"Roar!"
The wild Gyarados hovering in midair swallowed the bait, spat out the hook, then glared viciously at Caster's Gyarados.
Its expression screamed murder, ready to attack at the slightest provocation.
Some random Gyarados trying to pull a sneak attack?!
Unacceptable!
But after watching Caster's Gyarados float effortlessly through the air, and remembering it had mastered Thunder, the wild Gyarados ultimately decided discretion was the better part of valor.
With a series of annoyed grumbles, it retreated back into the lake and disappeared.
At least it got to keep the bait. Small victories.
"Scale Shot? Speed Enhancement?"
Seeing the rewards, Caster's face lit up.
[Scale Shot: Dragon-type move. Fires scales in 2-5 consecutive attacks. Speed increases but Defense decreases.]
[Speed Enhancement: A miraculous item that sharply raises a Pokémon's Speed when used. Effects disappear when the Pokémon leaves the field.]
Scale Shot was a move that both dealt damage and provided targeted stat boosts.
Sure, Defense dropped, but in the real world, increased Speed often meant better evasion.
As long as you didn't get hit, the Defense drop barely mattered.
And if the opponent was a special attacker? Then the Defense drop mattered even less.
Overall, Scale Shot's side effect was way more helpful than harmful.
Combined with the move's solid damage output, this was absolutely a premium skill.
As for the Speed Enhancement, that was an even rarer reward.
Just like the Muscle Feather, this was the kind of treasure that could save your life in a tight spot.
"Gyarados really are worth the effort. These rewards are amazing!"
Caster happily pocketed both prizes.
But remembering how the Gyarados had nearly snapped his rod and gotten away, Caster made up his mind. Once he got back to Kanto, he'd buy a better fishing rod first thing.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Caster re-baited the hook and sent his Gyarados back underwater to stand guard.
"Roar!"
Down in the water, two more Gyarados had arrived. They circled each other warily, keeping their distance while hovering nearby, neither willing to leave.
Clearly, Caster's bait was incredibly appealing to them.
When Caster's Gyarados entered the water, the wariness in their eyes intensified. What had been a standoff between two became a three-way stalemate.
Splash!
The bait hit the water again, slowly dissolving as its scent spread through the currents.
"Roar!"
Catching the scent, both Gyarados perked up immediately, their eyes full of hungry greed.
A massive brawl seemed inevitable!
But then Caster's Gyarados roared once and pointed at one of them, signaling it should take the hook first.
"Roar!"
The chosen Gyarados was thrilled. The rejected one, however, erupted in fury.
Why does that one get to eat?
This is bullshit!
"Roar!"
Caster's Gyarados immediately swam alongside the chosen one.
The two Gyarados stood side by side, glaring menacingly at the rejected one.
Seeing this, the rejected Gyarados backed down.
Caster's Gyarados was already strong. In a two-on-one fight, it had no shot at winning.
"Roar! Roar!"
With the situation under control, Caster's Gyarados called out to the chosen one again, telling it not to pull on the line after biting, just to surface briefly and show itself.
"Roar!"
The chosen Gyarados nodded eagerly. Easy enough.
It swam forward, tail wagging as it chomped down on the tempting bait floating in the water.
Meanwhile, the rejected Gyarados seethed with resentment.
I can cooperate too! I can surface too!
[Caught Gyarados. Reward: Crunch TM x1.]
[Caught Gyarados. Reward: Stone Edge TM x1.]
With his Gyarados keeping order, Caster's fishing went smoothly from then on.
There seemed to be only seven Gyarados in this area, and he quickly caught them all.
Two belonged to Clair and Wyatt. Their Gyarados contributed a Crunch TM and a Max Elixir respectively.
On top of that, Caster also harvested two Energy Orbs.
However, since these orbs came from Gyarados, both their size and the purity of the energy they contained were noticeably superior to regular Energy Orbs.
"The bait I have left should be enough to catch about ten more Gyarados."
Glancing at the remaining bait, still more than half of what he'd started with, Caster carefully stored it back in his pack.
Then he turned his attention to his Gyarados, reaching out to stroke its head with a smile. "Great job! I'll teach you a few new moves as a reward!"
"Roar!"
Gyarados's eyes lit up at that.
More power!
[Crunch: Dark-type move. Bites down on the opponent with sharp fangs. Has a chance to lower the target's Defense.]
[Stone Edge: Rock-type move. Attacks the opponent with sharp, pointed rocks. High critical hit ratio.]
After teaching Gyarados Crunch, Stone Edge, and Scale Shot, its strength grew another notch, and its coverage became significantly broader.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, three more days passed.
During this period, the Dragon Tamer clan convened an emergency elder council.
Caster didn't know the specifics of what was discussed.
But Clair mentioned that the clan had allocated resources for her to intensify her training of the Bouncing Magikarp.
As for gifting Caster a Dratini to raise, though some family elders opposed it, the Dragon Elder ultimately made the final call and approved the arrangement.
"It actually went through?"
In the Dragon's Den, when Caster learned the outcome, he was thrilled.
While he had backup plans for obtaining a Dratini, if he had a choice, a Dratini bred by the Dragon Tamer clan would obviously be higher quality.
"Come on, I'll take you to the Dragon Cave. The elder's already waiting there!"
Clair smiled, then added, "There are currently three Dratini in the cave. But which one you pick depends on your own skill and judgment."
"Three Dratini to choose from?"
Caster was even more excited.
For most trainers, selecting an unfamiliar Pokémon might be confusing.
But Caster wasn't worried at all!
Good potential or not? Just hook them and check the rewards and stat panel.
Simple as that!
Suppressing his excitement, Caster followed Clair back into the Dragon Cave.
This time, however, they didn't pass through the Dragon Shrine. Instead, they wound through the pitch-black cavern, twisting and turning endlessly.
Before long, they finally surfaced at a landing.
On shore, the Dragon Elder was already waiting.
"This cavern connects to the core region of the Dragon's Den, where Dragon-type energy is most concentrated. The Dratini colony primarily lives in this area."
Seeing Caster arrive, the Dragon Elder first gave a brief introduction, then led him deeper into the cave.
As for Pichu, it was playing the role of flashlight, illuminating the path for the three of them.
Whoosh!
As they ventured further in, Caster soon heard the distinct sound of rushing water.
Getting closer, he discovered it was an underground waterfall, mist swirling in the air.
"Where are the Dratini?"
Caster looked around but saw no sign of them.
"Don't worry, I'll call them over now."
The Dragon Elder smiled, pulling a jade-carved flute from his robe and bringing it to his lips.
"Woo~ dee~ doo~"
The flute's melody flowed like water, clear and pure, almost hypnotic.
Before long, three small figures emerged from behind the waterfall.
۞۞۞۞
~ Push the story forward with your Power Stones