Chapter 5: Unexpected, Sudden Change

Kane returned to his room, locked the door, and began inspecting the property documents.

By this time, the old man had already come to the door, knocking desperately.

"You little brat, come out here! You ungrateful child, your parents' bodies aren't even cold yet!"

The old man's voice was hoarse from shouting.

Kane remained completely indifferent. Fortunately, the keys to the room were with him, so he confidently opened the two real estate deeds.

In his last life, the old man had caused him great harm, and this time, Kane wouldn't mind letting him shout for a bit longer.

One of the properties was a 120-square-meter commercial house in the center of Ecruteak City, the very house Kane was living in now.

The other was a lakeside villa in Yuanzhi City.

Kane nodded with satisfaction. It seemed his parents had been doing quite well with their business. In this world, real estate prices had been high, especially before the year 700 of the Alliance Calendar.

Back then, wild Pokémon would occasionally invade villages, stealing crops, causing destruction, and even killing people.

City dwellers were better protected, with Alliance trainers ensuring that small-scale Pokémon riots were quickly dealt with. This made urban living much safer, causing housing prices to skyrocket year after year as more people sought refuge in cities.

In his previous life, Kane hadn't even seen these properties. No wonder the children at the orphanage had encouraged him so much to join their groups. They had been eyeing these properties all along.

However, both properties would have been sold in 699, just before housing prices reached an all-time high.

After that, a major event in the 700th year of the Alliance would cause house prices to steadily decline.

Kane's plan in this life would also need to pivot around that 700-year mark when he would be 23 years old.

Before that, he needed to accumulate enough funds and, more importantly, build strength. With twenty years of experience as a Pokémon Hunter in his previous life, Kane knew exactly what this life required.

Before the year 700 of the Alliance, the Pokémon League only officially prohibited Pokémon Hunters while secretly turning a blind eye to them. They were happy to let these Hunters clear out dangerous wild Pokémon, making life safer for future generations.

But being a Pokémon Hunter wasn't easy. Without enough strength and a solid plan, heading deep into the forests and mountains meant certain death. The woods were littered with more than a dozen or so skeletons from Hunters who had met their end.

After the 700th year of the Alliance, the wilderness became relatively safer, and the League began to ruthlessly suppress Pokémon Hunters. In his previous life, Kane had narrowly escaped death many times at the hands of Alliance trainers.

This was the dark side of the Alliance: when they needed you, they would ignore you; when they didn't, they would suppress and kill you.

Kane only had thirteen years. He couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

Now, there were also the two bank cards. Kane didn't know the passwords, nor did he know how much money they contained. It seemed he would have to play a long game with the old man.

The resources available now would directly determine his next steps, including his Pokémon training plan.

Kane carefully hid everything important.

Consumed by these thoughts, he hadn't paid attention to the old man's knocking, which had suddenly stopped.

"Finally gave up," Kane snorted coldly, but he feared the old man might be trying to lure him out.

Planning his escape route, Kane suddenly threw open the door, prepared to bolt.

However, he was shocked by what he saw—the old man was lying motionless on the floor, his gaze vacant.

Kane panicked and kicked the old man's head. "Hey, don't scare me."

After five or six kicks, each harder than the last, the old man still didn't react.

A bad feeling gripped Kane's heart. Could he be dead?

No, the old man wasn't supposed to die until next year. Kane hadn't expected this at all.

Unwilling to believe it, Kane checked the old man's breathing—it had stopped.

He checked for a pulse—nothing.

He pressed on the old man's chest—no response.

"Damn it! I forgot he had a heart condition."

Kane cursed himself.

While he had no love for the old man, this death would bring him a lot of trouble.

First, there were the passwords for the bank cards. Although Kane could apply at the bank to reset the passwords, it would take a lot of time and paperwork.

More importantly, revealing his wealth could attract unwanted attention. Did people really believe that banks were safe and secure?

Naive. A child holding this much wealth would undoubtedly become the topic of gossip among the bank's staff.

Kane's cautious nature was shaped by his experiences in his past life. He knew that making even one less mistake meant progress.

As a seven-year-old child, if word got out about his wealth, it would attract not only petty criminals but also Pokémon trainers.

Dealing with simple crooks was one thing, but Pokémon trainers were another thing

For now, Kane couldn't risk going to the bank to unlock the passwords unless absolutely necessary.

And then there was the sudden death of the old man. Kane was completely unprepared for it.

Once word got out about the old man's death, there would be no hiding it.

The orphanage staff would come running to seize the house, and the children there would come faster than dogs. Without a work permit, Kane would be forced back into the orphanage.

Unless he became an undocumented resident and left, but that would severely impact his plans. His bank cards and properties would be frozen, and without any substantial strength yet, surviving in the wild would be just as dangerous as going to the orphanage.

"No, I can't just sit here and do nothing."

Kane calmed down and started planning. He didn't want the old man to die, but…

Now, his only option was to leave and find a job, to get a work permit.

Fortunately, they lived in the city. the old man didn't know the neighbors well, and with the old man's death, he might be able to conceal it for a couple days.

Three days at most. After that, people would start to get suspicious. Worse yet, it was summer, and the body would begin to decay quickly and start to smell.

So, he had three days, no more.

With his plan in mind, Kane quickly closed all the windows, drew the curtains, and turned off the lights.

Then he dragged the old man's body to the bathroom, cleaned it thoroughly from head to toe, dried it with a towel and a hairdryer, and made sure the body was completely dry.

He then moved the old man to the smallest spare room, placed him on a cool, shaded bed, turned the air conditioning to its lowest setting, and shut the door.

Just to be safe, Kane lowered the temperature of all the air conditioners in the house to keep the indoor temperature as low as possible.

Once everything was in order, Kane let out a long breath.

It still wasn't entirely safe outside, so Kane hid all the real estate deeds and bank cards in his room. He took 5,000 yen in cash, his ID card, and his household registration booklet before heading out.

His experiences from his past life had now turned into intangible wealth, and even in the face of such sudden change, Kane could still act with calm precision. He hadn't forgotten to take anything important with him.

Luckily, he still had a branded bicycle, so his speed was guaranteed.

Kane wracked his brain to recall the kind-hearted people in Ecruteak City. Even those people were stingy with help, but free volunteers would still require a work permit.

His first stop: the Ecruteak City Gym!