On July 4th, the weather was clear.

Hikaru woke up early, grabbed his tools, and headed to the open area outside.

Regirock stood there, staring blankly at the wildflowers by the roadside. It remained motionless until Hikaru appeared, at which point it happily made a sound and raised its arm.

Was it greeting him? Its voice was distinctly mechanical, yet this time, it clearly expressed joy.

Was it happy because it could help humans again? Or was it because it had found a new friend?

Hikaru wasn’t sure, nor did he particularly care. The bond between him and his Pokémon would develop over time. Even with all his knowledge, emotions couldn’t be nurtured overnight.

Lilligant tended to the berries, and when she looked up and saw a green berry, she excitedly ran over to inform Hikaru.

The Micle Berries had ripened!

“Oh, I can make a Rare Candy now!”

Hikaru picked the Micle Berries, and perhaps due to the knowledge he had gained about berries, these ones had grown exceptionally large and plump, with quite a generous yield!

Before Daigo arrived, Hikaru decided to prepare the Rare Candy.

But before that…

He had Regirock help transport some stones, assigned Lilligant to continue tending to the herbs, sent Doublade to collect firewood, and then returned to his house to turn on the computer.

As expected, the Ancient Bracelets had sold well. Other items like Charcoal, Focus Sash, Cleanse Tag, Spell Tag, Old Wooden Sculpture, Twice-Pickled Vegetables, and Glass Whistle had also received a decent number of orders.

The sheer number of customer IDs made Hikaru’s eyes blur.

[Burning Passion], [Lightning Expert], [Riddle Master];

[Fiery Enthusiasm], [Endless Flames], [Heart of Fear]…

A lot of them seemed to be Fire-type trainers, huh?

It looked like his Charcoal was a particularly successful product, attracting many trainers skilled in Fire-type moves.

Some customers even left unique messages and emails.

[The Awakened]:

“…Did you know? The move Hidden Power can actually be discovered through meditation. In other words, everyone has the potential to possess Hidden Power. I awakened mine at the Lake of Rage through meditation, and now, I’m sharing this with you.”

“Your product is incredibly useful to me. I foresaw this through Future Sight, so I’ve already purchased it. Consider this my advance gratitude—just accept it.”

“Comprehension and Application of Hidden Power”.PDF

Hikaru was stunned. After downloading the file, he realized it was an actual guide on how to train psychic abilities!

No—it wasn’t just about psychic abilities. The first step was to grasp the corresponding mental energy through meditation, and only then could one begin learning Hidden Power.

Hikaru recalled something.

At the Lake of Rage in the Johto region, there was a strange, chubby man who could be found in the upper left corner of the lake during high tide by using Surf. He would give out the TM for Hidden Power and tell the player that this power could be unlocked through meditation!

Yes—Hidden Power was actually a move humans could use! Like Aura or Psychic powers, it wasn’t exclusive to Pokémon; humans could learn it as well.

However, across the entire Pokémon game series, that one chubby man was the only person who had ever demonstrated mastering Hidden Power through meditation.

“This ‘Awakened’ person is incredibly generous… I haven’t even shipped his order yet.” Hikaru muttered, feeling increasingly numb to how often psychics casually used Future Sight in daily life.

He added the person as a friend, intending to invite them into the Doll Collectors’ Group, only to realize they were already in it!

Seriously? Just like that ‘Psychic Girl’? Or had someone else invited him in?

Hikaru checked the group’s total members—one more than before!

Even though he hadn’t sent an invite, these people had somehow found the group number and joined through unknown means. Psychic powers sure were convenient…

A new ID caught his eye—[Meaning of Existence].

Just from the name alone, it seemed like this person had some kind of psychological burden.

Hikaru messaged him:

“You also want a Calyrex plushie? Another case of Future Sight?”

After a brief silence, the other person replied with a simple:

“Mm.”

However, within the group chat, the other psychics seemed curious about these two newcomers. Unsurprisingly, the habitual abuser of Future Sight, Elite Four Grimsley, was the first to speak up:

[@Meaning of Existence]:

“I sense that your psychic abilities are extremely powerful… The future is difficult to foresee when it comes to you. Your strength far surpasses mine. How exactly did you train?”

[Meaning of Existence]:

“…Don’t use Future Sight to pry into others. That’s a terrible habit. My psychic abilities are innate. Unless necessary, I don’t plan on interacting with you all much. Please understand.”

[Grimsley]:

“No, no—sorry, I didn’t directly pry.”

[Caitlin]:

“Hah~ This is troublesome. Grimsley, you really should try to curb your habit of overusing Future Sight every once in a while.”

[Grimsley]:

“…I just suddenly had a strange feeling.”

[Meaning of Existence]:

“It’s probably because my presence unsettled you. The internet can transmit not just spiritual energy but also psychic power. Since you’re actively training Future Sight, you instinctively sought me out.

In reality, the problem lies with me. Now that you understand this, the misunderstanding should be resolved. But as I said before, unless absolutely necessary, I’d rather not interact with you all.”

[Caitlin]:

“So even among psychics, there are people like you. It’s fine. This is just a shopping group, after all. Everyone is here just to buy things.”

[The Awakened]:

“Hoohoo… For psychics, meditation is far more important than chatting in groups… Today, I shall meditate once more… Hoohoo…”

[Psychic Girl]:

“I understand your feelings. I also used to dislike social interactions, but some things in life can’t be avoided. If you ever have any mental struggles, you can talk to me.”

[Meaning of Existence]:

“Thank you for your kindness. Let’s end today’s conversation here.”

The conversation between the psychics wrapped up quickly. However, there was still one non-psychic in the group.

[Ice Doll]:

“…Why are there so many psychics in this group? Isn’t this supposed to be a plushie collection group?”

At this moment, Hikaru completely agreed with that sentiment.

The second message he received was from Dragon’s Messenger.

[Dragon’s Messenger]:

“Thank you so much for the Focus Sash last time! I apologize for not sending a message sooner—I was too focused on my training. It wasn’t until my Focus Sash wore out that I remembered I hadn’t left a review.

As expected, my bond with my Pokémon is unbreakable. Your item not only reinforced that realization but also helped me defeat one of the most important rivals in my life!”

“Your items are truly useful, so I plan to recommend them to other Dragon-type trainers. It’s only right for a loyal customer like me to help others overcome their struggles with Ice-types!”

“One more thing—I’m not sure if you have any Dragon-type Pokémon, but extra knowledge never hurts. If you ever catch one in the future, this will be useful. Take it as a token of my gratitude. I’ve finally broken through my mental barriers and can now climb to even greater heights!”

“Raising and Training Dragon-type Pokémon”.PDF

Hikaru knew that Dragon’s Messenger was none other than Lance. But in his message… who exactly had he defeated?

A lifelong rival… could it be Lorelei?

“This is useful too. Knowledge is something you can never have too much of… though, honestly, no one has the time to master everything. But I do have professional knowledge on Dragon Tamers.”

“Oh, right…” (Sends a message)

“Do you have any Dragon-type materials? I’d like to purchase some from you.”

Lance quickly replied:

[Dragon’s Messenger]:

“When it comes to Dragon-type materials, the best ones are scales, fangs, claws, hides, and whiskers! But… they’re incredibly rare! Alright, since you asked, it would be too distant to talk about ‘purchasing.’ You’ve helped me a lot—I’ll send you some good stuff!”

“Also, please keep developing items that can enhance Dragon Pokémon—especially those that help against Ice-types!”

Ice-types weren’t the only problem—Fairy-types were also a major issue. But then again, neither Kanto nor Johto had Fairy-type trainers…

“The rest of my packages have also arrived in Blackthorn City and should be shipped out soon.”

The next message came from an old customer, Ancient Explorer. Unlike before, this time, she didn’t send a message in the Ghost-type Trainer Group but rather sent a private email.

“I’ll let you in on a little secret. Paldea has some mysterious legends, and since you’re a craftsman, how about taking a trip here sometime? I might have found something valuable.”

“Oh, and this document is quite interesting—you should take a look. It supposedly leads to mysterious treasures. If you’re interested, let me know.”

“The Fall of the Paldean Empire”.PDF

Treasures of the Paldean Empire?

The Treasures of Ruin, perhaps?

Hikaru downloaded the file and read through it carefully. Sure enough, it detailed the legends of the Treasures of Ruin—Paldea’s four Ruinous Legendary Pokémon:

Chien-Pao (The Sword of Ruin)

Ting-Lu (The Vessel of Ruin)

Wo-Chien (The Tablets of Ruin)

Chi-Yu (The Beads of Ruin)

During the ancient Paldean Empire, a merchant brought four artifacts from the Far East—a vessel, tablets, a sword, and beads—and sold them to the Paldean king. That very night, the treasures transformed into Pokémon and wreaked havoc, destroying the royal city!

It turned out that the artifacts had absorbed countless desires and curses, and once they fell into the king’s hands, his overwhelming greed immediately awakened them.

In the end, the king summoned a Pokémon trainer to subdue the four Pokémon, sealing them within four shrines using a total of 32 sacred stakes—eight for each. Only those free of worldly desires could break the seals.

Before a certain “tomb-raiding lady” unearthed these records, the Treasures of Ruin had been mostly unknown.

Hikaru now had a pretty good guess about Ancient Explorer’s true identity.

“This level of hinting is way too obvious…”

“Raifort?” Hikaru muttered to himself.

But still, those vessel, tablets, sword, and beads—for a craftsman like him, these artifacts were extremely appealing.

Just as the Regi trio were treasures to sculptors, these artifacts were practically irresistible to a craftsman.

And then there were the sacred stakes used to seal Legendary Pokémon… those were fascinating in their own right!

…

This one came from a new customer.

[World Without Heart]:

“Does your King’s Rock really make Pokémon obey?”

“Not ‘obey.’ It’s about ‘recognition.'”

Hikaru corrected him while analyzing this suspicious username, adding the person as a friend.

[World Without Heart]:

“…Regardless of the wording, the outcome is the same. These meaningless disputes over terminology only make the world worse.”

“Let me ask you—have you heard of the Red Chain?”

Hikaru: “…”

Alright. No need for further analysis. This guy was Cyrus.

The Red Chain could be made in two ways:

Using the power of the Lake Guardians combined with a meteorite. The traditional method, where special tools granted by the Lake Guardians could be forged into a Red Chain.

And the sole purpose of this item?

To bind Dialga and Palkia.

“No, I don’t know about such an item. Apologies. Is there anything else you’d like to purchase?”

Hikaru responded.

[World Without Heart]:

“I see… If you ever discover a power strongly tied to the legends of Sinnoh, I hope you’ll inform me. That power is necessary for creating a new world.”

“You might not take my words seriously, but gathering information isn’t something I expect for free.”

“If you’re a craftsman, then this document should be of use to you. Consider it a fair exchange.”

“The Deconstruction and Assembly of Machinery”.PDF

“This document covers the structure and assembly of various modern technological devices, including Exp. Shares, Power Amplifiers, and more. These aren’t particularly complex designs.”

“If my technology interests you, the Galactic Foundation welcomes you. You might want to think about it.”

“I’ll purchase your King’s Rock. As for the rest, I’ll take one wooden sculpture for now.”

“Rotom—you’re aware of this Pokémon, right?”

“Of course,” Hikaru replied. “Do you have one? My wooden sculpture can be customized for it.”

[World Without Heart]:

“No, I don’t own a Rotom. I just need a simple sculpture.”

Hikaru responded:

“I see. So you two were separated. But don’t worry, my friend—life will always bring different souls together, and new possibilities will be born. One day, you’ll meet that Pokémon again.”

Cyrus remained silent for a long time.

Just as Hikaru was about to move on to processing other orders, a new message popped up.

[World Without Heart]:

“…Thank you, unknown craftsman.”

(End of Chapter)

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep