Buying a Magikarp

Xia You took a closer look and found the man in a suit strangely familiar. After a moment's thought, he realized this was the last man he had battled aboard the ship that brought him to Kanto!

What a coincidence.

However, the purple mouse, Rattata, that had battled Kirlia back then had already evolved into a large brown rat-Raticate.

"Raticate, use Jump Kick!"

"Starmie, use Tackle!"

The two Pokémon collided. They seemed evenly matched, but Raticate actually had the upper hand. Once they separated, the man in a suit gave another order: "Raticate, attack with Hyper Fang!"

Raticate sprinted up to Starmie and sank its hard front teeth into Starmie's body. As Raticate bit down harder, the gem at Starmie's center suddenly shattered, and its entire body toppled backward onto the floor.

Applause erupted from the crowd as everyone cheered enthusiastically for the victor.

Seeing the boy cradle his Pokémon, the man in a suit remained every bit the gentleman despite his victory. "It was only a little battle. All I can say is that the Goddess of Victory favored me a little more. In any case, you should train your Starmie to be stronger from now on."

A woman in a red strapless evening gown walked over and linked her arm through the man's.

Successful in battle and in love-it was clear that this man thoroughly enjoyed his life.

"Now then, are there any other Pokémon Trainers who would like to challenge my Raticate?"

Barely had he finished speaking when, before Xia You could react, a figure flashed past his side. Ash had already rushed up to the man in a suit.

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

Shaking his head, Xia You said a quick word to Misty and Brock. Rather than stay to watch, he took Kirlia elsewhere.

Before boarding, he had put his other Pokémon away in anticipation of the noisy crowds, leaving only Kirlia by his side.

As Xia You walked past stall after stall, he suddenly spotted a young man dressed as a server talking to a Magikarp Salesman.

The young man was handsome, with medium-length blue-gray hair parted down the middle and covering his ears. His overall demeanor made him look like a gentle, overly obliging soul.

"Let me tell you a secret." Wearing a white headband and a shrewd expression, the Magikarp Salesman said, "This Magikarp can produce gold!"

The man froze. "Gold?"

"That's right, that's right." The Magikarp Salesman shielded his mouth with a hand and whispered, "A Magikarp lays a thousand eggs at a time. Those thousand Magikarp each lay another thousand eggs. A thousand times a thousand is a million! Just think-if those million lay eggs too, you'd have an astronomical number!"

The blue-haired man seemed dazed by his spiel and murmured, "Th-that's really amazing!"

Seeing that he was tempted, the Magikarp Salesman continued, "This Magikarp only costs ten thousand. After just three rounds of egg-laying, you could make over a hundred million!"

"Just three!?" The blue-haired man had clearly swallowed the pitch. His face filled with astonishment. "Then wouldn't I become a billionaire in no time!?"

"That's why I said it produces gold!" The Magikarp Salesman smiled at him, his tone suggesting he was getting an incredible bargain. "What do you say? We're running a promotion right now. This Magikarp normally sells for just ten thousand, but with the Egg-Laying Set, the Breeding Set, and the Raising Set included, how about thirty thousand for everything!?"

This scene! This very scene!

Wasn't this Team Rocket's James and that silver-tongued Magikarp peddler!?

Xia You could hardly believe his eyes. He had actually stumbled upon the legendary scene where all the trouble began!

Still, he really couldn't understand it. James came from such a wealthy family, so why was he still so easily swayed by money?

Seeing James take out his wallet, apparently about to buy the Magikarp, Xia You gave a light cough and walked over.

"Sir, how about selling this Magikarp to me for five hundred?"

"What did you say!?" The Magikarp Salesman waved him away impatiently. "Shoo, shoo! This Magikarp produces gold! How could I possibly sell it to you for five hundred!?"

"Produces gold?" Xia You rubbed his chin, carefully inspecting the Magikarp swimming energetically in the water. "But it looks no different from the Magikarp in the rivers. Say, sir, have you made a mistake? These common Pokémon are practically everywhere, whether in lakes or the sea. All you need is a fishing rod to catch one. Who besides me would even buy it?"

James jolted, seemingly coming to his senses. "Magikarp are everywhere? Nobody would buy one?"

Seeing James waver, the Magikarp Salesman hurried to explain, "Hey, hey, young man, don't listen to his nonsense! My Magikarp is different from the others. Gold! It produces gold!"

"Oh? Really?" Xia You curled his lip. "In that case, why haven't you become a multimillionaire instead of still selling Magikarp here?"

At that, James finally understood everything.

"You scoundrel! How dare you try to trick me!"

He kicked the fish tank hard, then gave Xia You a grateful nod and stormed away.

With that, Xia You clasped his hands behind his back and turned to continue on his way, only for the Magikarp Salesman to reach out and stop him.

"Hey, I've never done anything to you! Why did you ruin my sale!?"

Xia You tilted his head and glanced at him. "Ah, I'm very sorry, but I have a very good impression of that man. I simply couldn't bear to see him get swindled. If you want to sell it, go find your next lucky customer."

With that, he prepared to walk around the Magikarp Salesman, but the moment he took a step, the man blocked him again.

"Don't think you can just walk away! You ruined my sale, so you'll have to pay for it yourself!"

Perhaps afraid Xia You would leave, the Magikarp Salesman reached for his sleeve. Kirlia stepped forward, however, light slowly gathering in Kirlia's eyes while fixing him with an icy stare.

It looked as though Kirlia would unleash Confusion the instant the Magikarp Salesman's hand moved any closer to Xia You.

Startled, the Magikarp Salesman quickly pulled his arm back.

Ignoring him, Xia You looked back at the Magikarp.

Even without that final kick from James, this Magikarp should be close to evolving, judging by experience. If he bought it, he would probably have a Gyarados before long. It really would be a good deal.

"You have a point. In that case, sell it to me for five hundred."

Xia You hadn't simply picked that price at random. Magikarp really did sell for that much elsewhere, so it was entirely in line with the market rate.

"Five hundred?" The Magikarp Salesman frowned deeply and complained, "I could have sold it for thirty thousand just now!"

But Xia You remained unmoved. After a long stalemate, the Magikarp Salesman's eyes darted about until he finally sighed. "Ah, forget it. Five hundred it is. I'll take the loss and sell it to you."