One week ago.
"The heat has passed, and Bianca is approaching. Jubilife City will host a three-night Fireworks Festival this Sunday."
"The location is at Jubilife City West Port, and Jubilife Radio Station will broadcast the entire event. We wish the public a happy holiday."
The massive display in the Jubilife Radio Station building replayed the announcement of the Fireworks Festival.
The slim blonde beauty shifted her gaze and inquired of the woman beside her, who wore sunglasses, "Are you available this weekend?"
The short-haired woman nodded slightly, saying, "There will always be time; it'll just be a bit tight."
"It's good to have company." Cynthia smiled and reminisced for a moment. "Sinnoh's Fireworks Festival... it always feels like a distant memory."
"Aren't you free most of the time?" Diantha lowered her sunglasses and teased.
"That's why I don't want to be recognized."
Cynthia sighed, relaxed her shoulders, and stretched her arms, groaning, "If I hadn't become the Champion, I wouldn't have so much pressure in my free time, right?"
Diantha nodded gently and, after a brief pause, asked, "Since opportunities like this are rare, would you like to give it a try?"
Cynthia nodded with a smile, asking, "Try your hand at setting off fireworks?"
"Eh?"
Time passed quickly.
The night was as cool as water.
People flocked to the coast, their footsteps resounding on the boardwalk.
Cynthia allowed Diantha to adjust her blonde hair and said with unease, "Are you sure I won't be recognized?"
"Trust my makeup skills." Diantha put away her cosmetics, surveyed Cynthia, and smiled. "This outfit suits you beautifully."
Cynthia rose and glanced around. She sighed, saying, "It still feels rather inconvenient."
"You look great; let's go and set off some fireworks~~"
No one recognized the two Champions, as everyone was captivated by the fireworks illuminating the night sky. The falling fire in the dark night shone like stars.
Cynthia gazed at the fireworks, memories flooding back. She remembered her grandmother, holding her hand, standing beneath grand fireworks displays and looking up.
The scene felt strangely familiar, and the ambiance was comforting.
Cynthia subconsciously reached out to her side.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
Cynthia shook her head, watching the fireworks and smiling gently. "I was just thinking of a friend."
...
The recording process took two days, with separate recordings for guitar, piano, drums, and violin. In the same video, the four instruments played together, creating a musical ensemble. Luke, after finishing the vocal part, removed his earmuffs and affectionately stroked Sylveon in his lap.
"I've got a real knack for this," Luke said, visibly pleased.
Sylveon yawned and responded with a soft hum, resting on his lap.
Luke was taken aback. Sylveon and others were highly sensitive to sound-based moves. [Hyper Voice], in particular, was one of Sylveon's signature moves. Listening to Sylveon's melodic growl, Luke had mixed feelings and reassured himself, "This is just [Disarming Voice]; it's a long way from [Hyper Voice]."
Luke proceeded to export the final video and reviewed it once more. The 1P version featured an instrumental ensemble composed of four instruments, while the 2P version incorporated vocals alongside the instrumental ensemble. Although not on par with renowned artists, it was a respectable cover version.
Glancing at the wall clock, which indicated it was already nine o'clock, Luke got up and prepared Pokéblocks as a snack for his Pokémon. He then returned to his gaming chair and uploaded the video to Bilibili.
"Teacher Luke's Late Night Radio Station 01: Uchiage Hanabi," read the revised title.
The video was sent to the music section, and Luke nodded in satisfaction. "We're one step closer to dominating the region!"
[Video uploading]
[Ding! Your video has been uploaded successfully. Please click to view...]
...
Kanto, Viridian City.
"The Saffron City Fireworks Festival will conclude tomorrow, and the number of attendees has surpassed 50,000..."
The girl with the orange ponytail swung her feet, lying on her bed, swiping her phone, and burying her face in the pillow in frustration.
"Pika?" Her Pikachu, wearing a bow, gently patted her with its paw, expressing concern.
Yellow, her face flushed, scratched her head and sighed, "But there's still no way to say it!"
"Pika..." Pikachu shook its head, conveying understanding.
Yellow embraced the pillow, her eyes meeting Pikachu's tearful gaze. "Do you have any suggestions?"
Pikachu shook its head, sharing in its trainer's frustration.
"Chuchu, it seems like you don't have any bright ideas either. o(╥﹏╥)o"
Yellow clutched her cheeks and, still lying on the bed, swiped her phone, hoping to find a solution.
"Indeed, it seems that Chuchu doesn't have any brilliant ideas. o(╥﹏╥)o"
Yellow patted her cheeks and nodded, trying to motivate herself. "Well, at worst, we'll meet Senior Red next time!"
Buzz...
Yellow's phone vibrated, and she glanced at it in surprise.
"Teacher Luke has some new developments."
With one hand supporting her cheek, Yellow remained in her comfortable position and began swiping her phone.
"He hasn't posted anything in a while... I wonder if he has a new strategy..."
Yellow watched the new video and remarked, "Teacher Luke's Late Night Radio Station…"
"Um… it seems to be a song."
She clicked on the video and was slightly surprised. In the video, there were four musical instruments in the four corners, all played by Teacher Luke himself.
The calming piano intro played, followed by gentle guitar strums and drum beats. "Teacher Luke... there are so many instruments," Yellow observed, shifting her focus from surprise to concentration, gradually becoming absorbed in the melody.
As the chorus approached, the powerful sound of a violin joined in. For some reason, the music began to ease Yellow's mind. Her thoughts raced, and before she realized it, the video transitioned to 2P.
"Teacher Luke... did he also write the lyrics?"
After a few moments of a black screen, subtitles appeared.
[Composer, Composition: Teacher Luke
Performance: Teacher Luke
Singing: Teacher Luke ...]
Every step of the production process was carried out by Teacher Luke alone.
"So incredible..." Yellow muttered in amazement.
The singing began, accompanied by the same instruments and now enhanced by lyrics and vocals. The song instantly evoked a different atmosphere.
"He wrote about the fireworks festival," Yellow murmured, as if a beautiful fireworks display was unfolding right before her eyes.
In a brief moment of trance, the music neared its end, leaving only the soothing piano.
"Silently watching you two in the bright future..." Yellow recited the lyrics, her heart racing, fingers trembling.
Outside the window, the night was dark, a time when one could easily get lost in feelings. According to Teacher Luke, this was the time when the network's cloud cover was minimal. People were more prone to impulsive actions under the influence of music.
Yellow took a deep breath and, in a shaky hand, opened a chat with Red.
Yellow edited and revised the message multiple times, sighing sadly, and was about to delete it entirely. But her finger accidentally tapped the send button.
[senior, can you go to the Fireworks Festival with me tomorrow?]
"Oops!"
Yellow quickly looked for the recall button but, to her dismay, found that the message had already been marked as [read]. She felt a pang of panic and suffocation.
After five seconds of breathless anticipation, she finally received a response.
[Red: Sure.]
Yellow let out a long exhale, feeling a wave of relief wash over her as if it had no end. She covered her face with her hands and glanced at Red's reply peeking through her fingers.
[See you there!]
...
"Uchiage Hanabi" quickly rose to the top of the music section on its first day of release.
The number of reprints and collections soared. When people saw the Content Uploader's ID, they collectively gasped.
"Luke, Teacher Luke?!"
Playing, arranging, singing – all done by Teacher Luke alone.
"He's not leaving any room for others to make a profit!"
"It's you, Teacher Luke!"
While other Content Uploaders had also been working on transformative projects, the quality, consistency, and diversity of Teacher Luke's content made him stand out.
This new song also garnered Teacher Luke a slew of new fans, most notably among the female demographic.
"Who cares if he can cook; he's an indie musician, after all?"
"You have to find a way to marry this man."
"Luke, we love you!"
People were also intrigued by Teacher Luke's profile description:
[For a friend from Sinnoh.]
"No wonder it's a Japanese song..."
"I'm amazed! Teacher Luke wrote the song for her..."
"Friend from Sinnoh? It's got to be Cynthia, hahaha."
Luke perused the explosive growth of data backstage but didn't take it too seriously. His main focus was on raising his Pokémon. He had also turned down several record companies' offers for packaging and signing.
Meanwhile, Teacher Luke's chat group remained lively.
Yellow: [Image] Fireworks Festival! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ
Gold: Nice! Crystal and I also went to Johto's Fireworks Festival!
Steven chimed in with a smile, "If you ever visit Hoenn as a guest, I'd love to take you to one."
Luke examined the picture sent by Yellow again. In addition to Yellow and Red, there was an awkward-looking Blue standing next to them.
Luke chuckled and said, "It's 'The Fighter!'"
Erika: @Teacher Luke, the new song is amazing! (Laughter)
Lorelei, the Ice-type Elite from the Sevii Islands, coughed awkwardly, "+1."
She didn't mention that she had been quite emotional while wrapped up in a blanket last night, crying until the sheets were soaked.
Recognized by their group of friends, Teacher Luke nodded with satisfaction.
Luke also shared a copy to "100 Kinds of Ice Cream."
"Shared with you," Teacher Luke said.
...
It was now the autumnal equinox.
Diantha bid farewell to Cynthia and returned to Kalos to shoot her new movie, while Cynthia returned to her mundane routine of research, fishing, and training.
One day, Cynthia lounged in a wicker chair, sipping juice gave by Roserade, her mind blissfully blank.
Suddenly, her phone's alert tone snapped her out of her reverie. She glanced at her phone, clicked on the link, and put on her headphones.
As the soft piano and singing began, Cynthia found herself inexplicably calm. The lyrics captivated her.
"Fireworks come into view, it must be summer that hasn't yet passed..."
"Untangle the tangled knots and connect them anew; I hope tonight will never end..."
The song concluded, but Cynthia's heart raced. It was a sensation she had never experienced before.
After a long pause, Cynthia revealed a tender smile and said to herself, "It sounds beautiful."
"When is the scientific research summit?"
She checked the date for the upcoming scientific research summit.
"Next week," she replied.
"I will definitely be there," Luke said. "I'll come to see you."
Cynthia was slightly taken aback. Her normally fair cheeks, obscured by her blonde hair, turned rare shades of pink.
Ka-ching!
Cynthia stared at the shattered glass that had fallen to the floor, momentarily stunned.
"What was that… they say debts must be repaid slowly..."
"Don't worry," Cynthia said, regaining her composure and offering a reassuring smile. "I can lend you more."
Luke suddenly coughed.
"I don't need it right now..."
"Next time!" Cynthia declared with a smile.