Chapter 3

"Ah, you are such an enigma..."

With a sigh, Grandma Oran's thoughts drifted back to the day she adopted Darren from the adoption center. Darren was born in the city of Cerulean in the Kanto region. At the age of six, his parents died in an accident, and due to insufficient welfare support, Darren quickly became an orphan. Despite receiving subsidies from the league, he found it difficult to live a normal life.

At that time, Oran happened to be passing through Cerulean and, with Darren's consent, applied for a series of procedures with the league to adopt him under the name of the orphanage.

Children like Darren were not uncommon in the Pokemon world.

But Darren was indeed the most special child Oran had ever met.

From his initial silence and aloofness to his later maturity and understanding of others, it was hard to believe that this was a six-year-old child. And his intense passion for books surprised Oran, as he was interested in knowledge that was tedious and complex, that other children his age would never have touched. He analyzed things thoroughly and with great relish!

Serious, meticulous, and mature, sometimes Oran almost forgot that Darren was also an orphan she had adopted. In reality, Darren was helping her take care of the other children.

"Meeting you is our lucky charm." Looking at Darren's focused gaze, Grandma Oran was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She didn't know what this child was thinking all day. He no longer had the innocence of a child, and sometimes, when she looked at Darren's focus, Oran even felt a sense of fear. This child was too special and made her feel unreal.

"I'm sorry..." Darren said softly, not knowing how to continue the conversation.

Regardless, he would not change his decision to leave the orphanage.

After a long silence, Grandma Oran looked at the Beautifly and said, "I came here to tell you to take this child away." Looking gently at the Beautifly, Grandma Oran sighed, "It has also grown up"

At these words, Darren was suddenly startled.

Take the Beautifly away?

Darren had thought about this idea before, but the Beautifly was also a member of the orphanage. Although Darren mainly took care of it, everyone here had put in different efforts for it.

In other words, the Beautifly was not Darren's pokemon.

In fact, the Beautifly had not been tamed by anyone.

And Grandma Oran had always been the one to bear the cost of the Beautifly's food!

"Let it stay and accompany the children," Darren refused, shaking his head.

Taking the Beautifly with him would undoubtedly give him an advantage in his upcoming journey, but it would also be too irresponsible.

After all, the Beautifly was not his personal item.

Every member of the orphanage had put in different efforts for the Beautifly.

"I knew you would say that, but the children have already agreed, and they also hope that the Beautifly can accompany you to see the outside world," Grandma Oran said, as if she had already anticipated Darren's answer.

"Take this with you."

Grandma Oran patted Darren's shoulder and handed him something - "This is... a Poke Ball?"

The Poke Ball was pure white, and Darren carefully looked at it, his fist involuntarily clenched.

The messy names of the children were written on the pure white Poke Ball.

"This is a commemorative ball that I won in a pokemon contest when I was young. Its function is the same as a Poke Ball, but now it contains the children's support for you. Come on, child, use it to catch the Beautifly. You two can go out and explore together, and we can feel more at ease," Grandma Oran explained.

Staring at the commemorative ball, Darren's mouth opened slightly, wanting to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

Holding the commemorative ball, Darren felt the weight and heat of it!

The silence did not last long. In the end, Darren looked at Grandma Oran and said, "I understand."

"Leave this pokemon to me. If it agrees to become my pokemon, I will take it and fulfill the children's dreams." Darren nodded firmly and said to Grandma Oran.

Then, Darren's gaze turned to the hovering Beautifly, watching it.

It was more like an inquiry.

"Goo goo~"

At this moment, the Beautifly seemed to understand everything that was happening now. Seeing Darren's invitation, it didn't hesitate and let out a cheerful cry.

How could it forget Darren's careful care and companionship, the meticulous care during each evolution, and the difficult training they endured together? Although it was strict and harsh, how could it forget the sweat they shed together?

Becoming Darren's pokemon was also the Beautifly's wish all along!

"Congratulations," Grandma Oran said with a smile. At her age, encountering such a situation, she couldn't help but feel a little sentimental.

"Thank you," the despondent one said, and Darren held onto the commemorative ball tightly.

Grandma Oran still had a smile on her face as she looked at Darren and couldn't help but think to herself, "What a strange child."

The pure white color of the Poké Ball was the symbol of Darren's dream beginning.

Darren and Beautifly welcomed the morning light and practiced their moves together.

Under the sunlight, Beautifly's silk spun into a sea of threads, forming a large web with electric currents running through it, making a crackling sound.

This was the process where, on Grandma Oran's suggestion, Darren and Beautifly worked hard to upgrade their silk move to an electric web move.

This special training took a lot of effort from Darren, who intentionally cultivated the silk from the Wurmple stage, ensuring that it did not waste its silk.

Darren believed that if the silk move was executed correctly, it could prove to be highly effective.

Therefore, besides special training, Darren also worked hard to supplement Beautifly's diet, for example, enhancing protein level in it's diet. He would also often go alone into the jungle to pick the Grepa Berry that could increase the number of silk threads and enhance their toughness.

The pulp and leaves of the Grepa Berry were the favorite food of insect-type Pokémon. After being prepared by Darren, it could also provide better nutrition value for Beautifly.

After several months of joint efforts by Darren and Beautifly, Beautifly's silk move made great progress, and it had excellent conductivity. Finally, with the help of the Wacan Berry, Beautifly learned the electric web move with its unique pollen.

This was also the greatest achievement that Darren and Beautifly had gained during their year of training together.

In addition, Beautifly's excellent air flow sensing, delicate and precise control of wind speed, and more were all the results of Darren and Beautifly's joint efforts.

It can be said that although Beautifly may not have outstanding strength, it has an excellent control in the use of moves, a little guy specially born for the gorgeous competition.

Because it carried the dreams of all the children in the orphanage, Grandma Oran's experience was also the biggest help in its growth.

The breeze blew again, and Darren suddenly became clear-headed. He knew that this was the starting wind that would bid him farewell.