"Phew!"
After all that training along the way, Charcadet finally saw a human town.
The potion was long gone, its effect completely used up. It had rolled around until its whole body was covered in dust, and with the fire constantly burning on its body, it really did look like some kind of ash-covered undead knight.
However, its growth was also visible to the naked eye.
The little knight was full of excitement. After taking a short break with everyone, it set off once more toward the town.
Far off on the horizon, the sun rose high into the sky. It crossed the mountains, flowed over the rivers, and poured its beautiful, searing light down onto the land.
Yes, in this season, the sun's rays were of course both warm and blazing.
The apprentice knight turned to look at the blue-furred puppy by its side. Riolu-senpai was studying a strange scroll.
[Secret of Accuracy: Through training, you can increase the base accuracy of a move.]
[Secret of Power: Through training, you can increase the base power of a move.]
[Secret of PP: Through training, you can increase a move's maximum PP.]
These were secrets Hikaru had taken out from the ancient bracelet given to him by Darkrai.
Copy those ancient techniques down onto scrolls, and they became special items.
Strictly speaking, these were also special items from the Mystery Dungeon-like world.
"We're here. Up ahead is Artazon Town."
Artazon Town was a place of flowers and art.
The people here revered nature and the sun that nurtured that nature. Because of that, the town had formed a custom of gathering Sunflora, which embodied both of these things, and treating them as honored guests.
Looked at that way, wasn't this also a city of the sun?
"Clank!"
When Charcadet heard the introduction of the town and saw the sun carvings everywhere, its eyes burned brighter with fire, full of longing and emotion.
Ah! And it wasn't just Charcadet.
It looked to the side. Larvesta, heir of the sun, was just as excited.
The sun. Praise the sun!
"Vesta!"
O town of the sun, your sun god has arrived!
"Although this is also a town that worships the sun, its symbol of the sun is different from the one revered in the ancient city. Look, Sunflora are everywhere along the streets. They're the Pokémon everyone here reveres."
Because of the art festival, Artazon was especially lively, completely different from the small, quiet town in the games.
People were walking through the streets and alleys with their Pokémon, and there were artists from all over the region, even people speaking with accents from other regions.
Hikaru walked proudly down the street with a huge crowd of Pokémon following him. He drew quite a few curious looks, but once people noticed the big backpack on his back, they understood.
Oh, a backpacker.
Trainers like that traveled between many different regions, so having a few more Pokémon partners with them wasn't strange at all.
Still…
"That's still way too many!"
Hearing the muttering from passersby, Hikaru did not take it to heart.
The environment in Artazon really was great. The artistic atmosphere came second. What mattered most was how people and nature lived together in harmony.
Still…
"Why are there so many restaurants in a town that's supposed to be about art?"
Artazon also had a ton of eateries. Restaurants were everywhere. That seemed to be one of Paldea's specialties.
Genesect was fascinated by a flowerpot beside the street. It stared at the flowers for a long time; some of the blossoms looked very similar in shape to Orthus's Flower.
"This is a town of flowers and art, so of course there are all kinds of flowers. If you're interested, we can buy a few."
They weren't rare plants, but different flowers could still brighten up daily life.
Of course, there was no way to plant these on Kamekame's shell, so they would be sent to the Linked World instead, adding some life and variety to that monotonous forest.
And among these flowers, the largest and most eye-catching were naturally the town's favorite "sunflowers."
There was another town in the Johto region that loved sunflowers: Bloomingvale, located between Violet City and Azalea Town.
Every year, they held a Sunflora Festival there. The highlight was a Sunflora beauty contest, and the person who raised the winning Sunflora would receive a "Sunflora Star" medal.
"Ge-no."
Hugging a potted sunflower, Genesect was in an excellent mood.
Even though these flowers were completely different from Orthus's Flower, their nature of always facing the sun deeply attracted it.
It also noticed a bunch of tiny Pokémon fluttering around in the air, each carrying a blossom as they flew.
"Those are Flabébé and Floette. They fly through the flower beds, caring for flowers that are about to wither. They can draw out the power hidden inside the flowers and use it in battle. Once the flowers in a bed they've carefully cared for are in full bloom, they'll bless them with a gorgeous dance.
"If they ever find a flower they truly like, they'll stay with that flower for their whole life."
Ordinary Floette were nothing special. As Fairy-type Pokémon, they mainly helped diversify the ecosystem. The important one was the sole variant among all Floette.
The Eternal Flower.
That was also a unique plant. It wasn't that only the Eternal Floette form possessed it. If memory served, there was an ownerless Eternal Flower beneath the great tree in Fortree City in the Hoenn region.
Thousands of years ago, Eternal Flowers might have been one of the forms Floette could choose to become. But as time went by, Eternal Flowers slowly vanished into the river of history.
"Lii-gant~"
Hisuian Lilligant and Torterra were also picking out flowers. The Floette flitted about, their eyes shining, drawn to the blossom atop Lilligant's head.
What kind of flower was that? They had never seen it before.
Hisuian Lilligant barely existed in this world at all, so that unique flower that radiated courage no longer existed either.
And in Unova, Lilligant had received the flower crown woven from Orthus's Flowers. That deathless crown, woven from legendary blossoms and blessed by an ancient king, made the Floette dance in circles around Lilligant, drawing gasps of wonder from the surrounding people and Pokémon.
After choosing a bouquet, Lilligant thought for a moment. Seeing that Kamekame wasn't very interested in these ordinary flowers, she suddenly had an idea.
[For me?]
"Lii-gant!"
Lilligant handed the beautiful bouquet she had picked out to Iron Valiant.
She indicated that in truth, she should weave a flower crown for Iron Valiant. That would look even better.
She even subtly pointed at the trainer's back. That gave Iron Valiant something to think about.
[Thank you.]
"Lii-gant (Don't mention it. Let's pick out flowers together)~"
Encouraged by Lilligant, Iron Valiant began analyzing the bouquets as well. They were all very ordinary flowers, but she couldn't understand why weaving them into bouquets or flower crowns would make a trainer so happy.
Was there something special about their composition? But the data returned from her analysis was nothing unusual.
Still, since Lilligant said so, then she had to be right.
Iron Valiant looked thoughtfully at Genesect, who was grinning foolishly with its sunflower, and considered whether she should ask that big bug for advice.
[This is a bouquet. It's for you. Lilligant said that if we give it to you, you'll be really happy.]
Iron Valiant and Lilligant held their bouquets and presented them to Hikaru.
[Item: Small Bouquet]
[Description: A simple bouquet made with great care. It is filled to the brim with feelings for the trainer.]
"Thanks."
Holding the two bouquets and watching the two girls dance happily around him, Hikaru couldn't help but feel very content.
The key point was that these were gifts from his Pokémon.
Of course he was paying for the flowers himself, but that went without saying.
This warm and wonderful scene caught the eye of a girl walking past.
She stared blankly at what had just happened.
How beautiful.
If this moment could be captured in a painting, it would definitely be stunning.
But soon, Hikaru waved toward the distance and led his Pokémon away from the spot.
The girl was a bit frustrated, but then she thought it through. It wasn't as if she could ask that person to stand there forever.
Moments like that were something you stumbled upon, not something you could force.
She slapped her cheeks lightly, pulled herself together, and set her sights on the art museum in the distance.
She was here to visit, and only to visit.
After all, she didn't know how to paint, and she didn't know how to sculpt either.
But very soon, she discovered another perfect scene.
"Ah, that's Charcadet!"
Hikaru's Charcadet, its dark cloak stained with ash, an ancient bronze hammer in its hand and battered armor on its body, stood out with its melancholic, heavy equipment. And yet, it was hopping around in the middle of a group of Sunflora.
Surrounded by Sunflora… a sun-blessed hero who had journeyed from a faraway land.
For some reason, that image popped into the girl's mind.
Someone else was equally captivated.
"So beautiful! That scene just now was so beautiful!"
"My inspiration is overflowing. This is pure avant-garde art!"
The man who had walked up near Hikaru was Brassius, the one hosting the art festival here.
After receiving Hikaru's message, Brassius had rushed out of his studio, and he hadn't expected to witness such a wonderful scene on the way.
As expected, this artist in front of him always brought him endless surprises.
Not long ago, Brassius had been stuck in the mire of "retro art" and couldn't pull himself out. He desperately tried to imitate Hikaru's works, but no matter how he carved, his finished pieces captured at most thirty or forty percent of the original's soul.
At that time, Brassius had taken a severe psychological hit, but his friend Hassel had helped him out of that anxious spiral.
And now, Brassius had realized something.
"So long as people and Pokémon interact freely, every move they make becomes perfectly natural and unrepeatable living art."
"I understand now. The true core of an artwork lies in that sense of life and motion."
Hikaru greeted the gaunt-cheeked artist. "Brassius-san, nice to finally meet you."
"It is my great honor!"
Brassius's reaction actually startled Hikaru. The artist's emotions were running very high.
"Anyone with real artistic mastery shines wherever they go. Your exhibitions in Unova have already made their way even to a remote corner like Paldea. I've had the honor of seeing the photos and videos online."
"If I may speak frankly, those works… are the very definition of avant-garde art!"
"After seeing them, I couldn't sleep at all. At first, I tried to imitate them, but everything I made turned out stiff and lifeless."
"My talent isn't one-ten-thousandth of yours. For you to come here is an incredible encouragement to me."
"Actually… I have a small, shameless request…"
Art from Paldea already had a modest reputation in the wider world. There were many works that valued harmony between people and nature. Brassius himself, however, excelled more at a melancholy style. Because of that, he often fell into bouts of mental overthinking.
In other words, his style didn't really match the bright, sunny tone of this town.
That made Brassius feel a bit ashamed. He hoped to get some guidance from Hikaru, especially since he'd recently sunk into another bout of internal conflict.
"Not at all. You're one of my biggest patrons, Brassius-san. I wouldn't presume to 'instruct' you. I'm just a newcomer myself. Why don't we look at the other pieces first?"
Hikaru agreed to Brassius's request. After all, he hadn't come to the art festival just to stroll around.
And Brassius was a major buyer of his work. He'd purchased several carvings already, and he was warm and genuinely sincere in person, which was quite different from his habit of brooding himself into a funk.
Brassius brightened immediately and started asking about Hikaru's entry for the exhibition. Then, remembering the news he'd read, he quickly shook his head.
"Please don't worry. As much as I'd love to see your new piece, you came all the way from Unova. It's impossible to bring those massive works with you."
"Please, just enjoy the masterpieces on display here."
"It's fine. I can make my piece on the spot. We did agree that I'd take part in this art festival, after all. I can't just come here to look at other people's work."
"But to create something on the fly…" Brassius's expression shifted, and he hurried to explain.
"Ah! I don't mean to doubt your skills, of course. Artists do create on the spur of the moment. It's just that with painting and sculpture, it's usually better to think them through first."
Brassius had absolute faith in Hikaru's ability.
It was just that he wanted to see a work that could shake the world and be remembered for generations, or a retro piece with captivating depth.
"You're worried I won't be able to match the standard from the news?" Hikaru asked.
"That's not what I meant," Brassius said quickly.
"No need to worry. I've already got some ideas. Right, why don't I use that bouquet scene from earlier as the subject and paint a piece based on it? What do you think?"
As soon as he heard that, Brassius's interest skyrocketed.
"Whoa! If that's possible, that scene really was perfect!"
"If you insist on creating here, then please, come to my studio. It would be an honor."
Hikaru and Brassius were about to leave. Charcadet, still surrounded by Sunflora, perked up and hurried to follow its companions.
Just as it turned, it noticed the red-haired girl resting her chin in her hands and staring blankly at it.
"Clank!"
Charcadet pattered over and lightly tapped the red-haired girl's knee.
You who have no dream yet, someday you'll find a dream of your own. Don't give up. You'll definitely be able to paint something beautiful.
"Eh?! The Pokémon is talking?!"
The red-haired girl froze.
"That's Aura," Hikaru said.
He had noticed this dazed little girl. From her age, she seemed to be a bit younger than Ash.
In fact, among all the boys and girls who had appeared throughout the series, there was something rather unusual: Ash was actually one of the youngest. But the guy was so reckless, and he never acted like a ten-year-old, especially in the DP era, that he gave off a strange "older teen" vibe.
Not far from Charcadet, Riolu quietly withdrew its paw, hiding its achievements and its merit.
Hikaru sighed inwardly.
When the pupper helps others, that's real greatness. No need for more words.
He smiled at Riolu and Charcadet, then looked over at the red-haired girl.
She was still very young.
But he recognized her at a glance.
Mela of Team Star, the boss of the Schedar Squad. It just looked like she hadn't enrolled yet.
Even if you squeezed all the major incidents together so that there was only half a year or a year between them in the timeline, it would still be at least three or four years until the events of Scarlet & Violet.
If you stretched that timeline further, it became even harder to pin down.
Considering that Operation Starfall took place right before a big wave of staff changes at the academy, which happened about a year and a half before the main story, the Team Star members would have already been at least one year into their studies when the bullying began.
So… Operation Starfall should take place before Sword & Shield, sometime in the later part of Sun & Moon?
"Are you a student at Naranja Academy?"
"No, I'm not. I haven't enrolled. I just came to look around!" Mela waved her hands frantically, clearly nervous.
Brassius walked over as well. When he heard her say she was just here to look, he warmly extended an invitation.
"You seem to be at a crossroads in life, young lady. To have such worries at your age… I can feel the weight in your heart."
Faced with his formal way of addressing her, Mela panicked even more. Already short, she became completely flustered.
"Y-young lady?! No, no, I'm just—"
Brassius swept a hand through the air.
"Don't worry. Art can help people escape confusion and pain. Take a good look at the works in this festival, young lady."
"Let yourself be fully immersed in them."
Mela's eyes turned into spirals. She barely understood what Brassius was saying and was far too nervous to process his words.
Hikaru, meanwhile, remembered that every member of Team Star had a specialty.
Eri was a top athlete, Penny was a genius nerd, Atticus was a fashion designer, and Ortega's specialty was… having money. Only Mela had no "special skill" on paper, which made her feel inferior. When she later changed styles and became Team Star's leader, her outfit ended up being the flashiest of them all.
In classroom dialogue, there were even lines about how she had no clear idea what "dreams" meant. The mobile game Pokémon Masters EX said the same.
Their teammate Atticus was recognized by fashion designers like Valerie for his design talent, and the comparison left Mela hanging her head.
Later on, though, she did have her own moment of brilliance: she turned out to be gifted at painting.
Even though she hadn't been in the art club for long, her talent was so obvious that professionals like Burgh and Jasmine thought her work was very good.
Her partner Pokémon, however, were Charcadet and Armarouge.
Since Hikaru was going to paint anyway, he thought, shouldn't he catch a Smeargle?
In their spare time, it could help her paint. The Phantom Artist in Unova had three Smeargle at their side, after all.
And once Mela truly became Team Star's boss, she could take Smeargle with her and play around with moves like Dark Void, Spore, Minimize, Power Split, Baton Pass, Follow Me, and so on.
"Drawing is a paradise in life. Sketching from nature… that's a wonderful thing," Hikaru said.
His voice eased Mela's nerves. "Do you like painting? Have you ever tried it?"
"N-no…" Mela shook her head, very straightforward.
In the original timeline, she didn't discover her talent for painting until almost the end of Scarlet & Violet's story, so right now she only had a tiny bit of interest, nothing more.
She truly realized she liked drawing after she put on the flaming knee-high boots that Atticus designed for her.
She sneaked another look at Charcadet. "Is that your Charcadet?"
"That's right, mine. It's a bit unusual, isn't it?" Hikaru said.
"No! I think it's… really cool. So I thought, if someone drew it, it would definitely look amazing." Mela's cheeks turned slightly pink as she watched Charcadet play with the Sunflora.
"A great painter once said that painters are mysterious creators. With color and line, they can bring beautiful and mysterious worlds into being. They're gifted, and the world they build with their brushes is limitless," Hikaru said.
"I'm always doing things I don't know how to do. That's how I learn how to do them."
"Do you want to learn how to paint?"
Brassius was astonished. "Oh, Hikaru-dono, you seem to see something special in this young lady. Why is that?"
"Aura told me what her talent is," Hikaru replied.
In truth, he simply wanted to help this girl, who had no clear dream yet, discover her dream a bit ahead of schedule.
Once she discovered her own strength, the course of her life would inevitably shift.
At the same time, Hikaru also wanted to borrow Brassius's studio to complete an important work of his own, as a kind of test.
He wanted to create a true "miracle piece."
Seeing Mela's bewildered face, Brassius grew even more excited and hurried to explain.
"Don't worry. This gentleman is on a whole different level from me."
"He's a rising star among Unova's artists, a genius, almost a legend."
"His works were shown once at a gallery in Edenfield City, and they immediately caused a sensation. People practically hailed him as a legend on the spot."
But just as Brassius was excitedly singing Hikaru's praises, a voice rang out that made him very nervous.
"Yo-ho! If it isn't Brassius. You actually came out of your studio for once. Didn't jump off a windmill today?"
"I went to all this trouble to come here, so let's hang out properly!"
"Oh no, the difficult lady is here. Let's get going." Brassius reacted like a man facing a natural disaster and even urged Mela to hurry to her feet.
At the same time, he explained to Hikaru:
"This young lady is always so loud and energetic. For someone like me, who likes quiet spaces for creating art, she's… not very helpful."
Since this was an art festival, it would have been strange if "she" didn't come. Her job was filming on location, after all. The problem was, Brassius didn't think she was "avant-garde" enough.
Of course, Brassius's attempt to flee was a little slow.
The girl with blue-and-pink hair had already let out a delighted cry and dashed over with her compact camera rig in hand.
"I heard that! 'Legendary artist from Unova'? Hee-hee, sounds like I've stumbled onto someone huge."
"Net your eyeballs with my electric web! Who's ready for an Iono Zone update? Iono's here! Morning, noon, and night, hello hello!"
"Whoa, look at these Pokémon! I've never seen any of them before!"
(End of Chapter)
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