It was the same luxury sedan that had dropped him off before. The butler sitting in the front appeared to be in his fifties. He wore a tuxedo, his back was straight as a rod, and his hair was combed neatly, shining pitch-black.
Eichi felt a bit embarrassed for making an elderly person wait so long.
"Butler Lorraine, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting," Eichi said.
Butler Lorraine turned around and quickly replied, "Please, don't say that. You are the Young Master's friend; this is my duty."
"Then thank you, Butler Lorraine," Eichi said.
The car's engine hummed with a muffled growl, and the vehicle began to move slowly. Sitting inside, Eichi felt extremely steady. If he hadn't looked out the window, he would have thought the car wasn't moving at all. Butler Lorraine was truly an experienced driver.
The car slowly drove out of Silver Town. In Silver Academy, many people remained unaware that one student had departed.
Four hours passed before the sedan finally appeared in Blackthorn City. Blackthorn City was as bustling as ever, and it looked even more crowded than usual. Many travelers carrying backpacks entered Eichi's field of vision.
It was now April, not far from the start of the Silver Academy term. Those with strength would come to challenge the Blackthorn Gym; after all, Clair's strength was very formidable.
Butler Lorraine dropped Eichi off at the Pokémon Center. As Eichi got out of the car, he bid farewell, "Thank you for your hard work, Butler Lorraine."
"Goodbye, Student Eichi," Butler Lorraine said in his aged voice. He then drove the sedan back toward Silver Town.
Once the car had completely vanished from sight, Eichi took out his communicator and sent a text message to Tetsu:
I have arrived in Blackthorn City. See you next semester.
After sending it, he put the communicator back in his pocket and walked into the Pokémon Center.
The center was quite crowded. Just as he entered, two people walked out together, discussing something.
"There are so many people challenging the Blackthorn Gym lately," the woman said.
"Yeah, the Johto League is less than four months away. Naturally, more people are coming to challenge the gyms," the man replied.
"Clair is so strong. I failed my challenge yesterday; I wonder if I can succeed today," the woman noted.
Eichi waited in line amidst the noisy crowd of people bustling in and out. It didn't take long for his turn. He skillfully booked a room and went upstairs with his room key card. After putting his things away, he headed back down to the train station to buy a ticket.
Just as he expected, today's trains had already departed; there was only one available tomorrow. Thus, he bought a train ticket for the next day at the ticket window.
That evening, Eichi sat at the table and took out a black notebook. Half of its pages had already begun to yellow. He flipped to the newest page, which was covered in neat handwriting.
This was Eichi's travel plan. He had made detailed arrangements from the moment he left school, to going home, then traveling, and finally participating in the League Conference. It noted the departure from Blackthorn City, with an arrow pointing toward Falling Leaves Town, from where he could cross the sea by boat to reach Viridian City.
Eichi looked it over; if there were no accidents along the way, this would be his general itinerary.
During the day, he had wandered around and tasted some delicacies. These foods could only be found in Blackthorn City; even if they existed elsewhere, the taste wasn't authentic. After reading for a while longer, Eichi went to bed.
Splash!
Looking down from the sky, one could see a vast, deep blue ocean. The sound of splashing water mixed with the cries of sea bird Pokémon flying in the sky. A large white ferry traveled steadily across the sea.
A youth stood on the deck, wearing a teal tracksuit and a black and red hat, quietly admiring the distant seascape. This youth was, naturally, Eichi. It had taken him a total of three days to travel from Blackthorn City to Falling Leaves Town.
From Falling Leaves Town, he had spent four days riding his bicycle to the port. He had now been at sea for two days. According to the sailors on the ship, they would reach Viridian City in one more day.
He breathed in the fresh, salty air. Beneath the surface, he could catch glimpses of Pokémon in the water. Staryu, Poliwag, Tentacool, Tentacruel, Remoraid, Octillery...
Through his Eye of the Bug Emperor, most of the Pokémon here had Ordinary aptitude; Good and Excellent ones were also common. He had only seen one with Outstanding aptitude over these two days—a Tentacool that appeared for an instant before vanishing, followed by a Champion-level Tentacruel.
"Eichi!"
Turning around, he saw a youth in a tracksuit with black hair and spirited eyes. He was a dark-skinned, active-looking youth, about four or five years older than Eichi.
His name was Buliangren, a strange name. He was from the Sinnoh region and had loved traveling since he was a child, visiting many regions at a young age.
Eichi had seen his Pokémon: Zangoose, Serperior, Vespiquen, Miltank, Swellow, and Swampert. What surprised him was that the Swampert actually had Outstanding aptitude and had reached the peak of the Gym Leader rank.
Eichi had met Buliangren in Falling Leaves Town. He was planning to travel to the Kanto region and decided to go with Eichi. In just two days, they had become friends.
"Eichi, let's go! I want to challenge your Scizor. I won't use Swampert this time; I'll use the Miltank I just caught."
Buliangren also loved Pokémon battles and would seek him out whenever he was free.
"Hold on, I'm coming," Eichi replied.
A day later, Eichi stood on the deck. He had just heard from a sailor that they were almost there. Buliangren also came up to the deck as Eichi saw the silhouette of Viridian City. They were arriving.
"Finally reaching the Kanto region," Buliangren said beside him.
Beep!
Ten minutes later, the ferry reached the port. A gangway lowered, and a few sailors went down first, followed by the rest of the passengers.
It was time to part ways. Eichi had originally intended to invite Buliangren to his home as a guest, but the latter was eager to start his journey. They agreed to meet again, and Buliangren promised to visit Eichi's home next time.
"Eichi, see you next time!"
Buliangren waved goodbye, and Eichi waved back as the two parted at the port. Buliangren's strength was decent, but Eichi was still far behind; aside from using level suppression, he had no other means to defeat him.
The sea breeze blew as he returned. He had been away from home for nearly a year. During their phone call last month, Eichi could hear how much his father missed him. He suddenly felt a strong urge to be home.
Eichi quickened his pace, having no mood for slow wandering. An hour later, he looked at the familiar house. He took out his key and opened the door. Upon entering, he saw a familiar figure.