Chapter 119 ⇾ The Social Media Star's Complete Failure

Upon returning home, Brionne and the others began preparing for their first livestream.

They had already registered their account and, having no special performance planned, decided to simply do a self-introduction.

The livestream room was quickly set up with all four Pokémon neatly arranged on screen. However, after a long while, not a single viewer had entered.

"Bri~ Bri~" — They're here, they're here...

A viewer finally entered the stream, but just as Brionne started to call out, they left a message and immediately exited.

{Sorry, wrong stream!}

Brionne: ...

Unable to read, it could only watch as the viewer suddenly entered and left — it was heartbreaking!

After a while, another viewer joined the stream. This time it wasn't by mistake; they were simply curious about this stream with no viewers.

{What does this streamer do? Show off Pokémon? That Swablu is so cute!}

Brionne, unable to read the viewer's message, could only pretend to look happy.

The viewer, confused by the lack of response to their question, quietly left the stream, assuming it was being run by a Pokémon trainer.

Several more viewers came and went, but all departed before Brionne and the others could even begin their self-introductions.

Of course, even if they had managed to introduce themselves, no one would have understood their Pokémon language.

The four Pokémon watched the screen all night long, ending up with just two followers — likely bot accounts.

Brionne and the others hung their heads in disappointment, thoroughly discouraged.

Cole had watched their entire stream and said, "This won't work — you can't speak or read, so how can you interact with your fans?"

His words opened Brionne and the others' eyes. They all agreed they needed to figure out how to communicate with their fans.

At this point, Chatot raised its wing and produced human speech.

"Me! I'll do it!"

After just those few words, it reverted to its own voice.

"Cha~ Cha~ Cha~" — I can learn human language and help us narrate the livestreams.

Chatot-type Pokémon are naturally skilled at mimicry, so Cole wasn't surprised it could speak human language.

Since it was its first attempt at human speech, its pronunciation was rough and it couldn't speak fluently, which explained why it only managed a few words before reverting to Pokémon language.

Brionne and the others hadn't known about Chatot's ability. They showed delighted expressions as they solemnly assigned it the role of the band's narrator.

Though it would need more practice before it could officially start.

"Having a narrator isn't enough — you need someone who can read. Otherwise, how will you know what fans are saying in the chat?" Cole continued.

This worried Brionne and the others deeply. They had Chatot for speaking, but who would learn to read? Brionne insisted it couldn't do it — it hated studying!

After some agonizing, Kricketune timidly raised its hand.

It already had some basic literacy from its professional music education, where it had been exposed to human writing, though it hadn't studied seriously at the time.

But now, for the sake of the band and Brionne, it was willing to give it everything!

Seeing Kricketune voluntarily take on such an important responsibility, Brionne was moved to tears — truly a worthy friend!

"Alright, now that you've assigned all the tasks, keep working hard!" Cole encouraged them.

Seeing it was getting late, he got up to head to bed, but suddenly thought of something and turned back to tell the Pokémon.

"Since your first stream failed, why don't you record a singing video for your account? You might attract some fans that way."

Brionne and the others' eyes lit up at these words, and they were about to start recording when Cole continued.

"It's late now, let's deal with this tomorrow!"

So the four Pokémon dejectedly returned to their rooms to sleep.

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That night, excitement about recording the video kept all four Pokémon awake. When morning came, they each had dark circles under their eyes.

When Cole saw their exhausted faces, he couldn't help but laugh.

While he went about his usual task of tending to the berry trees' energy, Brionne and the others found a scenic spot to record their debut song.

Mt. Ascendant was in full bloom, with vast fields of flowers surrounding the berry trees — the perfect backdrop for their video.

At noon, after finishing his work, Cole received a call from Ramos. The League wanted to reward Cole for helping locate an important New Life Organization base.

Since they weren't sure what to give him, Ramos was calling to ask.

"Would it be alright if I think about it and get back to you? I'm not sure what I need either." Cole said sheepishly.

[Oh, take your time thinking about it,] Ramos replied with a gentle laugh. [Just call me when you've decided.]

After ending the call, Cole gathered his Pokémon at home to ask their opinions.

Daisy and the others exchanged confused looks — they couldn't think of anything they wanted either.

That's when Brionne raised its hand and shouted:

"Bri~ Bri~ Brionne~" — I want something! I want a new accompaniment member!

The band only had Kricketune for accompaniment, making their music too simple. Brionne had long wanted to recruit another member.

But Pokémon with musical talent weren't easy to find.

"You want me to find a new member for your band?" Cole asked.

"Mm-hmm..."

Brionne nodded quickly.

Hearing this, Cole thought for a moment, then took out his phone, pulled up a picture and showed it to Brionne, "What do you think of this Pokémon?"

The picture showed a small green monkey.

"What can it do?" Brionne asked with a puzzled expression.

"It can beat sticks, and after evolution it can play drums." Cole replied.

The Pokémon he was talking about was Grookey.

Not only could Grookey join Brionne's band as an accompanist, but it also had a special talent — when it beat its sticks near plants, the leaves would become greener and wilted flowers would become vibrant again.

It was a perfect Pokémon for the orchard.

The only issue was that this Pokémon was native to the distant Galar region, and they weren't sure if the Kalos League could obtain one.

"That's the one!" After hearing his explanation, Brionne immediately took a liking to the little green monkey.

"In that case, I'll ask about it, but it might not work out — you should be prepared for that." Cole said.

"Cole will definitely make it happen!" Brionne declared with unwarranted confidence.

After their discussion, Cole called Ramos again.

[Oh, it's Cole! You've decided so quickly?] The old man's deep voice came through the phone.

"Yes, Ramos. I'd like a Grookey, if the League can obtain one." Cole said.

[I see...] Ramos hesitated for a moment. [Well, let me ask around first.]

"That's fine, please don't trouble yourself too much if it's difficult. I don't absolutely need a Grookey." Cole replied.

Ramos replied with a laugh: [Don't worry, I'll ask around and get back to you quickly. If we can't get one, you can think of something else.]

Sure enough, that evening Cole received another call from the old man, who informed him that the League had agreed to secure a Grookey for him, and the Pokémon would be delivered within a week.

After getting this response, he settled in to wait for Grookey's arrival.

Meanwhile, Brionne and the others had finished recording their debut song. After uploading the video to their account, they watched the follower count with intense anticipation.

One, two, three... Though the numbers kept changing, growth was painfully slow. By evening, they had gained only twenty followers.

Fans left encouraging comments praising Brionne and the others' performance, urging them to continue. While the feedback was unanimously positive, it didn't change the fact that their account had very few followers.

A week passed as Brionne and the others devoted themselves to their livestreaming venture.

Chatot had made remarkable progress, now able to speak complete sentences in human language — albeit with a stutter.

This achievement was particularly impressive given how recently it had started learning. Without its species' natural talent for mimicry, such rapid progress would have been impossible.

Kricketune's literacy training was moving slowly, but its dedication never wavered. Cole often noticed it studying well into the night.

He wanted to remind the little cricket to rest, but hesitated, worried about damaging its confidence.

Given Kricketune's sensitive nature and its slower learning pace, maintaining its confidence was crucial for continued progress.

Then there was Brionne, whose passion for the band had turned into obsession. It had even started skipping its morning training sessions.

What happened to its usual dedication?

This shift in behavior angered Cole — while dedication to the band was admirable, it shouldn't come at the expense of everything else!

So he took Brionne aside and gave it a stern talking-to, which brought it back to its senses. Feeling guilty, it promised never to neglect training again.

Throughout the week, Brionne and the others uploaded several more performance videos, growing their follower count from twenty to three hundred.

But compared to major streamers with tens or hundreds of thousands of followers, they remained far behind their expectations!

Seeing this, Cole advised them to be patient and not aim too high too quickly.

He watched all their videos and offered suggestions when he could, though his guidance was limited by his lack of professional experience.

What touched Cole most was their one loyal fan who had followed them since their first video, constantly offering encouragement.

Even Cole was moved by this supporter. When this fan gave their first — and only — donation, though modest in size, it energized the discouraged group like nothing else!

This fan's dedication was remarkable!

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That day, as Cole worked in the orchard, he spotted a Pelipper approaching from the distance.

The bird Pokémon descended gracefully, reached into its delivery pouch, and produced a Poké Ball for Cole.

As Cole accepted it, Pelipper presented a delivery slip for his signature. The slip indicated the Poké Ball had come from the Pokémon Center.

The League had sent Cole's requested Grookey to Coumarine's Pokémon Center, from where Nurse Joy had forwarded it.

After Cole signed and returned the slip, Pelipper offered a small smile before taking wing and vanishing into the sky.

When Cole returned home for lunch, he released Grookey to meet everyone.

"This is Grookey — everyone please take care of each other!"

"Groo Grookey~" — Take care of each other, take care of each other!

The newcomer proved to be an energetic and outgoing Pokémon. Right away, it began tapping its sticks and greeting everyone, its cheerful antics bringing smiles all around.

Perhaps due to their shared Grass-type nature, Chikorita took an immediate liking to Grookey. Before Cole could react, Chikorita had already tossed a leaf to the little monkey.

Grookey held the leaf, glancing between Chikorita and Cole, before taking a bite and chewing contentedly.

Grookey: (\°○°/) Wow~ So delicious! Crispy and fragrant.

"Groo Grookey~"

After finishing the leaf, Grookey bounced over to hug Chikorita — and just like that, a friendship blossomed between the two Pokémon.

When Brionne and the others invited Grookey to join their band, things fell into place naturally.

The little monkey, being a music lover itself, eagerly accepted after hearing their performance.

And so, Brionne's band welcomed its newest accompanist.

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