[Bonus]

"Mm… finally slept enough..."

When Reiji woke up, it wasn't the next morning—the sky was still pitch-black.

Stretching lazily, he blinked in confusion at the darkness outside the tent. Had he really slept for a whole day? Had it turned to night again?

Still dazed, Reiji fished his watch out of his backpack. It was 10 PM.

Seeing the time, he let out a long sigh of relief. Good—at least it wasn't the next night. He'd just slept until 10 in the evening.

"Poliwhirl, Krabby, Spinarak—where are you?" Reiji pulled out his flashlight and shined it outside the tent. He didn't see them anywhere. Had they fallen asleep, or had they run off to the beach to play? He had clearly told them not to wander off.

"Yobo, yobo…"

Just as he called out, Poliwhirl's voice echoed back. A blue silhouette appeared in the beam of his flashlight, calling out, "Yobo, yobo…"

"Good, you're still here. Go get Krabby and Spinarak," Reiji said. He wasn't hungry yet—he'd only had dinner that afternoon—so he packed up the tent and stuffed it back into his backpack. This was the perfect time to make a nighttime visit to human civilization.

He wanted to see what the human world of Pokémon society was really like.

And at night, as a stranger, he was less likely to attract attention.

After all, this city on the island was likely a port town, filled with strangers. No way Officer Jenny could question every outsider!

Once the tent was packed and his backpack secured, Poliwhirl called over Krabby and Spinarak. Reiji released Pelipper from its Poké Ball and recalled the other three into theirs.

He climbed back onto Pelipper's back, ready to head toward the island's largest city.

"Pelipper, take us up into the sky. Head toward the area with the most lights," Reiji instructed.

"Pelii-peli!" Pelipper had been resting inside its Poké Ball for five or six hours and had recovered enough stamina to carry Reiji again.

Flying was clearly the best option. Walking to the city would probably take him until morning. Things looked close from the sky, but Reiji understood full well—"what looks like a short distance can exhaust a horse."

As they ascended into the night sky, the entire human activity pattern on the island came into view. The largest cluster of lights was to the southeast.

He vaguely remembered that being the port, while he had landed on the northeast side. There was still quite a bit of distance between them.

From up high, the port city gleamed with colorful lights. It was almost over-the-top.

Judging by how far the lights stretched, the city seemed huge—though it was hard to gauge the exact size from the sky.

Outside the port, most other places had minimal lighting—some had maybe twenty or thirty lights, others just a few.

The clusters were probably villages; the sparse ones might be villas. Hard to say without visiting during the day.

They didn't bother with the darker regions—instead, they flew straight toward the brightest part of the island.

After about ten minutes, they reached the port city.

"Pelipper, go a little higher…"

Reiji planned to observe the city layout from the sky, even pulling out a telescope.

Since it was night, they wouldn't be seen flying high. Perfect for scouting the location of the Pokémon Center.

With a city this big, and a major port at that, there was bound to be a Pokémon Center—probably lots of Trainers, too.

And if you wanted to understand the Pokémon world quickly, the best way was through Trainers.

And where did Trainers gather the most? At Pokémon Centers, of course.

Circling the city once from above, Reiji quickly located the Pokémon Center through his telescope.

What helped was the crowd—there were tons of people gathered near the building, surrounded by commercial streets and night markets.

And the Pokémon Center was easy to spot. That massive, prominent Poké Ball sign always sat atop the highest point of the building.

Nearby, on a large battle arena, a group of rowdy young men were shouting excitedly from the stands.

Reiji could even hear them from the air, their voices filled with wild enthusiasm as two Pokémon clashed in battle.

The nightlife surrounding the Pokémon Center lit up several blocks, making the area around it incredibly lively.

There were shops, food stalls, and roaming vendors, all catering to battling Trainers, spectators, and curious passersby.

After all, no money flows more easily than a Trainer's money!

Seeing how lively it was, Reiji decided not to fly any closer. He had Pelipper land in an empty spot some distance away and returned it to its Poké Ball.

He then released Spinarak.

Seeing that many Trainers had their Pokémon walking beside them, Reiji figured this city probably didn't prohibit it—or at least allowed Pokémon to be carried freely.

He slung his backpack around to the front to guard against pickpockets.

He also took all his Poké Balls off his waist and stashed them in the backpack—for the same reason.

While putting them away, he also took out a knife and clipped it to his belt—one he'd taken off a Pokémon Hunter.

"Spinarak, hop on my shoulder. Don't move or attack anyone unless I say so, got it?" Once everything was ready, Reiji pulled a black face mask over his mouth and nose, flipped up his hoodie, and headed for the Pokémon Center, then the battle arena.

He wanted to see whether the Pokémon Center looked like how he remembered it.

And if he needed to gather information, the battle arena would be best—where the crowds were thickest.

As he neared the Pokémon Center, the sounds grew louder—shouts, cheering, waves of heat, and gusts of wind blew past him.

Passing by the Pokémon Center, he curiously glanced inside and caught a glimpse of the legendary Nurse Joy standing behind the counter helping Trainers.

But he quickly looked away and walked past the center. Even if you gave him a hundred times the courage, he wouldn't dare step inside.

Because he was still undocumented—better not to loiter in front of Nurse Joy and risk being questioned by Officer Jenny.

As he walked, he found he could clearly understand the conversations around him. Every word was crystal clear.

"Boss, hurry up! The most popular battle tonight is about to start. If we miss it, forget the ramen..."

"Don't worry, it's almost done! You'll make it in time..."

"Boss, two ice cream cones, please—perfect for this weather!"

"Boss, I'll take two popsicles!"

On the way, Reiji saw so many things—restaurants, fast food, Western food, cafés, bars, bakeries, Pokémon food stores, Pokémon item shops, people eating barbecue, drinking cold drinks, and sipping coffee…

So this was what Pokémon world nightlife looked like?

Surrounding the Pokémon Center and battle arenas, Trainers had built a bustling commercial street, and Trainers were clearly the main source of income here.

Just like university towns in his previous life—shrewd merchants always knew where the real money was.

But all of this was set a fair distance from the Pokémon Center, including the battle arenas—at least a hundred meters away.

That made sense. After all, the Pokémon Center was a hospital. No Trainer would want their Pokémon's treatment disturbed by noise.

To avoid annoying Trainers, vendors consciously set up farther away—including six massive battle arenas over a hundred meters out.

The only eateries near the center were quiet restaurants or cafés.

Many were on upper floors, offering views of Pokémon battles below for their dining customers.

Pokémon battles were a hallmark of the Pokémon world—just like playing chess against a worthy opponent, or friends matching up in a video game. A similar vibe.

They were the most popular competitive sport in the Pokémon world, enjoyed by people of all ages—like soccer in certain countries from his past life.

No wonder it was already 11 PM and the area was still buzzing while other places were winding down.

Reiji, strolling casually with Spinarak, finally reached the battle arenas—but the crowd was too thick. He couldn't squeeze in at all.

There were six large battlefields lined up in two rows of three, with spectator stands beside each one—but every seat was already taken.

Even the walkways leading to the battlefields were jam-packed with excited young people, faces flushed, cheering wildly for their favorite Pokémon.

The size of these battle arenas made sense now. This port city relied heavily on Pokémon battles to drive the economy—it was just a typical island resort city, after all.

Aside from beaches and coastal views, which many islands had, this city had a cruise port too, drawing in tourists.

If battles couldn't attract visitors, there wouldn't be crowds like this.

For an island with few natural resources, tourism, port activity, and Pokémon battles—plus the associated industries—formed its three key economic pillars.

Those three pillars were:

Consumption: Trainers were the main drivers. Tourism and ports boosted spending further.

Investment: Also tied to Trainers. Otherwise, where did the money for six massive battle arenas come from? All the service businesses around them? That's city investment to attract more Trainers.

Export: He hadn't seen this yet, but the strong Pokémon battle culture and competitive environment could definitely be exported.

This port's prosperity made perfect sense. Kinnow Island sat in the center of the surrounding archipelago—no wonder the port was so busy.

And with a busy port came foot traffic. With people came a thriving Pokémon battle culture—and tourism.

Over time, service industries centered around Pokémon naturally flourished.

All in all, this city was doing very well. Whoever managed it was competent. A small glimpse told the whole story.

Public security seemed excellent, too—so many people gathered, and no one had started a fight. That said a lot.

The city's law enforcement deserved praise.

Blending into the crowd, Reiji and Spinarak soon got swept up in the electric atmosphere.

But this particular battle was just too popular. Reiji tried twice to squeeze in and failed—so he gave up.

Tough luck—he happened to show up during the night's most anticipated showdown.

Judging by the crowd's cheers, he could already guess which two Pokémon were battling.

"Blastoise! Blastoise! Blastoise!"

"Feraligatr! Feraligatr! Feraligatr!"

"Two fully-evolved starters, huh…" Reiji smiled wryly at the solid wall of people in front of him.

He had really wanted to watch, to see how Trainers in this world commanded their Pokémon in battle.

But it wasn't meant to be. Since he couldn't even see, he backed off. To avoid Spinarak accidentally hurting someone, he didn't try to force his way through.

Besides, there were still five other battle arenas. If he couldn't see this one, he could always check out another.

As for why these two Water-types were so popular—that was thanks to the environment here.

In a region full of islands, Water-types held a natural advantage. No wonder people loved strong Water-types.

Even his own team was mostly Water-type—because in the Orange Islands, Water-types were the easiest to find.

Along the way, he noticed that seven out of every ten Trainers had Water-types.

If Charizard came here, it'd be in trouble. Surrounded by Water-types, it'd get countered everywhere.

But for Grass- or Electric-type Trainers, this place would be a dream—constantly having type advantage, the exact opposite of Charizard.

Eventually, Reiji found a battle arena with some space. Two Water-types were battling here too—both Trainers were teens, one chubby and one thin.

The skinny kid had a Poliwhirl, the chubby one had a Krabby—both common Water-types that Reiji was very familiar with.

The match had entered an intense phase—Poliwhirl used Water Gun, and Krabby countered with its own Water Gun. Back and forth they went, trading blows.

But their aim…

Well, let's just say it was painful to watch.

Out of ten-plus Water Guns each, maybe one or two hit.

(End of Chapter)

[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]

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