Pokemon: Rising From The Dark

Hearing Aoki's words, the receptionist was momentarily stunned before nodding with a professional smile. "Okay, please wait a moment."

This time, the waiting period was much shorter since the data had already been processed and only required further verification.

"Apologies for the delay. It was our oversight," the receptionist said. "This Nidoran has the Hustle ability, which increases its value. The revised offer is 200,000 Pokecoins or 200,000 points. If you accept, the amount will be credited directly to your ID card."

Aoki gave a slight nod of approval. A dark-yellow Nidoran with the Hustle ability was indeed worth double the price of a standard Nidoran with lesser potential. The valuation was within his expectations.

Upon his confirmation, the receptionist made a few inputs into the system, recording the completion of Aoki's task.

"Since your accumulated points have reached 100,000, you are now eligible for a promotion to a One-Star Hunter. This is your Hunter Star—please keep it safe." She retrieved a gold-plated badge from under the counter, a single star engraved upon it.

Hunter Stars were crafted through specialized techniques, making counterfeiting nearly impossible. If someone were caught forging one, the Hunter Guild would relentlessly pursue them. It was a fate that earned the name "Sun Dog Hunt."

Aoki accepted the badge but made no move to pin it onto his robe.

Noticing that he hadn't left after completing his transaction, the receptionist remained patient, asking with the same professional demeanor, "Is there anything else I can assist you with?"

In response, Aoki reached into his pocket and placed a Pokéball on the counter.

Understanding immediately, the receptionist prepared to process another capture. Many hunters would catch additional Pokémon outside of their assigned targets if they encountered rare or high-quality specimens. These could then be matched with existing bounty listings in the Hunter Guild's database.

This system, known as "task matching," allowed hunters to accept a relevant quest retroactively, exchanging the captured Pokémon for additional points or Pokecoins.

Just as she was about to begin the standard verification process, Aoki reached into his pocket again—then again, and again.

A second Pokéball.

A third.

A fourth, fifth, sixth...

By the time he had placed all ten Pokéballs on the counter, the receptionist's eye twitched involuntarily.

Even among seasoned hunters, bringing back one or two extra Pokémon was common. But ten?

Every mission listed by the Hunter Guild required Pokémon of at least intermediate qualifications. This meant that each of Aoki's catches had to meet a yellow-grade minimum to be accepted.

One of them, a light-green Ursaring from the mountain summit, was the strongest among them. Eight others were from the same Nidoran line as the previous submission, likely the offspring of high-quality parents. The final one was a dark-yellow Mankey Aoki had captured en route to Ecruteak City—its abilities and potential had seemed promising, so he had taken the opportunity to catch it.

After hesitating briefly, the receptionist asked, "Excuse me, but are all of these Pokémon of at least intermediate qualification? As you know, the Hunter Guild only accepts submissions that meet this standard."

Although there were devices capable of assessing a Pokémon's potential, they were expensive and unavailable to ordinary people. Given that Aoki had only just attained his One-Star rank, she found it difficult to believe that he had access to such tools.

Could he really be sure all of them were qualified?

What she didn't know was that Aoki had an overwhelming advantage—his hidden system allowed him to analyze Pokémon qualifications with absolute accuracy. This was what had enabled him to thrive as a hunter in his previous life. By consistently capturing high-potential Pokémon, trading them for resources, and reinvesting in stronger captures, he had steadily climbed the ranks until he became a powerhouse on the verge of an Elite ranking.

Aoki simply nodded, confirming their legitimacy.

The receptionist, while still skeptical, didn't press further. She had never seen anyone submit ten qualified Pokémon at once.

Were intermediate-qualification Pokémon suddenly abundant, or was this hunter in front of her just that lucky?

While the Hunter Guild didn't charge for verification, repeated failed submissions would lower a hunter's credit rating. A poor credit score would restrict access to high-level missions.

Suppressing her curiosity, the receptionist did her job and placed the Pokéballs into the transport slot, sending them to the Guild's evaluation center.

Since Aoki had submitted such a large batch, the verification process took longer than usual. The hunters waiting behind him grew visibly impatient.

If the system rejected even a single Pokémon due to unqualified stats, Aoki would be wasting their time. Several of them were already prepared to make him regret the delay once he left the counter.

Twenty minutes later, the receptionist's screen finally updated.

She blinked.

Then blinked again.

After double-checking the results, she swallowed audibly, trying to suppress her shock.

"Uh... all ten Pokémon meet the required qualifications," she said, voice slightly strained. "Would you like to match them to corresponding missions?"

Aoki remained composed. He had known the outcome before she did.

In his previous life, there had been a time when he had disappeared into a forest for an entire month. He had emerged with twenty high-potential Pokémon, causing an uproar when he submitted them all at once.

That was when his alias, "JOKER," had first spread throughout the hunter community.

Some called him a genius. Others called him a madman.

"That lucky lunatic."

Now, standing at the counter once more, Aoki's response was simple and calm:

"Match them."

The receptionist, still reeling, nodded quickly and began processing the exchange.