“This is my unique, innate talent.
Don’t worry your little head about it.
Just obediently cooperate~”
Pumpkaboo instantly choked down its stomach full of questions: “Ask away!
I know this turf like the back of my hand!”
“Start by breaking down the power dynamics of the Mt.
Pyre area!
For example, who are the heavy hitters, how are the territories divided, are there any fatal danger zones to avoid, or any hidden jackpots lying around?”
Although Pumpkaboo was still terrified, when speaking about its field of expertise, its tone perked up, unintentionally slipping into the vibe of a bragging local guide:
“Mt.
Pyre is massive!
Absolutely massive!
The higher up you go, the denser the fog gets, the heavier the death aura becomes, and the more utterly terrifying the bastards lurking there are!
I’ve heard from the other ghosts that the absolute peak is ruled by ancient monstrosities that have lived for God knows how long.
A single sigh from them could shatter small-fries like us into dust!
But that’s way out of our league.
I only heard about it when the elders in our clan were talking out of their asses.”
“It might be exaggerating a bit, but the dangers at the summit are definitely not something I can recklessly step into right now.
Sticking to the lower levels is the only play!”
With that in mind, Lorze continued: “Since you don’t know shit about the upper levels, focus on detailing the lower areas of Mt.
Pyre.”
“As you can see, Mt.
Pyre is fundamentally a massive island, and its surface area is obscenely huge.
Little ghosts like us living in the lower mountain regions generally just guard our own little acre of turf.
We don’t really know jack about what goes on far away.”
Lorze nodded, signaling it to continue!
“Take my Pumpkaboo clan, for example.
We’ve got roughly a few dozen pumpkins grouped up, living together.
And our boss is an exceptionally massive, insanely buff Pumpkaboo!
He’s several sizes larger than a normal one!
An absolute unit!
As for our clan’s settlement, it’s located in a patch of woodland where the grass and wood elemental energies are slightly better than the rest of this barren, rocky wasteland.
As you can see, this shithole is permanently shrouded in thick fog.
Sunlight can’t pierce through at all.
Having even a shred of vegetation survive here is a goddamn miracle.
But precisely because of that, there’s also a Phantump clan living right next door.
Since both our clans are Ghost/Grass-types, we all desperately need to feed off that tiny trickle of Grass-type energy.
So obviously, we clashed!”
“Based on what you’re saying, your Pumpkaboo clan and the Phantump clan must have gone to war over that territory quite often.”
Hearing this, Pumpkaboo put on an incredibly sorrowful expression: “To tell you the truth, in the beginning, our two families traded blows pretty evenly!
Today you steal a patch of moss from me, tomorrow I sneak off with a few of your Yin-energy leaves.
It was basically a stalemate.
Out of nowhere, one of those blockheads from their side evolved into a Trevenant!
By the gods of the underworld, that bastard is fucking vicious now.
A single swing of his branches sends ghosts howling in pain!
Even though our boss is massive, he couldn’t handle the heat!
Just a few days ago, there was a massive turf war, and we got beaten so badly we were forced to abandon our ancestral lands.
Right now, we’re all crammed into a broken, dilapidated ravine.
If this drags on, everyone’s going to slowly weaken, and eventually…”
“So~ you guys just gave up the fight and decided to lie down and slowly wither away into nothingness?”
“How is that even possible?!
Just moments ago, our boss rallied all the pumpkins, raising his non-existent arms high—you get the idea!
Anyway, he’s already mobilized the entire clan.
We’re about to launch an all-out, suicidal final stand against that Trevenant right now!” As Pumpkaboo spoke, it suddenly cowered, looking incredibly guilty!
“Oh~ So if there’s a massive war about to pop off, why the hell are you out here?
Don’t tell me you deserted your post.” Lorze countered sharply.
“How can you call this desertion?!
I~ I’m strictly out here to scout the enemy’s movements!
Exactly!
Reconnaissance!”
Lorze gave it a half-smile: “If you’re scouting the enemy, then this area should be the Phantump clan’s territory.
How strange!
I don’t see a single piece of dead wood anywhere around here.”
“Tch~ Fine, whatever.
Actually, this is called ‘assessing the situation.’ Even at the risk of being cursed by ten thousand ghosts, I had to ensure the absolute last spark of our clan survives!
Look at my frail little body.
I wouldn’t even last a single branch whip from that Trevenant.
It’s better to preserve my useful life so I can spread some pumpkin seeds for our clan in the future, right?”
“Guurr~~”
Little Zorua expressed profound disgust.
“Alright, whatever, fearing death is a basic instinct.
Why don’t you focus on telling me if there’s any good loot around here?
Specifically, shit that can help rapidly boost strength.”
“As for stuff that boosts strength, there’s actually a decent amount, but none of it is easy to get your hands on.
For instance, deep inside this fog, there are many fruit trees saturated with Ghost-type energy.
They periodically bear Berries!
Those Berries are beneficial to all ghosts.
But every time the fruit ripens, it attracts a swarm of terrifyingly strong Ghost-types.
Since the day I was born, I haven’t even managed to touch a single Berry peel.”
“It’s probably talking about the ‘Kasib Berry,’ which directly enhances Ghost-type energy when consumed.
It makes sense that only the insanely dense ghost aura of Mt.
Pyre could cultivate them on such a massive scale. New chapters come out on g.com first.
But even if there are a decent number of ‘Kasib Berries’ here, compared to the infinite number of Ghost-type Pokémon infesting this place, the demand drastically outweighs the supply.
Getting my hands on one will probably be a massive headache.”
While Lorze was plotting, Pumpkaboo mentioned a few other supernatural items, similar to ‘Ghost Gems,’ that occasionally spawned in the area!
However, just like the ‘Kasib Berries,’ the moment any of them spawned, they were instantly snatched up by the overwhelmingly powerful Ghost-type Pokémon drawn to them.
“It looks like it’s completely impossible to walk out of Mt.
Pyre with any natural treasures without fighting the local ghosts for them.”
“Oh~ Right, besides those Ghost-type treasures, I actually know about another treasure of a completely different typing.”
“A different typing?!
You’re telling me a treasure of a non-Ghost typing actually spawned inside Mt.
Pyre?”
“To tell you the truth, I only heard this intel from our clan leader right before I bailed!
He said the only reason that specific Trevenant managed to evolve was because it hit the absolute fucking jackpot—a ‘Miracle Seed’ spawned right in the dead center of their territory!
It was precisely because it absorbed the overwhelmingly pure Grass-type energy radiating from that treasure that it successfully triggered its evolution.”
“A ‘Miracle Seed’?!
That is a supreme treasure condensed from the purest essence of nature’s life force!
It’s a genuine, top-tier Held Item!
If equipped by a Grass-type Pokémon, it passively and continuously purifies their internal energy quality while massively boosting the raw destructive power of their Grass-type moves.
It’s an insanely precious artifact!
Every typing has its own exclusive Held Items.
Earlier at the Lilycove Department Store, Lorze had actually spotted a ‘Spell Tag’ perfectly suited for Zorua!
However, the market value of a true Held Item astronomically dwarfed that of ordinary Elemental Gems.
Even the absolute lowest, Beginner-tier ‘Spell Tag’ commanded a price tag of a cool million Pokémon Dollars minimum.
Lorze’s total net worth prior to his shopping spree was only 1.2 million.
If he blew it all on a ‘Spell Tag,’ he wouldn’t have been able to afford absolutely anything else.
Now, hearing that the Trevenant was hoarding a ‘Miracle Seed’—an item whose value easily rivaled the ‘Spell Tag’—his greed instantly flared up.
Even if that ‘Miracle Seed’ was only Beginner-tier, its market value would easily match his current total net worth.
Although it was useless to Zorua, he could effortlessly take it to the Lilycove Department Store and exchange it for a ‘Spell Tag’ of the exact same tier, only needing to pay a minor processing fee.
The difference between that and paying the full retail price was like heaven and earth.
Moreover, the Trevenant was currently locked in a brutal, life-or-death battle against the Pumpkaboo clan.
This was a literal god-given opportunity.
Catching the highly suspicious look in Lorze’s eyes, Pumpkaboo instantly felt a chill shoot up its pumpkin rind.
Its voice trembled uncontrollably:
“B-Boss, you’re not seriously scheming to steal that ‘Miracle Seed,’ are you?”
A crooked smirk crawled onto Lorze’s face.
He stood up, dusted off his clothes, and ordered coldly: “Lead the way.
Take me to your territory.”
“Alright~ Follow me~”
Its body stiffly and slowly rotated.
The second it adjusted to a proper angle, it instantly phased, preparing to vanish into the shadows and escape.
However, Pumpkaboo’s shadow escape broke down in the very next fraction of a second.
As it turned out, right before it could fully phase out, Lorze reached out, violently snatched it out of the air, forced it back into its pumpkin form, and nonchalantly dangled it by the stem in his hand!