Chapter 7: A Rusted Sword? A New Pokémon Joins the Team!

Looking at the sword that suddenly appeared before her, Cynthia could not help but be momentarily stunned.

The sword looked thoroughly ordinary and utterly decayed, seemingly so fragile that if one were to pick it up and wave it, it would directly drop debris or even snap in half from the middle.

Why would such a sword appear in the ash point exchange list?

Upon discovering this sword, the live-stream chat room instantly erupted into a flurry of discussions.

[Wait, what does this uncle mean? Is he trying to cram this kind of junk in here?]
[Don't look down on junk collectors, damn it. They might not even be willing to take a sword covered entirely in rust like this.]
[That's true...]
[Why do I feel something is a bit off? Given the temperament of this game's creator, this sword shouldn't be anything ordinary...]

While the chat room was engaged in a heated debate, Cynthia's gaze fell upon the sword, and for some inexplicable reason, a deep feeling welled up within her from the void, as if the sword were drawing her in and urging her to establish a connection with it.

This could almost be considered one of Cynthia's innate talents. Whenever this sensation arose, it proved only one thing: the object before her had undoubtedly traversed a long span of time, hailing from a very distant era while carrying secrets beyond ordinary imagination.

Whenever she explored ancient altars and ruins, she would experience this vague sensation.

Yet at this moment, looking at that sword, the feeling in her heart was inexplicably intense, unprecedentedly so!

With that single thought, Cynthia made her choice without the slightest hesitation. She pressed the interaction button for the uncle beside her and asked aloud.

"If I want to exchange for that sword, how much volcanic ash do you require?"

Upon hearing this, the uncle was slightly startled. A red exclamation mark suddenly appeared above his head as he turned around, rummaged through the cabinet beside him, and fished out a broken sword, placing it on the table.

"You mean this? I actually picked this up by the roadside when I went out previously; it's worthless."

"I originally planned to melt it down as scrap iron for reuse, but I found that this thing somehow wouldn't melt no matter how much I burned it, so I just left it here."

"If you're interested, give me the rest of that volcanic ash, and just take it away."

"How about it? If you aren't going to trade for it, I'll sell this thing to a collector in town. He should still be quite interested in steel that fire cannot melt, and I could sell it for a pretty penny."

Hearing this, Cynthia chose to confirm without a second thought, consuming all of her accumulated volcanic ash points.

To be honest, she could not help feeling a bit fortunate now; she was glad she had already bought other items with her volcanic ash points just moments ago.

Otherwise, judging by the current situation, had she wanted this sword, she would have had no way to exchange for the leftover food and those whistles.

At that moment, a line of prompts floated into view before Cynthia's eyes.

[Item: Rusted Sword has been placed into your backpack.]

She opened her backpack to inspect the appearance of this sword, observing the blade carefully, yet still finding nothing, as if this were merely a common sword.

However, that intense sensation still lingered in her heart, refusing to dissipate for a long time!

A prompt regarding the item popped up.

[Description: A very ancient sword. Perhaps after being repaired, it can unleash incredible power and effects?]

Her gaze immediately narrowed.

Indeed! This sword was no ordinary object.

Then, according to the prompt, the sword needed to be repaired in order to unleash its original effects.

Yet... how was it to be repaired?

Cynthia shook her head slightly.

I suppose I can only figure it out later.

Given her current game progress, she truly could not think of any place where a sword could be repaired.

With that thought in mind, Cynthia manipulated her character to thank the volcanic ash uncle and turned to leave the small hut.

However, no sooner had she stepped out the door than she encountered a familiar figure—it was none other than the child who had previously "ambushed" her, concealed within the volcanic ash.

Upon seeing Cynthia walk out, a red exclamation mark immediately appeared above the child's head.

[Big sister, did you exchange for that sword? Can you let me take a look at it?]

Two choices instantly popped up before Cynthia's eyes.

——Yes / No

She pondered for a moment and ultimately chose Yes.

On the screen, her character retrieved the Rusted Sword and placed it before the child. The child leaned forward, stroked the sword up and down, scrutinized it for a moment, and then spoke again.

"Thank you, big sister! But this sword doesn't look like anything special either. The uncle even claimed that fire couldn't melt it; he must have been lying."

"Oh, by the way, big sister, if you bought this sword, you might want to consider selling it to an older brother named Bill in the nearby town. He seems to really like collecting ancient artifacts."

"However, if you want to get along with him, you'll probably have to be a bit careful. That big brother only knows how to hang around with broken stones all day long, claiming they are called fossils... He suddenly bursts into laughter while walking, it's so terrifying!"

Amidst the child's rapid succession of words, Cynthia accurately captured two key points.

Fossils?
Bill?

In the real world, she had never heard of such a person.

But if he was related to fossils...
Could it be...?

A thought suddenly rose within Cynthia's mind.

She immediately asked the child, "Little one, do you know specifically where this person named Bill lives?"

Hearing this, the child thought for a moment and replied, "He seems to live in the leftmost house in Fallarbor Town... But he's usually not home; he mostly hangs around near Meteor Falls, goodness knows what he's up to."

"Daddy says he's a mad scientist and told me to stay away from him..."

Unlike you, big sister, you look so pretty, you can tell you're a good person at a glance!"

Listening to the child's reply, Cynthia could not help but smile faintly. She used the interaction button, crouched down, and patted the child on the head.

"Thank you for telling me all this."

"You're welcome! Who asked you to discover my stealth technique? Next time you come back, I'll definitely practice my stealth technique even better!"

With that, the child turned and ran off, vanishing into that pile of volcanic ash.

Meanwhile, Cynthia fell into deep thought. According to her experience, the red exclamation mark that had just appeared above the character's head should indicate that the character's subsequent words and actions were quite significant.

Therefore, the clues the child had given her... should also be genuine.

That being the case, she would head to Fallarbor Town to see what the situation was.

With that thought, Cynthia put away the Rusted Sword and continued her journey toward the left.

Five minutes later, after defeating a few obstructing NPCs, Cynthia successfully arrived at Fallarbor Town, which appeared to be a small town nestled at the foot of a mountain.

A great many maple trees were planted all around. With autumn currently in full swing, golden maple leaves fluttered wildly across the sky, possessing a rather distinctive aesthetic charm.

Following her usual routine, Cynthia first took a stroll around the town, and actually managed to unearth two items in succession within a huge sand pit located in the bottom-right corner.

[Congratulations, you found an item "Nugget"]
[Congratulations, you found an item "Flame Orb"]

Nuggets were meant to be sold for money, of which there was no doubt. As for the effect of the Flame Orb, it would inflict the "burn" status condition upon any non-Fire-type Pokémon holding it.

To ordinary people, absolutely no one would use an item with purely negative side effects.

However, having experienced the preceding Gym battle, the audience in the live-stream chat room had undergone a 180-degree shift in attitude toward this item.

[The divine orb has arrived! Sister Na, do you want to grab a Pokémon with the Guts ability? I also want to see a one-punch health bar clearance!]
[Sorry, Brother Orb, I was speaking a bit too loudly before.]

Gazing at the item, Cynthia furrowed her brows slightly and began to ponder.

Giving this item to a Pokémon with the "Guts" ability would indeed produce powerful results.

The problem was that most Pokémon possessing this ability were of the Fighting type, and she had not encountered any along her journey so far.

More importantly, her plan was to build a weather team centered around rain...
Fighting-type Pokémon probably wouldn't fit in very well, would they?

Were there any Pokémon possessing a dual Water and Fighting typing?

After thinking carefully for a while, Cynthia realized that no such Pokémon truly existed in her memory, and she could only shake her head slightly.

Never mind, I'll hold onto this Flame Orb for now. If it comes in useful later, that would naturally be for the best.

To take a step back, this Flame Orb should also fetch a high price when sold at a shop; either way, she was coming out ahead.

After searching the nearby items, Cynthia exchanged all those scattered, valuable items for gold coins at the shop, successfully pushing her cash savings past the 50,000 mark.

After entering the Pokémon Center to restore her team's condition, she continued her journey to the left and quickly located a dilapidated small wooden cabin.

There was a sign hanging in front of the cabin's door, with a few words written upon it.

[Bill's Laboratory]

Yet from whatever angle one looked at it, this didn't resemble a laboratory at all...
Instead, it looked like a small shack piled with various sundries.

Cynthia operated her character to step forward and knock on the door, only to find a line of prompts pop up.

[The door is locked. It seems no one is home.]

Indeed, just as the child had mentioned, this Bill spent most of his day outside.

Fortunately, the other party had also provided her with specific intelligence—Bill's active location was over at Meteor Falls.

And Meteor Falls happened to be the destination of her current trip.

With that thought, Cynthia could not help raising an eyebrow slightly.

Could such a coincidence mean that the actions of Magma Team were somehow connected to Bill?

She glanced at the map; Meteor Falls was located directly south of her position, so she left Fallarbor Town and resumed her advance.

As a result, upon walking up to the vicinity of a suspension bridge, a familiar figure suddenly stepped forward and blocked her path!

——It was a middle-aged uncle wearing a red hat and carrying a fishing rod...

No matter how one looked at it, this person was identical to the uncle from Petalburg City earlier, as if he had been cloned.

At that moment, the fishing uncle looked Cynthia up and down before speaking excitedly:

"Yo, young lady, I see you seem to be carrying a fishing rod? It looks like you really enjoy fishing."

Without waiting for Cynthia to reply, he directly pulled out a brand-new fishing rod and shoved it into her hands.

"Here, the one you're carrying is already outdated, take this one."

[Congratulations, you obtained the item—Good Rod!]
[Description: An existence with better performance than an ordinary fishing rod, capable of reeling in rarer and more powerful Water-type Pokémon.]

"Alright, no need to thank me, I wish you a bite on every cast and may you never return empty-handed!"

The fishing uncle made a gesture toward Cynthia and turned away, running off into the distance.

Leaving Cynthia standing in place, looking at the fishing rod in her hand with a rather complicated expression.

You fishing enthusiasts... are all you guys this enthusiastic?

When did I ever say I liked fishing?

Recalling the scene of her first time fishing after acquiring a fishing rod last time, Cynthia could not help feeling a slight headache coming on.

Yet, upon second thought, that should have been just a low-probability event. No matter what, it wouldn't happen consecutively... right?

Furthermore, under the circumstance that she needed to build a rain team, Water-type Pokémon were precisely what she required.

And right now, the simplest way to acquire Water-type Pokémon in this game seemed to be "fishing."

Thus, she picked up the newly acquired Good Rod, walked over to the side of the bridge, and cast her line directly into the water.

A few seconds passed, and the fishing rod began to shake violently!

Relying on experience, Cynthia immediately pressed the interaction key to reel it in!

The next instant, a colossal blue shadow, accompanied by a roar, surged violently out of the surface of the water!

[You encountered a Gyarados (Lv. 45)!]

Cynthia: ???

Wait, not again??

——Are you giving me a fishing rod or a dragon-catching pole??

Although a Level 45 Gyarados was powerful, that level far exceeded the level cap she could currently capture.

Therefore, Cynthia chose to flee without the slightest hesitation. Her team was most vulnerable to Flying-type Pokémon, and dealing with the Gyarados before her would likely lead to total annihilation if she wasn't careful. Moreover, there was no reward for winning, so running away was the best course of action.

And when she successfully escaped combat only on her second attempt, waves of laughter erupted within the live-stream chat.

[Hilarious, Sister Na probably won't want to fish anymore after this.]
[Streamer: Damn it, the Gyarados is still chasing me!]
[Is this creator human? Who fishes up a Gyarados with a fishing rod? Why don't you just say you're hooking a legendary Pokémon straight out?]
[Hhh, if legendary Pokémon could be fished up with a fishing rod, I'd eat my own ().]
[That guy up front is trying to get free food and drinks again. If someone really fishes one up, you won't be happy.]

Cynthia sighed softly as well. After a brief hesitation, she simply reeled in her line and walked away.

To tell the truth, although a Gyarados popped up every time she fished, finding herself in such a situation was quite exasperating.

Yet this might actually be a good thing—as a Water and Flying-type Pokémon, Gyarados could actually become a formidable combat force within her team. Once her level cap increased, she could return to fish and stably capture one!

Of course, the premise was that the next time she fished, what she pulled up would still be a Gyarados, and still be Level 45...

Just as Cynthia was pondering this, having already stepped off the bridge, she collided with a Pokémon in the patch of grass beside the river, and the game instantly transitioned into the battle interface.

[A wild Wingull (Lv. 23) lunged out!]

Looking at this suddenly appearing Pokémon, Cynthia's eyes lit up.

Wasn't this precisely what she wanted to capture?

Moreover, Level 23 wasn't low at all. After capturing it, she only needed to raise it by a few levels for it to immediately catch up with the main party's level, or even evolve into Pelipper.

With that thought, Cynthia directly dispatched Ludicolo, executing a smooth combination of Fake Out and Teeter Dance.

In the previous game tutorials, she had already learned that inflicting status conditions on wild Pokémon would increase the capture rate.

Next, Cynthia switched in Grovyle, carefully employing low-power Grass-type moves to whittle the Wingull's health bar down into the red zone before tossing out a Ultra Ball she had picked up along the way and kept unused.

The deep blue sphere traced a graceful arc through the air, striking the Wingull with pinpoint accuracy. It transformed into a red beam of light and was sucked inside.

Amidst the tense music, the Ultra Ball shook three times before going still, and the click representing a successful capture sounded alongside cheerful music.

[Congratulations! Successfully captured Wingull!]
[New Pokémon data has been recorded in the Pokédex!]

Cynthia immediately opened the party menu to check the information of this Wingull.

[Pokémon: Wingull] [Gender: Female]
[Type: Water / Flying]
[Nature: Modest]
[Ability: Hydration (Under rainy weather conditions, any status conditions afflicted are cured each turn)]
[Known Moves: Water Gun, Growl, Wing Attack, Water Pulse]

Cynthia's gaze landed on the line detailing the ability, and she could not help pausing for a moment.

Hydration?

In her memory, Pokémon like Wingull indeed possessed this ability—that was correct.

Yet there was a problem: once Wingull evolved into Pelipper, this ability seemed to vanish along with the evolution...

The Pokémon research community hypothesized that Pelipper must have acquired a different ability upon evolution.

Such situations were not uncommon among other Pokémon; one ability before evolution, transforming into another after evolution.
For instance, the "Shield Dust" ability of Caterpie changed to "Shedding" upon evolving into Metapod, and then shifted to "Compound Eyes"—which increased visual acuity and made it easier to catch fast-moving targets—upon evolving into Butterfree.

As for what Pelipper's newly acquired ability actually was after evolution... the research community had never discovered or explored it. Many hypotheses had been put forward, but unfortunately, all of them had ultimately proven wrong...

And now, since she had captured a Wingull with the "Hydration" ability, did that mean she would soon be able to unveil this mystery once it evolved?

To be honest, had she just started playing this game, Cynthia might have felt excited and thrilled by this.

After all, this was a massive new discovery!

Yet, having gone through that continuous baptism before...
Now, she instead felt a sense of habituation...

——In this game, she had even witnessed legendary Pokémon with her own eyes. What could a mere ability count for?