Everyone Else Awakened, But I Just Opened a Pokémon Pet Shop

When it came to Lapras, Su Bai knew it inside and out.

After all, this was once one of the most iconic and powerful Pokémon of the original generation—famously known as "Ride Dragon" in the older era.

"Lapras is intelligent, able to understand human speech. It's kind-hearted and naturally enjoys being around people," Su Bai explained warmly.

"Its nickname is 'Ride Dragon' because it loves carrying people on its back, traveling across the ocean."

"And you heard it singing just now, right? That means it's in a really good mood."

"Probably because… it hasn't seen humans in a long time."

Watching Lapras snuggle up affectionately to the two children, even Su Bai couldn't help but break into a gentle, fond smile.

To be honest, this might have been the most heartwarming scene he'd witnessed since the exploration began.

Among all Pokémon, Lapras was perhaps the most naturally inclined to bond with humans.

Maybe it was exactly because of that trait that Lapras once faced extinction in the original Pokémon world—only to later bounce back under strict protection from the League… to the point where its numbers became overwhelming, leading to a noticeable decline in fish Pokémon populations in the same habitats.

But in this world?

Su Bai would never allow something like that to happen.

His system handled population balance with precision—he didn't have to lift a finger.

And if humans ever tried to abuse that balance? Well, they'd have to get past him first—the Pokémon Tamer of this world.

Back in the Pokémon Center, the viewers stared at the screen, eyes filled with envy and longing.

Especially the children.

First, a huge, cuddly Snorlax.

Now, a playful Lapras that loved humans and even gave rides?

To them, Zhou Xiaofei and Liu Qiaoqiao weren't special—they were just kids like them. Same age, same height.

And suddenly, becoming a Pokémon Trainer felt like the most important dream they could have.

That was exactly what Su Bai wanted to see.

Adults were valuable as present-day fighters—but kids? They were the future.

If Pokémon were to truly thrive in this world, the next generation had to be ready to embrace them.

And that was why Su Bai was always so patient—explaining every Pokémon's traits in detail, never rushing, never skipping.

At the beach, Zhou Xiaofei was gently stroking Lapras's smooth blue skin when he asked in surprise:

"Wait… Lapras is a dragon too? Like Gyarados?"

He turned to look at his Gyarados nearby.

So far, every Pokémon with the character "dragon" in their name—like Gyarados and Su Bai's Charizard—had been insanely powerful.

Was Lapras strong because it had "dragon" in its name too?

Su Bai chuckled.

"Not quite. Even though it's called 'Ride Dragon' in the old days, Lapras actually doesn't have the Dragon type."

"It's a dual Water and Ice-type Pokémon."

"And technically, your Gyarados doesn't have Dragon typing either—not in its regular form. Same for my Charizard."

"The true Dragon-type Pokémon are rarer—usually pseudo-legendaries or actual Legendary Pokémon. Like the two your cousin Zhang Qun has."

He smiled wryly as he added:

"Funny, isn't it? Some Dragon-types don't have the word 'dragon' in their names—like Goomy or Garchomp…"

"But then you've got something like Flygon, which sounds like a Bug/Flying type, but it's actually Ground/Dragon."

Naming conventions were confusing, to say the least.

"Anyway," Su Bai continued, "even without the Dragon type, Lapras is still incredibly powerful."

"Its base stat total is 535—higher than the fully-evolved starter Pokémon."

Of course, Su Bai didn't go too deep into the math.

Any hardcore gamers would know that Lapras's stats were kind of awkward.

It had balanced Attack and Special Attack at 85, which made it hard to specialize in either. And since most of its strong moves were Special-based, the physical Attack stat felt kind of wasted.

Its 130 base HP was impressive, but in terms of defensive walls, it was just average.

And the 60 base Speed? Not quite fast, not quite tanky—a weird in-between.

In competitive games, Lapras wasn't easy to use. Even in Trick Room teams, it wasn't always a go-to pick.

But all of that changed during Generation 8, when Gigantamax Lapras got its signature move:

G-Max Resonance.

It dealt damage and protected the whole team, making Lapras a force to be reckoned with.

Of course, that was all in the future.

And besides—this was real life now, not a game.

In reality, whether a Pokémon had "perfect" stats or not didn't matter as much.

A well-rounded Pokémon could adapt to multiple roles.

A specialized one could evolve quickly and hit specific targets.

Which one was stronger? That always depended on the Trainer.

Smart strategy always trumped raw numbers.

Like how Ding Yue cleverly used Fletchinder's strengths, or how Murong Nan began building a physical-attacker Empoleon.

Without the limitation of move slots, reality offered a kind of creative freedom no game could match.

And Lapras? It was strong even in its natural form.

Zhou Xiaofei, having grown up under Su Bai's teachings, nodded thoughtfully. You could tell he was learning, internalizing these strategies.

Liu Qiaoqiao, on the other hand, didn't care about technicalities.

She just smiled brightly and leaned close to Lapras, saying:

"Waaah… So you're super strong? That's amazing! You're incredible, Lapras!"

Lapras could understand human language, and Qiaoqiao's praise was 100% genuine—simple, pure admiration from a child.

And no matter if it was a human or a Pokémon… when there's intelligence, there's always appreciation for compliments.

Especially when the praise is sincere.

Lapras blinked, clearly flattered, then—almost shyly—tilted its head.

And then, without warning, it gently bit onto Qiaoqiao's collar and lifted her onto its back.

And started spinning in place!

At first, Qiaoqiao yelped in surprise. But the moment she found her balance and grabbed onto the shell's ridges…

"Ahahaha! This is so fun!!"

She was laughing like crazy.

There were no amusement parks in this world.

Survival took precedence. Joy was a luxury.

So for a child like Qiaoqiao to experience something like this?

She might just be the first kid in the world to feel this kind of happiness.

Su Bai smiled softly, watching it all unfold.

Then he picked up the communicator and asked:

"Qiaoqiao, it looks like Lapras really likes you."

"So… what do you think?"

"Wanna try catching a Pokémon again?"