Chapter Ten: The Evergreen Forest and the GS Sphere

Looking at the imposing Arcanine beside him, Heath couldn’t help but smile as he reached out to ruffle the Pokémon’s fur. This was Sister Maple’s ace Pokémon—strong and incredibly fast.

“Arcanine, come help me dry off,” Sister Maple commanded naturally, and the Arcanine breathed out gentle wisps of flame. The fire circled around Junsha Maple, whose sweat-soaked clothes were instantly dried.

Heath glanced sideways with a faint smirk; Sister Maple was as unruffled as ever. Judging by Arcanine’s demeanor, it wasn’t the first time he’d done this sort of thing. With a sigh, Heath sat down to join her for dinner.

“Sister Maple, do you know what kind of Pokémon are in Viridian Forest these days? Or if there are any interesting rumors?” Heath swallowed his mouthful of rice and looked at her curiously.

“Hmm? Viridian Forest?” Sister Maple looked at Heath, puzzled, then nostalgia washed over her face. “I’m not used to how you young folks call it these days. We always referred to it as the Pewter Forest.”

Heath’s lips twitched. Honestly, Pewter Forest was a more fitting name for that region, but the League had later renamed it Viridian Forest.

“Viridian Forest, huh… I remember it’s mostly filled with Bug-type and Bird-type Pokémon. I’ve even heard that someone once spotted a Pikachu in there.” Sister Maple put down her chopsticks; she never spoke while eating.

“But I’ve received a couple of calls recently reporting strange happenings—like seeing another version of themselves suddenly appear in the thick fog, or a white figure drifting overhead,” she said, trying to recall the details, while Heath mulled it over.

It seemed a new Pokémon had entered Viridian Forest, but these bizarre incidents sounded like something out of a horror movie. Heath was genuinely curious about what was happening in there.

“Don’t tell me you plan to go to Viridian Forest. That place is usually safe, but you’ve only just started building trust with Farfetch’d, haven’t you?” Sister Maple eyed Heath warily. He quickly put on an innocent smile.

He really did intend to visit the forest, but if Sister Maple decided to come along, he’d never get the chance.

“What’s that Poké Ball on your belt?” Sister Maple asked, her curiosity piqued.

“This? I found it while rummaging through my old things. I can’t open it,” Heath replied, touching the Poké Ball at his waist—the very GS Ball he’d acquired from his golden finger today.

“Can’t open it?” Sister Maple grew even more curious. She took the Poké Ball from Heath, pressing it several times, but nothing happened.

She pulled a device from her pocket and pressed it against the GS Ball. Heath recognized the gadget—it could force open Poké Balls and was usually used to rescue Pokémon from hunters. Even with this tool, the GS Ball remained inert, lifeless as a stone.

“How strange… I’ve never seen a Poké Ball like this. Could it be a prototype from Silph Company?” Sister Maple studied the ball in confusion, unsure if it even contained a Pokémon.

“Silph?” Heath was briefly stunned. He certainly knew of Silph Company—the largest conglomerate in Kanto, famed for manufacturing Master Balls, the most powerful Poké Balls for capturing Pokémon.

“Right. Silph Company recently came to the Junsha family to promote their latest Poké Balls since we need to register them with the authorities.” Sister Maple ladled some soup over her rice.

Heath could only sigh. He didn’t approve of her habit of pouring soup over rice, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Taking back his GS Ball, Heath chatted with Sister Maple about the day's events as they finished dinner. Afterward, Heath went out for a walk and his daily exercise.

This, too, was at Sister Maple’s insistence. Until Heath found his purpose in life, she required him to keep up his physical training. He knew she hoped he’d join the Security Bureau, but he eventually became a chef instead.

Still, the habit of daily exercise stuck with him—but tonight, rather than his usual route, he intended to explore Viridian Forest.

Viridian Forest lay north of Viridian City, a naturally formed maze. Thankfully, the Indigo League had built a small path through it, making it more accessible to travelers.

At night, the forest was almost deserted. As Heath entered, he felt a chill in the air. Viridian Forest in the moonlight was shrouded in darkness, eerie and forbidding.

The trees ahead, cloaked in shadow, loomed like clawed demons—but Heath remained unfazed. With his flashlight, he curiously examined his surroundings.

Torches were forbidden in Viridian Forest, though Fire-type moves weren’t. Trainers who used moves like Ember had to be careful to extinguish any flames immediately to prevent forest fires.

“There really are a lot of Pokémon here,” Heath murmured in awe.

Caterpie and Weedle were by far the most common, but Heath avoided areas where Weedle gathered—Swarm Beedrill were notoriously aggressive.

“Farfetch’d! Farfetch’d!” His companion fluttered by his side, quacking excitedly.

At the sound, Caterpie wriggled desperately into the undergrowth and trees, trying to hide. Bird Pokémon were natural predators to bugs, after all.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything unusual around here,” Heath puzzled aloud. He was sure his golden finger couldn’t be wrong, and Sister Maple had mentioned those strange incidents.

Just as he hesitated, uncertain whether to turn back, a dense mist began to rise in the forest.

Fog wasn’t uncommon here, but this mist was different—it appeared suddenly, thickening rapidly until he couldn’t even see the trees nearby.

“Farfetch’d!” Heath called out, tense and wary. Something was off.

“Far-far!” Farfetch’d gripped its leek tightly, standing guard by Heath’s side, scanning the darkness.

Then, out of the swirling mist, a little girl in white stepped forth, clutching a battered teddy bear in her arms, fixing Heath with an unsettling gaze.