—Does your Registeel really want to explode?
—Isn't the only reason it learned Explosion so that it could fulfill its purpose?
Gazing at the scene where Registeel and Infernape lay defeated together like a pair of star-crossed lovers, Hakuya shook his head.
He wasn't sure if it was just the sick humor of the Randomized Emerald developer.
Despite Registeel having plenty of decent moves in its movepool, whether it was a wild one encountered in the grass or one used by an NPC, they almost all had a suicide-bomber configuration with Explosion.
While a move with 250 power was terrifying and would guaranteed-KO a Pokémon upon use.
In the face of Milcery's [Wonder Guard] immunity, it didn't really matter which Pokémon was the one getting taken out—
After slicing through the Hiker duo like a knife through butter, Hakuya walked out of the maze exit.
In front of him stood a beautiful young female Gym Leader named Roxanne.
She wore a grey dress over a white shirt, with a pink ribbon tied like a butterfly at her chest.
Aside from her exquisitely crafted, perfect face, her body was completely flawless.
Her figure was slender and delicate like a willow swaying in the wind, a sight that could make any man's eyes light up.
She seemed to be waiting right there for a challenger to arrive.
But strangely, no matter how Hakuya tried to initiate a conversation, Roxanne just stood there like a mindless NPC with a blank expression, showing no intention of replying.
After searching for a while, Hakuya finally found a challenge notice posted on the main door of the Gym.
[General Rules for all Gyms in Randomized Emerald: Challengers must first defeat all apprentices in the Gym and obtain the corresponding type-specific Gym Badge in the real world before they can challenge the Gym Leader.]
"No wonder I couldn't battle. So I have to get the real-world badge of the same type first~"
Hakuya stroked his chin and nodded thoughtfully.
The primary type for the Rustboro Gym was Rock.
In other words, if he wanted to challenge Roxanne, he had to first obtain a Rock-type badge in the real world.
Looking at the entire series, there were four Rock-type Gyms in total.
The Pewter Gym in Kanto, the Rustboro Gym in Hoenn, the Oreburgh Gym in Sinnoh, and the Cyllage Gym in Kalos.
After some thought, Hakuya roughly drafted his plan for the near future.
—He would travel through the Viridian Forest with Misty, reach Pewter City, defeat Brock, and claim the Boulder Badge.
Since he was currently in Kanto, following the principle of proximity was the way to go.
With the plan settled, he checked the built-in Pidgeotto clock and saw it was nearly 6:00 PM.
Hakuya clapped his hands, calling out to the two little ones still wandering around the Gym.
"It looks like it's about time to wrap things up. Let's call it a day here~"
"Meowha~" "Nai~"
...
Reality.
Kanto Region, Viridian Forest.
The young girl wrapped her arms tightly around her chest, her palms instinctively rubbing her elbows.
She occasionally glanced around at her surroundings, her lips pressed into a thin, tight line.
Every time a breeze blew through the gaps in the trees, she would flinch violently, her sky-blue eyes scanning the area in a panic.
The sound of her own feet stepping on dry branches and fallen leaves triggered another surge of alarm.
Misty hurried to catch up, her fingertips gripping Hakuya's sleeve as she asked in a trembling voice.
"H-Hakuya... are we really going to walk through this creepy, dark forest?"
"Of course."
Hakuya nodded matter-of-factly.
"Since the Pokémon Subway is out of service, the only way to get to Pewter City now is to cut across the Viridian Forest."
After logging out of Randomized Emerald, Hakuya had followed his initial plan.
After resting in Viridian City and stocking up on travel essentials, he set off immediately toward Pewter City.
But right now, while he was eager to find a real Gym to challenge and felt full of anticipation, Misty was on the verge of fainting from fear because of the bugs in the forest.
"Eek!!!"
Seeing a Weedle as thick as ten fingers crawling out of a bush, the girl scrambled several steps away and hid behind a large tree.
"Hmm? You're saying you want to come with us?"
Looking at a Totem-sized Weedle that was actively rubbing against his shoe, Hakuya asked in confusion.
Why did he feel like his charisma was currently having a "Super Effective" effect on Pokémon?
First, it was a wild Gyarados, and now a massive Totem-level Weedle wanted to cling to him and join his team.
"Sss-woo..."
The Weedle didn't immediately confirm. Instead, it quietly glanced at the pile of food under a tree—a lavish Pokémon lunch Hakuya and Misty had set aside—and then nodded its head frantically like a Torchic pecking at grain.
Facing such a request to join the team, Hakuya naturally had to give it some deep thought.
Weedle's final evolution was the Bug/Poison type Beedrill, with a pitiful base stat total of 395—the definition of a common "route one" trash mon.
However, it was worth noting that Beedrill had an incredibly cool Mega Evolution.
With a decent stat distribution and this particular one having Totem-level potential, if he caught it now, it would definitely provide solid combat support for a long time.
Of course, Hakuya cared more about this fellow's mindset than its stats.
If it wanted to be on his team, it had to be psychologically prepared to be ruthlessly elbowed and crushed by the various overpowered monsters in Randomized Emerald.
"Sprigatito, go communicate with it first~"
Limited by the language barrier, Hakuya acted as a hands-off boss and dumped the task on Sprigatito.
But the jealous little kitten clearly had a different idea.
To prevent this Totem Weedle from following them and competing for her beloved Trainer's affection like Milcery did, Sprigatito bared her teeth and intentionally exaggerated the truth.
The Weedle's face began to drip with sweat as it listened.
What did she mean by a "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" (Rayquaza) that could burn everything to ash with a flap of its wings?!
What did she mean by an "Alpaca" (Arceus) standing in the sky, firing bursts of light with a flick of its wrist that would make heaven and earth lose their color?!
And what did she mean by "Suicidal Steel Lumps" that would trigger a massive explosion at the slightest disagreement, ensuring both sides died together?!
Are those the opponents I'm supposed to fight in the future? Hiss, that sounds terrifying...
The Totem Weedle swallowed hard, feeling its entire back soak with sweat.
Compared to traveling the world and finding a Trainer to be its long-term meal ticket, it decided it was better to stay in its own warm little nest and live a lazy, peaceful life.
The world outside had clearly turned into something it could no longer understand—
"It's finally gone, ugh..."
Seeing the Weedle's wriggling form finally disappear into the bushes, Misty, who had been hiding behind a tree peeking out with half her face, finally let out a sigh of relief.
"There's really no need to be that scared. That Weedle had a very gentle personality..."
Seeing the girl acting as if she were facing a mortal enemy, Hakuya couldn't help but laugh and shake his head.
He had figured it out by now; for Misty, the only thing scarier than a Gyarados was probably any wriggling bug Pokémon. Just catching a Caterpie and putting it in front of her would be enough to make her retreat dozens of steps.
After waving goodbye to the Totem Weedle, it was time for lunch.
Just as Hakuya set up the cooking pot, he turned his head toward the rustling bushes behind him.
"Ash, how much longer are you planning to secretly stalk us?"
"Oh crap!" "Pika-pika!"
A flustered shout rang out.
After struggling to crawl out from the thicket, Ash rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.
"Haha~ I-I guess I was spotted..."
Hakuya just looked at him with a face full of helplessness.
No kidding. Even from a distance, he could hear the sound of Ash's stomach growling and him swallowing his spit.
With tracking and camouflage skills like that, Ash could easily sit at the same table as the Team Rocket trio.