Chapter 2
Bug Catcher Boy
Inside the screen.
A tiny figure wearing a straw hat stood in the tall grass, looking around cautiously.
[You were born in Viridian City, from an ordinary family.]
Suddenly, a Caterpie emerged from the grass. The boy in the straw hat threw a small red ball, and the Caterpie was absorbed into it.
[At the age of ten, you encountered your first partner in Viridian Forest: Caterpie. Together, you embarked on a journey.]
As this text appeared, a pixelated animation of Caterpie popped up at the bottom of the screen.
Lying on his back, Kashiwagi shifted his posture, thinking to himself—so his first simulation was starting off as a Bug Catcher.
The screen changed.
The Bug Catcher boy arrived in front of a grand house and stepped inside, where he was immediately confronted by a man with slicked-back hair.
A "fierce" battle ensued.
The sequence went something like this: Caterpie was sent out, followed by the opponent's Rhyhorn, which instantly sent Caterpie flying.
There was no background music, but the explosion-like bubbles appearing on impact made it clear just how severe that collision was.
[You lost to the Viridian Gym Leader and failed to obtain your first badge.]
Kashiwagi: "?"
Wait a second!
Challenging a Gym Leader without training? And with just a Caterpie?
The screen flickered, and the Bug Catcher boy entered the Viridian Gym once again under Kashiwagi's bewildered gaze.
The same sequence repeated. The same text appeared.
A third time, a fourth time, a fifth time…
Wait, wait, wait—!!
Who challenges a Gym Leader with a single, untrained Caterpie without learning from their mistakes?!
This wasn't the story of a hot-blooded rookie—it was the tale of a mindless, stubborn fool!
Kashiwagi silently watched the repetitive events unfold on the screen.
After the tenth failed challenge, something finally changed.
[You lost to the Viridian Gym Leader, but your resilience and perseverance earned his recognition. You received the Green Badge.]
A green badge with a wheat-shaped emblem appeared beneath the Caterpie icon.
Kashiwagi was at a loss for words. This badge was clearly given out of sheer frustration on the Gym Leader's part.
At the same time the Bug Catcher boy obtained the badge, Caterpie suddenly transformed, evolving into a cocoon-like form.
[Your Caterpie evolved into Metapod.]
Finally, some progress...
Even though the simulation had just begun, Kashiwagi already felt strangely exhausted.
On the screen, the Bug Catcher boy left Viridian City and entered a dense forest. When a golden Caterpie emerged from the grass, he sent out Metapod to battle.
Just as he wondered how the boy planned to capture it, the golden Caterpie rammed into Metapod headfirst—only to knock itself out in the process.
[You captured a Weedle in Viridian Forest. Your journey gains a new companion.]
...A foolish trainer and a foolish Pokémon—a match made in heaven.
Kashiwagi suddenly wished for a fast-forward button.
The scene changed.
The Bug Catcher boy arrived at the base of a massive rocky mountain, entering a stone-built city.
[You arrived in Pewter City. The towering stone cliffs filled you with passion, and you decided to challenge the Gym.]
As expected.
Training?
What's that?
So far, Kashiwagi had never seen this guy engage in any battles with wild Pokémon. He was like a machine programmed solely to challenge Gym Leaders, completely ignoring the idea of training to grow stronger after losing.
At least Ash caught multiple Pokémon even if he lucked into some badges!
Did this guy really think a Metapod and a Weedle could win? They obviously couldn't.
Just like at the Viridian Gym, the Bug Catcher boy lost his tenth match but still managed to "earn" the Gym Leader's respect through sheer persistence.
[You obtained the Gray Badge.]
An octagonal gray gem appeared under Weedle's icon. At the same moment, both Metapod and Weedle were enveloped in a white glow.
A Butterfree and a golden cocoon took shape.
[Your Metapod evolved into Butterfree. Your Weedle evolved into Kakuna. Overjoyed, you decided to set off immediately for the next city.]
At last, a fully evolved Pokémon.
Kashiwagi let out a sigh of relief. What excited him even more was that the Bug Catcher boy seemed to have wised up.
[At the foot of Mt. Moon, you captured your third Pokémon: Venonat. Your journey gains a new companion.]
[Inside Mt. Moon, you captured your fourth Pokémon: Paras. Your journey gains a new companion.]
[You lost to a random trainer.]
[You defeated a random trainer.]
[Your Kakuna evolved into Beedrill.]
A string of promising events unfolded as soon as the Bug Catcher boy entered the Mt. Moon area, showing that he was finally starting to resemble a proper Pokémon Trainer.
That was until—
[You arrived in Cerulean City, a place rich in water resources, surrounded by water routes.]
Like always, the Bug Catcher boy headed straight to the Gym—only to be told that the Gym Leader was away performing as a mermaid.
A performance?
Was this based on the anime?
Kashiwagi was shocked. He had assumed the simulation followed the game world, considering only game cities had appeared so far. The anime had numerous original locations.
A sense of unease crept over him—and it was soon justified.
At the performance venue where the Cerulean Gym Leaders were showcasing their skills, an unexpected encounter occurred.
[You accidentally bumped into a girl. After exchanging apologies, the two of you hit it off and exchanged contact information.]
[You kept in touch with the girl, had great conversations, and decided to travel together.]
[You challenged the Cerulean Gym again. Though you lost, the girl's presence made you more determined to try again.]
[You started dating.]
Wait, what?!
What's with all this romance flooding the screen? Did the Pokémon Trainer Simulator just turn into a Dating Simulator?!
Wasn't it supposed to be optional to form relationships? This felt mandatory!
Kashiwagi abruptly sat up.
The once hot-blooded, reckless Bug Catcher boy remained just as determined—but now, most of the scenes showed him spending time alone with the girl.
His battle skills also took a nosedive.
Previously, he could at least learn some tactics after seven or eight failed Gym challenges. But at Cerulean Gym, he started off decently, only to get completely demolished in the later matches.
By the tenth loss, he had officially turned into a weakling.
His Pokémon weren't even evolving anymore.
Watching the two tiny figures holding hands, skipping wild battles, and arriving in Saffron City with only four Pokémon, Kashiwagi's heart sank.
Sabrina, the Gym Leader of Saffron City, was a strict psychic user, vastly different from the previous Gym Leaders. Even after ten losses, she refused to hand over the badge.
Just as Kashiwagi wondered how the Bug Catcher boy would overcome this, the simulation abruptly ended.
[The Indigo League Tournament has begun. With only three badges, you missed your chance to participate.]
[Simulation complete.]
The screen froze on his fifteenth failed challenge.
"…So this simulation covered an entire league cycle."
Kashiwagi stared blankly, feeling as if he had just watched a terrible movie. Who would've thought a passionate Bug Catcher would turn into a love-struck fool?