Poké Ball

"Rustle, rustle."

The movement in the bushes grew louder and louder. Vierde backed away in terror, only to trip over a stone and fall to the ground.

He deeply regretted never learning martial arts. Years of drinking and debauchery had hollowed out his body.

When I get back this time, I'm definitely quitting drinking!

"Pika." A monster's low growl came from the bushes, though surprisingly, it did not sound very frightening.

Of course, Vierde was still scared half to death.

"Pika pika!"

A yellow bolt of lightning shot straight at Vierde, making him cry out as he instinctively shut his eyes.

"Pika?"

But the death he had expected never came. Instead, something soft and furry landed in his arms.

He forced himself to open his eyes and finally saw the strange creature in full.

"What? What is this thing?" Vierde stared in astonishment at the yellow creature before him. It had a round little body, long pointed ears, and an oddly shaped lightning-bolt tail.

"A mutated rat!?"

"Pika!"

Pikachu grew angry at the insult in his words.

The wild Pikachu used Thunderbolt!

It was super effective!

"Crackle, crackle—"

A burst of wildly exaggerated lightning flashed, and Vierde, now sporting an afro, fainted.

After an unknown amount of time, he slowly woke to something wet licking his cheek. The moment he opened his eyes, he saw the giant yellow rat that had electrocuted him.

This time, however, he did not scream.

"Sir, Grandpa Rat, please just give me a quick death," Vierde said mournfully. "I'll never come to a dungeon again. Never again for the rest of my life."

Pikachu kept licking his paw. Hearing him, it glanced his way, and Vierde saw a humanlike emotion in its eyes—pity.

I'm being pitied by a monster?

Vierde could not even bring himself to get angry. He only kept begging Pikachu to put him out of his misery, while Pikachu did nothing but circle around him.

After a while, he pulled himself together.

"You won't kill me even when I'm offering myself up? What kind of strange monster are you?"

Picking up a branch to use as a cane, Vierde limped through the forest. His thoughts were simple now:

Find a monster to kill him!

Because he did not dare kill himself. That would hurt too much.

Adventurers' Teleportation Crystals could not be used voluntarily; they could only activate after death. It was absurdly unfair, but it was an iron rule of every dungeon.

Whether one died by suicide or murder, it would activate.

The forest was filled with birdsong and flowers, completely unlike the poisonous swamp. It was easy to forget that this was a dungeon full of danger.

"Pika pika."

"Why are you following me?" Vierde poked Pikachu with his branch. "If you're not going to kill me, then get lost."

Pikachu's tail shot upright, electricity crackling around it.

"Alright, alright! If you want to follow me, then follow me. Just don't discharge electricity!"

A down-and-out young nobleman and a strange Pikachu—such an odd pair began exploring the forest together.

"There must be monsters in that town. I'm going there."

With Undead Town as his destination, Vierde limped onward, only to encounter an unexpected situation halfway there.

As he passed through a patch of grass, something suddenly jumped out!

"Whoa, what kind of weird monster is this? I've never seen anything like it!"

The monster looked like a purple-black sphere floating in midair. Its eyes and mouth were clustered on the ball's surface, making it ugly yet oddly cute.

A wild Gastly appeared!

Vierde instinctively took a step back, but his desire to return home drove him toward Gastly. He believed this fierce-looking monster would surely kill him.

It did not disappoint him. Gastly attacked!

The wild Gastly used Shadow Ball!

Vierde spread his arms wide without trying to dodge!

Just as he was about to embrace death, however—

"Pikachu!"

Pikachu suddenly darted over, knocking Vierde to the ground and narrowly helping him avoid the attack.

"What are you doing!?" Vierde only got angry after the fact.

Pikachu gave him a look as though he were an idiot, then turned toward Gastly and assumed a fighting stance.

The wild Gastly used Confuse Ray!

It missed Pikachu!

The wild Pikachu used Thunder Shock!

The two Pokémon fought fiercely, with flashy effects flying everywhere. It was the first time Vierde had seen monsters fighting each other, and he was completely dumbfounded.

"That monster is... protecting me?"

An absurd feeling arose in his heart. Everyone knew that monsters were synonymous with madness and bloodlust. They could not be communicated with, much less protect humans.

Watching Pikachu fight so hard, he felt moved for a moment, and his desire to die weakened considerably.

This monster seems pretty nice too, doesn't it? If I survive, I'll take it out with me as a pet.

It really has good taste, knowing to protect me.

The battle soon came to an end. Pikachu ultimately proved more skilled and claimed victory. Gastly let out a strange cry and fled in disgrace.

"Cough, cough."

Leaning against a tree, Vierde coughed twice to get Pikachu's attention.

He struck what he thought was a dashing pose, extended a hand toward it, and said:

"I acknowledge your determination to protect this young master. Come with me, monster. I'll let you live the most luxurious life."

Pikachu stared at him expressionlessly, then suddenly leaped up and swung its tail.

Pikachu used Iron Tail!

"Pwah—"

Vierde was knocked to the ground in one blow. Covering his reddened cheek, he said shakily, "You actually dared to hit me."

"Pika pika." Pikachu stood with its hands on its hips, looking utterly disdainful.

Its tail swished a few times, and crackling filled the air. Lightning was clearly beginning to form, frightening Vierde into backing away again and again as he pleaded, "Stop hitting me, stop! I surrender!"

He truly could not understand what this yellow rat wanted. Why had it suddenly latched onto him?

It can't possibly want me to take it outside, can it?

Pikachu wore an expression that said, "That's more like it," then nimbly jumped onto his head and patted it as if claiming ownership.

Vierde somehow felt as though he had been chosen. Not in the sense of being liked, but like a pet spotting a favorite poop-scooper.

I'm doomed. The yellow demon has latched onto me!

Under Pikachu's direction, Vierde wandered around the forest like a puppet on strings, having no idea where they were going.

This is bad, this is bad. It's not taking me back to its nest to eat me, is it?

After the earlier skirmish with Gastly, Vierde had become afraid of dying again.

"Pika!"

Pikachu suddenly smacked him on the head, signaling for Vierde to crouch down and search the grass over there.

What could possibly be in the grass?

He muttered to himself and reluctantly rummaged through it, only to actually feel something.

"What's this?"

He pulled out a round ball slightly smaller than his palm. It was red and white, simple yet aesthetically pleasing.

Poké Ball