"Souvenir Poké Balls?"
When they heard Ren's words, Emma and Lily felt both unfamiliar with the term—and oddly used to it at the same time.
After all, Ren often casually mentioned things they had never heard of before.
"Boss, what exactly is this Poké Ball used for? And this…"
A must-have item for Trainers?
Lily curiously took the delicate white Poké Ball from Ren's hand, turning it over as she examined it carefully. No matter how she looked at it, she couldn't figure out what it was supposed to do.
From what Ren had just said, it was used to capture Pokémon—and also served as a place for them to rest?
Were they supposed to knock a Pokémon into this thing?
That was ridiculous.
How could something this small possibly hold a Charmander?
"It's a bit hard to explain right now," Ren said with a smile. "But what I can tell you is this—only after a Pokémon is captured with a Poké Ball does it truly belong to you."
"And while Charmander and Squirtle are small right now, once they grow up, they won't stay this petite forever."
"So Poké Balls are necessary for carrying them around."
Ren explained calmly. After all, the standard height of Charizard or Blastoise was no less than that of an adult man—and that was just the average. If they were well trained and well fed, they'd grow even larger. Carrying them around would be a real headache without Poké Balls.
"But… how do you use it?" Emma asked hesitantly, instinctively trusting Ren, yet still confused.
"The Poké Balls in your hands are empty," Ren said. "Try throwing them at your own Pokémon."
"..."
Emma and Lily exchanged looks.
They were both extremely confused—but still followed his instructions, tossing the commemorative Poké Balls toward Charmander and Squirtle.
Then, in the very next moment, both of their eyes widened in shock.
The instant the Poké Balls touched the Pokémon, the balls snapped open. Red light burst out, enveloping Charmander and Squirtle, pulling them inside in the blink of an eye.
The scene was so outrageous that Lily's mouth fell open unconsciously.
What the hell?!
After absorbing the Pokémon, the indicator light at the center of the Poké Ball began to flash slowly.
Once.
Twice.
Three times—
Ding.
With a crisp sound, the Poké Balls fell to the ground and went completely still.
"It went very smoothly," Ren said calmly, smiling. "That also means Charmander and Squirtle have fully acknowledged you as their Trainers."
To Ren, the scene was utterly ordinary.
But for the two girls—
"No—Boss, what is this?!!"
"Ah… well…"
Clearly, Emma and Lily were nowhere near calm.
This was way too bizarre!
A tiny ball actually containing living creatures?
Was this magic?!
"Don't make such a big deal out of it," Ren said, raising an eyebrow. "That's just what Poké Balls do."
As expected, Poké Ball technology was shockingly effective on people from this world.
After all, it completely defied common sense—a living creature turning into a beam of light and entering a small ball? Who would believe that?
"But this is just too—"
Emma stared at the Poké Ball on the ground, still unable to process what she had just seen.
What kind of technology was this? Biological compression? Subspace storage? It was completely unreasonable.
"Boss… are you actually an alien?"
After a long moment, Lily finally calmed down slightly and stared at Ren with deep suspicion.
"You're the alien," Ren snapped back. "Your whole family are aliens."
"Doesn't seem like it." Lily blinked and casually reached out, poking Ren's cheek with her finger.
His skin was warm. His body temperature normal.
"Miss Lily," Ren said seriously, "even if you're a customer, I should remind you that touching someone without their consent is immoral."
"So what? Touching you won't make you lose a piece of flesh," Lily muttered. "Do you know how many boys at school want to touch my hand? I don't even bother looking at them."
She curled her lips, clearly dissatisfied.
"Mm-hmm." Ren nodded.
Lily froze.
…What kind of half-hearted response was that?!
She glared at Ren angrily.
She was practically about to be named the school beauty this year, okay?
Do you have any idea how many people are lining up to chase after her?!
And yet—
You don't even look at me?!
Damn it!
"I still can't imagine it," Emma said, completely ignoring Lily's inner meltdown. She picked up the Poké Ball and examined it closely. Pressing the button, the ball opened again, releasing Squirtle in a flash of white light.
Emma smacked her lips, staring at the Poké Ball in her hand.
This was insanely cool.
"No," Ren said, shaking his head. "You'll understand later."
Some technologies from the Pokémon world were simply far too advanced for this world.
Poké Balls.
Space backpacks.
Pokémon transmission systems.
Especially the technology of Ultra Megalopolis.
Those humans had once used pure technology to strip Ultra Necrozma of its light, suppressing and sealing it inside the city's tower.
What kind of concept was that?
That was Necrozma—a Pokémon at the absolute pinnacle of combat power.
Yet because its light was stolen and sealed away, Ultra Megalopolis itself eventually lost its light, fell into ruin, and hovered on the brink of extinction.
One could say they reaped what they sowed—though it was their descendants who paid the price.
"But with this," Emma said softly, "we can really carry Charmander and the others with us anytime."
Seeing that Ren didn't want to elaborate further, Emma and Lily didn't press the matter. They already understood one thing clearly:
This mysterious shop—and this mysterious boss—were anything but ordinary.
Lily used another Poké Ball to capture Trapinch, then released both Pokémon again. She smiled in satisfaction.
Seeing how happy the two girls were, Ren smiled as well.
A good start.
----------Author---------------
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