Such a big price difference was mainly because trainers capable of raising Pokémon above Gym-level were usually easy to track down.
If it were only Intermediate or Advanced-level Pokémon, then unless they were extremely rare species, the Hunters Guild generally wouldn't bother asking about the original owner. Small fry simply weren't worth the attention.
The old man probed again, "So… about the original owner of these Pokémon?"
"Mm… alright." Shiro didn't think much about it and answered directly, "Their owner is Koga."
"Koga?"
The old man was a bit confused, wondering when Sinnoh had a quasi-Elite level trainer named Koga.
Then it clicked. A flash of realization crossed his mind as he remembered the Koga from faraway Kanto.
"One of Team Rocket's top executives, Koga!" The old man's hoarse voice trembled with disbelief.
"Oh? You know Koga's real identity?" Shiro raised an eyebrow.
The old man quickly reacted and chuckled. "Who in the underground world doesn't know the famous poison ninja, the head of the Iga clan? Even the higher-ups in the League have probably heard of him. It's said his greatest skill is assassination, not even using Pokémon, but doing it personally… The fact that you managed to take his Pokémon is truly unbelievable."
Shiro nodded slightly. Then he went straight to the point. "Bring the money."
He didn't care about Koga. Selling for cash was what mattered.
The old man rubbed his hands and lowered his head, cautiously glancing up with a smile. "Hehe… then let me ask one more thing. Is Koga dead? Because at that level of battle, you understand… if he's dead, we won't be able to sell these Pokémon…"
Shiro knew he was trying to probe for details of the fight, so he let out a cold laugh. "You don't know whether he's dead? The Hunters Guild is nothing special after all."
"My apologies. I'll go get the money right away. Please wait."
The old man stopped talking and left the room.
About fifteen minutes later, he returned carrying a large black cloth bag and placed it on the table, the inside packed with stacks of colorful Pokédollars.
"Please check it."
After he spoke, Shiro had Unown A quickly count the amount. Then he waved his hand and instantly teleported the bag into his backpack.
The old man's pupils shrank at the sight, but the smile on his face only grew wider as he respectfully escorted Shiro out.
Only after Shiro left through a curtained door in a corner of the market did the old man hurry back upstairs and rush toward the end of the corridor.
At the end of the dark hallway, after turning a corner, there was a large platform with a black device standing in the center, its entrance open. The old man carried the Poké Balls and stepped in without hesitation.
It was a standard psychic teleportation machine.
Moments later, a flash of psychic light flickered, and he disappeared inside the device.
* * *
Kanto.
Underground in a certain city, inside a Hunters Guild branch, the old man appeared on a similar dark platform. He then walked through a corridor and entered a room.
Picking up a landline phone in the corner, he dialed randomly at first. Only after the phone vibrated twice did he begin dialing properly.
A few seconds later, a deep voice came from the other end. "F, what urgent matter do you have to report?"
"Lord A…" the old man, Hunter F, spoke slowly. "Just now at the Jubilife City branch, a trainer of unknown strength impersonated Hunter W to sell Pokémon…"
"How did you confirm it?"
"I showed my face, and he didn't recognize me. Although I couldn't see his face clearly, his voice and manner of speaking were completely different."
Hunter A sounded puzzled. "He didn't deliberately impersonate? Then what was his goal?"
"He seemed to simply want to sell Pokémon." Hunter F explained the situation in detail before concluding, "He should be a League trainer. His strength is conservatively estimated at Elite-level. W's token was probably obtained by accident."
"Mm… W isn't that important," Hunter A muttered. "Koga? Koga was defeated and had his Pokémon taken? And that person can use psychic power?"
He found it somewhat amusing, then gave his order. "I know who that person selling Pokémon is. You don't need to worry about it. Continue investigating recent developments in Kanto. Don't overlook any information."
"Yes!"
Hunter F responded, and the call ended.
* * *
"Fifty million… another fifty million…"
Shiro sighed contentedly as he rode Corviknight over the southern forest of Jubilife City.
He now had about 130 million in cash on him. Adding the research funds previously given by Rowan, the total came to around 260 million. Even after his current resources ran out, this money should be enough to support his Pokémon for a long time.
"Coorv!"
Corviknight soon flew above the Rowan Research Institute, circling once before landing at the entrance.
Shiro recalled it into its Poké Ball and returned to his bedroom.
Knock, knock, knock…
Not long after, someone knocked on the door.
He opened it and saw Cynthia.
"Got time?" she asked with a smile, tossing a Poké Ball in her hand.
Training again.
Shiro thought for a moment. Seeing that it was still early and he had nothing else to do, he went back to grab a few Poké Balls and followed her to the battlefield.
* * *
Two hours passed in the blink of an eye.
Shiro's bedroom was empty.
But in a corner, inside a small nest made of Charcoal, a Pokémon egg with red patterns began to glow with a fiery light.
It was the Larvesta Egg.
During his time at the research institute, Shiro had been carefully maintaining it every day, applying Fire Stone powder and replacing the Charcoal around it.
Although the egg hadn't shown any major reaction before, it had been steadily absorbing the energy from the Fire Stones and Charcoal. Seeing it grow steadily, he hadn't paid much attention.
Crack!
A sharp sound echoed in the empty room.
* * *
At the same time, on the battlefield outside the institute.
Shiro was just about to have Growlithe use Flame Wheel to circle around Garchomp when Unown A's urgent voice rang in his mind.
'Quick! Shiro! Hurry back! Larvesta is about to hatch!'
"What?"
Startled, he didn't even bother continuing the battle. Without recalling Growlithe, he turned and ran back.
"Growl?"
Growlithe sensed something was wrong. It turned its head and saw Shiro running off, completely confused. Its eyes widened before it looked back at Garchomp.
Having just been outmaneuvered and slightly burned by Growlithe's speed, Garchomp bared its teeth and waved its claws.
"Gaaar! Garchoomp!" (Coward! Fight head-on!)
"Growl!"
Growlithe's fur stood on end. Driven by emotion, it unleashed a swirling stream of bright orange flames.
This was the fusion move Unown A had been teaching for days, combining Flamethrower and Fire Spin.
**
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