Joy's Advice

Over this period of time, Nurse Joy had come to understand Qian Bing fairly well. She knew he was working hard to repay the Pokémon Care Center's loan by taking on Adventure Missions. To be honest, a practical child like him was quite admirable.

Nurse Joy knew how much Qian Bing valued money, and she guessed that he was silently regretting it right now.

So she smiled sweetly and said:

"Little Trainer Bing, are you hurting over missing out on the commission for the second Kakuna?"

Huh?

Qian Bing scratched his head and asked awkwardly:

"Nurse Joy, was I really that obvious?"

Nurse Joy nodded.

"Mm, quite obvious."

"..."

How embarrassing... Actually, I'm a very profound person. Caring about money is only my outward appearance!

Qian Bing silently defended himself in his heart.

Nurse Joy was very considerate. Skipping over his embarrassment, she moved past the subject and continued:

"Don't be sad. What I mean is, you still have a chance to complete this mission."

Qian Bing froze, unable to understand what Nurse Joy meant.

Was she telling him to hurry up and catch another Kakuna?

That really wasn't necessary. As long as he sold Butterfree, he'd be a man worth several million!

The two seemed to be on the same wavelength. Just as Qian Bing thought of Butterfree, Nurse Joy happened to mention it as well.

"Did you forget that there's still a Butterfree inside? Butterfree is Kakuna's evolved form, and I checked just now. Its gender and quality both meet the mission requirements."

"Turn in Butterfree for the mission?!"

What a joke. A Quasi-King Grade Butterfree would sell for at least two million Alliance Coins on the market. Exchanging it for that tiny mission commission was something not even a fool would do.

Naturally, Qian Bing was unwilling. He couldn't even understand why Nurse Joy would suddenly make such a muddleheaded suggestion!

"Nurse Joy, don't joke with me. Butterfree is so cute. How could I possibly turn it in for a mission?"

Nurse Joy didn't believe Qian Bing's nonsense, but she knew that anyone would refuse upon first hearing such a proposal.

So she continued explaining with a smile:

"You really are sly. Don't worry, it isn't what you think. How could I make such an unreasonable suggestion? Since I dared to say this to you, I definitely won't let you lose out."

"Haha, then please tell me."

Qian Bing's eyes immediately lit up. He trusted Nurse Joy's character, so he was full of anticipation for her explanation.

"Actually, the Pokémon Care Center's original top request was for Butterfree. But wild Butterfree are quite rare, and directly issuing a mission to capture one would greatly extend the time needed. That was why they ultimately chose Kakuna instead.

"However, the Pokémon Care Center left word that if someone was willing to provide a high-quality Butterfree, they could raise the mission reward to two million Alliance Coins, or offer the adventurer a reward of entering the A-Grade Spirit Egg Warehouse to choose one Spirit Egg."

Qian Bing looked puzzled and asked:

"A-Grade Spirit Egg Warehouse? What's that?"

Nurse Joy gestured for him not to rush and slowly continued her explanation.

"You know that Pokémon Care Centers are professional institutions for raising and hatching Pokemon. Besides providing Trainers with Spirit Egg hatching services, they also raise a large number of Pokemon themselves to produce Spirit Eggs. In fact, the largest supplier of Spirit Eggs on the market is the Pokémon Care Center.

"Pokémon Care Centers in every region classify the Spirit Eggs produced by their Pokemon into four grades—B, A, S, and RS—and store them in four separate warehouses for buyers to freely choose from.

"The B-Grade Warehouse contains ordinary Spirit Eggs. The Care Center's appraisers have already removed all the lowest-grade, dull-quality ones. You only need to spend two hundred thousand Alliance Coins to enter and choose one. However, the highest quality won't exceed Quasi-King Grade. Even Quasi-King Grade eggs are merely bait they put out. Getting an Elite-quality Spirit Egg would already be worth celebrating.

"The A-Rank Warehouse claims to offer Spirit Eggs spanning five quality tiers, from Elite to Champion Grade. Naturally, the entry requirement is much higher. Not only do you need to be a Trainer registered with the Alliance, but you also need to pay three million Alliance Coins.

"Although only two people in history have selected Champion-grade Spirit Eggs from there, and even Near Champion Grade ones are uncommon, the chances of obtaining a King Grade one are still quite high. That's why I suggest you give it a try."

"Th-this..."

After listening to Nurse Joy's lengthy explanation, Qian Bing was instantly tempted.

Qian Bing's original plan had been to keep Pikachu and raise it, while selling Butterfree for funds. That would not only clear his debts, but also leave him with a substantial amount of Alliance Coins to raise his Pokemon.

But if he used Butterfree in exchange for one chance to choose an A-Grade Spirit Egg, then he would have to sell Pikachu.

That was the one thing Qian Bing couldn't bear to do. He did love money, but at heart, it was all for the sake of improving his own strength.

Qian Bing understood very clearly that if he wanted to obtain more powerful soul rings in the future, he had to become a powerful Pokémon Trainer. Only then could his Spirit Ball Spirit capture stronger Pokemon.

And to become a powerful Pokémon Trainer, he needed to raise several powerful Pokemon. Otherwise, how would he challenge Gyms to earn Gym Badges? How would he compete in future Alliance Conferences?

Thus, although he was eager inside, he found it difficult to make a decision right away.

Seeing Qian Bing's hesitant expression, Nurse Joy thought it over and added:

"Actually, there's another reason I suggested this. With your current strength, you can't completely control the Pikachu and Butterfree you just captured.

"You're currently only an Apprentice Trainer. Without any Gym Badges, Pokemon above Level 20 will develop rebellious tendencies toward you and refuse to obey your commands.

"For Pokemon like Pidgeotto, which you've raised since it was young, the chances of this happening are much lower because of the deep emotional bond between you."

But Pikachu and the level 31 Butterfree were both wild and hard to tame, and powerful to boot. You definitely wouldn't be able to control them.

So, my suggestion is that you trade Butterfree for a chance to draw a high-quality Spirit Egg, then sell Pikachu as soon as possible and invest the resources into your current Pokemon to improve their strength.

Then challenge the Gyms and obtain Gym Badges. That will raise your Trainer level."

It had to be said that Joy's reasoning was simply devastating, instantly crushing the last of Qian Bing's stubbornness.

What was the point of keeping a Pokemon he couldn't control? Was he supposed to worship it like some old master?

At such a crucial stage of growth, of course every last penny had to be spent where it mattered most.

Having thought it through, Qian Bing decided to accept Joy's suggestion.

Gritting his teeth, he said to Joy with a pained heart, "Miss Joy, what you said makes a lot of sense. It's just that I really like these two Pokemon, especially Pikachu. Could you discuss it with the Pokémon Care Center and ask them to clear my loan as well?"

"Heh, you..."

After hearing this, Joy revealed an expression that was rarely seen on her face. Still, she shook her head helplessly and said, "Wait here. I'll go talk to them for you. It shouldn't be a big problem."

With that, Joy left Qian Bing with only her back as she turned and walked into the Appraisal Room once more.