On the other side, after Wen Qi brought Bulbasaur back to the farm, he first had Torterra administer some treatment to it. Although its physical injuries had healed, the exhaustion in its body lingered. Even in a new environment, it remained in a deep sleep. Wen Qi didn’t disturb its rest; instead, he found a small nest, placed it inside, and let Bulbasaur continue sleeping peacefully.
Yet, as Wen Qi gazed at this Bulbasaur, his mind churned with thoughts. Earlier, Zhou Zhiwen had mentioned some matters about the Spring Blossom Forest, and he knew the forest’s overlord was a Venusaur. Considering recent events, along with this highly talented Bulbasaur, he speculated that this incident was likely connected to it. Though he longed to capture this Bulbasaur, the threat of the forest overlord made him uneasy. He couldn’t hide this Bulbasaur forever; if the overlord Venusaur discovered it later, even if he wasn’t afraid and could escape, the overlord’s rampage would still affect the nearby villagers. Yet, letting go of this exceptional Bulbasaur was something he truly couldn’t bear. But these were just his guesses. He decided to wait until Bulbasaur woke up, ask about the specifics, and then make a decision.
Lately, Bulbasaur felt it had been terribly unlucky. It had only wanted to wander around, but bad luck struck, and it was captured directly. At first, the person brought out many things it had never seen before, which seemed novel and fun, so it wasn’t in a hurry to go home. Later, when it grew bored, the person offered delicious energy cubes—the tastiest food it had ever eaten. That made it reluctant to leave. But today, that wretched Kecleon knocked it out again. It didn’t know how long it had been unconscious until a sharp pain in its body jolted it awake. It saw two Kecleon fighting fiercely. Though injured, this was the perfect chance to sneak away. However, unfamiliar with the area, it could only flee in a random direction. It ran for who knows how long, feeling exhausted and hungry, until it couldn’t run anymore and rested in a patch of grass. It was truly miserable.
At some point, it felt a wave of incredibly soothing energy that completely healed its aching body. It wanted to open its eyes and see, but its spirit was too weary, so it could only continue sleeping. For some reason, that embrace felt so warm, reminding it of its parents’ arms. Though it wanted to keep sleeping, hunger eventually became unbearable. Unconsciously, it woke up, its stomach growling. As it worried about where to find food, a warm voice came from behind: “Little one, you’re awake. Looks like hunger woke you. I’ve got something tasty here—want to try it?” Wen Qi’s gentle voice reached Bulbasaur’s ears.
Just awakened, Bulbasaur was dazed, not yet realizing this wasn’t the same grass patch. The surroundings had changed, and it was in a cozy nest. The voice startled it, making it jump up and face the stranger head-on. After encountering Wang Jian, it had learned that beings like them were called humans. Thinking of how Wang Jian had taken it away, causing all this suffering, it immediately scowled at this human. Wen Qi saw the once-confused Bulbasaur turn hostile upon seeing him and knew it must have suffered at human hands. So, using the power of Tokiwa, he said, “Little one, don’t worry. I won’t hurt you. If I wanted to harm you, I could have done it before you woke up. You’re hungry, aren’t you? Come eat first.” He quickly offered a perfect Grass-type energy cube.
Bulbasaur thought the human had a point, but after the Wang Jian incident, it remained wary of Wen Qi. Yet, seeing the energy cube he offered—though it looked similar to what it had eaten before, the aroma was even better. It was starving, so after a moment’s hesitation, it couldn’t resist. This person seemed much more pleasant, and his scent was nice. Bulbasaur devoured the energy cube in a flash, exclaiming how delicious it was. After eating, it eyed the cozy nest and prepared to go back to sleep. Wen Qi found its behavior a bit exasperating—this Bulbasaur was quite brazen, eating and then planning to sleep again. But he had things to ask it.
So he spoke up: “Don’t rush to sleep, little one. I have a few things I want to ask you.” Bulbasaur was already annoyed at being stopped from resting, but remembering the tasty food, it decided to give this human some face. It looked at Wen Qi, its eyes seeming to say, “What is it? Hurry up. Can’t you see I’m exhausted and need rest?” Wen Qi was helpless, not expecting such a young Bulbasaur to have such a temper. Without wasting words, he said, “Little one, where are you from? Are you from the inner forest? What Pokémon are in your family?” Inexperienced and unhardened by the world, Bulbasaur just wanted to answer quickly and rest, so it said directly, “I’m a Bulbasaur from the inner forest. My family has a lot of members—too many to count. But I love Grandpa the most. Mom and Dad say Grandpa is very strong, so don’t bully me, or I’ll have Grandpa beat you up.” After saying that, ignoring Wen Qi’s reaction, it crawled into the nest and went back to sleep contentedly.
Wen Qi didn’t stop it. It seemed his earlier guess might be true—this Bulbasaur had a significant background, and that “Grandpa” was likely the forest overlord. He felt a headache coming on. How could he capture this Bulbasaur? And should he tell Zhou Zhiwen now? They were still investigating in the forest, risking their lives without finding the cause. Here he was, lazing around the farm, and he’d stumbled upon the answer, with the solution right beside him. Returning Bulbasaur would basically resolve the issue, but he truly couldn’t bear to part with it. This was really giving him a headache.