Chapter 17 - A Mysterious Orb

Most of the stores on the higher floors sold evolution stones. Compared with the stones that are manufactured artificially, naturally-formed stones are more expensive but have better results. A normal-quality firestone can be sold for a minimum of 3000 Pokédollars.

Walking around, Quinn found and bought the few items he needed for Budew's food: Durin Berries, a Miracle Seed, a few Big Roots, and a Sitrus Berry. Before he could start going downstairs, he saw a group of people starting to group up nearby.

Walking up to someone near the group, he asked, "Do you know what's going on over there?"

The person explained, "That's the free trading market, where trainers can sell the things they've collected or found during their journey."

Since school was still out on break, and Quinn had nothing better to do, he starting heading towards the market to see what was available. Not long after starting to walk around, he someone yell, "Magikarp, Magikarp, Magikarp! All with high potential! We don't need the usual 1000 Pokédollars, only 100 and one can be yours right now!"

Quinn paused for a moment, thinking, 'Why is there someone selling Magikarp...?'

Glancing at the tank, he saw the Magikarp swimming around with dull eyes. He couldn't spot any that looked very healthy...

"Kid, are you looking for a Magikarp?" The man said as he spotting Quinn glancing at the tank. Continuing he said, "These Magikarp are carefully selected, and even without much nurturing it will soon evolve into a powerful Gyarados!"

"..."

Since when has he been seen as a unattended child? If he wanted to catch a Magikarp, he wouldn't have to pay for one- Cramorant can bring him back several in a day, and they're all free...

The man saw he had no intention of buying any Magikarp and returned to listlessly looking at the crowd. Walking past the man, he started looking through the other stalls nearby. The people who come here to set up stalls include trainers of all ages, people who have just started their journey, some more experienced teenagers, and even some older trainers.

The stalls had a lot of variations in the items found- along the way, Quinn saw a variety of rare berries, some evolution stones, a few Big Pearls, and some items from different Pokémon. For example, the scale of a Gyarados, which when held by a Magikarp can allow it to evolve quicker. Along with these items, he also saw a few stalls selling pottery of different types.

Quinn wandered around, while checking the information of some items with his [Pokémon Identification].

(E/N -- Maybe I should change it to just [Identification].... It would make more sense unless I clarify later that it works on almost everything...)

While looking through a stall that consisted of a blanket and a spread of random items, he noticed an orb the size of an adult's fist- the orb was dark purple, shining with a ghastly sheen under the incandescent light of the mall.

Intrigued, Quinn asked, "Uncle, what is this orb?"

The stall owner was wearing a worn gray jacket with a messy beard on his face. His weather-beaten look made him resemble an uncle you'd see working on a construction site.

"Where do you see an uncle, kid?!" Hearing he was called an uncle, a dissatisfied expression appeared on the face of the stall owner. He was obviously only eighteen!

"Huh?" Quinn couldn't respond, only looking at the man's worn style and thinking, 'This person looks older than I did in my previous life...'

"Oh, forget it, I don't care anymore..." The man sighed and said, "That's my baby I brought out from a ruin. Do you want to buy it? It can be yours for only 2000 Pokédollars!"

"It's expensive!" Quinn frowned, saying, "You are not trying to cheat a kid using your age are you?"

The stall owner choked and said speechlessly, "I'm only eighteen years old. The reason why I look old is because I'm usually out exploring. I am a professional adventurer who is responsible for exploring and looking for artifacts in ancient ruins." After speaking he took out a certificate from his pocket.

Quinn glanced at it and said, "...Okay, but your price is too expensive, I don't want it anymore." After saying this, Quinn started to walk off for another stall.

"Wait, wait!" Seeing Quinn start to leave, the stall owner hurriedly stopped him and said, "Just for you, it's only 1000 Pokédollars!"

"Are you that desperate to sell it?" Quinn was a little surprised.

The stall owner's face stiffened for a moment, before he smiled saying, "Of course not, but I can lower it since you're interested."

Quinn squinted his eyes and said, "200 Pokédollars."

"Not enough!" The stall owner shook his head, countering, "At least 500!"

"Then I don't want it." Quinn turned around and left. He wanted it only because of what he saw when he identified it-

[Haunted Orb]: An ancient orb that hides a certain mysterious power. It is very attractive to ghost Pokémon. If you let ghost Pokémon hold it, there is a great chance that they will realize a powerful move...

This is an item that is not in the game. Although he doesn't have a ghost Pokémon now, he may have one later. When that happens, this item will come in handy. The stall owner probably doesn't know the specific function of this thing, so he is going to buy it if the price is less than 1000 Pokédollars.

After all, it's useless to anyone who doesn't know the function. It's just that the stall owner looked like he was anxious to get rid of it, and seemed to be hiding something. That's why he deliberately pushed the price to such a low level to see how desperate he was. Sure enough, before he took a few steps, the man anxiously said, "Okay! I'll sell it for 200! Take it away!"

Quinn was even more surprised. He took the orb and put it in his hand to look at it while saying, "This isn't a fake orb is it?

The stall owner was choked. He glanced at Orb with a bit of fear, and said with a strong smile, "No, how could it possibly be fake? I just noticed how well it fits you."

Quinn said, "Even if you praise me, I won't give you more money."

"Haha, just treat it as a friendly gesture!" The stall owner said with a smile.

Quinn smiled, turned around and left after paying two hundred yuan. After he left, the stall owner showed a relieved expression on his face and began getting his things together, and left overnight after packing his things.

On the other hand, Quinn had just arrived back at school. Placing the orb on his desk, he started making the Perfect Quality food for Budew. He had lived alone in his previous life, so he would consider himself pretty good at cooking.

And if he could judge anything by the satisfied expression on Budew's face, he could tell she was happy with it.

"Tomorrow you can start training." Quinn said as be began writing out the training plan for Budew.

The grass-type energy contained within the food can only be truly absorbed if eaten in tandem with training. The combination will fully make use of the energy and help Budew grow strong and healthy.

After finishing the training plan and smoothing out the edges, it was around 9pm. Considering there will be classes tomorrow, Quinn went to wash briefly, then proceeded to go to bed.

After he was asleep, a purple mist slowly rose from the orb and condensed into a smokey purple figure. As it appeared, the temperature in the room lowered a few degrees. Budew who had just fallen asleep by Quinn couldn't help but shudder, snuggling closer to his body. While Cramorant didn't respond much, simply laying on the edge of the bed and sleeping like all was as usual.

(E/N -- Another interesting move here, but I don't know what ghost Pokémon it is...)