Edward was planning to shoot a horror short film to send to Yanister, who would then broadcast it in the wild. After all, thinking back, it had been quite some time since the first horror short film Lights Out was completed. Since then, he had only made one more, and after that, there hadn't been any new releases. It felt like a bit of a waste. The wild Pokémon were probably already impatiently waiting for the next installment.
As for the plot of this new short, Edward had already come up with an idea. He planned to keep it concise, a typical short film of about three minutes—just enough to meet the format's expectations.
The theme?
"How about this—a family goes on vacation. After returning home, they start browsing the photos they took, only to discover a ghostly figure in one of them. Each time they flip back to that photo, the ghost gets closer and closer to the camera, until eventually it disappears from the picture… and then emerges directly into the real world?"
Edward twirled the pen in his hand, thinking the concept sounded pretty good.
Sure, in his previous life, ghost figures appearing in photos was already a well-worn trope. But in the world of Pokémon, this concept was completely new. It might even spark some fresh inspiration for other horror filmmakers.
At this point, Edward had practically become a guiding light in the horror film industry. Whatever he made would inevitably be followed by a wave of imitators. He glanced at his phone—the box office for A Wicked Ghost had already exceeded 900 million and was about to break the one-billion mark. Many directors had already started drafting new projects.
Titles like Scary Ghost or Evil Ghost—clearly derivative—were already in development. Edward, however, didn't really care.
Imitators were actually a good sign. First, it meant his success had indeed shaken the industry and inspired many to copy him in pursuit of their own fame. Second, most of those imitators produced low-quality work. There were always some curious viewers who'd give those films a try, only to be disappointed. After getting burned enough times, they'd return to Edward's films to cleanse their palate—an unexpected bonus that helped drive traffic to his content.
It also solidified Edward's reputation as a leader in the horror film genre. So, unless a film was blatantly plagiarizing him, he didn't bother to intervene. Fortunately, that hadn't happened yet, so Edward remained content and unbothered.
Having settled on the story for his next film, Edward picked up his phone and sent Zoroark a message, instructing it to get the film crew and props team ready. Once Fortune's exam was over, he'd return and begin shooting the short film. After that, it would be time to head to Sinnoh to meet Cynthia.
As he sat in the car, Edward passed the time playing a mobile game—an anime-style gacha game that had already been running for eight years. The art style was distinct, the grind was intense, and the randomness of drawing characters was wildly unpredictable. But Edward had plenty of patience for it. He had played similar games in his previous life and remembered hearing that one of them was also nearing its eighth anniversary just before he crossed over.
Although players often joked that the game's developer was a "one-man team taking a family photo" (i.e., severely understaffed), surviving for eight years was still impressive in its own way.
"Let's clean out these gift packs first," Edward muttered with a yawn as he casually went through the in-game rewards. For him, gaming was just a way to pass the time, and he always made sure to collect every single freebie.
After playing for a while and acting as a "repeat machine" once again, Edward heard the school bell signaling the end of the exam.
He put his phone away, opened the car door, and stepped out. Looking at the Hoenn University before him, he soon spotted Fortune coming out, looking to be in high spirits. Edward smiled and gently patted it on the head.
Although the exam was over, the results wouldn't be available until the next day. Hoenn University was known for grading papers quickly, thanks to their team of Psychic-type Pokémon, who could grade multiple exams simultaneously.
It was said that in the beginning, the university even had real-time grading, so students could know their scores and admission status the moment they finished. But later, the school deemed this too harsh and canceled the feature.
Still, Edward didn't think waiting one more day for results made things any gentler. If anything, it just left people anxious for longer. But for him, it wasn't a big deal. He had already decided: if Fortune passed, great. If not, he'd just donate a building to secure her admission.
That said, Edward had absolute confidence that Fortune would pass.
It was just that hardworking—almost frighteningly so. It was the ultimate try-hard of the Pokémon world. If it weren't for Edward forcing it to rest, it would study 24 hours a day. After all, as a Ghost-type Pokémon, it didn't need to sleep.
If someone as diligent as Fortune still couldn't get into university, then Edward figured it could only mean that her talents didn't lie in academics. He'd seen people like that before—dedicated, hardworking, always listening in class and finishing all their homework with precision, even doing thorough review and preview sessions. But for some reason, they just couldn't get good grades.
Teachers never scolded them; they'd just sigh and encourage them to keep trying.
But sometimes, effort alone wasn't enough. Edward believed that if someone lacked talent in one area, it was better to explore other paths and find where their strengths truly lay.
Upon returning to Rustboro, the old butler had already swapped out their ride for the family's usual car. The one they used in Lilycove was actually a backup vehicle purchased by the Devon Corporation for use in that city.
In fact, across all major cities in the Hoenn Region, the Devon Corp maintained specially prepared cars for the Stone family—so they'd always have a home and a vehicle ready, no matter where they went.
"Fort, come on. I'll show you how I make a movie," Edward said as he noticed the faint nervousness in its expression. He chuckled and gently rubbed its head.
Hmm. Cold and metallic to the touch—not much else.
Ghost-type Pokémon were wonderful in many ways, but they weren't fluffy. Sure, they could mimic that texture, but in the end, it wasn't the real thing.
"Ghol~" Fortune nodded. Q, perched on Edward's head, looked down at Fortune, gave a little cry, and then leapt into Edward's arms, curling up lazily.
Edward chuckled and rubbed Q's head. This little rascal...
(End of Chapter)