The player known as ChickenStewMushroom was exceptionally excited when he saw that a Pokémon had chosen him.
Though he didn't understand what had been problematic about his earlier speech, he could tell none of the Pokémon had initially wanted to select him.
He had already prepared himself for failure, so he was shocked that a Pokémon could "recognize his worth"!
"Lord Leon, could you introduce this Pokémon to me?"
ChickenStewMushroom wanted to learn about his future companion.
"This is Munchlax, a relatively rare Pokémon with great growth potential. However, it eats a lot."
Leon gave a brief introduction.
When he first saw Munchlax among the group of refugee Pokémon, he had been very surprised.
Munchlax was a scarce species that was usually hard to encounter.
Unexpectedly, it had ended up mixed in with these fleeing Pokémon.
To be honest, Leon had been tempted at the time. If he hadn't later caught an Ursaring, which shared the same Normal-type, he might have already captured this Munchlax for himself.
Now that it had chosen ChickenStewMushroom, Leon still felt a little reluctant.
However, he quickly adjusted his mindset. All the players were his people. If a player captured Munchlax, it was no different from him capturing it himself. In the end, it would still fight to protect the territory.
Besides, this Munchlax ate way too much. Even though Leon had abundant resources and wasn't lacking in food, handing it over would still reduce some of his burdens.
Thinking this, he gave ChickenStewMushroom a warning.
"I might have understated it earlier. Munchlax isn't just 'a bit' of an eater, it's an extreme eater! Are you sure you still want to choose it?"
Leon emphasized the word "extreme."
"No problem. A good appetite is a blessing. Besides, I'm a chef—I love seeing people enjoy my cooking. If it couldn't eat much, I wouldn't want it anyway."
ChickenStewMushroom chuckled. He felt that he and this Munchlax were a perfect match.
"Very well. Since you've chosen Munchlax, you must take full responsibility for it. You absolutely cannot abandon it. If there ever comes a day when you can't afford to raise it, you can return it to me."
"Don't worry, I promise that won't happen."
"I hope you remember what you said today. Go on, Munchlax is waiting for you."
ChickenStewMushroom nodded excitedly and walked up to Munchlax. He crouched down and extended his hand.
"Hello, Munchlax. From now on, we're partners. Let's take care of each other!"
Since he didn't have the money for a Poké Ball yet, this was the only way to formalize their partnership.
Munchlax looked up at him, then stretched out its small paw and gently grasped his hand.
ChickenStewMushroom took the opportunity to crouch down and hug Munchlax, striking a victorious pose beside it.
Then, very naturally, he shouted the iconic line: "I caught Munchlax!"
The other players nearby applauded for him.
When he returned to the group, many players asked him for advice.
"ChickenStewMushroom, how did you attract such a rare Pokémon?"
"Didn't you all hear me earlier? It's definitely because of my cooking!"
ChickenStewMushroom answered with full confidence.
No, Munchlax chose you solely because of your line, "If I have food, you'll have food too."
Leon silently thought to himself, then gave him a sympathetic look.
This guy was in for some tough times ahead...
"Alright, who's next?"
Leon didn't dwell on it and continued hosting the "matchmaking session."
The players took turns introducing themselves to the Pokémon. Some successfully captured a Pokémon, with some even having multiple Pokémon choose them.
Others failed completely, with no Pokémon willing to follow them.
Overall, however, most players succeeded—fourteen in total.
After all, these Pokémon were quite friendly toward humans.
Including the two veteran players who already had Pokémon, sixteen players had now successfully captured their first Pokémon, exceeding the main quest requirement.
[Main Quest: At least ten players must successfully capture their first Pokémon. (Quest complete. Rewards distributed.)]
It seemed the system was being somewhat lenient this time. It didn't strictly require Poké Ball captures—as long as a Pokémon acknowledged a player in its heart, it counted as a successful capture.
"Why?! Why didn't any Pokémon want to choose me?!"
Dylan shouted in disbelief.
He was one of the four unlucky players who hadn't been selected, and he was even a veteran player.
Among the five veteran players, he was the only one without a Pokémon. Even Luna, who always kept a cold expression, had captured an Eevee.
Right now, he couldn't even compare to the newbies!
"You're asking why? When you were supposed to introduce yourself, all you did was boast about how good-looking you were. Of course no Pokémon would pick you!"
Ethan Carter couldn't help but criticize him.
"Lord Leon told us to talk about our strengths. My strength is my perfect appearance. Why couldn't I mention that?" Dylan argued righteously.
"...Whatever makes you happy."
Ethan had no more patience for him.
"Ahem!"
Leon coughed loudly to get the players' attention, then spoke.
"Many of you have successfully captured Pokémon. Congratulations—you now have companions to fight alongside you. I hope you treat your Pokémon well and don't betray their trust."
"Those who didn't capture a Pokémon shouldn't be discouraged. There will be more opportunities in the future. You might even find a Pokémon that suits you even better."
As he said this, Leon gave Dylan an encouraging look, which moved Dylan deeply.
"Capturing a Pokémon is just the first step. Raising it properly is the real challenge. Two of the same Pokémon can still have huge differences in strength."
"So how do you improve a Pokémon's strength? There are many methods, but the one I'll tell you about now is the simplest and most direct—battling!"
"By fighting other Pokémon, you can gain experience and increase your Pokémon's level and strength."
After hearing Leon's explanation, the players began discussing among themselves.
"So Lord Leon means that Pokémon battles will level them up, right?"
"Then we can just battle each other, right? Grind experience by fighting among ourselves?"
"Yeah, and we don't even have to fight seriously. Just go through the motions, and we can farm battles multiple times."
Leon knew exactly what the players were thinking. These fourth-wall-breaking gamers would exploit any loophole they could find if it benefited them.
Unfortunately, there were no loopholes to exploit this time. Leon continued.
"Let me emphasize—not all battles will grant experience. Only battles where both sides are fully engaged will allow Pokémon to gain experience."
Trying to fake battles for experience? Impossible!
"Additionally, the experience gained from battling the same Pokémon repeatedly will decrease. If you fight the same Pokémon too often, the experience will diminish until you eventually get none at all."
"One more thing: battling stronger Pokémon yields more experience, while fighting weaker ones gives very little."
This also prevented players from grinding weak Pokémon for experience.
Of course, Leon wasn't the one who made these rules—he didn't have that kind of authority.
He only had the power to distribute experience to players.
The rules regarding Pokémon gaining experience through battles were inherent to this world. Leon was simply restating them.
(End of Chapter)