Pokémon: My Name is Lucario

Chapter 7: The Reward from the System

The night passed.

"Boom!"

"Ha, take this punch!"

"Boom, boom, boom!"

"…"

Riolu woke up to the noisy sounds of the Pokémon around him. After finally having a good night's sleep, he felt full of energy. During his time wandering around the forest, he had usually just found a clean patch of grass to sleep in. On rainy nights, he'd climb up a tree with a thick canopy to stay dry, lying on the branches to pass the night. Thanks to Riolu's dense fur, he never really felt the cold, even though the temperature in the forest was lower at night.

However, as accustomed as a Pokémon might be to sleeping outdoors, the comfort of a proper "bed" still made Riolu feel pleasantly surprised.

"Ugh, here it comes again!" Suddenly, a familiar sensation hit Riolu's heart.

At the same time, the fur on his body stood on end, as if something had triggered it.

"What's going on? Did my heart disease come with me into this world?" Riolu frowned, trying to flatten the hairs that were standing up.

The strange sensation made him feel uneasy. He even wondered if his old heart condition had somehow followed him into this new body. But after feeling his strong heartbeat and the energy coursing through his body, he quickly dismissed the thought.

"Could it be some danger, and I'm just sensing it?" He shrugged off the feeling, deciding not to dwell on it too much. It was then that he noticed the bustling sounds coming from outside.

"Huh, why's it so noisy outside?"

Stretching lazily, Riolu curiously stepped out of the hut.

On the gravel clearing outside, he saw Machop, Geodude, Gloom, and other Pokémon gathered in a circle. In the center, Machop and Mankey were engaged in a fierce battle, exchanging various exciting moves while other Pokémon cheered and exclaimed.

Without thinking, Riolu opened his Pokédex:

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[Pokédex]

Encounter Progress: 16/25

Battle Progress: 0/10

[Real-time Analysis]

Pokémon: Common - Machop x1

Level: Lv13

Type: Fighting

Ability: No Guard (All moves will hit the target)

Moves: Low Kick (Lv1), Revenge (Lv1), Focus Energy (Lv0)

Pokémon: Common - Mankey x1

Level: Lv12

Type: Fighting

Ability: Vital Spirit (Cannot fall asleep)

Moves: Scratch (Lv1), Leer (Lv0)

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"Take this Scratch!"

Mankey quickened its pace, claws flashing with sharp edges as it slashed at Machop, forming a deadly net of glistening blades.

"Ugh!" Machop crossed its arms to block, enduring Mankey's relentless scratching.

"Swish! Swish!"

Mankey's claws left several bloody streaks across Machop's arms and body. However, after a while, Mankey began showing signs of exhaustion.

"Now's my chance!"

Machop, who had been on the defensive, noticed Mankey's momentary sluggishness, and its eyes gleamed with determination.

"Revenge!"

While keeping its left hand raised to block Mankey's attacks, Machop's right fist quickly swung down, wrapped in a brown-red energy.

Seeing the incoming strike, Mankey tried to retreat, but Machop, having already seized control of the battle, pulled Mankey back towards itself with a quick grab, then slammed the charged fist upward.

"Ha!"

The energy exploded in a burst as Machop's fist collided with Mankey. The intense shockwave sent sand flying into the air.

"Ahhh—"

Mankey flew backward, slamming hard into the ground. Its round body curled up in pain, unable to recover immediately.

Revenge: When hit by an opponent's move, this move retaliates with double the damage.

"Nice counterattack!" Riolu exclaimed softly, impressed.

In his past life, he had loved watching combat sports, which is what led him to become a professional fighter. Seeing this type of close combat again in the Pokémon world made his blood boil with excitement.

Two bright green lights shot from the sidelines toward Machop and Mankey.

"Aromatherapy."

With the crisp sound, the green light enveloped Mankey, and its pained expression slowly eased. Meanwhile, Machop's injuries also started to heal.

A Pokémon with a large flower on its head appeared, wearing a slightly annoyed expression.

"How many times have I told you? You need to control your strength during morning training. Keep doing this, and I'll stop healing you."

Vileplume scolded the two battling Pokémon, and they immediately started apologizing, sweating profusely from the reprimand.

The other Pokémon, seemingly scared of Vileplume's lecture, silently scattered away.

Riolu checked the Pokédex data on Vileplume:

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[Pokédex]

Encounter Progress: 17/25

Battle Progress: 0/10

[Real-time Analysis]

Pokémon: Elite - Vileplume (Female)

Level: Lv28

Type: Grass + Poison

Ability: Effect Spore (Has a chance to cause sleep, paralysis, or poisoning when hit)

Special: Fragrance (The scent of the petals enhances healing, increasing its effectiveness)

Moves: Petal Dance (Lv3), Aromatherapy (Lv3), Grass Knot (Lv3), Toxic Powder (Lv2), Absorb (Lv1), Sleep Powder (Lv1), Stun Spore (Lv1)

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"This level, and these moves," Riolu thought in awe. "It's only second to the Squirtle leader in this valley."

After finishing the scolding, Vileplume noticed Riolu, who was a new face in the valley. After thinking for a moment, Vileplume smiled at him.

"You must be the new Pokémon from yesterday. My mischievous ones must have caused you some trouble."

"Oh, it's nothing. I was just running away with them." Riolu chuckled awkwardly, recalling the chaotic chase with the Pidgey the day before.

Vileplume shook her petals, and from within, a small bottle dropped. It contained golden, viscous liquid, and a sweet fragrance wafted from it.

"Here, this is some flower nectar I gathered this morning in the forest. If you don't mind, you can try it."

"Thank you, that sounds great."

The sweet scent of the nectar triggered Riolu's hunger, and he eagerly opened the bottle and took a sip.

"This taste!" The sweet flavor exploded in his mouth, thrilling his taste buds and filling him with an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.

"It's hard to find this nectar. I only managed to collect a small bottle today, so enjoy it," Vileplume said, watching Riolu savor the flavor with a smile.

"I must be going now. Feel free to visit us Gloom anytime. However, I suggest you train with Machop. You're still too weak."

With that, Vileplume turned and left.

After reluctantly closing the bottle, Riolu stored it in his Bag.

He had used this Bag feature multiple times during his travels. It functioned just like a game's inventory system, allowing him to store any non-living objects and retrieve them when needed. To store something, he simply concentrated on it, silently thinking "store" or "take" to place items into or retrieve them from the bag.

Interestingly, when items were placed in the bag, they were automatically organized and categorized, and when he focused on an item, he could view its details.

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[Bag]

Common Items: Weeds x2, Broken Stones x2

Healing Items: None

Berries: Orange Berry x3, Pecha Berry x1, Regular Berry x10

TMs: None

Battle Items: None

Special Items: Water Stone x2, Pokémon Flower Nectar x1

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Pokémon Flower Nectar: A sweet nectar that can change the form of specific Pokémon.

Water Stone: A blue evolution stone filled with water energy.

As Riolu was about to store the nectar, his eyes suddenly landed on something that caught his attention.

"Water Stone? Where did this come from?"

He was confused, flipping through the Pokédex and trying to figure out the source of the Water Stones. Finally, he noticed a notification at the bottom-right corner that he had missed earlier.

"Pokédex: Pokémon Encounter Progress has reached 10/10. Reward (Water Stone x2) has been issued to your Bag. Please check it."

It was the reward from the Encounter Progress he had thought was useless!

Quickly, Riolu opened the Pokédex to check:

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[Pokédex]

Encounter Progress: 17/25

Battle Progress: 0/5

[Real-time Analysis]

None

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"I remember this reward notification popped up when I entered the 'Sunny Valley' and interacted with Machop. So, Encounter Progress must refer to the number of Pokémon I've met. Based on this, when I reach 25 Pokémon, the System should issue another reward."

"And Battle Progress is likely related to the number of Pokémon I've fought. Oddly, the encounter with the Pidgey didn't count, so there must be some specific conditions for it to be considered a battle."

Riolu thought carefully.

What he had thought was just a simple Pokémon tracker and dimensional storage system had turned out to be a hidden achievement reward system. Riolu couldn't help but feel a wave of satisfaction.

After pulling out the two blue Water Stones and playing with them, Riolu suddenly remembered something important.

"There are so many true Fighting-type Pokémon here. This is the perfect opportunity to ask them how to properly use moves!"

Suddenly, Riolu had a brilliant idea.