"Guh‑nee! Guh‑nee!"
A small Gimmighoul squealed with excitement from atop the golden purse. The moment its glowing yellow eyes caught sight of the shimmering coins inside, its entire body quivered with joy.
There were one hundred gold coins in that sack—more than the little ghost had ever seen in its life. For a being addicted to treasure, this was paradise piled in glitter.
Still muttering happily, it hugged the pouch like a pillow. "Guh‑nee! Guh‑nee!"
But just as it prepared to dive nose‑first into the pile, a sharp click echoed—followed by a flash of red light that shot toward it.
"Gu‑NEE?!"
The startled Pokémon whirled around and saw Gary standing behind it, Gengar smirking at his side.
"Gen‑gar!" the ghost chuckled, hands on its hips. Its grin widened like. "Looks like the little thief's finally cornered, huh?"
"Guu… neee…" Gimmighoul stammered, eyes flickering with confusion more than fear.
For a moment, the little phantom didn't panic. Usually, humans screamed or chased it away whenever they saw it touching gold. Yet this young man stood there—calm, watching—and hadn't attacked.
It tilted its head in puzzlement.
Gary crouched slightly, voice gentle. "No need to panic. I'm not here to hurt you."
Gimmighoul blinked. For a ghost accustomed to broomsticks and sealed doors, such kindness was suspicious.
Gimmighoul was a peculiar Pokémon, only four inches tall and nearly weightless. It had no natural predators; few creatures even noticed it drifting through walls at night. Its only real enemies were the shopkeepers and their guard Pokémon—Houndstones, Banettes, Pawniards—who protected Mesagoza's antique stores from treasure thieves like it.
Gary had studied its habits: docile, greedy, and curious to a fault. To capture one, you didn't battle—you tempted it.
Seeing that this one wasn't panicking, Gary knew brute force wasn't necessary. He reached into his bag and said softly, "Hey there, Gimmighoul. How'd you like to come with me? Be my Pokémon, and I'll give you all these coins—and even more later."
"Guh‑nee?" The ghost's eyes widened. More?
It hovered warily, squinting, as if debating whether this was trickery. In its experience, humans rarely offered treasure; they took it.
Gary smiled faintly and unzipped his backpack. "You don't have to take my word for it—just look."
He reached into his space pack and pulled out a shining Coin Purse, the special one that glowed faintly with spectral light—Gimmighoul's Coin Purse, containing the 999 mystical coins he had earned from a previous challenge.
The moment the purse appeared, Gimmighoul's body stiffened. Its antenna began to vibrate; it could feel the energy—the pure aura of coins deeply connected to its kind.
"Gu—gu‑nee…" It floated closer, mesmerized.
Gary's voice remained calm. "See these? They're not ordinary coins. They were nurtured by your kind. If you agree to be my Pokémon, all of this can be yours someday."
The little ghost trembled. It barely had a dozen coins of its own—dusty and dull compared to the radiant gold before it. Its greed, unholy and instinctive, gnawed at its rationality. Then it nodded rapidly. "Guh! Guh‑nee!"
Gary blinked. "...That easy?"
Clearly, coins spoke louder than words.
"Alright then." He placed the golden pouch back into his backpack, pulled a spare Poké Ball from his belt, and tossed it. "Let's make it official!"
The red light engulfed Gimmighoul. The ghost didn't even resist—it just squeaked once, "Gu‑nee!" and willingly allowed itself to be captured.
The Poké Ball wobbled on the ground three times before emitting a clear ding!
Gary grinned. "Gotcha."
He walked over, pocketed the Poké Ball, and scanned it. The screen lit up with soft blue light:
Pokémon: Gimmighoul
Type: Ghost
Level: 30
Potential: Elite
Ability: Run Away– Easily escapes from wild Pokémon.
Moves: Astonish, Tackle
Held Item: Gimmighoul's Coin
Friendship: 100 / 255
Gary tilted his head. "An Elite-class ghost that only knows Astonish and Tackle? That's… pitiful." He gave a soft chuckle. "We'll fix that soon enough."
He released the Poké Ball again, and Gimmighoul materialized with a pop of red light, spinning in the air before landing on the floor.
"Gu‑nee!" it chirped cheerfully—then immediately stretched tiny hands toward Gary's bag, whining for coins.
Gary rolled his eyes. "Unbelievable. You're even greedier outside the Ball."
"Gen‑gar…" Gengar snickered behind him, amused.
Sighing, Gary pulled out a small charm—Soothe Bell—and tossed it to the little ghost. "Here. Keep this. It'll help you get stronger. I'll feed you more coins later."
Gimmighoul clutched the Soothe Bell and stuffed it possessively beside its gold coins, clearly believing even that was treasure. Its entire body shimmered faintly, as if vibrating with joy.
"You really are made of greed," Gary said wryly. He touched its metallic head. "Cold… but smooth. Almost feels like living gold."
At his touch, Gimmighoul blinked curiously, making a small cooing noise. "Guh…?"
Gary tapped. "Let's broaden those skills a little. You can't just hoard treasure—you need to defend it."
He kneeled beside the ghost and began a Crash Course with the TM devices in his pack. "Alright, buddy. Let's start simple—Rest, Reflect, Protect."
Golden light streamed briefly across Gimmighoul's tiny frame as it absorbed the training data. It blinked twice, sparks of power rippling through its eyes.
"Gu—nee!!" it cried, realizing it could wield new moves.
Gary laughed. "Heh, looks like I impressed you."
But the excitement faded instantly—Gimmighoul simply extended both hands again, pleading mutely for the coins.
"You…" Gary groaned, feigning exasperation. "You're unbelievable! All you care about is money!"
"Guh‑nee," came the unapologetic reply, head bobbing.
"Fine!" Gary pulled the golden coin purse from his pack and tossed it toward him. "Take it, miser!"
The moment the purse hit Gimmighoul's small body, something within it snapped awake. The ghost's eyes flared white. It shrieked—not in pain, but ecstasy—before throwing itself headlong into the open bag.
The rope snapped. Gold coins blazed with radiant energy, spinning around like a miniature sun. The purse itself began to melt into pure light as Gimmighoul's tiny form rose into the air.
Gary shielded his face. "Gimmighoul!"
Light engulfed the area entirely. The coins swirled upwards—999 pieces of shimmering gold merging into the evolving Pokémon's body. When the glow faded, a tall, glittering figure stood where the little ghost had once been.
"Woo‑hooo!"
Before him towered Gholdengo, about as tall as himself, its entire body composed of interlocking, radiant gold coins. Its smile was dazzling, lively, confident—almost playfully human. It gave Gary a thumbs‑up made of solid gold fingers.
"Gho‑lden‑gooo!"
Data of the Golden Hero
Gary murmured, already pulling up its updated data.
Pokémon: Gholdengo
Type: Ghost / Steel
Level: 30
Potential: Champion
Ability: Good as Gold– Prevents status moves and stat‑altering abilities from affecting this Pokémon.
Moves: Astonish, Tackle, Night Shade, Substitute, Shadow Ball
Taught Moves: Reflect, Rest, Protect
Friendship: 255 / 255
Held Item: Soothe Bell
By evolving, Gimmighoul's ability had changed to Good as Gold—a powerful trait that rendered it impervious to most non‑damaging moves and status attempts. It had also awakened several new techniques on its own: Night Shade for reliable damage, Substitute for trickery, and Shadow Ball as a strong Ghost‑type attack.
On top of that, it still retained the three defensive moves Gary had just taught it.
"Not only did your ability turn into Good as Gold, you picked up three solid moves too," Gary said, clearly pleased. "Two new attacks and a transformation move. That's a nice upgrade."
He continued teaching Gholdengo additional techniques, careful not to overload it. While its unique movepool wasn't as vast as some other Pokémon, its exclusive style more than made up for it—especially its signature sweeping attack, Gold Rush, which Gary planned to unlock later.
For now, though, its level was still low for a newly evolved powerhouse. Many of its true strengths were only beginning to awaken.
"I'm really curious what your Good as Gold ability will do once we power you up even more," Gary said thoughtfully.
Gholdengo mimed a showy bow, coins chiming softly as its body moved.
Its golden body reminded Gary a little of Metagross's metallic hide, but there was a key difference: where Metagross relied on armor‑like durability, Gholdengo's form could shift. Attacks would send parts of its body scattering into coins, absorbing the impact before reassembling.