The book says that the Rusturf Tunnel is rich in minerals, but it's a well-kept secret, Rowan mused. The people of Verdanturf Town were afraid that if word got out, a flood of miners would destroy the local environment. That must be why the tunnel project was stalled for so long. Now that it's moving forward, they've probably already mined out or covered up all the valuable deposits. After all, once the Rusturf Tunnel is open, it'll mostly just be convenient for Trainers and won't cause any real environmental damage. Still, when I see Steven in a few days, I'll have to ask him to keep this quiet.
Rowan continued flipping through the pages. The book even had the exact locations of the ore veins.
The most abundant mineral under Verdanturf Town was Leaf Stone ore, followed by Water Stone ore, with a small amount of Thunder Stone ore. Besides those, there were also large deposits of metallic ores and coal. But unless they were mined in bulk, they wouldn't sell for much, so Rowan paid them little mind.
Duraludon curiously leaned its head over, peering at the book in Rowan's hands. Although it couldn't read the words, it could feel its Trainer's heart pounding with an excitement that radiated from his very being. In human terms, it was something like… striking it rich?
"We're… we're going to be rich!" Rowan exclaimed, his eyes glued to the pages. He quickly committed everything to memory. This book was his ticket to a fortune!
He figured the old landlord knew that a college grad like him would probably have a hard time finding a job. A fresh wave of gratitude for the man washed over him.
Duraludon didn't know what "rich" meant. Seeing Rowan so happy only left it confused.
Rowan saw Duraludon's bewildered expression and thought for a moment. "It means we'll have money. We can buy lots of food and drinks."
Duraludon's eyes lit up, and it began waving its arms up and down in excitement.
"Duraludon, how old are you, anyway?" Rowan suddenly turned to ask.
Duraludon held up a clawed hand.
"Five years old?"
Duraludon shook its head.
Rowan was surprised. So, this was an older partner. Old was good. Old meant more battle experience. Besides, in the world of Pokémon, you could get stronger just by living. There was no such thing as a Pokémon that had been raised for a decade and was still a weakling. And this was a Duraludon, the proud owner of 535 base stats! Just thinking about Duraludon's rich move pool made Rowan excited.
"Fifteen? That's right in your prime." Pokémon growth cycles were strange. Aside from the first few months when they were relatively fragile, they spent about ninety-five percent of their lives in their prime. A fifteen-year-old Duraludon would be the perfect partner to have at his side.
But to his surprise, Duraludon shook its head again.
"It's not… five months, is it?" Rowan hesitated. Were its bones even fully grown at five months?
Duraludon shook its head once more.
"Dur," it grunted.
Rowan could only voice the possibility he least wanted to accept. "Five days?"
Duraludon nodded. Hehe, I'm still just a baby.
Rowan put his head in his hands. He had no idea how long Duraludon's growth cycle was, but at five days, it was definitely still growing. And a growing Pokémon usually needed Moomoo Milk. The brand's reputation was solid; that stuff was genuinely good for them.
"Alright, let's go. We're heading into the mine today," Rowan said, gritting his teeth and waving a hand forward. "What we have for dinner tonight depends entirely on what we find."
Duraludon nodded, its chest puffed out, full of fighting spirit.
"Dura!" Let's go!
It was as if Duraludon had been born for this critical moment.
Carrying a flashlight and wearing a hard hat, Rowan led Duraludon toward Rusturf Tunnel. Along the way, he tried to gauge the real-world distance represented by the "squares" in the games.
An hour later, Rowan arrived at the foot of the mountain range that lay between Rustboro City and Verdanturf Town.
"A full hour's walk. It seems like one in-game square must be at least a kilometer." If that was the case, Verdanturf Town was no smaller than a small county. The economic development in the Pokémon world was truly staggering.
Rowan led Duraludon into the cave, then immediately turned left, heading deeper into the darkness. Duraludon showed a strong curiosity for everything in the cave. Although it had only been born a few days ago, its genes made it feel instantly familiar with this environment.
"It should be right around here. There ought to be a Water Stone vein. If we're lucky… Duraludon, use Metal Claw on that rock!"
Duraludon's hands immediately flashed with a silver-white light as a pair of claws, not unlike Wolverine's, materialized. It then swiped fiercely at the targeted boulder. The effect wasn't as exaggerated as it looked in the anime, but it was more than enough to completely shatter the large rock.
"Crash!"
Shards of rock flew everywhere. Rowan dodged them and his eyes lit up. A deep blue stone, glowing with a faint cerulean light, was now visible!
A Water Stone.
He could finally see a glimmer of hope for their future. Rowan immediately placed his hand on the stone.
[System binding successful]
[Rowan]
[Mineral Satchel: Empty]
[Mineral Value: None]
[Assignable Affixes: None]
[Pokémon: Duraludon]
[Level: 4]
[Ability: Light Metal]
[Moves: Metal Claw (Novice), Leer (Novice)]
[Affixes: None]
(Proficiency Levels: Novice, Skilled, Expert, Master)
Rowan stroked his chin. So this was his transmigrator's cheat.
Information about the system flooded his mind. The Mineral Satchel was an extradimensional pocket that could store any ore he personally mined. Mining ores would grant him Mineral Value, which could be used to equip, unequip, or upgrade basic affixes. The affixes themselves were the most critical part.
Affixes were derived from minerals. By collecting a mineral, he had a chance to obtain an affix related to it. For example, a Water Stone could yield Water-type affixes, while a King's Rock could yield affixes that made opponents flinch. Redundant affixes could be fused or used for upgrades. In short, he was meant to mine for affixes and equip them onto his Pokémon. These affixes could even be upgraded and fused, eventually allowing him to craft a terrifyingly powerful creature from scratch.
Rowan cleared away the debris around the Water Stone vein. Just as he was about to command Duraludon to excavate the ore, a flash of light shot out, and the vein was instantly empty. The Water Stones vanished, leaving behind only the worthless surrounding rock, as if a geological expert had meticulously extracted them.
Rowan stared, stunned.
[Mined Ores: Flawless Water Stone ×4, Damaged Water Stone ×7]
[Gained Mineral Value: 4.7]
[Gained Affix: Water Resistance]
[Water Resistance: Slightly reduces damage taken from Water-type moves.
Mineral Value to Equip: 5
Mineral Value to Upgrade: 10]
Rowan looked at the system interface, then shifted his gaze to Duraludon.
Duraludon was scratching its head. Hey? Where did all those shiny stones go? As it wondered, its eyes drifted to the ordinary rocks Rowan had tossed aside. To be honest, it was starting to get a little hungry.
Rowan crouched down, picked up a few of the rocks, and offered them to Duraludon. "Do you want to eat these?"
Duraludon nodded happily, took the stones, and began munching on them, its eyes squinting in delight.
Rowan sighed, a helpless smile on his face. This silly little guy was so happy just eating rocks.