"Found it—there really is something!"
As he filtered through one listing after another, Kael finally came across information that genuinely caught his interest.
Sneasel is a cunning, vicious, and extremely aggressive Pokémon—or rather, most Dark-type Pokémon tend to possess this kind of temperament. Moreover, the Sneasel line is known for living and acting in groups. Whether hunting or migrating, they usually move in packs of a dozen or more. Because of this, Sneasel packs are considered minor tyrants of the Silver Mountains. When their numbers grow too large, even the region's true overlord—Tyranitar—would think twice before provoking them.
"Rare Pokémon sighting! A Johto-exclusive Sneasel has been spotted in the southern area of Viridian Forest. The individual appears to be injured. I am selling the exact discovery location for 5,000 League Credits. First come, first served—no bargaining."
Below the listing was a photo of the Sneasel. Perhaps due to poor lighting at the time, the image was somewhat blurry, but it was still clear enough to make out a black, feline Pokémon leaning against a tree trunk. In its claws was the corpse of a Caterpie, already torn cleanly in two…
The listing had been posted at 5:15 a.m. earlier that morning. The number of purchases was still zero. While Kael couldn't be completely certain whether the Sneasel was truly injured, there was no doubt about the Pokémon's identity.
Information posted on the Bounty Hunter Network was generally reliable. Of course, sellers occasionally exaggerated or embellished details to help their listings sell faster—something Kael could accept.
He purchased the information immediately with a single click.
Five thousand League Credits wasn't a small amount, but it wasn't excessive either. More importantly, if he hesitated and someone else beat him to it, the regret would be unbearable.
Almost the instant payment went through, an email notification popped up in the lower-right corner of the screen. Inside were the precise coordinates of the last confirmed sighting in southern Viridian Forest, along with several reference images of nearby landmarks.
Kael synced the data to his handheld device at once. Once Ralts had fully woken up, he planned to depart immediately. In the meantime, he began preparing the necessary equipment.
He wasn't naive enough to expect a successful capture on the first attempt. If he could merely encounter the Sneasel and attach a tracking device to it, that alone would make the trip worthwhile.
...
Food. Purified water. Antidotes. Potions. A camping tent…
This was a tracking and capture mission involving a wild Pokémon—he could be staying in Viridian Forest for several days—so none of these supplies could be neglected.
Thanks to the world's highly advanced spatial technology, all of this outdoor equipment fit neatly into a single standard spatial-fold backpack. Better yet, it weighed virtually nothing, making it extraordinarily convenient.
Kael's camouflage-colored spatial backpack was a reinforced model, priced at three times the cost of a normal one. It was fireproof, slash-resistant, waterproof, equipped with fingerprint locking, an emergency parachute system, and even a compact oxygen canister.
At present, the biggest problem lay with Ralts herself.
She was a Psychic-type Pokémon, and her primary offensive move was Confusion. Psychic-type attacks were completely ineffective against Dark-type Pokémon. While overwhelming strength could theoretically brute-force past type immunity, Ralts was clearly nowhere near that level yet.
So Kael began considering how to win a direct confrontation under complete type disadvantage—without resorting to methods that were overly excessive.
At that thought, a faint smile curved his lips.
He turned toward the storage shelves and took down a locked metal case.
When the lid opened, a chilling array of silver steel objects came into view:
8-millimeter steel pellets, slender steel needles gleaming with cold light, thick heavy-duty steel spikes, and—most intimidating of all—razor-sharp steel awls.
All of these items had been custom-made at Kael's request, forged from cold steel. Their hardness and toughness were exceptional. In combination with Ralts's telekinesis, steel pellets became bullets; needles, sniper rounds; spikes, armor-piercing shells; and awls—nothing short of rocket launchers.
But Sneasel was meant to be captured, not killed.
Steel pellets would suffice.
Since psychic attacks were ineffective, he would simply use telekinesis to control steel pellets at range and deal damage indirectly.
Still, to guard against unexpected situations, he packed several steel needles and spikes as well.
One by one, the compact killing tools were slotted into his multifunction tactical belt. Finally, he slid a folding combat knife into his boot.
With that, the mission's preliminary preparations were complete.