Evening arrived, and Marcus had also placed the bait under a large tree in the forest, followed by a long wait.
Waiting for the rabbit by the stump was basically a true depiction of him.
Gradually, rustling sounds echoed in the forest, and many Pokemon began their foraging.
Marcus released Miltank and had her sit beside him, which made him feel much more at ease.
No one could predict the wild environment; perhaps a Ariados or Tangrowth would appear the next moment, so he had to be on guard.
Soon, the food Marcus had placed attracted the first group of foragers. This was a group of Wurmple, who, due to their weakness, could only wait until the sun went down to find some leaves to fill their stomachs. Passing by Marcus's bait, they also took away a considerable portion.
Fortunately, the Wurmple didn't have large appetites, so not too much was lost.
Marcus was a little troubled and put some more down.
Then continued to wait.
Next, Pokemon like Nincada, Noctowl, Murkrow, and others appeared one after another, and Marcus' Pokeblocks were completely looted...
The most outrageous was the Murkrow; not only did it eat, but it also wanted to take the plate!
Marcus immediately ordered Miltank to finish it off on the spot with a Psybeam...
The evening breeze gently brushed, the crescent moon rotated, and time gradually reached midnight.
"Haa..." Marcus yawned, it seemed there would be no harvest tonight.
However, just as he was about to pack up and sleep, a group of small rabbits appeared in his sight not far away.
Brown skin, butter-colored fluff, long ears with one curled and the other extended, the tips covered in fluff, looking soft and very cute.
"Buneary~" The Buneary hopped forward in a special order, unitedly clearing all the spoils, and then each took some back to their own burrows.
Naturally, this included the Pokeblocks Marcus had placed.
Marcus, hiding in the dark, looked at them one by one, feeling a bit overwhelmed at first, but ultimately set his sights on the one leading the group, which was also the most talented in this group:
[Buneary ♀ lv21 (Intermediate)]
Ability: Run Away (Possesses good wild survival experience and can avoid opponents' pursuit through experience, with a certain speed boost)
Talent: 301 (Species maximum 350)
Moves: Splash (Mastered), Quick Attack (Learned), Double Kick (Learned), Headbutt (Learned)
Description: A Buneary with excellent talent, has unique insights into evasion, and leads its companions out to forage at night.
————
Just as Marcus was about to step forward and stop the little rabbits, a stumbling figure appeared.
This was also a Buneary, but it wasn't moving with its companions, and its movements weren't as agile as theirs, with a hint of clumsiness in them.
It followed the scent to where Marcus had placed the Pokeblocks, and fortunately, there was one last piece in the box.
"Bun~" It cried out happily, then carefully held the Pokeblock and left.
Because of its appearance, Marcus missed the best time to approach; the previous Buneary had already disappeared without a trace.
Shaking his head, Marcus stepped forward to put away the Pokeblock box and continue setting bait tomorrow.
However, that Buneary just now came back. It hopped over with small steps, looking up at the box in Marcus's hand.
"Bun~" Its cute short hands were raised high, seemingly wanting to see if there was anything delicious inside.
"There's nothing I can do about you, eat~" Looking at the little guy's longing eyes, Marcus couldn't bring himself to refuse after all, and put a few more Pokeblocks in, placing the box in front of it.
"Bun!" The little guy obediently bowed to him, then picked up the box and intended to go home.
"Hey, at least leave my box behind..." Marcus called out.
"Bun?" The little rabbit turned its head in confusion. It didn't understand Marcus's words, so it just bowed to him again and turned to leave.
Unexpectedly, it tripped over a branch under its feet and fell directly to the ground. Being soft all over, it wasn't injured, but one Pokeblock fell to the ground.
"Buneary..." The little rabbit immediately became teary-eyed, but it quickly composed itself, licked the dust off the Pokeblock a few times to clean it, and put it back.
Its clumsy appearance had a special kind of cuteness.
Marcus was a little strange; normally, shouldn't the first reaction of a wild Pokemon seeing food be to eat it? This way, it could avoid being snatched away.
But this Buneary was a bit abnormal... it seemed to be specifically saving food for someone.
Shaking his head, Marcus didn't think much of it and went back to the tent to sleep.
Over the next few days, Marcus kept repeating the previous actions.
And based on his experience, he set up some scents that other Pokemon disliked, thus avoiding unnecessary losses.
The only regrettable thing was that the Buneary he saw the first time never appeared again.
Fortunately, Buneary is a sizable population throughout Eterna Forest, and Marcus had seen at least dozens of them. Picking and choosing, he was suffering from choice paralysis... instead, he was slow to make a final decision.
However, every midnight, that clumsy Buneary would come to Marcus to ask for food.
Coming and going, Marcus had come to remember it.
Today, as usual, Marcus was waiting for the little guy to arrive before going to bed.
Soon, it was midnight, but the little rabbit didn't appear today.
Marcus frowned and looked in the direction it usually appeared.
After a while, the familiar figure appeared, but today it seemed to have encountered something, with glistening tears in its eyes.
"Buneary...!" The little rabbit saw Marcus and immediately threw itself into his arms and started crying, large teardrops rolling down as if they were free.
"What's wrong? Did you encounter some difficulty?"
"Bun~Bunneary~!" The little rabbit shook its head, just crying incessantly.
Marcus could only gently rub its little head, soothing it softly.
After a long time, the crying gradually stopped, and the Buneary fell asleep in Marcus's arms, with tears still hanging on its long eyelashes, looking very lovable.
Marcus looked at it in a daze. Because its movements were very clumsy, Marcus had never considered making it his starter Pokemon, but now it seemed that a special bond had formed between them unconsciously.
"Alright, I'll let you sleep in my luxurious tent tonight..." Marcus smiled slightly and casually activated the System function.
[Buneary ♀ lv12 (Beginner)]
Ability: Klutz (Naturally uncoordinated in limb movements, appearing very clumsy, held items will lose their effect)
Talent: 281 (Species maximum 350)
Affection: 120
Moves: Power-Up Punch (Learned), Teeter Dance (Learned), Mimic (Learned), Seismic Toss (Learned), Baby-Doll Eyes (Learned), Pound (Mastered), Splash (Mastered)
Description: A Buneary with exceptional talent, possessing multiple moves inherited from previous generations, but due to its unique clumsy trait, no one likes to play with it.
It takes its food back to its elderly Lopunny grandmother, which has caused its own poor development and severely affected its talent. And today, its grandmother completely left it.