"I think using Thunderbolt or Hurricane—a wide-area move—would've been better just now."
Armin walked up to Dragonite, crouched down, and spoke gently.
Dragonite's lake-green eyes shimmered faintly. It froze for a moment at his words, then slowly looked up at him.
Armin smiled and extended his hand.
"Come on. Leave this place with us. Let's go see the rest of the world together."
Dragonite fell silent.
It didn't place its claw in his hand.
Instead, it stood up, pointed at Mimikyu—
And shook its head.
Armin blinked and turned to Mimikyu.
"You… don't want to go with it?"
Mimikyu instantly stiffened.
"Mi?!"
Dragonite shook its head again. Then it pointed at itself and made a little whoosh motion, mimicking breathing fire.
This time, Armin understood.
"You're saying your decision to use Flamethrower just now wasn't wrong?"
Dragonite paused.
Two imaginary black lines slid down its forehead.
That was clearly not what it meant.
Just then, a cheerful voice called out from behind them.
"What it means is—it hasn't lost to Mimikyu yet!"
Armin turned around.
Nurse Joy was riding over on her motorbike, Chansey seated behind her.
"Oh? That's what you meant?" Armin scratched his head.
Dragonite visibly relaxed when Joy explained things properly. It stepped forward, patted Armin on the shoulder like a friend, and pointed at the Poké Ball hanging at his waist.
This time—
Armin truly understood.
Grinning, he removed the Poké Ball and held it up.
Dragonite gently tapped it with one claw.
Its massive body dissolved into red light and flowed into the Poké Ball.
The red-and-white sphere shook twice—
Then stilled.
Silence.
Armin and Mimikyu both exhaled deeply.
Ahhhhh!!!
Finally caught the big chonky dragon!
And it's a green Shiny Dragonite!!
Armin wanted to shout like Ash—
But that would've been too cringe.
Especially with Nurse Joy right there.
Inside, he was screaming with joy.
Outside, he remained calm.
"Miss Joy, what brings you here?"
She smiled softly and glanced around.
"All the Pokémon in Dragon's Den suddenly ran in the same direction. I thought something terrible had happened."
Armin turned—
And only then noticed several massive shadows curled up in the distance.
Druddigon was among them.
They weren't approaching.
Just… watching.
"What are they doing?" Armin asked blankly.
Joy couldn't help laughing.
"These poor things get beaten up by Dragonite every single day. They've been hoping someone would take it away for ages. Congratulations."
"I see." Armin chuckled.
He thought they were adorable.
They did not think he was adorable.
To them, Armin and Dragonite were equally terrifying demons.
Joy patted Mimikyu's head and fed it a recovery tonic before looking up again.
"So, where to next?"
"I want to travel to other regions," Armin replied. "With Dragonite and Mimikyu."
"That sounds wonderful." Joy smiled sincerely. "Are you leaving now? Or staying a few more days?"
Armin thought about it.
Technically, he still had over two months before the instance's time limit expired.
But these days hadn't exactly been peaceful.
And he was curious about the so-called "Space" Floyd and Rento had mentioned.
"I should leave now," he said. "If I hurry, I can catch the last flight out of Johto before nightfall."
Joy nodded in understanding.
"Then… goodbye. I hope your journey ahead is a happy one."
-----
After leaving Dragon's Den, Armin called Lance to say farewell.
He told him he was heading out to explore the world.
Lance didn't mention the letter.
He didn't ask questions.
He only said:
"Have fun. Kanto will always be your home."
Armin smiled and hung up.
…..
A system prompt appeared.
[Leave this instance?]
"Yes."
Armin stepped into an open clearing and pressed the confirmation button.
The world vanished.
White light swallowed everything.
He reappeared in a blank white space.
A massive translucent panel unfolded before him, lines of text scrolling rapidly.
Instance [Infernal Affairs] Settlement in Progress…
Main Quest Completed!
Rewards:
EXP Candy (M) ×10EXP Candy (S) ×20
→ Added to inventory.
Hidden Quest Completed!
Rewards:
Twisted Spoon ×1Special Reward: Mewtwo Affinity +100
→ Added to inventory.
Instance Exploration Rate: 32%
Player Evaluation: SS
Calculating Points…
Congratulations! Player Armin has earned 200 Points!
Before Armin could fully process it—
The white space shattered.
He found himself standing in a massive plaza.
Crowds bustled around him.
At the center stood a towering Pikachu statue.
And the moment Armin appeared—
Dark thunderclouds gathered overhead.
"Holy crap! Who triggered an Achievement Thundercloud?!"
"I'm so jealous!"
People rushed toward the statue, staring up at the sky.
Purple lightning struck down.
A mechanical, emotionless voice announced:
"Congratulations to player Armin for unlocking the achievements:
Child Slayer,
Double Agent,
Time Management Master."
The entire Infinite Space exploded into chaos.
"WHAT THE HELL?! Three achievements at once?! Is the system bugged?!"
"Newbie here—what do achievements even do?"
"Each achievement equals one achievement point. Collect 200 and you can custom-design a Pokémon in the Achievement Shop! They're insanely hard to get. The top player right now only has 132 points!"
"Double Agent… Time Management Master… Child Slayer… What the hell did this Armin guy do in his instance…?"
Armin's face went dark.
He slipped away before anyone noticed him.
As he exited the plaza, another prompt appeared.
[Teleport to personal room?]
"Yes."
Without hesitation, Armin confirmed.
The next second—
He materialized inside a seventy-square-meter white room.
Alone.
With his rewards.
And a brand-new future waiting.