Chapter Three: The Kitten Becomes a Pokémon? Descending Once More!

“Lucky.” Chansey held out several berries, offering them to Su Yi, who was just recovering from serious injuries.

“Thank you, Chansey,” Su Yi said sincerely, accepting the handful of Oran and Sitrus berries, and sharing some with Dewgrass.

Seeing Su Yi’s strength restored, Chansey smiled cheerfully, then turned to release waves of healing energy, tending to the wounds of other injured Pokémon.

Watching Chansey patiently treat each wild Pokémon, Su Yi sighed, “Truly the embodiment of kindness.”

From the moment they met, this Pokémon had extended a helping hand to strangers, and even gave them berries that were quite precious to wild Pokémon.

The Pokédex stated that Chansey would willingly assist injured humans and Pokémon; no wonder the Joy family chose them as partners, working together in Pokémon Centers to heal passing trainers.

First, he was rescued by the kindhearted Dewgrass, then Chansey healed his wounds—the shadows of being chased by Tyrantrum and hunted by Accelgor had faded considerably.

“This really is the world of Pokémon, isn’t it?” Su Yi remarked, watching the Pokémon who had come to seek Chansey’s help.

The distinctive berries, the diversity of Pokémon—there was no mistaking it, this was the Pokémon world.

“But which region is this?” Su Yi pondered, glancing at the Pokémon around him.

Crawdaunt, Amoonguss, Scolipede, Pikachu—there were Pokémon from several generations here. How could he be certain?

“Su Yi, this fruit is delicious, meow! I feel my strength returning right away, meow!” Dewgrass declared excitedly.

“If you like it, eat as much as you want,” Su Yi replied, patting the cat’s fluffy head with a smile.

Dewgrass stood up and casually reached for another piece of fruit nearby.

As Dewgrass grabbed what looked like an apple—

“Chii!” Suddenly, the apple revealed two eyes and gave a shrill cry. Startled, Dewgrass flung the fruit away in alarm.

“What was that, meow?!”

“Chii!”

The apple-like Pokémon bolted off in a flash.

“Applin?!” Su Yi immediately recognized the Pokémon—it was from the eighth generation, first appearing in Sword and Shield, a Grass/Dragon-type.

“Am I in Galar?” The moment he saw Applin, Su Yi guessed at his likely location.

Still, Galar was vast. Applin wouldn’t only appear in a fixed spot like in the games; as long as the environment allowed, it could show up anywhere. He was probably in Galar, but the exact location remained unknown.

“I should focus on recovering first, then study my golden finger in detail.”

...

Leaning against a large tree, Su Yi opened the book and found that all five options—[Quests], [Map], [Companion Beast], [Ecology Report], [Items]—were now lit. A hunter’s card had also appeared on the title page, depicting him as he looked when he first arrived: modern clothes, with the caption: [Hunter Guild · New World Investigation Team · Fifth Wave · Recommendation Group Hunter NO.001].

“Well, this is...” Su Yi was at a loss. He wasn’t a guild hunter at all. Perhaps they should add [Pokémon World Investigation Team, First Wave, Hunter NO.001]?

Of course, he was just joking.

Su Yi began to examine the contents of the book carefully.

First, he opened the [Quests] tab. The pages turned, but there were no tasks listed—only a prompt for him to explore and investigate. He could also choose to return to the last coordinates he had left and continue his exploration.

Naturally, Su Yi didn’t want to go straight back to the Ancient Forest. At the very least, he needed to prepare before venturing again into that perilous world.

“So aside from the first task, all other quests are triggered by exploration and investigation?” Su Yi mused.

In Monster Hunter: World, there were all kinds of quests, including a category called “Investigation.”

Investigation quests involved hunters exploring monster traces, taking part in discoveries and battles, and finding investigation reports. These reports could then be registered as quests, offering handsome rewards upon completion.

The [Quests] tab in his golden finger seemed to lean toward the investigation quest type, though with greater freedom.

The [Map] function was simple, recording the places Su Yi had explored in Monster Hunter World and allowing him to mark points of interest. For now, only the route he’d taken while being chased by the Anjanath was lit up and drawn.

Then came Su Yi’s true advantage: [Companion Beast].

He was past the age for building a foundation, and unlike the Monster Hunter world’s denizens, he hadn’t been shaped by his environment. No matter how much he trained, he could never reach a real hunter’s standards. So he couldn’t “hunt monsters”—he’d have to “battle Pokémon” instead.

Turning to the next page, the interface transformed into something straight out of Pokémon. In the only available slot, a chibi, cow-spotted feline bounced up and down, labeled Dewgrass, Status: In Battle.

There was no display for level or HP—such things could be quantified in games, but in reality, they couldn’t be measured so precisely.

Opening Dewgrass’s information, the design was even more Pokémon-like: attributes, abilities, moves, held items, and so on.

“Let’s see...” Su Yi’s interest was piqued.

[Name: Dewgrass
Species: Palico (Male)
Type: Normal
Ability: Feline Assault (Changes type based on equipped gear)
Moves: Feline Assault (varies with gear), Scratch, Growl
Held Item: None]

“So it really is Pokémon now!” Su Yi exclaimed. Even his cat had a type and ability, though it was as “Normal” as could be.

Scratch and Growl made sense—cat claws and cat cries.

The move with the same name as the ability had to be a signature move.

Su Yi carefully examined the description of “Feline Assault.” It had a power of 80, was a physical Normal-type move, but could change its type and form depending on the cat’s equipped gear.

“Aibo, were you someone’s Palico companion?” Su Yi asked Dewgrass, as the ability and move seemed just like those of a helper cat who could wear all sorts of monster-material gear.

Dewgrass replied somewhat sheepishly, “I’m just an apprentice explorer, meow. Usually, I just collect simple materials, meow.”

Indeed, Dewgrass was only wearing basic leather armor, and his sole weapon was a bone dagger. A single cat was hardly a proper hunter’s companion.

“Then, Aibo, after being put into the ball, did you feel anything change?” Su Yi asked with concern.

Dewgrass scratched his head, thinking, “I feel more energetic, meow. And after eating just now, my strength and injuries recovered much faster, meow.”

“Faster recovery?” Su Yi picked up a berry. These berries did quickly restore a Pokémon’s stamina, but after eating them himself, he didn’t feel such immediate effects. The wounds on his back, though scabbed over by healing waves, would still split and bleed if he wasn’t careful.

So the berries were much more effective for Dewgrass and other Pokémon.

Could it be...?

“Aibo! Use Scratch!” Su Yi suddenly called out.

“Meow?!” Dewgrass jumped, startled, and reflexively swiped with his claws. In that instant, Dewgrass seemed to activate something; his claws glowed white and elongated.

“Huh? What’s happening, meow?!” Dewgrass stared in confusion at his transformed claws.

Su Yi’s excitement was palpable, as though he’d opened the door to a new world. “As I thought, this golden finger is more than it seems. Aibo has acquired the traits of a Pokémon!”

“Pokémon?! What do you mean, meow?! Su Yi, you were so calm when you saw all those strange creatures at first—where exactly are we, and what’s happened to me, meow?” Dewgrass fired off all his questions at once.

Su Yi couldn’t bring himself to deceive his trusted Aibo. Taking a deep breath, he began to explain the setting of the Pokémon world to Dewgrass.

...

“So that’s how it is, meow! Still, it’s hard to imagine, meow—gaining such mysterious powers, traveling to another world... Is this really not just some distant, distant land, meow?” Dewgrass said, scratching his ears in astonishment.

Born at the Celestial Base in the New World, Dewgrass’s world was probably limited to the base and a small part of the Ancient Forest. Though he’d heard tales of the Old World and the vastness of the New World’s interior, they were only objects of distant longing. Another equally fantastical world was beyond his imagination.

“Su Yi, you’re amazing, meow! You’ve brought me to such a wondrous place, meow! I want to be your companion cat, meow!” Dewgrass gazed at Su Yi, his big, bright eyes full of curiosity and hope.

Even now, Dewgrass didn’t blame Su Yi for suddenly bringing him to a completely unfamiliar place; instead, he trusted him and wanted to join him on his adventures.

Su Yi was deeply moved by the cat’s trust and anticipation.

Taking a deep breath, he said earnestly, “No! You’re not just a companion cat; you’re my Aibo—my partner. No matter if we’re in the New World or the Pokémon world, I’ll show you all their wonders!”

At the same time, Su Yi’s heart, long shrouded in dust, came alive once more. Dewgrass’s simple, pure wish was, perhaps, the very dream he’d once had in his own innocent youth.

Since he’d been given this chance, how could he let it go to waste?

...

“Lucky?” Chansey looked at Su Yi in puzzlement.

By now, Su Yi was in a new outfit, having discarded his tattered modern clothes. He wore the beginner’s leather armor from Monster Hunter: World—sturdy yet lightweight, offering protection without hindering movement.

Most eye-catching of all were the slinger on his left hand and the scoutfly jar at his waist.

These two items were a hunter’s essential tools: the slinger could fire various projectiles and capture nets, its grappling hook let hunters traverse rough terrain, and it could even fire the clutch claw for hunting.

The scoutflies helped track monsters and discover nearby resources.

Of course, all these things—the barbecue set and whetstone among them, already stored in [Items]—were rewards from the initial quest. More importantly, some basic hunter knowledge had been imprinted into his mind, though he’d need hands-on experience to truly master them.

One thing Su Yi found amusing was that this hunter’s foundation included knowledge of making “cat food.”

Then again, in Monster Hunter: World, the Handler could cook cat food herself. While that might be due to her being a glutton, there was no denying that being able to whip up stat-boosting meals on a hunt was a huge advantage.

For now, he had no one else to cook cat food for him.

Now, after a night’s rest, Su Yi—fully equipped—was ready to set out once more.

“Lucky?” Chansey looked at him with concern, pointing to the wound on his back.

Su Yi smiled and replied, “It’s fine now. Besides, Aibo has something important to do.”

Indeed, after a night’s recovery, Su Yi was preparing to return to the Monster Hunter world at Dewgrass’s request. Having learned he wouldn’t be able to stay at the Celestial Base for a while, Dewgrass wanted to return and submit a long-term expedition application, and let his friends know not to worry.

Chansey was still worried. Seeing this, Su Yi had a sudden idea—there was something he needed to test...

...

It was the same forest, dense with trees and bathed in sunlight. With a flash of light, Su Yi and Dewgrass arrived together.

“We’re back, meow!” Dewgrass cried, spotting the familiar ancient trees through the thick foliage.

“The area’s safe for now,” Su Yi said as he scanned their surroundings, then spotted some spikes on the ground.

“Those must be from the tail of a Nargacuga,” he said, crouching down. Two spiny, feather-like quills stuck upright in the earth.

“These things cause lacerations—the more you move, the worse you bleed. No wonder I couldn’t stop the bleeding last time,” Su Yi observed.

The scoutflies at his waist swarmed out, covering the spikes in green light, but didn’t begin tracking any other Nargacuga. Clearly, it had been gone a long time; its traces were too faint.

That was good news.

“Aibo, let’s go. We’ll head to the edge of the Ancient Forest,” Su Yi said.

Dewgrass took out a compass, cheerfully replying, “No problem, meow!”

...

Using the hunter’s basic knowledge of concealment, Su Yi and Dewgrass made it safely from the forest’s center to its outer edge.

Parting the undergrowth, their view opened up to a coastal area where trees were sparse and, in the distance, the endless sea stretched to the horizon.

A dozen or so docile herbivores, resembling dinosaurs, wandered leisurely among the puddles and the recovering grass. In the sky, several pink, bird-like creatures carefully landed to peck at berries and seeds, while a few long-eared, long-tailed Lagomorphs sunbathed and groomed themselves.

It was all far more awe-inspiring than when he’d first arrived in this place in the game.

The breeze, the sunlight, the melodious calls echoing in his ears—it all felt so real. In his mind, the rousing music of “Proof of a Hero” seemed to play: though everything began so simply, what followed would surely be epic.

Roar!

Suddenly, a piercing roar split the air. All at once, creatures scattered in terror. Su Yi quickly ducked back into the undergrowth, while the larger herbivores fled in panic.

Whoosh! Great wings sliced through the air, a cold wind surging. A massive, pale-green form soared out from the ancient forest, then, eagle-like, swooped down on a herbivore below.

A wail echoed as the herbivore was pinned to the ground by the enormous wyvern. Its struggles weakened as the predator’s talons tightened.

The green wyvern roared again, as if claiming its prize, then, rather than feasting on the spot, calmly lifted the ten-meter-long herbivore and ascended, heading toward the forest canopy above.