Chapter 4 The Suffering
"Goh, it's too dangerous for us to sneak into the forest like this. We're too far from the Summer Camp now. If we encounter danger, we'll be in trouble. Let's hurry back! And if Dr. Oak finds out, we might be sent home."
Koharu tugged at Goh's sleeve, a worried expression on her face. Her father, Professor Cerise, had specifically warned her on the way here to obey the rules of the Summer Camp and never to disobey Dr. Oak.
Now, by sneaking into the forest, they were blatantly breaking the rules, and if anything happened, it would be a big problem.
Of course, this referred to their parents or Family. Dr. Oak was no ordinary person; he was one of the most authoritative doctors in the field of Pokemon research, and his words carried an extraordinary amount of influence.
Especially since Goh's Summer Camp spot was among the additional 10 people, in other words, he was an extra. If something happened outside the camp, whether Dr. Oak would bother to care depended on his mood.
Goh said dismissively, "What's there to be afraid of? This place only sounds scary. We've been in here for so long and nothing has happened. I won't leave until I find a powerful Pokemon I like."
As soon as Goh finished speaking, an inexplicable voice reached Koharu's mind: [This Koharu is too timid. If it weren't for the fact that you're the only friend I acknowledge, I wouldn't bother with you.]
Koharu looked around in confusion. After making sure there was no one else, she tremblingly asked Goh, "Goh, did you hear any other sound just now?"
"No? There aren't even many Pokemon here. Where would the sound come from?" Goh said.
[If I had known Koharu was so timid, I wouldn't have brought her in. What a burden.]
The next second, Goh's inner thoughts were transmitted to Koharu's mind again, startling her once more: "It's happening again!"
"???"
[Heh, again? You think you can trick your Grandpa Goh into going back with such a small trick? You're dreaming! Forget it, there's a fork in the road ahead. I'll find a chance to shake off Koharu.]
"Hmm?!"
Koharu looked at Goh in confusion.
[Damn it, you're the one who followed me in like a little shadow, and now you're staring at me like this.]
At this point, Koharu understood. Goh didn't consider her a friend at all; he just saw her as an expendable little follower.
Thinking of this, Koharu's eyes welled up with tears, and she left with a single sentence: "Goh, I hate you!"
Then, without looking back, she ran in another direction.
Goh had not yet realized the seriousness of the problem. He just thought Koharu was being very strange.
[How inexplicable. If you're scared, just say so, you coward. Your acting is worse than a dog's!]
His inner thoughts were transmitted to Koharu's mind again.
Coupled with the disgust buff Ash had applied to Goh, the slight good feelings Koharu had for Goh immediately turned negative.
"System items, truly all top-notch. They took effect so quickly."
Ash had a full view of Koharu leaving in anger, and he naturally received Goh's misinterpreted inner thoughts.
"But the direction that girl went doesn't seem to be out of Viridian Forest."
Ash looked at the direction Koharu left with some concern. "Aura, within my heart!" He uneasily activated his Aura sense in the direction Koharu left. Only when he sensed a familiar Aura again did he relax. That familiar Aura was none other than Gary, and he also didn't sense any particularly aggressive Pokemon.
Having confirmed there were no problems, Ash's gaze returned to Goh.
To be honest, although Koharu was pretty, Ash truly had no romantic intentions. Of course, if possible, he wouldn't mind creating an opportunity for Gary. After all, with Koharu's conditions, being with Goh would simply be a waste.
At the same time, a small pink cat floated in mid-air, curiously observing Ash.
"Mew~"
It sensed that this human child was very special, with something on him that attracted it.
At this moment, the effect of the Bad Luck Charm also took effect. A young Spearow, having just learned to fly, delivered a slimy gift to Goh as it flew over him.
Goh felt something warm on his face, so he reached up and touched it, then brought his hand to his nose to sniff. His already dark face grew even darker.
"Ah! Damn Spearow, you pooped on my face! I'm going to kill you!"
Goh, blinded by rage, ignored the consequences. He picked up a stone and immediately smashed the little Spearow down.
Ash saw this scene and couldn't help but exclaim to himself, "This accuracy, truly worthy of a one-ball hero! But his brain is really not good; he dares to offend a Spearow."
The next second, an angry bird Growl echoed from a large tree not far away. Nearly ten Fearow, accompanied by countless Spearow, swarmed out and headed straight for Goh.
The fallen little Spearow also didn't let Goh off. It gathered power in its beak and pecked at Goh's butt at an extremely fast speed.
The other Spearow and Fearow also arrived at the scene at this time. Although they didn't go for the kill, they gave Goh a good lesson. First, the Spearow Family gave Goh an 'infinite feces' gift, and then they pecked his butt until it was blooming.
"This Bad Luck Charm is truly top-tier. If this thing were a permanent item in the shop, I'd sell everything to get Goh an unlimited supply. I wonder what the effects of the remaining two items are."
Having witnessed the effect of the Bad Luck Charm, Ash was now looking forward to the other two buffs he had added to Goh amidst the chaos.
Next, Goh's exclusive day of suffering officially began. While being retaliated against by the Spearow Family, he ran wildly with his head in his hands, constantly stepping on the excrement of unknown Pokemon. If he found a random bush to hide in, he would provoke other Pokemon. If he stopped to catch his breath, he would either be hit on the head by a Berry or be half-scared to death by a skill flying from who knows where.
Running and running, Goh arrived at a clear river. The string of bad luck had not taught him a lesson.
He saw this guy covering his butt and swaggering to the riverbank, not caring if there was any danger in the river, and plunged into the water.
A few seconds later, a red figure in the river swam towards Goh.
Goh, busy cleaning himself of the excrement, was completely unaware of this. Even if he had known, he wouldn't have thought it was very dangerous, because the red figure was a Magikarp.
After the Magikarp approached Goh, it seemed to see its sworn enemy and constantly interfered with Goh.
Goh, annoyed, seized the opportunity and slapped the Magikarp.
Then a miraculous scene appeared. The Magikarp was covered in evolution light, and its body constantly grew larger.
Seeing this, Goh, regardless of whether he had finished washing, frantically swam to the shore. Just as he climbed ashore, the Magikarp had already completed its evolution, and a mass of energy particles continuously gathered at Gyarados's large mouth.
Facts prove that a big slap, no matter for any creature, is extremely insulting.
Ash, who was recording, was astonished to see this scene. "Holy crap, Hyper Beam!"
At the same time, he quickly gathered an Aura Sphere in his left hand. Just as Gyarados's attack was about to hit Goh, the Aura Sphere successfully intercepted it.
Goh didn't have time to wonder where the Aura Sphere came from. He took advantage of the rising smoke to run back into the forest, "Damn it, what's going on today? Why am I so unlucky?!"
"Phew~ I almost lost the fun."
Ash wiped the non-existent cold sweat from his forehead. Although the Hyper Beam fired by Gyarados wouldn't kill Goh, it would be enough to seriously injure him. The show had just begun, and Ash didn't want it to end so quickly.
"Mew Mew"
Just as Ash was about to follow to watch the show, a pink kitten floating in mid-air appeared in front of him.