Chapter 41: Complicated and Contradictory

Heath remembered feeling uneasy when he first realized he was in the Pokémon world. Sometimes, this world could be quite dangerous.

Especially upon discovering he was in Viridian City, where Giovanni was located, Heath's first instinct was to run. But as he got to know Giovanni and interacted with him, Heath understood that Giovanni in this world was even more complex and real.

Giovanni wasn't just some big villain hiding in a base every day, plotting various conspiracies to conquer the world. He was a flesh-and-blood person who attended charity events and warmly instructed trainers who came to his gym to learn.

Through the car window, Heath watched Mr. Giovanni still diligently rescuing people. He couldn't help but scratch his head. Despite knowing Giovanni was the boss of Team Rocket, at this moment, Giovanni truly seemed like a good person.

"My mom once told me that you humans are despicable and shameless, willing to trample on others for survival and then escape by yourselves." Zorua perched on Heath's shoulder, her eyes reflecting the firelight, looking very beautiful.

"And then?" Heath shrugged. Such things did happen; he'd seen it in movies in his previous life that tested human nature.

"Hmph, you humans are really complicated, so complicated and contradictory," Zorua huffed, then turned her head away from Heath.

Heath chuckled softly. Watching Giovanni, he couldn't deny what Zorua said. Humans were indeed such complex beings—not perfect, but there were no perfect people in this world.

If someone were truly perfect, they wouldn't be human but a god.

With the efforts of Pokémon and humans alike, the fire gradually came under control. However, even so, the blaze burned until 2 AM, lasting a full seven hours, and many onlookers dispersed.

"Jana, these are the boxed meals I made." Heath placed the boxed meals he had prepared long ago into a large basket and carried it out.

"You little scamp. Thank you. Everyone is very hungry, and I'll distribute these to them." Maple smiled, ruffling Heath's hair. Heath instinctively recoiled, embarrassed despite not minding it much, but being ruffled in front of so many people was still a bit awkward.

"Oh, young Heath, are you here to provide us with a consolation dinner?" Mr. Giovanni laughed heartily. At this moment, he looked nothing like his usual self and instead resembled a tribal chief from Africa.

Heath couldn't help but think of the phrase "Today's rate of explosion is high," and rubbed his face. Fortunately, he didn't say it.

"Mr. Giovanni, you've worked hard." Heath thanked sincerely. Without Giovanni and their help, extinguishing the fire might have taken much longer.

After checking for any hidden dangers, everyone relaxed. Heath warmly welcomed every firefighter, and his boxed meals received unanimous praise. The happy smiles and satisfied expressions made Heath feel fulfilled.

"Hey, not bad. There's such a big piece of meat." Jana grinned mischievously, wrapping her arms around Heath's neck and playfully teasing him, making Heath blush bright red.

"Jena, leave Heath alone." Maple approached with her own boxed meal, smiling warmly. She had already eaten half of her meal, and the exhaustion from fighting the fire made her quite hungry.

Upon hearing Maple's words, Jana stuck out her tongue and let go of Heath, causing Heath to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good job. You're truly a child of our Viridian City." Maple smiled, pinching Heath's cheek. Heath's face instantly turned black.

"Of course, you should see who my brother is." Heath proudly puffed out his chest. Although he hadn't participated in firefighting, he had made his own contribution in other ways.

Amidst laughter and joy, the night passed like this, and the next day, although Heath was very tired, he still woke up early.

"Yawn. I really want to sleep a bit more today." Heath looked at Zorua sleeping beside him, yawned deeply, and then got up from bed, grabbing Zorua by the neck.

The fire from yesterday had been extinguished, and there were no further hazards. Several Water-type Pokémon had teamed up to prevent the fire from reigniting, using a fine rain. Although the light rain couldn't extinguish the flames, it was effective in preventing reignition.

"You're annoying. I haven't slept enough." Zorua looked at Heath with resentment on her face. Heath curiously looked at Zorua but noticed she didn't have dark circles under her eyes.

But then again, Pokémon probably didn't have dark circles, right?

But thinking of Pikachu from "A Certain Director", Heath thought it was better not to draw that conclusion too early.

The biggest gain from yesterday was that Heath acquired a large pile of candy—candies that could enhance effort values. However, Heath also realized there were limits to using these candies: the more used, the more needed.

"Zorua, would you like to learn Dark Pulse?" Heath asked as he brushed his teeth, looking at Zorua.

The TM he received from entertaining Zorua before was still with Heath, and only Zorua could use it.

"Huh? Dark Pulse? I remember that's a move that if I evolve into a Zoroark." Zorua stood on the bathroom sink, brushing her teeth vigorously, while Farfetch'd stood solemnly to Heath's left.

"Well, you can learn it first." Heath nodded; Dark Pulse's power was still good.

"Hmph, human, don't think that just because you taught me Dark Pulse, I will be endlessly grateful to you. That's impossible!" Zorua turned her head away, but the joy on her face couldn't be hidden no matter how hard she tried.

Heath chuckled helplessly and tapped her head, then used the TM. The next moment, Zorua, who was about to get angry, suddenly froze.

She felt dazed as something new popped into her mind—she had actually mastered Dark Pulse.

Curiously, Zorua turned her head to look at her trainer. She suddenly felt that her trainer was quite mysterious. Could it be that this trainer was like a powerful mythical creature, just like in that novel?

Would he eventually come and spar with her? No, wait, she was female, and this trainer was male.

Zorua shook her head abruptly, feeling a bit embarrassed.

(End of this chapter)