Entering the Team Rocket base once more, Sieg couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at this mysterious facility hidden within the black market.
Following his memory from his last visit, he navigated the familiar terrain without lingering in the outer areas, heading straight for the third floor.
Normally, this level required mid-captain clearance to access. But Sieg was directly under Executive Archer's command.
His clearance had naturally been elevated, so even as a squad leader, he could enter the third floor.
Compared to the bustling first and second floors, this place was noticeably quieter, almost sparse.
The scattered crowds were almost entirely Team Rocket members.
Sieg approached the exchange list display screen. The reason he hadn't sold his Pokémon in the outside black market was precisely for what stood before him now.
The exchange list's variety of treasures was genuinely tempting.
Compared to the League's secretive approach, where you had to climb through clearance levels just to see better exchange options, Team Rocket was far more transparent. Even if you were just a regular grunt, you could view the exchange listings for pseudo-legendary Pokémon.
Though the endless zeros on those price tags were certainly discouraging.
Sieg walked over to the exchange office, where Team Rocket members could convert items into points. These points were called Rocket Points, somewhat similar to the League's merit system.
The office had quite a few people, but most were just spectators. Only one person was actually queuing at the service window.
Suddenly, commotion erupted at the front of the line. The onlookers all crowded over to see what was happening.
"Sir, are you certain you want to spend all the Rocket Points in your account?"
The receptionist asked cautiously. As a mere logistics staff member, he naturally didn't dare offend a mid-captain.
"That's right. Cut the chatter and exchange it for that Bulbasaur, number 004." The middle-aged man in line said impatiently.
The middle-aged man wore a mid-captain's badge on his chest. Reaching mid-captain at his age meant he had virtually no prospects for advancement within Team Rocket.
Still, the Rocket Points needed to exchange for a starter Pokémon were no joke. This mid-captain had probably saved up for years to afford it.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Can't believe he actually went through with exchanging for a starter."
"He's probably desperate, right? Wants to train that starter to a higher level and try for a promotion to captain."
The other mid-captains watching the spectacle whispered amongst themselves, pointing and gossiping about the one exchanging for the starter.
The mid-captain who'd made the exchange remained expressionless. After silently collecting the incubator and Pokémon egg the staff handed him, he left the exchange office.
When the crowd of mid-captains saw the show was over, they lost interest and dispersed as well.
Seeing the service window finally clear, Sieg quickly walked over and sat down.
"Hello, sir. Are you here to exchange for items, or to convert into Rocket Points?" The receptionist asked Sieg eagerly.
After noticing the squad leader badge on Sieg's chest, he paused for a second or two in slight surprise, but quickly recovered. "Sir, if you're here to process a promotion to mid-captain, please head to the administrative hall."
Without a word, Sieg pulled four Poké Balls from his spatial ring and pushed them across the counter.
"Converting to Rocket Points."
Sieg's statement was brief, but the receptionist didn't dare show any negligence. He hurriedly placed the Poké Balls into a nearby testing device.
He pressed a button, and the machine whirred to life.
Data appeared in rows on the adjacent screen, drawing the attention of the spectators in the office.
"Hello, sir. Both the Ursaring and Persian are above level 30 with excellent potential. We can exchange them for 600 Rocket Points. Does that work for you?"
The receptionist pulled out freshly printed papers from the data console, showing detailed information about the two Pokémon.
600 Rocket Points converted to roughly 600,000 Pokédollars. While the price was slightly lower than market value, it was still acceptable.
After all, Rocket Points were far more valuable than Pokédollars.
This was evident from the exchange rules themselves.
Team Rocket allowed converting Rocket Points into Pokédollars, but not the reverse.
Sieg agreed. He then placed his Team Rocket ID card on the console in front of him and performed a simple operation.
After pressing the confirmation button, the Poké Balls in the machine's slot instantly vanished.
Poké Ball teleportation technology.
Team Rocket had naturally mastered this practical technology and applied it to every aspect of their operations.
"However, sir, these two Pokémon..."
The receptionist looked at the two newly printed sheets, struggling to determine the price for these Pokémon. The Emolga was straightforward enough, just a cute-looking Pokémon with limited practical use in combat.
But that Pichu was actually shiny!
"That's right. This Pichu is shiny."
Sieg nodded calmly, stating it with complete certainty.
The receptionist was now in a bind, his face creased with worry as he didn't know how to proceed.
This base had never had a precedent for shiny Pokémon, so there was simply no way to determine the price.
Even the machine displayed only the standard Pichu's value, since it judged based on the database.
After all, from a pure stats perspective, shiny Pokémon had no difference from regular ones. In fact, because shinies were too "special" and often driven out by their groups, they survived alone in the wild often with poor nutrition and development.
Machines were cold and only looked at data.
But for humans, shiny Pokémon were undeniably rare, and rarity meant value!
This was why machines couldn't determine the specific value of shiny Pokémon. People who loved them truly loved them, willing to pay astronomical prices, even bankrupting themselves without hesitation.
Those who didn't care for them dismissed them entirely. These people prioritized practicality, and a shiny didn't make the Pokémon any stronger, it just looked different.
"Sir, the exchange office has never had a precedent for shiny Pokémon. How about this... I suggest you list it on Team Rocket's auction network."
The receptionist first expressed his difficulty in pricing it, but fearing he might anger Sieg, he offered a decent suggestion.
Sieg pondered this. Listing it on Team Rocket's auction network was indeed a solution, though it would cost a certain amount of Rocket Points per day to keep it listed.
"But as long as the shiny sells, it'll bring in at least over a thousand Rocket Points, possibly far more..."
Sieg had already made up his mind.
After reviewing the Emolga's data, he confirmed the exchange at 150 Rocket Points.
With that, Sieg's Rocket Points account now held 750 points, worth roughly 750,000 Pokédollars in conversion. But no one would be foolish enough to actually make that exchange.
After all, Pokédollars were easy to come by. Rocket Points were hard to earn.