Chapter 4
Country roads always seemed to come with clouds of yellow dust.
Mike had walked this particular road into Twinleaf Town countless times over the past few months, but never with a feeling quite like this.
He was finally setting out on a journey.
A journey through the Pokémon world, no less.
Something he had dreamed about for years had somehow become real.
Mike glanced over his shoulder and saw Gengar crouched beside a bush with its enormous backside sticking into the air.
Without warning, it tore the branches apart and sent the Bidoof hiding inside shrieking like a startled prairie dog.
Mike shook his head.
’It really is just a giant child.’
He stepped off the road and entered a nearby bamboo grove, studying the stalks closely.
Perhaps it was because the environment in this world was so healthy, but every piece of bamboo seemed unusually beautiful, its surface smooth and vividly green.
After choosing a thin stalk he particularly liked, Mike measured it against himself, pulled a small knife from his backpack, and cut it down.
He trimmed away the leaves, and before long, he was holding a slender bamboo staff that reached his waist.
It was long, straight, beautifully green, and nearly perfect.
Mike admired it with immense satisfaction.
"Gar?"
Gengar floated over and curiously examined the bamboo in his hand, clearly wondering why he had gone to the trouble of cutting it down.
Mike returned to the dusty road, still turning the stalk over in his hands.
"You know, Gengar, when people have a long way to walk, they usually find something to distract themselves. Sometimes they pick a pebble on the road."
Gengar lowered its gaze to a small stone near its feet and gave it a light kick.
"You keep kicking it ahead as you walk, then catch up and kick it again. You do that over and over, and by the time you finally look up, you realize you’ve already traveled a long way."
"Gar?"
"Of course, there’s an even more enjoyable method."
Mike’s eyes narrowed.
Under Gengar’s puzzled gaze, he raised the bamboo high and swung it at the tall weeds growing beside the road.
The stalk whistled through the air.
The tops of the weeds were sliced clean off and scattered across the ground.
Mike let out a deeply satisfied breath as he admired the bamboo in his hand.
’That feeling... Yes!’
’That’s exactly it!’
The legendary Weed Reaper of his childhood had returned!
No boy could resist a long, thin, perfectly straight stick or bamboo stalk, especially when surrounded by waist-high weeds just begging to be cut down!
Mike firmly believed that the moment any man picked up a proper stick, he instantly became a wandering swordsman.
He raised an eyebrow at Gengar and flourished the bamboo dramatically.
"What do you think? I chose this one personally. It’s the one and only Excalibur!"
Desire immediately appeared in Gengar’s eyes.
Its gaze darted around before it floated closer with a mischievous grin and offered Mike the half-eaten Berry in its hand.
"Gar—!"
[Trade you for this?]
Mike stared at the bitten Berry.
"Where did you even get that? I could’ve sworn your hands were empty a moment ago."
Gengar pointed toward the Bidoof standing beside the road, watching them with a heartbroken expression.
"Gar—!"
[I borrowed it from him. Hehe.]
Mike pushed Gengar’s hand away in disgust.
"I’m not eating something you already chewed on."
Gengar’s face instantly collapsed.
In the blink of an eye, it became the picture of misery!
( ´..̫.` )
Mike silently rolled his eyes at the shameless actor.
There was an entire bamboo grove nearby.
If Gengar wanted one, it could easily get its own. It only wanted Mike’s because, in its mind, anything Mike had played with and enjoyed was automatically the best one.
"Ugh, this backpack is so heavy," Mike suddenly complained while inspecting the bamboo. "My back’s about to snap."
Gengar’s head shot up.
Grinning widely, it floated behind him and quickly slipped the backpack off his shoulders.
"Gar, gar—!"
[I’ll do it! I’ll carry it!]
Mike watched Gengar strap the backpack onto itself, concern written across his face.
"But... are you sure? It’s all my equipment in there."
Since Gengar’s arms were short and its body was wide, it had to loosen the straps as far as they would go before the backpack would fit properly.
At Mike’s question, it proudly thumped its chest.
"Gar!"
Only then did Mike reluctantly offer it the bamboo stalk with both hands.
"Take good care of it. I still want to use it later."
Gengar’s expression turned solemn.
It extended both hands and accepted the ’Excalibur’ with the gravity of a knight receiving a sacred weapon.
"Gar!"
[Don’t worry. I’ll treasure it!]
Mike bowed.
Gengar bowed back.
They straightened, stared at each other for a second, and immediately broke character.
"Hahaha! Gengar, you’re getting better at this."
"Gar~"
[Of course I am~]
Gengar then produced a straw hat from somewhere and placed it on its head.
It plucked a foxtail from the roadside, held it between its teeth, and raised an eyebrow at Mike.
[Do I look like one of those wandering heroes from your stories?]
Mike gave it an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
As he looked at Gengar’s ridiculous outfit, a thought crossed his mind.
’Hopefully Grandma doesn’t start searching the whole house for her missing straw hat.’
"All right, let’s keep moving."
Mike resumed his journey with Gengar floating beside him.
The Verdant Bamboo Sword swept across the roadside, vanquishing demons and evil spirits wherever it went, leaving not a single blade of grass standing in its wake.
{The Journey Begins: Congratulations! You have finally set out on your own journey. How could an outstanding photographer remain in one place forever instead of exploring the world?}
The sudden appearance of the message startled Mike.
’This thing is alive again?’
’The Journey Begins?’
’Was setting out on a journey the requirement for properly activating it?’
{Grandma appears to have prepared a generous beginner’s gift for your journey. Would you like to open it?}
A gift box resembling the kind found in an ordinary game menu appeared beneath the message.
Mike stared in surprise.
’Grandma prepared a present for me too?’
Before he could even say yes, the gift box opened on its own.
{Congratulations! You have obtained the following items: Pokémon Camera, Pokémon Tablet, Poké Ball ×10, and Grandma’s Pokédex.}
{Pokémon Camera: A remarkable camera modified from your original device. It can operate in all weather conditions and environments, producing images identical to what you see in reality. It can take photographs and record videos. Most importantly, it appears to have unlimited storage capacity!}
{Pokémon Tablet: A remarkable tablet modified from your original device. It can connect directly to the Pokémon Camera and import photographs or videos instantly. It can also be used for video editing and photo retouching without experiencing lag or performance issues.}
{Grandma’s Pokédex: As the name suggests, it is a Pokédex.}
{Poké Ball ×10: As the name suggests, ten Poké Balls.}
’Wow. What an incredibly underwhelming reward...’
The corner of Mike’s mouth twitched.
He had been expecting some kind of beginner’s ten-pull, but instead he received his old camera, his old tablet, ten Poké Balls, and a Pokédex.
"You could at least pretend not to be stingy."
Still, the added functions on the camera and tablet were genuinely useful.
Perfect image quality, complete resistance to weather and environmental conditions, and—most importantly—unlimited storage.
That meant he could photograph anything and everything without restraint.
A tablet that never lagged while editing videos or retouching pictures was equally perfect.
As for the Pokédex...
’Where is it?’
’Where did my Pokédex go?’
Mike was still searching when he suddenly let out a sharp yelp.
"OW!"
Gengar had been diligently practicing its swordsmanship.
When they reached a fork in the road, it spotted an unusually tall weed and raised the bamboo without hesitation before bringing it down with all its strength.
Unfortunately, it failed to stop the swing in time.
The bamboo followed through and whipped across Mike’s arm, making him howl.
The sting of a thin bamboo switch against bare skin was enough to make a person briefly reconsider the value of being alive.
Mike hopped around like a Lopunny, tears spilling from his eyes.
Once the pain eased enough for him to stop, he grabbed Gengar’s cheeks and pulled them apart with both hands.
"What are you trying to do?!" he demanded through gritted teeth. "Repay kindness with violence?!"
Gengar frantically shook its head while its face stretched into increasingly bizarre shapes.
It raised the bamboo and pointed toward something nearby.
Mike followed the direction of the stalk and spotted an exceptionally plump...
Weedle.
"Whoa... That is one fat Weedle."
{Weedle}
{Type: Bug/Poison}
{Gender: Male}
{Ability: Run Away}
{Known Moves: Poison Sting, String Shot, Bug Bite}
{Mood: So happy~}
{Condition: So full...}
{Affinity: 10 — Don’t interrupt me while I’m eating, you jerk!}
{Description: Another wonderful day with a full belly. Time to lie in the sun... Huh? What’s that idiot doing? Is he performing some kind of acrobatics? Noice! I get food, sunshine, and a free show.}
Mike was speechless.