Chapter Thirteen: Money

Leaf Stone, an essential item for the evolution of Eggy into Exeggutor. Evolution stones like this are generally priceless and rarely available on the market...

Even though the world's technology and transportation are highly advanced and industries related to Pokémon are quite developed, evolution stones remain in a perpetual state where buyers can hardly find sellers, and sellers also struggle to find buyers.

Firstly, the output of evolution stones is usually low, and the Pokémon that require them for evolution are not numerous. Secondly, there is no method for artificial production or steady collection—they are subject to luck. Thirdly, in this world, evolution stones have a strong time sensitivity; the farther they are from their place of origin, the more likely they are to lose their effectiveness.

Kanto is the region with the greatest production and transaction volume for Leaf Stones—both Vileplume and Victreebel, common in Viridian Forest and featured in the Kanto Pokédex, require Leaf Stones to evolve. Moreover, Viridian Forest is a place rich in grass-type energy...

However, since the locations where Leaf Stones form are unpredictable, and they revert to ordinary stones after a few days, it’s difficult for an industry to form around them.

Thus, evolution stones rarely have a stable market and are only sporadically traded in places where they are regularly produced—like Maple Town!

“Do you have some misunderstanding about the price of Leaf Stones? Though the price fluctuates a lot, once a deal is made, it usually ranges between four and five hundred thousand... Sometimes, if demand is too high, it can even exceed a million!” Misty emphasized.

In terms of prices in this world: the most basic Pokémon potion costs about 300, a standard Poké Ball is around 200, and a deluxe fast-food meal goes for roughly 500...

As for income, a white-collar worker in one of the six major cities earns around 300,000 a month, while ordinary people in smaller towns and cities make just over 100,000 monthly.

Of course, if someone possesses a valuable skill—for example, a seasoned construction worker, a Rotom-enhanced housekeeper, or a Metagross programmer who can fix bugs—their income is several times higher than their peers!

By comparison, a Leaf Stone is by no means cheap, but it’s only a painful expense—a few months’ wages. After all, its shelf life is limited, and sellers must consider that greed might leave them empty-handed.

“I already said I’m an apothecary, didn’t I? If the price is normal, I should be able to manage it after working hard for half a month,” Am said seriously.

“No, no, no, even as an apothecary, if you’re only doing odd jobs, half a month is way too optimistic... Are you a Level Two or Level Three apothecary?” Misty denied repeatedly.

“Level One,” Am replied honestly.

“How is that possible...” Misty was surprised and somewhat skeptical, then asked back, “Really?”

If she hadn’t seen Am’s diligence over the past couple of days, she would have thought he was joking!

“The certificate says Level One,” Am shrugged.

“You mean... a fake certificate?” Misty’s worldview was shaken; in her mind, the Alliance’s professional certification was quite authoritative.

“No, I mean my skill should be at expert level,” Am rolled his eyes.

“Tch! If you’re that good, why not take the expert-level exam?” Misty assumed he was joking.

“I’ve registered, the exam is in just over three months,” Am answered matter-of-factly.

Misty: ...

People who seem serious are often like this, making Misty unsure whether he was telling the truth or not, but... the Level One apothecary qualification must be real!

“I heard... Level One apothecaries can easily make millions a month?” Misty’s eyes glinted with greed.

“It’s not quite that exaggerated. If you’re directly employed by a big corporation, perhaps, but I can only buy raw materials from Groudon Stores, process them into potions, and then resell them back for a small profit.”

Groudon Group holds a large market share in resource-based goods.

Am estimated that, if he worked regular hours, from eight to five, with weekends off, he could make a million per month—after all, with a Level One apothecary certification, Groudon’s chain stores would buy from him... though the profit margin is pretty slim.

If a Level One apothecary opens their own shop, with more stable and affordable supply channels and hires a couple of assistants, their income could easily double or triple.

If it’s purely about income, giving up “freedom” and accepting employment with a big corporation would actually be more lucrative.

But for Am, who was traveling, it was only about doing odd jobs and being exploited by the major Pokémon store chains.

“That’s true, I’ve heard Groudon Stores offer very low buy-back prices,” Misty also criticized Groudon Group.

“They mainly rely on their own production; purchasing is just a sideline... They probably hope apothecaries will ‘sell themselves’ to them,” Am replied, clearly uninterested in selling himself.

Of course, that’s for “Level One apothecaries”—although Am was confident he had expert-level skills, he hadn’t earned that certification yet, and expert-level potions were difficult to sell through regular channels.

Expert-level apothecaries can not only create battle potions using berries, but each one has their own unique specialty.

Moreover, there are several hundred Level One apothecaries in the Quartz League, while there are only about twenty experts!

Just being named as a consultant is incomparable to a Level One apothecary—a qualitative leap.

...

After arriving in Maple Town, Am and Misty headed straight to the Pokémon Center.

Though it was a small town, the Pokémon Center was hardly staffed by just a couple of people and a single Joy at the front desk.

Not only was it spacious, but it also had four floors; the upper three were guest rooms for trainers.

There was no sign of Joy at the front desk...

This was Am’s first time booking a room; believing there’s no shame in not knowing, he actively sought Misty's guidance.

Sure enough, Misty happily demonstrated her “veteran” skills, showing Am how to use a Pokédex’s rookie credentials to book a room for free—even though she herself had only been traveling for less than three months!

“Your room is number 208. Here’s your key card.” The receptionist handed over the room card.

Am took it and asked, “Excuse me, is there any Leaf Stone for sale in town recently?”

“Sorry, I’m not a trainer, so I don’t really know,” the receptionist replied with a helpless smile.

Just then, a trainer who looked about seventeen or eighteen spoke up, “If you want a Leaf Stone, you should try asking Elder Wenye. He recently got one, and if you can win his favor, he might give it to you... though he’s known for his peculiar temper.”

“Elder Wenye?” Am was stunned; the name sounded as if he could take on ten at once.

“Wenye?” Misty exclaimed, and seeing Am’s glance, she quickly pretended she knew nothing, “Uh... what a strange name, haha...”

“He lives in the treehouse on the east side of town. Just head out the eastern gate, and you’ll spot the tree—it’s very noticeable,” the young trainer explained Am’s destination.

Am placed his luggage in the room, washed up, and then set off toward the east side of town.

To his surprise, Misty insisted on accompanying him—and recalling her earlier reaction, it seemed she already knew something about Elder Wenye.

But since she didn’t want to talk about it, Am didn’t press.

If she didn’t even know Elder Wenye lived in Maple Town and was so surprised, she probably only heard about him before...