"That's not it..."
Roy explained softly, while simultaneously catching Delia's small hand that was moving stealthily.
Delia froze, and her face instantly turned beet red. Like a startled Eevee, she shrunk back and quickly pulled her hand away.
"Um, sorry, I misunderstood~"
Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, and she was too ashamed to look Roy in the eye.
Roy laughed, however, and pulled Delia directly into his arms with a sweep of his arm.
The tent was a cramped space, and their bodies were immediately pressed tightly together.
"It wasn't exactly a misunderstanding."
He leaned in close to Delia's ear, his warm breath brushing against her reddened earlobe. "Didn't I specifically let Pikachu go outside?"
With just one look, Delia understood instantly.
He wanted to... talk while... Delia bit her lower lip, her cheeks burning, and dutifully continued,
"The main thing is... you haven't fully conquered Misty yet, or spoken openly about that matter."
"I can't be too bold in releasing it for you... otherwise, if Misty finds out, how embarrassing would that be~"
"It's been hard on you all this way... training Pokemon, challenging Gyms, you must have accumulated a lot of pressure, right?"
She knew Roy's body all too well—young and full of vigor.
"Those are all minor issues."
Roy took a deep breath.
"I'm thinking about a victory-related issue... I want to accumulate 300 wins to achieve a certain milestone."
Delia had been thoroughly touched by Roy; their intimacy was far from ordinary.
Roy didn't hide anything from her and stated his goal directly.
"300 wins?"
A thoughtful look appeared in Delia's eyes.
She didn't ask "why," nor did she question "can it be done."
Instead, she immediately began helping Roy think of a way. This was Delia's character; once she committed to someone, she would support them unconditionally.
A top-tier virtuous wife is nothing more than this.
"300 is not a small number... that will take a lot of time."
"If we go looking for rookie Trainers to battle one by one..."
"It needs to be completed in a short amount of time."
Roy added the condition, adjusting his sitting posture.
"In a short time?"
She tilted her head in thought, her fullness unintentionally brushing against Roy's arm.
"Then relying on searching definitely won't work... unless..."
Her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Unless you can make them come to you for a match?"
These words were like a bolt of lightning, instantly clearing the fog in Roy's mind!
"That's right... let them come to me!"
He suddenly sat up straight.
Set up prizes!
Use rewards to attract those Trainers to challenge him voluntarily!
Why was the turnover of Trainers in the wild so fast?
Because there was no gain if you lost, and no benefit if you won.
But what if... there was enticing prize money?
Roy immediately pulled a map out of his backpack, checking it by the dim light in the tent.
"There's a village nearby... less than half a day's journey from here."
Roy pointed to a spot on the map.
"We can set up an arena there and use the village's pharmacy for medical supplies... the Potion issue is solved too."
A complete plan quickly took shape in his mind.
"Set up tiered prize money... the higher the win streak being ended, the more prize money..."
"This way, not only will it attract rookies, but even Trainers with some strength will be drawn in..."
The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed!
"Delia, you really are my virtuous helper!"
Roy excitedly hugged Delia and kissed her right on her rosy lips!
"Mm..."
Caught off guard, Delia let out a soft hum.
But she soon softened into Roy's passionate kiss.
After a long time, their lips parted.
Delia's eyes were hazy and her breathing was rapid; she hadn't been loved by Roy for a while.
Now, teased by the deep kiss, she also... "Wait..."
Panting, Delia pressed down on his hand, her face flushed red.
"Misty... Misty is still in the tent next door..."
She lowered her voice, her eyes full of shyness and worry.
"If we make too much noise, we'll be discovered..."
"Then don't make any sound." Roy gave a wicked smile. "Once we get busy... won't there be no time to make a sound?"
Delia understood what Roy meant instantly.
"You... you're so bad~"
She glared at Roy with a red face, but there was more flirtatiousness than anger in that look.
Without saying anything more, Delia shrunk under the quilt with shyness... Roy also adjusted his posture and covered himself with the quilt... Until midnight, they discussed the details of the arena in depth several times.
Only then did Delia reluctantly get up, tidy her clothes, and prepare to return to her own tent.
"Alright, we have to travel tomorrow morning. I'm going back now."
Roy gave her a slap on the buttocks, earning a shy roll of the eyes.
Delia quietly slipped out of the tent and sneaked back to her own.
Roy simply cleaned up the tent and fell into a deep sleep... The next morning.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves onto the campsite.
Misty was the first to crawl out of her tent, giving a big stretch.
"Ah~ I slept so well!"
Full of energy, she began packing her things.
But just as she went around to the back of Roy's tent to pick up some scattered twigs.
"Huh?"
Misty froze.
In the grass, several crumpled-up tissues were scattered about.
"Roy?"
Misty turned her head and looked at Roy, who was packing up his tent, with a face full of confusion.
"Do you have a cold? Why did you use so many tissues?"
Hearing this, Delia, who was helping pack, had her face turn beet red!
That was from last night... Roy said he would take care of the cleanup, but it turned out he just threw them behind the tent!
Delia's heart pounded like a drum, but she had to force herself to stay calm on the surface.
"Ah... y-yes!"
She hurriedly chimed in, her voice a bit tight.
"The temperature difference in the forest is large, it's easy to catch a cold! Misty, you should also take care of your health!"
Misty didn't suspect anything; instead, she patted her flat chest with a proud look.
"I'm strong! Not like that weakling Roy, catching a cold at the drop of a hat~"
Roy: "???"
He looked up with an innocent face, but seeing Delia desperately signaling him with her eyes, he could only swallow his words.
Fine, a weakling it is.
The three quickly packed up the camp, fed their Pokemon, and set off toward the village marked on the map... At noon.
They arrived at their destination—a small village, but one with fairly complete facilities.
There was a small square in the center of the village, usually used for markets or festivals.
Roy went straight to the Village Chief, explained his purpose, and paid a fee for the use of the venue.
The Village Chief, seeing the money, immediately nodded in agreement.
Next, Roy hung up an eye-catching banner in the center of the square.
[Win-Streak Arena Challenge! Huge Prize Money Waiting for You!]
Below, the rules were written in small letters:
"Arena Master: Roy."
"Rules: 1-on-1 Single Battle"
"Prize System:"
"End a 20-win streak — Reward: 10,000 alliance coins!"
"End a 50-win streak — Reward: 20,000 alliance coins!"
"End a 100-win streak — Reward: 50,000 alliance coins!"
"End a 200-win streak — Reward: 100,000 alliance coins!"
The last line was particularly conspicuous.
The news spread through the village like wildfire.
In less than half an hour, the square was surrounded by curious Trainers and villagers.
The moment Misty saw the prize amounts, her eyes bugged out!
"Roy!!!"
She grabbed Roy's arm, her voice changing pitch.
"Are you crazy?! 100,000 alliance coins! Are you planning to eat dirt later?"
"Even if you want to grind levels, you don't need to burn money like this, do you?! Why do you have to..."
"I want to accumulate 300 wins."
Roy interrupted her calmly, his gaze firm.
"Conventional methods are too slow; this is the fastest way."
"What kind of bizarre achievement is that? B-but..." Misty stamped her feet in anxiety. "What if someone actually ends your 300-win streak? Your 100,000 will be gone just like that..."
"It won't be ended."
The corner of Roy's mouth curled into a confident arc.
He patted the poké ball at his waist.
"I have that much confidence in my partners."
Misty wanted to say more, but just then.
"Hey! You, the Arena Master!"
An arrogant voice came from outside the crowd.
The crowd parted as a spiky-haired boy with his hands in his pockets sauntered into the square.
Beside him followed a Tyrogue, which was aggressively waving its fists at Roy.
"I heard there's prize money for ending a win streak, right?"
The spiky-haired boy tilted his chin up, looking down his nose at everyone.
"Perfect, I'm short on cash to buy poké balls! I'll be taking your money!"
He pointed at Roy, full of bravado.
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