"Even though it looks a bit… unusual, if a fish like this can really be trained into Milotic…"
Lucas said with a sigh of emotion.
"I think that sense of accomplishment would be indescribable."
Precisely because Feebas was so ugly now, its transformation after evolution would be even more shocking.
Of course, there was no denying that it would need extremely careful care during the process.
Still…
Looking at it now was honestly a little uncomfortable.
"Boss, I want this Feebas, but… it can't really fight at the moment, right?"
Emma looked up at Ren, hesitated for a moment, then asked to confirm.
"Yes," Ren nodded honestly.
"At this stage, it's basically impossible for Feebas to participate in battles. Not only does it have strict requirements for the battlefield environment, but even if it does fight, its combat power is extremely low."
He tried his best to phrase it gently.
Feebas was a standard Water-type Pokémon with a fully fish-like body. It couldn't fly, and if it wanted to battle, it needed a water-based field.
And even then…
Its combat effectiveness was only slightly better than Magikarp.
To put it bluntly, the current Feebas was pure dead weight in combat.
"Then I'll draw another one."
Emma frowned slightly.
Getting Feebas had been an accident. Her original goal was to add a main battler who could fight right now.
"No problem at all!"
Ren raised his eyebrows, smiling as he handed the Pokédex back to her.
The more she drew, the happier he was.
"Boss, at least try to be subtle. Your smile is way too obvious."
Lily looked at Ren with disdain. The moment Emma said she wanted to draw again, his face had practically lit up.
"You don't know how hard it is to run a business," Ren shot back irritably.
"But boss, your videos are obviously super popular online," Jason said, confused.
After all, Ren had only uploaded two videos so far, and both had gone viral.
"Who knows?" Ren shrugged helplessly.
"Maybe people don't want to travel all the way to Seaflow City just to check out a pet shop. Or maybe they still doubt whether the videos are real."
He really didn't understand it either.
After all, a fox breathing fire and a red-skinned lizard fighting—how many people would actually believe that was real?
Even if professionals swore on their ancestors in the comments, most viewers would probably still think it was CG.
"And even if people are interested, they won't rush over immediately."
Ren shook his head.
The videos had only been out for two days, and the battle video was uploaded just last night. Expecting immediate results was unrealistic.
"Right now, your store's reputation just hasn't fully spread yet," Lucas said after some thought.
"When I get back, I'll help promote it within my circle."
After all, he'd just spent sixty million on Larvitar. If this store truly grew and Pokémon became mainstream, Larvitar's value—and fame—would only rise.
Owning a quasi-legendary Pokémon was something worth showing off.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Lucas," Ren said sincerely.
Free promotion from a big spender like this was nothing but good news.
"Were all those people lying to me…?"
Lily blinked pitifully as she scrolled through her phone, her pretty face scrunching up.
Yesterday, after getting home, she had posted on her social media recommending Pokémon Home and even uploaded a short clip of her Pokémon.
Plenty of people had liked and commented, saying they wanted to come check it out.
But now?
Not a single one had shown up.
"Tsk."
"Boss, take a look—this one's done."
At that moment, Emma handed over the Pokédex. She had already finished drawing.
"Oh~ Horsea."
Ren glanced at it and immediately recognized the Pokémon.
"It looks really cute," Lily leaned in, staring at the small blue seahorse on the screen with interest.
"This is also a Water-type Pokémon, and it has excellent potential," Ren said with a smile.
"Its final evolution gains the Dragon type."
"Dragon type?"
Emma's eyes lit up.
"Then I want this one!"
Ren had said before that Dragon-type Pokémon were extremely rare—and incredibly strong.
On top of that, Horsea's appearance fit her taste perfectly. Cute and elegant.
There was no reason to refuse it.
"Alright, wait a moment."
Ren nodded and went into the back room.
Soon, he returned with another small bucket.
"…Boss, doesn't Horsea also need a special environment?"
Emma stared at the bucket, suddenly realizing something.
Right—seahorses lived in water.
And thinking about it carefully…
Why did all her Pokémon end up being Water-type?
"No," Ren shook his head.
"While Horsea prefers water, it can fight on land. It's just not as flexible as it is in water."
Aside from Pokémon with completely fish-like bodies such as Magikarp, most Water-types could still battle on land—just with reduced mobility.
Horsea was the same.
"That's good." Emma finally relaxed.
"Beep—Horsea.
Water-type Pokémon.
Ability: Swift Swim.
Moves: Water Gun, Leer, Smokescreen, Aurora Beam.
It maintains balance by coiling its tail like a spring. It's said to sometimes leap violently from the water and spray ink to knock down flying insects."
Lily scanned Horsea with her Pokédex as the little Pokémon curiously poked its head out of the bucket, fearless and lively.
"Horsea, I'll be counting on you from now on."
Emma smiled brightly.
Squirtle also waddled over, happily greeting its new companion.
Horsea narrowed its eyes, clearly pleased.
"It's a very outgoing little one," Ren chuckled.
"So, Miss Emma—Feebas is 100,000, Horsea is 200,000. That's 300,000 in total."
Even though Milotic would be incredibly rare in the future, Feebas itself was common. As for Horsea, it was ordinary but reliable.
"Swipe the card."
Emma pulled out her bank card without hesitation.
Three hundred thousand was nothing to her now.
Compared to how nervous she'd been buying her first Pokémon, her change in mindset was obvious.
At this point…
She genuinely felt like she'd gotten a bargain.