"Boss, how much is this Nidoran♀?"
"Nidoran♀ is 190,000."
"No way, that's too expensive!"
"It's not expensive for real trainers," Ren replied calmly. "Nidoran♀ will grow into a very strong Pokémon in the future."
He shook his head slightly.
Another customer pointed at a small brown rabbit Pokémon. "Boss, can this brown rabbit even fight?"
Ren kept his polite smile. "Its name is Buneary. It may look small, but it can easily knock down a full-grown adult."
Easily.
If Buneary really threw a punch, the customer might end up coughing out their lunch.
After quite a bit of back-and-forth, Ren finally escorted the five overly curious customers out of the shop.
As expected—they only came to take photos and "check in." Not a single purchase.
"Hard work, Boss."
Emma walked over as Ren returned to the rest area and sat down.
"Thanks for helping earlier," Ren said. "Five people asking questions at once was a bit much."
"You're welcome," Emma replied with a playful wink. "We're all your students, after all."
Not long ago, she and Lily had been just like the new customers—confused and full of questions. Ren had patiently explained everything to them back then.
"Boss," Lily said after taking a sip of juice, "now that your shop is getting popular, have you thought about expanding? Maybe hiring employees?"
"Expansion is definitely happening," Ren nodded. "I'm planning to take the storefronts on both sides."
The shop was getting cramped.
He was already considering hiring one or two employees. The job wasn't complicated—cashier work, packing items like energy cubes, cleaning, and helping explain things when the shop got busy.
"Oh, and I need to put proper price tags on the bulletin board," Ren muttered. "Otherwise everyone keeps asking why everything's so expensive."
Lowering prices wasn't an option. That was tied directly to his main mission.
Suddenly, Ren slapped his forehead.
"Oh right—I unlocked the Technical Machine prize pool. Want to try it?"
Lily's eyes instantly lit up. "Yes! I'm drawing!"
Ren brought up the Technical Machine interface on the store manager Pokédex and handed it over.
"The price is 5,000 per draw. Completely random. Physical, special, status moves—anything. There's also a chance of… nothing."
"Totally fine!" Lily transferred the money and immediately hit the button.
She stared intensely at the spinning wheel.
Come on. A Dragon-type move. Dragon Rush. Something amazing!
The wheel stopped.
Four bold words appeared:
Thank you for your patronage.
Lily slowly turned her head toward Ren, her expression blank.
Ren coughed awkwardly. "Ah… I forgot to mention. There's a 30% chance of getting nothing. And you can only draw once per day."
Lily's luck had struck again.
"Emma, your turn," Ren said decisively.
Emma transferred the money and tapped the button.
A few seconds later—
Congratulations! You obtained TM18 – Rain Dance!
Lily froze.
Emma blinked. "I… got it?"
Ren smiled. "Rain Dance changes the weather to rain. Water-type moves become stronger, Fire-type moves become weaker."
"Change the weather?" Lily and Emma said at the same time.
"Yes. There are also moves like Sunny Day, Sandstorm, and Hail."
"So even if it's bright and sunny…" Lily swallowed. "It'll turn rainy?"
"Of course."
Lily stared at Emma in disbelief.
Isn't this basically controlling the sky?
Ren chuckled. "The duration and range depend on the Pokémon's strength. It's not unlimited—except for certain legendary cases."
Emma held the blue disc tightly. "Boss, I want this move."
It suited her perfectly. All four of her Pokémon were Water-type.
"No problem."
Ren flipped his hand casually—and a blue CD materialized in his palm.
"Whoa!" Lily gasped. "Boss, you can do magic?"
Ren only smiled. "Let's call it magic."
He handed the Rain Dance Technical Machine to Emma. "Have you decided which Pokémon will learn it?"
"What do you think?" Emma asked.
"In the long run, all your Water-types should know it. But right now…" Ren paused. "Lapras would benefit the most."
Emma nodded. That was her ace.
She released Lapras from its Poké Ball.
"How do I use it?" she asked.
"Place it on Lapras's forehead. That's enough."
Emma carefully pressed the disc against Lapras's forehead.
A sea-blue glow burst from the CD. In just ten seconds, the light flowed entirely into Lapras's body. The disc in Emma's hand turned gray and lifeless.
"It's done?" Emma blinked.
Lily quickly scanned Lapras with the Pokédex.
"It learned Rain Dance! That's insanely fast!"
"Technical Machines are one-time items," Ren explained. "And they only work if the Pokémon is compatible."
Emma carefully placed the now-gray disc into her bag as a keepsake.
"Boss," she said eagerly, "can we try it?"
"Of course. Let's head to the backyard."
—
The three stood behind the shop.
The sky was clear and bright. Ren stood calmly beneath the eaves. Lily stood beside him.
Emma held an umbrella Ren had provided.
"Lapras, use Rain Dance."
"Wooo~"
Lapras let out a soft, melodious cry. A faint blue aura shimmered around it.
The next second—
Dark clouds gathered above the Pokémon House.
The bright sky dimmed.
Raindrops began to fall.
Within seconds, heavy rain poured down, drenching the area above the shop.
Lily stared in shock.
Ren glanced upward thoughtfully. "The range is still small… only covering the shop."
That was expected. Lapras was still relatively young.
But to Emma and Lily—
This was nothing short of miraculous.
Lily watched the rain fall, her voice trembling.
"That's insane… It really changed the sky."
The heavens had shifted—
With a single command.
-------------Author---------------
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