Eating just one burger from Celebi had cost Julian a whopping 100,000. He figured even a national banquet chef’s burger probably wouldn’t be priced that high.
As soon as Celebi got the money, it imdiately went to spend it all on gacha pulls in Pokémon Glory, desperately trying to get the limited-edition "Blastoise: Ninja Turtle" skin. Under Julian’s judgntal gaze, it took a full 360 pulls before finally hitting the jackpot.
Celebi: “What terrible luck… must be because I’ve been spending too much ti with you.”
Julian: “Are you throwing shade at right now?”
So, just to prove a point, Julian started pulling himself.
Watching as he also failed 360 tis before finally getting the skin on his 361st attempt, Julian’s face darkened.
Celebi (patting his shoulder): “You’re just doing this to comfort , aren’t you?”
Julian grumbled as he pulled on Celebi’s cheeks, “Since when did you beco such a little smartass?”
"This damn gacha system is absolute garbage and the board mbers of this gaming company are all brain-dead morons!" Fuming, he tossed his phone onto the bed.
anwhile, in a corporate office, Henry Walker—Julian’s uncle and a board mber of the gaming company—suddenly sneezed twice during a eting.
Henry (rubbing his nose): 'Hmm? Am I catching a cold?'
---
Harborcrest City was the second-largest city in southern Drakoria, just behind Lake City. Harborcrest was a major port city, with rich cultural and historical roots.
At the sa ti, it was also ho to the highest concentration of aristocratic families—over 60 in total, though most were small to dium-sized. Only three could be considered major powers, and none were on the sa level as top clans like the Walkers or Drakes.
The Thornton brothers’ family fell into the mid-tier category.
Building a family from nothing to prominence in just a decade—even with the Turner family’s backing—was a testant to Dean’s shrewdness and capability.
Among the three major families, one was a direct vassal of the Walker family, while the other two also had cooperative ties with them.
This ant that while no single family dominated Harborcrest City, all three major powers had ties to the Walkers. And it was precisely because of this that none of the three major families had ever moved against the Thornton brothers’ Pokémon breeding company.
At the sa ti, the Thornton brothers had always been very careful and disciplined, never expanding their business beyond local boundaries and avoiding industries controlled by the big players. If they had tried, they might’ve survived, but they’d definitely have been heavily suppressed.
---
Since he was in the second-largest southern tropolis, Julian naturally wanted to go out and explore.
Leaving Celebi behind in the hotel room, he headed out.
tagross was too conspicuous, so it stayed inside its Poké Ball. Gengar remained hidden in his shadow—if anything unexpected happened, Gengar alone would be more than enough to handle it.
Julian was currently staying in Wulford District, the city center of Harborcrest. Just a short walk from the Gardevoir Hotel was Emberlight Street, a popular internet-famous destination that was a must-visit for tourists.
Julian wasn’t particularly interested in this place, but since it was just a short walk from the hotel, he figured he might as well check it out.
Strolling down Emberlight Street with Slowking trailing behind him didn’t draw too much attention.
It had already been two years since Slowking—Slowpoke’s alternate evolutionary form—was officially discovered. Although the key item for its evolution—the King’s Rock—was still relatively rare, two years was more than enough ti for many people to obtain one.
Of course, those “many people” mostly referred to wealthy family heirs.
To the general public, a trainer with a Slowking was either exceptionally strong or exceptionally wealthy.
So, naturally, Julian attracted a few glances, but that was all.
Slowking, carrying a small backpack, occasionally peeked at the food stalls lining the street. The variety of snacks and creative presentations could inspire new ideas for its own cooking experints.
The street was bustling with activity—so much so that it had also beco a hotspot for livestrears.
Mia, a sophomore at Harborcrest University, wasn’t a Pokémon trainer but a broadcasting major.
Thanks to her good looks, sweet personality, and a love for Douyin, she had amassed nearly a million followers. Today, she was livestreaming on Emberlight Street, conducting random street interviews with quirky questions.
Her latest victim had just been asked:
"If your college advisor fell into the water, what could your major do to help?"
The interviewee thought for a mont, then answered:
“I’m an electrical engineering major—I could electrocute him.”
The mont the answer dropped, laughter exploded from the over ten thousand viewers watching her stream.
Of course, the success of these interviews depended on whether the people being interviewed had outgoing personalities.
That’s why Mia always observed carefully before choosing her targets.
Suddenly, the top donor in her livestream chat comnted:
> "Mia, there’s a guy over there with a Slowking! Go interview him!"
Mia squinted at the figure in the distance.
“Even though he’s wearing a mask, he looks pretty young. To own a Slowking at his age, he’s probably from a prestigious family,” she mused aloud.
The chat imdiately erupted with jokes:
> "Use your charms! Marry rich and retire early!"
Seeing these comnts, Mia huffed, crossing her arms.
"I’m not that kind of person! I’ll earn the life I want on my own!"
Still, she walked over to Julian—not because she wanted to flirt, but because she wanted to interview him.
Without warning, she shoved the mic in his face:
“Excuse , what’s the most useful piece of knowledge you’ve ever learned?”
Julian froze—not because he was startled by her sudden approach, but because her question caught him off guard.
'Since when did livestream interviews get this intense? And why is a pretty girl asking this?'
"Uh… postures?" (positions)
The livestream chat went dead silent for a second. Even Mia froze.
Then—
> "HAHAHAHAHA! This guy’s a LEGEND!"
("Knowledge" and "postures"—the pronunciation was eerily similar in Mandarin.)
Mia’s face flushed red with embarrassnt.
She quickly scrambled to change the subject and moved on to her second question:
"Ahem! Next question!" She cleared her throat. "What are your thoughts on dostic violence?"
“Opinion?”
Julian blinked, then slowly turned to glance at Slowking behind him.
'If we’re talking about dostic violence… then Slowking—'
“Slow?”
Slowking smiled sweetly: "What are you looking at?"
"Nothing!"
Julian imdiately looked away, shaking his head in a hurry.
At that mont, the livestream viewers felt like they suddenly understood sothing.
Mia was convinced now: this guy was absolute gold—a natural-born entertainer who was perfect for her stream. Watching her viewer count skyrocket, she hit him with another question:
"If your girlfriend fell into the water, would you choose to keep gaming or take a nap?"
Julian pondered for a second. "I’d RSVP for the funeral banquet."
The chat ERUPTED.
> "6666666!"
> "This man is a NATIONAL TREASURE!"
> "He’s too powerful!!"
"Slow~"
Suddenly, Slowking stepped forward, staring expectantly at Mia: "Ask sothing too."
Mia blinked: "Huh? What’s going on?"
Julian: "It wants you to interview it too."
"Oh! Got it!"
Thinking fast, Mia asked:
"What’s your opinion on… borderline content?"
Slowking, without hesitation: "Like and watch."
Since she couldn’t understand what Slowking said, Mia looked to Julian.
Julian (deadpan): "It said, ‘Like and watch.’"
The chat LOST IT.
> "NO WAY THAT’S THE SLOWKING TALKING!"
> "Bro, that’s 100% his own opinion!"
> "This dude’s too based—"
But at this point, so viewers in the stream started to recognize the masked man and the Slowking beside him.
*****
Upto 30 chapters ahead on patreon :-
/ReduxMagister
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