It had been more than half a month since landing on the island, and Tetsuya finally had a properly formed Pokémon of his own, Beedrill.
But this was only the beginning…
After organizing the exchanged supplies and placing them into his Spatial Backpack, what was about to begin was his journey to explore the forest.
When leaving the Shadow Team's stationed area, Tetsuya deliberately took a look at the list for exchanging Pokémon back for his original Pokémon.
There was also a member from Cherrygrove City who needed Rhydon for exchange…
'Oh?'
There were also several who needed Houndoom for exchange. It seemed the Shadow Team really needed Houndoom as a Pokémon, but the most eye-catching was still a member from Cianwood City. Since the team from Cianwood City was the first to fully equip themselves with Pokémon and advance into the depths of the forest, they currently had the greatest chance of encountering Houndoom.
Tetsuya naturally had his own purpose for understanding these things.
---◓---
Beedrill was directly released by Tetsuya, following him in flight. The wilderness was not like the city, sometimes danger came suddenly and would not even give you the chance to take out a Poké Ball.
Right now, he knew nothing about the entire island, and he had no idea where Rhydon or Houndoom could be found.
When passing through the shrubs, about half of the people were still lingering there. On this day, many people had already abandoned their original teams. Those with Pokémon began to form teams on their own and set off toward the depths of the forest.
After all, the number of weak Pokémon in these shrubs and grasslands was limited, and it was impossible for everyone to catch one. Those who could not catch Pokémon for a long time would naturally be abandoned by those who already had Pokémon. The original "city alliances" had long since disappeared.
The gap had already begun to appear here.
"Hey, Tetsuya! Umm… can you help us catch a Pokémon?"
Takuya stopped Tetsuya, hoping to get his help. After all, at the Bell Tower, it was Tetsuya who had helped him and Haruto catch Ghost-types, so in Takuya's mind, Tetsuya had always been a good person.
Haruto also followed Takuya, but Aurora stood watching from afar.
"No time."
'Hn.' Tetsuya did not pay them any attention and went straight into the forest. Now that they couldn't catch Pokémon, they thought of him. Did they really think he was some "good person" that doesn't return the slap?
He left behind the disappointed looks of Takuya and Haruto.
Aurora walked over and said angrily, "Pfft! What's so great about him, acting all high and mighty~"
"…That's enough, Aurora! If you hadn't refused to let Tetsuya join our team back then, would we be in such a miserable state now? It's only natural that he doesn't help us now!" Takuya finally could not hold back and shouted.
"W-hy… y-you…- w-what do you mean, sniff sniff… are you saying I dragged you down!?" Aurora's aggrieved tears were already welling up in her eyes.
Haruto had also been holding back his frustration for a long time and said, "Don't forget your current situation. Hmph, do you still think you're at home, living a life of luxury!? If you don't catch a Pokémon within half a year, not only will you not be able to exchange back your Pokémon… you'll all be dragged away to feed Sharpedo!"
"…Boohooo!"
Aurora's tears finally could not be held back. Her former arrogance and indulgence had almost been worn away. In a place like this, living rough in the open, her once glamorous clothes were already tattered.
Originally, Aurora still had Takuya and Haruto to support her a little, but now it had finally come to the point where everyone had turned against her.
Because everyone needed to survive. To put it plainly, they had not yet truly realized the terror of death, otherwise Aurora would have already been abandoned by the two of them.
"Sob… sob… f-fine… I won't need you to take care of me anymore, and I won't cause trouble for the two of you!" After saying that, Aurora left crying.
"Sigh..."
Haruto still wanted to pull her back, but was stopped by Takuya. "Haruto, right now we can barely protect ourselves. Out of a hundred people, only ten will survive after three years. We just don't dare to think about this terrifying reality, but we have no choice but to face it…
Look at this place now! Only half the people remain, which means we are already more than halfway behind. When the time comes, the ones eliminated will definitely be us! Look at the teams that entered the forest first, are there any girls among them…? No! Haruto, we must join a new team!"
Reality was always cruel. If one did not recognize it, one would inevitably be hurt by it…
---◓---
After entering the forest, Tetsuya's first step of his plan was to train Beedrill and find the most suitable food for its growth.
Rhydon and Houndoom were not ordinary Pokémon, and in terms of type, they both had an advantage over Beedrill. Without sufficient strength, daring to rashly challenge such Pokémon was simply asking for trouble, or worse… death!
Leading Beedrill as they moved slowly through the forest, they had to be constantly aware of hidden dangers. However, Tetsuya had "some" experience in how to move through a forest. First, most Pokémon would gather in places with food and water sources.
Some Poison-types would build nests in damp and dark places. As long as these sensitive areas were avoided as much as possible, it would be relatively safer. But he was not here to simply pass through the forest, so he could not blindly pursue safety.
As he walked, he suddenly heard the sound of flowing water. Not only Pokémon needed water, humans also needed it.
Tetsuya followed the sound of the water.
Sure enough, there was a small river. Although it was not large, as he got closer, he discovered many Pokémon groups. Tetsuya temporarily planned to raise Beedrill's level around this area.
The first step was to study the terrain.
The northern side of the small river was more dark and damp, and the ground under the trees was piled with fallen leaves. Just now, after a Rattata approached, it immediately changed direction, indicating that its "nemesis" was there. There should be Ekans hiding inside, and of course Pokémon like Parasect that preferred damp environments might also appear.
The Pokémon groups on the east and west sides were more mixed. Flying-, Normal-, Bug-types; these Pokémon that often appeared in forests could all be found.
After passing through several layers of trees to the south, there was a flower field. It was likely due to sufficient sunlight that the flowers bloomed well. In such wilderness, suddenly encountering such a scene could not help but make one feel refreshed.
Many Grass-type Pokémon appeared in the flower field, but Tetsuya did not approach. From afar, he could already see Gloom, Weepinbell, and Skiploom flying above. Seeing these was enough.
The nectar produced inside Gloom and Weepinbell was the best food for Beedrill.
After studying the terrain, since he needed to stay here for a period of time, he had to find a suitable place to set up a tent.
Between the flower field and the small river, there was an open area. Tetsuya found a place with a wide field of view, and together with Beedrill, cleared the surroundings, first settling the place to stay.
This location was also very suitable for Beedrill's special training. There was a sufficiently large flying range, trees to weave through during flight, and no shortage of battle opponents. Most importantly…
There was temptation!