Chapter 495: A Major Boost in Strength

The Warrens were left red-faced by Aaron's mother's tirade, yet none of them dared argue back.

David eventually forced out a smile and tried to transfer her one million, clearly hoping the extra money might smooth things over. Instead, she immediately chewed him out again.

"We lent you fifty thousand, so you're paying back fifty thousand. What, now that my son is successful, you think throwing money at us is going to make everything okay?"

By the time she finished, David was too embarrassed to keep trying. He transferred exactly fifty thousand, and Aaron's family left without another look back.

The Warrens remained behind, each of them dealing with a different mix of anger, regret, resentment, and humiliation.

Maya watched Aaron disappear into the distance, unwillingness written across her face. Then, without warning, a memory she had not thought about in years surfaced in her mind.

The warm orange light of a distant sunset. A chubby little girl standing in front of a boy with complete seriousness.

"Aaron... when we grow up, can I marry you? I wanna be your wife."

His younger self had answered without hesitation. "Okay! Then I'll wait for you."

Her face had immediately brightened. "Then pinky promise. You can't change your mind!"

"I won't!"

The two children had hooked their little fingers together beneath the setting sun, smiling as though they had just made the most important promise in the world.

A tear slipped down Maya's cheek before she even realized it.

She could not tell whether it came from regret or simple nostalgia. Either way, some things could never return to what they had once been. Even the sweetest childhood promise could fade beneath the weight of time.

Maya could not remember when Aaron had stopped being the boy she thought about so fondly, or when that pinky promise had become something she barely remembered at all. Perhaps it had begun after her family moved into a bigger house and money became part of everyday life.

Whatever the reason, by the time she remembered what she had once promised, it was already too late.

...

Aaron and his family returned home in much better spirits.

The question that had bothered Victor for fifteen years finally had an answer, and although it was not the answer he had hoped for, the burden seemed to have lifted from his shoulders. A rare, relaxed smile remained on his face.

Aaron's mother was even happier. Not only had she finally told David exactly what she thought of him, she had also recovered the fifty thousand they were owed. She promptly announced that she was going grocery shopping and making a proper feast to celebrate.

That evening, the whole family sat down to a generous homemade dinner. The unpleasant meeting with the Warrens was quickly pushed aside by food, conversation, and laughter.

Afterward, Aaron returned to his room. Once it grew late, he took Greninja and used Flying Raijin to reach the mountain behind their home.

A crescent moon hung over the dark landscape, and the sky was scattered with stars. Aaron and Frog Boss lay side by side on the soft grass, Greninja chewing lazily on a blade of grass as a cool breeze passed over them.

Aaron turned his head toward him.

"Frog Boss... time really flies. We're about to start university."

"Grenin."

"Hard to believe you started out as an Egg." Aaron smiled at the memory. "When you first hatched, you were tiny. Just this little frog staring at me with those dead-fish eyes."

Greninja turned toward him, the same dead-fish eyes narrowing slightly in what looked suspiciously like annoyance.

Aaron laughed.

"I was so worried you wouldn't be able to eat normal Pokémon food that I actually bought milk powder for you."

Remembering how clueless he had been with his first Pokémon still made him smile.

But after a while, his thoughts drifted elsewhere—to the secrets of this world, everything he still did not understand, and the parents he had left behind in his previous world.

His smile slowly faded.

Aaron stared up at the stars for a long moment before turning back toward Greninja.

"Frog Boss... we're always going to be together, right?"

Greninja immediately noticed the change in his mood. It stopped chewing on the grass and turned fully toward him, its usual lazy expression becoming unusually serious.

"Grenin... Grenin."

It nodded firmly and extended a fist.

Aaron understood without needing a translation.

Always.

A smile returned to his face. "Yeah. Always."

He raised his own fist and bumped it against Greninja's.

Under the star-filled sky, neither of them said anything more. They did not need to.

As far as Greninja was concerned, even if the entire world fell apart one day, there was only one person it truly cared about staying beside.

Aaron.

...

Time had a habit of slipping away whenever no one was paying attention.

Before Aaron knew it, the summer break that had once seemed endless was nearly over.

It was August 30.

Today, Aaron was heading to Crown City to register at Crown University—officially known as Pokémon League University. It was the same prestigious university Caleb attended, though most people simply called it Crown University.

Looking back, this had probably been the most relaxing summer Aaron had ever experienced. Most mornings he slept until he woke naturally, spent time at home with Victor, his mother, and Lily, and enjoyed having absolutely nowhere he needed to be.

Whenever he felt like getting out of the house, he took his Pokémon to the mountain behind their home for grilled fish, barbecue, and training.

Naturally, the Pokémon spent plenty of time battling each other as well. Regular sparring gave them practical combat experience while keeping everyone sharp.

Zeraora had received the most attention.

With the Zap Plate constantly nourishing it throughout the summer, its growth had been astonishing. Between its extraordinary heritage and the energy of a world treasure like the Zap Plate, the young Zeraora had matured at a frightening pace.

The little cat from before was gone. Zeraora now stood roughly 1.8 meters tall, a fully grown and striking Pokémon who was even taller than Aaron.

More importantly, it had broken through to early-stage Gym, officially catching up with the rest of Aaron's main team.

The others had not been standing still either.

Froslass Queen was currently at peak-stage Gym, while Frog Boss had reached late-stage Gym. Infernape, Snorlax, Charizard, Gyarados, Sceptile, and Beedrill were all at mid-stage Gym.

Between a steady supply of high-quality Energy Cubes and constant sparring against one another, the entire team had continued progressing throughout the summer.

Their move proficiency was even more ridiculous. Nearly every major move used by Aaron's Pokémon had reached Perfect, while even their weaker techniques were generally no lower than Master.

Of course, having access to the Pokémon Training Space gave them an absurd advantage.

Add in the fact that none of Aaron's Pokémon knew how to take it easy when another member of the team was training harder than they were, and improvement was practically inevitable.

Summer was over.

University was about to begin.

And Aaron's team was far stronger than it had been when the break started.

...