After leaving the League Mart, Roy led his Pokémon to an open clearing at the foot of Mt.
Pyre.
“Litwick.”
“Duskull.”
“Ready?”
“Lit!”
“Dus!”
Roy held the two newly purchased Poké Balls in his hands.
Each was the classic red-and-white standard model.
Of course, there were higher-grade Poké Balls available.
Luxury Balls, for example.
Each one cost 5,000 Pokédollars and provided Pokémon with a far more comfortable living space.
It wasn’t that Roy didn’t want to buy the best for his partners.
The problem was…
The League Mart near Mt.
Pyre only stocked ordinary Poké Balls.
Taking a deep breath, Roy tossed both Poké Balls.
Each struck its intended target.
Red light burst from the spheres, enveloping Litwick and Duskull before drawing them inside.
The Poké Balls dropped gently onto the ground.
Shake.
Shake.
Shake.
Click.
Capture successful.
Roy couldn’t help copying the pose from the anime.
Raising one Poké Ball high into the air, he shouted proudly,
“I caught a Pokémon!”
“…”
A second later…
He scratched his head.
“…Okay.”
“That felt ridiculously embarrassing.”
“But…”
“It was actually pretty satisfying.”
He laughed to himself.
At last…
He was officially a Pokémon Trainer.
Thinking about it…
Phoebe was only six years old.
That meant Ash and the others should only be around five or six in this world.
They were probably somewhere in Pallet Town…
Playing in the mud without a care in the world.
Roy tightened his grip on the Poké Ball.
“Aunt Delia…”
“Just wait for me.”
“Lorelei…”
“I’m coming too.”
“Pokémon world…”
“Here I come!”
At that exact moment…
A cold mechanical voice echoed inside his mind.
[Congratulations.
You have obtained your first Pokémon.]
[Beginning System Binding.]
[1%…]
[10%…]
Roy froze.
“…A system?”
His eyes widened in disbelief.
Ever since transmigrating into this world, he’d dreamed about receiving the standard transmigrator cheat.
A legendary Pokémon.
An overpowered skill.
Something.
Anything.
Instead…
Two and a half years had passed.
Nothing happened.
Eventually, Roy had accepted reality and settled into life at Mt.
Pyre.
It was peaceful.
Safe.
Comfortable.
Now…
Now the damn thing finally decided to show up?
“If I’d known…”
“I would’ve bought an unregistered Poké Ball on the black market years ago!”
“I could’ve caught Litwick earlier!”
“The system would’ve activated ages ago!”
Roy’s imagination immediately ran wild.
Flying through the sky atop Rayquaza.
Conquering every region.
Becoming the greatest Trainer alive.
Just as he was daydreaming…
The progress bar reached its end.
[100%]
A brilliant violet light erupted beneath Roy’s feet.
It completely enveloped him.
“…”
“…Am I evolving?”
Humans…
Could evolve?
Nobody had ever told them that.
Moments later, the light faded away.
Roy looked down at himself.
Nothing seemed different.
Except…
His Ghost Force had become noticeably stronger.
He extended one hand.
A mass of deep violet energy condensed in his palm.
Compared to the Ghost Force he’d fed Litwick that morning…
This version was far denser.
Far purer.
Litwick blinked.
For some reason…
Its Trainer suddenly smelled incredibly delicious.
Duskull reacted even more dramatically.
Instead of floating lazily as usual…
It enthusiastically rubbed against Roy’s leg.
Roy immediately pushed it away.
“Sorry.”
“We’re not compatible.”
Duskull looked utterly heartbroken.
“…Dus.”
Setting his dramatic partner aside, Roy focused on the more important issue.
“So…”
“What exactly does this system do?”
Almost immediately…
The mechanical voice answered.
[Popularity System Activated.]
[Objective: Increase the popularity of Ghost-type Pokémon.]
[The more popularity and recognition Ghost-type Pokémon gain through the host, the more Popularity Points the host will earn.]
[Popularity Points may be exchanged for powerful rewards.]
Before Roy could ask another question…
A translucent interface appeared before his eyes.
He turned toward Litwick.
“Can you see this screen?”
Litwick tilted its head.
Then shook the flame atop its head.
No.
Only Roy could see it.
Host: Roy
Ability: Extreme Ghost Force Lv.1 (Beginner)
Upgrade Requirement: 20,000 Popularity Points
Pokémon Owned: 2
Abilities:
Appraisal Eye
Shop (Locked)
Unlock Requirement: 500 Popularity
Roy studied the interface for several moments.
“So…”
“My job is basically proving that Ghost-types deserve more recognition.”
“Then I earn Popularity Points.”
“And use those points to buy items.”
“Simple enough.”
Although…
He couldn’t help noticing something strange.
“My Ghost Force became…”
“Extreme Ghost Force?”
“Did that purple light upgrade it?”
As soon as the thought crossed his mind…
The Appraisal Eye automatically activated.
Ability: Extreme Ghost Force
Effect:
Increases the power of all Ghost-type moves used by Ghost Pokémon currently on the host’s team by 1%.
Maximum Level: 10
Maximum Bonus: 10% Ghost-type move power.
Roy stared silently.
“…”
“So…”
“The system turned me into a walking Spell Tag?”
He quickly did the math.
Level 1 required 20,000 Popularity Points.
Surely Level 10 couldn’t be that bad…
The system interrupted him.
[Each upgrade doubles the required Popularity Points.]
Roy’s smile instantly disappeared.
He calculated again.
Level 2…
40,000.
Level 3…
80,000.
Level 4…
160,000.
…
By the time he reached the final upgrade…
10,240,000 Popularity Points.
“…”
Roy inhaled sharply.
“Over ten million?”
No wonder the bonus only reached ten percent.
At higher levels, Extreme Ghost Force would also make Roy increasingly attractive to Ghost-type Pokémon.
According to the system…
By Level 10…
Ghost Pokémon would find him almost irresistibly appealing.
“…”
“So I really am becoming Ghost-type catnip.”
Curious, Roy channeled his newly enhanced Ghost Force into Litwick.
“How does it feel?”
Litwick closed its eyes.
After a moment, it answered through their telepathic connection.
“It’s there…”
“But…”
“It’s very slight.”
“…”
Roy glanced back at the interface.
Popularity Points: 0
He suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to give up entirely.
Fortunately…
Not everything was disappointing.
Although the Shop remained locked…
Both Extreme Ghost Force and Appraisal Eye were already usable.
Roy immediately turned toward Litwick.
“Hold still.”
“I’m going to test something.”
The Appraisal Eye activated.
Pokémon Analysis
Pokémon: Litwick
Level: 28
Gender: Male
Ability: Flash Fire
Effect: Absorbs Fire-type attacks, nullifying damage and increasing the power of its own Fire-type moves.
Moves:
Smog
Ember
Astonish
Minimize
Confuse Ray
Hex
Will-O-Wisp
Fire Spin
Night Shade
Held Item: None
Egg Moves:
Heat Wave
Melt
Attract
Individual Value (Talent): 20
TM / Move Tutor Moves: None
Roy’s eyes widened.
“So detailed…”
The Appraisal Eye displayed almost every piece of information imaginable.
People often underestimated appraisal abilities because they didn’t directly increase combat strength.
Roy disagreed.
At this stage…
It was easily the most valuable feature his system possessed.
“So it really is Flash Fire.”
A satisfied smile spread across his face.
More than a year ago, Roy had already tried determining Litwick’s Ability himself.
Litwick’s evolutionary line naturally possessed three possible Abilities.
Flame Body.
Flash Fire.
And the Hidden Ability…
Infiltrator.
Roy had ruled out Flame Body immediately.
Otherwise…
There was no way Litwick could sit comfortably on his shoulder every day without burning him.
Testing Flash Fire had been much harder.
Mt.
Pyre barely had any Fire-type Pokémon.
Eventually…
He’d convinced the resident Gengar to create a Substitute.
When Litwick attacked…
Its attacks couldn’t bypass the Substitute.
That ruled out Infiltrator.
By process of elimination…
Flash Fire was the only remaining possibility.
Honestly…
Roy preferred it anyway.
Flash Fire effectively granted Litwick immunity to Fire-type attacks while strengthening its own flames.
Combined with Ghost-type immunities…
Litwick now possessed three separate type immunities.
Considering how offensively dominant Fire-types had always been throughout Pokémon history…
That was an incredible advantage.
Roy couldn’t help smiling.
Maybe…
Just maybe…
This long-overdue system had finally given him the chance to build the strongest Ghost-type team the Pokémon world had ever seen.