Pokemon: Bounty Hunter

Silas continuously scrolled through his schedule, double-checking every detail to ensure there were no issues. Once he confirmed everything was in order, he began to enjoy his lunch.

"Alright, I'll go shopping this afternoon," he decided simply.

After quickly finishing his meal, Silas placed his Torchic's Poké Egg into his backpack. He then recalled his Pidgeot, which had been basking in the sun in the backyard, and headed straight for the League Mall.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Viridian City and the nearby Viridian Forest were bathed in golden hues from the evening glow.

Silas, having spent the entire afternoon shopping at the League Mall and Trading Center, returned home exhausted but with a sense of satisfaction. Of course, his wallet had also taken a significant hit.

Even though he had mentally prepared himself for the expenses, watching his money disappear so quickly as he swiped his card still made his heart ache.

Collapsing onto the couch at home, Silas sighed. "This is more tiring than an adventure."

Struggling to his feet, he prepared dinner for both himself and Pidgeot before beginning to sort through his purchases.

First, he had bought six Luxury Balls produced by the Silph Co. These would provide a comfortable environment for both Pidgeot and Torchic while also preparing for future team members.

Unlike standard Poké Balls, Silph Co.'s Luxury Balls had several advantages—they were fireproof, shockproof, waterproof, and even resistant to electricity, all while maintaining a flawless exterior.

More importantly, compared to ordinary Poké Balls, Luxury Balls were like mansions compared to wooden cabins. They automatically adjusted to create an ideal environment for the Pokémon inside.

Additionally, Silph Co.'s Luxury Balls could be linked to a Trainer's smartwatch, allowing real-time monitoring of a Pokémon's physical condition.

As for concerns about data security, Silas had long accepted that privacy was a myth. Besides, the monitoring was fairly basic and prone to fluctuations, so it wasn't a major concern.

Silph Co. had never hidden this fact, and Trainers were well aware of it. However, because their products were of such high quality, most people were willing to overlook the issue.

In addition to the Luxury Balls, Silas also upgraded several pieces of his gear with newer Silph Co. models, including a state-of-the-art smartwatch, a spacious storage backpack, and a high-tech tent.

For instance, his new storage backpack had a capacity increase from 10 cubic meters to 50 cubic meters.

Moreover, all these devices could interact with each other. For example, his smartwatch could remotely control the settings inside the tent.

Just these purchases alone had cost Silas 1.5 million Pokedollars. Fortunately, since his previous equipment was also from Silph Co., he was able to trade them in for an upgrade, saving some money.

Next, he visited the Devon Corporation store, where he spent 500,000 Pokedollars on a top-of-the-line navigation device and a drone.

Then, he invested another 1 million Poke Credits in two fully equipped wilderness exploration suits, which came with built-in temperature regulation, environmental scanning, GPS tracking.

For Torchic, he bought a full set of specialized training equipment, which cost another 1.5 million Pokedollars.

He also upgraded Pidgeot's weight-training gear through a trade-in program, spending an additional 300,000 Pokedollars.

So far, he had already spent 4.8 million Pokedollars, and that was just for equipment.

The real money sink came next.

Silas purchased a specialized nutrient supplement for Torchic, developed in Saffron City, which helped enhance a young Pokémon's overall physical attributes.

By consistently using the supplement throughout the early growth phase, Torchic's stats would be slightly superior compared to Pokémon that didn't use it.

Each supplement set contained seven types of nutrients—Vitality, Energy, Special Attack, Special Defense, Physical Attack, Physical Defense, and Speed.

Each bottle contained 10 milliliters, and the recommended dosage was three sets per day.

Considering that the early growth phase lasted around 20 days, Silas needed a total of 60 sets.

And the price?

A single set cost 50,000 Pokedollars.

60 sets meant 3 million Pokedollars. No discounts, no negotiations.

On top of that, Torchic needed additional vitamin supplements, which the store had already prepared for him.

Based on scientific research, the best option was a composite vitamin tablet, with a recommended dosage of two tablets per day for 40 days—enough to last until Torchic fully matured.

The cost? 200,000 Pokedollars.

Silas paid with a heavy heart.

And that wasn't all.

He also had to follow the special training plan given to him by "Zero."

The necessary herbal ingredients cost 600,000 Pokedollars, while the various Berries required amounted to 1.4 million Pokedollars.

Additionally, acquiring rare Pokémon materials from the Trading Center set him back another 1 million Pokedollars.

In total, just for Torchic, Silas had spent 6.2 million Pokedollars so far.

At least these resources weren't just for the early growth phase. He estimated that with an additional 1.8 million Pokedollars, he would have enough materials to push Torchic straight to the Advance-level.

Otherwise, if raising a single Pokémon's early stage required this much money, Silas might actually lose his mind.

For both Pokémon's food supplies, he spent another 600,000 Pokédollars.

Now that he had the money, Silas didn't want Pidgeot and Torchic eating subpar food. Instead of solid pellet Pokémon food, he switched to Pokéblocks, buying enough for over a month.

They were expensive, but their nutritional value was far superior.

If only Silas knew how to make Pokéblocks himself—he could just process berries manually.

Next, he planned Pidgeot's training. Since he wasn't planning to take on any more missions until Torchic reached elite level, Pidgeot would primarily focus on training.

So, he spent 1.7 million Pokédollars on training materials for Pidgeot.

After calculating everything, Silas had spent a total of 13 million Pokédollars in this single shopping trip.

Looking at his account balance, he could only chuckle bitterly.

That morning, he had nearly 50 million Pokédollars—by evening, in just 12 hours, he was down to only 6 million.

His funds had shrunk by 90%.

But this was a necessary investment.

Torchic could still grow strong without all these resources, but its progress would be significantly slower. Pidgeot was proof of that.

Had he been able to provide Pidgeot with such training resources when it was just a Pidgey, it might have reached its current strength in just six months instead of taking longer.

Even so, compared to most trainers from non-elite backgrounds, his progress was already exceptionally fast.

Silas was, after all, a transmigrator with a cheat ability.

He had been lucky enough to find two high-potential Pokémon Eggs and a high-quality Fire Stone. Plus, he had an eidetic memory, allowing him to learn at an extraordinary pace.

If this still wasn't considered an advantage, then only the true prodigies of this world—like Professor Oak, Lance, Cynthia, or Chairman Damalanchi—could be called exceptional.

Even Bruno had achieved near-Champion strength before turning thirty.

Silas originally aimed to become an Elite Four member by thirty, then slowly work his way up with the help of his AI assistant, Zero, eventually becoming Champion in his forties.

But now, it seemed he might reach those milestones several years earlier.

That was both a good and bad thing.

If he progressed at a steady but impressive pace, he could gradually build connections and find a reliable mentor within the League.

But if he grew too fast, he would draw dangerous attention.

Many powerful factions would try to recruit him. And if they couldn't...

They might simply eliminate him.

Silas had to find a strong enough backer—one that was protective of its own people.

Until then, he had to remain cautious.