After clarifying his goal, Icarus began hunting every day with Pidgey and Bellsprout.
Over the past few days, the daytime harvest had gradually begun to decline. On average, he earned about 2,000 Pokédollars during the day, and with the 6,000–7,000 from nighttime hunting, his total daily income was around 8,000 Pokédollars.
The reason for the decline was Rattata, which made Icarus realize once again that Pokémon were highly intelligent creatures.
He didn't know whether the escaped Rattata had spread the word, but the powder-sprinkling tactics were gradually becoming ineffective against them.
Of course, Bug-type Pokémon were different. Their slow movement was their weakness, so even if they became aware, they often couldn't escape.
But now, whenever a Rattata sensed something unusual in its body, it would immediately scatter and flee. Although he could still catch one or two each time, any escapee would warn the others, creating a vicious cycle.
As a result, when facing Rattata now, Icarus would provide support and interference with his throwing knives, while Bellsprout and Pidgey fought head-on.
Although the consumption of wound medicine had increased significantly, the benefits were substantial. Pidgey had made a major breakthrough in strength these past few days.
First, its energy level had broken through to the Normal Level, and the power of its moves had noticeably increased.
Second, after several days of real combat, its claws and sharp beak had completely reached the standard of sharpness. Every time it fought, it left visible wounds on its opponent.
Naturally, Icarus had also bought several boxes of bone-strengthening powder along with the wound medicine. Although the hardness of Pidgey's claws seemed to be nearing its limit, as long as there was room for improvement, he had no intention of stopping.
Another piece of good news was that Bellsprout had felt its energy reaching a limit during these days of hunting. It was likely to break through soon.
Once Bellsprout advanced to the Normal Level and stabilized its strength, there would be no need to grind Bug-types anymore. They could begin exploring the inner perimeter of the forest.
Of course, with newly advanced strength, it was still unrealistic to approach the river in the inner forest where Water-type Pokémon gathered.
At most, they could move ten or twenty meters past the dividing line.
But that distance was enough. It was safer and offered the chance to encounter different Pokémon.
Still, hunting in the wild wasn't what Icarus cared about most.
What truly mattered was that reaching the Normal Level meant officially entering the ranks of Trainers. He could begin accepting missions and participating in competitions.
Even the lowest-level missions at the Pokémon Center didn't strictly require Normal-Level strength—but the person accepting them had to be a registered Normal-Level Trainer.
Moreover, the League required newly promoted Normal-Level Trainers to complete five low-level missions before freely accepting higher-level ones.
The reason was simple: in this Pokémon world, humans were relatively weak. Every official Normal-Level Trainer represented valuable combat strength. Avoidable losses had to be minimized.
Of course, after completing those five entry-level missions, if someone overestimated themselves and took on high-level tasks, the League wouldn't stop them. A Trainer who couldn't judge their own limits wouldn't last long anyway.
"Once Bellsprout breaks through, my earning speed will increase again. Haha!"
Icarus couldn't help but laugh when he thought of the extra League mission rewards.
After returning to town, he quickly sold the day's harvest. He decided not to go out at night, because Bellsprout had said it was on the verge of breaking through.
"Well, once Bellsprout advances, I'll take it to buy the Leaf Crystal. It's been thinking about it for a long time."
Thinking of Bellsprout's repeated hints about wanting a Leaf Crystal, Icarus smiled.
"There are 26,000 Pokédollars in the card. Buying the best Leaf Crystal will cost about 15,000, which is enough.
If Grandpa Arai hadn't reminded me that Bellsprout's small body couldn't withstand the massive energy of a Leaf Stone, I might have bought a low-grade Leaf Stone for it to use."
Meanwhile, in the open space outside town, Bellsprout rooted itself in specially purchased nutrient-rich soil. Green and purple energy fluctuations began to ripple across its body.
"Sprout~ Sprout!"
Its roots visibly stirred as the originally dark-brown soil rapidly faded in color.
"Bellsprout, eat the Bug-type meat quickly."
Icarus pointed to the dozens of pounds of Bug-type meat prepared beside it.
"Sprout—sprout—sprout—"
Bellsprout stuffed the meat into its mouth with both vine-like arms. The pile shrank at a visible speed.
Crack!
It seemed to hear something shatter inside its body as its internal energy began surging rapidly.
Feeling the rise in power, Bellsprout continued eating.
Soon, the nutrient soil at its roots had turned pale, and only a few scraps of meat remained.
"Pidgey? Pidgey!"
Pidgey, watching from nearby, was stunned. How could Bellsprout eat so much? That pile had originally been enough for both of them to last two or three days.
"Sprout! Sprout!"
Bellsprout opened its eyes and told Icarus that the energy within its body felt far stronger than before.
Externally, the once light-green Grass-type energy had deepened in color, and the purple Poison-type energy had also grown darker.
Moreover, the internal flow of energy had multiplied several times. If it had once been a narrow ditch, now it was like a small stream—faster and much wider.
"Hahaha! Congratulations, Bellsprout. You're now a true warrior—a Pokémon with Normal-Level strength."
Icarus felt genuine joy.
"Pidgey! Pidgey~!"
Pidgey flew down from his shoulder to congratulate Bellsprout.
It was clearly envious. Back when it lived in the Pokémon House, it had only heard Trainers talk about breakthroughs—it had never witnessed one up close.
Now it truly understood. Pokémon with Trainers could break through faster. There was no need to worry about lacking energy.
"Sprout~"
Bellsprout waved modestly, but its raised head betrayed its pride.
At the same time, Icarus felt the surge of energy feedback through their bond.
This surge was stronger than ever before. As it spread through his body, he instantly felt refreshed. His senses sharpened; his body felt lighter.
"This must be the overall physical enhancement from breaking through a major stage.
I wonder how it affects other aspects. Bellsprout has both Grass and Poison attributes—so it should improve vitality and poison resistance."
He glanced at his electronic watch. It was already past 10 p.m. Pushing further tonight wouldn't be wise.
"We'll test it tomorrow during training."
"Alright, Bellsprout, Pidgey, let's rest. We'll evaluate your exact strength tomorrow."
"Pidgey~" and "Sprout~"
The two Pokémon agreed. After fighting all day and breaking through late at night, they were exhausted.
(End of Chapter 72)
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