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At 3:30 AM, the train from Saffron City to Pewter City departed right on schedule. Under the guidance of a beautiful attendant, Sato smoothly entered a private cabin.
The entire compartment was decorated luxuriously. If Sato hadn't known he was on a train, he might have mistaken it for a high-end hotel room. Though the space was still limited, it was equipped with the essentials of a three-room suite.
Sato had traveled by train before and was well aware of the usual conditions. Given that he was carrying a considerable sum of money and wanted a good night's sleep, he naturally didn't skimp on comfort.
A first-class train ticket costing 50,000 PokeDollars granted him access to the finest services available onboard. The spacious, soundproofing and shock absorption in the cabin were excellent, ensuring Sato could have a quiet and pleasant night on the train.
"You can leave now. If I need anything, I'll ring for you."
After inspecting the room and finding nothing amiss, Sato dismissed the attendant.
With a soft thud, the door closed behind her.
Sato then immediately jumped onto the soft bed, sprawling out without a care, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
.....
It wasn't until around 9 AM that Sato slowly woke up. The first thing he did was ring for the attendant to bring him a hearty breakfast before heading to the bathroom to freshen up.
After a hot shower, Sato felt refreshed and rejuvenated. He changed into a sea-blue Elite Trainer outfit and emerged from the bathroom.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
Ten minutes later, Sato had prepared breakfast for all his Pokémon and sat down to eat with them, enjoying a pleasant morning meal together.
Once they had finished eating, he pulled out some indoor workout equipment, such as dumbbells, a treadmill, and a running wheel, all suited for training in a confined space.
Time was valuable, and even on a train, Sato refused to let his Pokémon slack off on their daily training. He had Swampert, Nidoran, and Growlithe—his land-dwelling Pokémon—use the equipment for stamina training.
Meanwhile, Golbat, his shiny Pelipper, and his shiny Beautifly took to the skies. He had them fly outside the train, maintaining pace with the moving cars while staying within his line of sight.
As for Sato himself, he supervised their training while flipping through two Pokémon breeding books he had bought from Saffron City's underground black market.
.....
The distance between Saffron City and Pewter City was roughly equivalent to that between New York and Dallas. If the train tracks were laid in a perfectly straight line, the journey would only take around six hours at full speed.
However, such an ideal scenario was impossible in reality. The route between Saffron City and Pewter City crossed numerous Pokémon habitats, requiring detours for safety and to accommodate towns along the way.
As a result, the trip from Saffron City to Pewter City took at least ten hours of non-stop travel—longer if there were stops along the way.
It had been just over six hours since Sato boarded, meaning he still had a long way to go before reaching his destination.
After an hour of training, Sato had his Pokémon take a break.. He recalled all but Golbat and Swampert into their PokeBalls.
Swampert, guard the door. No one enters without my permission. If anyone tries to force their way in, take them down."
Sato's expression was serious as he gave his orders.
Having been with him for a long time, both Golbat and Swampert understood exactly what he meant. They nodded and got to work.
Golbat flew to the ceiling, hanging upside down, and closed its eyes, focusing entirely on emitting ultrasonic waves to monitor the surroundings in detail.
Swampert, on the other hand, plopped down in front of the door, its massive body completely blocking the entrance. Like Golbat, it remained vigilant, fully focused on its task.
Seeing that both Pokémon were ready, Sato quickly pulled the curtains shut, plunging the room into darkness.
He then took out a sleek black briefcase from his belongings.
Inside was an exceptionally rare and valuable blade, but Sato's goal wasn't the weapon itself—it was the two gemstones embedded in the hilt, which contained the essence of two Legendary Pokémon.
He was preparing to let the system absorb their power.
To prevent accidents, Sato instructed his Pokémon to close their eyes, then donned a pair of sunglasses himself. Once everything was set, he slowly opened the briefcase.
Instantly, a blinding red light shot out from the crack of the briefcase. Fortunately, Sato was wearing sunglasses, or he would have been blinded by the light and dragged into another illusion.
Just like the first time Sato had seen it, the sword was as sharp and menacing as ever, its aura of malice causing Sato's skin to prickle.
This blade had been drenched in the blood of countless Elite-tier Pokémon—it had become a cursed weapon. Only its original wielder, Argus, had ever truly controlled it.
Naturally, Sato wasn't foolish enough to try holding the sword himself. Instead, he pressed his fingers against the two gemstones embedded in the blade.
[Ding!]
[Detecting absorbable energy. Do you wish to proceed? The system is currently low on power. It is recommended to absorb immediately.]
A cold, mechanical voice echoed in Sato's mind.
'As expected… this is going to work. Absorb!' Sato thought excitedly, immediately instructing the system to absorb the energy.
[Ding!]
[Energy absorption in progress… Absorption complete.]
[System energy restored by 20%. Current system energy: 27%.]
[System store unlocked.]
[Ding!]
[Confirmed: Absorbed energy originates from Groudon and Kyogre.]
Sato's heartbeat quickened at the notification, his face breaking into a delighted grin.
'Finally! The system store is unlocked. The power of Legendary Pokémon really is terrifying… Just a tiny trace of their primal power restored 20% of the system's energy. I can't imagine how terrifying the true power of a super Legendary Pokémon must be,' Sato thought to himself.
Meanwhile, the two gemstones on the blade dimmed, their once radiant glow fading away, leaving behind ordinary red and blue jewels.
With the primal energies gone, the red light emanating from the blade vanished as well.
Though the weapon's murderous aura remained strong, it no longer carried the same mind-numbing, soul-crushing pressure as before.
"...And so, Argus' blade, like the legendary hero himself, becomes part of history. Thank you for your contributions to humanity's rise… but your time has passed. Rest now."
Sato closed the briefcase with a solemn expression and stored it away in his storage equipment.
Now that he had successfully extracted the energy and unlocked the system store, he dismissed Swampert and Golbat from their guard duties and recalled them into their PokeBalls.
He then lay down on the bed, closed his eyes, and focused on exploring the System Store to see what treasures it held.
To his surprise, the store's inventory was incredibly sparse—only five items were available. Worse, the cost to redeem them was steep, requiring the very system energy he had just worked so hard to obtain.
However, each item possessed extraordinary effects.
System Store Items:
1. Mew Gene Enhancement Serum – Randomly increases a Pokémon's Individual Values (IVs) by 1 to 30 points.
Cost: 5% system energy
Description: Mew contains the genes of all Pokémon in the world. This serum, created using Mew's genetic cells, can repair a Pokémon's genetic makeup, improving its IV rating and potential.
2. Multi-Space PokeBall – Stores up to 20 Pokémon.
Cost: 5% system energy
Description: A special PokeBall utilizing space-folding technology, featuring an internal ecosystem suitable for the habitation of various Pokémon..
3. Random Ability Capsule – Grants a Pokémon a random additional ability upon use.
Cost: 10% system energy
4. Groudon's Blessing Mark – Enhances Ground-type energy perception, reduces Ground-type move damage by 30%, boosts Ground-type move power by 50%, and grants the user the Drought ability.
Cost: 30% system energy
Description: A miraculous mark containing a trace of Groudon's primal energy, allowing the user to gain a fraction of the ancient Legendary Pokémon's power.
5. Kyogre's Blessing Mark – Enhances Water-type energy perception, reduces Water-type move damage by 30%, boosts Water-type move power by 50%, and grants the user the Drizzle ability.
Cost: 30% system energy
Description: A miraculous mark containing a trace of Kyogre's primal energy, allowing the user to gain a fraction of the ancient Legendary Pokémon's power.
Sato's eyes gleamed with excitement.
"These five items are all incredible treasures. Especially the Mew Gene Enhancement Serum and the Multi-Space PokéBall—they'd be of massive help to me right now," Sato thought after carefully reviewing the items in the System Store.
From the current selection, Groudon's Blessing Mark and Kyogre's Blessing Mark were undoubtedly the most valuable. However, Sato found their exchange conditions to be extremely expensive.
Sato was a perfectionist and someone who valued loyalty. He didn't want to abandon any of his Pokémon due to limitations.
Currently, he only had three Pokémon with gold-tier potential: Bellossom, Shiny Beautifly, and Meowth. (Pichu egg not included)
Most of his other Pokémon were purple-tier, with Growlithe even being blue-tier. The Mew Gene Enhancement Serum gave him hope that these Pokémon could continue to fight alongside him.
Moreover, the exchange condition for the Mew Gene Enhancement Serum wasn't excessively high, and Sato could still afford it.
The Multi-Space PokéBall was also a pleasant surprise for Sato.
As the number of Pokémon Sato owned increased, the standard PokéBall belt, which could only hold six Poké Balls, was no longer sufficient.
Currently, he had nine Pokémon.
Including Ditto, which usually didn't stay in a Poké Ball, Sato typically carried eight Poké Balls with him at all times.
According to League regulations, a Trainer could only carry six Pokémon at a time. Any additional Pokémon had to be sent to a designated storage facility.
The reason Sato hadn't encountered a situation like Ash, where excess Pokémon were automatically sent away, was that he hadn't registered with any Pokémon storage facility.
Once Sato registered with a storage facility, he would only be allowed to carry six Pokémon at a time, with any extras being automatically sent to the facility.
While nine Pokémon might not seem like a lot now, if Sato continued to catch more, he would soon be carrying an excessive number of PokéBalls.
(Note: PokéBalls containing Pokémon cannot be stored in spatial storage devices.)
As for why Sato didn't choose to store his extra Pokémon elsewhere, the reason was simple: he didn't trust others. He preferred to personally care for every Pokémon he caught.
Of course, Sato might eventually catch far more than 20 Pokémon, and it would be impossible for him to care for all of them alone; but by then, Sato believed he would have established his own base, where he could safely store his Pokémon.
In fact, the Multi-Space PokéBall was quite exceptional.
A single ball could hold up to 20 Pokémon, allowing Sato to seamlessly switch between his identities as a League Trainer and a Rocket Trainer.
It also allowed Sato to play the underdog. Who would expect someone seemingly carrying only one PokéBall to have 20 powerful Pokémon at their disposal?
The most outrageous part was that all 20 Pokémon could be incredibly strong.
With a single throw of the PokéBall, the situation could instantly turn in Sato's favor, which, given his luck and track record with troublesome situations, would be incredibly helpful.