Chapter Nineteen: The First Step of the Journey

“Where’s Sister Maple?” Heath glanced around, puzzled that he didn’t see Junsha Maple anywhere. To him, Junsha Maple was like an elder sister—it was unthinkable that she wouldn’t come to see him off.

“She needs to stay at the central command room in Evergreen City, monitoring traffic, watching the surveillance, and answering calls, so she can’t come over,” Junsha Ling said with a smile as she looked at Heath. A crowd of Junsha young ladies gathered nearby as well.

“Little Heath~ Have fun on the road! Wishing you a smooth journey~” The Junsha young ladies greeted him cheerfully, their eyes sparkling. After exchanging farewells, some of them hurried off; Heath knew they had to return to finish their shift, which wasn’t over yet.

Junsha had no true downtime. Their work was split into morning and evening shifts, so sometimes, Heath would see Junsha young ladies returning to the dorms early in the morning, yawning and looking exhausted.

Heath bid a sincere farewell to them, and then Junsha Ling approached.

“Little Heath~ Are you sure you won’t have a little love applause session with your sister tonight?” Junsha Ling teased, batting her eyelashes seductively at him, only to be shot a sharp glare from Junsha Ling, which quickly sobered her up.

“Heath, don’t blame Maple. She’s in a bad mood today. She helped arrange for the captains of Junsha teams in other cities to assist you. When you arrive there, just mention my name, and you’ll receive special treatment. Maple owes many favors because of this,” Junsha Ling said seriously after being glared at, her tone unusually earnest as she spoke at length.

Heath was momentarily stunned, then nodded firmly. The help from Sister Maple was immense—perhaps even invaluable. Traveling to other cities wasn’t easy, but Junsha Maple’s assistance had solved many problems for him.

“Maple’s a sentimental soul. Don’t be fooled by her usually stern, unemotional exterior—her heart is more delicate than anyone’s. Because of you, she was distracted during her workout today,” Junsha Ling sighed softly after all the Junsha young ladies had spoken with Heath.

Heath listened quietly. After bidding Junsha Ling farewell, he gathered his Pokémon and returned to the dormitory. The dorm was quiet, seemingly no different from usual. He entered his room, packed his belongings, then took out the gift he had prepared for Junsha Maple, attached a note, and placed it on the desk.

Once everything was ready, Heath opened the door, grabbed his suitcase, and stepped outside. He set his luggage on the food cart and slowly drove away from the dorm. At the entrance, he saw the Junsha young ladies not on duty, holding bouquets of fresh flowers, smiling as they lined both sides of the road.

“Heath! Come back and visit often!” Their voices filled the air. Heath forced a smile, waving his hand as he said goodbye to these companions who had been with him for four years.

After leaving the dorm, Heath’s mood sank. Although he had prepared himself mentally, facing this moment still brought a touch of sadness.

“Heath!” Sister Maple’s voice suddenly called out. Heath slammed on the brakes and peeked out to see Junsha Maple sitting atop her Rapidash, panting heavily as she looked at him.

“Maple!” Heath panicked a little—had she discovered the gift he gave and come to return it?

Junsha Maple opened the car door and walked over. Standing before Heath, she reached out and straightened his clothes. Then she pulled a small card from her pocket and pinned it to his chest.

“Take care on your journey, Heath,” she whispered, gently patting his shoulder before mounting her Rapidash and riding off.

Heath looked down at the card on his chest. It was a handmade badge, seemingly the Junsha team member ID, with his photo and the honorary title of Junsha.

He scratched his head, then carefully put the card away in the cabinet.

...

“The twilight is so beautiful, Trainer,” Zorua said, reverting to its original form as it jumped onto the counter of Heath’s food cart, gazing out at the sky.

“Yes, we’re officially leaving Evergreen City now,” Heath nodded. Everything had moved so quickly. He was now heading toward the Quartz Plateau, eager to uncover what Pokémon the legendary clues pointed to.

Heath paused, surprised that even after leaving Evergreen City, he still gained such strange and wonderful things. The achievements seemed of little use, but the food cart upgrade voucher was something else entirely.

He hastily pulled the upgrade voucher from his pocket and examined it closely. It was a comprehensive blueprint for a mobile restaurant. Only the kitchen area was highlighted; the rest of the sections were dim.

“Could it be that you just tap on the part you want to upgrade?” Heath pondered, staring thoughtfully at the blueprint.

He was fairly satisfied with the food cart, the only drawback being its small size. Living in the dorm, it hadn’t been a problem, but now Heath worried about his living arrangements. The mobile restaurant even had a lounge area planned, which was tempting.

Still, compared to the lounge, upgrading the kitchen or expanding the dining area seemed more practical. Even a small dining space would greatly enhance the guests’ experience.

But faced with all these useful options, Heath felt torn—each feature was appealing, yet he had only one upgrade voucher.

“Eh? What’s this?” Zorua, curious, pawed at the blueprint and pressed on a spot.

Heath looked at Zorua blankly. The mischievous fox had pressed something again!

“You little—” Just as Heath was about to swear, his phone rang.

He shot Zorua a glare before answering.

“Hello~ Mr. Heath, this is Siluf Company at your service~”

Ah, the indispensable usefulness of being a tool.