–+–
“Silph Co.
has announced that Poké Ball manufacturing technology has been upgraded.
From now on, the retail price of Poké Balls will be further reduced!”
Johto Region, Azalea Town.
Sera heard the news broadcast on the radio, and her expression stirred.
“Sera.”
Not far away, an old man called out to her.
“Help me bring over the Apricorns.”
“Coming.”
The white-haired girl answered.
She set down her tools and handed the partially processed red Apricorn to the old man.
“Very good…”
The old man praised.
“Sera, your craftsmanship is now more than enough to go out and open your own shop.”
“That is all thanks to your guidance, Master Kurt.”
The white-haired girl smiled modestly.
“These are just basic skills.
When it comes to making actual Poké Balls, I am still far behind you.”
Kurt was increasingly satisfied with Sera’s attitude.
Every elite trainer in the Johto region knew that Kurt of Azalea Town was the best Poké Ball craftsman in the region.
However, hand-crafted Poké Balls were becoming increasingly obscure, and young people were simply unwilling to enter the trade.
Even Kurt’s own son preferred to join Silph Co.
to develop the latest mass-production technology for Poké Balls.
It wasn’t until three years ago, when Sera got lost in the outskirts of Azalea Town, that Kurt finally found an apprentice with the talent to learn his craft.
By now, Kurt believed he could no longer teach her anything more, yet the girl was still willing to assist him as an apprentice.
“Being too humble won’t do.”
The old craftsman furrowed his brows sternly.
“If you can do it, you can do it.
If you can’t, you can’t.”
“I think you are ready to graduate, and that means you are ready.
There’s no future in just following me around doing odd jobs!”
No matter how great the debt of gratitude was, three years of labor was more than enough to repay it.
Kurt felt it was time to let Sera go and let the outside world witness the ancestral craftsmanship of Azalea Town’s handmade Poké Balls.
But Sera hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.
Three years had passed since she transmigrated into this world.
When she first realized she had ended up in the Pokémon world, she was overjoyed.
Before, she had been a hardcore Pokémon player, mastering every game up through Sword and Shield, and she made sure to complete the Shiny Pokédex in every single title.
What a wonderful thing it would be to truly become a trainer in the Pokémon world!
However, once Sera saw high-level Pokémon battles on television, she realized how ridiculously wrong she had been.
In this world, Pokémon battles were exactly like the anime; they required the trainer to use genuine skill to command their Pokémon.
Morty, the Gym Leader of Ecruteak City in Johto, truly possessed clairvoyance.
Sabrina, the Gym Leader of Saffron City in Kanto, was also famous for her psychic powers.
Knowing the Pokédex inside and out simply wasn’t enough to make Sera an excellent trainer.
Furthermore, being a trainer couldn’t really be a career.
Simply battling others didn’t earn much money, and only the most fanatical trainers made a living through tasks issued by the League.
Sera had a bit of self-awareness; she didn’t want to become cannon fodder in a tournament.
It just so happened that when Kurt saw Sera’s interest in the craft, he took the initiative and asked if she wanted to be his apprentice.
However.
Just as Sera was prepared to focus on learning the lucrative craft of making handmade Poké Balls from Kurt, her “cheat” arrived.
—The Electronic Pokémon Raising System!
In the form of a simulator, the system would randomly draw a Pokémon.
As long as Sera operated the simulator—which looked just like a GBA handheld—and let the electronic pet inside adventure and grow, she could raise her stats as a trainer!
I get it.
It’s a Tamagotchi, right?
Sera was well-versed in these; she’d raised and killed several tamagotchi when she was a kid.
But if she took it seriously now, there definitely wouldn’t be a problem with raising one to maturity.
Full of confidence, Sera tapped the “Draw” button.
[You have drawn the Continent Pokémon, Groudon.
Groudon has sensed your aura and is awakening…]
A Super-Ancient Pokémon!
Groudon!
The legendary Pokémon that created the land and was also known as the incarnation of the earth itself!
Sera was overjoyed.
With such a powerful Pokémon, wouldn’t she clear the simulation with ease?
[Awakening progress 1%…
Awakening failed!]
Immediately after, the system plastered her face with an error message.
The girl, refusing to accept defeat, tried countless times, and as a result, she received countless notifications of failed awakenings.
Five days later, Sera gave up on her first attempt at raising a Pokémon.
The cost of abandoning a Pokémon was a one-year cooldown period.
It’s fine, she thought, maybe it’s just not meant to be with Groudon.
After letting a year pass, Sera tried for the second time.
[You have drawn the Renegade Pokémon, Giratina.
Giratina has sensed your aura and is opening a hole to the Distortion World…]
[Transmigration progress 1%…
Transmigration failed!]
This time the prompt changed to a “transmigration failure.” Having gained experience, Sera was disappointed, but she didn’t take it too much to heart.
She waited another year.
Having been prepared by the previous two failures, she adopted a casual attitude and tapped the simulator for the third time.
[You have drawn the Order Pokémon, Zygarde.
Zygarde has sensed your aura and is gathering cells…]
[Gathering progress 1%…
Gathering failed!]
That’s it then.
This simulator was nothing but a half-baked piece of junk.
After abandoning the third attempt, Sera reached enlightenment.
If she kept dragging this out, three years after another three years…
she was eighteen now, effectively an adult, and in another three years she’d be past twenty!
Once you hit your twenties, you face the curse of nearing thirty.
Sera had already mostly given up on being a trainer; the system’s arrival had only provided a glimmer of hope.
Now that the lamp of hope had been extinguished, she didn’t dwell on it too much and simply began to think seriously about her future.
–+–
“Please let me think about it for two more days.”
“One day.”
The old master’s white eyebrows furrowed, and he cut her time in half.
“Give me your answer tomorrow.”
“…Fine.”
Sigh, I suppose it’s time to face reality.
Although giving up on her dream was a little sad, Sera had already thought things through over these past three years.
If she couldn’t be a trainer, going to a Pokémon Nursery and buying one would be fine, too.
A Furret would be nice—a fluffy, little cat-caterpillar thing that would surely be comfortable to hold.
Or maybe a Swablu, a Ralts, or an Espurr…
The cost of adopting a Pokémon actually added up to quite a bit.
Just thinking about it stirred up her motivation again.
She said goodbye to Kurt and returned to her small, rented apartment.
The cramped room didn’t have much furniture; other than the essentials, only the computer and the TV could be considered expensive.
Sera changed her clothes, lay on the bed, held the simulator, and took a deep breath.
—This is the last time!
“Draw!”
[Ding—]
[Electronic Pokémon Raising System activated.]
[No Pokémon currently being raised by the trainer detected.]
[Checking cooldown for extraction…
It has reached zero, proceed with the next Pokémon drawing.]
[Drawing Pokémon…]
[You have drawn the Mask Pokémon, Ogerpon.]
–+–