Today the weather was fairly decent. Reiji had slept comfortably on the sofa, woke up early, and prepared breakfast. Once the Pokémon were all awake, they could sit down to eat together.

After breakfast, he recalled everyone into their Poké Balls—except for Spinarak and Poliwhirl, who stayed by his side.

This morning, he still had plans to visit the orphanage. Carrying a backpack himself, and with Poliwhirl also carrying one, he brought Spinarak and Poliwhirl along to the local market. There, he bought fresh meat, a complete set of cooking tools, and all the seasonings and sauces needed for barbecue.

He intended to treat the children at the orphanage to a delicious grilled feast to improve their meals.

The total cost for everything came to forty thousand Pokédollars—the bulk of it on meat. Prices here were steep.

Even then, he only bought the cheapest cuts: one thousand Pokédollars per jin. The nicer cuts went up to two thousand per jin—even Reiji himself couldn't bear to buy those. In the end, he picked up just over twenty jin of meat, plus some vegetables and fruit. It should be enough.

When he arrived at the orphanage this time, no one stopped him at the gate. Instead, a crowd of children rushed out to surround him and dragged him inside.

"Big Brother is here! Big Brother is here!"

"Big Brother!, we missed you so much!"

"Big Brother!, come in quick!"

Faced with their warm enthusiasm, Reiji let himself be pulled inside, where the elderly director came out to welcome him.

"Reiji, have you eaten breakfast yet? I'll cook you some noodles." The director's face was full of smiles as he hurried forward to greet the young man who had once again shown up like a generous patron.

Reiji glanced at the group of kids crowding around Poliwhirl, tugging and poking curiously at him, then asked with a smile, "I already ate, Director. Have the children had theirs yet?"

"They haven't eaten yet. I was just boiling water to cook noodles for them," the old man admitted.

"Director, I bought some good food for the kids. How about I make breakfast for them this time?" Reiji said, already pulling things from his backpack.

Out came over twenty jin of fresh meat, a big sack of vegetables and fruit, and all the gear and sauces for grilling.

"You've brought so much food again." The director hurried to block the children's eager eyes—if they rushed forward to snatch, it could get chaotic.

"Wow, so much meat! And fruit too…"

"Big Brother brought us so much food again, thank you Big Brother!"

"Thank you, Big Brother!"

Once one child started shouting, soon all of them were chanting thanks together.

Reiji didn't tease them or make them wait. He started by handing out fruit—one orange each.

He then called over three of the older kids, boys and girls around eleven or twelve years old, to help him set up the grill. Once the charcoal was burning, they could start cutting the meat and skewering it.

The skewers Reiji made were generous—half a jin of meat each, with potatoes or vegetables added on. Just a few were enough to fill the children's bellies.

This time, he also spotted Skinny, but he didn't bother asking the prickly boy to help. With their strained relationship, calling him over would probably just cause more trouble.

Once the first batch of ten-plus skewers was ready, the director also finished cooking noodles. Worried the kids might be too hungry, he gave them noodles first to pad their stomachs and reminded them not to eat only meat, or they might get sick.

As soon as the skewers were cooked, the children lined up obediently with their bowls of noodles, each receiving one skewer. The meat was gone quickly, so Reiji began grilling more.

The three older kids helping him stayed behind, still working the grill themselves even though they hadn't eaten yet.

When the second batch of skewers was finished, there were still seven or eight kids who hadn't gotten one.

By the third batch, Reiji only took four skewers for himself and the director to share in the pavilion, leaving the grill to the older children while he sat down to chat.

"Director, try some of this barbecue." For the first time, he pulled down the face covering he usually wore and ate alongside the old man.

"You're quite skilled at this. The children say it tastes wonderful. They haven't had meat in a long time. I was even planning to buy some today, but you brought it here instead."

"As long as the children are happy, I'm happy too," Reiji replied, glancing at the grill where Skinny had stepped forward to take some skewers.

"Yes… I just wish every day could be like this for them." The director sighed softly, unsure how much longer he could stay by the children's side.

"What's that girl's name?" Reiji asked, noticing the girl still by the grill, diligently cooking for the younger ones and hardly eating herself.

"Her name is Nana. A very sensible child. Sometimes she even helps me with chores," the old man explained.

"Director, does she have any dreams? Would she want to become a Trainer?"

"Becoming a Trainer… I really don't know." The director shook his head. For these children, being able to eat their fill was already the greatest wish. The life of a Trainer was far too distant.

"Director, a couple of days ago I caught a Caterpie. Do you think she'd be suited for it?" Reiji pulled out the Poké Ball containing the Caterpie with forty-six potential, the one he had caught last night.

"For Nana, hmm…" The director thought for a moment, then waved his cane and called: "Nana, come here."

"Grandpa, what is it? Oh—Big Brother is here too…" The girl came running, wiping sweat from her forehead. Seeing Reiji, she grew nervous, her fingers twirling together.

Helping out before was one thing, but standing here face to face left her shy and blushing.

"Nana, do you want to be a Trainer?" The director pulled her closer and asked gently.

"Me? A Trainer? Can I really?" Her wide eyes blinked rapidly, full of disbelief. Being a Trainer had never seemed possible. She just wanted to grow up and help the director take care of the other children.

"You can, Nana. If you want it, you can." The director patted her dirty little hands, straightened her clothes, then looked to Reiji. "Please, tell her yourself."

"Nana, do you like Caterpie? They can evolve into Butterfree," Reiji said, placing the Poké Ball into her hands.

"Butterfree? Like the one you showed us yesterday?" Nana stared at the ball, her eyes reflecting the image of Caterpie within.

Catching a Pokémon was easy—just throw a Poké Ball at a bug in the woods. But raising one? That was the hard part. She shook her head quickly, placing the ball back on the table.

"Big Brother, I don't know how to raise Caterpie. I'm afraid I'll do it wrong…"

"It's okay, I'll teach you. Caterpie are very simple to raise." Reiji produced two boxes of Bug-type energy cubes and a sack of Bug-type treats.

"Just… me?" The girl still wavered, anxious about failing.

"Nana, raising Caterpie really is simple. Just feed it, play with it, let it rest. Once it's eaten enough of these, it will evolve."

"When it becomes a Metapod, it won't be able to move. After it sheds its shell, it will emerge as a Butterfree. Then you'll be able to battle with it."

"Really?!" Her eyes lit up, surprised by how easy he made it sound.

Indeed, Bug-types followed that cycle: eat and eat until they stored enough energy, then cocoon and evolve. In just over two weeks, Caterpie would be a Butterfree.

"Nana, I'll leave these foods with the director. Give Caterpie two cubes a day, and let it snack on the treats as much as it likes until it evolves."

With the energy cubes, treats, and its two natural evolutions, this Caterpie could even reach Elite-level potential.

"Okay… I'll try" Nana finally accepted the Poké Ball.

Reiji took out one energy cube, handing it to her. "Go on, feed Caterpie. They can be won over with food."

"Thank you, Big Brother." She released Caterpie from the ball.

At first it reared back, ready to spit silk—until it saw Poliwhirl glaring at it. Immediately, it shrank back nervously.

Then, catching the scent of the cube in Nana's hand, it crawled over eagerly.

"Caterpie, do you want this?" she asked.

"Guuuu~" Caterpie nodded frantically.

"If I give you food, will you be my partner?"

Caterpie nodded again, impatient.

"Here, this is for you." She fed it the cube, and as Caterpie gobbled it down, she stroked its head and recalled it into the ball. Then she ran off, shouting:

"I have a Pokémon now! I really have one!"

"Nana's a Trainer? What did Big Brother give you? Let me see!"

"Caterpie? Hmph, I thought it'd be something rare." One boy pouted.

"So what if it's Caterpie? Yesterday you couldn't even beat Spinarak!" she shot back.

"That was Big Brother's Pokémon, of course we couldn't. But your Caterpie? I've beaten plenty of those in the forest."

"Humph! If Big Brother hadn't said Caterpie can't battle yet, I'd fight you right now!"

Nearby, Skinny overheard the words "can't battle" and frowned. "What else did he tell you?"

"Big Brother taught me Caterpie's training plan: from Caterpie to Metapod, no battling until it evolves into Butterfree."

"No battling, huh…" Skinny chewed his skewer thoughtfully. Was this what the old man wanted him to learn?

For once, he didn't sneer. Ever since being humbled yesterday, he'd grown quieter, more willing to listen.

Meanwhile, Reiji simply pulled his scarf back up, smiled at the arguing kids, and bid farewell to the director.

"Director, I'll be back tomorrow. But only once more."

This would be his last visit. He was just a passerby in these children's childhoods, leaving behind a happy memory. His purpose was fulfilled.

As he left, Skinny quietly brought the director a plate of meat. "There was too much, Director. We couldn't finish…"

"Heh… just set it down," the old man said gently. Of course he knew the boy hadn't lost his appetite—his mind was elsewhere.

Seeing that Skinny lingered, the director finally revealed yesterday's secret:

"Kiddo, the money and cubes from yesterday… they were from Reiji."

"I was afraid you wouldn't accept them if you knew, so I lied and said they were from your grandfather."

"What? Him?" The boy froze, having only come to sniff out news about Reiji—only to be blindsided by this revelation.

"Listen to your grandfather. Don't waste this chance. Chase after him while you still can. Tone down that temper of yours and learn from him properly."

"I… I…" The boy stood stunned, his thoughts a tangled mess.

"Go on now." The director waved him away. "If you're too late, he'll be gone."

"Then… I'll go!" Snatching up his bag, Skinny called out his Poliwhirl and dashed off in the direction Reiji had left, toward the beach.

[End of Chapter]

[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]

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