Old man Juro sighed heavily, his grip tightening on his wooden cane as he stared at his unconscious Staraptor. He pressed the button on his Poké Ball, recalling the defeated bird in a flash of red light.
"Well, kid. A deal's a deal," Juro grunted, his gruff voice carrying a mix of reluctance and genuine respect. "You won fair and square. Our business here is over. You can walk out of here knowing you have the Time Gang's respect."
Juro turned around, gesturing for his men to clear the path.
"I want compensation," Eric said.
Juro stopped. He looked over his shoulder, his thick eyebrows knitting together. "Excuse me?"
"You endangered a small Pokemon, then dragged me into this nonsensical fight. Now that I won, I want compensation."
"Are you out of your mind, kid?!" the pompadour-wearing thug yelled, stepping forward. "Boss Juro just gave you a pass! You think you can extort the Time Gang?!"
Eric didn't even look at him. His deadpan eyes remained locked on Juro.
"A Tier-3 Flying-type crystal. Hand it over, and we'll call it even."
"Are you crazy?!" the thug shrieked, his eyes bulging out of his head. "Do you know how much one of those costs?! That's at least fifteen million Pokédollars! You can buy a mansion with that!"
Eric didn't budge. He just stood there, waiting. Haunter's eyes gleamed menacingly from the shadows, daring anyone to take another step.
Juro stared at Eric for a long, tense moment. He looked at the kid's unyielding posture, then at the terrifying ghost hovering behind him. Finally, the old gang boss let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"You've got balls of steel, kid. I'll give you that," Juro muttered. He reached into his coat and tossed a small, glowing silken pouch through the air.
Eric caught it effortlessly. He opened the drawstring, confirming the dense, swirling white-blue energy of a pure Tier-3 Flying crystal resting inside.
"Consider us even," Juro grunted. "Now get out of here before Jackman changes his mind and decides to swarm you."
Eric nodded once, slipping the pouch into his spatial watch. He picked up the baby Kangaskhan, who was happily chewing on the last remnants of a Poffin, and walked past the parted sea of gangsters without another word.
As they left the gorge behind and entered the quieter, winding trails of Route 204, Eric's thoughts naturally drifted to the battered bird resting in her Poké Ball.
Fearow had fought incredibly today. She had the willpower, but her potential was severely capping her growth.
Currently, Fearow had a Green potential. Based on the data he had accumulated till now, Green potential placed a hard cap on her energy density. The maximum she could physically refine her flying-type energy to was Grade 4 (Superior).
In the Pokémon world, it was generally understood that the vast majority of King-class Pokémon possessed Grade 5 (Supreme) energy.
Theoretically, it was possible to reach the King Class even without that, as there were some King class Pokemon recorded to have only Grade 4 energy, but in any case, King-class would be the absolute limit for Fearow as she is right now.
For 99% of the world's trainers, reaching the King class was a pipe dream. It was a level of strength that demanded respect everywhere they'd go.
But Fearow had never compared herself to 99% of the world.
She compared herself to Haunter. She compared herself to Poliwrath. And soon, she would compare herself to Ralts and Growlithe. And Eric knew for a fact that King class was definitely not where Haunter and the rest were going to stop.
If Fearow hit her ceiling while the others kept climbing, even if she became a King-class powerhouse, she wouldn't be satisfied. It would do a disservice to her fighting spirit.
'With my advanced Pokéblocks and training, raising her to Deep Green will be no trouble,' Eric calculated silently as he walked. 'If I spend a good amount of resources, I can probably push her into the Light Blue tier.'
But to truly keep up with the monsters on his team, she would, at the bare minimum, need to reach Purple potential.
Taking a Pokémon born with a base Yellow potential, navigating them through Green and Blue, all the way to Purple, let alone Gold... well, it was safe to say not many people attempted such a thing. The cost-to-benefit ratio was too bad to be worth it.
But so what?
Eric looked down at the Poké Balls on his belt. A soft, genuine smile touched his lips.
It wasn't impossible. And now that he had decided to help her reach the top, he was going to do it. It didn't matter how many millions of Pokédollars it cost, or how inefficient it was compared to just catching a stronger Pokémon.
Eric wasn't the same desperate, traumatized kid he was when he first woke up in this world. Back then, every decision had been ruthlessly dictated by pure survival and efficiency.
Now, he cared. He cared about what his Pokémon wanted, what they needed, and the pride they carried. They were his family.
His train of thought was violently interrupted by the sound of snapping trees.
CRASH!
"KAAANGA!"
A massive, kangaroo-like Pokémon burst through the treeline just fifty meters ahead. It was a fully grown Kangaskhan, and she looked absolutely frantic, her eyes darting around wildly as she tore through the brush.
Her eyes locked onto Eric. More specifically, they locked onto the baby Kangaskhan resting comfortably in his arms.
The mother's frantic expression instantly mutated into pure, maternal hostility. Assuming Eric was a poacher who had stolen her infant, she let out a furious roar, her fist glowing with lethal Normal-type energy as she prepared to charge a devastating Mega Punch.
"Whoa, easy," Eric said calmly, stopping in his tracks.
He didn't summon Poliwrath to defend himself. Instead, he gently placed the baby Kangaskhan on the grass and gave it a soft nudge forward.
"Go to your mom," he urged.
"Kanga!" The baby chirped happily, instantly recognizing its mother. It waddled across the grass as fast as its stubby legs could carry it.
The mother Kangaskhan froze, the glowing energy around her fist dissipating entirely. She dropped to her knees, scooping the baby up in her massive arms and checking it frantically for injuries. Finding none, and noticing the lingering smell of sweet Poffins on the infant's breath, she looked back up at Eric.
The hostility in her eyes was gone, replaced by an overwhelming sense of relief.
She offered Eric a deep, respectful bow of gratitude, clutching her baby safely to her chest. Then, turning around, she disappeared back into the safety of the thick forest.
Eric watched them go, adjusting his jacket against the wind.
"Alright," Eric murmured, continuing his trek down Route 204. "Let's get back to it."
The rest of the journey toward Floaroma Town was exactly what Eric had originally planned: an uninterrupted, highly efficient training trip.
The wild Pokémon native to this route served as perfect sparring partners for the juniors. Under Eric's meticulous guidance, Ralts and Shinx sharpened their combat senses, their confidence growing with every skirmish.
By the time the sprawling, flower-covered fields of Floaroma Town appeared on the horizon, the results of the trip were crystal clear.
Fearow, after a round of battling, levelled up to 36.
And even Haunter was close to breaking through the final threshold and reaching the Advanced Level!