Chapter 203:
After dinner, Hayashi Kaede lay down on his bed, having finished tomorrow's preparations with Gardevoir.
Alolan Vulpix curled up beside him, holding a phone and watching anime with its Eevee squad.
The only problem was that his little room was completely full now: Alolan Vulpix and the Eevees were on the bed, Serperior had coiled up beneath it, and the Alcremie were settled on the desk.
There wasn't any space for more Pokémon—otherwise, he would have brought Goodra in to watch too.
But there was still just enough room for Jirachi.
It squeezed in next to Alolan Vulpix, its bright eyes glued to the screen.
Although Jirachi had lived for who knew how many centuries, if you didn't count its long periods of slumber, it wasn't really that old. It had no resistance to anime.
Tonight's show was a comedy, so laughter filled the room.
Hayashi Kaede leaned against the wall, quietly watching Jirachi giggle at every funny scene. His heart felt warm.
Yet Alolan Vulpix's words from earlier echoed in his mind:
"Vulpix?" (It's so pitiful. Can you help it?)
Help it…
Help Jirachi break free from its thousand-year slumber. Help it remain awake—or at least, keep it from sleeping so long.
But how?
Hayashi Kaede fell into confusion.
According to Jirachi's nature, it slept for a millennium to accumulate a thousand years' worth of energy in exchange for only seven days of wakefulness.
Which meant… if Jirachi accumulated two thousand years of energy, it could stay awake for fourteen days.
But how much energy was "two thousand years" worth?
And what kind of energy was it absorbing?
He had no answers.
Even the thought of that timespan gave him a headache.
"Maybe this will work?"
Hayashi Kaede pulled out the 'Wishing Fruit' Jirachi had rewarded him with earlier that day.
It was a grayish-brown fruit, about the size of a fist, its surface uneven and rough.
According to the system, the hard exterior was only a shell—the real flesh lay inside.
[SSS-grade ingredient Wishing Fruit — (A fruit fallen from outer space, seemingly imbued with mysterious effects.)]
Mysterious effects… too vague. Hayashi Kaede never fully trusted system descriptions.
Still, when it came to energy, he had an idea he could test.
"Jirachi, want some candy?"
"Jirachi?"
Jirachi tore its gaze away from the anime, glanced at the candy in his hand, and nodded eagerly. "Mhmm!"
It popped the candy into its mouth and quickly turned back toward the screen, afraid of missing the next joke.
Hayashi Kaede immediately pulled up its status screen:
[Pokémon: Jirachi]
[Gender: Genderless]
[Ability: Serene Grace]
[Aptitude: Mythical]
[IVs: …]
[Level: ???]
[Moves: Confusion, Wish, Swift, Life Dew, Zen Headbutt, Gravity, Psychic…]
[Friendship: 70 (It thinks you're nice)]
[Happiness: 70 (Hahaha, that Lycanroc shouting "I'll be back" is hilarious…)]
[Description: After a millennium of slumber to gather energy, this is its second day of freedom from seven. Remaining time: (25h 32min / 168h 5min)] (TSL note: 7 x 24 =168h)
The precise seven-day timer had increased—by five minutes.
Hayashi Kaede's eyes lit up, but his excitement quickly dimmed.
The candy he'd given was only a primary-grade Rare Candy. He had plenty—over a thousand—but at this rate, one piece only added five minutes. Even a thousand would only extend Jirachi's consciousness by a little over 5,000 minutes—barely three and a half days.
Three and a half days… what use was that?
He tried feeding Jirachi an intermediate and then a high-grade Rare Candy. Jirachi blinked at him strangely, but he stopped.
Because he realized this path wasn't sustainable.
Even if he used every Rare Candy he owned, it would only buy Jirachi about a week.
In a sense, that was already astonishing—seven days represented a millennium of slumber for Jirachi.
But seven days… was still far too short.
As Hayashi Kaede sank into thought, a green, leaf-tipped tail suddenly slid across his lap.
He jolted, then looked down at Serperior coiled on the floor.
"Serperior…" (You can play with my tail…)
The Pokémon's voice was hesitant, almost embarrassed.
It had been watching him sit there for a long time, brow furrowed, clearly troubled.
The last time Serperior had seen him like this was back when that Trainer, Ryō Fū, visited the breeding house.
Back then, Hayashi Kaede would spend late nights in the kitchen, lost in thought, always returning to bed much later than usual. Serperior had known something was weighing on him, but hadn't known how to comfort him.
Now, seeing the same expression on his face, Serperior remembered how Alolan Vulpix always loved to play with its tail.
So it summoned its courage to offer the same comfort.
It couldn't solve Jirachi's problem…
But maybe it could help ease its Trainer's heart.
"Pfft…"
Hayashi Kaede couldn't hold back a laugh.
Serperior immediately flushed, embarrassed by his reaction.
"Serperior!" (Well? Are you going to play with it or not? If not, I'm taking it back!)
"Playing, playing… Don't be in such a rush."
He quickly rested his hand on the tail.
The moment he felt its smooth, jade-like surface, cool and springy to the touch, his worries melted away.
This was only the second time he'd touched Serperior's tail since its evolution.
The leaves along it were soft, fluttering faintly as he brushed them.
Instinctively, he began to massage the muscles, the same way he often kneaded Blaziken's legs after its intense runs. Back then, Blaziken would collapse onto the floor, too comfortable to move.
He remembered how firm Blaziken's muscles were, and a silly forbidden joke that crossed his mind at the time: These legs would be perfect for braising.
Of course, it had only been a stray thought.
Now, as he massaged Serperior's tail, he could feel how tense it was at first.
"Relax, relax. Don't be nervous," Hayashi Kaede murmured softly.
"Serperior…"
The Pokémon responded faintly, gradually lowering its head onto its coils.
It was still a little shy, but when it noticed Alcremie already asleep and Alolan Vulpix still absorbed in the anime, it felt safe enough.
Slowly, its body began to relax under his touch.
"Thank you, Serperior…" Hayashi Kaede whispered.
(´.＿.｀): "Serperior…"
(┬┬﹏┬┬): "Serperior…"
For reasons it couldn't explain, Serperior suddenly felt like crying.