Thursday, August 6th.
The acclaim for "Plants vs. Zombies" continued to soar, and the sales volume had now exceeded 80,000 copies.
For a studio devoid of publicity and a solid foundation, this achievement was beyond imagination.
Luke rubbed his eyes and mumbled, "It should be worth the final payment..."
Taking into account the purchased Water Stone and other items, Luke was currently carrying a debt of 6 million.
But despite this significant debt, Teacher Luke remained surprisingly calm.
"I already owe 6 million, and a bit more doesn't make a huge difference now."
Moreover, there was still liquidity, and producing a few more games wouldn't be a challenge.
As was the case every morning, a random event triggered: "An Eevee was found in the bed."
Luke picked up the Eevee lying in bed and, taking advantage of the bright sunlight, changed the sheets.
"Vui~." Eevee protested reluctantly, curling up in its cozy spot.
"Jie jie~!" Haunter, equipped with mop and bucket, cheerfully cleaned the house.
Squirtle stretched and performed a series of warm-up exercises, puffing up its cheeks in preparation for a Water Spout.
Luke's expression changed, "A little less power would be nice!"
"Uirt~." Squirtle chuckled, releasing a gentle stream of Water Gun and playfully darting around, causing Haunter's mop to splay water everywhere.
Luke worked diligently for a while.
Sweating, he muttered, "Darn it...the more you clean, the messier it gets?"
Turning around, he saw Eevee playfully stomping in a puddle of water, creating splashes of excitement.
"Vui~! o(*≧▽≦)ツ"
Luke sighed, mop in hand, and chuckled helplessly.
"Forget it...you're having fun."
Finally, after the cleaning was done, it was ten o'clock in the morning.
The three companions sat at the dining table, eagerly awaiting their meal.
Luke served them Berry salad.
Breakfast was a peaceful affair, accompanied by the sound of crunching.
The afternoon was free. The school team had just completed a friendly match and would be resting for a while.
As usual, Haunter went to the match club for part-time work.
Luke held Eevee, turned on the camera, and started his daily live broadcast.
As soon as the live broadcast room opened, numerous eager viewers flooded in.
"Brother is adorable!"
"Teacher Luke, the game you created is so much fun!"
"A kind-hearted person lend me 20 yuan? Mainly to open my eyes."
Teacher Luke's fans were among the first users of the game.
At the audience's strong request, Teacher Luke began to provide commentary for "Plants vs. Zombies."
"Hey, put Ferrothorn in the front row and Bellsprout in the back. Those hits are really annoying."
"This Raticate has a silly face; I'll let Victreebel take a bite out of it. It's practically dripping with flavor!"
"Wow, is this level really so difficult? Lawnmower, save me!"
A barrage of question marks scrolled across the screen.
Can't Teacher Luke, the creator of the game, even handle it himself?!
"I can't believe it! Teacher Luke is struggling with a single-player game like this!"
"You thought Teacher Luke was cooking because he's on the first floor, but he's actually on the fifth."
"Missing in a tower defense game? Teacher Luke, you're having a tough day!"
"Thanks for the donation from 'Team Rocket'... Wait, what? Team Rocket is watching the livestream?!"
The live broadcast room was bustling with excitement.
Though it wasn't a match livestream, the publicity generated by this event was undeniably substantial.
Luke nodded in satisfaction and, as usual, glanced over at the fish tank.
With the recipe provided by Green, Squirtle should be having a good night's rest, right?
What did strength even mean...
In this world of gaming, being a bit of a scoundrel was king!
Suddenly, Luke froze.
There was no sign of Squirtle in the tank; it had disappeared without a trace!
Luke rubbed his head, saying, "It's fine in the morning... Did you slip out with Haunter?"
"Never mind," Luke said with an odd look. "You'll probably be back when it's mealtime."
"Vui~ (*･ω-q)"
Eevee lounged on Luke's lap, let out a lazy yawn, and adjusted its position to continue napping.
"Have you been gaining weight lately?"
"Vui~! Σ(っ°Д°;)っ"
Eevee suddenly exploded with energy and leaped off Luke's lap.
After a while, the sound of Eevee running on a wheel echoed in the living room.
Luke shook his head and said with a smile, "It should be alright... It's not like Haunter. Go train yourself!"
...
Haunter entered the 'Bull Battle Club' wearing sunglasses and pushed open the door.
Following Haunter was Squirtle, also sporting sunglasses.
The receptionist, a young lady, looked surprised and said, "Oh, Coach Haunter, you're here!"
"Jie jie~!" Haunter replied with a serious expression and pointed to Squirtle behind him, nodding.
"Of course, no problem," the receptionist said with a slight smile. "The training facilities here are at your disposal!"
Haunter's popularity in the 'Bull Club' was quite remarkable. Although people were initially wary of the Ghost-type Pokémon, they eventually grew to love Haunter's personality. If it hadn't been for his brief tenure, Haunter could have become the store manager.
"Uirt~ ヾ(⌐■_■))"
Squirtle adjusted its sunglasses, indicating that it had come to seek Haunter's guidance on moves. The reason it didn't train with Luke was that it needed to learn a specific move. Seeking Haunter's help would also strengthen their bond as colleagues.
Squirtle squinted its eyes, a bright spark of understanding in them. It thought to itself that Haunter was quite farsighted.
"Jie jie~!"
Haunter, also wearing regular sunglasses, had an air of a rogue about him.
He led Squirtle to the training area and, after some fumbling around at his feet, Haunter suddenly produced a USB flash drive.
"Clang clang clang!"
"Uirt~?" Squirtle tilted its head in confusion.
Haunter looked at Squirtle with disdain. How could it not even recognize a USB flash drive when it was supposed to be the Master's Pokémon?
But since Squirtle was his little brother, Haunter cheered up and inserted the USB flash drive into the projection device.
The large screen immediately displayed a video of Squirtle training with Water Pulse.
Squirtle looked surprised.
Haunter nodded in satisfaction. It was copied from Luke's computer since Luke didn't have time to personally train Squirtle. Sharing the workload of Luke was Haunter's responsibility.
"Jie jie~!"
Emulating Luke's mannerisms, Haunter patted Squirtle on the shoulder, wearing a triumphant smile. It was all thanks to Haunter!
Squirtle focused entirely on studying 'Water Pulse'. Although Haunter couldn't directly teach the move, Squirtle's innate Aura talents made learning it quite easy. Furthermore, with items like the Water Stone provided by Luke, Squirtle's mastery of Water-type moves improved significantly.
Using Aura, Squirtle closed its eyes, concentrating on the flow of water within its body. Combining Aura with Water Gun, it extended its moves' range and water flow frequency.
Squirtle opened its eyes abruptly, a glimmer of understanding shining within.
"Uirt~!" Squirtle exclaimed, its mouth open. A surge of water formed a curtain falling from the sky, crashing down with a thunderous roar, causing the ground to crack.
If Luke had been present, he would likely have been quite astonished. This was Water Pulse, and its power rivaled that of Surf!
"Jie jie~," Haunter nodded in satisfaction. It had mastered Water Pulse in just half an hour. While not as skilled as Haunter, Squirtle's progress was impressive.
They say that Pokémon gradually become more like their trainers.
Haunter crossed its arms and nodded smugly.
Suddenly, Haunter noticed the cracked ground and froze.
"Jie jie~ Σ(°△°|||)︴"
Did it need to cover the maintenance cost for this place?
"Jie jie~!"
Haunter called Squirtle and floated out of the training area.
Making a quick getaway!
Squirtle hesitated for a moment, then its expression changed suddenly.
With its stubby legs, it hurriedly followed Haunter, making a hasty escape.