VIOLET CITY, a secluded and dark alley.
Ethan Bell stood quietly in the alley, looking at the fat man in front of him. He asked in a low voice,
"Is the stuff you brought this time any good?"
"Good! Very good! Extremely high purity! I went through a lot of trouble to get it, Brother Ethan. Don't worry!"
"Hehe."
Ethan Bell chuckled noncommittally.
Clearly, he didn't fully believe the fat man's words.
The fat man noticed Ethan's doubtful expression.
"Last time was a mistake! Who knew those bald monks hid erotic books inside BUDDHIST SCRIPTURES!"
"This time it's absolutely real—BUDDHIST SCRIPTURES from SPROUT TOWER! They even smell like Bellsprout!"
"Is that so?"
"If you don't believe me, open it and check!"
Since he said that, Ethan quickly opened the package.
"Mm! Not bad. Pure Buddhist aura. Authentic scriptures! Handwritten, with annotations too. Good!"
"Cash on delivery! Two hundred Pokédollar per book! Five books total!"
"Okay."
After paying without hesitation, Ethan left the alley.
As a TRANSMIGRATOR who had finally arrived in the Pokémon world, he should have been traveling with his Pokémon.
Instead, he was studying BUDDHISM.
It wasn't that Ethan didn't want Pokémon. One afternoon, he awakened a SYSTEM—a very tricky one.
The BUDDHIST NATURE SYSTEM.
By reciting Buddhist scriptures every day, he could gain Buddhist Nature Points to strengthen Pokémon.
It sounded useful, but that wasn't the real problem.
The real problem was this: he couldn't catch Pokémon with POKÉ BALLS. He had to influence them with LOVE.
Love.
"My love is boundless, so why won't any Pokémon accept it?"
So far, not a single Pokémon had been moved by Ethan.
How did ASH do it? Why did Pokémon flock to him so easily?
The more Ethan thought about it, the more he felt that Ash truly deserved his reputation. His charm was terrifying.
Since Ethan couldn't compete with that, he decided to rely on numbers.
Target number one!
Ethan forced a bright smile and looked up at the branch.
"Good morning, PIDGEY. It's me—Ethan. I came to see you again."
"Pidgey~"
The Pidgey flew down, landed on Ethan's shoulder, and pecked at the millet in his hand.
It seemed quite familiar with him.
Ethan gently stroked it.
"Is it tasty? I have plenty at home. Why don't you come home with me?"
His tone sounded like an uncle coaxing a child.
"Pidgey?!"
The moment it heard that, the Pidgey flew back to the branch.
Ethan's smile stiffened.
It's fine. He was used to it.
He placed the millet under the tree, waved at Pidgey, and walked away.
"It's okay. Feelings take time. We'll go slowly."
"Second target! I'm confident today!"
Ethan clenched his fist.
He walked to the edge of the pond.
"POLIWAG~ It's me, Ethan. I came to see you!"
"Poli~"
Poliwag peeked out of the water, looking timid.
When it saw Ethan clearly, it jumped out of the water and into his arms.
"Hahaha~"
Ethan rubbed Poliwag's head happily.
After playing for a while, Ethan stood up.
"I have to go now."
"Poli~"
Poliwag looked at him reluctantly.
This was called playing hard to get, a trick Ethan had just learned.
He turned back and said,
"I'm actually reluctant to leave you too. Why don't you come to my house? I have lots of fun things there."
"Kwa~!"
The Poliwag jumped back into the water as if it had seen a ghost.
Ethan paused, stared at the ripples, and sighed.
He took out a blue ball-shaped toy and placed it on the bank.
He waved at the pond and left.
Targets three, four, and five—the RATTATA group.
Target six—MAGIKARP.
Target seven—ODDISH.
…
In the evening, Ethan headed home with the Buddhist scriptures.
He actually enjoyed spending time with Pokémon.
But somehow, he always failed at the final step.
That final step had dragged on for months.
His potential targets now covered the whole neighborhood.
Should he try the wild area next?
When he reached home, Ethan checked around. No one had returned yet.
Carrying the scriptures, he quietly went upstairs.
Suddenly—click.
The lights turned on.
His parents and younger sister stood at the top of the stairs, their expressions serious.
"What are you holding?!"
"Nothing—"
Before he could finish, his sister EMILY BELL rushed forward and tackled him.
"You little brat! What are you doing?!"
Crash!
The Buddhist scriptures scattered across the floor.
The room went silent.
"What is this?!"
LINDA BELL My Mom stared at the scriptures in disbelief.
"Ethan! What are you doing?!"
BRIAN BELL looked furious.
"See, Dad! Mom! I told you! My brother wants to become a MONK!!"
Ethan coughed violently.
"What nonsense are you saying?!"
Brian stepped forward, his expression grim.
"Explain yourself."
"Last time I saw you sneaking in erotic books, I thought you had changed. Turns out it was just a cover. Ethan, don't tell me you really want to become a monk! As long as I, Brian Bell, your dad is alive, forget it!"
"Dad, I'm just a little interested in Buddhism, that's all! Don't worry! I like women!"
Ethan raised three fingers in oath.
"You say you like Pokémon?! Then why won't you accept the Pokémon from school? Why won't you take the Pokémon we buy for you? You secretly recite scriptures every night, you give alms to wild Pokémon, and you act just like those monks at Sprout Tower! No— even they have a Bellsprout! I'm telling you, you're trying to become a monk!"
Mom leaned on Dad's shoulder and cried.
Ethan blinked, looked at the floor, then at his parents, then at his sister.
He raised three fingers again.
"I like Pokémon! I like women too! I promise—I'll get a Pokémon this week!"
Warm reminder:
If you like this book, please add it to your collection so you don't lose it later.