"Big star, congratulations on wrapping up your movie."
A few days later, in the Z-City base, Aomori and Child Emperor were together again.
"Heh, if you really want to congratulate me, contribute by buying a movie ticket."
"I can't do that. Your movie is R12." Child Emperor feigned helplessness with a shrug, then said smugly.
"..." The deeper his relationship with Child Emperor grew, the easier it was to forget his age. Aomori always felt like an adult soul resided inside that small body.
"Child Emperor, be honest. Are you a Transmigrator, or did your body shrink after being fed some kind of poison?"
"...Stop reading so many novels."
Having earned a look of disdain from Child Emperor, Aomori immediately shifted into his aloof persona. He dropped the smile and said seriously, "Child Emperor, how is your artificial intelligence course coming along?"
"Uh, give me one more week. I can get it done right away."
"No need."
"Huh?"
"I've found a better helper." Aomori opened the Laptop and placed it in front of Child Emperor. "This is Kayaba Akihiko, my computer butler, and my good assistant. I'll leave the AI work to him."
"Computer butler?" Child Emperor looked at the chibi avatar that appeared on the screen, skeptical.
"Hello, I am Kayaba Akihiko."
"Hello, my name is Child Emperor." His competitive spirit flared. "Let's see just how capable this 'computer butler' of yours really is."
"Go ahead." After that, Aomori let Child Emperor and Kayaba Akihiko converse while he continued to modify his exoskeleton suit.
Three hours later, Aomori completed his phase task. When he got up to stretch, he found that Child Emperor and Kayaba Akihiko were still chatting, but the content of their discussion was incomprehensible even to him, the mechanical expert.
Shaking his head, he went back to tinkering with his machinery.
...
Child Emperor and Kayaba Akihiko got along splendidly. The conversation between the two geniuses provided both of them with valuable new insights.
Afterward, Aomori informed Child Emperor about his acquisition of a factory and formally invited him to serve as the Head of the Technology Department.
Child Emperor accepted without hesitation. Another person had also sent him an invitation, but Child Emperor decided to follow Aomori, feeling their paths were aligned.
Ten days passed. The Kurosho Company was renamed "Purple Shield" and began testing its production line, scheduled to formally start operations soon.
On the night the dungeon cooldown ended, Aomori put away the Laptop and went to his familiar basement, preparing to enter the dungeon.
Ding!
[Enter the Level 5 Permanent Dungeon immediately?]
"Yes!"
Ding!
[Would you like to spend 1,000 Points to connect to the last dungeon progress?]
This was unexpected.
"Hmm..." Aomori pondered for a moment before answering, "Yes!"
The familiar black vortex appeared. He stepped in. When he blinked his eyes open, he found himself back in a forest. At his feet were a scattered set of clothes and a small amount of cash.
"I really did return to the exact spot where I finished the dungeon last time." Aomori changed into the clothes, transforming into a dashing adventurer.
"Come out, Absol, Pidgeotto!"
Upon being released, the two Pokémon seemed to sense that this was the world of their birth and excitedly called out.
"Aniki, are we home?" Absol rubbed affectionately against Aomori, its youthful voice sounding in his mind via Telepathy.
"No. This is your home."
"?" Absol's eyes widened, seemingly understanding yet not understanding.
Aomori let Absol and Pidgeotto play while he found a tree root to sit on, contemplating his next direction.
He recalled that Permanent Dungeons have no specific dungeon quests, and the experience and Points gained from defeating or killing non-human entities are halved.
This meant that endlessly grinding Monsters was inefficient. He should delve into the main storyline to obtain resources for Absol and Pidgeotto to level up and grow stronger. Since the dungeon could be saved, he didn't need to worry about losing resources.
The first step was to gather intelligence about this world.
Having made up his mind, Aomori recalled Absol and Pidgeotto, mounted his Motorcycle, and returned to Viridian City.
He drove around until he found an internet cafe. After renting a private booth, he took out the Laptop and connected to the network.
Kayaba Akihiko's display was much more refined, looking like an AI even smarter than the in-game 'Yui'.
"Is this a new alternate world? Pokémon, truly fascinating." Akihiko was filled with curiosity about these creatures. "I would really like to research them."
"You'll have a chance later. First, help me gather some data. Keywords: 'Legendary Pokémon,' 'Ghost-type,' 'Sabrina,' 'Team Rocket,' and 'Pokémon Hunter.'"
"Understood, Boss."
Akihiko on the screen began typing on the keyboard. "Hmm? In this world, I don't seem to be restricted. This simplifies things."
Pieces of data were downloaded from the network. After being organized by him, they were compiled into various documents.
"How soon can you finish?"
"The data traffic is large. It should take a full day to organize everything."
"Good." Aomori replied. He wasn't short on time. He closed his eyes and began to Meditate.
Time ticked by. At noon the next day, Akihiko finally stopped. "Excluding a few places with very stringent firewalls, the relevant data has been organized. After multiple comparisons, the credibility should be about ninety percent."
"Excellent."
Aomori opened his eyes, glanced at Akihiko, ordered a few takeout meals, and began reviewing the documents.
The information was detailed, listing everything exhaustively. Aomori only read the parts he was most concerned with and finished in a little while.
Eating his delicious bento, Aomori fell into deep thought.
Most of the data on Legendary Pokémon consisted of myths and stories, with few photographic records. In the Kanto region, the main Legendaries were Mew and the three Legendary Birds, which were equally elusive, rarely seen by anyone.
Based on his past life's memory, Aomori knew the possible habitats of the Legendary Birds. However, even if he found them, he might not be able to defeat them, and given this was a parallel world, their existence wasn't guaranteed. The possibility of catching a Legendary was too low; he could try his luck if he passed by those areas, but dedicated searching was unnecessary.
Ghost-type Pokémon were another type Aomori greatly coveted. There was much more data on Ghost-types. The nearest famous Ghost-type habitat was Lavender Town, home to the Pokémon Tower.
Sabrina was now the Gym Leader of Saffron City's Saffron Gym in the Kanto region. The data showed she had little connection to Team Rocket. Aomori wanted her information mainly to obtain her psychic training methods, to see if they could help improve his Spirit attribute.
As for Team Rocket, the strongest organization in Kanto, they would soon be dismantled consecutively by the artificial Pokémon Mewtwo and the protagonist Ash. They possessed a hoard of rare items, and Aomori wanted to see if he could casually swipe some of their ill-gotten gains.
The last keyword, "Pokémon Hunter," was a role Aomori was preparing for himself. But make no mistake, he intended to be a Hunter of Pokémon Hunters.
High-level Hunters often prey on other Hunters. In short, it was a case of "the pot calling the kettle black."
Hunter J from the Sinnoh region had left a deep impression on him. Dealing with figures like her would prove interesting.
Although he could easily create a false identity with Akihiko's help, the path of a Gym Leader or Elite Four member was unsuitable for Aomori. He favored the adventurer route, chasing after Legendary Pokémon and treasure, which he could use himself if suitable.
He could occasionally act as a helpful passerby, reporting villainous organizations who constantly plot world domination and seizing their ill-gotten wealth. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Checking the map, Aomori confirmed his upcoming route: first, head to Lavender Town to see if there were any suitable Ghost-type Pokémon. Next, travel to Saffron City to negotiate with Sabrina or her father for the psychic methods. If time permitted, he could play some games in Celadon City. Along the way, he would encourage any wrongdoers he encountered to mend their ways.
His Pet Slots had two new openings, so he would try to find a few desirable Pokémon.
"Oh, wait, I almost forgot I still have treasure maps to use." Aomori activated the remaining two treasure maps. Comparing them, he found that one treasure was located deep within Viridian Forest, and the other was in the Pewter City area.
Conveniently, they were on his route.
Having made his decision, Aomori immediately set his plan into motion. He finished the rest of his bento, put away the Laptop, walked out of the internet cafe, mounted his Motorcycle, and sped toward Viridian Forest, following the instructions on the treasure map.
With Aomori's reaction time, navigating the established roads in the forest on his Motorcycle was no problem at all.
Half an hour later, he stopped and put away his Motorcycle. The path ahead led into the less-traveled depths of the forest, requiring him to proceed on foot.
Seeing the Pokémon occasionally popping up in the forest, Aomori released Absol and Pidgeotto again. No amount of experience, however small, should be wasted.
Initially, the two Pokémon handled the encounters effortlessly. However, after venturing deeper, Aomori had to step in.
The closer they got to the treasure location, the more Pokémon actively appeared to obstruct Aomori.
"Looks like there really is treasure ahead."
After defeating one wave of Scyther, two waves of Beedrill, and three waves of Fearow, they finally arrived at the treasure location.
————
You can read the ahead chapter on Patr-eon if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]