Pokemon: Reborn Rich Alternate Earth

Chapter 979: Chapter 1196: Favorite Pokémon?

A bonfire blazed on the Ginkgo Landings, waves crashing against the reefs, and high above, a silver moon hung in the sky amid a glittering sea of stars.

"Grilled chicken wings, oh how I love to eat them~"

Julian held a tree branch with a pair of chicken wings skewered on it, singing a song he was making up on the spot.

Beside him, the two little ones were grilling their own food just like Julian.

Celebi was roasting a large chicken drumstick, while Jirachi was grilling a fish.

"Slow~"

Slowking: "Time to flip them."

To prevent these three from wasting food, Slowking supervised from the side, reminding them to turn the food at the right moment. Every now and then, it would also brush a layer of oil over whatever they were cooking.

Dinner had long since been eaten; this impromptu barbecue was just something to do to pass the time.

Julian's chicken wings were the smallest, so they finished cooking first. Sprinkled with Slowking's secret homemade barbecue seasoning, the wings would have tasted delicious even if eaten plain.

"Top-notch flavor," Julian declared as he bit into his grilled wing, finding it exceptionally good.

"My drumstick will definitely taste even better than yours," Celebi declared, staring intently at its chicken leg.

"Huh," Julian shook his head dismissively. 'As if anything you grill could possibly taste better than mine.'

"Arf! Arf! Arf!"

Arcanine's angry barking reached his ears.

Taking a glance, Julian saw that the dog was arguing with Moltres again.

Moltres: "You dumb dog, if the Trainer wasn't here, I'd roast you into a pile of ashes!"

"Stupid bird, what are you so smug about? Master loves me the most!"

Arcanine looked at Moltres with disdain. So what if it was a Champion? With that stupid face, Julian definitely preferred it more.

After saying that, Arcanine trotted over to Julian and said, "Tell this stupid bird—don't you like me the most?"

Moltres also strutted over with its awkward, chicken-like walk.

When flying, Moltres looked majestic and imposing, but once on the ground, the way it walked really gave off the vibe of an ordinary chicken.

"The one you like is me, right?"

Faced with the questions from both Arcanine and Moltres, Julian suddenly felt a headache coming on.

To make matters worse, he noticed that all the other Pokémon around had also turned to look at him. Clearly, every single one of them wanted to hear the answer, and every single one of them hoped Julian would say 'they' were his favorite.

Julian: 'This is a deadly question.'

But not answering wasn't an option either. Over a dozen Pokémon were staring at him intently—even Reshiram, Zekrom, and Deoxys were watching him now.

As for Metagross, this guy had already extended its claws right beside him. If his answer wasn't "Metagross," there was a real chance it might just give him a swipe.

"My favorite is definitely Slowking!"

At the critical moment, Julian's quick wits saved him. Right now, only by saying "Slowking" could he preserve his own life—and none of the other Pokémon would dare object.

"Slow~"

Slowking narrowed its eyes in delight, clearly very satisfied with Julian's answer. In its happiness, it even took out a bottle of cola it had confiscated from Gengar and handed it to Julian.

This left Julian somewhat flattered.

After all, his daily quota was only one bottle of cola. If he wanted a second one, he had to secretly drink it behind Slowking's back—and make sure not to get caught, or else his next day's share would be deducted.

Among all his Pokémon, Slowking's strength ranked near the bottom, but in terms of authority, even Metagross had to step aside.

The reason this whole "family" lived so comfortably and everything ran like a well-oiled machine was entirely thanks to Slowking.

So when Julian declared Slowking was his favorite, not a single Pokémon had the nerve to voice discontent.

Arcanine rolled its eyes.

"Arf!"

Arcanine: "Master, wha—"

Before it could finish speaking, Julian clamped its snout shut with his hand.

Julian: 'Don't say another word—I don't want to die.'

He already knew what Arcanine was about to say—it was definitely going to ask who was his second favorite.

In fact, that was precisely what Arcanine had intended.

"You're still my favorite, you silly dog. Just keep it to yourself, and don't blab about it," Julian secretly transmitted via telepathy directly into Arcanine's mind, hoping to prevent any further backstabbing.

Hearing that, Arcanine immediately stopped struggling.

When Julian let go, the dog glanced smugly at Moltres and the other Pokémon.

Arcanine: 'Slowking? Metagross? In front of me, you're all just sidekicks—I'm the true hero.'

Besides being a top-tier demolitions expert, this dog's ability to stir up trouble and vie for favor was truly second to none.

"Julian, the sea over there is glowing."

Jirachi, while eating its grilled fish, curiously pointed toward an area of water a few hundred meters away.

Julian looked over—the surface of the sea was indeed glowing with a yellow light.

"Must be Chinchou and Lanturn."

"They like to use their lights to hunt for food at night," Julian explained.

Electric-type moves were super effective against Water-types, but Chinchou and Lanturn were dual-type Pokémon—both Water and Electric. Because of that unique combination, they were quite popular among Water-type trainers.

They were also fairly common, making them one of the more "mainstream" Pokémon, and they weren't difficult to raise either.

Because of that, Chinchou was especially popular among beginner trainers.

Among Water-type Pokémon, the most popular were undoubtedly Blastoise and Swampert. Both had excellent growth potential and possessed Mega Evolution forms.

Whether as starter Pokémon or future core team members, they were excellent choices.

Of course, in terms of price, they were more expensive than other Water-type Pokémon.

Most Water-type trainers would have either a Blastoise or a Swampert in their team—many even had both.

Their status among Water-type Pokémon was similar to Charizard's status among Fire-types.

Every Type had its own flagship Pokémon—sometimes one, sometimes two.

And all "flagship" Pokémon shared two main characteristics.

First, their growth potential was not low, and many of them had Mega Evolution forms.

Second, they didn't belong to the category of extremely rare Pokémon. While their base forms were more expensive than most, they were still the kind you could obtain as long as you had enough money.

If a Pokémon met those two conditions, it could basically be considered a flagship Pokémon of its Type.

Among Julian's own Pokémon, the only one that could really be considered a "flagship" was Steelix. After all, Onix was indeed a relatively common Pokémon.

It was just that the Metal Coat required for its evolution was rather expensive.

Most Steel-type trainers would have a Steelix in their roster. As this guy also had a Mega Evolution form, making it a solid, reliable powerhouse.

Even someone like Julian had this "flagship" Pokémon.

So these days, practically any self-respecting Steel-type trainer owned a Steelix.

They might not be able to obtain Julian's other Steel-type Pokémon, nor afford them—but Steelix? That, they could manage.

With a Steelix, they could at least feel a bit closer to their idol.

It was just a pity that Champion Walker hadn't captured Skarmory—otherwise, they could have followed their idol with two Pokémon instead.

*****

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