Chapter 114: Evolution in a Day
The next day, early in the morning, Will was unable to get any useful information from the Corphish. And he couldn't communicate properly with Tom. He could only let the matter of Corphish's non-evolution rest for now. In any case, judging by its condition, it didn't seem to be in any discomfort and was living happily.
"Hey-hey!"
"I'm too lazy to fish."
"Hey-hey?"
"That's a lie!"
Will rolled over, refusing to be baited by the Corphish's taunts. Besides, it was too inefficient for him to catch his own fish to battle. It was much better to let the Corphish do the fishing while he beat up whatever it reeled in.
"Hey!"
Splash!
Hearing the sound of the water breaking, Will rolled over and hopped up. He looked over. It was a Carvanha.
The moment they saw this fish, both Will and the Corphish's expressions changed.
Leaf!
Will channeled his Grass-type energy, formed a large, sharp leaf, and shot it at the Carvanha.
Thwack.
The Carvanha's level wasn't high, and with the type disadvantage, it was instantly knocked out.
"Hey-hey!"
The Corphish quickly shouted to Captain Tom at the bow. Tom looked back, saw the fainted Carvanha on the deck, and his face immediately tensed. He made a 180-degree turn, steering the speedboat in another direction.
The Corphish had expected this, but Will, caught off guard, stumbled and fell to the deck. He looked at Tom in confusion. He didn't know much about Carvanha, only that if one appeared near a boat, there were probably at least four more under the hull, and they would likely attack. With their teeth, they were fully capable of chewing a hole in the bottom of a ship.
"Hey-hey~"
The Corphish helped Will up and explained. Carvanha are pack Pokémon, and each pack has its own territory. If they discover an intruder, they will bare their fangs without mercy and attack as a group. The noise a boat makes is considered an "intrusion." Many ships had been sunk by Carvanha attacks, so sailors on the sea would never proactively go near their habitats.
This Carvanha appearing meant they had likely strayed into its pack's territory. That was why Tom had immediately turned the boat around to leave, not hesitating for a second. Even if it meant going off course, it was better than the ship sinking.
"So that's how it is," Will nodded, having learned something new. He really didn't know the habits of some of the more obscure Pokémon.
Once the boat was a safe distance away, Will swept the Carvanha off the deck and back into the sea with his tail, then continued his new training plan. As soon as the Corphish pulled a fish up, he would immediately attack. If it pulled up something high-level that he couldn't beat, the Corphish would step in and handle it itself.
In Will's opinion, the Lv. 45 Corphish wasn't weak, but it wasn't overwhelmingly strong either. But out here on the open sea, it rarely met its match. Most of the Pokémon that could be reeled in by the Corphish weren't particularly bright. Most were low-level. High-level Pokémon, even if they weren't smart, generally had enough experience not to bite a random hook. So, most of the Pokémon the Corphish reeled in were no match for Will.
Under these conditions, Will managed to reach Lv. 16 in a single day and, as night fell, he was enveloped in the light of evolution.
The light of evolution at night was like a flashbang, shining even brighter than a lighthouse beacon over the sea.
"Huh? So fast?"
Tom, who was reading a newspaper in the cabin, was drawn by the light and hurried out to watch. The evolution of a Pokémon... a thousand years in the past or a thousand years in the future, it was something people would never get tired of seeing. It was a leap of life, a qualitative transformation, the very magic of Pokémon.
Especially in this early Era of Leagues, Pokémon evolution was not such a frequent event. Tom naturally couldn't miss it, forcing his eyes wide to stare into the bright light. After the light faded, Will's new form was revealed.
Grovyle.
"Whoa, that's a huge Grovyle! Auntie Sola was right, that Treecko's potential really is extraordinary," Tom couldn't help but marvel, looking at Will's new size.
A normal Grovyle was less than a meter tall, but this one, having just evolved, was already 1.5 meters.
But for Tom, no matter how good Will's talent was, it had nothing to do with him. He wasn't some ambitious guy; he didn't need a powerful Pokémon by his side. Having the Corphish with him made him happy enough. He took another look, then turned and went back into the cabin. Steering a boat all day was tiring. Now that the sea was calm and the course was steady, the most important thing was to get some rest.
"Hey-hey!"
Compared to Tom, the Corphish was much more impressed. It stared wide-eyed, circling the newly evolved Will. Just a moment ago, the Treecko had been about the same size as it, and now it was suddenly this big.
Moreover, many Pokémon in this world, especially wild ones, had no concept of their own evolution. Some would only understand after hearing it from humans or seeing a member of their own species evolve. Ash's Sobble was a clear example. The Corphish didn't know much about evolution, which was why it was so surprised.
Will ignored the Corphish, focusing on his own changes. A Treecko was often mistaken for a frog, but now that he had evolved into a Grovyle, he wouldn't be mistaken anymore.
"My speed feels so much faster," Will thought, moving his legs. His limbs were much longer, which undoubtedly made his movements more agile.
Personal status.
Ten levels in one day. Potential is Orange. Without a doubt, this is Celebi's power.
As someone in his third life, Will knew just how absurd this rate of change was. Even with Iris's Dragon Force accelerating his growth in his past life, he had never leveled up this fast. And what's more, a Grovyle's base stat total was clearly only 405, which should have been just barely in the "Purple" tier. But his potential was now "Orange." Although it was his first time seeing it, he could guess that Orange was the color between Purple (400+) and Gold (600+), symbolizing a BST of 500+. Absolutely ridiculous.
And what's with this body? Am I not an Era of Leagues Pokémon? How is my body developing to the Era of Primal Beasts standard? Can Celebi's power change that too?
Will looked himself over carefully and found that he was indeed a little different from the Grovyle in the Pokédex. It was subtle, but the leaves on his body were a vibrant, emerald green, instead of a deep forest green. He couldn't perceive what effect this had yet, but he was certain that his potential in this life would be no less than his last one as a Dragonite.
"I can feel it..." he suddenly muttered.
"Hey-hey?" The Corphish heard him and quickly brought its face close.
"You wouldn't understand. Watch this."
Will shook his head, then clenched his right fist. Bzzzt. A faint spark of electricity crackled from his fist, but quickly vanished into the night air.
"Hey-hey?!" The Corphish, seeing the spark, jumped back several steps, clearly startled. That was clearly the power of electricity. It had suffered badly at the hands of Electric-type Pokémon before and was terrified of it.
"It failed," Will said, looking down at his fist. Although the attempt had failed, the fact that he could channel electric energy at all was a very good sign. After evolving, he could gradually sense the other types of energy within his body. They weren't abundant; in fact, they were almost completely suppressed by his Grass energy. He would have to actively train and strengthen these powers to be able to use the moves from his past life.
Just now, he had been trying to "recall" Thunder Punch. Besides Thunder Punch, as a Grovyle, he could also recall: Agility and Dragon Tail. And there were four other moves he could recall that were not from his past life, but from his new species: False Swipe, Fury Cutter, X-Scissor, and Energy Ball.
There's plenty of time. I'll take it slow. In this life, I'm in no hurry.
Will analyzed the gains from his evolution, then lay down on the deck to sleep.
"Hey-hey." The Corphish poked him with a pincer.
"What?" Will turned to look at it.
The Corphish was holding two small blankets. They looked like the ones it usually slept with.
"Tom gave these to you?"
"Hey," the Corphish nodded, offering one of the blankets to Will. It then used the other to cover its own body, lay down on the deck, and closed its eyes.
"..."
Will took the small blanket and rubbed it. The material was very good and comfortable to the touch. It was clear that Tom had put a lot of thought into picking them out. The blanket was too small; it only covered Will's stomach. But it was enough.
He felt warm, inside and out.
(End of chapter)