Thursday, August 19th.
Out of nowhere, an unexpected guest appeared at Luke's house.
The girl, with a cold demeanor, maroon short hair, and a paint-splattered dress, lay sprawled across a drawing board, engrossed in making substantial changes.
Luke cradled Eevee and pondered for a moment before suggesting, "I'm not sure what's off, but you might want to make some more adjustments. It's best if it's colorful and straightforward."
Mina tightly gripped her paintbrush, and with a squeak, she responded, "Understood!"
Seeing the reliability of the newly recruited employee, Teacher Luke nodded with satisfaction.
With Mina's addition to the team, game production had accelerated significantly, and the quality of the art had improved noticeably. Teacher Luke couldn't help but feel excited when he thought about the potential collaboration with Cynthia.
Meanwhile, the Pokémon in the room interacted with each other. Eevee playfully knocked on Granbull's head, behaving like a little troublemaker.
Granbull welled up with tears but didn't dare to respond.
Haunter, with a mischievous grin, held Cutiefly like a hummingbird in its hands, while Cutiefly rested lightly, pecking Haunter's palm gently.
"Jie jie~! (◍´꒳`◍)" Haunter seemed genuinely delighted.
Mina put her paintbrush to her lips and commented, "Uncle, Cutiefly seems to trust your Haunter a lot."
"That's another 500 deducted!" Luke playfully remarked.
"Of course, Pokémon and their trainers share a special bond," Luke added with a smile.
Mina was taken aback, and her paintbrush clattered to the ground. Five hundred yuan was no small sum to lose.
However, Luke reviewed Mina's artwork. Despite its somewhat abstract style, with Teacher Luke's guidance, the artistry was quite exquisite.
Hiring the artist for 10,000 yuan had indeed been a worthwhile investment, and Luke suspected it might end up costing even less.
"Stay for a light meal," Luke suggested with a smile. "Eating takeout all the time isn't conducive to your health."
Mina was surprised for a moment, then twisted a strand of hair and spoke softly.
A little later, Granbull and Cutiefly dug into their bowls, their cheeks bulging with food.
Luke patted the pink-haired Granbull, shaking his head in amusement.
He couldn't help but marvel at how the two Pokémon were enjoying the Pokéblock, even though Haunter didn't share their enthusiasm for it.
Mina, munching on her curry rice like a hamster, suddenly asked, "Big... Big Boss, what is a Gynecological Master?"
Luke was slightly taken aback and glanced at the pennant hanging on the wall.
"Um... It's probably an achievement greater than being a Pokémon Master," Luke explained, rubbing his chin.
Mina's eyes sparkled with newfound respect. "I see!"
Two days later, Damien called to inform Luke that the online test for "Gold Miner" had begun.
Mina's art project had also been officially completed, and she was preparing to board the ferry back to Alola.
At the White Harbor, a white ship was anchored.
Luke accompanied a yawning Mina to the ship.
"Give me a call when you're back in Alola. I might need your artistic talents again in the future," Luke said, handing her a business card.
Mina, with her drawing board in tow, lifted her dirt-smeared face, looked at Luke, and bowed sincerely. "Boss... Thank you very much!"
"You don't need to thank me," Luke replied, scratching his head, secretly amused by the windfall he had gained. After all, the 10,000 yuan salary had ended up costing him less than 3,000 yuan.
Mina set her drawing board aside, removed her backpack, and retrieved a beautifully illustrated hand-made book. The cover featured a drawing of Haunter, Eevee, and Squirtle, all created with crayons.
Upon flipping through its pages, Luke couldn't help but notice that it was filled with colorful comics—clearly a labor of love.
"This is... my way of saying thanks," Mina said, grinning.
Luke, pointing to the man on the cover, asked, "I understand the sentiment, but why does my character look so devious?"
Mina playfully stuck out her tongue and made faces before dashing onto the boat.
As the ship's horns sounded, it slowly pulled away from the dock, with Wingull flying overhead.
Luke scratched his head, put the lovely hand-made book in his bag, and muttered, "Just this once!"
...
In the chat group, Gold was complaining about Togekiss and their constant interference with his gaming.
"Togekiss has been hogging the game console for three days straight! I'm starting to think its eyesight is not fine!"
Whitney was quick to call out Gold's bluff. "You just want to play games, don't you?"
Gold: "Woman! You talk too much!"
Whitney: "?!?"
Yellow, from Viridian Forest, chimed in with a smile. "Well, Togekiss does have a personality quite similar to Gold's."
Gold scratched his head in frustration. He had hoped to play against Wattson, the electric-type gym leader.
However, the problem was that he couldn't get Togekiss to leave the console at all.
Wattson, the optimistic elderly gym leader who closely followed the latest trends, excitedly tagged @Gold and said, "Little Gold, Teacher Luke has released a new game. Have you tried it? Let's play online together!"
Gold glanced at the computer, where Pichu, with diagonal bangs, was holding the mouse and browsing a strange website with great enthusiasm.
Gold couldn't help but sigh. "My Pokémon... They're just not right."
Despite Pichu's abilities in incubation, their personalities often mirrored Gold's personality. Almost no one at the Breeding House dared to leave their eggs in Gold's care.
The most recent Munchlax that hatched is a descendant of Red's Snorlax, entrusted to Sinnoh's descendant, Diamond. If this trend continues, the Breeding House is at risk of closing down!
Gold rested his head on the table, feeling defeated. He lamented, "I can't even play games because my computer at home has been taken over by Pokémon."
Gold humbly typed, "What game has Teacher Luke released? Is it enjoyable?"
Wattson, the elderly master, rubbed his chin and opened the game interface. He said, "I'm currently playing... Oh! It's Gold Miner! What is it? It seems to be a level-based game?"
Due to Wattson and Gold, the chat group's atmosphere had turned into that of a gaming group. However, this also served as a subtle form of promotion.
Teacher Luke rarely muted Gold and gladly engaged in discussions about the new game.
There were two private messages in the chat, one from Sabrina and the other from Green.
Sabrina: How's the progress on Calm Mind?
Teacher Luke: I haven't found a suitable Dawn Stone yet... In other words, the quality requirements are quite high!
Sabrina: You can consider asking Devon Corporation. They are well-known in the mining field and may have what you need. (accompanied by a cute Pikachu image)
Luke was slightly surprised and thoughtfully nodded. It was indeed a good idea to consult Devon Corporation since he had crossed paths with them before. By the way, even Sabrina couldn't resist using Pikachu's cute emojis. But no, Squirtle couldn't be outdone!
Teacher Luke: [I wouldn't dare to speak·jpg]
Green's message was about continuing Squirtle's training.
Green had proven to be quite honorable and possessed a strong sense of chivalry, all because of Teacher Luke's guidance on Squirtle's growth. This touched Teacher Luke deeply.
Green: Teacher Luke, considering the time and breeding situation... Squirtle is ready for the next stage of training. (grinning with teeth)
Luke was taken aback, and his heart skipped a beat. In a moment of carelessness, his phone slipped onto the sofa.