Chapter 181: Duck God

A Strange Encounter

"It's so cute!"

Misty's eyes sparkled with excitement as she rushed toward the small yellow Pokémon standing in the middle of the path.

"Misty, wait!" Ash called out, worried she might get too close too quickly.

He glanced at Pikachu and gave a small nod—a signal to follow Misty in case anything happened.

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A Cautious Introduction

Misty skidded to a stop about two meters away from the Pokémon.

"Hello, Psyduck!" she greeted cheerfully, her voice gentle yet eager.

She had learned her lesson from Ash—never touch an unfamiliar Pokémon carelessly.

Psyduck, however, simply stood there, staring at Misty with wide, vacant eyes.

It tilted its head slightly, holding its hands up near its face as if deep in thought.

"Psy…?"

Misty's heart melted instantly.

"Aww! It's even cuter up close!" she gushed, clasping her hands together.

Its dull expression and clueless stance made it look like an adorable stuffed toy.

But something felt off.

"Wait… why are you even here? There's no water around." Misty glanced around, scanning the area. "Are you lost?"

Psyduck blinked slowly, offering no response.

Ash, standing beside Misty now, narrowed his eyes as he examined the ground.

"I don't think it's lost." He pointed behind Psyduck, showing a faint trail of duck-shaped footprints.

"It's been following us."

---

Following Fate

Misty turned to look at the footprints and gasped softly.

"Wait… Psyduck's been following us? Since when?"

Ash didn't respond immediately.

Instead, a strange thought crossed his mind.

"This… might be fate."

In the original anime, Misty had captured a very special Psyduck—one that would become a legend in its own way.

He couldn't remember exactly how she caught it, but he knew it happened around Celadon City.

Could this be that same Psyduck?

"Why did you follow us?" Misty squatted down slightly, looking at the small yellow Pokémon with genuine concern.

"Did you get separated from your Trainer? Or… is there another reason?"

Psyduck remained silent, still staring at her blankly.

"Psy…?"

Misty sighed.

"You have no idea what I'm saying, do you?"

---

A Simple Desire

Ash continued observing Psyduck carefully.

"I don't think it belongs to a Trainer," he said thoughtfully.

"Even though it looks clueless, it wouldn't mistake a random person for its Trainer if it had one."

In truth, Psyduck wasn't actually dumb.

Its constant headache just made it act slow and confused.

Suddenly, Psyduck lifted a hand and pointed at something.

Misty and Ash followed its gaze—

It was looking at their Pokémon, who were gathered around eating lunch near their campsite.

Then, Psyduck pointed at its own stomach.

Right on cue—

"Grrrrrgle—!"

A loud stomach growl echoed from the small Pokémon.

Misty blinked. Then, she giggled.

"Oh, I see. You're just hungry!"

She stood up and waved at Psyduck.

"Come on, then! Let's get you some food."

Psyduck's eyes lit up instantly.

"Psy!"

Without hesitation, it waddled after Misty, heading straight for the campsite.

---

Brock's Hospitality

As they returned, Brock had already noticed Psyduck following them.

He glanced up from his cooking and raised an eyebrow.

"What's going on?"

Misty grinned.

"We found a very hungry Psyduck!"

She quickly explained the situation.

Brock chuckled, shaking his head.

"Well, we can't let it go hungry."

He grabbed an extra plate and prepared a portion of Pokémon food.

As soon as he placed it in front of Psyduck—

"Psy! Psy!"

Psyduck eagerly dug in, eating as if it hadn't had a meal in days.

Misty watched with amusement.

"Look at it go!"

Ash, meanwhile, folded his arms, still thinking about the situation.

"It's rare to see a Psyduck in a place like this."

Brock nodded.

"Especially one that doesn't seem to belong to anyone."

The group exchanged glances, silently wondering—

Was this Psyduck truly meant to join them?

---

A Growing Bond

For the next few hours, Psyduck stayed with the group, happily waddling behind Misty wherever she went.

Misty found herself growing attached to the small, goofy Pokémon.

"It's kinda cute having you around," she admitted, watching Psyduck stumble slightly while trying to keep up.

"Psy…?" Psyduck stared at her blankly.

Misty chuckled.

"Yeah, you're adorable."

That night, when the group set up camp, Psyduck curled up near Misty's sleeping bag instead of wandering off.

Brock noted the behavior with a knowing smile.

"Looks like you've already got a new friend."

Misty rolled her eyes but smiled.

"Well, let's see what happens tomorrow."

She glanced down at Psyduck, who was already snoring softly.

Something told her—

This Pokémon wasn't going anywhere.

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To Be Continued…