"This, this, this… I transmigrated again?!"
Hoshino gripped the balcony railing and looked down. The street, which had been empty that afternoon, was now brightly lit with neon signs and incredibly lively!
People came and went… or rather, Pokémon came and went. All over the street, Pokémon were walking around and standing in front of shops, inviting customers!
There was a Gumshoos, seemingly finished with a day of patrol, walking and chatting with a few newly joined Yungoos, introducing them to the surroundings and fostering relationships between seniors and juniors.
There was also an Incineroar, seemingly just finished with a battle, with his good brother Rillaboom, arm in arm, both staggering down the middle of the street like they were drunk, constantly letting out strange laughs, forcing other Pokémon to avoid them.
And there were Lilligant and Gothitelle, like good sisters, dressed like humans, holding hands, carrying bags, happily shopping and buying things…
Such scenes were far from all; if it were humans, it would be very normal, like strolling through a bustling night city. But if they were all Pokémon, it was extremely strange!
Hoshino's hand trembled slightly as he gripped the railing, and his body instinctively retreated several steps back into the room. He didn't know what expression to make; everything he had just seen was completely beyond his comprehension.
"It must be the wrong way to open the door…"
He thought this, then closed the door again, ignoring the noisy sounds, waited a few seconds, and then pulled the door open once more, looking down…
"It still hasn't changed!"
"I only… slept for six hours, how could the whole world seem to have changed?!"
Hoshino glanced at the time on his phone, completely unable to understand. Only a few hours… could it be that some hidden dungeon had been activated?
He couldn't figure it out. He felt like he was the only human left in the whole world now, and he couldn't understand what those Pokémon were saying to each other at all.
However, at this moment, he looked down to the first floor and noticed that there seemed to be a mobile LED sign placed there, constantly flashing.
He couldn't clearly see what it said from his angle, but he guessed it probably said "Slowpoke Izakaya." Boss Slowking on the first floor had opened his Izakaya!
To figure out what was going on with this street, he immediately went downstairs and ran into the Izakaya.
"If it's an Izakaya, then I can just ask the Boss. After all, Slowking is just a Pokémon; the real Izakaya Boss must be his Trainer. Besides, I'm his upstairs neighbor!"
As soon as he ran down the stairs, Hoshino was immediately noticed by some Pokémon on the street.
However, he didn't realize it, nor did he notice that some of the Pokémon were staring at him with unfriendly eyes. Instead, he continued running into the open Izakaya…
The interior of the Izakaya had a retro style, with the floor and walls made of imitation wood.
On the left, many wooden long tables and chairs were neatly arranged. There were Machoke and Gurdurr, looking like they had just returned from a construction site, happily drinking, just like human behavior.
On the right was a long bar counter, with a Slowpoke perched on it like a mascot, constantly looking at the sky and making "Slow—" sounds.
Below it were a row of high stools, but there were no customers sitting on them at the moment. At the same time, no other humans were seen here, only a Slowking reading a newspaper behind the bar…
"???"
"Wait… could it be…"
In an instant, Hoshino seemed to realize something. At the same time, Slowking also swept his gaze over, still with that intelligent expression.
"Slow?"
"Uh…"
Hoshino had no idea what to do next. He could only walk over and sit at the bar, somewhat nervously preparing to ask some questions.
"Slowking?"
"Um…"
He placed his hands on the bar, looking at the intelligent Slowking in front of him, hesitating. After mumbling for a moment, he asked, "By the way… why are there only Pokémon here? And why do they all act like humans, freely shopping, eating, drinking, and chatting? And why are you really the boss?"
Hoshino asked all the questions in his mind at once. As for whether the other party would answer, that wasn't important; he just wanted to find someone to tell about everything he had seen and heard in less than ten minutes.
But to his utter surprise, Slowking suddenly turned his head away, skillfully pulled out a lollipop, tore open the wrapper, held it in his mouth like a cigarette, and chewed it with great enjoyment.
After replenishing his sugar, he turned back, squinted his eyes, and his expression suddenly became scornful. He tapped the bar rhythmically with his hand and slowly said, "What do you take this place for? This is Hau'oli Kabukicho… Kabukicho!"
"Kabukicho? What is Kabukicho! This is what the Pokémon world should have… Eh?"
Hoshino was loudly complaining as he heard the name, but then he suddenly realized something even more absurd, and his expression instantly froze.
"Slowking… spoke!"
"It's telepathy, no need to make a fuss."
"Eh… Oh, but this afternoon…"
"I only use telepathy when communicating with you humans. Who told you dimwits that you can't understand us at all? It's truly troublesome."
"I'm really sorry for being so dimwitted…"
After instinctively apologizing, Hoshino paused slightly, remembering that now was not the time for that. Then he shouted, "That's not right! What I want to ask is what exactly is Kabukicho!"
He felt like he was about to become a living embodiment of a thousand questions. His self-proclaimed Pokémon master knowledge, his accumulated knowledge, was completely useless here.
However, fortunately, after Slowking stared at him for a while, he answered the question.
"Kabukicho, you see, is a sleepless city for Pokémon to relax and have fun! Do you think we Pokémon are just pets who only know how to battle and act cute every day? How naive!"
"Uh…"
Hoshino had never thought that way. To him, Pokémon were emotional beings, just like humans, living in this world.
And Slowking continued, "Pokémon, whether they live in the wild, wander in cities, or have been captured by human Trainers… they all experience stress."
"Dissatisfaction and complaints about Trainers' daily lives, such as not being sent out to battle, Trainers favoring other newly captured Pokémon, being fickle, or gradually falling behind the team and being left in the backyard, perhaps only seeing their Trainer once every few months or even years… and so on."
"Who can guarantee that all Trainers care for every single one of their Pokémon? I've seen some humans who don't even remember how many Pokémon they've caught. And when these emotions and mindsets arise, what happens if a Pokémon's suppressed feelings aren't released?"
Hearing this, Hoshino seemed to suddenly understand. He narrowed his eyes and slowly said, "Could it be…"
"Exactly!"
Slowking nodded and continued, "That's the purpose of Hau'oli Kabukicho's existence. Here, intelligent Pokémon can open businesses, and other Pokémon can spend money or exchange equivalent items for enjoyment. This is a paradise for Pokémon, a night city for Pokémon!"
"Hiss—"
Hoshino gasped. His knowledge of Pokémon had increased. Previously, because it was a game, he could only understand it from settings and background information.
But he never expected that Pokémon truly living in this world would have such a side. However, there seemed to be some other issues here.
"Wait a minute! Such a large Kabukicho, and no other humans know about it? Or do no Pokémon tell their Trainers?"
Hoshino was very curious. Even if this place was disguised as the Wanderer District during the day, what about at night? With all these lights, did no one notice?
Hearing this, Slowking suddenly let out a disdainful laugh, as if he had long known Hoshino would ask this.
"Because this is the territory of the Kabukicho Elite Four! All explanations are theirs. If anything is unclear, go find them!"
"???"
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To Read Advanced Chapters, and support this novel, please join me on [email protected]/geats2000