Pecha's Treasure

Tears instantly welled up in Ponpon's eyes at the sight of the broken spikes on its Ivy Cudgel. It was heartbroken.

Mingyou hurried over to comfort it, even more astonished by how sturdy the Strange Ball was. What on earth was it made of?

"There, there. I don't have Ultrahand, but I'll stick it back together with Super Glue later."

"Umu..."

Ponpon nodded gently and was soon soothed. Its Ivy Cudgel could actually repair itself, but this was the first time it had broken, and that pained it.

Mingyou dug the Strange Ball out of the dirt and examined its smooth surface. Not even a speck of soil had stuck to it. That was just ridiculous.

"I'd be more surprised if there wasn't something strange about this..."

But there was nothing he could do right now. He could only keep the Strange Ball with him and try opening it again once he found another method.

A little later, they returned to the villa.

Mingyou took out some of the candies and lollipops he had bought. The moment Munchlax spotted the snacks, it ran over and gazed up at him.

"Lax~"

I want some too~

"I never said you couldn't have any..."

Mingyou smiled helplessly and handed it some candy. Munchlax tossed the whole lot straight into its mouth, wrappers and all. It would digest everything in the end anyway, so there was no harm done.

Watching it, Mingyou pressed a hand to his forehead and shook his head, at a loss for words. Then he reminded it, "Just don't sneak into the kitchen and eat all the ingredients. I'm throwing a feast when I get back tonight!"

He had earned his first big payout, so of course they had to celebrate. He had already promised they would.

"Lax~"

"Mm."

Mingyou nodded, then gave the rest of the candy to Ponpon and showed it how to unwrap it so it wouldn't copy Munchlax.

Curious, Ponpon put a lollipop in its mouth. It had never eaten anything like this before. The moment it tasted the candy's sweet tang, its eyes went wide with disbelief.

"Umu~"

"Haha, if you like it, I'll buy you more next time. Come on, let's head to Oni Mountain."

"Umu?"

We're going now?

"Of course. It's a long way away. If we leave any later, it'll be really late by the time we get back. I still have a feast to prepare tonight."

"Umu?"

Ponpon's eyes widened in curiosity. What was a feast?

"You'll find out tonight~"

Mingyou smiled, deliberately keeping it a secret. Filled with anticipation, Ponpon took his hand, and they left the estate together, heading toward Oni Mountain...

Oni Mountain, Kitakami's symbol and landmark, was also a volcano. It had once gone by another name, but its resemblance to a horned ogre, combined with Kitakami's legends, had eventually earned it its current name.

Kitakami's water source lay at the summit, branching into streams that formed several waterfalls. The spectacular scenery drew many tourists to climb the mountain every year.

The mountain also had natural volcanic hot springs, though they only opened in winter. Slugma and Magcargo living nearby affected the temperature, making the springs far too hot at other times of year.

Because Oni Mountain's terrain was so complex, signs had been put up in many places to keep tourists from wandering off and getting hopelessly lost...

After more than an hour, Mingyou finally spotted a road that seemed to lead up the mountain. He approached and checked the sign.

"This road leads to Kitakami Hall. It should be a little shorter this way, right?"

"Umu..."

Ponpon shook its head. It didn't like taking this route because it was too easy to run into people. Those people hated it and would chase it away.

"The people from Verdant Town...?"

Mingyou scratched his head. He didn't know what Ponpon had been through, but there must have been some serious trouble between it and Kitakami's residents.

"All right, we'll take another route."

"Umu~"

As Mingyou patted its head, Ponpon immediately pointed in another direction. It knew a shortcut...

What followed was a real ordeal for Mingyou. He squeezed through gaps between rocks, tearing his shirt and trousers, and climbed steep rock faces ten or twenty meters high. His climbing even startled some Vullaby living along the cliffs.

Meanwhile, Ponpon bounded nimbly from one tiny ledge to another, moving with practiced ease.

It really was quite the shortcut. Too bad he didn't have a KTM. Fortunately, Ponpon held him with its vines, making sure he wouldn't lose his footing and fall.

After climbing the final rock face, they finally reached a mountain trail. Seeing how exhausted he was, Ponpon decided they should rest for a while.

"I think my legs are going to ache for two or three days after this... That was way too much exercise."

Mingyou rubbed his legs, then turned to look out over Kitakami from the edge of the trail. He could see Verdant Town, a tiny patch below, and even make out his estate in the distance.

He had spent so long wearing himself out, but a view like this really was something.

"Time for a photo~"

Mingyou took out his Rotom Phone and tapped the shutter, saving Kitakami's scenery to his album.

Beside him, Ponpon watched curiously. It had never seen anything like this before. It seemed magical.

"This is a phone. Here, let's take your picture~"

Mingyou aimed the camera at Ponpon and caught its curious expression with a well-timed tap of the shutter. Then he brought the phone over to show it.

"Umu~"

This is so much fun~

Seeing itself on the phone, Ponpon cupped its cheeks in surprise. Mingyou smiled and rubbed its head. "If you like it, we can find some nice backgrounds later and take more pretty pictures of you."

"Umu~"

"Come on, let's keep going."

Mingyou took its hand and stood up, then continued along the mountain trail. Before long, they discovered a whole row of stalactite caves.

From a distance, they resembled an ogre's teeth, which was why they were called the Ogre's Maw. According to the sign beside them, following the mountain trail would take them straight to Oni Mountain's summit.

"Does this way lead to Oni Mountain's Hell Valley, one of the Kitakami Six Wonders? Is that where we're going?"

Mingyou pointed toward Hell Valley as he asked.

"Umu~"

Ponpon shook its head, then pointed north. In the distance, a waterfall thundered down in a spectacular torrent.

"Beside the waterfall?"

"Umu~"

"Let's go, then."

With Ponpon leading the way, they continued up the mountain trail. After several winding turns, the path suddenly came to an end.

Ahead lay a cliff with a drop of several dozen meters. Below, the waterfall fed a pool and river where some Poliwag and Magikarp lived.

"There's no path here."

Mingyou looked around, but Ponpon led him to the cliff's edge. Only then did he notice a route to the other side.

Less than half a meter wide, it was incredibly narrow. It looked like a single-plank bridge suspended between the mountains, not even a fist thick, as though one hard step would snap the whole thing.

"..."

The sight broke Mingyou out in a cold sweat. Don't tell me we have to cross that. Can anyone really walk on it? I swear it's swaying!

"Umu~"

Taking his hand, Ponpon started across without a care. Mingyou could only steel himself and follow, doing his best not to look down.

Fortunately, the crossing wasn't long, only twenty-odd meters, but it certainly tested his nerve. He finally breathed a sigh of relief once they reached the other side.

"But we'll have to cross it again later..."

"Umu~"

Just then, Ponpon pointed at a nearby cave, indicating that they had arrived.

"Is that it?"

"Umu~"

Ponpon took his hand and immediately ran toward it while Mingyou surveyed their surroundings. This place was so remote that even someone flying overhead would struggle to notice it.

"You actually live somewhere like this..."

Soon, he followed Ponpon into the cave. It was rather dim inside, but fairly clean, with signs that someone lived there.

Some Berries were piled in a corner, alongside the plastic bag Ponpon had worn before and assorted "trash" it had picked up who knew where.

Beside them stood a huge rock covered with dead leaves gathered in some unknown season. Clearly, this was meant to be a bed.

The sight left Mingyou with a tangle of emotions, especially when he thought of Ponpon's innocent smile. He fell silent for a long time, collecting himself before finally asking, "...Is this where you usually sleep?"

"Umu~"

Ponpon nodded with a smile, then hopped onto the rock and draped the dead leaves over itself, showing him that they served as a blanket to keep it warm while it slept.

Then it picked up the "trash" beside the Berries. There were snack wrappers, empty Potion containers, and a broken old Pokédex with only its screen section remaining.

One glance was enough to tell that these were things visiting Trainers had carelessly thrown away.

Yet Ponpon had brought them home as treasures and seemed very fond of them. Innocent as it was, it had no idea...

"Umu~"

Ponpon packed the "trash" into a plastic bag. It had come back because it wanted to take these things with it.

Living alone on Oni Mountain, its only moments of happiness came when it happened to find these fascinating things it had never seen before.

"..."

Mingyou stood quietly to one side and watched. He didn't stop it, nor did he tell it the truth about its "treasures"...

Only once Ponpon had packed everything did he smile softly and step forward to take its hand. "Come on. Let's go home together."

"Umu~"