Chapter 101: The Department Store
The Corviknight and its flock soared away under the moonlight.
To be honest, Su Yi had felt an impulse to capture the Corviknight in that moment. After all, who wouldn’t want a dashing and powerful armored raven? Su Yi would call it: the Swift Raptor, Corviknight!
However, Corviknight still bore the responsibility of caring for its flock. They were Pokémon wandering the city, relying on their leader to help them survive.
“Good night, O’Neill, Bea,” Su Yi set aside his thoughts of catching Corviknight and smiled in front of the hotel room.
“Good night.”
...
O’Neill entered his room, took off his mask, and released his partner, Gengar.
“Gengar, I’ve made some good friends. I never knew gathering with friends and admiring the moonlight could be such a pleasant thing.”
“Ginga!” Gengar grinned happily, seeing the smile on O’Neill’s face.
...
After washing up, Bea, dressed in her regular clothes, lay on her bed and unlocked her phone, scrolling through the photos she’d taken that day.
In one, Su Yi beamed as he held up a skewer of roasted meat, while Sprigatito cheered gleefully at his side.
In the next, Su Yi, surrounded by Rookidee and Rookery, grilled one piece of meat after another, with the Pokémon joyfully circling him in celebration.
In the last photo, Su Yi, holding a beer and leaning on the railing, wore a look of pure contentment as he gazed at the Rookidee and Rookery enjoying their food.
Bea turned off her phone, the corners of her lips lifting in a faint smile.
...
In Su Yi’s room, both he and Sprigatito were fast asleep on the bed, utterly free of fatigue or stress.
...
At dawn, Su Yi, feeling refreshed after washing up, was suddenly startled by a clatter of banging sounds.
“Aibo, what are you up to?” Su Yi looked over and saw that Sprigatito was fiddling with a small knife, working on something.
“Meow, I’m making gifts for my friends, meow,” Sprigatito replied.
“Gifts?” Su Yi walked over and saw that Sprigatito had carved paw pad patterns into pieces of bone collected during their adventures. Nearby were colorful feathers and mineral fragments, presumably to decorate the bones.
“Looks pretty good,” Su Yi encouraged.
Sprigatito rubbed her feline ears and said, “But it’s still a bit rough, meow. I don’t have the right tools, meow.”
“Come on, let’s go to the mall today. I’ll buy you a proper set of tools,” Su Yi said with a smile.
...
Today, they didn’t disturb O’Neill or Bea; both had things of their own to tend to.
Now that Su Yi had finally sold those pearls and had some money, it was time to buy some adventuring supplies and various Pokémon goods.
Of course, the most important items were move records and TMs, something he’d planned to purchase for a while now. In a big city like Motostoke, there ought to be the widest selection of TMs available.
...
Guided by Rotom Phone’s navigation, Su Yi and Sprigatito arrived at the city’s largest department store.
With the exhibition match only two days away, the crowds in Motostoke were even greater than yesterday. Seizing the opportunity, merchants held all kinds of promotions and raffles.
The mall had the festive atmosphere of a holiday.
“Meow! So many people! So many things I’ve never seen, meow!”
The last time Su Yi visited Motostoke, he hadn’t explored these places. The dazzling array of goods and lively scene left Sprigatito utterly dazzled.
“Su Yi, what’s this, meow?” Sprigatito stood on tiptoe, pointing at a Clefairy plushie on the shelf, her eyes filled with curiosity.
“Oh, that’s a Clefairy doll. If you run into wild Pokémon outdoors, you can toss it to distract them and make your escape,” Su Yi explained.
But clearly, not only wild Pokémon found the Clefairy doll captivating—cats and children were equally entranced.
Sprigatito tugged at Su Yi’s pant leg with one paw and pointed at the Clefairy plushie with the other, mimicking the children nearby who had their eyes on the same toy.
I want this one!
“All right, into the cart it goes.” Su Yi pulled over a shopping cart, and Sprigatito hopped up lightly, tossing the plushie inside.
“If you ever get chased by monsters, Su Yi, I can use this to distract them for you, meow,” Sprigatito said happily.
Su Yi paused, then laughed and lifted Sprigatito into the child’s seat of the cart.
“Better keep this for yourself, Aibo. If the time comes, I’ll handle things with flashbangs and stink bombs—no monster will know what hit them.”
Deciding not to rush his shopping, Su Yi pushed the cart around the department store. Sprigatito stood in the child’s seat, curiously scanning her surroundings.
Many of the items on the shelves had Pokémon designs—for example, Bulbasaur flowerpots with the seed removed as the planter’s mouth, classic Squirtle watering cans, Chimecho-shaped wind chimes, Snorlax beanbags, Shiinotic mushroom lamps, and so on—a diverse and delightful display.
Many of the products were inspired by the appearance or abilities of Pokémon, creating a wondrous paradise for Pokémon fans.
...
“Meow!” Sprigatito suddenly froze in her scanning, her eyes lighting up as she stared at a window display.
Su Yi followed her gaze and saw a variety of clothing, shoes, and bags, among them a series of children’s onesies modeled after different Pokémon that had clearly caught Sprigatito’s attention.
“Want to try one?” Su Yi asked with a grin.
“Meow!” Sprigatito responded eagerly.
“Sir, are you looking for clothes for your child?” the clerk asked, smiling.
Su Yi picked up Sprigatito and replied, “It’s my partner who wants to try them.”
“Meow~” Sprigatito waved her paw.
“What an adorable Pokémon! With that size, this line of children’s clothes should fit perfectly,” the clerk praised, guiding Su Yi into the store.
“So many clothes with Pokémon motifs,” Su Yi remarked, glancing around and noticing a display case of bags inspired by the various Eeveelutions—each one irresistibly cute.
“Would you like to try them all?” The clerk took down an Eevee-themed onesie.
“Let’s try it,” Su Yi nodded.
Sprigatito trotted off to the fitting room, while Su Yi browsed the store. The clerk remained nearby, offering helpful suggestions.
“How handsome!” Su Yi’s eyes lit up as he spotted a woolen coat inspired by the Nightmare Pokémon, Darkrai.
The coat was black, with a wide collar trimmed in jagged red, and on the back, a smoky white scarf-like piece looped from the neck and trailed down, perfectly evoking Darkrai’s essence.
“Excellent taste,” the clerk said with a smile.
Su Yi leaned in to check the price tag and nearly fainted.
That price would halve his current savings in an instant.
He recalled his experience in the Pokémon Sword and Shield game, where he’d worked hard to collect items for money, penny-pinching to buy supplies, only to blow almost all his savings on a single outfit after discovering the clothing store—a tragic memory.
“Are you selling Darkrai’s own skin for that price?!” Su Yi silently complained.
Just then, Sprigatito emerged in her new outfit, meowing. Nearby, a girl with short, indigo-and-red hair glanced over curiously and instinctively opened her Rotom Phone’s Pokédex.
“No data on this Pokémon.”