Julian hadn’t been to the Imperial University villa for a while, so the place was a bit dusty. Slowking, Magearna, and Lucario were busy cleaning it up. Arcanine lay at Julian's feet, its eyes fixed on the new furniture in the living room. It had thought it would never return here, so before leaving, it had chewed up all the furniture in the living room. Now, to its surprise, the villa had officially become its trainer's property. Didn’t that mean it could chew things up even more recklessly now? "If you dare use your teeth, I’ll give all the Fire Stones in your kennel to Moltres." Julian was lying on Nicole’s soft, plump thighs. He didn’t even look at Arcanine—just by watching the wagging of its tail, he knew exactly what the dog was thinking. "Didn’t you just go to the dog club? Why are you back so quickly?" It had just gone to check out how the new club president was running things, yet it came back in under ten minutes. Arcanine: "Because the furniture is more interesting!!" Julian: "I knew you were up to no good." As he spoke, he lightly kicked Arcanine’s rear with his foot. This dog was getting bolder and bolder—now it dared to openly announce it wanted to wreck the house. Arcanine: "If I chew up the furniture, can you at least leave me half of the Fire Stones in my kennel?" "Dream on. I’ll give every last one of them to Moltres right in front of you." Julian, furious, wanted to get up to angrily ruffle the dog’s head, but found he couldn’t, as he was too comfortable to move. Nicole’s cheeks were slightly flushed. Although she was holding her phone and pretending to read some research materials, her mind was elsewhere—especially since Julian’s head was resting on her thighs, inching higher and higher, making it impossible for her to focus. Suddenly, Julian took the phone from her hand. "Huh? Ancient Pokémon language?" Julian had just wanted to see what she was so focused on, but when he took the phone and looked, he found it was a collection of transcriptions and reference images. "Yes, these are from a newly discovered Ruin in Babath. The scholars there couldn’t decipher the text, so they reached out to us for collaboration," Nicole explained. Hearing this, Julian chuckled. "What, they’re not asking their 'godfather' for help anymore?" ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ 𝗻𝗼𝘷𝗲𝗹•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝕟𝕖𝕥 Babath had finally realized that their so-called "godfather" was no longer reliable. With Drakoria now boasting seven Champions and unparalleled strength, the entire Asia-Pacific region fell under its influence. Celestria could no longer extend its reach here, so Babath had no choice but to obediently follow Drakoria’s lead. And in an effort to curry favor, they had willingly shared access to their newly discovered Ruin with Drakoria. As a scholar, Nicole naturally had access to some of the Ruin's materials. However, the ancient Pokémon script was incredibly difficult to decipher—there wasn’t a single person in the world who truly understood it fully. Those who claimed to know it only had a superficial grasp at best. Nicole’s expertise wasn’t in Pokémon linguistics. At most, she could understand modern Pokémon script, but ancient script was beyond her, let alone the proto-ancient variant. Among the materials sent to her, the proto-ancient script made up only a small portion, and she happened to come across it while browsing. Thanks to a daily mission reward that granted him mastery of all languages, Julian was fluent in every language, including the proto-ancient Pokémon Language. As he looked at the text, he instinctively read aloud: "Super Demon… Treasure… Punishment Vessel." Given the age of the stone tablet, the characters were heavily worn and blurry, so Julian could only make out a few legible words. "You can read proto-ancient Pokémon Language?" Nicole was stunned. Julian didn’t seem to be guessing—his reading aligned with what a renowned Pokémon linguistics expert had deciphered. That expert had only managed to translate the word "treasure," yet Julian not only matched it but also translated more than the expert had. "You can’t?" Julian asked, genuinely surprised. He didn’t even realize how ridiculously hard it was to understand proto-ancient Pokémon Language. And here he was, not only understanding it but also questioning why she didn’t. Faced with Julian’s simple, almost innocent question, Nicole shook her head. "No, I can’t." "It’s not that hard, though," Julian remarked, still puzzled. It was only after Nicole gave him a detailed explanation that Julian finally realized just how incredible it was that he could read proto-ancient Pokémon Language. There were dozens of Champions in the world, but not a single person who could truly understand proto-ancient Pokémon Language—at best, there were a few who had a partial understanding. That made him the first person in the world to fully comprehend it. Of course, Nicole assumed Julian’s understanding was also partial, just more advanced than others’. "If you became a Pokémon scholar, you would definitely win the Arceus Award," Nicole said with utmost seriousness. When she learned that Julian had taught himself the proto-ancient script, she was utterly shocked by his talent. Julian: 'I just made up a random excuse, and you actually believed it?' "Being a Pokémon scholar isn’t the path for me," Julian shook his head. His system was called the Trainer System, not the Scholar System. Besides, Pokémon scholars spent all day stuck in laboratories—how could that possibly be as fun and exciting as exploring Secret Realms and Ruins? Slowking: "I'm going out to buy groceries." After finishing cleaning, Slowking picked up a basket and prepared to head out. Lucario, acting as its assistant, also grabbed a basket. Magearna wanted to join them, but the thought of facing strangers outside made it hesitant. "Magearna, be brave. It’s fine, your Slowking-sensei will be with you—no one will dare to bully you," Julian encouraged. Now that he was a Champion, there was no need to keep Magearna's existence a secret anymore. Whether or not it wanted to appear in the public eye was up to Magearna. But with its shy and socially anxious personality, crowded places were its weakness. Slowking: "Wanna come along?" Looking at its little apprentice, Slowking spoke, "I can teach you how to pick the freshest ingredients." Those words tempted Magearna. After all, it aspired to become an excellent caretaker and chef like Slowking, and learning how to select ingredients was an essential skill for any chef. Magearna nodded: "I'll go." Then it looked at Julian with tearful, pleading eyes. "Alright, I’ll come with you too." Julian smiled helplessly, reluctantly lifting his head from Nicole’s thighs and stretching. "You stay here. I'll accompany my little princess to buy groceries," Julian said with a smile. Being called "little princess" by its Trainer made Magearna blush slightly. Julian lightly kicked the dog lying at his feet. "You’re coming too." He was worried that if he left, the dog might start tearing up the house—and Nicole wouldn't be able to control it. Arcanine: "My leg hurts." "Believe it or not, I’ll break your dog legs." Arcanine: "…Fine, I’ll go with you." Upto 30 chapters ahead on :-