Chapter 621: Hakron and the Girl
At least a dozen years ago, when the Padya League was first established.

Communication technology at that time was not as advanced as it is today. Even the video phones that are now available in Pokémon Centers and on almost every street corner were quite rare back then.

Apart from traveling across mountains and rivers in person, the vehicle for people to establish connections, miss each other and communicate is often just a thin envelope and the letter paper inside.

The Padilla Post Office at that time assumed such an important responsibility.

But as time went by, video calls became popular and mobile phones were invented, allowing people to talk to the other side of the world by dialing a number.

The post office has become an inconspicuous victim of the rolling wheels of the times.

Although the post office has not completely disappeared in history, there are still post offices in the Padia area today.

But the number of people sending letters through the post office has inevitably decreased to a very small level.

Nowadays, people who still communicate via letters, apart from those with "niche preferences", are either elderly people or people who send postcards for the sense of ritual when wishing each other a happy New Year or during festivals.

The decline of the post office model is an irreversible fact.

Calculating the time, it was probably around the time when the post offices were closed one after another, and because of the death of the trainer, that Dragonite leader finally flew to the Cauldron to settle down and live with Haxorus and the others.

Otherwise, even if it stayed to work in a post office that had not yet closed, no one would drive it away.

For example, some expedited letters that need to be delivered to other areas or even the other side of the planet within a time limit are the specialty of Dragonite.

After looking at the back of the Dragonite leader for a while, Luo Mu took a step and walked to the side of the Pokémon.

Noticing Luo Mu's arrival, the Mosquito-Repellent Frog King was the first to stand up and raised his hand to greet him affectionately.

The same is true for Mosquito Repellent and Salt Stone Giant.

Especially when the salt stone giants that were originally sitting stood up, they would shake off some rock salt from their bodies. It might be a pity to see it fall on the ground, but Luo Mu had no intention of collecting it.

Because of the unique effects of these rock salts, they can purify the environment. This little bit of loss is not a big deal. On the contrary, it can make the farm environment better.

After interacting with the Pokémon one by one, Luo Mu looked at Dragonite and nodded slightly.

Dragonite instantly realized Luo Mu's plan, and its chubby claws holding the Dragonite leader tightened slightly, and a sense of tension arose in its heart.

The pink Haxorus raised its head out of the water, looked at Dragonite's expression, then looked at Luo Mu, whose expression was more serious than usual, and realized that the moment had come.

Luo Mu and Dragonite had communicated with the Haxorus about the issue of their leader a long time ago. When the time came, they were not surprised because they had expected it, but they were just a little worried.

——What if after seeing the deceased trainer, Dragonite leader becomes even more immersed in the illusion of the past?
Hakron and the others don't understand very complicated things. They just change their position and think from their own perspective, and then they naturally start to worry about this.

To maintain the status quo or to try to change, that is indeed the question.

At this time, Luo Mu came in front of the leader of Dragonite, who was wearing a postman's hat, slung over his shoulder, and looked immersed in the past.

"Boooo?"

Seeing that it was Luo Mu who came, the leader of Dragonite tilted his head and a kind smile appeared on his face.

With the company of Luomu, Dragonite, Haxorus and Pokémon, the leader Dragonite is no longer the one who was immersed in his own world at the beginning.

It can respond to the outside world, communicate with Pokémon, recognize that Dragonite is its own child, and can deliver milk on its own.

Therefore, Dragonite has a considerable degree of liking for Luo Mu, the trainer who has trained his child to be so outstanding.

But the look it gave Luo Mu and Dragonite from time to time seemed inexplicably sad.

That was a sad look that belonged only to Lailong.

"Bowu~Bowu~"

The leader of Dragonite hugged Luo Mu and patiently introduced Luo Mu to the person who only he could see.

Even though the other party did not respond and just looked at him with a smile, a look of satisfaction appeared in the eyes of the Dragonite leader.

"."

As the leader of Dragonite repeated the same action, Luo Mu looked at Dragonite and, like Haxorus and the others, began to ponder whether his choice was correct.

Once they really do this, perhaps the happiness of the Dragonite leader will be completely destroyed.

In that case, are they really doing the right thing?

“I think it should be correct.”

A voice that sounded both majestic and friendly suddenly appeared in Luo Mu's mind.

Luo Mu subconsciously raised his head and looked in a certain direction, and found that the Lotus Crown King, who was holding the sleeping Cosmogu, was looking at this place quietly.

Its calm voice continued to sound.

"This answer should not be given by you or me. Even Dragonite as a child and Hackron as a friend cannot decide for Dragonite leader."

"All you can do is let it meet the person it missed again in a miracle, but they are the ones who make the final decision."

"Whether it's a farewell to make up for the regrets of the deceased, or a life that is still unwilling to believe in the past, at least the answer can be obtained."

As a being whose lifespan is so long that he can't even remember how long he has been active, Crown of Buds is accustomed to separations and deaths, as well as the tragedies caused by the difference between the lifespans of Pokémon and humans.

At first it might have wanted to change, but now, the Bud Crown felt that if Tapu Fin-Fin's mist really had that miraculous effect, the answer should be left to them to figure out for themselves.

Listening to the words of the Bud Crown, Luo Mu raised his head in the soft embrace of the Dragonite leader, met his kind and honest eyes, and then asked softly: "Do you want to see your trainer again?"

With the silent efforts of the Flower Crown King, these words penetrated deeply into the heart of Dragonite leader.

Its power to heal the soul cannot deal with the emotional knot of Dragonite Leader, but it can help the other party maintain a moment of clarity and let the other party give the answer personally.

All the "self-deception" that maintained Dragonite leader's sanity was like a broken thread in the face of these words, and it collapsed in an instant.

The false appearance created by Dragonite leader as a form of "self-protection" and the memories he didn't want to recall receded and surged in like the tide.

At some point, there was only an indissoluble deep sadness in its eyes. It hugged Luo Mu almost like a life-saving straw and asked questions in a trembling voice.

"Bowu?" Can we really meet again?

Strictly speaking, Dragonite was not a Pokémon partner bred and raised by humans from the beginning.

As a mini dragon without parental care, it lives cautiously in the dangerous cauldron lake.

Because it is so weak in the initial stage, Dratini spends most of its time hiding at the bottom of the lake, growing on the leftovers that settle down, and only gets an occasional treat thanks to sheer luck.

After shedding its skin once a day and being cautious, the Dratini finally managed to evolve into a Haxorus.

After becoming a Dragonite, Dratini has the ability to protect itself. At least it doesn't have to worry about other wild aquatic Pokémon driving it away due to territory issues, leaving it with nowhere to retreat.

After living like this for a while, Hakron felt a strange emotion for no reason, and it took it a long time to realize that this was called loneliness.

——Looking at those aquatic Pokémon that acted together with their tribesmen, the lone dragon, Haxorus, suddenly longed for his own companions.

So, Hakron began to explore the Big Pot Lake, trying to find his own kind.

But before it found its kind, it accidentally entered the territory of a hot-tempered Gyarados and was attacked without explanation. Haxorus was no match for Gyarados, who had been entrenched in this lake area for a long time. It was chased all over the lake and finally had to break through the lake surface with injuries and fly into the sky.

——It thought that this way Gyarados wouldn’t be able to catch up with it.

But to Haxorus's surprise, the Gyarados didn't use any wings, nor did it spread its wings like his own, but flew above the lake out of thin air.

Even though the opponent had been flying at a low altitude, Haxorus was frightened by the opponent's sudden move and his injuries were more serious. He could only stagger away from the Big Pot Lake area, seeking a shelter where he could slowly lick his wounds and heal his wounds.

But Haxorus obviously overestimated its own physical strength. After leaving the Cauldron Lake, it only flew for a short while before falling to the ground in a daze due to exhaustion.

When Haxorus woke up again, he found himself in a warm environment.

A girl with two braided pigtails and dressed as a postman was looking at him with a worried look on her face.

Even though Haxorus didn't know what the postman meant at that time, he slowly understood it through the girl's mumbling while recuperating from his injuries.

The girl calls herself Leah. Although she is currently working as a postman, her future goal is to become a great trainer and someone who will make her hometown proud.

The wildly grown Haxorus didn't really understand what a trainer was, but it could see Leah's concern for it, as well as the other's expression of struggling while holding the piece of paper with a long string of black dots, and finally gritting its teeth to accept it.

Hakron realized that Leah might have given up something very important to her in order to heal him.

Looking at the girl's smile as always, Hakron realized that what he was pursuing seemed to be right in front of him.

On the day he was discharged from the hospital, Hakron decided not to leave but to live with Leah.

It became Leah's Pokémon.

Hakron began to accompany Leah to work at the post office, saving something that seemed to be called "travel funds".

In order to save herself, Leah seemed to have used up all the "travel funds" she had saved.

This made Hakron feel a little guilty, and he could only work hard with Leah.

It was also from some people in the post office that Hakron learned how Leah, who lived in the town, saved him.

At that time, she received a mission to ride the post office's Pokémon, Motorlizard, to a small town near Cauldron Lake to deliver letters, and that's when she happened to meet herself who was injured.

Although many people said this was an accident, Haklon believed that it was destined.

Haklon accompanies Leah in delivering letters regardless of wind or rain. According to Leah, a thin letter often carries someone's thoughts, and as postmen, they must deliver it to the destination and hand it to the recipient.

And so passed the first month.

After paying the wages, Leah gave Hakron a shoulder bag, so that the handless Hakron no longer had to carry the letters with his tail.

Hakron liked the gift Leah gave him very much. Even if it let him get wet in the rain, he would carefully protect the bag with his wings.

In the first year that Haxorus met Leah, it excitedly asked Leah if it could embark on a "journey" as a trainer after saving money for a year.

Leah sighed and said that apart from food, clothing, housing and transportation, even if she tried hard to save money, she could still save very little throughout the year.

At least in this era, this amount of money is far from enough for traveling.

Leah mentioned to Haxoron that in other regions, a huge entity called the Pokémon League was established.

Under the management of the Pokémon League, those areas developed in an orderly manner, and anyone who wanted to become a trainer could receive a starting Pokémon of their own from the League.

The cost of the trip is greatly reduced due to the alliance subsidy, and there are Pokémon Centers along the way that provide free accommodation and medical care.

Successfully challenging a gym will also give trainers incentive bonuses from the league, greatly reducing the financial pressure on trainers.

Unlike the current Padya region, where only children of wealthy people can enroll in the largest college, when Hakron was picked up a year ago, the medical expenses for Hakron's treatment alone exhausted all the savings that Leah, an orphan, had accumulated over the years.

"It would be great if the Padia region could also establish a Pokémon League."

Leah would repeat these words to Hakron from time to time.

Before we know it, the years have passed.

It was only much later that Hackon, or Dragonite, learned that a big part of the reason why Leah couldn't raise the money for the trip was because she had been buying expensive food to maintain the energy intake needed for her growth.

In addition, as time goes by, Haxorus has also undergone his own evolution.

At that time, Leah was already in her forties and had long given up her obsession with traveling as a trainer. Instead, she lived a down-to-earth life with Dragonite.

Because of Dragonite, she became the ace courier of the post office. Her income soared, and she even saved enough money to buy a small home for herself and Dragonite in a small town near Daguo Lake.

Time continued to pass and I reached the age of sixty.

Leah has no intention of getting married and having children. She said that she hasn't met the right person. But Dragonite, who has lived in human society for a long time and has learned a lot, thinks that Leah is doing this for herself.

Leah knew that she craved affection, so she didn't want other things to distract her attention, and she had never even raised other Pokémon.

Because of her age, Leah can no longer work in the post office. In order to maintain the family income, Kuailong chooses to work alone in the post office.

In desperation, Leah, who originally didn't want to agree, had to agree, and Dragonite received another gift from Leah.

——A postman’s hat with a red top and black brim.

During the days when he worked alone as a postman, Dragonite also experienced many interesting things.

It was like a girl who was about the same age as Leah at that time, asking for help to deliver a letter to the distant Kanto region with a little boy.

Kuailong still remembers that the cake at the boy's father's birthday party was very sweet.

While delivering the letter, Dragonite would occasionally take a circle around the Big Pot Lake.

Now it is no longer afraid of most wild Pokémon in Cauldron Lake. Even the Gyarados that once chased it was found and beaten up by Dragonite.

until a certain day.

Dragonite flew around the Big Pot Lake as usual, planning to return to the nearby town to help the elderly Leah.

With its good eyesight, it saw a bewildered little pink snake on the surface of the Pot Lake.

Although the color was different, Dragonite was certain that it was a member of its own species.

Perhaps remembering his past self, Dragonite hesitated for a few seconds before deciding to rescue the pink Dragonite that was driven to the lake.

Then, Dragonite, which vaguely sensed something, did not take Dratini back to its and Leah's home, but instead made a home with the pink Dratini on an island in the Big Pot Lake.

After that, Dragonite rescued two more Dragonites and built a small family on the island in the lake.

They are all females and get along very well with each other.

Dragonite also took on the responsibility of being the "leader" of the three Dratini, and would occasionally bring food bought with his own salary to feed them.

Time passed slowly again, and in the 80th year since Dragonite and Leah met, Leah was 90 years old.

Autumn is here.

(End of this chapter)