Inside the internet café, Cynthia looked at the computer screen and found herself staring back at her own face.
Almost instinctively, she raised a hand and smoothed a few strands of blonde hair behind her ear.
She still did not quite understand why Felix required her to do this.
‘Maybe he wants to use me to advertise the café somehow?’
Then again, judging by his reaction when she first walked in, he had seemed almost as though he did not recognize her at all.
While Cynthia was still thinking it over, she noticed the number in the upper-left corner of the screen change.
[Viewers: 0]
became—
[Viewers: 1]
A moment later, two messages floated across the screen.
[SinnohStan92: Wait, what?
You look WAY too much like Cynthia!]
[SinnohStan92: Where did you get that cosplay?
And who did your makeup?
It’s insanely accurate.]
Cynthia blinked.
So this was how the viewers communicated with her.
The problem was that she did not understand half of what they were saying.
Cosplay?
Makeup?
And what did they mean when they said she looked like Cynthia?
‘I am Cynthia.’
Before she could say anything, the viewer count ticked upward again as several more people entered the stream.
[Ninjachu: Just got here.
Is that a real set?
Are you actually streaming from an internet café?]
[GarchompEnjoyer: Clicked because of the title and—holy crap.
This is the best Cynthia cosplay I’ve ever seen!]
[RareCandyDealer: Hello?
Streamer?
Why aren’t you talking?
Is this AI or something?]
Cynthia frowned slightly.
She understood each individual word, yet somehow the sentences as a whole made very little sense.
What’s AI?
And why did someone keep talking about her as though she were pretending to be herself?
She had initially planned to ask the viewers a few questions, but it seemed they had even more questions for her.
[PixelProfessor: Hello?
Can you hear us?]
[RareCandyDealer: Yep, calling it now.
Definitely AI.]
[WingullWiFi: Is this a brand-new channel?
I’ve never seen it before.]
More messages continued scrolling past.
After two seconds of silence, Cynthia turned toward the counter.
“Felix, what does ‘cosplay’ mean?”
Felix took a sip of hot water.
“Cosplay?
Basically, you dress up and act like a particular character.
It’s a kind of role-playing.”
Cynthia nodded in understanding and turned back toward the camera.
Since there appeared to be a misunderstanding, she decided it would be simplest to clear it up directly.
“Everyone, this isn’t…
cosplay.
I really am Cynthia.”
The chat immediately exploded.
[SinnohStan92: Okay, okay, we believe you~ You’re totally the real Cynthia.]
[GarchompEnjoyer: Yep.
You’re Cynthia, I’m Cynthia, everyone here is Cynthia!
There are probably three hundred Sinnoh Champions in this chat.]
[RareCandyDealer: She’s committed to the bit so hard she’s pretending she doesn’t know what cosplay is lmao.]
[PikaPikaChu: You don’t understand.
That’s called staying in character.
Veteran cosplayer professionalism right there.]
[RealSimp: Hold on, her VOICE sounds like Cynthia too!
I don’t care anymore.
From today onward, you’re Cynthia’s real-world incarnation!]
[CaptchaFailed: Still think she’s AI.
Streamer, prove you’re real.
Nothing difficult—nod, blink a couple times, then open your mouth.
Takes five seconds.]
Cynthia stared at the rapidly scrolling messages and paused.
Actually…
Judging by the strange way these viewers spoke, they were probably from another region.
Perhaps Hoenn, or maybe somewhere as distant as Kanto.
These unfamiliar expressions could simply be slang popular among young people there.
As for their refusal to believe her identity, when she thought about it objectively, that was not particularly unreasonable either.
A regional Champion suddenly appearing on an unknown livestream would naturally be difficult to accept.
There was no point wasting time trying to convince them.
Cynthia ignored the debate over her identity and returned her attention to the game.
A middle-aged man appeared on the screen.
She froze.
‘Professor Birch…?’
[Welcome to the world of Pokémon!]
…
Once the game itself appeared, the chat gradually moved on to a different topic.
[Ninjachu: Oh, so she’s actually streaming a game?]
[OldGenPurist: Ultra Emerald?
Nice.
Classics never die.]
[Hoennenjoyer: Haven’t watched anyone play this in forever.
Might as well stick around.]
[MudkipMain: Ultra Emerald!
This was the game that got me into ROM hacks.]
[BattleFrontierPTSD: “Got me into it”?
This thing is torture.
Took me three months to clear Insane Mode.]
[RareCandyDealer: Three months?
Skill issue lmao.]
Cynthia glanced at the chat.
They seemed to know this game extremely well.
There had recently been some academic discussion about younger generations and their growing interest in video games.
She vaguely remembered one of the professors proposing a study on the subject, though she could not recall who it had been.
In any case, gaming had never been one of Cynthia’s interests.
She was here for clues about the figure engraved on her stone tablet.
With that in mind, she followed the instructions on the screen and continued through character creation.
[Gender: female.]
[Name: CYNTHIA.]
Professor Birch’s pixelated character began explaining the basic rules of the world.
Cynthia patiently read through the introduction until the game finally began.
Leaving the house, walking through town, and heading toward the professor’s laboratory were all simple enough.
Halfway there, however, Cynthia abruptly stopped.
There was a Pokémon standing in the grass beside the road.
It had black-and-gray fur, round ears, red eyes, and a body roughly the size of a Rattata.
Even its tail had a similar shape, but the coloration was completely different.
So…
It was not an ordinary Rattata.
Cynthia raised an eyebrow.
Then something clicked.
She remembered reading a short research paper not long ago.
One scholar had proposed that Pokémon populations exposed to a particular habitat and climate for many generations might gradually develop distinct adaptive forms.
The hypothesis had never been conclusively proven.
But looking at this Pokémon…
‘Could this Rattata be an example?’
Without thinking twice, Cynthia reached into her bag, pulled out a notebook and pencil, and began sketching the Pokémon on the screen.
Within less than a minute, the little creature’s outline had taken shape on the page.
Naturally, the viewers noticed.
[WingullWiFi: Why did she stop moving?
Did the game freeze?]
[AlolaEnjoyer: LMAO, is she seriously taking notes on Alolan Rattata?]
[PixelProfessor: Wait, she actually is.]
[RealSimp: Streamers are THIS committed now?
She’s documenting Pokémon just to stay in character?]
[LoreKeeper: Stay in character how?
Cynthia’s an archaeologist who studies mythology, not a zoologist.]
[GarchompEnjoyer: Close enough.
She’s also Champion.
Being interested in unusual Pokémon makes perfect sense.]
Cynthia glanced up at the messages while she drew and found herself mildly puzzled.
‘Is there something strange about taking notes?’
Once the sketch was finished, she continued onward.
Next came the familiar beginner sequence.
Professor Birch was being chased by a wild Pokémon and calling for help.
Cynthia’s mouth twitched slightly at the sight before she stepped in to rescue him, which brought her to the starter selection.
Three Poké Balls were presented to her.
Treecko.
Mudkip.
Torchic.
Cynthia hesitated.
Fire was one of the few types not represented on her usual team, which also made it one of the types she had less personal experience using.
‘In that case…
Torchic.’
The moment she made her choice, the chat began scrolling again.
[BlazikenBeliever: Torchic!
Excellent choice.
Best long-term investment of the three.]
[RainTeamCEO: Imagine picking Torchic when rain-boosted Mega Swampert exists.]
[DragonRushMiss: Why not use a cheat and start with Gible?
If she’s supposed to be Cynthia, she needs Garchomp.
That’s mandatory.]
[BattleFrontierPTSD: Bro, Gible evolves at 24 and doesn’t become Garchomp until 48.
Before that you’re basically dragging a roadside lizard through half the game.
Are you trying to kill her?]
[RareCandyDealer: Making her fight the early Gyms with Gible would be crueler than telling her to uninstall.]
While the viewers argued among themselves, Cynthia continued through the tutorial.
The first wild battle was easy, and Torchic officially joined her team.
She received the Pokédex, headed north, encountered wild Pokémon, chose moves, and won her battles without difficulty.
Then came her first Trainer battle.
Her rival waited at the end of the route with a Mudkip and challenged her, only to lose as well.
“You won!
But next time, I won’t lose!”
The rival’s sprite turned and ran away.
Cynthia leaned back in her chair, thinking over what she had learned.
She more or less understood the battle system now.
Each side took turns selecting moves, while type matchups and move properties appeared to follow real Pokémon battles fairly closely.
However, there was essentially no room for actual field command.
She could only select one of the available moves and let the game calculate the outcome.
The opponents were also extremely weak.
The rival Trainer had posed almost no challenge, while the wild Pokémon in the grass were so low-leveled that Torchic could usually defeat them with one or two Embers.
If Cynthia evaluated the system strictly from the perspective of a Champion, its value as actual battle training was almost nonexistent.
Then again, it was only a game.
She had not come here to improve her tactical skills.
She wanted information about the silhouette engraved on her tablet.
Besides, there was something else far more interesting.
There had been that unusual Rattata beside the road, followed by an unfamiliar Bug-type Pokémon she encountered in the grass, then several more species she could not even classify.
Every one of them had its own animated sprite, distinctive cry, and complete Pokédex entry.
The sheer amount of detail was remarkable.
It almost felt as though the creators had documented Pokémon that genuinely existed.
Cynthia shook her head at her own thought.
‘Obviously not.’
The development team probably included someone with extensive knowledge of Pokémon ecology, or perhaps they had consulted a large collection of professional research papers and then used those as the basis for their own designs.
That was the only reasonable explanation.
Even so, Cynthia’s eyes lingered on the Pokédex for several extra seconds.
Real or not, there was something deeply enjoyable about discovering Pokémon she knew nothing about.
Meanwhile, the chat had gradually divided into two camps.
Some viewers were still discussing the way she played.
[HoennEnjoyer: Her pace is ridiculously slow, but somehow I’m still enjoying this.]
[PixelProfessor: She definitely looks like a first-time player.
She even stops to read every move before choosing.
She’s taking it seriously.]
[OldGenPurist: Man, this reminds me of playing Emerald for the first time.
Didn’t understand anything, made terrible decisions, still had the time of my life lol.]
The other half had begun focusing on something else entirely.
[BattleFrontierPTSD: Wait, she didn’t choose a difficulty, did she?]
[MudkipMain: Nope.
She’s on Normal Mode right now.]
[RareCandyDealer: Normal Mode is way too easy.
Where’s the fun in that?]
[GarchompEnjoyer: Put her on the hidden difficulty.
Insane Mode!
Let’s go!]
Cynthia noticed the word difficulty and paused.
‘You can change the difficulty?’
The viewers immediately picked up on her reaction and began encouraging her with suspicious enthusiasm.
[BattleFrontierPTSD: You’re on the default Normal difficulty.
Enemy levels and Trainer AI are both at their lowest settings.]
[Ninjachu: There’s a hidden difficulty called Insane Mode.
THAT’S the real Ultra Emerald experience.]
[RareCandyDealer: If you haven’t played Insane Mode, you haven’t really played Ultra Emerald.
Everyone knows that.]
[OldGenPurist: Don’t listen to these lunatics.
Insane Mode was not designed for human beings.]
[RealSimp: So, streamer…
you brave enough to try it?]
By this point, the stream had quietly climbed past twenty concurrent viewers.
Those few messages seemed to open the floodgates, and the entire chat suddenly changed direction.
[GarchompEnjoyer: You’re the Sinnoh Champion, aren’t you?
What’s one little hidden difficulty to a Champion?]
[WhiscashWallet: Pick the hidden mode and I’ll send you a Rocket!]
[PikaPikaChu: Same!
Insane Mode and we start dropping Rockets!!]
[MudkipMain: INSANE MODE!
INSANE MODE!]
[RareCandyDealer: ROCKETS!
ROCKETS!
ROCKETS!]
Cynthia noticed that one word was appearing with unusual frequency.
She turned toward the counter and lowered her voice.
“Felix…
what does ‘send a Rocket’ mean?”
Felix’s voice drifted over from behind the counter.
He seemed to be holding a towel and attempting to convince Garchomp to let him dry off its rain-soaked scales.
“A Rocket?
It’s a livestream gift.
If viewers like you, they can spend money to send one.
They’re pretty expensive.”
Garchomp had completely withdrawn its earlier threatening aura by now, but it still regarded Felix with deep suspicion and refused to move any closer to the towel.
Cynthia fell silent for a second.
‘They spend money…
to send me virtual gifts?’
She did not really understand the appeal.
Still, the viewers clearly wanted her to choose the hidden difficulty.
“What happens if I switch to it?”
Felix thought for a moment.
“Hmm…
choose carefully.
It can be a little difficult at the beginning.”
Cynthia considered that.
“Does the hidden difficulty let me reach the deeper parts of the game faster?”
“Yes.”
That settled it.
Cynthia nodded, glanced at the chat, and followed one viewer’s instructions.
She guided her character back home, stood in front of a particular bookshelf, and entered a sequence of button presses.
Several warning messages began appearing.
[1.
Opposing Trainers may have Pokémon with a combined EV total of up to 1,530.]
[2.
Opposing Trainers use enhanced battle AI.]
[…]
One warning after another filled the screen.
After several confirmation prompts, a final window appeared in bright red lettering.
[Enable “Insane Mode”?]
[WARNING: This difficulty is extremely challenging and is not recommended for first-time players.]
Cynthia selected YES.
The livestream chat erupted.
[RareCandyDealer: YES YES YES YES YES!]
[OldGenPurist: You people are EVIL.
Actually evil!]
[MudkipMain: HOLY CRAP SHE ACTUALLY PICKED IT!]
[BattleFrontierPTSD: No regrets now, streamer!
Once you pick it, you’re not allowed to switch back!]
[GarchompEnjoyer: HAHAHAHA I CAN’T WAIT TO WATCH HER GET DESTROYED!]
Cynthia watched the viewers celebrate and could not help feeling puzzled.
‘Why are they making such a big deal out of this?’
She had only changed the difficulty setting.
Besides, Felix had just said that only the beginning might be a little difficult.
And whatever else this game was, Cynthia was still a Champion.
‘How hard can a video game possibly be?’
The moment she confirmed her choice, the screen briefly went dark.
When the game finished reloading, the familiar dirt road appeared again.
At the far end stood a child in shorts—the same NPC Trainer she had defeated effortlessly before.
Cynthia did not think much of it and walked over.
[A battle started!]
Torchic appeared on her side of the field.
After the earlier rival battle, it had already reached Level 8.
Her opponent sent out the same Pokémon as before.
Poochyena.
Cynthia selected Ember just as casually as she had the first time while trying to remember the previous battle.
‘If I remember correctly, it couldn’t even survive one Ember before.
Was it Level 3?
Maybe Level 4?’
The higher difficulty would naturally raise enemy levels, so perhaps this time it would be Level 5 or 6.
As that thought crossed her mind, Cynthia’s eyes drifted toward the information displayed in the upper-left corner.
Two lines of text appeared.
[Poochyena]
[Lv.
13]
Cynthia stared at the screen.