On the morning of the next day, Alex and Maylene were still having sex when they were discovered by horrified Gym Trainers. It wasn't the fact that they were having sex or completely drenched in their own fluids that horrified them, but that the entire third floor of the gym had been ruined.
Mats were torn from the floor, body shapes were imprinted into the concrete, and fluids stained the floor, walls, and even the tall ceiling. It was a nightmare-inducing scene brought about by a pair of Champion ranked trainers in heat.
Maylene apologized profusely while shoving Alex out the door. Before he left, however, he received a promise, more accurately, a threat, that she would be visiting his base to check up on Jenna's Pokémon every once in a while to make sure they were being properly taken care of.
Alex was more than happy to host her. Although, he was worried about what would happen to the base if they had sex again, so he planned to have Celise do something about it. Either a separate reinforced room specifically for sex between Champions or a heavy reinforcement on the master bedroom. Either way, he'd simply toss the problem to Celise.
Alex made his way to the police station where he teleported from Veilstone City to Interpol Headquarters before teleporting to Saffron City, then finally the base where he offloaded all the spoils they had collected over the past two months.
There were literally more things in his space bag than their warehouses could hold, so he simply handed the appropriate bags to the girls. The metals, minerals, and move crystals went to Rhea. The weather stones went to Kaia. The fossils and held items went to Simone for distribution.
As for the Pokémon, they were released into the backyard before being introduced to Vera, who would take charge of feeding them. She was worried at first about having to feed so many Pokémon and even considered adding a bounty for cheap meat, but Alex tossed her several space bags filled to the brim with Expert and Elite ranked meat, taking care of the problem.
After Alex received Lucario and his teammate's promise to behave, he called for a quick meeting regarding upgrades to prepare for Champion ranked mating. Celise felt a headache coming on, while Nyx bounced in her seat as he recounted the story, her ambition to reach Champion rank burning in her eyes. Who knew Champions could go at it for so long or endure so much physical abuse so easily?
With his to-do list at the base settled, Alex teleported back to Sinnoh, arriving in Eterna City before immediately diving underground to search for Lyra, Mika, and Sable. Once they regrouped, they continued digging on their merry way.
Four months and two visits to the base to offload their spoils later, they had finally managed to collect a hundred thousand Spheres. They had to dig through all the unclaimed mining spots all over Sinnoh to achieve it, but they eventually succeeded in reaching their goal.
As for Alex's goal of earning 100 million credits, he was actually in deficit, having to pay the girls a total of 40 million credits, 20 to Sable and 10 each to Lyra and Mika. This was because he had purchased everything they earned through digging, aside from the Spheres, with all of it ending up at the base.
It was excessive, but Alex would no longer have to worry about lacking resources for Rhea, no matter how extreme her projects became. Well, except when they required particularly rare resources, but at least he wouldn't have to take odd jobs from Team Vortex anymore.
Now, they were headed for Eterna Grand Underground, where the most populated Grand Market was located. Once they arrived at the designated location, they easily entered and found themselves in a complete city.
It looked as if someone had simply teleported a city underground. Commercial buildings of all sizes lined the streets alongside modest houses and walled-off compounds. Giant Spheres were embedded in the walls and the cavern ceiling, bathing the city in a natural, warm light that made the underground environment feel almost like aboveground. The air was surprisingly fresh, carrying the mingled scents of food, earth, flowers, and machinery, making the Grand Market feel alive, open, and vibrant despite being miles beneath the surface.
The streets were alive with merchants and shoppers, the air thick with the scent of exotic spices, sizzling food, and the tang of rare minerals. Stalls lined every corridor, selling everything from high-grade Poké Balls and rare TMs to forbidden items that no aboveground government would allow. Neon signs and glowing crystals illuminated the area, casting sharp reflections on the polished stone floors.
There was no government presence here. No guards, no regulations, no rules beyond what the vendors and patrons enforced themselves. Crime and barter coexisted with casual commerce. Despite the chaos, a strange sense of order persisted, guided entirely by reputation and the threat of immediate retaliation.
"Where to now?" Lyra asked, excitement bubbling in her voice. She could already guess there were plenty of people here with hefty bounties on their heads.
"We should find a place to gather information first," Alex said. "All we have from the packet are the basic rules and the popular attractions like drug dens, slave markets, and prostitution rings. Nothing useful to us."
"Hey, Alex?" Mika asked in an unusually calm manner.
"Yes?"
"Are we going to bust those places?"
"Are you okay with killing everyone here and quite possibly all of Eterna City?" Alex asked back.
"Can't we—"
"If the League can't, we sure as hell can't either, Mika," Alex interrupted as he slowed to walk beside her. "The most we can ever do is rescue a handful of people, but it will never stop. There will always be more people to rescue so long as humans exist and thrive. It's just how humans are."
"But—"
"That said," Alex interrupted again, moving closer and taking her hand, giving her a reassuring squeeze, "I am willing to sponsor your escapades and guarantee your life after we finish our business here. Letting you run off and play vigilante would help build up our reputation to attract more money."
Mika smiled sweetly at Alex's compromise. She knew he wasn't a knight in shining armor like she used to fantasize. He was, however, a gray knight who would happily protect those under him from the worst repercussions of their actions. His words ultimately meant to go ahead and do as she pleased after he had accomplished his goals.
They made their way through the streets to a relatively empty noodle shop and sat at a table. It wasn't the least bit awkward having three heavily armored patrons in the shop, considering the average person in the city was wearing something similar, including pistols at their waist. Guns have become more mainstream, especially among criminals who are eager to have a bit more power, even when their use in a Pokémon battle is generally limited.
A waiter quickly came over to take their orders.
"One Pidgeotto Special," Sable ordered. "Also, I have a hundred thousand Spheres to spend. Do you have any ideas where I could put them to good use?"
The waiter's eyes widened before he looked around and then suddenly took a more professional stance.
"There are a number of establishments in the city that would interest you," he replied. "There's the Kennel, where they have a wide selection of Pokémon to choose from; the Armory, where you can get better guns; and the Eterna Grand Market General Store, which is also a great place to get everything you'd need. Finally, with the amount you have, you would be able to secure a private booth in the upcoming auction hosted by Marlo Fenwick himself."
Marlo Fenwick was the owner of the Grand Market, a Champion ranked trainer at the upper end, who had been running the city for decades.
"Tell me more about this auction," Sable inquired.
"It is hosted once a year and features the best of everything the Grand Market has to offer: Pokémon, technologies, trade secrets, properties, and statues, as well as drugs, guns, restricted Pokémon, and even humans."
"How much would four tickets cost?"
"For you, miss, free of charge, if you provide evidence of your finances."
Sable smiled and took out a space bag filled to the brim with Spheres.
The waiter took a modest peek before smiling brightly.
"You'll have your tickets by the time you finish your meals."
"Excellent."
Sable enjoyed her meal while Alex, Lyra, and Mika looked around, playing their part as bodyguards before the waiter returned with four golden cards. Each card carried VIP stamped in bold, along with the auction's address and start time.
Once Sable finished her meal, they left the shop, and she turned to Alex.
"Are you sure we'll attract attention with this?" Sable asked. "I mean, Umbraline is known to be discreet, and I doubt the auction would tarnish their reputation for a hundred thousand Spheres."
"The key here isn't to attract as many as possible, but to attract the right ones. Quality over quantity," Alex answered. "Besides, you're just a budding Champion at most, with three bodyguards. One Champion ranked trainer would be more than enough to take care of us."
"All we have to do now is waste a bit of time until the auction."
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