Pokemon: The Gameboy Effect-Chapter 196: Treasure Hunting

Everyone who witnessed the sheer dominance of Regigigas over the two Landorus was left speechless.

What was there to say?

A legendary Pokemon was terrifying.

In the eyes of the crowd, Landorus was already a force of destruction, capable of leveling cities and reshaping landscapes with ease. Yet, before Regigigas, it was completely powerless.

How did that saying go again?

As weak as a fragile egg.

It took just a single slap—without even using a move—to send Landorus flying. If Regigigas had gone for another, there might not have been anything left to speak of.

Once the dust settled and it was clear that Landorus wasn't coming back, John led the team to scour the battlefield for anything valuable that might have been left behind in the wake of the clash.

Meanwhile, the rest of the research team, along with John's group, returned to the camp to rest. The first thing John did upon arrival was call his professor to report the events of the previous night. After that, he found a secluded spot under a large tree, opened his secret base, and got some much-needed rest.

He was exhausted, but his mind was still racing. Seeing a legendary Pokemon in action was exhilarating, but witnessing the sheer strength of Regigigas was beyond shocking.

Despite his excitement, the exhaustion from the day's events quickly caught up to him. Within ten minutes, he was out cold.

By the time morning rolled around, the camp was abuzz with chatter about the previous night's battle. No one could stop talking about the so-called "war of the gods."

News of the battle must have leaked somehow. By noon, reporters from all over had arrived, broadcasting live coverage of the battlefield's aftermath. Some of the research team members were interviewed, but no one mentioned John. Azure had made sure to drill into everyone the importance of keeping certain information under wraps.

By evening, the Mayan Forest was flooded with trainers from all over, eager to explore the battlefield. Some were simply here to see the aftermath of a legendary battle—a rare spectacle that few ever got to witness in their lifetime. Others, however, were here for profit.

Their reasoning was simple: a battle between legendary Pokemon had to have been intense, and where there was destruction, there was bound to be treasure. If they could get their hands on a legendary item, they'd be set for life.

The first wave of treasure hunters arrived that night, and more followed in the days after. However, despite their enthusiasm, no one seemed to have any luck finding anything of value.

As for John, his routine remained unchanged. He attended morning classes, completed his assigned tasks in the afternoon, and at night, he trained Venusaur in the |Underground Power Plant] while playing his Gameboy to generate power. Still, after witnessing such an intense battle, he felt a new sense of urgency in his training. He worked even harder to max out his power storage progress.

During his last venture into the underground power plant, he encountered yet another legendary Pokemon.

This time, it was a Tapu—Tapu Koko, to be precise—LV84.

Yeah, that one completely wiped the floor with him.

So far, he had encountered three legendary Pokemon in the underground power plant. Their levels? LV89, LV75, and now LV84.

At this point, John was starting to accept reality—capturing a legendary Pokemon wasn't going to happen anytime soon. It was better to focus on leveling up properly instead of getting ahead of himself.

A few weeks later, Sunday rolled around. A day off from classes, but not from assignments.

John's task for the day? Capture a Raticate.

Pokemon capture missions were always a hassle. Raticate were common enough—on any other day, he could spot dozens of them within a few hundred meters. But today?

Nothing.

It was as if the universe had a twisted sense of humor. Whenever he didn't need one, Raticate were everywhere. The moment he actually had to catch one, they all decided to vanish.

It likely had something to do with the lingering effects of the Landorus battle. Ever since that night, Pokemon sightings in the Mayan Forest had decreased significantly, at least near the camp.

Maybe he needed to go deeper.

Releasing Venusaur, John hopped onto its back and ventured into the heart of the forest. As he moved further in, he began spotting groups of treasure hunters.

Judging by their frustrated expressions, they weren't having much luck either.

"Guess today's another bust for them," he muttered.

That got him thinking—why wasn't he searching for treasure too? If two Landorus and a Regigigas had fought here, there had to be something valuable left behind.

After traveling another thousand meters, John checked his surroundings to make sure no one was watching. Then, he pulled out his Dowsing Machine.

Bzzz!

Immediately, the device locked onto something northeast of his location.

That was even deeper into the forest—the same direction the Landorus had come from.

Judging by the signal strength, whatever was there had to be a legendary Pokemon-related item.

Could it be Landorus' sacred relic?

John recalled what The Director of the camp, Azure, had said before. The god's power is actually stored within an item...

Or maybe it had something to do with Regigigas?

His heart pounded with excitement.

Now that he had a lead, there was no way he could just walk away. Switching from Venusaur to Flygon, he took to the skies, soaring above the dense canopy.

Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freewebnσvel.cøm.

The last time he traveled with Scarlett, they avoided flying to prevent provoking local Flying-type Pokemon. But after the battle between Landorus and Regigigas, the entire area's territorial hierarchy had likely shifted.

Sure enough, his flight was completely uninterrupted.

After a few minutes, he reached the foot of a mountain, deep within an A-rank danger zone. He dismounted and released Gardevoir, having her use Confusion to stay alert for any incoming threats. Then, he summoned Venusaur once again and moved forward cautiously.

They had only traveled about a hundred meters when the Dowsing Machine's signal shifted. Instead of pointing straight ahead, it now indicated something buried beneath them.

Underground?

"Steelix, Dig!" John commanded.

With a powerful lunge, Steelix drilled into the earth like a ship's anchor sinking into the sea. Moments later, John released Garchomp to assist, and together, they carved a tunnel downward.

It didn't take long. Whatever the Dowsing Machine had locked onto wasn't too deep. Within minutes, they reached a wide, hollow chamber.

A single beam of light shone through a narrow crack in the ceiling, illuminating the space like a spotlight. And right in the center of the glow stood a half-meter-tall, withered tree stump.

The moment John laid eyes on it, he knew exactly what it was.

"No way... Is this... Landorus' tail?"