"997, 998, 999, 1000."
Julian stood in the backyard, holding his Steelix as he finished his squats. Deep five-centimeter footprints were left in the ground beneath his feet. When the count reached 1,000, Julian threw Steelix onto the ground with a grunt of effort.
Steelix glared at Julian, a bit resentful.
Whenever Julian needed something, he would sweetly call Steelix, but as soon as he was done, all the love disappeared.
Julian's parents weren't home to witness this, and it was a good thing too. If they had seen him pulling off such a stunt, they'd probably think he had lost his mind.
"Ding! Daily task complete"
"Reward: 50 Meltan candies, 200 points."
Julian wiped the sweat off his brow, but he wasn't too tired. He muttered to himself, "Finally, I've collected 400 candies."
Meltan needed exactly 400 candies to evolve into Melmetal, its final form. Although candies could be purchased from the system store, Julian found them too expensive. He preferred earning them through daily tasks.
Julian wasn't in a rush to evolve Meltan. He tried to convince himself that he wasn't just holding onto his points, but deep down, he knew that was part of it.
Now that the 400 candies were finally collected, the thought of Meltan evolving into the Mythical Melmetal excited him.
After finishing his workout, Julian called his other Pokémon over: Metagross, Steelix, and Dragonair. Aron and Meltan trailed behind them.
He set out food for each of them.
Aron chomped happily on rough diamonds, mixed with a bit of fire ore.
Meltan, on the other hand, was more interested in Aron's discarded shell. It gnawed on the bits left over from Aron's last molt, its face lighting up with joy.
Meltan had a peculiar fondness for Aron's shell. While Julian had many other Aron shells stored away, Meltan preferred those from Julian's Aron itself, deeming the others worthless. Meltan was picky like that.
Meltan: Those are all rubbish.
Steelix, meanwhile, enjoyed its high-grade steel energy cubes.
It often thought about how its life had changed for the better since meeting Julian.
Leaving that secret realm behind and finding a human companion who fed it well and helped it grow stronger was the best decision Steelix had ever made.
All Steelix had to do in return was help in battles, and that was something it excelled at.
Steelix felt like it had struck the best deal of its life.
"Jigglypuff~ jiggly~...."
Just then, a familiar tune played on Julian's phone—a ringtone of Jigglypuff's song. It was Shen calling.
"Hey Julian, I'm already at the door."
"Oh, wait for me, I'll come let you in."
Julian hung up, realizing he had gotten so caught up in the excitement of collecting Meltan candies that he'd forgotten Shen was coming over.
He quickly went to open the door and led Shen inside.
"It's my first time at a national gym trainer's house. That battlefield out back is huge!" Shen exclaimed, amazed by the size of Julian's backyard.
For a trainer who could challenge a national gym, the minimum standard was pseudo-Elite, so the battle field had to be big.
"Yeah, it's alright," Julian replied, casually brushing it off.
"This is Love, our family's steward," Julian introduced, gesturing toward the Indeedee.
"This is an Indeedee right?, i have heard some of them take cares of the queen in certain countries, She looks so gentle" Shen looked at Love with excitement.
"She is gentle," Julian replied with a smile, "but not without her moments."
Indeedee, were quite rare in Drakoria. They weren't found in any of the secret realms, and most originate from other distant countries.
In Drakoria, people usually only see them in top-tier establishments like private hospitals, luxury sanatoriums, or five-star restaurants.
There are distinct differences between male and female Indeedee.
Male Indeedee have upward-facing horns and a more intense appearance with darker purple and black tones, while their eyes remain half-open and their faces expressionless.
Females, like Love, have drooping horns, warm smiles, and soft purple-red markings around their eyes. Their white coloring stands out more than the males, giving them a more approachable and gentle appearance.
Males often serve as housekeepers, while females are well-suited as maids.
Julian's family had chosen Love, a female Indeedee, for her gentle yet firm demeanor.
She seemed particularly proud today, as it was the first time Julian had brought a female classmate home. Love felt like her "cub" was growing up.
After offering Shen a cup of tea, she placed a glass of Moomoo Milk in front of Julian.
"Cough—can I have tea too?" Julian asked, a bit embarrassed.
Love gave him a knowing smile.
Despite being almost an adult, Julian couldn't escape the daily glass of Moomoo milk she insisted he drink.
In her eyes, it was essential for health, much better than soda or any other drink. She poured it every day, not just for him, but for the whole family.
Begrudgingly, Julian accepted the milk, not wanting to argue. Shen chuckled beside him.
"Want some too?" Julian offered sarcastically.
"No thanks," Shen laughed. "I'm not a fan of the taste."
Julian took a sip of the milk, which was worth over 5,000 a glass.
It came from a pseudo-Elite Miltank, and such milk was highly prized among the wealthy. It wasn't something you could just buy at a regular market.
After their tea and milk, Julian led Shen to the backyard, where his Pokémon were gathered.
"Wow, Steelix and Aron! Are they your new Pokémon?"
"And how is this Aron so big?"
Shen marveled, especially impressed by Aron's size.
"Yeah, Steelix was caught in the new intermediate secret realm, and Aron's actually a Totem Pokémon," Julian explained.
There was no need to keep a secret as Aron will be revealed as a Totem anyway.
"It's good to have a rich family, Totem Pokémon, Metagross, and a future Dragonite" Shen said.
Julian smirked. "Don't be sour, there are some things you just don't get at birth—and probably never will."
At this moment, Shen felt that Julian was being possessed by Will, and it was not so fun to talk anymore.