Elf: Who told him to be an investigator!

Chapter 21 Bug Catcher: Don't come any closer!

After Xiong Zheng left, trembling.

Ze Shu also put down the "investigator terminal" he had given him, sat on the cold, hard bed, and belatedly looked around his room.

This room is no longer suitable for living.

Because of the previous battle, the room is now filled with the damage left by the blizzard. Ice blocks exuding a cold aura and half-melted, damp water cover almost the entire room.

It gives the feeling of living in a cave where it is snowed all year round.

However, Glaceon and Snorunt are more adapted to this environment.

"Buyi—"

Glaceon bounced on the ice bed, blew a few breaths, and re-frozen the half-melted ice to prevent the moisture from spreading.

"Yoki..."

Instead, Yuki-Douji, with her short legs and a worried expression, came to Zeki's side, her petite body and rough-textured straw hat rubbing against the back of Zeki's hand.

"That's great, Yuki-Douji... I noticed all of that." Zeki smiled, gently rubbing Yuki-Douji's head as it was being stroked. "Whether it was the courage you mustered to use 'Fine Snow' or your determination to call Dr. Yamanashi for me, you were a great help to me."

"Yo-yo-ki!"

Snow Child seemed very happy, his ice-blue eyes sparkling, and his voice full of affection.

So happy!

After only a short period of instruction from Zeju, it was able to help the all-powerful Zeju and the powerful Glaceon!

and so……

"Yoki——!"

Please train me, I will be very serious!

Snow Child became bright.

Ze Shu paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course, please take care of me from now on."

……

Ze Shu's life didn't change much after that.

It's still the same routine: attending classes with the children at the Pokémon School, taking leisurely strolls in Sandstone Town with Glaceon and Snorunt, enjoying the sea breeze, and watching Glaceon and Snorunt train.

During training, Ze Shu focused more of his attention on Yukidouji.

After all, Glaceon is currently in a phase of persistent accumulation, and it is difficult to make great progress all at once. It needs to accumulate slowly and let quantitative change lead to qualitative change.

But Yukidouji's progress was very rapid.

Perhaps the reward Zeki received from the system—the 'Learning Device'—also played a role. After all, even Glaceon felt that training was more efficient than before.

Zeshu asked Eevee to use an analogy to describe the change in efficiency. Eevee, holding its little blue paws, thought for a long time in confusion before coming up with an analogy—that is, for the same price, you could buy four glass beads before, but now you can buy five!

"Buee~!"

Ibrahimovic was proud for a long time after reaching this conclusion.

In just half a month, Snow Child's energy level increased from level 18 when Ze Shu first met it to level 24, a very rapid rate of progress.

With Glaceon's guidance, he gradually mastered the moves.

However, they lack practical experience.

Even though he could muster the courage for Sawaki, he often hesitated. So, in order to toughen up Yukito, Sawaki decided to start practical combat training for it.

As for the first goal...

Zhensha Town, a country trail.

As dusk fell, the gradually setting sun cast a warm, yellowish light that divided the path into two parts, one bright and one dark.

"W-why is it you again..." Upon seeing Ze Shu's face, the bug-catching boy tightened his grip on the bug net, hurriedly shaking his head and backing away, "Don't come any closer..."

"I don't want to fight you, I don't want to fight you! I can't beat your Glaceon, and I don't have any pocket money... Go find someone else..."

Ze Shu: "..."

Could it be that I am some kind of terrifying being?

It just froze both of its Pokémon into ice sculptures last time.

He thought for a moment and said, "My Glaceon won't be participating. This is my newly caught Pokémon, and it's its first battle."

"Don't you want to defeat me?"

Hearing these words, Bug Catcher looked again at the small, timid Pokémon he didn't recognize hiding behind Sawa's trouser leg, and was somewhat tempted: "R-really...?"

Ze Shu nodded: "Absolutely true."

"Then, let's go..."

Snow Child timidly ran onto the field with his short legs.

Bug Catcher mustered his courage, threw out a Poké Ball, and a flash of white light appeared, revealing a purplish-gray cocoon on the field.

Zeju recognized the Pokémon as Cocoon.

So that's how the spiky bug that Bug Catcher had evolved.

This "household insect" has two rare evolutionary forms, and the shield cocoon in the bug catcher's hand will eventually emerge as a poisonous moth.

At this moment, the pair of bright red eyes on the surface of the shield-cocoon stared intently at Yuki-Douji. Yuki-Douji's little feet, hidden under its straw hat, wanted to retreat repeatedly, but remembering Ze-shu's encouraging words before the trip, it stopped and its eyes suddenly became serious.

However, Ze Shu was not worried about the shield cocoon on the other side.

Let's not even talk about how fast Yukidouji has improved.

The opponent's shield and cocoon, no matter how fierce it may appear on the surface.

But it's still a cocoon.

It can only harden and has no offensive capabilities whatsoever. It can't even spin silk because it's sealed in its cocoon.

So why would Bug Boy send it out?

Just as Ze Shu was wondering about this, he heard the bug-catching boy shout, "Let's show this guy how much we've improved! Spin silk!"

"Gurgle—"

The shield-cocoon's bloodshot eyes suddenly turned serious, and with the bug-catching boy's command, the gray-purple cocoon surface suddenly swelled up.

then.

And that was the end of it.

The shield-like cocoon swelled up, its body feeling suffocated, its bloodshot eyes wide open.

Ze Shu: "..."

The bug-catching boy cried out in disbelief, "What happened?! Clearly..."

His shouts were not yet finished.

Upon discovering that the Snow Child was unable to move from the shield cocoon, and recalling the diligent teaching of Ze Shu over the past two weeks, he mustered his courage and wanted to launch an attack.

We can't let Ze Shu's hard work go to waste!

"Yoki——"

It used all its strength, puffing out all the ice-attribute energy in its body, turning it into fine snow, and suddenly blew it towards the shield cocoon!

Whizzing--

The cold wind, mixed with snowflakes, engulfed the shield cocoon, almost blowing its body away. Fine snowflakes swirled around its body, as if the shield cocoon was trailing a layer of snowflakes in its tail.

then.

Because of the excessive force applied, the latter half of the snowfall caused the snowflakes to be compressed too much, melting into the cold wind and eventually disappearing without a trace.

But the wind grew even colder, almost hardening the surface of the shield cocoon with a layer of ice.

Upon seeing this, Ze Shu was stunned. "Frozen Wind?"

Snow Child had not learned this move before, but unexpectedly, he mastered it in just his first battle.

The move "Frozen Wind" is more subtle to execute than "Fine Snow" which is mixed with snowflakes.

On the field, the shield cocoon floated in the air, but as Snow Child breathed a sigh of relief...

Snap!

The shield-like cocoon suddenly fell from the sky, accompanied by the sound of ice shattering, and it was dizzy from the fall.

The bug-catching boy was almost in tears: "Shield Cocoon!!"

"Stop, stop... I still can't beat them... And why can't I use the silk-spitting technique...?"