Treatment

Bulbasaur and Pidgeotto had barely participated in today's battle, so Qian Bing had never been too worried about their safety. But when he saw that Nurse Joy had not brought out the other two Pokemon he had just caught, he immediately asked anxiously:

"Miss Joy, are Pikachu and Butterfree seriously injured?"

Seeing that Qian Bing looked even more nervous than before, Nurse Joy gave him a reassuring look and comforted him:

"Don't worry. You brought them in for treatment in time, so they'll both be fine. They just need to rest for a few more days after the treatment."

"Really? That's great!"

Phew~

If the Pokemon were fine, then his little gold mine was safe too. Awesome!

Qian Bing let out a long breath, finally able to put his worries completely aside. A trace of joy appeared on his face as he hurriedly thanked her:

"Thank you, Miss Joy. You truly have healing hands and a kind heart, and you're beautiful inside and out! You're the finest guardian of Pokemon lives, and Chansey is the best Pokemon too! So... how much will this treatment cost?"

Hmm... that switch from flattery to asking the price was stiff, yet somehow smooth.

In the Pokemon World, Pokemon Centers naturally could not be like they were in the games, providing free treatment for Pokemon regardless of whether their injuries were major or minor.

Pokemon Centers still provided free treatment for restoring a Pokemon's stamina and for extremely minor injuries that could be handled by a treatment machine.

However, for more serious burns, frostbite, poisoning, special injuries, and the like—treatments that required Nurse Joy and Chansey to act personally—a certain treatment fee had to be paid according to the actual circumstances.

And generally speaking, the cost was not low.

Although Nurse Joy was usually gentle and sweet, she did not yield in the slightest when it came to collecting treatment fees.

She gave Qian Bing a delicate smile and said sweetly:

"Little Trainer Bing, since this is the first time your Pokemon have received paid treatment, I need to explain our center's pricing standards to you.

"The Pokemon Center classifies Pokemon injuries into five levels: minor injuries, moderate injuries, major injuries, severe injuries, and critical injuries. The treatment fees are one thousand, five thousand, twenty thousand, eighty thousand, and two hundred thousand Alliance Coins respectively.

"According to the assessment, both of your Pokemon have sustained Level Two injuries this time, so you'll need to pay an additional ten thousand Alliance Coins in treatment fees to the Pokemon Center."

Ten thousand Alliance Coins? His heart hurt so much!

Qian Bing had worked painstakingly on Adventure Missions for two months and saved less than a hundred thousand Alliance Coins. This one treatment would cost him a tenth of that...

"Damn, being a Pokemon Trainer is such a money-burning profession!"

Qian Bing grumbled inwardly, but he did not dare delay the payment. If he wanted to get by in the Pokemon World, the Pokemon Center was an organization he absolutely could not afford to offend.

Still, he wanted to struggle one last time. He spoke vaguely, looking at Nurse Joy with hopeful eyes as he asked:

"Ah, this treatment fee... isn't cheap at all, Miss Joy. Do Pokemon have medical insurance? The kind that gives a discount on treatment? If there is, I'll get one. Could you give me a discount then?"

Nurse Joy had seen plenty of Pokemon Trainers heartbroken over paying treatment fees. From the first word Qian Bing spoke, she already knew what he was thinking.

She maintained her smile and said:

"Sorry, Little Trainer Bing, but the Pokemon Center does not offer Pokemon medical insurance.

"However, we do offer discounts to officially certified Alliance Pokemon Trainers who possess a Spirit Illustrated Handbook. Apprentice Trainers can receive a five percent discount.

"As you advance to Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Veteran Trainer, and beyond... the discount will increase accordingly. As far as I know, you haven't obtained a Spirit Illustrated Handbook yet, so I'm sorry, but I can't give you a discount."

Nurse Joy's tone was exceptionally gentle, but her words were fucking brutal.

This was exactly the kind of woman that a straight man of steel could never figure out!

"A Spirit Illustrated Handbook? Wait a moment, I actually have one!"

As Qian Bing spoke, he pulled a Spirit Illustrated Handbook from his backpack. It looked quite similar to his Spirit Illustrated Handbook Spirit, roughly resembling a handheld game console.

Nurse Joy took the Spirit Illustrated Handbook from Qian Bing and placed it on the scanner. His relevant information immediately appeared on the computer.

...

Little Trainer Bing:

Age: 10

Gender: Male

Birthplace: Pallet Town, Kanto Region

Handbook Registration Location: Professor Oak's Laboratory

Pokemon Trainer Level: Apprentice Pokemon Trainer

Pokemon Breeder Level: Unregistered

Adventurer Level: Beginner Adventurer

...

As Nurse Joy looked at the information on the computer, an imperceptible glint flashed through her eyes.

When she looked up at Qian Bing again, the smile on her face became even sweeter, with a trace of slyness added to it.

"Little Trainer Bing, so you're a new Trainer from Professor Oak's Laboratory. Why didn't you mention it before?

"Professor Oak's Trainer rank and research abilities are both outstanding. Since you're a new-generation Pokemon Trainer trained by him, your future is sure to be bright. I think highly of you."

According to Pokémon Center regulations, you were eligible for a 5% discount this time. The total came to 9,500 Alliance Coins. I'm sorry, but we can't offer any further discount.

However, we can exchange contact numbers. If any good Adventure Missions come up in the future, I can let you know right away."

Qian Bing keenly noticed that after he had taken out the Spirit Illustrated Handbook Spirit, Nurse Joy seemed more favorably disposed toward him than before.

Was it because Professor Oak's name had brought him some benefits?

Having someone powerful backing you really was nice!

Still, he did not dwell on it too much. Instead, he remembered there was something more important he needed Nurse Joy to handle.

"No problem. Just deduct the fee directly from my account."

As he spoke, Qian Bing pulled two more Spirit Balls from his backpack and pushed them toward Nurse Joy.

"These two Pokemon need treatment too?"

"No, no, Nurse Joy. These are two Elite Grade Kakuna. Didn't I accept two Adventure Missions from you a few days ago? Please check whether someone else has already completed them."

Nurse Joy operated the computer for a while, then soon answered with a smile.

"I checked. Neither of the two missions you accepted has been completed yet. I'll first go inside and appraise the two Kakuna you submitted to see whether they meet the requirements. Please wait a moment."

After saying that, she gave Qian Bing a slight nod, then took the two Spirit Balls containing Kakuna into another room in the back—the Appraisal Room.

Qian Bing was very familiar with that place. He had previously taken on a large number of capture missions, and before receiving his commission upon completion, sending the mission Pokemon into the Appraisal Room for verification was a mandatory step.

Several appraisal masters inside specialized in assessing Pokemon quality, Pokemon items, and all kinds of materials from the Pokémon World. Only after they confirmed that the mission items met the requirements would the Pokémon Center deem an Adventure Mission completed and issue the reward.

This time, Qian Bing did not have to wait long. Before long, Nurse Joy emerged from the room.

However, to Qian Bing's surprise, she only accepted one Spirit Ball and handed the other one back to him.

Nurse Joy explained, "I'm sorry, but one of the Kakuna does not meet the requirements."

Qian Bing looked utterly confused. Had the Spirit Illustrated Handbook Spirit made a mistake and judged the Kakuna's quality incorrectly?

That should not have been possible.

"Nurse Joy, what's the reason?"

Nurse Joy smiled and shook her head.

"You were careless. The Pokémon Breeding Center required two female Elite Grade Kakuna. The one you caught does not meet the gender requirement."

Only then did Qian Bing realize what had happened, and his heart began to ache over the 20,000 Alliance Coins he had missed out on!