Jumpluff rested against Luther's foot.
From beneath the table, Darkrai reached out of the shadows, grabbed some food from the bowl, and retreated. If Espurr hadn't known that Darkrai was a friend, she definitely would've been scared by this spooky, elusive guy.
Even though Luther told him to stay low-key, there was no need to act like a ghost and only stick his hand out, right?!
Corsola and Eevee seemed to love the restaurant's special fruit juice. It was already the second time they had asked the waiter to refill their glasses.
Pachirisu and Slowpoke were helping Luther finish the fruit platter that came with his meal.
After looking around, Espurr felt like something was missing. She carefully scanned the area again.
Where did Marill go?
At this time of day, there weren't many people in the restaurant. Her curiosity piqued, Espurr could clearly sense Marill's aura.
Espurr saw Marill at the spot in the center of the restaurant where the self-serve fruit plates and drink machine were placed.
The drink machine was filled with the restaurant's special fruit juices. Since refills were free, there were quite a few glass cups on the nearby table.
Marill wasn't using a glass, though.
Instead, she grabbed the small, protruding nozzle of the drink machine. She opened her mouth wide toward the spout and stretched her tail straight out to press the button.
A stream of orange-red liquid flowed out of the nozzle and into Marill's mouth.
When her mouth was almost too full to swallow, Marill released the button with her tail, savored the flavor of the juice in her mouth for a moment, and then gulped it down with a blissful expression.
Then she shifted position, pressed the nozzle for another flavor of juice, and repeated the whole process.
Espurr's forehead was covered in black lines. She hurriedly flew back and brought Luther over.
Seeing Marill's feat, Luther couldn't help but admire her execution. With such short little arms, she still managed to pull off that entire sequence; he really had to respect that.
Marill, who was caught in Luther's hands, let out a satisfied burp. Smelling the strong fruity aroma, Luther couldn't resist pouring himself a cup of juice too. Then he called over the shop owner and expressed his apology.
"We'll pay extra for this part of the consumption," Luther said.
The shop owner was a middle-aged man wearing glasses. He looked at Marill, then listened to the waiter recount what had happened. Stroking his chin, he said, "Since we said refills are free, then naturally, however much you drink is on us."
"However, Mr. Luther, could you let Marill perform that operation again? I'd like to take a photo and stick it on the shop entrance as advertising material. Of course, we won't use it for free, your meals today for you and your three friends will be on the house, and you'll also get corresponding discounts whenever you come here in the future."
(End of Chapter)
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