The Safari Zone felt different from the moment they left the entrance behind. The path narrowed quickly after the first stretch of maintained road, turning into a trail of flattened earth that curved through tall grass and scattered trees. Wooden signs appeared occasionally along the route, pointing toward different areas deeper within the reserve, but most of the landscape beyond the trail was left untouched.
Rimuru walked near the front of the group while turning one of the Safari Balls over in his hand.
He had already checked the pouch twice since they entered.
"Thirty?" He said as he glanced down into it again, as if the number might somehow change if he looked long enough. "That's all they give you?"
Professor Oak nodded calmly while walking beside him. "Well, the limit is more like encouragement for visitors to consider their choices carefully."
"I'm trying to catch a dragon here!" Rimuru replied. "That doesn't feel like something you do carefully."
Ludwig chuckled behind them as his feet landed on another uneven patch of land. "You are the one who chose it."
"That doesn't mean the system isn't terrible."
Ludwig chuckled at his words. Yes, even in the game, he hated this system too much. Well, with save scumming it was not the hardest. But without save scumming, yeah… It's bad.
As Ludwig thought so, Claire walked a short distance behind the two of them, her gaze moving steadily across the surrounding field. The tall grass shifted slightly in several places as small Pokemon moved through it, though most of them remained hidden from view.
Then, just beside them, a faint rustling sound could be heard. As they all stopped and looked at the tall grass that was moving, a purple shape burst briefly into sight before immediately disappeared again.
It was a Rattata.
"Not interested." Rimuru muttered before continuing his walk.
The preserve gradually became quieter the further they walked away from the entrance. The occasional distant cry of a bird Pokémon echoed through the trees while the wind carried the scent of water from somewhere ahead.
After several minutes, the path opened slightly as the terrain began to slope downward.
Reeds appeared first. Then the river itself came into view.
It moved slowly through the landscape, its surface reflecting the sky while patches of grass and mud lined the edges of the bank. Compared to the trail behind, this place was more... serene.
Rimuru stopped beside the water.
"So…"
He scanned the surface of the river.
"They should be around here?"
Professor Oak studied the river quietly before answering.
"Dratini prefer calm water. Rivers like this are suitable habitats, though sightings during the day are uncommon."
Rimuru folded his arms. "So we're just going to have to do it the old way?"
"The old way?" Oak cocked his head to the side.
"I mean, walk around and hope we stumble onto them." He corrected with a chuckle.
"Indeed." Oak answered.
And just like that, they walked around again. But this time, not through tall grass and trees but around the riverbank. From time to time, the surface of the water rippled as something beneath the water moved. However, none of those movements lasted long enough to be identified.
Rimuru slowed near the first bend and leaned slightly forward as he stared at the water.
"…Was that something?"
The ripple disappeared before anyone could answer. But still, as expected from him, Professor Oak walked closer to the edge of the bank, his eyes studying the reeds carefully before shaking his head.
"Likely a smaller aquatic Pokemon."
Rimuru straightened and sighed before continuing along the river.
The scenery did not change much as they moved downstream. The same quiet river curved through the preserve while tall grass and scattered trees formed a loose border along both sides of the water. Occasionally, a Pokemon revealed itself for a brief moment before disappearing again. At one point, a pair of Psyduck stood knee-deep in the shallows near a cluster of rocks. They stared at the group blankly for a moment before slowly waddling deeper into the water.
But, Rimuru did not even slow down because of them.
"Not a dragon."
Ludwig chuckled at his comment. True to Rimuru, he knew that once he decided on something, he would see it through to the end, no matter what.
Of course…
As they arrived at another bend in the river after walking for another 15 minutes,
"UGHHHH. We have walked for so looonnnggg." He complained. "Yet not one Dratini is in sight! I'm starting to think there's no dragon here!"
Rimuru's patience evaporated.
Professor Oak chuckled softly at the outburst.
"Dratini are known for their elusive nature." He said while adjusting his glasses. "Even within the Safari Zone, sightings are considered fortunate."
"That's a polite way of saying we will have to walk some more." Rimuru replied immediately.
The river continued flowing beside them without paying attention to his complaint. A light breeze moved through the reeds along the bank, causing the tall plants to sway slowly as the water beneath them reflected the pale blue sky above.
Rimuru stared at the river for another few seconds before letting out a long breath.
"…Alright."
Then he closed his eyes. A heartbeat later, he could feel something was brushing through his senses. That something was magicule.
Ludwig's lips stretched upwards as he felt it. Well, even though he enjoyed the process, his friends didn't have to enjoy it. He knew well this was also a valid way to track a certain pokemon.
Rimuru still keep his mouth shut, eyes also closed.
Then, as if finally feeling something had shifted, Professor Oak opened his mouth. "What are you doing?"
"Looking properly," Rimuru answered without opening his eyes.
The ripple of mana continued expanding outward while he focused, and several seconds passed just like that.
Finally, his eyebrows lifted slightly.
"…Found one."
Claire, who also realized what he was doing, looked toward the river immediately.
"Where?"
Rimuru opened his eyes and pointed toward a darker section of water beneath a cluster of reeds several meters downstream.
"There."
At first, nothing appeared. The water remained calm, disturbed only by the slow movement of the current.
But still, Rimuru stepped closer to the edge of the bank.
"I can feel it moving." He said quietly.
The others watched the surface carefully. Then, finally, the water shifted. A long shape glided just beneath the surface before disappearing deeper into the river.
Rimuru's eyes lit up.
"That's it!"
He quickly grabbed one of the Safari Balls from the pouch at his side and moved forward another step. The moment his foot touched the damp mud near the water's edge the shape beneath the surface reacted.
The river erupted in a brief splash. Something slender and blue shot through the water before vanishing completely beneath the reeds on the far side of the bend.
Rimuru froze.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Ludwig laughed quietly behind him.
"It appears like, that Dratini didn't like you enough."
Rimuru slowly turned his head toward Ludwig.
"That wasn't funny."
Ludwig lifted his hands slightly in a gesture of surrender, though the amusement had not completely left his face. "You were the one who rushed it."
"I didn't rush it."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever."
Rimuru clicked his tongue before looking back toward the river. The surface had already returned to its calm state, the earlier disturbance disappearing as if nothing had ever been there.
For a few seconds, he simply stared at the water.
Then he closed his eyes again. The ripple of magicules spread outward once more. This time, the movement of energy was stronger than before, expanding further along the riverbank while brushing against the grass and reeds surrounding them. Ludwig could feel it clearly as the familiar sensation passed through the environment.
Several seconds went by.
Then Rimuru opened one eye.
"…Another one."
Claire turned slightly toward him.
"Where?"
Rimuru pointed further down the river where the bank curved again behind a cluster of rocks.
"Over there."
Before anyone could ask or offer a word, he started walking.
The terrain changed slightly quickly. The river widened for a short stretch before narrowing again between two large stones that had likely remained there for years. The water was also different. It was calmer here.
Rimuru stopped near the edge.
"Right there."
For a moment, nothing happened.
The pool of water between the two stones remained quiet, disturbed only by the slow movement of the current slipping past the edges of the rocks. Still, Rimuru crouched slightly as he leaned closer.
"I can still feel it." He said quietly.
The others remained where they stood. Ludwig watched the water without moving. Claire's gaze followed the exact spot Rimuru had pointed at, while Professor Oak and Looker just studied the pool.
Then the surface shifted. A slender shape rose briefly beneath the water before breaking through it. Blue scales caught the sunlight for an instant as the creature surfaced just enough to reveal the curve of its body.
Dratini.
The small dragon lingered there for barely a second before beginning to sink beneath the water again.
Rimuru reacted instantly. The Safari Ball left his hand in a smooth arc toward the center of the pool. But before it could open, the Dratini twisted its body and shot downward into the deeper part of the water.
The ball bobbed uselessly on the surface.
Rimuru stared at it.
"…That one doesn't count."
Ludwig's shoulders shook slightly with restrained laughter.
"Oh yeah?"
Rimuru stood there for a moment with his hands on his hips before dragging one hand across his face.
"Third time."
He did not stay discouraged for long.
The ripple of magicules spread outward again as he resumed his search, this time casting the detection further along the river. The group followed wherever he pointed, moving from one bend of the river to the next while he tried to track the faint movements beneath the water.
Unfortunately, the next two attempts did not end any better than the first three.
One Dratini slipped away the moment Rimuru approached the reeds where it had been hiding, its slender body disappearing into deeper water before he could even raise the Safari Ball. The other surfaced just long enough for him to throw, only to dive beneath the riverbank at the last possible moment, leaving the ball to bounce uselessly off the surface before drifting away with the current.
By the time the fifth failure ended, Rimuru's shoulders had slumped slightly.
"…This place is cursed."
Ludwig chuckled quietly behind him.
"Or perhaps you are simply impatient."
"I am not impatient."
"You are chasing creatures that even Professor Oak called rare. Of course, it will be hard. Because of the failure, you became impatient."
"I am not!"
"That depends on the point of view."
Rimuru sighed heavily before looking back at the river once more. The water flowed calmly between the reeds as if nothing had happened during the past half hour of searching.
For a moment he seemed ready to try again. But before he could close his eyes once more, Ludwig spoke.
"Let's take a short break."
Rimuru turned toward him immediately.
"Break?"
"It is already sometimes past noon." Ludwig replied calmly while glancing briefly at the sky above them. The sun had climbed high enough that the shade beneath the trees had shortened considerably. "No matter how determined you are, searching while hungry will not improve your chances."
Professor Oak nodded in agreement.
"A break would be sensible."
Rimuru looked between the river and the others before letting out a quiet groan.
"…Fine."
Ludwig and the others moved to a patch of land dry enough for them to sit without getting their bottoms wet. The words he spoke to Rimuru before were true. They need food before continuing.
But he had another reason.
Rimuru had become too impatient. Imagine someone even used abilities from another world, yet still hadn't caught what they wanted. If it's him, he would also feel impatient and maybe slightly angry.
That's why the guy needed to cool down.
And he knew a perfect thing to achieve that result.
"You guys wait here, I'll return to the restaurant and bring you some lunch."
Before hearing anything, especially from Looker, who looked at him pointedly, Ludwig just vanished from reality and flew through the void back to Pallet Town.
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