"This is Cypress Town at last… I'm exhausted. Let's find a place to stay."
Three days after leaving the main village road, Ash and Sabrina finally arrived at the location of the second gym.
Cypress Town was a small forest settlement. The surrounding woods produced many rare berries, which were also used in crafting several special types of Poké Balls.
Among the residents was the famous local craftsman known only as the Master of Cypress Balls, a well-respected Poké Ball expert.
After more than half an hour of searching, Ash and Sabrina finally found a small inn. Because Cypress Town was a village rather than a proper city, there was no dedicated hotel—nor a full Pokémon Center—aside from the small medical facility built for the Cypress Gym.
"Ash, are you going to challenge the gym now?"
In the inn's simple room, Sabrina asked while lying on the bed, relieved to finally rest, watching Ash place their luggage down.
"No… we'll rest for a day."
Ash shook his head.
"Kirlia has been pushing herself hard these last few days. Before the battle, everyone needs time to relax."
After setting down his things, Ash released all his Pokémon.
"You guys go enjoy yourselves. Just make sure you're back for dinner. And don't cause trouble for me."
"Pika!"
"Ga!"
"Wooo~!"
"Boi!"
Hearing Ash's words, the Pokémon cheered. Three straight days of intense training would have broken anyone without Ash's Mokuton-enhanced vitality.
Pikachu in particular had reached the peak of his current form.
He only needed to stabilize his strength now.
If he wanted to grow further, he would need to evolve into a Raichu, but Pikachu was fully satisfied with his current speed and power. Thanks to Ash's lightning-style techniques, Pikachu could already overwhelm opponents above his tier, so evolution wasn't urgent.
Ash didn't force him. Pikachu's current power was more than enough.
Ash's Pikachu was destined to become the first and only Champion-level Pikachu in the world.
Even the original storyline hinted at Pikachu's monstrous potential.
After Pikachu happily took Kirlia and the others out to explore the town, Ash lay half-reclined on the bed, scrolling through his phone.
Sabrina put on a bathrobe and prepared to head to the hot springs.
Luckily, it wasn't a mixed bath—otherwise Ash would never allow her to go.
"I still need to secure a team of powerful Pokémon," Ash muttered while browsing.
"The Charizard squad isn't enough. And most of the Pokémon in the Dream Forest are solitary—they can't unite into a proper defensive force for Magic Island."
"My Magic Island needs trained personnel too… firearms, security teams. Humans will have to handle certain responsibilities."
Magic Island had rapidly developed under Mewtwo's management.
Its reputation had grown, and its residents were carefully selected—no one with hidden intentions was allowed to remain.
Ash glanced back at his screen. No important messages.
He exhaled.
"System, I want to draw."
[ Ding! Summoning System Activated — Beginning Lottery Roll… ]
In the previous draws, his luck had been… questionable.
Sometimes amazing, sometimes disappointing.
He had obtained valuable medicines, but Ash still disliked spending attribute points unless absolutely necessary.
Now, he hoped for something truly worthwhile.
"Ding~!"
With the crisp system chime, Ash's consciousness entered the system space.
Outside, his body simply appeared to be asleep, eyes gently closed.
"There are still fifteen Ordinary Draws, five Gold Draws, three Black Draws, eight Mainstream Draws… and 1.54 million attribute points. Not poor, at least."
Ash checked his stats, nodding in mild satisfaction.
It wasn't extravagant, but he could still be considered comfortably wealthy.
"System, start with the Ordinary Draws."
[ Ding~! Beginning Ordinary Lottery… ]
A massive roulette wheel materialized before him.
The pattern was the same as always—one gold slot, one black, two red, two blue.
"…Seriously? This lineup's garbage."
Ash frowned. Even the gold reward was just God-Class Cooking Mastery, and the black reward was nothing more than high-grade kitchen utensils.
He had noticed this pattern long ago—whenever the draw category wasn't combat-related, the system tended to throw lifestyle items at him.
He had asked before, but the system always ignored that question.
After burning through all fifteen Ordinary Draws, he ended up with several gold and black items—good quality, but all life-skill related.
"No useful combat skills again… Fine. Time to be a local tyrant."
Ash took a deep breath.
"System—use the Black Lottery."
[Ding~! Black Lottery Activated. The host has 3 chances to obtain Black-Grade items.]
A nostalgic slot machine appeared, making Ash briefly recall the days when the system was still at Level 0.
Ka-ka-ka…
One pull.
Two pulls.
Three pulls.
Ash waited for the system results, silently praying for something powerful—skills, rare items, anything truly valuable.
Ding~!
[Congratulations, host! You have obtained a Black-Grade item: "Rankyaku (Storm Kick)."
A high-speed kick that generates compressed air, launching a long-range blade slash.]
[Congratulations, host! You have obtained a Black-Grade item: "Ultra-Ancient 7-Day Travel Pass." A one-time consumable that allows the host to travel to the Ultra-Ancient Period for 7 days.]
[Congratulations, host! You have obtained a Black-Grade item: "Skill Disc ×2."
You may copy any skill you have created into these discs and instantly teach them to Pokémon.]
Ash's eyes brightened.
Now these were the kinds of rewards he wanted.