Release That Pokémon!

{T/N: Instead of "Main Mission", I'm gonna start using "Main Quest" from now on... This sounds a lot better considering the setting of this fic. Also, don't forget to drop a Review...}

...

"Damn it! Why is this Instance so hot?! Are they trying to kill us? I can't take it anymore. I'm going to soak in the sea for a bit. Call me when the others wake up, will you?"

A voice full of complaints came from not far away.

Caleb opened his eyes and found himself lying on a scorching hot beach.

He was wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt and gray sweatpants, and the exposed parts of his skin were sunburned red.

'It stings a little...' He silently got up from the ground.

Less than a minute after waking up, he was already drenched in sweat. The air was thick with unbearable heat.

All around him, the bodies of other players lay scattered haphazardly, still unconscious, with their faces burned as red as boiled shrimp.

Not far away in the shallow waters, floated the wreckage of a small ship. Its silver-white hull reflected the glaring sunlight.

Given the name of this Scenario, Caleb immediately guessed his role here... Sure enough, the next second, a panel popped up:

[Main Quest: The ship you were on encountered a storm while sailing at sea. Before it sank, you and six others boarded a lifeboat and arrived at this unknown island...]

[Quest Objective: Survive!]

Unlike the main quests of the previous two Instances, this one had only one simple word as its objective, with no specified deadline.

Caleb closed the panel and turned to look deeper into the island...

It was a typical tropical rainforest climate; tall dense trees blocked out the sky, and thick shrubs and plants covered the entire island. From time to time, the dark depths of the forest echoed with the cries of unknown Pokémon...

While Caleb was observing his surroundings, the other four people lying on the beach gradually woke up. The two who had gone swimming quickly returned upon hearing the commotion.

The seven of them gathered together... five males and two females, each with different expressions.

"There are no new players in this Instance, right?" started the young woman who had just gone swimming, adjusting her wet long hair.

The young man who had gone with her, a thin bespectacled guy, glanced at the other five and replied, "Probably not... Anyway, Lulu, are you thirsty? Want some water?"

'A simp...' Caleb thought.

The woman called 'Lulu' shook her head dismissively, clearly not in the mood to engage with him.

At that moment, a tall burly man with rough features looked at the group and asked, "Should we introduce ourselves?"

The shorter young man behind him hinted, "We've played a survival Instance before, so we have some experience with this type."

The remaining pair, a man and a woman, exchanged glances... The woman pursed her lips and introduced herself, "I'm Kiyoshi Setsuka." She paused, then glanced at the man beside her, "This is Kiyoshi Hayate, my older brother."

The 'simp' from the simp-and-goddess duo spoke next, "I'm Walter Harrison."

The 'goddess': "I'm Luna Winslow."

The burly man nodded in satisfaction and said, "I'm Drake Stone."

His lackey followed up: "I'm Tristan Donovan."

Caleb, the only one in the group without a teammate, replied, "Terrence Jones."

Drake smiled faintly, cleared his throat, and said, "Survival Scenarios are different from regular ones. Here, every player's main quest is the same... to survive. So I suggest we seven work together and cooperate to complete the quest."

He glanced up at the sun, then continued, "We need to act fast, before it gets dark... We must head into the island and find a suitable campsite. We don't know what dangers are here yet, but I hope you all stay alert at all times."

Caleb rejected the proposal. He was determined to go solo... Besides, in situations like this, the dangers in the forest were definitely no less than those on the beach. There was no guarantee that wild Pokémon wouldn't wipe out the entire camp while they slept.

"Suit yourself." Drake didn't press the matter.

In survival Instances, the real challenge was never wild Pokémon, but the scarcity of food and water... Especially on this isolated island surrounded by sea... Without Water-type Pokémon, they wouldn't even have access to fresh water.

Tristan sneered mockingly, "Some people just think they're so clever. Don't come crawling to us when you're starving and thirsty later."

Caleb had never bothered arguing with idiots. He curled his lips, then replied, "You're absolutely right. You know why?"

"Pfft!" catching the reference, Luna couldn't hold back a laugh and chimed in, "Because you're terminally stupid. Haha, I know this meme!"

"You–!" Tristan gritted his teeth, about to retort.

But Drake stopped him. He gave Caleb an indifferent look and said to Tristan, "Don't waste time. Let's go."

With that, he turned and headed into the forest. Tristan followed closely behind.

Hayate and Setsuka glanced at Caleb before stepping after them.

Luna lingered at the back. When the others weren't looking, she turned and flashed Caleb a playful smile, mouthing the words: "Good luck, cutie! See ya!"

Once the other six had left, Caleb turned his gaze to the half-submerged ship in the sea.

He took out a Poké Ball from his inventory. A flash of white light later, Dragonite emerged.

Caleb climbed onto Dragonite's back and pointed at the wreck, "Dragonite, take me there."

"Wuuu!"

Dragonite felt something strange... an unusual energy flowing in the air. It turned and stared solemnly into the depths of the island, sensing many powerful auras.

Some were even stronger than itself...

Noticing Dragonite's reaction, Caleb frowned, asking, "Did you notice something?"

"Wuu wuu!" (...This place feels weird!..)

Thanks to his Viridian Power, Caleb easily understood Dragonite's thoughts.

He glanced at the setting sun and said, "Don't worry. As long as we don't go there, we won't be in danger."

Dragonite didn't press further. It carried him to the half-submerged wreck.

Caleb leaned over Dragonite's back to inspect the ship... The reason it hadn't sunk completely was that it was wedged between several sturdy reefs.

Beneath the surface of this sea hid countless reefs of varying sizes; some sharp, some thick, their shadows swaying with the movement of the water.

"Let's check it out." Confident that the ship wouldn't sink further, Caleb and Dragonite landed on the bow.

They stepped onto the hull and slid along the deck, which was tilted at a 45-degree angle, before entering the cabin...