MTL NOVEL Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Capture and Investigation Mission
"That should do it."
Watching the Great Jagras collapse to the ground, unable to even struggle, Su Yi knew the time had come.
"Chansey, I'm counting on you!" Su Yi released Chansey.
Given the Great Jagras's severe injuries, it would be in grave danger if its wounds weren't treated promptly after capture. That's why Su Yi called on Chansey to be ready for immediate medical care.
"Go! Capture Ball!" Su Yi tightly gripped a red-and-white Poké Ball and tossed it lightly, striking the Great Jagras.
The ball opened, enveloping the monster in a bright light before absorbing it inside.
Buzz!
The Capture Ball shook violently.
Su Yi clenched his fists, feeling even more nervous than when he had ridden atop the Great Jagras earlier. Right now, he only had seven Capture Balls left.
He initially received five from the support package, then earned another five as a reward for completing a mission. He had already used one to delay the Nargacuga, one to capture Roucao, and another to bring Chansey into this world.
With no current way to obtain more, each Capture Ball was precious—especially considering potential failures. Seven might seem like plenty, but any waste would be costly.
Buzz!
The Capture Ball shook again.
"Don't struggle. You're already in this state," Su Yi muttered, as if trying to persuade the Great Jagras to surrender.
Buzz!
The shaking visibly weakened.
Su Yi held his breath, his eyes locked on the ball.
Ding!
The Capture Ball stopped shaking, settling into stillness.
At that moment, though the world was silent, Su Yi's heart raced wildly.
He quickly stepped forward, picking up the Great Jagras's Capture Ball. Gripping the red-and-white sphere tightly, he took a deep breath and did something he had once dreamed of as a child.
Raising the Capture Ball high, he grinned and shouted:
"Great Jagras! Get da★ze!"
"Meow!"
"Chanseyyy!"
Rucao and Chansey joined in the celebration, cheering for Su Yi.
"Finally!" Su Yi let out a deep sigh, and as he relaxed, fatigue and soreness flooded his body.
This was his first true capture. Rucao had chosen to follow him willingly, and Chansey had joined him out of kindness—neither case involved a battle to subdue them.
Initially, Su Yi had only planned to return to this world to reassure his partners, bid them farewell, and maybe capture a small herbivore like an Aptonoth or Kestodon to slowly build his plans.
But things didn't go as expected.
His first target, a herbivore, had been snatched away by the Great Jagras. Then, while pursuing the injured monster, he was suddenly ambushed by his old enemy—the Anjanath.
His luck was something else.
Even with his "Golden Finger" advantage, infused with hunter knowledge, Su Yi had faced setback after setback. This took a toll on his confidence.
During his pursuit of the Great Jagras, however, he forced himself to stay calm and analyze the situation carefully. This allowed him to integrate the hunter's knowledge into his actions naturally.
Later, when he made the reckless decision to mount the Great Jagras, it was born out of desperation. If it had escaped, tracking it down again could have led to even more unexpected dangers.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Su Yi decided to take a risk and use proper hunting techniques to subdue the monster.
Of course, this was only possible because the Great Jagras was already gravely injured. Even so, looking back on his bold actions, Su Yi felt a cold sweat trickle down his back.
But this experience had taught him an important lesson—while a hunter must be cautious, they must also possess courage and decisiveness.
Once Su Yi recovered some stamina, he retrieved the Capture Ball and released the Great Jagras.
The massive creature, over ten meters long, reappeared on the grass, making Su Yi marvel at its sheer size. Even as the lowest-ranking large monster in the ecosystem, its physique was still beyond ordinary creatures.
The weakened Great Jagras let out a wary but feeble growl upon seeing Su Yi. It looked pitiful, but Su Yi didn't lower his guard.
Unlike Pokémon, which generally don't harbor killing intent toward their trainers after being captured, monsters didn't operate that way. To them, Su Yi was simply their captor, and if given the chance, they would bare their fangs and claws in defiance.
That meant capturing the monster was only the first step—Su Yi still had to tame it.
"Relax," Su Yi said, tossing an Oran Berry toward the Great Jagras.
The monster cautiously backed up a step, glancing at the berry, then at Su Yi.
Su Yi had a strange feeling. Communicating with monsters seemed absurd, yet somehow, he sensed that a captured Great Jagras could be reasoned with.
Following his instincts, Su Yi picked up another Oran Berry and ate it in front of the monster.
The Great Jagras hesitated for a moment before swallowing the first berry.
The restorative effects of the Pokémon world's berries were immediate, and the Great Jagras instantly felt its strength returning.
It stepped forward, letting out a call as if asking for more.
"There's more," Su Yi assured, tossing another berry. This time, the monster ate without hesitation.
Seizing the opportunity, Su Yi cautiously approached.
As he drew closer, the Great Jagras lifted its head, watching him intently. Feeling uneasy, it scraped its claws against the ground in warning.
Su Yi instinctively tried to mimic the approach of animal trainers he had seen before. He tossed another berry for the Great Jagras to catch while extending a hand toward it.
But as soon as his hand neared, the monster tensed and let out a low, threatening growl, stepping back.
Sensing danger, Rucao immediately stepped in front of Su Yi, gripping its bone dagger tightly. The weapon glowed with energy as it prepared to strike, standing guard against the wary monster.
"Don't You Dare Hurt Su Yi, Meow!"
Su Yi let out a sigh and said, "Looks like I still need some patience to tame it. At least it doesn't want to kill me outright."
"Chansey, use Heal Pulse to treat its wounds."
"Chansey!" Chansey nodded and directed a soft healing wave toward the Great Jagras.
A faint glow enveloped the beast. Due to its severe injuries, Chansey had to maintain Heal Pulse for a while.
Finally, after expending a large amount of energy, Chansey managed to close the creature's wounds, leaving behind scars still in the early stages of healing.
The Great Jagras, sensing its body recovering, gradually relaxed its tense posture.
Su Yi retrieved some herbivore meat from his Inventory—originally meant as emergency rations—and tossed it to the beast.
The Great Jagras devoured the large chunks of meat and instinctively started moving toward its nest.
"Huh? We're back near the nest again?" Su Yi realized that during the hunt, the beast had actually been fleeing toward its own den.
Opening the Map, he confirmed that the nest was indeed nearby.
The Great Jagras crawled near the entrance but didn't go inside. Instead, it hesitated, glancing at the nest and then back at Su Yi.
"Why do I feel like it's getting smarter?" Su Yi sensed something different in its gaze.
"Maybe it's because it turned into a Pokémon?"
That was the only explanation he could come up with. After all, Pokémon were known to have considerable intelligence.
Shaking his head, Su Yi recalled the Great Jagras into its Poké Ball.
At that moment, the Scoutflies on his belt suddenly swarmed toward a pile of debris outside the cave.
"This is... Kulu-Ya-Ku's scales and crest feathers, along with some bloodstains. Must be from the one that got bitten by the Anjanath," Su Yi speculated.
Bzzzz!
A faint hum resonated. Su Yi blinked in surprise and pulled out his Hunter's Journal. A blue light flashed across the Sapphire Star emblem on the cover.
Flipping to the Quest page, a new Investigation Report symbol appeared. Su Yi tapped it.
Quest: Hunt Kulu-Ya-Ku
Support: None
Rewards: 5 Poké Balls, 2 Trap Tools
Time Limit: 3 Days
"So, this is a triggered investigation quest?"
Su Yi examined what was now his first optional quest outside the starting mission.
If he abandoned the quest or failed to track down any leads within three days, the mission would be lost. Furthermore, for the next three days, he wouldn't be able to trigger another investigation on this same target.
"Should I accept it or not?"
Su Yi began analyzing his current situation.
The only reason he successfully captured the Great Jagras was due to the assistance of Rathalos, Lagiacrus, and Anjanath.
Although this Kulu-Ya-Ku had also been attacked by Anjanath, Su Yi had no idea how badly it was hurt.
Before taming the Great Jagras, he had no reliable battle companion. Even now, it was an unstable asset. Worse yet, Anjanath had already marked him as a target.
That meant he had to decide: should he take the risk and go after this quest, or return to the Pokémon world to properly prepare his team before continuing?
"I'll check on Kulu-Ya-Ku's condition first before making a decision. There's no downside if I fail, and Kulu-Ya-Ku isn't aggressive toward humans. As long as I stay cautious of other monsters, I should be fine."
With his mind made up, Su Yi saw this as an opportunity. If he waited a few days, the creature would recover. Given how adept Kulu-Ya-Ku was at escaping, capturing it later would be much harder.
"Let's do this in one go!" Su Yi pumped himself up.
"Are we continuing the hunt, meow?" Rucao showed no signs of exhaustion—if anything, the Palico seemed even more excited.
Su Yi checked the time, then commanded the Scoutflies to track Kulu-Ya-Ku's scent.
Meanwhile...
Not long after Su Yi and Rucao had left, heavy footsteps echoed through the area.
A savage predator slowly approached.
Anjanath flared its nasal crest, sniffing the ground for any traces of Kulu-Ya-Ku.
Suddenly, a familiar scent entered its nostrils.
ROAR!
Anjanath let out a deafening bellow, excitement flashing in its eyes.
It followed the scent, picking up speed.
Ancient Tree Forest – The Upper Canopy
The dense jungle of the Ancient Tree Forest was a maze of towering trees, thick vines, and hidden pathways. Deep within, one particularly massive tree had evolved into a unique ecosystem of its own, storing rainwater and soil within its hollow interior.
While tracking Kulu-Ya-Ku's trail, Su Yi began his ascent into the tree's vast canopy.
"Glowbugs—good stuff."
Moving carefully, he used a net to capture a glowing insect clinging to the bark—a firefly-like creature called a Glowbug.
"The Ancient Tree's upper layers really are full of valuable resources. No wonder, in the game, the Botanical Researcher used Ancient Tree saplings to create a cultivation base for high-yield plant, insect, and fungal materials."
As he progressed, Su Yi continued collecting materials, his inventory growing with every step.