–+–
At first, Kieran just felt that his sister had been acting a bit strange lately, so he secretly followed her as she climbed Oni Mountain.
It wasn’t until he saw Ogerpon that he finally understood what she had been hiding.
A monster.
The boy’s breathing hitched.
Growing up, Kieran had always lived in his sister’s shadow.
Carmine’s overbearing personality never allowed him to voice an opinion of his own, which was why he had always looked up to the monster from the village legends.
The monster could defeat the Loyal Three all by itself; it lived alone on Oni Mountain, yet it never felt lonely.
Strong and aloof—that was the monster Kieran aspired to be.
But only when he truly stared at it did he notice the part he had overlooked all these years.
The crystals embedded in the teal mask glinted brilliantly under the sun, the maniacal expression carved into it mocking the reckless audacity of the two siblings.
Kieran began to tremble.
It wasn’t until his sister couldn’t help but hug her own body and take a shaky step backward that the boy realized aspiration was nothing like reality.
The moment the monster truly appeared, its terror was no longer just a legend.
“Kieran!
Didn’t I tell you not to come up to Oni Mountain?!”
“B-but, sis…”
“I’ll deal with you when we get back!”
Carmine was incredibly annoyed.
It was one thing that the stories Grandpa told about Ogerpon being kind were clearly untrue, but now her little brother was being a troublemaker, following her out here to go on an adventure.
She had been trying to figure out how to handle Ogerpon, but with Kieran appearing, Carmine had no choice but to give up.
“Run!”
“S-sis!”
–+–
At noon, having finished her tasks and finally enjoying a rare, good nap, Sera opened her simulator, only to be startled by a long string of pop-up notifications.
[Ogerpon has taken the initiative to fight back and repel the villagers.
Ogerpon’s prestige has increased slightly!]
…I’m shocked.
My digital Pokémon has learned how to “grind” on its own.
Then again, didn’t I tell Ogerpon to run if the situation looked bad?
The situation she had worried about earlier was becoming a reality.
Since Ogerpon’s reputation was constantly rising, Sera couldn’t monitor the simulator every single second.
If some powerful enemy were to spawn later…
“Can’t be too stubborn.”
Sera curled her finger and tapped Ogerpon’s wooden head on the screen, scolding it.
“Next time when I’m not around, if you sense the opponent is too strong, you need to run, understand?”
“Pon…”
[Ogerpon covers its head, looking aggrieved.]
Sera didn’t know what to do.
Even though she could intervene in various ways while using the simulator, once she stepped away, Ogerpon had to rely on its own judgment.
She couldn’t blame Ogerpon this time, either.
If it didn’t want to run, then she’d just have to train it to be even stronger.
Looking on the bright side, as long as Ogerpon was strong enough to keep actively repelling the enemies that spawned, wasn’t that just speeding up the growth process?
Adjusting her mood, Sera retracted her previous warning and gently rubbed the spot on the screen she had just tapped.
“Keep it up and keep leveling up.”
“Pon!”
[Ogerpon is feeling a little happy!]
Getting Ogerpon stronger wasn’t something she could rush.
The Effort Values gained from daily toy training were limited, and relying solely on going out to find wild Pokémon was too slow.
Sera thought to herself as she tapped the Gible ball on the screen.
She was already proficient in the mini-game’s mechanics, so she could easily multitask.
Since there were only so many things she could do in total, increasing efficiency had become the priority.
The system shop was all-encompassing.
Aside from the Rare Candies that could directly level up a Pokémon, it had every item from the original games, and some that weren’t even in them.
So, how about this item?
Sera looked at the Floral Incense in the held-item category.
[Floral Incense: An incense with a magical fragrance.
It lasts for 12 hours. Get faster updates on g.com.
During this time, the Pokémon holding it will increase its efficiency and power when practicing Grass-type moves.]
All three moves Ogerpon currently knew—Vine Whip, Horn Leech, and Ivy Cudgel—were Grass-type.
The Floral Incense would boost the power of all of them.
But more than the power boost, what Sera valued more was the increase in training efficiency.
The Electronic Pokemon Raising System provided ratings based on a Pokémon’s proficiency with their moves, divided into three levels: Basic, Proficient, and Master.
Moves that had just been learned only had a Basic rating, which meant the Pokémon could only use the move rigidly and struggled to adapt flexibly.
Once a move rating reached “Proficient,” the Pokémon could alter the form of the move, releasing it rapidly by sacrificing some power, or charging it up to increase its strength.
Until it reached the highest level: Master.
According to the system’s introduction, Sera understood that the Master level was like the various bizarre ways moves were used in the anime.
Things like a Grass-type Pokémon swallowing an Energy Ball to restore its stamina, or a counter-shield.
Once a move’s proficiency reached the Master level, a single move could be used flexibly to deal with various situations.
Sera didn’t dare to dream of Ogerpon’s moves reaching the Master level just yet, but at the very least, bumping up the three moves currently at the Basic level shouldn’t be a problem.
“Games are just great.”
The girl sighed with emotion.
If she were a real-life rookie trainer and a Pokémon actually appeared in front of her, she wouldn’t even know how to train it properly.
But games were different.
All she had to do was give Ogerpon a Floral Incense, and the little one would figure it out on its own; Sera didn’t have to put in any extra effort.
Having accepted the mechanics of the simulator, Sera couldn’t help but envy this convenience.
After all, she was about to start looking for her first real-life Pokémon.
Detached from the convenience of the Electronic Pokemon Raising System, Sera felt a bit insecure about her first attempt at raising one.
—If only Ogerpon from the game could jump out and become her starter Pokémon one day.
Sigh.
Ogerpon had already brought her enough Effort Values in the game; if she got any greedier, even Arceus might not be able to stand it.
Sera set aside her greed and began to operate the screen in earnest.
Since the Oni’s Maw territory was no longer suitable for training, today Sera was going to take Ogerpon to a new map to find new sparring partners.
[You and Ogerpon pass through the Oni’s Maw and arrive at Infernal Pass.]
As the map name changed, Sera watched as the environment on the screen shifted as well.
Heat rose in the narrow mountain pass, the shimmering, distorted air signaling a rise in temperature, with volcanic gases puffing out from every corner.
Upon entering Infernal Pass, new wild Pokémon appeared in the surroundings.
Sera took a quick look at the new Pokémon and discovered that their types were completely different from the ones in the Oni’s Maw, consisting mostly of Fire and Poison types.