"Bellsprout, remember what I told you. Stay sharp this time."
After searching for quite a while, Icarus finally located another Caterpie resting on a tree branch.
"If you perform well, we won't have to keep picking off single targets anymore."
"Sprout."
Bellsprout stepped forward confidently.
"Pie?"
This Caterpie was clearly less experienced than the previous one. Upon seeing Bellsprout, it fired only a single String Shot.
Bellsprout sidestepped easily.
Two vines instantly formed.
Crack! Crack!
The Vine Whips struck cleanly.
"Pie!!"
Caterpie fell to the ground in pain.
"Now! Use Growth!"
"Sprout!"
This time, Bellsprout activated Growth instantly.
No hesitation.
No frozen pause.
The light green glow faded—
Crack! Crack!
Before Caterpie could recover, two thicker Vine Whips lashed down again.
The damage was overwhelming.
"Finish it," Icarus ordered calmly. "Throw it at the rock."
Bellsprout wrapped its vines around the Caterpie's body, lifted it—
—and hurled it.
"Boom!"
The impact against the jagged boulder was decisive.
Blood spread across the stone.
Caterpie went limp.
"Well done. Guard the surroundings. I'll harvest quickly."
The impact had been loud. Blood scent would spread fast.
Predators would come.
Icarus worked swiftly, dismantling the corpse and storing the materials.
"Move. Change direction."
They shifted eastward along the forest perimeter.
Along the way, they spotted other wild Pokémon, but Icarus avoided conflict. The earlier noise might still attract trouble.
After checking the forest map, he realized something.
They had drifted from the northwest sector into the northeast.
The Pokémon density here was noticeably higher.
"Sprout?" Bellsprout tilted its head.
We're lost, aren't we?
"Haha… no, no. We meant to go this way."
Bellsprout stared at him.
"…Alright. Maybe slightly off course."
He coughed.
"The density here is too high. Without a second Pokémon, it's risky. Let's retreat a bit and eat lunch."
"Sprout!"
You definitely went the wrong way.
Icarus pretended not to hear.
At the mention of food, Bellsprout happily followed.
---
They settled under a large tree.
Icarus handed over two pieces of Pokémon meat—about half a kilo total.
"For you."
Then he took out compressed travel rations and water for himself.
"Sprout?"
Why not cook it?
Icarus sighed. "Open flames in the wild are dangerous. The smell spreads too far."
"Sprout."
Bellsprout eyed the dry ration curiously.
"Want to try it? It's not very good."
He broke off a small piece.
"Sprout—bah!"
Bellsprout immediately spat it out.
Icarus laughed.
"These are grain-based survival cakes. Completely dehydrated. Terrible taste. But they keep you alive."
When he had first arrived in Greenveil Town, government subsidies had forced him to survive on nothing but these for months.
Compared to that, this was luxury.
After resting, they resumed their search.
---
Icarus froze.
"In the grass… three."
Through his binoculars, he saw two Caterpie grazing while one stood watch.
"Alright," he whispered. "We raise the difficulty. Two versus three. I'll support you."
"Sprout!" Bellsprout flexed its vines confidently.
They repositioned carefully.
"Here. I'll open with throwing knives. You activate Growth first, then eliminate the wounded targets immediately."
"Sprout."
Bellsprout mobilized energy.
A faint green light flashed—
Growth completed in under two seconds.
Icarus nodded.
Actual combat really is the best training.
"Shhk! Shhk!"
The knives sliced through the air.
"Pie!"
The vigilant Caterpie reacted instantly, firing String Shot to deflect one blade midair.
It succeeded.
But the other two grazing Caterpie weren't as lucky.
The knives cut across their bodies, and traces of paralysis powder entered the wounds.
They turned—
—and instead of fleeing, they launched String Shots toward Icarus.
"Pie! Pie!"
Icarus dodged sharply.
Years of training—past life plus this one—weren't wasted.
"Now!" he shouted. "Hit the wounded ones!"
"Sprout!"
Bellsprout, hidden behind a tree, unleashed two Vine Whips.
Crack! Crack!
The injured Caterpie were struck cleanly.
"Pie!!"
Their partial paralysis slowed their reactions. They couldn't dodge.
"Push! Eliminate them first!"
Just as victory seemed certain—
"PIE!!"
The uninjured Caterpie let out a sharp cry.
The two wounded ones, despite the pain, began firing continuous String Shots at both Icarus and Bellsprout.
"Sprout!"
Bellsprout dodged desperately—but multiple strands wrapped around its vines and stem.
Most of the silk targeted it.
"Don't panic!" Icarus shouted. "Break free!"
At that moment—
The uninjured Caterpie's body glowed faintly white.
It charged forward at high speed.
"Tackle!" Icarus's eyes widened.
This one had battle sense.
"Damn—this one's committing!"
He clenched his jaw.
If Bellsprout couldn't break free in time—
The impact would land.
---
(End of Chapter)