Side Chapter: The Extra's POV

POV: Huangshan

Huangshan was a guard for hire. Her job was to escort merchants and their goods.

It was during one such escort mission she arrived at Liyue Harbor and witnessed the battle between the otherwordly creatures called pokemon.

She was fascinated to see the powerful abilities of the pokemon and even more intrigued when she saw them following the commands of their trainers.

Subconsciously, she also wanted to be like those 6 teenagers, commanding her own pokemon to battle.

When the pokemon battle ended and the person called Loki announced that he is going to give pokemon to a few lucky people, she immediately knew that she also had to try her luck.

The next day, Huangshan woke up early in the morning and rushed to the Pokemon Studio. Since it was her first time visiting, she had to ask the passersby for the way.

When she arrived before the Studio, she immediately saw tens of people lining upto the open entrance of the store.

"Excuse me. What is this line for?" She asked the person at the back.

He turned his head and sized her up, before speaking with a rough voice.

"Are you also here to get a pokemon?"

"Yes."

"Then you are at the right place. Line up."

Hearing his words, she quickly walked to his back and stood in line. She realized that this man was not one to talk but she could not hold back her curiosity.

"Is there any condition we have to fulfill before we get a pokemon?"

"I heard you have to fill out a form. But I don't know the specifics."

"I see. Thank you for sharing this information."

The man simply nodded his head and turned to the front.

Afterwards, several minutes passed in silence as the line slowly moved forward. It was finally her turn to enter the store. Her heartbeat began to increase due to anxiety and anticipation.

[Please come in.] A voice suddenly spoke inside her head, startling her.

She turned her head around and found no one to have talked just now. She then realized that it was someone inside the store who spoke to her. She took a deep breath to calm down and entered the store with vigilance.

As she looked around, Huangshan was able to recognize all the pokemon in the store. She had seen them at the harbor yesterday.

Three of them (Frost, Rene and Magica) were tending to the normal customers, as store clerks.

She turned her head to the other side of the store and saw an elegant pokemon (Voir) standing behind a table. Her flowing body was akin to a pure white gown, which made her look elegant and beautiful.

There was another pokemon (Mimi) beside her, just lazying around on the table. This pokemon seemed to be wearing a cute disguise with scribbled eyes and mouth.

[Here.]

The soft and gentle voice spoke again. Huangshan finally realized that Voir was the one speaking to her, so she approached her.

"Nice to meet you."

She greeted with a slight bow. Voir nodded her head and handed a paper and pen to her.

[Please fill out this form without any lies or exaggeration. If you fail to follow these rules, your form will not be examined and thrown away.]

Hearing those words, Huangshan could not help but realize that the pile of crumpled papers on the floor behind Voir was larger than the pile on the table. She was immediately filled with anxiety.

"I promise to write only the truth."

She swore as she picked up the paper. The form asked for information related to her identity before asking a list of questions that was aimed at her personality.

After reading through it all, she took the pen and began to fill the form. The first few blanks were easy to fill out.

Name: Huangshan

Age: 22

Profession: Guard for Hire

Specialty: Sword Techniques

Affiliation: Adventurers Guild

The difficult questions followed. She had to think a lot for each questions before writing an answer that seemed appropriate.

(What do you think Pokemon are?) They are a man's best friend.

(Why do you want a pokemon?) They can help me with my job.

(What will you do for your pokemon?) I will provide them a home and treat them the best I could.

(Will you respect the wishes of your pokemon?) Yes. I will.

(Someone or something threatens the life of your pokemon. What will you do?) I will take up my sword and fight. If fighting is not an option and the pokemon is injured or ill, I will take them to a doctor.

(You and your pokemon face a powerful enemy. Your death seems imminent but you can still escape with your life if you let you pokemon stay behind. What will you do?) I will also stay behind and fight till my last breath.

Huangshan realized that the last question was the most important one and perhaps the deciding factor for the selection. Fortunately, she was not someone who abandons her friend to save her own life. Otherwise, she could never answer this question properly without lying.

After filling out the form, she read through it one more time to check for any mistakes. She read all of her answers thoroughly. She didn't know if they were satisfactory but there was no better answer in her opinion.

Huangshan tried her best to hide her anxiety before presenting her form to the examiner. "I have completed it."

Voir briefly looked at her form and placed it on the table. Seeing this, Huangshan unknowingly released a sigh of relief.

[You can leave now. Please make sure to come to the store tomorrow. We will post a list of names and if your name is on the list, you can receive a pokemon.]

"Thank you."

Huangshan bowed her head. She then asked a question she had been curious about since yesterday.

"Do I have to pay any mora for the pokemon?"

[No. Pokemon are beings with emotions. They are not to be treated as merchandise.] Voir warned in a stern tone.

Huangshan gravely nodded to show her understanding and quickly bid her farewell. She made sure to buy a few guidebooks of pokemon before she left. She wanted to know more about pokemon, whether she received one or not.

_____

(The next day)

Huangshan walked the road to the Pokemon Studio in deep contemplation.

The guidebooks she brought yesterday gave her a lot of information about pokemon. They described about the various Pokemon Types, Abilities, Moves, and Evolution. She was confused at times and surprised at others.

She understood a few crucial things from the guidebook. Just like how Tevyat had the 7 elements, the pokemon world had 18 Types. The 18 Types complimented each other just like elemental reactions.

The concept of Evolution and Pokeball confused her and she could not understand how such a thing was even possible.

In the end, she came to a conclusion. She realized that it was futile for an illiterate person like her to try and understand the mystery behind each and every thing.

_____

Huangshan saw a huge line of people leading into the Pokemon Studio today as well. Fortunately, she didn't have join the line today.

She walked towards the entrance to the store and saw a small group of people gathered around a large wooden board hung near the door. She could see a few pieces of paper stuck to the board.

'The examiner said that a list of names will be posted today.'

She was quickly filled with anticipation and anxiety as she realized what that list signified. She rushed to the front of the board and began to search for her name. Her anxiety increased each time she passed a name that was not hers.

A few seconds passed and her breath hitched when she read a name. Huangshan. Her heart threatened to explode with excitement and she began to giggle like a child.

The people beside her turned to her with jealousy but she didn't even register their existence. Her eyes could only see her name on the list and nothing else.

Nearly a minute passed before Huangshan came out from her trance. She ignored the people around her and beelined towards the store with a bright smile on her face.

When she entered the store, she saw the same pokemon working in the store as yesterday. There was also a new addition. A strange device with two eyes and two hands was floating near the elegant Voir.

She hesitated at this moment and took a moment to calm down. She considered her words and walked towards Voir.

"Good morning, Miss. I am here because my name was on the list outside."

Huangshan directly spoke of the main topic to not take much time. She knew how busy the store was.

[Yes, Miss Huangshan. Charge will give you your pokemon.] Voir gestured towards the floating device (Charge).

Huangshan was briefly surprised to know that Voir knew her name. At this moment, Charge addressed her with an loud and excited voice.

"Do you want to pull for a pokemon?"

Huangshan turned to Charge. Even though she didn't understand his words completely, she knew that he was going to give her a pokemon.

"Yes. I want a pokemon."

She spoke loudly, unable to contain her excitement anymore. A smile appeared on the screen as Charge spoke.

"Then I will explain the rules of Gacha to you. There is a 0.6% chance you might pull a 5 star pokemon and 5.1% chance you might pull a 4 star pokemon. You only have one chance to pull so if you are not lucky, you will get a 3 star pokemon."

"Star?" Huangshan asked, confused.

"I am glad you asked. Basically, 5 star refers to a ultra rare SSR pseudo legendary pokemon. 4 star refers to a rare elite pokemon. 3 star refers to a common pokemon found everywhere."

She was still confused. She could not understand the lingo of an otaku. "Does the star affect the strength of the pokemon?"

Charge remained silent for a while. He was disappointed to meet such an uncultured person. He literally 'rolled' his eyes before he spoke.

"Yeah. You can view it like that."

Huangshan slightly tilted her head at his strange behaviour. Charge ignored her gesture and showed her the Pokemon Banner, where the domineering image of a pokemon (Gengar/Joker) was shown.

"Tap on the screen to do your pull."

She looked at the screen in anticipation. Even though she did not understand all the lingo, she understood one fact. She was going to get a pokemon. Her fingers shook with excitement as she tapped on the screen.

In her excited eyes, the screen flashed and the blue skies were shown. A shooting star then streaked through the clouds, transitioning from a blue to a purple hue.

The screen moved towards the shooting star until the purple glow completely covered the screen. The screen then flashed again and a black silhouette appeared before a lighter background. The silhouette was soon filled with colors and a pokemon was revealed.

"Congratulations. You just got a 4 star pokemon." Charge spoke.

Huangshan didn't care about the stars or whatever, as she looked at the image of the pokemon that will soon be hers.

"I will explain the information of your pokemon for you."

Charge gave up on getting a proper response from her. He didn't even want to talk anymore so he let the mechanical voice of the AI relay the pokedex entry of the pokemon.

"Seedot, Acorn Pokemon. It attaches itself to a tree branch using the top of its head. It sucks moisture from the tree while hanging off the branch. The more water it drinks, the glossier this pokemon's body becomes."

Huangshan listened to the explanation intently and memorized everything roughly. She could no longer remain patient as she quickly asked.

"When will I get Seedot?"

Charge didn't respond and just pointed at Voir. Huangshan looked at Voir and understood.

"Thank you."

She approached Voir and hurriedly spoke. "Miss, I pulled Seedot."

Voir didn't respond but a pokeball silently floated from the drawer under the table, and fell onto her hands.

As soon as she received the pokeball, she impatiently pushed the button on the pokeball and released her pokemon.

The round acorn like pokemon emerged on the ground and quickly began to study her. Huangshan crouched down and addressed her pokemon.

"Nice to meet you, Seedot. Please take care of me."

"Hmph." Seedot grunted in a cool way in response. She smiled and picked him up in her arms.

Huangshan then turned to Voir and Charge. She bowed deeply to show her gratitude. "Thank you very much."

Charge didn't respond to her but Voir nodded her head and addressed her.

[Take care of Seedot.]

"I will." Huangshan promised, to Voir, and to herself.

Before leaving the store, she brought a pokemon database book containing information about hundreds of different pokemon.

Even though this book might not be much useful, now that she was a pokemon trainer, she wanted to know more about the various pokemon that exist.