System Notification Reminder:
"Please investigate the disturbance in the Ancient King's Tomb distortion world. For a savior, unexpected events often signify danger."
Reward:
100 Battle PointsEnergy Cube Production Technology Lv.1
So there really was a problem…
The system prompt confirmed Rei Akagi's suspicion. His mood sank slightly as he mentally noted the issue.
"Stop eating."
He grabbed Gastly, who had buried its face in the bowl and was eating so much that its gaseous body had puffed up like a balloon.
"Look at you—you've eaten yourself into a sphere. Go take a bath and sleep."
"Gaaas! (I protest!)"
Protest denied.
Gastly was mercilessly dragged into the bathroom.
The Next Morning
Yawning, Rei Akagi walked downstairs.
Just as he was about to sneak to his workstation and begin a pleasant day of slacking off, he was precisely intercepted by Professor Oak.
"Bai! Come here, come here!"
Professor Oak beamed as he wrapped an arm around Rei Akagi's shoulders and enthusiastically guided him forward.
"There's been a mountain of work lately. To improve efficiency, I've temporarily moved your workstation… to here! If you have questions, you can ask me directly. Very convenient!"
Rei Akagi stopped walking and stepped back half a pace.
He looked up at the door sign.
Professor Oak's Office.
…Wasn't this your office?
Noticing his confusion, Professor Oak scratched his head and smiled apologetically.
"You'll have to squeeze into the office with me for a while. This isn't Kanto, so arranging a separate office for you is a bit troublesome. Of course, if you want to work from your own room, that's also fine!"
"No, no, no!"
Rei Akagi waved his hands quickly.
"I'm just worried… about disturbing your work."
Mainly because working under the boss's nose made it hard to secretly slack off.
"How could that be!"
Professor Oak waved dismissively and pushed him toward the desk. He pulled out several reports labeled "Ghost Energy Tides" and handed them over.
"I've investigated the abnormal energy fluctuations we detected earlier. The conclusion is that they could potentially trigger agitation among Ghost-type Pokémon across the entire city! Take a look at the report first."
Rei Akagi flipped through the pages quickly.
His brows slowly furrowed.
"Energy appearing out of nowhere? That seems unlikely… The expansion source hasn't been located yet? But that jade coffin wasn't—"
"You caught the key point already?"
Professor Oak's eyes lit up with approval.
"That jade coffin is the energy source, but in reality it doesn't emit energy on its own! The energy surge must have another cause. We even tried moving the coffin, but no matter what methods we used, it wouldn't budge at all."
His tone grew serious.
"The troubling part is that if we don't intervene, all Ghost-type Pokémon in the city could continue to be affected, and the consequences are unpredictable. So I'll need your help working overtime these days—analyze these datasets, summarize your insights, and enter them into the digital archives. Much appreciated!"
"No problem. Leave it to me."
Rei Akagi agreed, though his thoughts were already racing.
The jade coffin being opened…
Gastly awakening…
The distortion world energy tides…
Was it an accident?
Or was there someone behind the scenes?
Was the mysterious jade coffin the true objective?
It might be necessary to remind Professor Oak to keep an eye on local factions.
Even if it turned out to be a false alarm, being more cautious wouldn't hurt.
With that in mind, Rei Akagi immediately shared all of his deductions and ideas.
"A mastermind behind the scenes, huh…"
Professor Oak stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"That certainly can't be ignored. I'll report this to the League right away and request—"
"Wait!"
Rei Akagi quickly interrupted him.
The last thing he wanted was for Professor Oak to summon a swarm of League powerhouses with a single phone call.
"These are only hypotheses. Making a big scene might alert the enemy. Maybe… we should investigate secretly first? Besides, if the League steps in and it turns out to be nothing, that would be awkward."
"A covert investigation, huh? That could work. I could assign Cynthia to handle it… though she might not be familiar with this place."
Professor Oak pondered for a moment.
Then his eyes suddenly brightened as they landed on Rei Akagi.
"Great idea! Then we'll leave this matter to you! I'll have Cynthia assist you and ensure your safety. Go ahead and give it your best!"
"…Wait, what?"
Actually, what Rei Akagi meant was: Just let Miss Cynthia investigate. There's really no need to include me. I still have my own job…
Rei Akagi stood there like a stunned statue.
The words of refusal circled his mouth but were swallowed by Professor Oak's enthusiastic, trust-filled gaze.
I want to cry.jpg
Yes, it had been his suggestion to investigate.
But he never intended to throw himself into the pit too!
Rei Akagi, Rei Akagi…
Why did you have to open your mouth?
Now look at you—lifting a rock only to smash your own foot.
You've just increased your own workload for nothing. Happy now?
"Oh right, there's one more thing."
Professor Oak suddenly slapped his forehead as if remembering something.
His serious expression instantly switched back to cheerful mode.
"It's about the promotion for Pokémon: FireRed / LeafGreen! The online ads are already running everywhere, and the results are pretty good. I was thinking—should we hold a formal offline launch event? You could personally go on stage to introduce the game. What do you think?"
"I think… that might not work."
When the topic shifted to games, Rei Akagi immediately became clear-headed.
He organized his thoughts and began analyzing calmly.
"First, launch events are too formal and expensive while providing limited results. Games are meant to be played—they're not luxury goods or daily necessities. Players care more about the actual experience than the spectacle of a press conference."
"And second…"
He pointed to himself.
"I'm a nobody. I have zero influence. If you—or someone like Champion Cynthia—stood on stage instead, the impact would be doubled. Also, the core value of the game isn't just battling. Collection and social interaction are just as important. Rather than hosting a launch event, it'd be better to invest resources into precise marketing and community building."
"I see…"
Professor Oak looked thoughtful, though slightly disappointed.
"So we have to abandon the launch event idea…"
"However, there is an alternative."
Rei Akagi changed his tone and presented his plan.
"I could do a live stream. I'd play the game live to demonstrate gameplay, explain battle strategies, and share training tips. It would be intuitive, entertaining, and interactive. At the same time, we could start building popularity and warming up the Pokémon Studio account."
Live streaming had low cost, high traffic potential, and broad reach.
Positive feedback would come quickly—and it could also generate Battle Points.
If done well, Pokémon: FireRed / LeafGreen could easily go viral, even building a large fanbase before release.
And besides…
Streaming didn't necessarily mean showing his face.
Building momentum for the studio account was a guaranteed win.
"Live streaming? Brilliant idea!"
Professor Oak slapped his thigh excitedly.
"Then it's settled! Once the online promotion phase is nearly finished, we'll organize the stream."
With the plan finalized, Professor Oak happily returned to his seat.
Mission accomplished.
Leaving Rei Akagi standing there alone.
He sighed quietly.
Data analysis.
Crisis investigation.
Game streaming…
Suddenly, the list of things he had to do had grown a lot longer.
I really just want to retire and live the carefree life of a lazy Magikarp…
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