Chapter Sixty-Six: Work Has Arrived

"Hmm?"
Do you have another research idea that could make us a fortune?
Lapras became excited. "Mm-mm!"
How about we go earn more of those high-aged berries!
"That makes sense, but I'll need to run a few experiments first. Let's talk after class."
Zhuyue Han took a moment to organize her "skill inventory"—in other words, her physical passive abilities.
First, she had a strong constitution for both eating and fighting.
Second, she could clearly understand what a Pokémon wanted to express, though not to the level of N's heart-to-heart communication.
Third, she was proficient in ancient script.
"As everyone knows, in blockbuster movies, everyone conveniently speaks the same language."
Zhuyue Han sat on Lapras's back, while Alcremie stood spiritedly on Lapras's head, greeting the surrounding Water-type Pokémon.
"I'm going to try translating some ancient texts. If I really can understand them, it won't be a problem to get a harvesting permit from the dean."
She added, "By the way, Lapras, Alcremie actually has an evolved form, but did you know Alcremie has as many as one hundred and twenty-eight possible evolutions?"
Lapras: ?
You're not kidding me?!
"It's true, though that's counting all the alternate colors and Gigantamax forms. To be precise, there are one hundred and twenty-eight appearances."
In the world of Pokémon, there have always been some strange but widely accepted classifications.
For example, Gyarados is notorious for a quadruple weakness to Electric—one of the "certified strong" types.
Blissey and Amoonguss belong to the "bringers of smiles in battle" group.
Then there’s Rowlet, one of the Alola starters, part of the "You must not evolve" category, affectionately called 'Southern Little Bird.'
Primarina, Gardevoir, and Lopunny fall into the "your waifu might be male" category.
Flygon, Alolan Exeggutor, and similar Pokémon are members of the "I'm a dragon, deal with it" group.
There are, of course, even more combinations—these aren't just categories but running jokes, reflecting the trainers' affection for their Pokémon.
It’s much like giving Green the nickname "Pallet Town's Fastest Legend"—such inside jokes only happen between those with a close bond; who spends the effort to nickname an NPC otherwise?
Then there's Alcremie, whose very existence forms a category of its own.
This Pokémon's design inspiration seems to be whipped cream, and perhaps a dessert called Eton Mess. Its Gigantamax form is a tiered, extravagantly decorated cake.
But Zhuyue Han always thought it resembled ice cream more—her own Alcremie's future evolution might look like a fresh cream ice cream topped with chocolate syrup and berries.
It was like an upgraded version of the ice cream from Kiawe's family ranch.
"Honestly, I was surprised when I first learned that number."
In reality, Zhuyue Han would only discuss such things with Lapras and Alcremie.
If we’re being tactful: Researchers earnestly explore the unknowns of Pokémon out of a sense of responsibility.
Less tactfully: Bro, do you just have too much time on your hands?
The conversation sent Lapras into a drooling daydream—so many forms, so many flavors! Alcremie, on the other hand, paid no attention at all.
As a Pokémon that had hatched less than two and a half days ago, thinking about evolution was rather premature.
"Mm-mm?"
Upon reaching the shore, Lapras watched in shock as Alcremie leapt from her head, nestled onto Zhuyue Han's, and settled there.
I only just complained about how boring class is and you actually want to go?
"Milulu!"
If Big Sis can't succeed, let me do it for her!
With a determined look, Alcremie sat atop Zhuyue Han's white hair and waved to Lapras.
Big Sis, wait for me!
I will bring you knowledge and victory!
Lapras’s expression grew subtly amused.
"Mm-mm."
Such courage—truly worthy of being my little sister! Good luck, little one who can whip cream by hand!
"Milulu!"
After the morning classes—
"Milulu..."
Utterly deflated, Alcremie had melted into a puddle atop Zhuyue Han's head, blending in with her hair so well she was almost invisible.
Lapras waited at the shore, face full of inevitability.
As expected, both Alcremie and herself were semi-illiterate—she’d felt the same way after her first lessons.
"Just one morning, but honestly, today’s classes nearly did me in too."
There had been four history lessons that morning. Two covered the beast wars of the Dark Age—grim topics, even more dramatic than the special editions.
The last two focused on battlefield medicine—emergency care knowledge derived from history, the sort of things you often need in the wild.
In the field, large medical devices are useless; at best, you have a portable kit and the Pokémon's own healing power.
If luck is with you, you might find naturally growing berries to help with treatment—but only the right kind.
It was only in those last two classes that Zhuyue Han perked up; the first two were pure torment.
Mainly, they seemed pointless.
"Milulu."
Sensing outside activity, Alcremie revived herself, returned to her creamy form, and gently tugged on Zhuyue Han’s white hair.
"Hungry? Here’s an energy cube for now—let’s head to the cafeteria."
On the way, Zhuyue Han dialed Joy Jing.
"Hello, Dean, I want to make some money."
Joy Jing replied, "You’d better not tell me you’ve already used up your berry quota."
"No, I just thought of a new gig. Does the academy have any historical documents that need translating?"
Joy Jing said, "We have some, not many. Are you sure you can handle them?"
Zhuyue Han pinned the phone between her shoulder and cheek, feeding Alcremie.
"I can give it a try—just have the responsible teacher send me a photo."
Joy Jing tapped her desk—she’d been busy these days, eating delivery in her office.
"Alright, I’ll have them send you pictures. Once we verify your translation, I’ll give you a quota of twenty ten-year berries."
"No rush—the other areas have started their harvests. Within a week, they should be delivered to the academy."
Zhuyue Han’s eyes lit up. "How many in total?"
"We’ll know after the tally; the price depends on negotiations."
Half an hour later, Joy Jing sent the academy’s ancient documents to Zhuyue Han.
As a Pokémon medical school, Joy Jing herself had no idea when those records had been collected.
Perhaps one dean had dreamed of starting an archaeology program; more likely, a former dean had left their private collection behind as a cultural legacy.
The records were on all sorts of materials—stone tablets, oiled wood boards, silk made from bug thread—and were fairly well preserved.
The most stunning was the last image: a nearly spherical stone, covered in inscriptions.
It was clear at a glance that it was a segment of an Onix's body.
"The Dark Age was dark indeed."
It would be wise for Arceus to go back in time and unleash a few Judgment beams.
With Alcremie on her head and Lapras beside her, Zhuyue Han strolled along the lakeside back to her dorm, intending to translate the documents on the way.
She understood all the writing—her hypothesis about her passive ability was correct.
Moreover, these scripts were clearly related; the main differences lay in writing habits, which only made translation slightly more challenging.
Archaeology is like opening loot boxes, with odds so low it's almost disheartening.
Most finds are the equivalent of common items; rarer treasures are found deeper within major ruins—like a guaranteed minimum prize.
What you find might be key history, but it’s always just a fragment.
Overall, you never know what a relic might record.
Maybe it’s a hidden secret, or perhaps just an ancient person noting, "I ate an extra bowl of rice today," or carving a stone to celebrate winning a bet with friends.
What we see as history may once have been ordinary daily life.
After sifting through several useless records, Zhuyue Han finally found something of interest—a recipe for a "quality enhancement potion," basically an item that raises effort and experience points.
"What a complicated formula—wait, slimmed down, isn’t this just an energy cube?"
She pondered—back in that era, constant warfare meant less production capacity, let alone research.
Any kind of research requires a full stomach first—a classic hierarchy of needs.
In other words, satisfying hunger comes before anything else—not just in the risqué sense, but in all desires.
This so-called potion recipe was probably reserved for the nobility, and due to limited resources, included many redundant ingredients by modern standards.
If she kept researching, the costs would far outweigh those of current potions.
"Disappointing—another dud."
Only the inscription on the Onix segment was useful, and then only for archaeologists—likely part of a self-glorifying memoir by some general.
The only amusing bit was a local gazetteer recounting how a fool tried to dig a cellar and enlisted a beast tamer for help.
The house foundation was unstable, and after a Ground-type move, the cellar space was made, but part of the house collapsed.
In such war-torn times, that probably counted as comic relief.
Zhuyue Han sent his translations to the dean and suddenly lost all interest in archaeology.
He’d always known his own stele resembled those in the Announcements Stone Chamber, and had hoped to find some new information.
Now, it seemed better to pin his hopes on the likes of Cynthia and her scholarly destiny to unearth something valuable.
"Maybe I should just try to catch the main plot as it unfolds."
He could put his identity as Scrooge to good use, see if he could get useful information from ruins or even legendary Pokémon.
His phone rang, and Zhuyue Han frowned in confusion at the screen.
"Dean, I thought I’d finished the translation."
"It’s not about that—the timing just worked out, so I’m notifying you directly."
Joy Jing rubbed her brow. "Get ready. Soon you’ll need to take the transport helicopter from the platform behind the administration building. You have a field assignment."
"An assignment, not an event—you know what that means."
Zhuyue Han: ?
"Me? A first-year?"
Joy Jing sipped her tea. "First-years: the top thirty students by ranking, one class's worth. Second-years: two classes, and so on."
"The destination is Lake of Rage. Your old man and Koga from Team Rocket have cooked up something big."