"That's so exciting to watch!"
"Arthur! Hurry and give us the egg—we want to have our own Pokémon battle too!"
"My grandfather used to be a Monster Tamer. This really brings back memories..."
"Pokémon are way better than monsters! You don't have to learn any complicated Taming spells, and they understand your commands perfectly!"
"It does seem kind of limited though. Most of what we saw was just Thunder Shock and Water Gun being tossed back and forth."
"Dad, are you serious? Those Pokémon are literally babies. Of course they only know one or two moves!"
"..."
As the chatter grew louder and more animated, village chief Joey raised his cane and cast a spell to amplify his voice. "Alright, that's enough. Show's over—head home!"
The crowd booed, calling him a spoilsport, but they still obeyed. Within seconds, the village square emptied out, leaving only a few nearby residents lingering with Arthur's family and the chief.
"Ohoho... I'm old, but your little performance made me feel young again," the village chief chuckled warmly. "I'm looking forward to training my rat to compete with your electric mouse, young Arthur." He gave Arthur a pat on the shoulder.
Suddenly, a glowing magic circle formed beneath the chief's feet. A soft blue light engulfed him, and in a blink, he vanished.
Teleportation? Arthur stood frozen in place, stunned. He had no idea the village chief was capable of such advanced magic.
What surprised him more was the look on his parents' and Lena's faces—they were just as shocked. But the strangest thing? The nearby villagers didn't react at all.
"Dad... you never told me our village chief was that powerful," Lena said, earning Arthur's silent nod of approval.
Hector scratched his head, frowning. "I knew he was a skilled mage, but not to this extent... Honey?" He turned to Anna.
She shook her head slowly. "I also have no idea. And... it seems like none of the others even noticed he teleported."
That's when both Hector and Lena glanced around, unease creeping into their expressions. The atmosphere felt strangely eerie. They could still hear the villagers chatting about the village chief, pointing and booing toward the spot where he had stood—acting as if he were still there.
I'm not in some creepy horror story, am I? Arthur mused wryly. Then he said aloud, "Maybe it was meant just for us—because we have Pokémon?"
Hector hesitated, then nodded. "Whatever the case, it's good to know we have such a powerful mage watching over the village. It makes me feel better about having these little guys around." He gently patted Beedrill on the head. The Pokémon remained alert, eyes scanning the area warily since the moment the chief vanished.
Arthur nodded in agreement.
There was no point overthinking it. If the chief had wanted to steal their Pokémon, he could've done it long ago. And of all the Pokémon to choose, he went with a rat?
No offense to Rattata, but it hardly fit the image of a wise and powerful mage.
With that thought lingering, they chose not to dwell on it any further and made their way home together.
---
After they returned home and had dinner—which Arthur cooked, as usual—they all headed to their bedrooms.
Arthur and Lena shared one room, while Hector and Anna took the other.
"Not bad," Arthur said with a satisfied nod, lying on the bed as he watched the glowing screen of his Pokédex confirm that both Pichu and Squirtle had reached level 6.
Though neither Pokémon had knocked the other out, this was the real world—not a game. In real battles, experience came from effort. As long as they exerted themselves, they could grow stronger. And both Pichu and Squirtle had pushed themselves hard today.
Compared to his first group of summoned Pokémon—Butterfree, Beedrill, and Ponyta—whose growth had been slow due to limited opportunities outside their Poké Balls, this new batch had far more freedom to train and interact. They were only level 6 for now, but their progress would be much faster—at least until level 10. That was when the pace would really start to slow down.
"Bro, I'm totally beating you next time!" Lena announced, striding over with an exaggerated haughty air, like she was ready to throw hands.
"Squirt!" Squirtle echoed her energy, puffing out its chest in a comically rebellious pose.
"Heh, you can try," Arthur replied with a smirk.
"Pi!" Pichu suddenly leapt onto Arthur's shoulder, a mischievous glint in its eye. With a dramatic flair, it pulled out a small pouch seemingly from nowhere and handed it to Arthur—its eyes flicking toward Lena as if to show off.
Arthur blinked in surprise but took the pouch. He opened it, curious—and found it filled with copper coins… and even a few silver ones.
Did this little guy seriously steal from someone? When? Arthur stared at the pouch, baffled—until the answer came loud and clear.
"Hey! That's mine!" Lena exclaimed, quickly snatching the pouch back and checking the coins inside.
"Good job, Pichu!" Arthur said with a proud grin, rubbing the Pokémon's tiny head affectionately.
"You're such a bad influence!" Lena pouted, her eyes narrowing as she muttered, "When did your Pichu even take my pouch? I didn't notice a thing…"
Arthur shrugged. "No ide—"
But before he could finish, both he and Lena noticed Squirtle trying to look innocent—eyes drifting away, cheeks puffed slightly—as it casually hummed a familiar tune. Lena's tune. The one she always sang to help Squirtle fall asleep.
"You traitor!" she cried, giggling as she reached down and playfully pinched Squirtle's cheeks. It winced but didn't resist.
"Good job, both of you!" Arthur laughed. He reached into his waist bag and pulled out a Zapberry—an exotic, crackling fruit that shimmered faintly with electrical energy. It was small, tangy, and packed with elemental charge. A rare find from Thundar Forest, where lightning magic ran wild.
Zapberries weren't just rare—they were dangerous to harvest. Only skilled Lightning mages could safely traverse the chaotic terrain of the Thundar Forest. But now that he had money to spare—thanks to his recent research fund—Arthur was more than willing to invest in his Pokémon's growth.
After all, observing a Pokémon's growth was part of research too, right?
He broke off a tiny piece of the Zapberry and handed it to Pichu, who accepted it with a delighted chirp.
Of course, a full berry would overload its small body. At this stage, even a sliver was enough.
Arthur had also bought a Hydrake for Lena's Squirtle—a dragonfruit-like orb, deep blue with swirling water patterns across its skin that's full of water energy.
Seeing Arthur feed Pichu, Lena sighed and offered her Squirtle a small piece of the Hydrake as well.
"Don't steal people's stuff, okay? That's a crime. Got it?" she scolded gently.
Squirtle nodded coolly, but its eyes slid toward Pichu—who flashed a toothy grin back, as if the two were plotting their next great heist.
Arthur and Lena both caught the silent exchange and burst into laughter.
Eventually, the room quieted, and they settled into their own beds, their Pokémon curled up beside them.
Another day of adventure behind them, and plenty more ahead.
---
Whish!
A ball flew through the sky, and a small, blurry yellow figure darted after it with lightning-fast speed.
Pichu leapt high, catching the wool ball neatly in its mouth.
"Good job, Pichu!" Arthur clapped his hands, smiling with praise.
Pichu, clearly delighted, bounced back toward him with a happy spring in its step, the ball still clutched in its mouth like a prized treasure. It dropped the ball into Arthur's hand, eager for another round.
Arthur smirked. "How about a trick shot this time?" He pulled his arm back and hurled the ball with all his strength.
To Pichu's amazement, a glowing magic circle flared to life beneath the ball's path. A gust of wind launched the ball off-course, and just as it began to descend, another circle activated, bouncing it in a new direction. The ball continued its unpredictable flight, caught in a chain of small wind spells like it was being juggled mid-air.
"Pichu~!" the Pokémon squealed in delight, its spirit lifted as it gave chase through the zigzagging maze of air currents and glowing runes.
While Arthur's magical talent was average, casting a weak Wind spell to push the ball wasn't a problem. However, with his whimsical and inconsistent control over the Wind element, he could only manage to push it in a single direction at best. So, he leaned into what he was good at—magic circles.
With an array of pre-engraved circles, he could create an intricate, unpredictable fetch pattern.
He had considered adding more obstacles—falling mud, shifting terrain, patches of swamp—to toughen Pichu against Ground-type techniques. But in the end, he decided it would be too cruel for a Pokémon that had only recently grown out of its newborn stage.
So instead, he focused on training its speed and reflexes—targeting Speed EVs and sharpening its agility against Flying-types by using a fast-moving, unpredictable wool ball.
"Who says a mouse can't play fetch?" Arthur chuckled to himself as he watched Pichu zip around the yard.
Over the past day, he'd been thinking about how to bond with Pichu. This seemed like the perfect solution—fun, energetic, and a clever way to combine playtime with training.
Lena, having seen Arthur's bonding method, had decided to go off and train with her Squirtle too... though who knew how she was training with it.
Arthur shifted his focus back to Pichu.
Pichu zipped through the air, its tiny legs pumping with excitement as it darted after the ball, its eyes locked on the constantly shifting target.
As the ball spun in mid-air, Pichu's reflexes kicked in. It weaved through the wind currents, anticipating the next move, and with a sudden burst of speed, leapt into the air and snagged the ball right before it could be sent off course again.
"Good job!" Arthur praised as Pichu trotted back with the ball clutched in its mouth.
He gave its head a gentle pat, then rewarded it with a boiled chicken egg.
For some reason, Pichu was obsessed with boiled eggs—far more than even Zapberries. Not that Arthur was complaining. Eggs were rich in nutrients and great for growth, especially in this world where even ordinary farm chickens carried traces of magic and mana in their bodies.
Just like he'd promised himself, Arthur was spending most of his free time bonding with Pichu instead of diving into research. Besides, most of the foundational work needed for Pokémon creation had already been completed. There was no rush anymore.
Now, most of his research time was dedicated to developing new Pokémon templates. His current goal was to recreate the entire Gen 1 roster—excluding Legendaries and outliers like Porygon and Ditto. Those two, in particular, were giving him a serious headache.
Take Ditto, for example. He'd considered using mimic or shapeshifter monsters as a base, but neither could replicate their target's abilities—only appearance. The most brute-force solution he'd come up with was to overload Ditto's genetic code with every known Pokémon's move... But that would probably make it blow up after a few too many Transformations. Trying to access hundreds of move imprints at once—especially in mid-combat—was practically asking for a meltdown.
Outside of research, the morning farmwork had become a breeze thanks to their Pokémon. Butterfree and Beedrill were especially helpful, able to detect and drive off harmful pests before they could damage the crops. That gave him and Lena much more free time.
Recently, his dad Hector had even started talking about expanding into honey production, after noticing that wild forest bees had started treating Beedrill like their queen.
All in all, life was moving in a good direction.
Arthur was even toying with the idea of turning his parents into Bug-type Gym Leaders together.
Yes—a double battle format.
Bug-types were often underestimated, but with his mom Anna's infuriating strategy of spamming status effects, Trainers would have to seriously reconsider their life choices before challenging the Gym. Especially since they'd also have to face Hector's much more aggressive, high-pressure battle style at the same time.
A deadly combo.
It also made for an excellent skill check—forcing novice Trainers to learn how to adapt to frustrating tactics if they wanted to move forward.
"Do you want to keep going?" Arthur asked as he watched Pichu finish nibbling on the last bite of the boiling egg.
"Pichu~!" it chirped, raising its tiny paws and nodding enthusiastically.
"Alright then!" Arthur grinned and tossed the ball once more, watching as Pichu lit up with excitement, darting after it like a flash of yellow lightning.
But as much fun as fetch was, he knew he couldn't rely on the same game forever.
How should I go about training Pichu's Special Attack? he mused, frowning slightly. For a moment, nothing solid came to mind.
He could rely entirely on Zapberries—they enhanced electric affinity and gave a minor boost to Special Attack—but that wasn't sustainable. Passive boosts weren't a real substitute for hands-on training.
Actually... why am I overthinking this? Just train it like normal. Arthur caught the ball as Pichu trotted back, tail flicking playfully.
"Wait a moment," he said, letting Pichu climb onto his shoulder. He walked over to the area filled with magic circles—where they'd been playing fetch since earlier—and began setting up a new set.
Once the runes were drawn and infused, he returned to his original spot and pointed ahead.
"This time," Arthur instructed, "you're not catching it with your mouth. I want you to stay outside the magic circle zone and aim at the ball with Thunder Shock as it flies. No stepping into the field."
Pichu blinked in confusion for a second, processing the change in rules—then nodded determinedly and leapt off his shoulder, eyes sharpening with focus.
Arthur activated both sets of magic circles. Wind spells began to spin again, but this time, new circles hummed to life, causing clumps of dirt balls to rise and fall in midair like floating mines—obstacles designed to interrupt line of sight and force Pichu to adjust its aim constantly.
Arthur threw the ball, and it soared over the chaotic terrain, weaving effortlessly through the rising dirt balls as if it were swimming through air.
Pichu stared blankly, its eyes spinning as it struggled to keep track of the wool ball's unpredictable movements amidst the countless dirt balls floating through the air.
"Oops… maybe that's a bit much," Arthur muttered, clearing his throat as he quickly adjusted the magic circles.
He dialed down the number of obstacles, making it difficult enough to follow without being overwhelming.
"Pi~!" Pichu's eyes once again locked onto the ball, its gaze intense as it followed the wool ball's erratic path.
Arthur had already engraved a small magic circle into the wool ball that would enhance its resistance to lightning element, ensuring it wouldn't be damaged by Thunder Shock.
With this method, Pichu was training more than just its aim—it was refining mental focus, developing the ability to regulate power output, and learning how to strike with precision. A perfect regimen to raise both Special Attack and accuracy.
Pichu spent a long time studying the wool ball, trying to decipher its chaotic flight pattern. Eventually, it gave up—there was no discernible rhythm to the ball's random movements. So, with a determined expression, it aimed forward and released a powerful Thunder Shock.
Bzzzzt—
The arc of lightning zigzagged through the air, weaving around the floating dirt balls—until, out of nowhere, a dirt ball suddenly shot into the path of the wool ball!
The Thunder Shock ricocheted off the dirt ball and shot back toward Arthur, landing just inches from his feet. His heart lurched in his chest, the near-miss sending a shock of panic through him.
"Pi!" Pichu squeaked in alarm, its eyes wide with horror as it darted back to Arthur, frantically checking if he was okay.
Arthur waved it off with a nervous laugh, still feeling the adrenaline rush. "I'm fine, Pichu. Don't worry," he reassured, though his heartbeat was still racing.
In fact, even if he had been hit, he would have been fine—Pichu's power was still too weak to cause real harm. But the shock of it still rattled him.
He smiled wryly, shaking his head. "Looks like I've got a lot of magic circles to adjust."
With that, he made the necessary tweaks, then spent the rest of the day training and bonding with Pichu, the hours slipping away until the sky darkened into night.