"Can I touch it?"
Hu Tao, who felt as though a devil were whispering in her ear, urging her to buy, could not contain her excitement. Her cheeks were flushed red with anticipation.
Hiroshi knelt down and rubbed Gible's round little head.
"Gible, do you like this young lady?"
The Gible raised its head and let out a fierce, yet somewhat childish cry.
"Gib! Gible~!"
Hiroshi raised his eyes and smiled at Hu Tao.
"It said it thinks this 'Big Sister' would be an excellent Trainer."
"So, say a friendly hello, Gible."
Hearing this, Gible nodded seriously and waved his stubby arms to greet Hu Tao.
"Gible!"
Its fierce roar was full of closeness and affection, betraying its nature as a future land shark.
"So spiritual!"
Hu Tao's plum blossom eyes were shining, and she almost jumped up in surprise.
"Much smarter than those monsters in the wild~!"
Hiroshi held back his laughter. Comparing a Pseudo-Legendary to a Hilichurl was indeed a bit unfair. He spoke to the Gible:
"Gible, let your future master see a unique skill. Well, have you inherited that egg move? Let's try it."
"Gible, use Body Slam!"
The voice fell.
The Gible, despite its short limbs, jumped up surprisingly high. Its body glowed slightly with energy as it dived down, using its entire weight as a weapon.
Boom!
The marble floor smashed, revealing staggered spiderweb cracks spreading outward.
There was a slight earthquake felt throughout the store.
Gible stood up straight, dusted itself off as if nothing had happened, and continued to make fierce screams as if asking for credit.
"Gib~!!"
Hu Tao was stunned.
The floor was paved with solid marble.
It was outrageous that a cub Pokémon that had just hatched out of its shell could have such destructive power!
"Does it really matter if we destroy the store like this?"
Hu Tao was a little embarrassed.
It was all just to show off to her. Store manager Hiroshi had paid too much in property damage.
When Hiroshi saw Hu Tao awkwardly scratching her head, he knew what she had misunderstood. For this shop, bound to the System, he just had to mentally click "Repair" and it would be as good as new tomorrow.
['Hmph. Weak stone,'] Zekrom's voice rumbled in Hiroshi's mind, sounding unimpressed. ['If I were to stomp, this entire harbor would sink into the ocean. Why are humans impressed by a cracked tile?']
'Shh, don't spoil the sales pitch,' Hiroshi thought back.
"How about it, Director Hu? It seems you don't have to worry about Gible not liking you anymore. This little guy recognizes you very much and is willing to follow you. Do you want to take it away and let the little guy become your initial Pokémon?"
Hu Tao took a deep breath. Seeing the Gible's moves, she cleared away the last wavering and doubts in her heart.
She finally made up her mind and spoke seriously:
"Manager Hiroshi, can you reserve some time for me? I want the Gible, and I'll go back to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to get the Mora!"
Hiroshi smiled and said, "Go back quickly."
"Half an hour! Half an hour at most!"
Hu Tao reluctantly greeted Gible, waved her hand, and flew out the door like a gust of wind.
Before half an hour had passed, a carriage stopped outside the shop door.
Hu Tao, who was practically driving the carriage herself, barked orders at the driver. It was Old Meng, the ferryman of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Together, they moved two heavy boxes into the store.
"The Mora, I just took it out from the Northland Bank. There is still a deposit certificate here."
Hu Tao, moving like a whirlwind, slapped a large deposit receipt on the counter table.
"Huh, if I wasn't worried that you wouldn't accept deposit receipts, why would I have brought two large boxes of Mora!"
"I'm exhausted!"
Hiroshi's mouth twitched slightly. He looked at Old Meng, who was gasping for air by the door. It was likely Old Meng who was exhausted, not Hu Tao.
However, it was indeed inconvenient to pay without scanning a QR code or using a mobile phone.
Fortunately, there is banking business in Liyue Harbor. As this was the first payment of the business, Hiroshi noted the need for improvements in transactions and collection.
"From now on, all transactions worth more than 10 million Mora will require deposit receipts."
After she slapped the deposit receipt on the counter angrily, Hu Tao couldn't wait to pick up Gible, holding it tightly in her arms with a happy smile on her face.
"Come on, Gible, let's go home~~"
Hiroshi shouted in time:
"Hey, wait a minute——"
He was speechless at her speed. He went back to the counter and packed the bonus items into bags.
"It contains a Novice Trainer Manual and two boxes of Energy Cubes, free of charge."
"It is strongly recommended that you carefully read the Novice Trainer Manual."
"In addition, although Pokémon are omnivorous—they can eat what humans eat and fill their stomachs—if you want Pokémon to become stronger and develop in an all-around way, Energy Cubes are indispensable!"
"Exclusive pet rations?"
Hu Tao opened one of the boxes. It was full of small cubes, and an aroma that filled the heart and spleen immediately permeated the air.
"Gib? Gib-shark! (I'm so hungry)~~"
Smelling the fragrance, the Gible in Hu Tao's arms suddenly became excited and struggled.
It stared straight at the box in Hu Tao's hand.
Inexplicably, even Hu Tao was attracted to this scent, and her throat twitched involuntarily.
"Hey, hey, why do I have the idea of competing with my pet for food?"
Hiroshi laughed. "You can really try it. The main material of this Energy Cube is Tree Fruit (Berries). It is purely natural and harmless."
Hu Tao was so curious that she took out one and pinched it. She found that the small red cubes were like soft fructose candy.
She put one in her mouth and chewed it. Hu Tao found that the taste was really good.
At the same time, she felt a spicy taste explode in her mouth. The smell rushed to her nose.
Hu Tao was shocked. "Energy Cubes... are there different flavors?!"
"Hey, of course," Hiroshi explained, raising a finger. "The Energy Cube has four points that must be mentioned: taste, level, color, and attributes."
"There are five flavors: Spicy, Dry, Sweet, Bitter, and Sour."
"These are the two boxes of Primary Energy Cubes that our store accurately distributes according to the taste of each Pokémon."
The big mouth of the Gible had long been filled with drool.
Its big round eyes looked at Hu Tao, full of pitifulness like a child begging for food.
"Gib~ Gib!"
Seeing this, Hu Tao's heart melted. She squatted down quickly and opened a box of Energy Cubes.
This Pseudo-Legendary initial Pokémon pounced on it, chewing the Energy Cubes with excitement.
The little cute Gible had such a good appetite. The smile on Hu Tao's face was extremely kind.
There was a voice in her heart saying: How patient! Ah, I have such a girlish heart!
Hu Tao rubbed Gible's head unceremoniously with her hand.
"Hee, it turns out you like spicy food? Eat more, eat more!"
"This Director Hu is not afraid that you will eat me out of house and home!"
Then, she looked up at Hiroshi.
"These two boxes of feed... well, Energy Cubes. Can I buy a few more boxes? Baby Gible seems to have a good appetite. I'm afraid he won't be able to eat for a few days after two boxes."
Hiroshi nodded.
"In fact, I also recommend buying a few more boxes to store at home. The Energy Cubes contain nutrients needed for the healthy growth of Pokémon. I've searched all over Teyvat and only our store sells them."
Fifty million Mora and heavy boxes had been transported.
Did she still need to worry about money for feed?
Hu Tao waved her hand generously. "Then, just buy ten more boxes!"
Hiroshi showed the smile of a tycoon-killer.
"Energy Cubes: the Basic Level is 2,000 Mora per box, the Intermediate Level is 10,000 Mora per box, and the Advanced Level is 100,000 Mora per box..."
"As for the Master Level?..."