Chapter 012:Gastly: Training Myself

The annual Piplup Cup, held every summer, is a competition designed for rookie trainers.

Most of the participants are seniors and freshmen from the Pokémon Academy.

As an officially recognized competition by the Association, achieving a high rank can be beneficial when applying for a Junior Trainer License.

However, Natsume has no intention of becoming a trainer, so he naturally has no plans to participate in the competition.

The summer heat is intense.

Inside the rented apartment, a fan spins.

Natsume sits in front of his computer, editing his next video to be uploaded.

Gastly, facing the fan, opens its mouth wide, its misty form swaying as the fan's breeze causes its voice to echo.

"Awoooooo~~~"

Regarding the "Gastly Breeding Guide," Gastly has already reached the practical section—"How to Command Gastly in a Real Battle."

"Gastly's temperament is quite lively, often displaying unexpected behavior during battles..."

Gastly studies the book, nodding frequently.

"Gastly!" (That makes sense!)

"Therefore, rather than rigid training, it's better to cultivate Gastly's natural battle instincts..."

"Gastly?" (How do I cultivate that?)

"Different Gastly have different personalities, and their battle styles vary. Finding the most suitable approach is key."

"Gastly!" (Got it, got it!)

Gastly levitates in mid-air, grinning smugly, as if to say, "I've completely figured it out."

In just two days, Gastly has not only mastered Confuse Ray but has also become proficient in using Night Shade.

And the source of this knowledge?

Blue Oak's "Gastly Breeding Guide."

The book has been licked so much by Gastly that it's now tattered, with the text barely legible.

This is truly "digesting" the book!

Glancing sideways at Natsume, Gastly notices that Natsume is still fully focused on his computer.

Gastly can't help but feel a bit dejected.

It spreads the book open on its face.

Gastly idly drifts in and out of the shadows.

The Moomoo Milk in the fridge is all gone, and the suspicious blue drink has also been drained.

The can labeled "Carbos" has visibly increased the speed of Gastly's black mist.

Since Gastly naturally has the ability to blend into shadows, this has also enhanced its stealth capabilities.

Blowing bubbles, Gastly suddenly spots a line in the breeding guide and perks up.

"What to do when your Pokémon is feeling down."

"Gastly!" (What should I do?)

"One, use items and Pokémon food to increase your Pokémon's friendship."

"Gastly!" (We've eaten everything at home Σ(°△°|||))

"Two, engage in activities like camping or picnics with your Pokémon."

"Gastly!" (He doesn't even pay attention to me (╬▔皿▔))

"Three, motivate your Pokémon with a battle victory."

"Gastly!" (That's the one (?ω?))

Gastly shakes its head, deep in thought.

Suddenly, it remembers seeing a competition notice on the phone yesterday.

Drifting over to Natsume, Gastly licks his cheek and blinks innocently.

Gastly: (⊙?⊙)

"Oh," Natsume realizes. "Are you hungry? Take the phone and order some takeout!"

Successfully obtaining the phone, Gastly chuckles to itself, pleased with its plan.

"Gastly!"

"...What's wrong with you? Why are you laughing so creepily?"

Gastly grins, holding the phone in its mouth as it navigates the interface with its tongue.

Nessa's photo collection? Not this...

Elesa's runway show? Not this either...

What kind of weird stuff does this guy usually look at?!

Gastly looks puzzled, then its eyes light up.

[Piplup Cup Rookie Trainer Competition: All aspiring trainers are invited to participate!]

Filling out the registration form requires Natsume's ID card.

After rummaging through the room, Gastly finally finds the ID card.

Using its fangs, Gastly painstakingly fills out the registration form. Half an hour later, it lets out a long sigh of relief.

[Mr. Natsume, your registration has been approved. Your participant ID is: 3534]

[The preliminary rounds will begin next Wednesday. Please be mindful of the time.]

Satisfied, Gastly nods, its eyes burning with determination.

I must win this competition for my trainer!

Finally finishing the video edit, Natsume stretches.

Turning his head, he sees Gastly diligently studying the breeding guide.

This gives Natsume a slightly strange feeling.

"Training myself?"

Without Natsume's intervention, Gastly has already managed its diet, strategy, and training perfectly.

This makes Natsume feel a bit odd, as if he's somehow become useless.

"System, can you check what moves Gastly has mastered now?"

[Would you like to spend 500 BP Points to unlock VIP1 privileges: 'Pokédex'?]

[Yes/No]

"Yes," Natsume mutters. "Is there a V8 privilege too?"

[Remaining BP Points: 570]

[Target search in progress... Target confirmed!]

[Gastly]

[Type: Ghost + Poison]

[Ability: Levitate]

[Mastered Moves: Confuse Ray, Lick, Mean Look, Will-O-Wisp, Curse, Night Shade]

After reading the move list, Natsume's first reaction is surprise.

In reality, there's no four-move limit, so the number of moves can somewhat reflect a Pokémon's strength.

Of course, many of these moves might have been learned with the help of Blue Oak's breeding guide.

But this is still enough to shock Natsume!

"So it's this strong?"

"And yet I caught it with just one Poké Ball!"

Natsume scans the move list again, clicking his tongue in admiration.

"Dirty, so dirty!"

"Out of the six moves, five are status conditions. With moves like these, you're practically made to be my Pokémon!"

Confuse Ray causes confusion, Lick can paralyze, and Will-O-Wisp can burn.

Mean Look prevents escape, and Curse continuously drains the opponent's HP.

If you add Toxic and Hypnosis to the mix...

That would be the ultimate combo!

In reality, status conditions can stack.

This is why Natsume's "SubProtect Toxic" strategy is so infuriating.

Now, Natsume feels like he's discovered a whole new path to perfecting his annoying strategies.

"Confusion, paralysis, burn, poison... these status conditions can all be applied at once!"

Gastly, the god of dirty strategies!

Although Natsume has identified the breeding direction, he's too lazy to actually do it.

Being a trainer just isn't worth it!

Isn't it better to make easy money through live streams?

His live stream subscription count has already reached 80,000. With a bit more effort, he can achieve his goal of showing his face.

At this critical moment, the system issues a new task.

[Task: "I'm Not a Million-View Streamer"]

[Task Description: Upload a video with over a million views.]

[Task Reward: 1000 BP Points, Random Skill LV31, Random Purple Item1]

Natsume has already experienced the benefits of system items.

Just the enhanced version of Carbos significantly boosted Gastly's speed.

If he could get an item worth hundreds of thousands of Pokémon Coins, selling it would be a huge win!

The video Natsume just edited is the one he plans to upload.

"Professor Natsume's Battle Tutorial 04: Minimize Team."

If there's a strategy more annoying than SubProtect Toxic, it's undoubtedly the Minimize Team, represented by the pink demon, Chansey!

With Eviolite, Chansey's defenses are exceptional, and its evasion rate keeps increasing as it minimizes.

You can't hit it, and you can't outlast it.

It's incredibly tanky while still dealing high damage—

How can a Pokémon like Chansey be so awesome?!

Natsume smirks meaningfully.

Moving the cursor, he clicks the "Upload" button.

[Video uploading... Your new video has been released.]

[Click to view "Professor Natsume's Battle Tutorial 04: Minimize Team"!]