Pokémon：Trainer's Gambit

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A big question mark floated above Natsume's head.

Natsume: ?

Is there some kind of misunderstanding between us?

Wouldn't it be better to just give me money? Why insist on giving me a Pokémon?

And not just any Pokémon, but one with the best potential?

Natsume couldn't help but glance back at Haunter, who was lifting dumbbells, and Eevee, who was running on its wheel.

"Thank you so much!"

Takashi laughed heartily, "No need to be so polite with me!"

According to Coach Takashi, the main responsibilities of an assistant coach were the selection and training of new students.

During summer vacation, the workload for an assistant coach was relatively light, requiring only occasional appearances at the school.

This kind of paid vacation job was perfect for someone like Natsume, who preferred a laid-back lifestyle.

But the thought of possibly having another Pokémon made Natsume sigh in resignation.

After hanging up the phone, Natsume spent some time petting Eevee, and time flew by.

Lunch was Pokéblocks.

Eevee and Haunter stared at each other, tilting their heads in unison.

"What are you looking at?"

Natsume chewed on a light pink Pecha Berry block.

"Can't I eat this stuff?"

Natsume had always been curious about what Pokéblocks tasted like.

In the anime, Ash Ketchum, the super-human from Pallet Town, had been shown eating Pokéblocks raw.

If Ash Ketchum could eat them, why couldn't Natsume-sensei?

Logically speaking, some Berries were edible for humans, so concentrated Pokéblocks should be fine too.

Of course, Natsume wouldn't dare try a Petaya Berry, but the sweet Pecha Berry was worth a shot.

Surprisingly, it was quite delicious, even sweeter than freshly squeezed peach juice. It would probably taste even better chilled.

Natsume's expression turned odd. "It's... actually pretty good."

The two Pokémon were stunned.

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in Haunter's head.

Haunter couldn't help but lower its head, wiping a tear from the corner of its eye.

To save on our food expenses, our Trainer has resorted to this...

I need to work even harder at my part-time job to earn more money!!

Haunter: o(╥﹏╥)o

Eevee's expression was equally serious.

The little one nodded firmly.

It's decided. Tonight, we'll go even farther to level up!

In the afternoon.

With a determined look in its eyes, Haunter silently floated toward the door, waving seriously at Natsume.

Natsume waved back, curious. "Where are you off to this time?"

"Haunter!" Haunter floated through the door on its own.

"Remember to come back for dinner!" Natsume called out.

"Haunter!" came the reply from outside.

Natsume wasn't worried about Haunter getting lost.

Though he knew what the guy was up to... it was better to let them train occasionally than to try to stop them.

The day they got tired of training would be the day Natsume-sensei's plan would come to fruition!

"I've really put a lot of thought into this!" Natsume sighed.

"Let's earn some more BP and get him that Dusk Stone!"

Haunter had been eyeing the Dusk Stone for a while, but the price of 5000 BP was a bit steep.

Since he had promised Haunter, Natsume wanted to fulfill its wish as soon as possible.

Aside from earning BP.

Natsume-sensei also planned to kickstart his money-making venture this summer vacation.

He had already saved up 100,000 Pokémon Coins as startup capital. It wasn't much, but it would have to do.

...

This time, Natsume wasn't copying videos or dirty strategies.

Instead, he was putting his recently acquired [Programming Lv3] to use.

Based on his own experiments, Natsume found that with this skill, creating an independent game wasn't too difficult.

Plus, being in a parallel world where many popular games hadn't been developed yet, games were a perfect entry point.

Carrying Eevee by the scruff of its neck to the computer.

After so many times, the little one had grown indifferent, its expression one of resigned boredom.

Do whatever you want. I'm done resisting.

Eevee:

After giving Eevee's fluffy head a rub, Natsume started drafting a new project plan.

"Eevee?"

Eevee looked up, its dark eyes curious as it stared at Natsume.

"Ah, this time it's not a live stream. I'm making a game."

"Eevee..."

Eevee scratched its little head in confusion.

Finding it uninteresting, Eevee leaped off Natsume's lap and went next door to train its Substitute.

Haunter's Substitute and its main body got along extremely well, even doing chores together.

But Eevee's Substitute had a fiercer temper than the original.

It was said that Persian cats could scratch their own faces bloody while playing with yarn balls. Eevee seemed to be in a similar situation.

"Eevee!"

Eevee bared its teeth, wrestling with its Substitute.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Natsume, wearing headphones, was completely unaware of what was happening outside.

He was fully immersed in the project plan for the new game:

Plants vs. Zombies.

There's no need to elaborate on how wildly popular this tower defense game was worldwide.

The key was that the game's development difficulty and cost weren't particularly high. Its creativity and gameplay were what made it a hit.

Although funds were limited, with [Programming Lv3], Natsume could at least build the basic framework of the game.

Plus, Plants vs. Zombies had a high compatibility with the Pokémon world.

With some slight adjustments to the art assets and backstory...

Natsume typed in the document:

[The apocalypse has arrived. Wandering ghosts, swarms of insects, and devouring beasts... The only thing standing between you and the destruction of your backyard are the Grass-type Pokémon you trust.]

[Bob, your neighbor and a legendary Grass-type master, will become your most reliable assistant and partner as you fight against the Pokémon invasion...]

Natsume paused.

"This backstory... has the right vibe!"

While the original assets could be used.

On the forums for independent game developers, most Pokémon art assets were freely available.

For Natsume, who only had 100,000 startup funds, every bit saved counted.

Using Pokémon imagery made it easier for players to connect and helped spread the game's influence faster.

Natsume muttered to himself, "Sunflowers... Sunkern should work as a replacement."

"An evolved Sunflora... huh? That's basically Twin Sunflowers!"

In the initial draft, Natsume was surprised to find that these two IPs could indeed be perfectly integrated.

For example, the classic Peashooter could be replaced by Bellsprout.

The hardworking Wall-nut could be changed to Seedot, which knows [Bide].

Whether it was the night map or the water map.

Pokémon like Amoonguss and Lotad could perfectly fit the roles.

The zombie types were even simpler.

Various Dusclops, Cofagrigus, Sableye...

And the enemy types weren't limited to just Ghost-types.

Beedrill, Muk, these eternal villains could also serve as enemy cards.

Before he knew it, Natsume had typed nearly 10,000 words in the project document and stretched wearily.

"There's no way I can finish this alone in one summer vacation."

Natsume estimated the workload and murmured.

"I'll need to form a studio and find some help."

The first person that came to Natsume's mind was Kazuya, with his receding hairline.

"Hmm... Kazuya seems like a strong candidate. Let's go with him!"

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