Pokemon: With Title System

Chapter 51 – The Exchange Event Begins

In the face of Asahi's "financial persuasion," Magikarp finally integrated into his team.

Since they had a few days before the exchange event began and needed to stay under the radar from Team Rocket, Asahi and Green spent their time at the hotel training their Pokémon.

Having officially joined Interpol and knowing she would face Team Rocket directly, Green was feeling the pressure.

As a result, she had been pestering Asahi for guidance over the past two days.

...

At Celadon University, the long-anticipated Kanto-Hoenn Exchange Event officially kicked off.

Although it was a self-organized event between the two regions and not an official League activity, it still attracted a massive crowd.

"So many people," Green remarked, carrying a briefcase and looking around as she followed Asahi.

She had initially thought the event wouldn't draw much of a crowd, but the scene before her exceeded her expectations.

Asahi, who had already learned about the event from Lance in advance, wasn't surprised.

"That's because the exchange includes a friendly Pokémon battle tournament between trainers from both regions. I hear the champion rewards are pretty generous, which has attracted a lot of trainers."

"Are you going to participate, Asahi?" Green asked curiously.

Asahi thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Nah, it wouldn't be fair if I joined."

Although he was tempted to participate, his main purpose for coming was to discuss collaboration with Steven Stone. Competing in the tournament would just distract him from that.

Hearing his response, Green let out a sigh of relief and then, with an excited expression, said, "In that case, I'm signing up!"

"...?"

So you were asking me just to decide whether you'd join or not based on my answer?

Asahi looked at her with an exasperated expression. Green stuck out her tongue sheepishly.

He gestured for her to go ahead and register while he wandered around the venue.

Because the event had attracted so many trainers, merchants selling items and snacks had gathered as well. There were even trainers setting up stalls to trade Pokémon.

Some were trading Taillows for Pidgeys, while others swapped Caterpies for Wurmples.

It was an exchange that allowed the two regions to share resources. Asahi figured that this year's Indigo League might feature a wave of trainers using Hoenn Pokémon.

He had no interest in trading Pokémon. There was no way he'd part with the ones he'd already bonded with.

Instead, he found a coffee stall, sat down, and ordered a cup of coffee.

Just as he was about to call Lance, a stranger's voice sounded behind him.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Asahi?"

Asahi turned around to see a middle-aged man in a high-end suit accompanied by an assistant.

"And you are...?" Asahi asked, puzzled.

"Apologies, I forgot to introduce myself," the man said apologetically.

His assistant quickly pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it to Asahi with both hands.

Taking the card, Asahi glanced at it, his eyebrows lifting slightly. "Silph Co., Pokémon Food R&D Department, Director Ishida Kosei?"

He was certain he'd never met anyone from Silph Co. before.

Now, however, they had come to find him.

Given the "Pokémon Food R&D" label on the card and the purpose of his visit here, Asahi quickly formed a guess.

"You're here for my energy cube recipe, aren't you?" he asked bluntly.

Ishida Kosei, who had been about to exchange pleasantries before broaching the subject, was momentarily stunned. Clearly, he hadn't expected Asahi to be so direct.

But as someone who had climbed the ranks to become a department director, he quickly recovered.

"That's correct. Since you already know why we're here, Mr. Asahi, please name your price. Silph Co. has deep pockets, and I'm sure we can offer you a satisfactory deal."

A week ago, Ishida had received a report about a paper in the League's research archive discussing energy cubes.

While the paper didn't provide a specific recipe, it claimed that adjusting the combination of berries could boost energy cube efficacy by 50%.

Initially, he dismissed it as just another dubious claim. Fake research wasn't uncommon, and there was no point wasting time unless its validity was proven.

But just yesterday, a corporate spy planted within Devon Corp. informed him that Steven Stone, Hoenn's Champion, was heading to Kanto to negotiate a collaboration on energy cube research.

This revelation shook him. If Steven himself was involved, the research had to be genuine.

So, Ishida had rushed from Saffron City to Celadon overnight to find Asahi, determined to snatch the deal out from under Devon Corp.'s nose.

However, as Ishida eagerly awaited a response, Asahi shook his head.

"If it's about that, you can leave. It's not about the money," Asahi said firmly.

Though curious about Silph Co.'s "satisfactory offer," Asahi had already reached a preliminary agreement with Steven through Lance.

Hearing this, Ishida was disappointed but unwilling to give up.

"Is it because of Devon Corp.? Whatever offer they've made, Silph Co. is willing to increase it by 20%."

"If you've already signed an agreement with them, Silph Co. will cover all the penalties for breaching it."

In short—more money!

To wrest this breakthrough in energy cube research from Devon Corp., Ishida was prepared to spare no expense.

Asahi clicked his tongue.

Without even knowing Devon's offer, they were willing to increase it by 20% and cover penalties?

Silph Co. truly lived up to its reputation as Kanto's premier conglomerate—deep pockets and full of sincerity.

Honestly, if he didn't know that Team Rocket had already set its sights on Silph Co. and that the company was about to face serious trouble, Asahi might have been tempted.

But, no.

Shaking his head, Asahi was about to reject him outright when he noticed a small commotion nearby.

Looking closely, he saw Lance, looking flustered, surrounded by trainers asking for autographs.

Glancing at Lance and then at the persistent Ishida, Asahi smirked.

He decided to toss this problem over to someone else.

"To be honest," Asahi said, "this decision isn't entirely up to me. If you want me to drop Devon Corp. and choose Silph Co., you'll have to convince someone else first."

"Who?" Ishida perked up, thinking this was a sign of progress.

"There," Asahi said, pointing behind Ishida.

Ishida turned around.

And saw Lance, freshly finished with autographs, walking toward them.

"..."

---