Everyone Else Awakened, But I Just Opened a Pokémon Pet Shop

The bald head, bathed in the light from the cave entrance, slowly turned around.

Two shiny black eyes and a round pink nose peeked out, blinking curiously.

Though squinting uncomfortably from the sunlight, the creature remained half-hidden in the shadow of the cave, staring at Zhou Xiaofei and Liu Qiaoqiao with interest.

"Eh? What is that? So cute!"

Qiaoqiao's eyes sparkled with excitement, though her feet stayed firmly in place.

Nearly getting pancaked by a Sovereign-class Snorlax had clearly taught her the value of caution.

Just then, Su Bai's voice came through the communicator in her ear:

"That Pokémon is a Diglett... but not the kind you're thinking of. In this world, Diglett has extremely thin skin. When exposed to sunlight, their blood heats up quickly, which weakens them."

"They prefer living in dark places. So finding one in a cave isn't surprising."

"The soil Diglett burrows through is naturally tilled, making it perfect for farming."

"That's why, in the Pokémon world, almost every farmer keeps a Diglett to help them cultivate land."

"Honestly, Diglett's a pretty nice Pokémon. Qiaoqiao, want to try catching it?"

"I'm really curious what its body looks like underground…"

Su Bai's mind wandered to all those "cursed fan theories" and internet memes—muscular Digletts, Lovecraftian horrors… Every Pokémon fan had, at one point, wanted to know what Diglett really looked like below the surface.

"Is it strong?" Qiaoqiao asked with a playful grin, already pulling out a Pokéball.

This would be her first attempt at catching a Pokémon—and she was surprisingly nervous!

"Strong... Hmm, let's just say it's decent."

Su Bai rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Diglett only has two evolutionary stages, and its final form—Dugtrio—has a base stat total of 425, which isn't particularly high."

"But the stat distribution is surprisingly good. It has a speed stat of 120, which is excellent for a Ground-type. And an attack stat of 100, which means it can hit hard enough to threaten most opponents."

"But really, strength isn't the most important thing when catching a Pokémon. What matters is whether you like it."

Sure, part of him just wanted to see what a real Diglett looked like underground… but it wasn't a bad Pokémon either. With the right trainer, it could perform well.

Qiaoqiao smiled brightly as she listened to the voice from the Pokéball. She wasn't too concerned with stats anyway—it was just a passing question.

What mattered most was this:

She was finally going to try catching a Pokémon herself!

"Alright! Here I go!"

Qiaoqiao spun her wrist twice, took aim like she was shooting a basketball, and shouted:

"I've practiced my Pokéball-throwing form for this!"

She pressed the Pokéball's button and hurled it with confidence—only to watch it arc through the air and land... next to Diglett.

"Qiaoqiao…"

Zhou Xiaofei covered his face.

"You threw it too hard again... Can't you just aim properly?"

He remembered all those long hours helping her practice…

Qiaoqiao blinked at her miss, then gave an awkward laugh.

"I got nervous… That wasn't my best throw. Let me try again!"

She quickly pulled out another Pokéball, but Diglett just stared in confusion.

First, it looked at the Pokéball that landed beside it.

Then, it looked at the girl pulling out a second one.

It didn't take long to realize—this human was attacking it!

"Diiigg!"

The little Diglett squeaked in protest.

Suddenly, a rumbling echoed from deep within the cave.

The sound of shifting soil filled the air, and the ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently!

"Wha—what's happening?!"

Qiaoqiao barely managed to keep her balance. But as she looked ahead, she saw several bulges rise from the soil—and they were moving fast, headed straight toward them!

The bulges abruptly stopped behind Diglett.

With a series of pop-pop-pop sounds, a line of round heads burst from the earth!

"Whoa… So many Digletts!"

Qiaoqiao's eyes widened in wonder as several little heads peeked out from the ground. Her hand slowly lowered the Pokéball.

The original Diglett stopped shouting when it saw its companions arrive. It dove into the embrace of one of the Dugtrio, peeking out fearfully at the two humans.

Su Bai scratched his head on the other end of the communicator.

"Looks like this Diglett doesn't want to be caught… It must've called those Dugtrio for help."

"When catching Pokémon in the wild, things like this happen sometimes."

"You can't expect all wild Pokémon to be alone."

Su Bai had considered this possibility before. Still, no exploration would be free of battles.

Many Pokémon lived in groups. Even if they avoided conflict now, it was inevitable in the future.

At least Digletts weren't aggressive. For beginners, they made for ideal practice partners.

"You two could fight those Dugtrio. I'm sure you'll manage."

He added,

"Both Corviknight and Gyarados have Flying-type attributes. That gives them a natural advantage over Dugtrio's Ground-type moves."

That was part of why he encouraged Qiaoqiao to try catching it in the first place.

After all, becoming a Pokémon trainer required combat experience.

You couldn't shelter your Pokémon forever and expect to grow strong.

It might sound dramatic, but often, a good battle helped build trust between trainer and Pokémon.

Besides, with Corviknight acting as a guardian, Qiaoqiao had it much easier than most new trainers.

She couldn't avoid battle forever.

"I don't want to hurt them," Qiaoqiao said with a tinge of regret, glancing at the little Diglett.

"If I knew this would happen, I wouldn't have thrown the Pokéball…"

Still, the thought of commanding Corviknight in a real battle was exciting.

And they didn't need to harm the wild Pokémon—just drive them off so they could pass.

"After all, we're just passing through!"

Just as Qiaoqiao and Zhou Xiaofei were gearing up for a fight, a huge head suddenly peeked into the cave.

Sunlight vanished as its massive shadow fell over them.

It was… the Sovereign-class Snorlax!

It tilted its head, curiously watching the two trainers who still hadn't left.

Then it glanced at the Dugtrio, who were bracing themselves to defend the little Diglett.

A moment passed—and realization seemed to dawn on the Snorlax.

"Snoooooooor… LAX!"

It opened its mouth wide and let out a thunderous roar that shook the entire cave!