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Hi all,

Here's the next chapter. Lucas explores the mine and visits a black market, where he encounters another familiar character.

Chapter 18

Lucas browsed through Paul's journal, hoping it would reveal the location of the mine.

One entry in particular piqued his interest, as it described Paul's unpleasant experience at the black market. He had inadvertently given a vendor some information about the mine, though it was not overt. The vendor appeared suspicious, as he asked a few probing questions, prompting Paul to leave the market quickly.

"Perhaps the vendor had something to do with Paul's death," Lucas speculated.

He would have to be careful. It's possible that the person who murdered Paul was still in the area. If they had any knowledge of the mines, they could be looking for them or have already discovered them. They wouldn't want someone else coming along to take a slice of the pie.

Anyone who discovers a previously unknown natural resource has the right to claim ownership. However, the government has the right to claim half of the resources for itself. Rather than disclosing their discovery, most people would sell their assets on the black market.

Lucas continued flipping through the pages until he found a sketch of a map. It provided clear directions to a rocky area northeast of the cabin. It wouldn't take long to get there because it was only a few miles away. He could make the trip to check it out and return to the city by nightfall.

Paul had written some specific information about the mines on the adjacent page.

I did some preliminary testing and discovered that the mine contains a wealth of Rock, Ground, and Steel evolution stones. Unfortunately, mining them by hand will be nearly impossible because they are buried in extremely hard rock that even my Pokemon cannot easily break down. I need to widen the entrance to accommodate specialised equipment. I also need to construct support beams because the mine is unstable. While exploring the first level, I felt several tremors that scared me so much that I almost pissed myself. It could be that some of the unrefined evolution stones have become oversaturated with energy which has caused them to explode.

I have encountered another issue. A group of Geodudes and Gravellers occupy the mine's second level. It was not safe for me to leave the first level, but I scanned a few of them with my energy scanner, and they were all higher than level twenty-five. My Pokemon aren't strong enough to take them on, so I will have to find another solution. Maybe I should start training my Pokemon more seriously.

The mines should be secure because the entrance is a small hole in the ground that I can barely fit through. I have no idea how the Pokemon inside left the mine. Perhaps there is another exit on the second level? To keep others from accidentally discovering the mine, I had my Machop push a boulder over the entrance.

An energy scanner was a device that could estimate a Pokemon's level by reading the amount of energy they possessed. Lucas never bothered with it because his insight skill offered a more effective measurement.

The mines sounded like more trouble than they were worth, but he could look for the Pokemon Eggs for the time being. He didn't like that there were Geodudes and Gravellers in the mine, as both of his Pokemon were ineffective against them. If he wanted to explore the second level, then he would have to wait until he had Dratini in the team, or another Pokemon strong against rock-types.

Lucas closed the journal and threw it into his inventory. He didn't want anyone else to find it.

"We will explore one more place before returning to the city," he told his Pokemon.

"Kid!" Max was always ready for more adventure.

"Pidgey?" Icarus tilted his head towards the cabin.

He understood what Icarus was trying to say. "I will report the man's death when I return to the city."

They moved northwest towards the mine. He tried to avoid as many wild Pokemon as possible so that he could get to the mines quickly. He kept checking his compass to make sure he was going in the right direction before arriving an hour and a half later.

The rocky terrain, though occupying a small area, distinctly stood out amidst the surrounding forest. Lucas shielded his eyes and started looking for the entrance. It was going to be difficult to find because there was a field of boulders and rocks scattered around, and he would have to search all of them until he found the entrance. He wished Paul had given more specific instructions, but the man wasn't trying to help anyone else; he was simply writing his thoughts in a journal.

"Let us search the area," Lucas instructed his Pokemon. "We are looking for a boulder that conceals the entrance to a mine. We will have to check underneath all the boulders, I guess."

"Kid!" Max pointed at himself, his mouth turned down in disgust.

"Well, I suppose you will be the only one pushing them around," Lucas shrugged. "Sorry."

Icarus flew into the air, using his exceptional vision to survey the terrain below. Meanwhile, Lucas and Max systematically searched the area in a grid-like pattern.

Fifteen minutes later, Lucas was growing frustrated with the lack of progress when Icarus called out to him. He walked over to Icarus, who was standing on a table-sized boulder.

"Pidgey!" Icarus pointed his wing down at the ground.

Lucas followed his directions and noticed faint lines running along the ground as if something had been dragged across it.

"Well spotted, Icarus," Lucas complimented him.

Lucas called out to Max, and the Pokemon rushed over. "Give me a hand to push this thing."

Lucas and Max strained as they pushed against it. Honestly, Max did most of the heavy lifting, but Lucas at least tried, so Max couldn't complain about it later. The boulder shifted, revealing a small hole in the ground. Referring to it as a hole was inaccurate; it was more of a shaft that plunged into darkness, and the bottom couldn't be seen. Fortunately for him, Paul had hammered a bolt into the side of the shaft and attached a rope to it. While it wasn't the safest way to descend, it would suffice if he wanted to explore the mine.

"Pidgey!" Icarus turned his head away as soon as he saw the shaft.

"Don't worry, I am not going to make you go down there," Lucas reassured him. "You can hang out in your habitat."

Lucas returned Icarus to his pokeball. He planned to only explore the first level, hoping that the wild Pokemon remained in the second level.

Max climbed into the shaft and grabbed the rope without Lucas having to ask.

"Call out when you reach the bottom," Lucas said. "If you run into trouble, get out of there."

"Kid!" Max slid down the rope and disappeared into the darkness.

Lucas held his breath, concerned that he had put Max in danger, but exhaled when Max called up to him. He took a torch from his pack, turned it on, and secured the strap around his wrist. After climbing into the shaft, he grabbed the rope and started down. The torch's beam ricocheted off the steep walls, casting some illumination to help guide him downward.

When his feet hit the ground, Max was already waiting for him. Lucas pointed his torch up the shaft. It must be at least sixty feet deep, so climbing back up would be difficult.

Taking in his surroundings, he discovered he was in a narrow tunnel that sloped downwards before abruptly curving to the right. His light reflected off the walls, revealing a dark grey rock with black striations. Taking out his pocket knife, he ran the blade along the rock, and there wasn't even a hint of a scratch marring its surface. Paul mentioned in his journal that the rock in the mines was extremely hard.

"Let's hope the eggs aren't too far away from the entrance."

Lucas walked down the slope, then turned to the right. The tunnel appeared to continue straight ahead for some distance because the light didn't penetrate the darkness in front of him. He continued down the tunnel, feeling a little uneasy because he remembered the mine had experienced some tremors in the past.

A clattering sound reached his ears, causing him to freeze. He strained his ears, attempting to pinpoint the source of the noise. It sounded like rocks falling, which did nothing good for his nerves.

"Kid?" Max tilted his head at his trainer. He didn't look too worried.

Lucas shook his head. He could have sworn the sound had come from nearby, but it must have been further away than he thought. The mine was playing tricks on him. What had caused that noise in the first place?

He continued down the tunnel until he reached an intersection branching off in two different directions, along with a small recess directly ahead of him. A thick layer of red vines covered the walls and ceiling, its wet sheen lending it the appearance of dripping blood.

"Is that what I think it is?"

He took out his encyclopaedia and flipped through its pages until he found the correct entry. As expected, it was the Bloody Vine he was looking for, an ingredient required to complete the guild missions he had taken on. The plant had an incredible growth rate, but finding it proved difficult because it thrived underground. There was enough here to fulfil all the missions he had undertaken, and then some.

Wasting no time, he harvested the vines and stored them inside his inventory. Afterwards, he hesitated, unsure of which direction to take next.

"Left or right?" Lucas asked.

Max pointed to the left.

"When in doubt, always choose the left path," Lucas agreed.

After walking along the path for a short distance, the sound of rushing water became audible. A minute later, the path opened up into a space dominated by a massive shaft. From the ceiling, a waterfall cascaded down, forming a pool at the bottom of the thirty-foot shaft. To his left, there was a ledge encircling the shaft, which led to the entrance of another tunnel.

"There must be an underground river in this mine," Lucas said, peering down into the water. He noticed a slight but discernible flow, indicating that it was going somewhere.

"Kid?" Max pointed down into the shaft.

"No, I don't want you to jump into it to find out," Lucas said, exasperated. "Let's see where the tunnel leads."

They continued along the ledge and entered the next tunnel. Within a dozen feet, the tunnel abruptly ended, revealing a small, cosy space. Inside, there was a pitched tent, and some equipment scattered about. It appeared as if he had found Paul's base of operations.

He immediately searched inside the tent and grinned when he found several eggs nestled on a blanket. Using Egg Insight, he confirmed that one of them was the stolen Pichu Egg.

He pulled out a pair of thick gloves and put them on before handling the eggs. If he touched them with his bare hands, there was a possibility that they would imprint on him. Similar to how they would imprint on their parents in the wild. The Pokemon remained as formless energy inside the eggs until they hatched. But their consciousness had already developed, allowing them to sense whenever someone touched the egg. At this stage of their development, they were highly susceptible to forming bonds with humans. That's why people preferred eggs over catching wild Pokemon—they provided a convenient way to develop relationships with them a lot easier.

He could forget about returning the Pokemon eggs to the daycare if he bonded with them. He would have several new companions joining his team instead. It was nice to have more Pokemon, but it wasn't practical at the moment. He didn't want the burden of managing several new team members at once, both in terms of the effort required and the associated costs.

He emptied the contents of his bag into his inventory and placed the eggs inside the bag. He used an extra set of clothes to provide some insulation for the eggs so he didn't damage them inadvertently in transit. Pokemon eggs were incredibly strong, so it was unlikely that they would suffer any damage, but it cost nothing to be extra cautious.

Lucas turned to Max. "I think we have explored enough for today. Let's get out of here."

"How did you find them?" Gloria asked as he handed over the eggs to her.

"I found a cabin in the woods that belonged to Paul," Lucas said. "I searched around and discovered the eggs concealed amidst the woodpile outside."

"What about Paul?"

Lucas sighed. "I found his body in the bathroom. It appears as if he has been dead for a couple of days."

"Oh my!" Gloria exclaimed, her hands covering her mouth. "Although I didn't like Paul for what he did, I never wished him dead. Can you tell me how he died?"

"Based on his injuries, it's safe to say that someone killed him."

Gloria frowned. "Have you informed the police?"

"That's my next destination."

He wasn't looking forward to it since they were going to find out he had snuck out from under their noses. There was no need to worry. Their protection wasn't mandatory, and he was an adult who could decide whether he wanted to risk his own life.

"It's up to them to find the culprit," Gloria replied. "As you have fulfilled my request, I will sell you the Vulpix egg for fifty thousand Pokedollars. I will also reserve it for two weeks."

"Thank you," Lucas said, pausing briefly before he asked his next question. "Can you tell me where the upcoming black market is going to take place?"

Gloria raised an eyebrow. "Are you planning to sell something there? "

"No," Lucas answered. "I would like to see what items they have for sale."

"Well, I can understand that," Gloria said. "I have found some useful items there in the past."

Gloria provided him with the coordinates for a location within the residential area. The black market took place in two days, during the evening. She also provided him with the password required to access the market. Her knowledge about the event suggested that she may have some questionable connections.

Lucas thanked her and left the daycare. Instead of purchasing the Vulpix egg immediately, he would wait a few days. It would have looked suspicious if he had purchased it so soon after requesting two weeks to gather the funds.

Next, he made his way to the police station to inform them about Paul. They subjected him to a series of questions and he received a mild scolding for leaving the city without an escort. Beyond that, there was no further action taken. He handed over a map he had drawn, ensuring that the police would have no trouble locating the cabin. They took down his number, so they could get in touch with him if they needed to.

After leaving the station, he went to the Pokemon Centre to heal his Pokemon. While he waited, he went shopping. He made his way to the Adventurer's Guild and completed the guild commissions by handing in the Scarlet Vines. By completing multiple guild missions simultaneously, he achieved the rank of a level four initiate and earned a reward of twenty-five hundred Pokedollars. The generous payout for the missions surprises him. However, given the urgency with which they had posted the missions, somebody was in a hurry to acquire the ingredients.

His next stop was an apothecary. With a surplus of Pokedollars, he set his sights on acquiring a potion to boost Icarus' flying-type affinity training. Currently, Icarus has reached thirty percent, meeting one prerequisite for evolving into Pidgeotto. To obtain the move Feather Dance upon evolving, however, his affinity needed to reach forty percent. This was also the requirement for learning the egg move—Air Cutter.

For Icarus to evolve before facing Dratini, he needed help in increasing his flying-type affinity. Even with the Pokemon Habitat, it was a massive challenge to raise it to forty percent within just a week.

The potion had a steep price of five thousand pokedollars each, but its effects typically lasted for about a day. He bought two, hoping that would provide enough of a boost for Icarus to achieve his goal. While affinity potions may sound like incredibly powerful items, they only assisted with affinity training up to fifty percent. Once affinities reached that threshold, they became considerably more challenging to train, prompting trainers to explore alternative methods for improving them.

He searched for the ingredients required to make the growth potion. Unfortunately, the apothecary didn't have two of the ingredients in stock, and the remaining ingredients were quite expensive. He postponed his purchase for now, as he knew he could find another ingredient in the Viridian Forest. In the meantime, he planned to continue making salves to improve his alchemy profession.

His next destination was the Pokemart, which sold a variety of technical machines and the corresponding devices needed to use them. He had his sights set on acquiring Protect for Max, however, the device alone came with a hefty price tag of twenty thousand Pokedollars. He hesitated on whether to make the purchase, but ultimately took the plunge and purchased it. Earning back that amount of pokedollars wouldn't be too difficult, considering he would venture into the forest for the next few days.

Protect cost him eight thousand pokedollars. He also considered the Steel Wing technical machine for Icarus, but that cost almost double the amount. He wasn't willing to spend that much on a move that would take Icarus a considerable amount of time to learn. Icarus needed to have a steel-type affinity of sixty percent before he could learn it.

Lucas retrieved his Pokemon and then headed back to the house. Back in his room, he showed Icarus the growth potion.

"Icarus, I am going to give you this potion, but I wanted to understand the effects it has beforehand. This way, the sudden change that occurs won't frighten you."

"Pidgey?" Icarus' eyes narrowed as he stared at the potion.

"There's no need to be suspicious," Lucas said. "The potion explosively increases your appetite in order for your body to grow bigger. You will break through your body's limit, which will have a ripple effect when you evolve as well."

"Pidgey!" Icarus sounded more enthusiastic after hearing the benefits of the potion.

Lucas took out over a dozen meals for Icarus that he had prepared beforehand. Usually, one was enough to satisfy him, so he was interested to see how many Icarus consumed. He also measured Icarus' height, wingspan, and weight before feeding him the potion. He wanted to compare the differences before and after the growth potion had taken effect over the next few days.

Icarus stood at a height of one and a half feet, weighed six pounds, and had a wingspan of nearly four feet. He was slightly heavier than the average Pidgey, but his other parameters were normal.

Lucas watched as Icarus devoured half a dozen meals in quick succession. When Icarus finished his eighth portion, he was slightly concerned that he hadn't prepared enough food.

Icarus was finally full when he had finished his tenth portion and Lucas sighed with relief. It looked like he would be busy preparing more meals this evening.

Before heading downstairs for dinner, he examined the device used to teach Pokemon technical moves. It looked bizarre. The component that needed to be attached to the Pokemon resembled a suction cup but had electronic components lining its interior. It had a square receptacle designed to accommodate the technical machine, as well as several buttons to operate the device.

Later, he planned to have Max try it to see how it worked.

He held off on giving Icarus the affinity potion for now. While he didn't believe it would interact adversely with the growth potion, he didn't want to jeopardise Icarus' safety by testing that assumption.

Lucas stepped out of the house at around five in the evening and made his way down the street. He had completely abandoned the idea of sneaking out and left through the front door. The pair of police officers standing guard paid him further attention after giving him the initial warning two days ago. After distancing himself from the house, he quickly put on the disguise he had used before.

The black market was happening tonight, and he had no intention of revealing his identity. There was a possibility that he might encounter members of Team Rocket, and considering their previous attempt to kidnap him, he needed to be cautious.

For the past two days, he has been persistently grinding for experience and collecting more items. The pokedollars he earned more than compensated for what he had spent previously, and he now had seventy-five thousand in the bank.

It would have been more, but he spent ten thousand pokedollars to increase the range of his Itemfinder function by another five metres. As a result, he could search more efficiently for hidden items and was less likely to miss them. The next level of Itemfinder would increase the variety of items found in the chests, but it would cost fifty thousand pokedollars.

He had been using Icarus as much as he could to gain the experience needed for his evolution. To help manage Icarus' mental fatigue, Lucas had been actively looking for wild Pokemon that were at level twenty. Since it earned him four times more experience than a Pokemon a level below twenty, it meant Icarus didn't need to engage in so many battles. The only problem was finding level twenty Pokemon.

At the current rate, he estimated that Icarus would have the required experience for his evolution after another two days of grinding. He had been slightly concerned that the growth potion would negatively affect Icarus's performance in battle, but his worries were unfounded. In just two days, Icarus experienced rapid growth, increasing by approximately a quarter of his original size. He would wait another day before he fed Icarus an affinity potion.

He also didn't neglect Max, who gained more than enough experience to reach level seventeen. Max learned Protect from the technical machine, but it still required improvement for it to be effective in battle.

As for himself, he earned barely enough experience to level up twice to level twenty-three. Despite his relentless grinding, he was finding it increasingly difficult to level up.

He finished exploring the level twenty zone within the western section of the forest, and he planned to venture north out of the city next. The northern section of Viridian Forest was incredibly vast. Even if he spent an entire year exploring it, he couldn't imagine how he could map its entirety.

The phone rang, interrupting his thoughts. He looked at the screen and saw that it was Sabrina calling.

"Sabrina. How are you?"

"We have apprehended the leader of the Fearow Gang," Sabrina said, getting straight to the point.

"That's wonderful news," Lucas said. "How did you accomplish that?"

"The mayor's house has a secret entrance. A small team of elite law enforcement snuck inside and caught him off-guard."

"I am surprised the mayor didn't use it to escape with his family in the first place," Lucas commented.

"He didn't know about it," Sabrina replied. "It's an old mansion, and he's not the original owner. Our team was running out of ideas, so I searched the registers' office for blueprints of the mansion, hoping to find an entry point. The filing system was very inefficient, and it took me a long time to find it. I conveyed my dissatisfaction to the staff."

"I'm sure you got your point across," Lucas' lips curved, imagining the scene. "So, is it safe to return to Pallet Town? Have you finished your role in the investigation?"

"Not quite," Sabrina said. "There is still a lot of mess to sort out, and we still have to investigate Team Rocket's involvement. Professor Oak is facing some trouble with the authorities because of the incident he caused. I believe he will let you stay in the city until the end of the week while he resolves the situation."

"Are you talking about the raid on the gang's base of operations?" Lucas asked. "Why would he get into trouble for assisting you in removing them?"

She paused as if considering whether to answer. "It involves the officer who gave me the mission. He is facing criticism for sending me to investigate the town when I have so little experience, and so he is trying to deflect attention from himself by targeting Professor Oak."

"He doesn't sound very smart."

"I have been thinking the same thing," Sabrina said, before she changed the subject, "Have you seen Salem around? I am worried that he has gotten into more trouble."

He detected a slight hitch in her voice.

"I haven't seen him," Lucas replied.

"Banette," a voice sounded from behind him, startling him.

"Bloody hell," Lucas swore. He turned around to see that Salem had appeared.

Salem had been following him. He glared at the Pokemon, but all he got in response was a creepy smile.

"Lucas! What is the matter?" Sabrina's voice sounded from the phone.

"It's nothing. Salem just made an appearance. He still enjoys scaring the hell out of me."

"That is a relief," Sabrina breathed. "I thought you were in trouble."

"You were worried about me?" Lucas grinned.

"I am hanging up now," Sabrina stated, promptly ending the call.

"She likes me," Lucas told Salem, putting the phone away.

Salem tilted his head but chose not to reply.

"Since you are following me, I assume you are protecting me," Lucas said. "Thanks for protecting Delia and the kids, by the way. If you hadn't intervened, it could have ended in tragedy."

Salem nodded.

Lucas reached the black market after a ten-minute walk. The building was a spacious warehouse, with two men stationed at the entrance, attentively scanning the area. Taking a moment to assess the situation, Lucas watched as another individual approached and engaged in conversation with the guards. Soon after, the men allowed the individual to enter through the door.

"Make sure you stay out of sight," Lucas whispered to Salem, who had already gone invisible.

"Salem."

Lucas approached the men, who scrutinised him closely.

"Not a very good disguise, kid," the man on the left said. "A five-year-old child could do better."

"With something so obvious, you're bound to attract more attention," the man on the right said, laughing. "What's the password?"

While Lucas wanted to feel insulted, he knew they were right. There was nothing special about the disguise. "Golbat is the password."

They opened the door for him, and he entered the warehouse. Immediately, a cacophony of noises reached his ears, produced by the sizable crowd gathered inside. The organisers divided the warehouse into multiple aisles, with stalls set up for vendors to sell their wares.

Lucas walked through the first aisle, looking at the products. He took his time searching, as the stalls in this aisle were selling ingredients primarily. They shipped most of the ingredients illegally from other regions, which was reflected in their prices. For now, he moved on to the next aisle.

The place teemed with people, and some individuals looked sketchy, so he paid careful attention to his surroundings. The second aisle had stalls that sold minerals, ores, and evolution stones. He briefly browsed through them, but they didn't interest him at this point. The only thing he was interested in was the fire evolution stone, which he could easily find in stores at a lower price.

Lucas frowned when he came across the rows of cages housing Pokemon in the third aisle, with some cages stacked on top of one another. The Pokemon looked miserable, being confined to such a small space. There was a piece of paper attached to each cage with the Pokemon's details and its price. He peered into some cages and noticed all the Pokemon had collars around their necks. What was their purpose?

"Hey," a voice whispered. "Would you mind getting me out of here?"

Lucas scanned the area, searching for the person who had spoken to him. Nobody seemed to pay any attention to him.

"Down here, Meowth." the voice said again. "In the cage."

Lucas noticed a Meowth sitting in the cage on the bottom row. It couldn't possibly be Meowth talking, could it?

Meowth's mouth opened, and words emerged, leaving no room for doubt about who was speaking. "So, what do you say, partner? If you help me get out of here, I will make sure to repay you."

Lucas stepped back in shock. He had to be dreaming, right? He had just discovered another character from the anime, but his circumstances were completely different.

So, what do you think? Meowth joins the team in the next chapter, and he is sure to make things more interesting.

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Thanks for reading.