Pokémon: Above the Top-Chapter 278: The "Beast Tamers"

Makie responded with a constant smile, occasionally covering her mouth to laugh softly. She looked completely different from the cold and aloof figure she had shown on the deck earlier.

Just when Sato thought the two were about to start some shameless romance in broad daylight, the young man turned and left.

---

Makie watched him go, her smile refusing to fade.

Seeing her lovestruck expression, Sato knew nothing would happen for a while.

Phasing through the wall, Sato followed the young man, curious to see this painting they spoke of.

Like Makie, the young man with the Smeargle drew a lot of attention. And just like Makie, he presented an "unapproachable" demeanor in public.

Sato gradually realized something... Pokémon Trainers were extremely rare in this era. Each one owned very few Pokémon, yet they still held remarkably high status.

The young man's cabin was slightly larger than Makie's. The extra space housed an easel, on which sat a half-finished painting.

Sato didn't need to look closely, he immediately recognized this was the painting that had brought him to this strange place.

But for now, it was only a rough draft. Aside from Makie's basic outline, the rest remained incomplete.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

The young man resumed painting. Smeargle, standing by his side, assisted in mixing colors. It somehow always seemed to know exactly what shade its trainer wanted.

Seeing the quiet scene, Sato frowned slightly. He had found the unfinished painting, but there wasn't any real discovery to be had.

He phased through the wall once again and began roaming the massive ship.

---

One day, two days, three days... Sato moved like a silent observer, quietly watching the events around him unfold.

Through the chatter of the people, he picked up many curious things.

In this era, Pokémon Trainers were known as "Beast Tamer". Without the existence of Poké Balls, obtaining Pokémon -or rather, beasts- was exponentially more difficult.

Going from nothing to something was the hardest part. It disqualified 99% of those who aspired to become Beast Tamer.

And due to challenges in handling, feeding, and training them, most Beast Tamers in this time only had one or two beasts. In fact, the majority only had one.

Sato also discovered that there were barely any other Beast Tamer like Makie and the young man who lived in ordinary cabins.

Most Beast Tamers stayed in groups, occupying the best quarters on the first and second levels, the gloomy young man who had mocked Makie was among them.

But after observing closely, Sato noticed something strange. This so-called group was actually controlled by the most powerful Beast Tamer among them. While everyone enjoyed privileges, not one dared to resist.

Beast Tamers like Makie were called Wandering Tamers. They were excluded from these groups and could only live among ordinary people.

Still, all this was just information Sato had casually gathered. What mattered most was tracking Makie and the young man's every move.

The young man visited Makie daily, repeating the same lines over and over again. And yet, he never even held her hand.

Watching from the side, Sato could only shake his head.

When the young man returned to his room, he would devote himself to painting, completing the very image Sato had long since memorized.

Watching the painting gradually take the form that lived in his mind... it was a strange feeling.

What troubled Sato even more was that despite so many days passing, he didn't eat, drink, or sleep, and yet his body showed no signs of fatigue.

And still, there was no trace of Gengar. It was as if only Sato had been drawn into this place.

A full week passed in this uneventful state.

No one spoke to him.

No Pokémon by his side.

He couldn't touch anything at all.

Sato didn't feel insane; he had simply experienced too many strange things in life. Compared to his reincarnation, this wasn't even that unusual.

In fact, he had this unshakable sense that Gengar would come looking for him soon, and that they would find a way out.

One afternoon, Sato stood at the very front of the ship's deck, arms extended, unable to feel the sea breeze brushing past him.

Lost in thought, he suddenly noticed a massive black cloud forming ahead of the ship. It had come without warning and spread rapidly across the sky.

"Ooooh..."

The ship's horn blared. For a brief moment, everyone lingering on the deck froze in confusion.

As the dark clouds and rising winds rushed toward them, the crowd began to panic, scrambling to retreat into the ship.

Sato remained still, unaffected. He continued observing the fast-approaching cloud bank; it felt off.

He had encountered bad weather before, but the rate of expansion here was far too fast.

"YUUUN!"

Suddenly, a deep, ethereal call echoed from the sea.

Next came a giant black shadow appearing in front of the ship, growing larger and larger.

Before Sato could even react, the shadow burst from the water and soared high into the air. Its form laid bare before him.

Sato tilted his head up, staring at the immense creature. Its body resembled a great whale, with massive flipper-like fins on either side and a flowing, tassel-like tail.

The beast's body was deep blue. Mysterious red patterns adorned its back, and the sheer presence it radiated was beyond anything Sato had ever felt... standing before it was like facing the ocean itself.

"Kyogre..."

Only when the sea titan splashed back into the water did Sato finally exhale, whispering to himself with trembling breath.