Chapter 26: Buying Magikarp

Chapter 26: Buying Magikarp

Xia You squinted and realized the man in the suit looked very familiar. Upon closer thought, wasn't he the same man he had battled against on the ship when he first arrived in the Kanto region!

What a coincidence.

However, the purple Ratata he had battled back then had already evolved into the brown, large rodent—Raticate.

"Raticate, use Low Kick!"

"Starmie, use Tackle!"

The two Pokémon collided, appearing to be evenly matched, but in reality, Raticate held the upper hand. As they separated, the man in the suit commanded again: "Raticate, use Fang!"

With a sudden dash, Raticate lunged in front of Starmie and bit down hard on its body with its powerful teeth. As it applied more pressure, the gem in the center of Starmie suddenly shattered, and its entire body fell backward onto the ground.

A burst of applause erupted from the crowd, cheering wildly for the winner.

Seeing the young boy hugging his Pokémon, the man in the suit, though he had won the match, maintained his gentlemanly demeanor and said, "This was just a small battle; one could say the Goddess of Victory was simply more biased toward me. In any case, you should train your Starmie to be even stronger in the future."

A woman wearing a red strapless evening gown walked over at that moment and took the man's arm.

Success in the battlefield and success in romance—it was clear this man truly enjoyed this kind of lifestyle.

"Alright, is there any other Trainer who would like to challenge my Raticate?"

As soon as he finished speaking, before Xia You could even react, a shadow flashed beside him, and Ash had already rushed in front of the man in the suit.

"I'm fired up! Let my Butterfree be your opponent!"

Shaking his head, Xia You greeted Misty and Brock, choosing not to watch the battle but instead walking away with Kirlia.

Before boarding the ship, fearing the crowds and noise, he had already recalled his other Pokémon, leaving only Kirlia by his side.

Walking past various stalls, Xia You suddenly saw a young man dressed as a waiter chatting with an older man selling Magikarp.

The young man was handsome, with blue-gray, medium-length hair parted in the middle, covering his ears. His overall aura made him look like a gentle, overly kind person.

"Let me tell you a secret," the Magikarp vendor said with a shrewd expression, a white headband tied around his head. "This Magikarp can produce gold!"

The man froze. "Gold?"

"That's right, that's right." The Magikarp uncle whispered, covering his mouth with his hand. "A Magikarp lays a thousand eggs at a time. A thousand Magikarp laying a thousand eggs each... a thousand times a thousand is a million! Just imagine if those million eggs laid eggs themselves—it would be an astronomical number!"

The blue-haired man seemed dazed by the logic, muttering, "That... that is truly amazing!"

Seeing him tempted, the Magikarp uncle continued, "This Magikarp sells for only ten thousand yen per tail. If it lays eggs three times, you can earn hundreds of millions!"

"Only three times!?" The blue-haired man was clearly hooked, his face full of astonishment. "Then wouldn't I become a billionaire very quickly!?"

"That's why I said it produces gold!" The Magikarp uncle smiled at him with a tone that suggested he was getting a massive bargain. "How about it? It's a promotional price right now. A Magikarp that usually costs ten thousand yen can be yours for only thirty thousand yen, including the Egg-Laying Set, the Breeding Set, and the Training Set!"

This scene! This situation!

Isn't this exactly James from Team Rocket and that silver-tongued Magikarp vendor!

Xia You could hardly believe his eyes; he had actually encountered this legendary, infamous scene!

However, he couldn't understand how James, who clearly came from a wealthy family, could still be swayed by money.

Seeing James pull out his wallet as if about to buy the Magikarp immediately, Xia You couldn't help but cough lightly and walk over.

"Boss, how about you sell me this Magikarp for 500 yen?"

"What did you say!?" The Magikarp uncle waved his hand dismissively, looking impatient. "Go away, go away! Mine is a gold-producing Magikarp. How could I possibly sell it to you for 500 yen!"

"Produces gold?" Xia You rubbed his chin, carefully observing the Magikarp splashing around in the water. "But looking at it, it doesn't seem any different from the Magikarp in the river. Tell me, boss, aren't you mistaken? This kind of common Pokémon can be found almost anywhere, in lakes or seas. You can catch one with just a fishing rod. Aside from me, who else would buy it?"

James shuddered, seemingly snapping back to his senses. "Magikarp that can be found anywhere? No one would buy them?"

Seeing James waver, the Magikarp uncle hurriedly explained, "Hey, hey, young man, don't listen to his nonsense! My Magikarp is different from the others. Gold! Gold, I tell you!"

"Oh? Is that so?" Xia You curled his lip. "If that's the case, then why haven't you become a multi-millionaire, uncle, and are instead still here selling Magikarp?"

At this, James understood completely.

"You bastard! You dared to trick me!"

He gave the fish tank a hard kick, then nodded gratefully to Xia You before walking away in a huff.

Seeing this, Xia You put his hands behind his back and turned to continue walking, but he was blocked by the Magikarp uncle.

"Hey! We have no grudge against each other, so why did you ruin my business!?"

Xia You tilted his head and looked at him. "Ah, I'm sorry. But I have a very good impression of that person, and I couldn't bear to see him being deceived. If you want to sell it, go sell it to the next person destined to meet you."

Having said that, he prepared to bypass the uncle, but as soon as he took a step, he was blocked again.

"Don't think you can just walk away! Since you ruined my business, you pay up and buy it!"

Perhaps fearing Xia You would run, the Magikarp uncle reached out to grab Xia You's sleeve, but Kirlia stepped forward. Light began to gather in its eyes as it stared coldly at him.

The look on its face suggested that if the uncle's hand moved even a fraction closer to Xia You, it would launch a Psychic attack immediately.

Startled, the Magikarp uncle hurriedly pulled his arm back.

Ignoring him, Xia You looked back at the Magikarp.

Even if it hadn't been kicked by James at the end, based on experience, this Magikarp was likely close to evolving. If he bought it, he would likely have a Gyarados before long. It was indeed a good deal.

"You have a point. In that case, sell it to me for 500 yen."

This price wasn't just something Xia You said randomly; in other places, Magikarp really did only sell for that much, perfectly matching the market rate.

"500 yen?" The Magikarp uncle frowned deeply, dissatisfied. "I could have clearly sold it for 30,000 yen just now!"

Seeing that Xia You remained unmoved, after a long standoff, the Magikarp uncle's eyes darted around before he finally let out a sigh. "Sigh, fine, fine. 500 it is. I'll take the loss and sell it to you."

(End of Chapter)