Lu Ze walked along, explaining his thoughts to Lu Zhengjie.
"In theory, this should minimize the personality issues that come with the Truant ability. But it's only theory—I haven't actually tried it yet."
With that, Lu Ze plopped down onto the grass and waved at the Sirfetch'd nearby.
"Sirfetch'd, take a break. We'll be eating soon."
Sirfetch'd's training was simply too grueling.
Lu Ze had been worried the whole time—whether training at that intensity might cause damage to Sirfetch'd's body.
But there wasn't much he could do about it. This was Sirfetch'd's own choice, its own determination.
All Lu Ze could do was replenish Sirfetch'd's stamina and provide whatever nutrients it needed, and take it for a checkup at least once a week to look for any hidden injuries.
"Ya!"
Sirfetch'd nodded, then sat cross-legged beside Lu Ze, laying its leek across its lap. It closed its eyes and began regulating its breathing.
Lu Ze gave a helpless smile. He knew this was Sirfetch'd's so-called mental training.
Right, the kind he'd seen in movies.
Amusing as it was, Lu Ze didn't say anything. The bottom line was that Sirfetch'd was resting—that was enough.
"All things considered, Slaking is hard to raise. You should still prepare yourself for that."
"Yeah, I understand."
Lu Zhengjie nodded. The moment he'd decided to raise a Slakoth, he'd already steeled himself.
Right now, there wasn't a single well-known trainer in the entire world who used Slaking as their primary battle Pokémon.
That meant there were no predecessors to learn from. On the path to raising Slaking, he'd have to figure everything out himself.
"Alright, I'll go cook. Try my cooking and you'll know I wasn't bragging."
"Sure, I'm looking forward to it."
Lu Zhengjie said with a smile.
Lu Ze dusted off his butt, stood up, took out the things Charizard had brought, organized them, and got to cooking.
Lunch was still curry rice, of course.
When you're out in the wild, curry rice is simple, convenient, and the taste isn't bad—it's always Lu Ze's first choice for outdoor cooking.
This time, among the things Charizard had retrieved from the cooler, there were also some meat patties.
So Lu Ze decided: today's lunch would be spicy curry with meat patties.
Spicy curry sauce over hamburger patties, ladled onto sweet white rice. The flavor—
"Absolutely incredible."
After lunch, Lu Zhengjie lay back on the grass, belly nice and round, but still managed to give Lu Ze a thumbs-up.
"Seriously, bro, you weren't lying. Your cooking is absolutely incredible!"
"毋!"
Lu Zhengjie's Machamp was also sprawled out beside him. It copycatted its trainer, straining all four arms to stick a thumb up at Lu Ze at the same time.
"Koh~"
"Cooli~"
"Shing~"
Lucario, Lopunny, and Baloon were also lying on the grass nearby, eyes half-closed, faces full of bliss.
But they were simply too stuffed to move. They could only give Lu Ze a mental thumbs-up.
"Ugh, so annoying. We've got Combat-major class later, otherwise just lying here after a meal would be perfect."
"Lucky us. Breeder-major doesn't have any afternoon classes today."
Lu Ze also lay back on the grass, cradling Mini Dragon contentedly.
Autumn sunlight wasn't as brutal as summer sun.
So basking in it directly felt warm and comfortable.
"Hee~re we~ go~"
Lu Zhengjie checked the time, shook his head helplessly, and then struggled mightily to sit himself up.
"Alright, I've got class this afternoon. I'm heading out."
"Yeah yeah, go on then."
Lu Ze waved a hand, with zero intention of getting up—even his eyes stayed closed.
"毋~"
" Tch, you really are something."
Lu Zhengjie looked at Machamp, Lucario, and the other three with a helpless expression.
The message from Machamp and Lucario was clear: we don't want to move. Just put us back in our Poké Balls and carry us over.
"Bro, I'm going to class."
After returning his four Pokémon to their Poké Balls, Lu Zhengjie waved goodbye to Lu Ze once more, then broke into a run toward the classroom.
"Yeah, go on~"
"Jyu~"
Lu Ze and the Mini Dragon on his body said it at the same time, then both slipped right back into a languid state.
Sleepy in spring, sluggish in autumn, drowsy in winter, dozing in summer.
Right now was autumn sluggishness season.
So—time for a nap.
Lu Ze found an excuse for himself, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
If Lu Ze was sleeping, Mini Dragon was naturally drowsy too. It curled up on Lu Ze's body and slept as well.
Snorlax checked the wind direction, then walked over and lay down beside Lu Ze, blocking some of the autumn breeze.
Crobat gazed at Lu Ze with affection, shook its head helplessly, then led Charizard and the others a short distance away. After a brief rest, they started their afternoon training.
Meanwhile, Lu Zhengjie was still sprinting toward the Combat-major classroom.
But inside the classroom, a tense confrontation was already underway.
"Is this the courage Dragon Kingdom is known for? Someone provokes you right to your face and you don't even dare respond?"
Skorelsky stared arrogantly at the students below the podium, continuing to provoke them.
"Come on, come on. No one actually dares to step up? Is this really all Dragon Kingdom has?"
"This bastard's Mandarin is pretty good. The way he's being sarcastic about it—I can barely hold back."
Watching Sikong Ling's gleeful expression, his friend sitting nearby couldn't help but feel exasperated.
"Just hold it in. We've got Professor Liu's class coming up, and you know what she's like. Skip class and you're done for. If you get provoked into a battle and then get flagged for an absence, that's a whole other problem. Better to beat him after class ends."
The speaker was Wang Siyuan—the one with the Gluttony Snorlax and the Greninja with Bond Evolution.
They hadn't faced each other in the freshman tournament, but their tempers were actually pretty similar.
And since they were both in the same Combat-major class, over time the two had become close.
A while back, Wang Siyuan had even switched dorm rooms to share with Sikong Ling.
"Yeah, I know. That's why you didn't see me react at all."
Sikong Ling shrugged. Normally, with his temperament, he'd already be fighting that foreign jerk right now.
But right now—
Professor Liu Xiangjun's legendary reputation still kept him from acting out.
He wasn't the only one. Sui Yan felt the same way.
When he heard this guy badmouthing Dragon Kingdom, Sui Yan—an agitator at heart—had nearly lost it.
But there was nothing for it. Their class advisor was Liu Xiangjun, and he knew she was Lu Ze's grandmother.
He didn't want to challenge Lu Ze's grandmother's authority as their advisor, because that would make things difficult for others.
Still, deep down, Sui Yan had already clenched his fists: "Dammit, you dog thing—just wait until class ends!"
"Someone's come to provoke you at your door, and you don't throw a punch? That's not the style of a Shangqing student."
Just as the students were suppressing their anger, a voice everyone knew well came from the doorway.
Before anyone could even make out who had arrived, that voice spoke again.
"Since that's how it is—today we're having a practical combat class. Everyone, Assembly Area One Battlefields."
(Chapter End)
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