Planning and Selling the Fire Stone

Tetsuya pondered for a moment, then turned on his computer and began making plans.

This was a real world. In the early stages of training and battling, a single-type team had certain advantages: Training Methods and resources were more uniform, and battle strategies were simpler.

That was why some ordinary Elite Trainers chose to raise Pokemon of a single type to strengthen themselves. After all, while Training Methods differed somewhat, they were broadly similar, allowing them to build combat strength more quickly.

But the stronger a Trainer became, the less likely they were to raise Pokemon of only one type. Even Dragon-type Trainers paired their Pokemon with a variety of secondary types.

There were many reasons for this. First was the issue of resources. It was difficult to guarantee that one could provide at least six Main Pokemon of the same type with sufficient training resources.

After all, materials obtained during adventures came in all varieties. It was hard to ensure they were all needed by the type one was raising, and even trading with others made it difficult to gather enough.

This was especially true for powerful Pokemon. The materials required to train them were not so easy to come by—unless one had money, of course.

Then there was the tactical issue. Trainers who specialized in a single type also had relatively simple tactics. Not to mention that type matchups were a problem that could not be ignored. When the gap in strength was small, type advantage was one of the key factors in deciding victory or defeat.

A certain Flying-type Elite Four demonstrated this perfectly.

Then there was the fact that Pokemon of a single type could hardly guarantee versatility. Especially for Trainers, who lived out in the wilderness, a lack of versatility meant a lack of safety—and that meant death.

Tetsuya intended to roughly divide the Pokemon he wanted based on the team compositions from the games he had played in his Previous Life.

Put simply, he meant roles like tank, assassin, warrior, mage, and priest, though not quite so clearly defined.

For example, a priest. Tetsuya really wanted a Blissey to serve as the team's doctor, but with the Joy Family controlling them, that could not even be called a dream. It was more like a delusion.

So Tetsuya figured he should just learn more relevant knowledge himself and become a human nurse.

It was not as though there were no Pokemon that could use Heal Pulse. For example, Gardevoir, which stood at the top of Tetsuya's list of the ten Pokemon he absolutely wanted most.

But the difficulty... while it was certainly easier than getting a Blissey, it was not much easier.

So the priest role was practically nonexistent. Unless Tetsuya's luck exploded, he could only wait until much later.

Tetsuya first considered Pidgeot's role on the team and felt that Pidgeot was currently still an assassin lacking in damage.

Pidgeot could pair Quick Attack with various moves, using its speed to strike the enemy before leaving as soon as it landed a hit.

At the same time, Pidgeot's mid- to long-range attacks were not weak either. It could harass enemies from afar, dealing damage while opening up distance.

In the wilderness, Pidgeot could also serve as an excellent mount and scout for travel and searches.

Its damage was indeed still rather weak, though. Only after it learned moves such as Tailwind and Sky Attack would Pidgeot truly possess a one-hit kill method against enemies of the same level. For now, it could not.

Therefore, Tetsuya believed that what he needed more for his second Pokemon was a warrior-like role—something that could confront enemies head-on, possessed excellent close-combat ability and decent endurance, and could swiftly finish off opponents.

That greatly narrowed down the options. Tetsuya frowned as he scribbled and revised notes on his computer.

Since it needed close-combat ability, it would be best if it had the Fighting-type. At worst, it should know Fighting-type moves. By that measure, Riolu, Lucario's pre-evolution, was the most suitable, but it was too difficult to obtain. He would consider it later.

Nidoking was also good, but it needed a Moon Stone to evolve. Those were even more expensive than Fire Stones. Pass.

Scyther was too frail. Pass. The same went for Weavile.

Poliwhirl, pass. Same reason as Nidoking.

Golem would be quite good, but although Tetsuya knew it evolved from Graveler, he did not understand the exact method. That was knowledge not made public, so he could only pass on it. The same went for Machamp.

Snorlax... forget it. He could not afford to raise one. He really could not.

Tetsuya continuously crossed out one option after another. In the end, he discovered that only two Pokemon remained: Electivire and Blaziken.

It was not that only those two met his requirements. Tetsuya had simply selectively eliminated some options, such as Hitmonchan.

The reason was that Tetsuya did not like them. They were not cool enough. Yeah, nothing else.

As for Electivire, it was one of the few Pokemon whose evolution method Tetsuya knew from his Previous Life. Since he thought it was cool enough, he had specifically looked it up: Electabuzz evolved into Electivire while holding an Electirizer.

Although the Market Price of an Electirizer was not cheap either, it was not outrageously expensive. Tetsuya guessed that ordinary Trainers did not know that an Electirizer could allow Electabuzz to evolve into Electivire.

And those who did know were unwilling to buy Electirizers at high prices, since that would make People's Hearts suspicious. Thus, the price of Electirizers remained stuck in this awkward middle ground.

That was good news for Tetsuya.

Overall, the investment required to raise either Elekid or Torchic was about the same. Elekid Eggs were cheaper, but required an Electirizer.

Torchic Eggs were more expensive, but they did not require any extra materials to evolve. Normal training would suffice.

Tetsuya stretched and checked the time.

Even this simple screening process had taken an hour. It was already past nine, since there were simply too many kinds of Pokemon.

After closing his computer, Tetsuya took a shower and went to bed. Tomorrow, he needed to get up early to exercise, sell the Fire Stone, and take a trip to the Black Market.

He really was busy.

Tetsuya thought hazily, his mind a mess, before quickly falling asleep.

Tetsuya emerged from the bathroom, having just finished his morning workout.

After putting away Pidgeot, who had finished breakfast, Tetsuya slowly headed toward the Trade Center in the city center.

The Trade Center and the Bounty Hunter Center were located on either side of the Pokemon Center.

Unlike the Hunter missions, where merchants sought various raw materials to make items, most of what was available in the Trade Center consisted of training materials needed by Trainers.

As he entered the lobby, a huge screen came into view. It was densely packed with exchange offers and purchase requests from various Trainers.

Below it stood rows of computers. Interested Trainers could search for keywords in real time to conduct trades and exchanges.

The Pokemon Forum only served for exchanging information and reaching preliminary trade intentions. Private transactions were certainly possible, but one had to bear the risks oneself.

Most Trainers still chose to complete their transactions at the Trade Center. Even with a 1% guarantee fee, it was still far better than getting scammed.

Tetsuya first went to the appraisal counter and had the concentration of his Fire Stone assessed. Then, holding the appraisal certificate, he uploaded it to the Trade Center's system and posted an offer—"Quality 89 Fire Stone for sale. Cash accepted, or cash plus materials (Electric or Fire)."

Afterward, Tetsuya went to the waiting area, browsed the Forum, and waited for offers.

In the games, Electivire seemed to require trading while holding an Electirizer to evolve, but the setting here had been adjusted slightly.

Please recommend and bookmark.

Also, starting next week, there will be extra chapters based on the data.

Feel free to leave comments anytime. I am around often.

Waaah, I just saw that the first reader has sent a tip! There will be an extra chapter at nine o'clock in half an hour! (Added at 20:23)