Chapter 130: Munchlax’s Former Trainer
Rio was about to head to Saffron City again. Before leaving, he visited his Lavender Gym, which was still under reconstruction. Seeing Blue dutifully commanding Alakazam to help the workers carry bricks with Psychic, he nodded in satisfaction.
His Lavender Gym was now a gathering of talents—two Champions working as his assistants. One was the Sinnoh Champion, and the other was a five-minute Indigo League Champion. If Team Rocket tried to invade Lavender Town now, even if he wasn’t there, they’d have a hard time breaching it—unless Giovanni himself led the charge.
Speaking of Blue, Rio had come to a rather startling conclusion from their conversations.
"Who would’ve thought—I am Red," Rio sighed, releasing Charizard.
Yesterday, while chatting with Blue, he’d casually asked about Red. The response was: "Red? Who’s that? There’s no one by that name in Pallet Town. You must have the wrong person."
He’d then asked if Blue had any rivals. The answer was no—he’d been undefeated since leaving Pallet Town, and his only rival was Rio himself. That answer shocked Rio. After asking a few more follow-up questions and analyzing Blue’s responses from a psychological perspective, he confirmed Blue wasn’t lying.
If Blue wasn’t lying, then it was true—there was no Red in this world. No one who would one day stand at the peak of the Pokémon world. But why?
Rio thought about it for a long time and came to only one conclusion: in this world, he was Red. The protagonist had replaced the protagonist. Made perfect sense.
"Let’s go, Charizard—another busy day ahead."
After his moment of reflection, Rio patted Charizard’s back. With a roar, Charizard took off toward Saffron City.
Today’s agenda was two-fold: first, visit James’s estate to guide his Growlithe’s training; second, head to Silph Co. to have them research Eevee’s condition and find a way to alleviate its genetic disorder pain.
Oh, and also—he needed to inform the three researchers working on the Ghost-type Suit that Primeape had evolved. Their nightmare was over; they could finally convince President Takuma to pay out the refund to the client who’d ordered it.
Time passed, and the sun began to set. Rio walked out of Silph Co.’s newly established research lab, carrying Eevee in his arms.
"The three of you—I’m entrusting Eevee’s condition to you," Rio said to the three familiar researchers before leaving.
As it turned out, the same three researchers from the Ghost-type Suit project had been assigned to study Eevee’s evolutionary mystery after President Takuma learned that Primeape had evolved, making further suit development impossible.
"I hope that after we cure Eevee, you never come back," one researcher said bitterly.
This damn Rio always brought them impossible tasks. They’d thought they were finally free from the Ghost-type Suit experiments, only to have President Takuma hand them the mystery of Eevee’s three-form evolution. If it had been anyone else’s Pokémon, they might have accepted it. But it had to be Rio’s—the man who existed solely to torment them.
"Just leave—you’re annoying."
"Please, get out of my sight. My hair is falling out faster than ever."
The other two researchers also vented their frustrations. Rio looked at them with a sheepish expression, then carried Eevee out of Silph Co.
"Grumble~"
The moment he stepped out, his stomach growled. Then, a flash of light from his belt—Munchlax had let itself out.
"Ka~"
"The little fatty says it’s hungry too," Gengar translated on cue.
"..."
Are you sure you’re not always hungry? Rio looked at the innocent-faced Munchlax, then at its friendship stat—which was close to unlocking its second-tier reward.
"Alright, alright—let’s all go out for a big meal tonight. I just got paid by Dairo anyway."
"Ka~" — Rio, I love you!
Soon, Rio brought Munchlax and Eevee to a restaurant. He released Charizard, Gengar, and Froakie as well. Annihilape and the Red Gyarados stayed in their balls—those two hotheads were too risky in public. But Rio made sure to promise them compensation later so they wouldn’t feel left out.
Ten minutes later, a server wheeled out a cart of food. Munchlax charged ahead, startling the server.
"Munchlax—don’t grab! I ordered plenty for you," Rio said helplessly, holding the fragile Eevee.
But Munchlax ignored him. "Gengar," Rio sighed. Gengar, despite its sharp tongue, understood what Rio wanted. After muttering "What a glutton," it used Psychic to distribute food to Charizard and the others—and set aside a portion for Rio.
Soon, the group was eating heartily.
About five minutes in, Rio’s ears perked up. Something was missing—the usual sound of Munchlax wolfing down food. He looked up and saw Munchlax frozen mid-bite, holding a plate in each hand, as if turned to stone by something shocking.
He followed Munchlax’s gaze to a young man in shorts and a T-shirt sitting about eight meters away. The young man was lecturing his Pokémon at his table.
"Alright, everyone—eat well today. Tomorrow when we challenge the Saffron Gym, I need you all to perform. Anyone who underperforms and drags us down will be starving for two days."
"Pika~"
"Wartortle~"
...
The young man’s Pokémon all responded. He nodded in satisfaction, then seemed to sense something and turned his head. When he spotted Munchlax, his expression changed. He quickly turned back, as if nothing had happened.
"Hurry up and eat—I just remembered I need to buy something," he urged.
On the other side, Gengar, accustomed to Munchlax’s usual ravenous sounds, noticed something was off. It glanced at Munchlax, then asked Rio: "What’s wrong with the little fatty?"
Rio didn’t answer. He narrowed his eyes at the young man. Based on Munchlax’s reaction and the young man’s guilty behavior, there was only one possibility—that guy was likely the trainer who had abandoned Munchlax.
"Roaar~"
"Froakie~"
Charizard and Froakie also noticed the unusual quiet. They looked up and saw Munchlax frozen in place. Gengar floated over and swallowed the food in Munchlax’s hands—but Munchlax didn’t react. Gengar was shocked. A miracle had occurred—this little fatty had ignored someone stealing its food. In Gengar’s experience, even Arceus wouldn’t escape Munchlax’s wrath if it tried to take its meal. Yet today, nothing.
A few minutes later, the young man recalled his Pokémon and left. As he walked away, he glanced back at Munchlax. Only after he left did Munchlax snap out of it. It slumped to the ground, listless, ignoring the feast before it.
Rio sat down beside it, gently patting its head, and spoke softly: "Munchlax—was that your former trainer?"