The moment Hayato looked at the small white bell in his hand, his delight was written all over his face.
"It's the Shell Bell! That's a divine item! What a pity I don't have a strong attacker to make the most of it!"
[Shell Bell: When the Pokémon holding this item successfully deals damage, the holder restores HP equal to 1/8 of the damage dealt.]
Unlike certain key items that are permanently bound to a Pokémon, most held items can be swapped or removed freely. The Shell Bell was rare—but not unique—and in battle, it was considered an artifact-tier treasure.
As he thought about offensive Pokémon, Hayato suddenly remembered—his Fusion Attempts had just refreshed. Excitement flickered in his chest.
"Come out, Spearow! Ponyta!"
He deftly navigated the system's interface and pressed the Confirm button on the projection screen.
"Let's do this!"
[High-Energy Alert:Lucky Encounter – Dream of Supremacy has been triggered. This fusion is guaranteed to produce a Shiny Pokémon. The refresh task may be saved for later use, including on Exclusive Legendary Fusions. Proceed with fusion?]
Hayato blinked, momentarily stunned. He thought he'd gotten some rare Pokémon, not just a "lucky encounter."
"A Shiny, huh? Isn't that just a recolor? As for Legendary-exclusive fusions, that's way off for now. I'll take this one—there'll be more chances later!"
After confirming, the fusion began. Hayato clasped his hands and silently prayed.
This time, the light was dazzling—brighter and longer-lasting than ever before. When he opened his eyes, a mysterious, ominous egg sat on the ground, its surface black and gleaming with intricate demonic patterns that seemed to pulse with dark energy.
Hayato inhaled sharply.
"What kind of creature is this…? It feels powerful! Don't tell me—I hit the jackpot?!"
By "jackpot," of course, he meant a pseudo-legendary or even a Tier 2 Legendary. Those were the strongest Pokémon one could normally obtain through regular fusion!
Then—crack!
The shell split open. Hayato held his breath, heart pounding wildly.
From the top of the egg emerged a fin-like structure—jet-black and sharp. The creature was small, but the feature struck him like lightning.
"Wait—that's… a Pseudo-Legendary hatchling? Could it be… Larvitar?"
Just as he suspected, a Shiny Larvitar broke free of its shell. Its entire body was pitch black, its eyes gleaming with fierce determination. It was cool beyond words.
"Incredible! Holy crap, I'm rich! If it's Adamant nature, this is perfect!"
The Shiny Larvitar waddled over to him happily.
"Aww, come here, you little cutie."
The small Pokémon obeyed with surprising gentleness. Hayato beamed, overjoyed.
[Unknown Pokémon Detected. No matching entry found. Unable to analyze further.]
Even the Pokédex failed to identify it—but the system displayed full data.
[Shiny Larvitar. Rock-type Pokémon. It feeds on nutrients in the soil. After consuming enough dirt to equal the mass of a mountain, it will evolve into a pupa.]
[Nature: Adamant | Gender: None | Type: Rock + Ground | Ability: — | Base Stats: 330 | HP: 55 | Attack: 70 | Defense: 55 | Sp. Atk: 50 | Sp. Def: 55 | Speed: 45]
Hayato's eyes widened.
"Perfect nature… and wait, those stats—up by ten percent?! What the—are Shinies this strong? Once it evolves into Tyranitar, it'll be almost on par with a Tier 1 Legendary! My little one, wear this Shell Bell—you're going to be my priority project!"
After receiving the gift, Shiny Larvitar smiled with satisfaction and rubbed affectionately against Hayato's leg. Though barely 0.6 meters tall, it weighed over 70 kilograms—far too heavy for Hayato to lift.
Once he recalled Larvitar into its Poké Ball, he checked his next fusion materials.
"Huh? A Bagon and a Butterfree? You expect me to catch a Bagon in Kanto? That's got to be a bug in the system! Forget it—if I had a Bagon, I'd just raise it into a Salamence, not fuse it away!"
Just as he was grumbling, the system chimed again:
[Notice:Beginner Assistance Program has officially ended. Future fusion materials will now be randomized. Difficulty of acquisition will increase significantly. Please be prepared.]
Hayato wasn't surprised. If every fusion were easy, that'd make no sense. Still, he hadn't expected the materials to include Pokémon from outside Kanto.
"Heh, one perfect Shiny Tyranitar is enough for me. Whatever—no rush. Compared to Ash and the others, I'm already way ahead. Jumping straight to the top would just be boring."
Sure, if he somehow got a Mewtwo, he'd probably be thrilled beyond words—but that'd also kill the fun of the challenge. The system's "randomness" probably wasn't pure chance anyway. If it started spitting out Tier 2 Legendaries, he'd become unstoppable.
Deciding to skip the next fusion, Hayato strolled onward at a relaxed pace.
Before long, he spotted a wide stretch of coastline ahead.
"A beach, huh? Then that must mean… Vermilion City's nearby."
He then noticed a tall structure jutting up in the distance.
"Wait—that's a lighthouse? Nice! Let's go have a look!"
Inside the Lighthouse, a Pokémon researcher turned and frowned slightly upon seeing him.
"This is my private research area. Please leave immediately."
Hayato's mind sparked with inspiration.
"Hold on—are you Bill, by any chance? Professor Oak sent me!"
Bill raised an eyebrow, then relaxed slightly.
"Ah, if you're recommended by Professor Oak, then I suppose I can trust you—but forgive me, there have been a lot of impostors lately. I'll need confirmation."
He initiated a video call to Professor Oak.
"Oh! Hayato! And Bill too! Didn't expect to see you two together already. Then again, not that surprising—Gary reached Vermilion City three days ago!"
Hayato blinked in disbelief.
"Gary's that fast? Did he hitch a ride or something?"
Professor Oak chuckled.
"Beats me. But he's already caught forty-five Pokémon! And Ash has seven! You'd better keep up!"
"Wait—Professor, how do you know how many they've caught?"
"Oh, come now! Don't you know a Trainer can only carry six Pokémon at once? Any extras are automatically transferred to me—the Pokédex registration site!"
Only then did Hayato remember that rule. His system, though, was different—it allowed him to carry up to ten Pokémon at once, probably for fusion purposes.
"So Gary's just catching everything he sees, huh? I'm not doing that. Weak Pokémon are a waste of time. I'm taking the elite route."
"Haha, that's the spirit! Just like your father. Well then, I've got work to do. See you two later!"
After the call ended, Bill led Hayato deeper into his laboratory.
"See these? These are the Pokémon I've been studying. Over 150 species cataloged so far—and many more still undiscovered."
Hayato looked around in awe.
"So, Bill… you've been stationed here this whole time?"
Bill shook his head.
"Not always. Lately, I've been researching a mysterious Pokémon that appears near this lighthouse at night. It's enormous—and very powerful."
"A mysterious Pokémon, huh? That big?"
"Yes. I've been trying to make direct contact, but it's extremely cautious—doesn't seem to like humans much. Might just be its temperament."
Hayato's eyes gleamed with curiosity.
"It'll be night soon, right? I'd love to see this mysterious Pokémon for myself!"
"Heh, no problem."
(End of Chapter)