The Trouble with Internal Grudges (4k)

Night fell, shrouding the entire Mt. Coronet range.

All the lights in the internet cafe had gone out, and the surrounding forest was silent.

But just then, a dark shadow drifted out from the bushes and silently floated toward the internet cafe.

Its body flickered in and out of view beneath the moonlight, while its scarlet eyes gleamed with cold light in the darkness.

The shadow circled the internet cafe once, seeming to observe something. In the end, it returned to the entrance and stretched out a hand.

Buzz!

An invisible barrier lit up before the door, blocking its hand.

The shadow paused, then reached out again.

The barrier did not budge. It even rippled with faint golden waves, knocking its hand back.

The shadow stared at the door, a trace of confusion flashing through its scarlet eyes.

It floated around the exterior walls of the internet cafe, attempting to enter through one of the side windows—

The same invisible barrier had sealed every entrance tightly. There was simply no way in.

In the end, the shadow stopped before the front door again and silently watched the internet cafe for a long time.

Then, it turned around and slowly vanished into the night.

Upstairs, Luo Chen turned over in his sleep, completely unaware of any of this.

And there was something else he did not know about that was happening.

A red notification box quietly appeared before his eyes.

[Today's business hours have ended. Conducting final settlement]

[The world line has shifted slightly... A certain event is taking place.]

[Current progress: 1%]

The notifications lingered in the air for several seconds before quietly fading away.

Meanwhile, in the Kanto region, thousands of miles away.

Beneath gloomy clouds, waves churned across the sea.

On an island amid those waves, inside a laboratory hidden underground.

In the dimly lit cultivation room, enormous cylindrical incubation tanks stood in rows, each filled with pale green nutrient fluid.

At the very center stood a tank three times larger than the others. It swayed slightly, and floating within it was... a purple embryo.

A man in a white lab coat stood before the tank, carefully observing the embryo while recording his findings.

[X-23 Artificial Pokémon Project, Eighteenth Cultivation Attempt]

[One week has passed. The embryo shows no signs of life. This experiment is marked as a failure.]

[Conclusion: The genetic parameter sequence was not precise enough, resulting in embryonic developmental failure.]

After finishing his notes, he sighed softly and turned to leave the laboratory.

However, what he did not know was that the instant he left—

The purple embryo in the fluid suddenly trembled faintly.

The night passed without incident.

Morning sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains and fell across Luo Chen's face.

He opened his eyes and gave a long stretch.

Sleeping in the mountains really was comfortable. The air was good, and he woke up feeling completely refreshed.

The sky outside had not fully brightened yet. A thin morning mist hung over the forest, and birdsong drifted from afar.

Luo Chen got up, washed up quickly, then went downstairs to the juice machine. Using yesterday's second recipe, he mixed himself a can of Berry Soda before sitting behind the counter.

The system panel appeared as well.

[Good morning. A new day has begun!]

[Main quest updated!]

[Main Quest: The First Step Toward Bigger and Stronger! (C)]

[Quest Objective: Total customer internet time reaches 5 hours, and total number of customers reaches 2.]

[Current Progress: Total computer time 1/5, Total customers 1/2]

[Quest Reward: Unlock additional function "Internet Cafe Store," random special facility x1, 5 Universal Emotion Points, C-rank Blind Box x1]

Luo Chen's gaze stopped on the rewards section. This time, the rewards actually looked quite generous.

And... the Internet Cafe Store?

If he had guessed right, the different Emotion Points he had obtained yesterday were probably meant to be exchanged for things there.

But then again, if he wanted to claim those rewards...

Five hours of computer time—judging by Cynthia's progress of one hour yesterday, if she came every day and spent more time online each day, he could probably finish that by the third day.

As for the second requirement, the total customer count had to reach two.

Luo Chen could not help touching his nose.

That one was going to be harder.

The internet cafe was deep within Mt. Coronet. There was not another person within a hundred miles. Honestly, even meeting Cynthia felt like a miracle to him.

There was no way he could go out and recruit customers himself.

Luo Chen leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment.

Maybe he could ask Cynthia to introduce the internet cafe to her friends, then have her bring one along the next time she came...

Well, if she came today, he would ask whether she could do him that favor.

With that thought, just as Luo Chen was about to close the panel, his eyes suddenly caught a lingering notification.

The notification hovered at the edge of the panel. Its text was smaller than the other messages and easy to overlook.

[World line shift triggered]

[Current event progress: 1%]

Luo Chen blinked and stared at the words for several seconds.

A world line shift?

What did that mean?

As he considered it, two more notifications appeared behind it.

[Whenever the host's daily business undergoes final settlement, the world line shift will advance according to the host's business performance, increasing the progress of certain special events.]

[The progress of these special events will have an enormous impact on the world where the host's internet cafe is currently located and will trigger corresponding event quests.]

After reading them, Luo Chen frowned.

So as long as he kept running the shop, all sorts of special events would occur in this world?

What kind of things could even be called special events?

It could not possibly mean things on the level of the Hoenn trio fighting, Mewtwo Strikes Back, the arrival of an Ultra Wormhole, or an attack by Team Rainbow Rocket... could it?

He shook his head slightly.

—Impossible. Absolutely impossible!

If things really got that big, could he even keep this internet cafe open?

With that in mind, he casually browsed the system panel's other functions, roughly familiarizing himself with the various interfaces before closing it. He felt a little bored.

His gaze could not help drifting toward the only computer in the distance.

Since he had no idea when Cynthia would come today, maybe he could play Pokémon Emerald for a while first?

But just as he stood up, he heard movement outside.

Luo Chen raised his head and looked toward the internet cafe's front door.

The door was pushed open, and the newcomer was Cynthia.

She had changed into a different outfit today. A long black trench coat had replaced yesterday's clothes, and her hair had been redone. She looked much more formal.

Her gaze swept across the hall at once, lingering briefly on the refrigerated drinks cabinet before falling on Luo Chen behind the counter.

"Boss, I'm here to use the internet."

Seeing her travel-worn appearance, the slight fatigue on her face, and Garchomp behind her, Luo Chen could not help freezing for a moment.

"You..."

"Don't tell me you flew here the whole way?"

Cynthia froze too.

She had spent nearly the entire night thinking about the internet cafe and barely slept. At daybreak, she had immediately set out with Garchomp.

It was only when Luo Chen spoke that she remembered something important.

—Yesterday, he seemed to have said that as long as she found a door, said "Origin Internet Cafe," and walked through it, she could come directly to the internet cafe.

But... she had been in such a hurry that she seemed to have forgotten.

A brief silence fell over the room.

In the end, Luo Chen spoke first.

"Two hours today. Go ahead."

As he spoke, he walked out from behind the counter and turned on the computer while nodding at Garchomp.

"Garchomp, good morning."

"Raaah."

Garchomp was clearly much more familiar with Luo Chen now. It waved a claw and quickly responded.

Cynthia sat before the computer, took a deep breath, and launched the game again.

She had two hours of game time today. She wondered how much progress she could make...

She would give it everything she had.

But just then, Luo Chen came to her side and placed a can before her.

"Have a drink. This is a new beverage service from the internet cafe."

The moment he finished speaking, a notification popped up on Cynthia's screen.

[Consume 1 Internet Cafe Point to exchange for a beverage?]

Internet Cafe Points... were those the points she had received after finishing yesterday's session?

At the time, she had assumed they were merely reward points for some ordinary shop promotion and had not thought much of them. She had not expected to use them today.

"Thank you."

She accepted the can from Luo Chen, and a notification that her points had been deducted appeared before vanishing.

Honestly, Cynthia was not particularly interested in this kind of drink. She usually preferred alcohol.

But the instant she twisted open the can, an unusual fragrance flooded her nose—rich and sweet.

She instinctively lifted the can and took a sip, her eyes widening at once.

This fruity aroma and sweetness... she had never experienced anything like it. It carried a sense of pure naturalness.

Cynthia could not help taking two more sips. But the moment she set the can down, she felt a surge of warmth erupt within her body.

Her fatigue vanished instantly, and the strained nerves weakened by her sleepless night were completely restored at that moment.

More than that, she felt as though her entire body was filled with vitality.

Ever since becoming Champion, Cynthia had been occupied with all sorts of matters every day. Exhaustion from constant travel and work had become routine, and she had long grown accustomed to the ever-present fatigue.

But this clear, refreshed feeling... she did not know how long it had been since she last experienced it.

This was... the effect of that drink?

Cynthia immediately realized it.

Garchomp beside her also noticed the change in Cynthia's state and expression and tilted its head in confusion.

As far as it remembered, it had not seen its trainer display such intense emotional fluctuations in a long time.

Whether it was last night or now.

Ever since she entered this store, it was as if she had become a different person...

Just as Garchomp racked its dragon brain trying to figure out what exactly had happened to its trainer, another can was held out directly before it.

"Garchomp, this one's for you."

Luo Chen smiled.

Garchomp looked at the offered can but did not take it immediately. Instead, it instinctively turned its gaze toward Cynthia.

Cynthia nodded slightly.

Only after receiving permission did Garchomp reach out with a claw to take the can, cautiously bringing it to its mouth for a small sip.

The next moment, its eyes suddenly lit up.

Garchomp's tail swayed unconsciously. Then it raised its head and gulped down the drink in huge mouthfuls.

However, the instant it swallowed the last sip, Garchomp's expression suddenly changed.

It abruptly lowered its head, the scales all over its body standing on end as a scorching current of air spread outward from within it.

Cynthia immediately sensed that something was wrong and turned to look at Garchomp.

"What's wrong?"

Garchomp seemed equally surprised and let out a low roar at Cynthia.

"Roar!"

Cynthia froze.

"You're saying... you've become stronger?"

Garchomp nodded wildly.

Cynthia was stunned for a moment.

When Garchomp had absorbed the resources she prepared for it in the past, this sort of reaction would occasionally occur. There was nothing unusual about it, and she had long since grown used to it.

But the problem was that ever since several years ago, her Garchomp had already been stuck at the Champion-level bottleneck and could not improve even the slightest bit.

Although neither she nor Garchomp had stopped moving forward because of that, and they continued battling and training constantly, she had also realized that what Garchomp could improve now was only its combat experience and skill proficiency, not its actual strength.

But now, just a can of drink had accomplished what all those rare resources could not?

If it had been yesterday, she never would have believed it.

But after witnessing the authenticity of that archaeological ability... it seemed that nothing happening in this internet cafe could surprise her that much anymore...

At that thought, Cynthia took a deep breath and nodded at Luo Chen.

"Thank you. I still have points here—deduct the cost of that bottle from them."

But Luo Chen shook his head and looked at Garchomp.

"No need. This one's a gift for it."

He smiled again.

"I really like Pokémon like Garchomp."

The moment he finished speaking, Garchomp's expression visibly froze, as though he did not know how to react.

But then he noticed Cynthia beside him. He gave a light cough, moved closer to her, and immediately put on a stern expression.

"Roar."

It was only a can of juice. That was nowhere near enough to buy him off!

This human clearly had ulterior motives, and there was something wrong with this place too!

However, before he could finish psyching himself up, he heard Luo Chen muttering from across the room.

"Rocky Helmet and Rough Skin can work together to chip away at opponents' HP. Choice Scarf, Choice Band, Swords Dance, and Scale Shot offensive builds are great too—high power, high speed, such broad coverage, and a Paldea League champion. It's really hard not to love it once you've used one..."

"It's just a shame that for some reason it can't learn Dragon Dance, and after Mega Evolution it even loses ten points of Speed... Sigh, the internal hate. The Game Freak designers must have been privately funded."

Garchomp: ???

Although he could not understand most of what the other person had said.

Why did it all somehow sound... like it was not anything good??