Chapter Forty-Eight: The Transformation of the King Carp

“Dreepy~” Dreepy Messia clung to Zhao Fang’s neck like a mischievous little sprite, curling her body around him and gazing up at him with sparkling, wide eyes.

“Come on, I’m not refusing you, but you need to wait a bit,” Zhao Fang said helplessly, suspecting that Dreepy Messia must have been a Snorlax in a former life, so passionate about food. He wondered whether a Pokémon’s weight could change; if he ended up raising a Dragapult as plump as a Snorlax, he wouldn’t know what to do.

“Dreepy~” Dreepy Messia continued to whine, drooling as she did, leaving Zhao Fang dumbfounded.

He had originally planned to make hotpot for Dreepy Messia, but since today’s batch of Pokémon food included two chickens, he decided on Beggar’s Chicken instead. The chicken was still buried in the earth, wrapped in lotus leaves that Gyarados had fetched from the lake.

Once Gyarados entered the lake, it gleefully swam about. Zhao Fang was initially pleased; while training was important, balance mattered too. But when he glanced back, he saw a Magikarp floating belly-up in front of his own Gyarados, eyes rolled back. Instantly, Zhao Fang knew his Gyarados had been practicing Iron Head again.

There was nothing he could do—Gyarados simply refused to listen. Day after day, it used its head to butt other Pokémon, and after it finished headbutting Geodude, it was at it again. Nurse Joy had even tactfully mentioned that Gyarados was showing signs of a concussion.

“Gyarados, come up—it’s time to eat,” Zhao Fang called toward the lake, noticing that the Beggar’s Chicken had been cooking for a while.

He turned and dug the chicken out from the soil, uncovering the lotus leaves. An intoxicating aroma wafted out, making Dreepy Messia mewl like a pampered kitten. Had her telepathy been any stronger, Zhao Fang suspected she’d already be clinging to his leg, begging.

“Eat up, this one’s yours,” Zhao Fang said, checking the information—these two Beggar’s Chickens could increase the base stats by 0.4.

He didn’t bother with Dreepy Messia, who had already pounced on the chicken. Turning to fetch the other for Gyarados, he realized Gyarados was nowhere to be seen.

“Gyarados?” Zhao Fang frowned. No matter how hard it trained, Gyarados was always obedient—so why wasn’t it surfacing now?

The lake was eerily quiet, nothing stirring. Zhao Fang’s location was so remote that few trainers ever came by.

“Gyarados!” Zhao Fang called out anxiously. Could it be in trouble? That didn’t seem likely.

Wild Pokémon have their own territories. Generally, the weaker Pokémon stay near the shore, while the resource-rich center of the lake is the domain of the strongest. That’s why fishing for Magikarp near the lake’s edge is easiest in the early stages.

Zhao Fang shouted several times, receiving no response. He hurried to Dreepy Messia, who was still gnawing on a chicken wing, and scooped her up.

“Dreepy?” she looked back in confusion—only Zhao Fang could get away with this; any other Pokémon would have been swatted with her tail.

“Dreepy, please get in the water and find Gyarados. If there’s a powerful Pokémon, come back immediately,” he said, carrying her to the shore. He’d tried recalling Gyarados to its ball, but without seeing it, the attempt failed.

Dreepy Messia nodded solemnly and slipped into the water. Zhao Fang paced anxiously along the lake’s edge, occasionally burying the chicken back under the lotus leaves lest it cool and lose its flavor.

He wasn’t sure how long he waited—though his phone said only two minutes had passed, it felt like years. After another three minutes, just as he was about to jump in himself, Dreepy Messia emerged, cradling a Magikarp in her arms.

“Dreepy! Gyarados! What happened?” Zhao Fang hurriedly took Magikarp from her. Dreepy Messia circled him, calling out; Zhao Fang heard only the word “倒,” unsure of its meaning.

He turned Magikarp over twice; it seemed to have fainted, but there were no visible injuries—he couldn’t rouse it.

Suddenly, Zhao Fang noticed something unusual: the spot on Magikarp’s forehead, where it often collided with things, was broken again and glowing red. He quickly applied a healing potion, which took effect, but the redness remained.

Perplexed, Zhao Fang touched it and realized that the scale itself was red.

“What’s going on?” he muttered, covering the scale with his hand—it was indeed growing from Magikarp’s skin.

[A scale imbued with rage]—a message suddenly appeared before his eyes.

Zhao Fang gaped. Was there a Red Gyarados in this lake? Or had Magikarp stumbled upon an opportunity to shine? It didn’t make sense; he’d only heard of Pokémon born as Shiny, never ones that turned Shiny later—unless they’d eaten those special berries and turned pink.

He quickly recalled Magikarp to its Poké Ball and inspected it for changes.

[A Magikarp with remarkable luck, evolution may be imminent.]

The evaluation had changed.

Zhao Fang paused, uncertain what had happened, but it seemed Magikarp had encountered a stroke of fortune. This warranted a consultation with an expert.

He immediately contacted May via the Pokédex. Although he also had Professor Oak’s contact, reaching out to May first seemed safe.

“What? You’re saying your Magikarp grew a crimson scale on its forehead?” Professor Oak’s eyes widened on the Pokédex screen, staring at Zhao Fang in disbelief.

“Yes, exactly. Dreepy found Magikarp underwater… Look, here it is.” Zhao Fang released Magikarp, still unconscious.

“Incredible, simply incredible! That color is unmistakably the same as the scales of a Shiny Gyarados…” Professor Oak exclaimed in wonder. May, standing by, eyed Zhao Fang curiously. She hadn’t expected her former classmate, gone for only a short while, to encounter so many bizarre events—and now his Magikarp was acting strange as well.

No one could say what Magikarp would become after it evolved.