Interlude - Second Pokemon Portal Exploration
"Ugh, stupid little bugs."
Candice grumbled. She swatted the air, driving away the buzzing mosquitoes.
"Didn't you use the bug-repellent cream?"
"I did! But they still won't let up. Sigh. Why couldn't we have entered the Snow Portal again."
The group chuckled at Candice's whining. They were currently undergoing their monthly portal exploration- this time in a Tropical Jungle. An accident had apparently happened in the Snow portal, causing the university to shift their destination to the next nearby portal.
"Cheer up, today's the last day. And the Professors even gave us a free opportunity to explore."
Shinobu encouraged while pushing away a branch in her path. This reminded her of the time when she accompanied Dante in the Intra Forest. Although the Pokemon here are much stronger, they themselves are also not the same as before.
"Ugh, I hope we find something useful."
"With Dan's luck, is there even any doubt? Chichi, use Tail Slap!"
Shinobu commanded. Mankey, who wanted to sneak attack from above the trees, suddenly saw a gray blur.
"Minccino!"
Mincinno's slapped the unprepared Mankey with her tail. Once. Twice. Thrice. She slapped him a total of five times, before the gathered energy on her tail disappeared and she fell back towards Shinobu.
With the combination of Skill Link and Technician, the 25 base power Tail Slap had a power comparable to a 188 base powered move. Not to mention, being a Normal-type move, it exerted greater power when used by the similarly Normal-type Minccino.
If it weren't because her Attack stat was still too low, this alone would have been enough to knock out the monkey-like Pokemon. But as it is, it only made Mankey stagger and slip from the tree branches.
"Eevee!"
Without giving him time to recover, Eevee on Dante's shoulders jumped. Her feet stretched and she slammed Mankey back up into the air, his body disappearing among the foliage.
"Vulpix!" (You didn't give me a turn!)
"Eevee! Eevee!" (Teehee, it's not my fault you're a Slowpoke!)
"Vulpix!" (Daddy! She's bullying me!!)
Vulpix pouted and buried her body into Dante's arms. She looked up at him, her big, blue eyes glistening.
Dante chuckled and rubbed the soft and cool fur on her forehead.
"Don't worry, Vulpix. You'll have plenty of chances later."
"Vul…"
"Hnnggh, she's so cute!"
Candice sneaked beside Dante at some point. Her eyes turned into hearts, and she stretched out her arms to hug the ice-blue fox.
Vulpix shuddered. She dodged Candice's grab, and climbed onto Dante's bag where she hid behind Big Brother Pikachu while warily looking at this twin-tailed girl.
"Aww~ Little Vulpix, are you still angry about last time? Big sister Candice is sorry about that, she was just too excited. Here, I brought this super delicious handmade Pokecube for you as a token of apology."
Candice held a light-blue Pokecube, her behaviour like an uncle tempting a child with sweets. Seeing the food in her hand, Vulpix just harrumphed and turned her head.
"Hahaha, it seems there's still a long way to go before Vulpix can forgive you."
Dante chuckled as he scratched the fox Pokemon's chin. Seeing how docile Vulpix was in his arms, Candice lowered her head in frustration.
"Next time, for sure!"
Candice huffed, before she turned back and joined the other girls.
Their group walked through the forest under Dante's lead. With his Copycat Vision, he led them towards where the energy was most abundant.
"Over here! There's a clump of Energy Root!"
"Ohh! Enigma Berries!"
"Grassy Seeds!"
The girls constantly exclaimed. During their two hours of exploring, they obtained more resources than compared to the previous day- when they were exploring with the whole class.
"Is this the legendary Dante's luck?"
Kachina whispered, holding the Kebia Berry they just found.
"It's not that exaggerated. It's because we've only been around the periphery that we didn't find as many items yesterday."
Dante said. He glanced around, searching for their next destination.
"Even so, I don't think that would explain how fast we are finding these. And without you, I doubt we can search for treasures so leisurely."
Focalors said as she eyed the fallen bodies of Primeape and Heracross, their numbers reaching more than a dozen. And this was just the group guarding a single treasure. If all of the Pokemon they encountered were counted, it would reach more than 50 by now.
A normal Trainer needs to rest and recover after every such battle. But with Dante, they don't need to face such trivialities.
Looking at the back of her boyfriend casually leading them towards the next treasure, Focalors smiled.
Interlude - Seeds
"Focalors! On your right!"
"What?"
"Oh. You died."
"Hahahahaha! You're so clumsy, sis!"
Focalors sneaked a glance at her gloating sister. She silently switched the screen to her point of view, awaiting an opportunity to laugh when she died as well.
Of course, it wasn't for her to die in the literal sense.
This day was supposed to be when the new trio of lovers- Dante, Shinobu, and Focalors, had their first date. However, when they met up, Furina followed after her sister. According to her, she wanted to join them so her sister wouldn't be outnumbered.
After some back and forth, they agreed to let her go with them. And now, they were currently sitting inside a private computer room, playing the first person shooter game, Valomon.
"So? What do you think, Focalors?"
"Hmm. I finally understand the appeal of this game. Environmental awareness, split second decisions, and tactical thinking- all crucial aspects of a Trainer can be honed by playing this game."
Dante smiled helplessly when he saw Focalors nod to herself with a serious look. When Focalors learned that he and Shinobu often play this game, she expressed curiosity and wanted to try it out. He thought she was interested in the game itself, but he didn't realize it was more about the 'training' aspect of it.
"Come on, sis. It's not that complicated. We play to have fun!"
"I am having fun. And how come you're so good at this? I haven't seen you playing video games at home."
"Why due to my natural talent, of course, ohohoho!"
Focalors frowned as she saw her sister get another kill. Looking at the scoreboard, she was currently at the bottom with 1 kill, 8 deaths, and 1 assist. Even Clorinde, who filled the position of their last teammate, had a higher score than her.
"By the way, Focalors, does your family have any business in agriculture?"
"Yes? Is something the matter?"
Focalors turned to Dante. At this time, he was still operating his character on-screen. She watched him casually flick towards an enemy and kill them while answering her.
"I found some strange seeds from our last portal exploration. I consulted the professors at the university, but even they were clueless how to grow it. They suggested I hand it over to the Alliance for research."
Dante paused. His character moved swiftly through the screen, killing the opponent who was sneaking up on Furina.
"Thanks, Dan!"
"No probs. Anyways, I looked it up in the Pokenet, and there are still many things on Alliance's list to research. If I gave them the seed, who knows how long it would take before I get the result."
"I understand. So you want us to study it for you? It's not a difficult matter. I'll explain the situation to my family."
"Thanks, babe! You're a lifesaver."
Focalors blushed at the sudden remark. Furina's mouse slipped and her character became exposed to the enemy and died. Clorinde also twitched. Meanwhile, Shinobu only chuckled.
"Please don't say that in my presence again."
Furina groaned.
"Well, you were the one who wanted to accompany us on our date."
"Ughh, I guess it's my fault, then."
The next round began and Furina and Focalors' character finally revived. Seeing their faces shift into a serious expression, Dante smiled.
The seeds he mentioned earlier were the ones from the PMD world. It had always been a mystery to him. Even though they were called Seeds, he hadn't found or heard of a plant in the PMD world that grew from them.
Until now, Dante was beginning to suspect they were named like that just because of their appearance. He tried planting them in the soil once, but even after a week, no buds bloomed.
It's why he wanted other more professional people to study it for him. Of course, as precaution, the seed he was going to give is just the simple Sleep Seed. And if they really learned a way to cultivate it, he planned on growing them himself.
He already had plans to buy a large plot of land for his growing number of Pokemon. If he can also use the land to grow the seeds, then that would be all the better.
Depending on the cost of cultivating them, this may be what he needed to earn a more stable income in the human world. And if the cost is unsustainable, he can just cultivate the useful ones like the Joy Seed, Heal Seed, and Reviver Seed.
Interlude - Sleep
Ah…I woke up again…
How long has it been? Years? Decades? Centuries? …I don't know anymore. Everything…everything seems the same.
The same dark walls. The same companion. The same numb pain. When will it all end?
Will someone come and rescue me? But…with them here, that would be futile.
Yawnnn, I…I can't even stay awake for an hour now…That's great. Although I've become accustomed, as expected, not feeling the pain is better after all.
…my body…it's reaching the limit. When it does…will I finally be able to sleep in peace?