After pulling and struggling with the massive underwater creature for a moment, Adrian finally managed to reel it in using his superb fishing skills.
Splash!
A huge splash erupted, and a large, plump Seaking, whose body was orange, with white below its mouth and at its rear end, and a large creamy-yellow horn on its head, was pulled out of the water.
"It's a Seaking!"
Ash and the others cried out in surprise.
Compared to a Goldeen, the Seaking was several times larger and looked incredibly imposing.
[Successfully caught 'Seaking', rewarding 1 'Agility' TM.]
[First time catching 'Seaking', granting an additional reward of 1 'Feather of Strength'.]
At the same time, the Seaking's status panel instantly appeared.
[pokémon: Seaking]
[Type: Water]
[Ability: Swift Swim (Speed greatly increases in the rain)]
[Moves: Peck (Mastered), Supersonic (Mastered), Water Pulse (Proficient), Agility (Mastered), Horn Attack (Proficient), Waterfall (Mastered) ...]
"Awoo~"
In mid-air, the massive Seaking spat out the bait, letting out a roar like muffled thunder.
Its gaze followed the fishing line and rod, Lock-On onto Adrian, looking somewhat excited.
Hey kid, wanna battle?
Glancing at the Seaking's densely packed move list, Adrian chuckled awkwardly and quickly shielded Ash and the two others in front of him.
How is a Magikarp supposed to fight a Seaking with this kind of power?
It has no advantage in size, strength, or moves; it would definitely lose!
Furthermore, like Goldeen, Seaking can only battle in water, which is too limiting and doesn't fit Adrian's future team plans.
"Awoo~"
Seeing that Adrian had company, the Seaking didn't attack rashly. Instead, it plunged back into the water with a 'splash' and swam away disappointed.
"I'm out of bait, you guys can fish now!" said Adrian.
Unfortunately, Misty only had five pieces of special bait. He had already used two, and the remaining three were in the hands of the trio, so Adrian couldn't continue fishing even if he wanted to.
"Adrian has already caught two pokémon in a row. I can't lose to him. Today, I must catch a Gyarados!"
Ash held his fishing rod, declaring confidently.
Misty's expression changed slightly upon hearing this.
Brock, meanwhile, said, "Ash, catching a pokémon like Gyarados is quite difficult."
Ash chuckled, "If it's not difficult, catching it wouldn't be as meaningful!"
While Ash and the two others were fishing, Adrian found a corner, immersed his consciousness into the fishing space, and checked the cheat ability rewards.
[Luxury Ball: A comfortable pokémon ball to live in, which can make the captured pokémon more affectionate toward its trainer.]
[Bounce: A Flying-type move where the user leaps high into the air to attack, sometimes causing the target to become paralyzed.]
[Agility: A Psychic-type move that relaxes the body, making it lighter and significantly boosting the user's Speed.]
[Feather of Strength: A mystical feather that can raise a pokémon's Attack base stats.]
With just a thought, the reward information from the cheat ability immediately appeared.
"Having a Luxury Ball saves me the money I would have spent buying pokémon balls. Plus, it's more comfortable to live in and makes it easier to raise a pokémon's affection level."
Shifting his gaze from the Luxury Ball, Adrian focused on the two TMs and said, "Magikarp can't learn Agility, so I'll have to save it for now. But Magikarp can learn Bounce. And Magikarp can also use the Feather of Strength."
The Feather of Strength is a magical item that can raise a pokémon's base strength. Its effect is similar to an Attack Enhancer, making it perfect for Magikarp to consume.
"Magikarp!"
Adrian called out Magikarp.
"Wow! It's huge!"
"It's so thick!"
"It's so strong!"
When Magikarp appeared, Ash and the two others were greatly astonished.
Nourished by more than ten energy cubes every day, Magikarp's physique had clearly grown stronger. Its red scales shone brightly under the sun, and a light flick of its tail could create a small whirlpool. When swimming, it was both fast and stable.
"No wonder Daisy and the others lost. This Magikarp is truly extraordinary."
Misty was also filled with emotion.
Putting herself in their shoes, even if she wanted to win, she would probably have to send out her ace, Starmie.
After a brief period of astonishment, Ash and the two others continued fishing. Adrian patted Magikarp's large head and smiled, saying, "Magikarp, I'm going to teach you a new move. Whether you can take flight depends entirely on your own capabilities."
"Kyaroo~"
Magikarp's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and it let out a muffled roar similar to Seaking's, looking very excited.
The reason Magikarp has come so far is entirely thanks to its... Trainer!
Come on, Trainer!
Let me see your limits!
"Here you go!"
With a thought, Adrian activated the Bounce TM.
Immediately, the method for executing Bounce appeared in Magikarp's mind and was deeply imprinted. Every step was perfectly clear; Magikarp couldn't forget it even if it tried.
"Kyaroo~"
Before long, Magikarp reopened its eyes and nodded solemnly, indicating that it had learned the move.
It shook its head and tail, swimming, ready to show Adrian, but Adrian stopped it, joking, "I know you're eager, but please hold your excitement! I have another good thing. Don't you want it?"
"Kyaroo~"
Magikarp immediately stopped moving and straightened its posture.
There was no other way; it desperately wanted to improve!
Adrian smiled at the sight. Teasing Magikarp was one of his few regular pleasures.
While Ash and the two others were still fishing, Adrian took out the Feather of Strengtha feather that was entirely white with a small orange patch in the middleand carefully placed it on top of Magikarp's head.
The moment the feather touched Magikarp, it melted and dissolved.
Magikarp, on the other hand, trembled violently, feeling a tingling, sharp pain.
However, in terms of effectiveness, the Feather of Strength was weaker than an Attack Enhancer, so Magikarp quickly finished absorbing the energy, and its strength visibly increased.
Just then, Misty's hook finally got a bite, but it turned out to be a Goldeen.
"I already have a Goldeen," Misty sighed internally.
She did not want to catch and train duplicate pokémon.
"I've got a bite here too."
Brock shouted and also reeled in a Goldeen.
But similarly, Brock had no interest in training it.
"Did we just stumble into a Goldeen nest?" Adrian asked with a smile.
"Ash, you're the only one who hasn't caught a fish yet. You need to calm down and not be so restless, or you won't catch anything."
Misty glanced at the impatient Ash and couldn't help but remind him.
"Misty, don't worry. I'm definitely going to catch a big fish."
Ash was full of confidence, but the Pikachu behind him couldn't help but feel skeptical.
"Pika chu~"
Since Ash hadn't caught anything, Pikachu felt bored. It found Adrian's Magikarp on the shore, apparently wanting to ride around the lake.
"Pika~"
After receiving Magikarp's permission, Pikachu immediately jumped onto Magikarp's back. The fish and the mouse swam freely in the large lake, having a great time.
After an unknown amount of time, Ash's fishing rod finally moved.
"It's here, it's here! It's a big fish!" Ash exclaimed excitedly.
Ash was overjoyed and violently yanked the rod.
Others might need to play the fish, but as a Super True Newbie, Ash clearly didn't need to.
Accompanied by a "splash," the big fish was forcibly pulled out of the water.
"Huh? Why is it a Magikarp?"
Looking at the lively, jumping big fish in front of him, Ash was utterly disappointed.
"Ash, Magikarp is the pre-evolutionary form of Gyarados," said Adrian, joking.
Adrian laughed and teased, "Roughly speaking, you did catch a Gyaradosjust its juvenile form."
"When you put it that way, it seems right."
Ash nodded seriously upon hearing this. "Pikachu!"
Glancing at Adrian's Magikarp and recalling its battle record, Ash clearly had the idea of raising a Magikarp himself. He was about to summon Pikachu to shock the fish, but Pikachu wasn't nearby.
As if sensing danger, the moment Ash finished speaking, the Magikarp violently spat out the bait and thrashed its tail, which was like a cattail fan.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
After a series of sharp smacks, Ash's cheeks flushed red, and he fell directly onto the ground.
The Magikarp, on the other hand, used the recoil force to splash back into the river and quickly disappeared.
"Ouch! I actually got hit by a Magikarp!"
Ash covered his face, looking bewildered, while Brock and Misty rushed forward to check on him.
Watching this scene, Adrian secretly laughed.
However, remembering that he had also been hit before, Adrian immediately suppressed his smile.
A few minutes later, Magikarp returned to the shore with Pikachu, and Ash finally recovered.
Adrian's eyes shifted. He stepped forward and said, "Ash, let's have a pokémon battle!"