Su Yi, The Pokemon(?) Master (Pokemon X Monster Hunter Fanfic)

As Su Yi once again descended into the rocky cave campsite, the surrounding stone walls gave him a sense of security.

Releasing Rucao, he carefully navigated along the cracks in the rock walls, making his way toward the exit.

However, the moment he crouched and emerged from the low cave entrance, a surprise was waiting for him.

On the flat ground outside the cave, a massive, dark green tyrannosaur-like creature was sniffing the air as it wandered around.

The moment Su Yi stepped out, the Deviljho suddenly caught a whiff of an unfamiliar scent and immediately turned its head.

Just as Su Yi stood up, his gaze met the creature's golden, beastly eyes.

"ROAR!"

The Deviljho let out an excited bellow, lifting its scarred, fearsome head before smashing it down toward Su Yi.

"Oh, hell no!"

Su Yi instinctively threw himself backward, scrambling frantically like a drowning man doing a dog paddle, and bolted back into the cave. In the process, he accidentally shoved Rucao out behind him.

"Meow?!"

Rucao yelped in shock.

BOOM!

The cave entrance trembled violently as debris flew, pelting Su Yi's back with loud smacks.

Turning around in his disheveled state, he saw the enormous Deviljho leaning its scarred head sideways, its golden, menacing eyes peering into the cave.

The scene was eerily reminiscent of a classic horror movie moment.

"ROAR!"

Seeing Su Yi just within reach, the creature repeatedly slammed its head against the cave entrance. The entire cavern shook with each strike.

Luckily, while the outer edges of the entrance crumbled, the tougher interior rock walls only shed some dust and small fragments.

Without hesitation, Su Yi and Rucao squeezed through a narrow passage, retreating deeper into the cave.

"That must be the same Deviljho that nearly killed Odagoron," Su Yi muttered, still shaken.

The long, narrow scars across the Deviljho 's face were unmistakably left by Odagoron's final desperate struggle.

"That thing is terrifying, meow! And it was waiting right outside the campsite!" Rucao shuddered at the ongoing thuds from outside.

"Beep beep! Roto! What kind of Pokémon was that just now?! That was terrifying!"

The voice of Rotom Phone suddenly burst from Su Yi's backpack, its tone full of fear.

"Hahaha! Welcome to the New World, Rotom!" Su Yi laughed heartily.

"New World?! Where exactly is this?! How did we suddenly end up somewhere so dangerous, Roto?!" Rotom Phone sounded like its circuits were overheating.

"Think of this place as another world," Su Yi explained. "Just do me a favor and keep it a secret, okay?"

"Another world?! This is beyond comprehension, Roto! Wait—there's no network signal either! This really is somewhere extraordinary!"

"There's going to be even crazier stuff ahead! You should get used to this journey!" Su Yi laughed again.

"Understood! A top-secret expedition, unrecorded by the world! I love it! Let's commemorate the first moment, Roto!"

Excitedly, Rotom Phone spun around and snapped a photo of the campsite.

Somehow, Su Yi had a feeling that Rotom's presence would make this journey even more interesting.

Meanwhile, the sounds of stone being struck continued from outside.

"Good thing I picked this campsite!" Su Yi sighed in relief. "If I had set up in one of those open locations from the game, who knows what kind of monster would've crashed the camp by now?"

The rotten vale was full of caves like this, allowing him to find a secure location to settle.

"Alright, this is getting ridiculous, Devil Bro. If you keep this up, it's just bad manners."

Even though the Deviljho's attacks had slowed, it was still occasionally smashing the entrance. Su Yi couldn't help but feel helpless.

Before long, however, the creature seemed to lose interest, and the commotion outside ceased.

"Let's check..."

There was a simple and effective way to confirm whether the Deviljho had really left.

Su Yi opened "The Hunting Guide" and clicked "Exit Monster Hunter World."

[Being Tracked, Unable to Return.]

BANG!

Su Yi snapped The Hunting Guide shut and cursed, "Damn you, sneaky bastard!"

As expected, the Deviljho was still outside the cave. Whether it was resting nearby or lying in wait, one thing was certain—it had memorized Su Yi's scent and remained on guard not far away.

"What kind of grudge do you have against me?" Su Yi sighed helplessly. He couldn't understand why the Deviljho was so obsessed with him—a tiny snack that wouldn't even fill its teeth.

Was it holding a grudge?

Then why don't you go after the Bazelgeuse instead?!

Just moments ago, he had been fired up for exploration, but the moment he stepped outside, the Deviljho blocked his way. What a buzzkill.

Just as Su Yi was considering using flash bombs or stink bombs to break out, Rucao made a discovery.

"Su Yi, meow! There's a crack here, and it looks like there's a path behind it, meow!"

Rucao peered into a fissure in the rock wall inside the cave.

"Let me see!"

Su Yi moved closer, and at that moment, Rotom Phone helpfully switched on its flashlight. With the illumination, Su Yi could see that the crack in the rock wall extended outward, gradually widening just enough for a person to squeeze through.

"I can just barely fit through. Let me go check it out, Roto," Rotom Phone volunteered, clearly getting into the adventure spirit.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Rotom." Su Yi nodded.

Rotom Phone floated into the fissure and scouted ahead. A few minutes later, it returned.

"There's a passage outside! It leads to an open area, but it's dark and eerie out there, Roto!"

"As long as it leads outside, that's all that matters. Alright, come on out, Great Jagras!"

Su Yi released the Great Jagras and pointed at the crack in the wall.

"Use Dragon Claw to carve it open."

"Roar!"

With a few powerful slashes of its glowing claws, the Great Jagras widened the crack just enough for Su Yi to squeeze through.

"Thanks a lot." Su Yi recalled the wyvern.

"Hahaha, Devil Bro! This is my escape route! Bye-bye now!"

Under the illumination of Rotom Phone's flashlight, Su Yi squeezed into the fissure.

Beyond the short, narrow crevice was a long and narrow rocky tunnel. As he walked through it, the distant roar of rushing water reached his ears.

When Su Yi emerged from the passage, his surroundings suddenly opened up.

Before him lay a broad, marshy expanse. A massive waterfall cascaded down from a great height, its torrents carving through rocks and the remains of enormous skeletons before flowing into a murky yellow river, vanishing into the unknown depths of the Rotten Vale.

The scene before him resembled the fabled River of the Underworld.

"What Pokémon's bones are those? They're huge, Roto!"

Click!

Rotom Phone snapped a picture of the colossal skeleton.

"These might be the remains of the Serpent King Dragon, Dalamadur" Su Yi mused uncertainly.

Given that this place was a graveyard for Elder Dragons, identifying a specific skeleton was nearly impossible.

Near the riverbank, a cluster of dark red plants caught his attention. Curious, Su Yi walked over.

"Are these the heavenberrys from the game?"

The plants bore red, lychee-like fruits. In the game, regional specialties were only represented by simple icons, making it hard to determine their real-life counterparts.

"So... can I eat this?"

Su Yi hesitated. After all, there was no way to be certain if these were truly edible like in the game.

Besides, they were growing in a land littered with bones and shrouded in toxic miasma. That alone was unsettling enough.

"Being clean and sanitary can wait! Bottoms up, me!"

After much deliberation, Su Yi finally peeled off the red skin and popped the dragonfruit-like berry into his mouth.