Pokemon : I'm Just a Photographer!

Chapter 107: Chapter 107

"Morning."

Mike pushed open the courtyard gate and greeted Lucian, who was sitting at the table.

"Morning."

Lucian gave him a slight nod.

"Where are Professor Rowan and Professor Kukui?"

Yawning, Mike pulled out a chair and sat down.

"They’re in the forest behind the courtyard, checking the Stantler’s physical condition," Lucian replied.

"They’re doing the examinations in the forest?" Mike asked in confusion. "They’re not staying in the courtyard anymore?"

Lucian shook his head.

"Professor Kukui made a suggestion. He thinks the courtyard is a little too cramped for Pokémon that need to practice charging attacks, so he proposed moving the training area into the forest behind it."

"He also believes the forest environment will help the Stantler learn the moves."

"What about you? Aren’t you going over to help?"

Mike looked at Lucian, who was sitting leisurely in the courtyard.

"Aren’t you supposed to be one of the main instructors?"

"I’m slacking off for a while. I’ll go over later."

Lucian said it with complete confidence.

Mike: "..."

"You can admit to slacking off that shamelessly now?"

"I work overtime every day and handle mountains of League business! What’s wrong with slacking off for a few minutes?"

Lucian adjusted his glasses, glanced at Mike, and continued.

"Instead of worrying about me slacking off, why don’t you spend that time recording some voice-over? You said you were uploading the video yesterday. Where is it?!"

"..."

Mike stared at him.

Was he seriously being asked for an update face-to-face now?

Mike sighed.

"I know, I know. The last couple of days have been exhausting. I’ll finish editing the video later and record the voice-over tonight. Happy?"

"Barely acceptable," Lucian replied calmly.

"..."

Mike stared at him in disbelief.

"Why do you sound like my boss?"

"You imagined it."

"By the way, Lucian, do you know Larry from Paldea’s Elite Four?"

"I’ve met him a few times. He has it much worse than I do."

Lucian picked up his coffee and took a sip.

"We both work overtime dealing with League affairs, but at least Sinnoh has three other Elite Four members who can help me. The League has also given me considerable authority, so I’m allowed to approve some matters that would normally require the Champion’s signature."

"Larry’s situation is different."

"When he works overtime, he really works overtime. His overtime pay is pitiful too! Paldea also has a little girl in the Elite Four, and hardly any of their Gym Leaders are easy to deal with."

"He has to handle League business, work as a Gym Leader at the same time, and worst of all, his overtime pay is much lower than mine."

Mike could hear both pity and relief in Lucian’s voice.

"So even among people condemned to overtime, there are different levels of suffering."

"Obviously."

Lucian continued, "It’s the same with Champions. Some can immediately rush back whenever the League needs them. Others only show up after everything has already been resolved. Some are overwhelmingly strong, while others are busy with entirely different careers..."

Mike didn’t need to guess who Lucian was talking about.

’Daily Diantha slander: complete.’

Professor Kukui walked into the courtyard and looked at Mike and Lucian sitting there.

"Everything’s ready."

Lucian nodded, stood, and followed Kukui into the forest.

Mike went with them.

...

Several Stantler were leisurely grazing when they arrived.

Lucian walked over, gently placed a hand on their heads, and quietly spoke to them.

After a while, he took out several Poké Balls and released his Pokémon.

Bronzong.

Girafarig.

Mr. Mime.

Medicham.

Alakazam.

Professor Kukui and Professor Rowan stood beside Mike, watching Lucian.

"Is Lucian the only one working with them at the beginning?" Mike asked.

Professor Kukui nodded.

"For now, yes. We can only begin teaching them Zen Headbutt and other Psychic-type moves after he helps strengthen their psychic power."

"Professor Rowan and I examined all five Stantler. None of them currently know a single Psychic-type move, so we need Lucian and his Pokémon to help them develop better control over the psychic energy already inside them before we move on to the next step."

"I see."

Mike nodded and carefully watched Lucian begin the training.

Lucian gently placed a hand against Bronzong.

"I’ll leave the mental communication to all of you."

Bronzong released a deep chime.

Then Bronzong, Girafarig, Mr. Mime, Medicham, and Alakazam all closed their eyes.

Before long, the five Stantler did the same.

Each of Lucian’s Pokémon paired with one Stantler.

Standing beside them, Lucian spoke softly.

"Focus on communicating with Bronzong and the others. Feel the energy inside your bodies and try to draw it out."

"Don’t rush, and don’t become discouraged. We have plenty of time. Take it slowly and learn one step at a time."

Lucian gently stroked the Stantler’s heads.

Psychic energy began spreading outward from the group.

Even Mike could feel two distinctly different currents of mental energy permeating the air.

The two forces repeatedly collided, causing psychic pressure to spill into the surroundings.

Under Lucian’s guidance, however, the escaping energy gradually calmed.

The two psychic currents began attracting each other almost like opposite magnetic poles.

Bronzong and the others slowly reduced their output, encouraging the Stantler to draw out more of their own psychic energy to fill the gap.

Eventually, the entire forest became peaceful again.

Lucian quietly walked back toward Mike and the others and nodded.

"For now, I’ll have Bronzong and the others guide them through meditation. That should encourage their psychic energy to circulate throughout their bodies and help them become accustomed to using it."

"Thank you for your hard work," Professor Rowan said.

"It’s part of the job."

Seeing everyone standing around, Mike asked Gengar to spread a blanket on the ground.

Everyone sat down.

"Lucian, I didn’t realize this was what you meant when you said you’d guide the Stantler through meditation," Mike said.

Lucian looked at him in confusion.

"What exactly did you think I meant?"

"I thought you were personally going to lead them through meditation and use your own psychic power to teach them."

Lucian: "..."

Roark arrived carrying tea, handed everyone a cup, and sat down with them.

"Thanks, Roark."

Lucian took a sip before looking back at Mike.

"I’m a human."

"I know you’re human," Mike replied.

"Which means I don’t have psychic powers."

"You don’t have psychic powers, so you—wait, what?"

Mike stared at Lucian in shock.

"You can’t use psychic powers?!"

’I knew it...’

"I’m just an ordinary human! I don’t possess any special abilities."

Lucian sighed.

"But Sabrina, the Saffron City Gym Leader, has psychic powers. The twin Psychic-type Gym Leaders in Hoenn can use them too. So can Caitlin from Unova’s Elite Four, and Olympia in Kalos..."

Mike looked genuinely baffled.

"You’re Sinnoh’s Psychic-type Elite Four member, and you don’t have psychic powers?"

Lucian tightened his fingers slightly around the teacup and sighed again.

To be fair, Mike wasn’t the only person who assumed that.

Plenty of people believed Lucian possessed psychic abilities because so many other famous Psychic-type Gym Leaders and Elite Four members had them.

Since he was Sinnoh’s Psychic specialist, people naturally assumed the same was true of him.

In reality, Lucian was simply an ordinary human without any supernatural abilities.

"Nope," Lucian said, shaking his head.

Mike carefully thought back to the anime.

Come to think of it, Lucian really had never demonstrated psychic powers.

"So that’s how it is. I always figured that since you work this much overtime without even losing much hair, you must secretly have psychic powers."

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