Chapter 49: Choosing a Gift

Chapter 49: Picking Out Gifts

Xia You's Pokémon launched successive attacks on Gyarados. As Raichu's final bolt of electricity dealt four times the damage, Gyarados could no longer endure it and collapsed straight to the ground.

"Now you should finally behave."

It was rumored that the reason Gyarados became so violent was due to a restructuring of its brain cell composition during evolution, which caused its personality to change drastically. It would only truly settle down after becoming familiar with or recognizing its trainer.

Remembering that someone once said stroking the horn on a Gyarados's head would make it gentle, Xia You stepped forward and lightly caressed its hard horn with his right hand.

Sure enough, its gaze shifted from initial resistance to gradual acceptance.

After resting for a while to recover some strength, Xia You reorganized his backpack and set off toward Celadon City once again.

However, what he did not know was that at this very moment, in a secret room beneath the Cerulean City Gym, a conspiracy against him had already unfolded.

In the dim room, Giovanni sat upright on a sofa, a ruby-encrusted Pokémon the size of a large cat lying quietly at his feet.

As a knock sounded, a woman with a bob haircut and glasses walked in.

Giovanni gave her a faint glance. "It's Matori. Well? Has the investigation been cleared up?"

Matori took out a file and handed it to Giovanni. In the upper right corner of the document was a blurry photograph of Xia You!

"It has been cleared up." As a qualified and rigorous secretary, she was naturally highly efficient. "This person's name is Xia You, age 20. He arrived in Kanto from the Kalos region half a month ago and has been challenging various gyms in the interim. According to Lambda's confirmation, the recent St. Anne incident was caused by his interference alongside the Interpol agent. Combined with this Silph Co. incident, he has obstructed us twice now."

Giovanni flipped through the file, which contained general information on all of Xia You's Pokémon, including Zapdos and Gastly.

"Where is this person now?" Giovanni asked.

Matori pushed up her glasses. "Based on his movement trajectory, after leaving Saffron City, his next destination should be the Celadon Gym in Celadon City."

"Celadon City?" Giovanni frowned slightly. "Is that Interpol agent also in Celadon City investigating our base?"

Matori nodded. "Correct. He has been loitering around Celadon City for several days. Although we managed to shake him off in time, it seems he has not given up the search."

"We cannot let them meet again. Send someone to eliminate that trainer," Giovanni said, his tone as casual as if he were crushing an ant. "Which of our field operatives are currently near Celadon City?"

Matori thought for a moment. "Aside from the base defense force, several Executives have been dispatched to the Johto region, and most of the remaining personnel are scattered across other cities. Only Jessie and James are currently loitering around the vicinity of Celadon City."

"Then send them," Giovanni decided. However, seeing Matori hesitate to speak, he added, "What? Is there a problem?"

"There are some issues..." Matori hesitated before phrasing it carefully, "Given the capabilities of Jessie and James, they don't seem very reliable. Perhaps it would be better to deploy my elite unit, the 'Matori Matrix'!"

"No matter." Giovanni slowly lit a cigar. "Even if we cannot eliminate him, we must at least stall for some time. Use this opportunity to let your troops eliminate that rat in Celadon City first."

...

Celadon—the color of a dreamlike rainbow.

As the second-largest city in the Kanto region, surpassed only by Saffron City, its most famous landmarks were not only a renowned overseas university but also the ubiquitous large shopping malls and the famous Celadon Game Corner.

Walking down the street leading to the Gym, Xia You suddenly caught a whiff of a strange fragrance.

The scent was like a blend of many different perfumes, drifting gently on the breeze and permeating the entire street.

Following the scent, Xia You looked ahead and saw a large perfume shop nestled between several buildings.

With a thought, he stepped toward it.

"Welcome."

Upon entering the shop, several fashionably dressed female clerks were chatting at the counter. Seeing Xia You, they all broke into light laughter.

"Are you looking to buy perfume, sir?"

Xia You nodded. Looking at the dazzling array of perfumes, he felt a bit overwhelmed, unsure of where to start.

A girl approached him, sizing him up with a smile. "Is it a gift for a girlfriend?"

"No, I don't have a girlfriend yet. I just want to buy a few bottles for some friends."

"Friends?" They say three women make a play; perhaps the clerks were used to joking with one another, as they clearly did not believe Xia You's explanation. They exchanged glances and said mischievously, "I'm afraid it's not as simple as just 'friends.' Are you dating several girls at once?"

"This..."

Before Xia You could respond, a soft yet somewhat authoritative voice suddenly came from behind him.

"You girls, stop playing such jokes on the customers!"

Hearing the voice, the female clerks immediately became much more disciplined. Xia You turned around to see a beautiful girl with shoulder-length hair, wearing a kimono and a red headband, walking slowly toward them.

"Manager, why did you come over here?"

The girl said, "Some more perfume has arrived at the warehouse. Go and organize it quickly; I'll handle things here."

Having said that, she walked up to Xia You and bowed slightly.

"I apologize. They are used to fooling around and sometimes speak without discretion. Please do not take offense."

"Not at all, not at all."

Xia You waved his hand, not taking the matter to heart. At that moment, he recognized the girl's identity—she was the Celadon Gym Leader, Erika!

Erika walked to the shelves and asked, "So, what kind of perfume are you looking for?"

After a brief hesitation, Xia You described the temperaments of Kasumi, Natsume, and Koharu to Erika. Finally, remembering that Yoshino Sakuragi had helped him greatly, he asked Erika to help him pick out one more perfume for her.

"I see." Erika nodded and walked to a specific section, introducing, "Actually, the perfumes in our shop are all quite excellent. However, based on your descriptions, I would recommend the following types."

As she spoke, she pointed to several perfumes in the center of the shelf.

"These are common floral perfumes and are our shop's specialties. However, of these two on the left, one is more suitable for a lively girl, while the other is better for a more quiet and gentle girl. As for these two on the right, the scent isn't very strong, but it is quite long-lasting, which fits your requirements perfectly."

(End of Chapter)