https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-376-The-Ancient-Seeker-and-the-Treasure-of-Calamity/12537538/
Chapter 375: Tomb Raiders and Ancient Coins
Chapter 375: Tomb Raiders and Ancient Coins
At night, moonlight seeped through the window curtains, casting a soft glow in the dim room.
Suspended above was a "star" that emitted a faint luminescence—a tiny Meteora, floating gently in the air.
Naoki sat on the bed, gazing at the tiny creature alongside his two Pokemon partners, Babbo the Cubone, and Gorledon the Gurdurr.
This was the first time Naoki had encountered a Meteora, a Pokemon unlike any other land-dwelling creature.
It seemed to be unable to understand human speech. While it would gently turn its body when stroked or called, Naoki couldn't tell if it was responding out of its own volition or mere instinct.
This unique trait posed a dilemma regarding what to do with the tiny Meteora.
As a gift from the mighty Rayquaza to the ranch's Dragonite population, leaving the Meteora on the ranch would likely result in it being confined to a Poke Ball for extended periods.
After all, the ecological habits of this Pokemon species made it unsuited for prolonged exposure to the earth's environment.
There had been instances in the past where Meteoras, after falling from the sky, eventually perished on the ground.
Moreover, the dietary needs of the Meteora differed greatly from those of other Pokemon.
As a Pokemon born from the mutation of nanoparticles, the Meteora sustained itself by absorbing the dust floating in the ozone layer.
In summary, the Meteora was ill-suited for terrestrial life.
With this in mind, Naoki turned to Babbo and Gorledon and said, "Let's try to send this little Meteora back up to the sky tomorrow."
Gorledon voiced its agreement with a soft gargle, and Babbo nodded, having learned from Naoki about the unique needs of this Pokemon and the fact that it couldn't survive long on the ground.
And so, the plan to return the Meteora to its celestial home was set in motion.
Early the next morning, Naoki sought out the ranch's Dragonite and entrusted it with the Meteora, safely enclosed in a Poke Ball. He instructed them to return the tiny creature to the sky and explained, "The Meteora can't live here on the ranch. I'm counting on you both to take it back to where it belongs."
Dragonite and Babbo nodded in understanding.
"Dragonite!"
"Babbo!"
The two Pokemon took flight, leaving Naoki to begin his daily chores: milking the riding Lapras, collecting rock salt from the Saltrock Golem, weeding the fields, harvesting honey, and feeding Snorlax...
It wasn't until ten o'clock that Dragonite and Babbo returned.
Only after confirming with them that the Meteora had been safely returned to the ozone layer did Naoki finally relax.
"That takes care of that," he sighed in relief. "You two did a great job. Go play for a bit, and then we'll have lunch."
"Bab, bab!"
"Dragonite!"
As the two Pokemon turned to scamper off, Naoki suddenly remembered something he'd forgotten to mention.
He quickly called Dragonite back and added, "One more thing!"
"Dragonite?" The Dragonite looked puzzled.
Naoki continued, "Next time you see Rayquaza, ask it to refrain from sending gifts like the Meteora."
Dragonite immediately understood and nodded its assent.
"Alright, that's settled then. I'm heading into town to buy some groceries. You two go have fun!" Naoki patted Dragonite's head in farewell.
While Gorledon was busy instructing Machoke and Hakuryu on their moves, Naoki decided not to disturb them. Instead, he summoned a riding Lapras, hung two bags on its back, and mounted it, setting off for Chestic Town.
Dragonite kept Naoki's words in mind.
Turning, it used its Dragon Scales to call out to its esteemed elder, Rayquaza.
Soon enough, the massive form of Rayquaza reappeared at the ranch, its presence drawing a crowd of curious Pokemon.
They surrounded Rayquaza, explaining that the Meteora wasn't a star but a Pokemon, and that keeping it on land would eventually kill it, so they had sent it back to the sky.
Dragonite conveyed the group's sentiments: "Dragonite, dragonite, dragonite!" ("Naoki said that the Meteora would die if it stayed on land, and it was so sad. So we sent it back up to the sky!")
Hearing this, a hint of embarrassment flashed across Rayquaza's face.
Occasionally, it would catch Meteoras and consume the energy-rich shells that covered their bodies, similar to the energy found in meteorites. However, it never ate the Meteoras themselves.
Even so, the tiny creatures would panic and flee at the mere sight of Rayquaza.
But Rayquaza felt it couldn't reveal this to Dragonite and the others, lest it tarnish the image they had of it as a heroic figure.
While it hadn't been an issue before, now that it had a group of adoring fans, Rayquaza felt a weight on its shoulders.
"Rayquaza," it rumbled in acknowledgment, nodding to indicate that it wouldn't capture any more Meteoras.
Its thoughts then turned to what it could bring these Pokemon the next time it visited.
However, no matter how hard it pondered, Rayquaza couldn't come up with a suitable answer, so it decided to take a trip beyond the stratosphere for inspiration.
With a brief farewell to the assembled Pokemon, Rayquaza turned and soared away.
Coincidentally, Naoki was just returning from Chestic Town, riding his Lapras, and was still some distance from the ranch when he happened to glance up and spot Rayquaza flying away from the ranch.
What was going on? Why was Rayquaza back again?
He quickly urged his mountain goat mount to speed up. As soon as he returned to the ranch, he saw the Haxorus, looking delighted as they stood there, craning their necks skyward.
Naoki approached and asked, "Did you call Rayquaza again?"
Haxorus nodded happily and patted its chest, assuring him, "Roar!"
It had conveyed everything Naoki had told it to the senior Rayquaza, and from now on, Senior Rayquaza would not come to capture the little Meteora again!
"..."
Naoki was speechless, his expression dazed as he, too, looked up at the sky.
Rayquaza! Don't you have anything better to do?
After a moment, Naoki sighed.
"Ah..."
Never mind, he thought. This was the Pokemon's business, and he, a human, shouldn't interfere.
Naoki turned and headed to the kitchen to start preparing lunch.
In the afternoon, Naoki had planned to venture into the mountains to gather some mushrooms and hazelnuts and to visit the wild Pokemon he had rescued before.
However, a phone call disrupted his plans.
"Hello?" The call connected, but there was no video, leading Naoki to guess that the other party was using a landline phone instead of a video call.
"Is this Naoki?" A deep male voice came from the other end. "It's the owner of the antique shop in town. We have more ancient Padia gold coins in stock. Are you still interested?"
Hearing this, Naoki was slightly taken aback, immediately remembering the Treasure Hunting Yamask in the tavern.
He quickly replied, "Yes, yes! I'll be right there!"
"Alright, then! I'll wait for you at the shop!" The antique shop owner said with a laugh.
After hanging up, Naoki temporarily enlisted the help of a Haxorus worker and rushed to Chestic Town.
The Haxorus landed in front of the antique shop, and Naoki walked in with it.
As soon as he entered, the antique shop owner took out a treasure chest and grinned, "This time, I got lucky. I received twenty-eight ancient gold coins at once. It's a real windfall!"
He opened the treasure chest, revealing a pile of golden coins, each bearing the insignia of the ancient Padia Kingdom.
28 coins? Naoki was surprised at the number. "How did you get so many?"
The antique shop owner chuckled and lowered his voice. "The person who sold me these coins is a professional tomb raider. All of these gold coins were stolen from the same ancient ruins."
Naoki paused, then asked, "Isn't that illegal?"
He didn't know much about the laws of the Pokemon world.
The antique shop owner explained, "It's a gray area. While it's not exactly moral to rob someone's tomb, these ancient coins are from the Padia region, which has many ancient ruins left over from the kingdom era, such as castle ruins filled with treasures!"
Naoki: "..."
"So, don't worry! Besides graveyards, there are plenty of other ancient ruins in the Padia region. As for castle ruins, you don't have to worry about that!" the owner added.
Indeed, thought Naoki. That put his mind at ease.
"I'll take all of these coins," Naoki said as he paid for them.
With the three coins he had obtained from the Treasure Hunting Yamask and these 28 new ones, he now had a total of 31 ancient coins.
He was one step closer to the goal of 1,000 coins.
However, the progress was still too slow... Naoki fell into deep thought.
He counted the coins in the treasure chest and then packed them up, intending to carry the chest with him.
Before leaving, Naoki asked, "These gold coins were the currency of the ancient Padia Kingdom, so there should be a lot of them, right?"
The antique shop owner nodded. "Of course. Adventurers and tomb raiders often tell me that the one thing you'll find in abundance in those tombs and ruins are these gold coins."
Naoki's interest was piqued. "What do they do with the coins after they find them? Do they sell them all?"
"Not necessarily," the antique shop owner said after some thought. "Some people collect them, and others sell them to antique collectors who are willing to pay a high price."
"I see..."
"Oh, right," the owner said, appraising Naoki. "You don't seem to be short on money. I can recommend a forum where people sell ancient artifacts. If you're willing to pay a high price, many people might be willing to sell to you."
"A forum?" Naoki was taken aback.
"You don't know about it?" The owner was surprised. "I thought you'd know more about these new things since you're younger than me!"
Naoki: "..."
The owner laughed. "You're out of the loop! Forums are places where netizens discuss various topics. All you need is a computer, and you can log in to the forum's website and join the discussions! Isn't the internet wonderful? It connects people from all over the world!"
Naoki couldn't help but think that this world was a bit behind the times.
"Well, good luck to you."
The shop owner wrote down the forum's web address on a piece of paper and handed it to Naoki.
Naoki glanced down at the paper and tucked it away.
He left the shop with his Haxorus, strolling along the streets of Chestic Town and glancing at the shops on either side.
Naoki had never really thought about buying a computer, at least not until now.
Computers of this era were bulky, with large monitors and outdated hardware. They didn't have games, and people mostly used them for sending emails or office work.
Naoki had no need for emails, and he wasn't interested in those spider solitaire games, so he never bothered to buy one.
But now, he realized it was necessary to get one for the ranch.
With that in mind, Naoki went to the department store that very day and purchased a computer.
The staff set up the monitor and CPU, and finally connected it to the internet, enabling the most basic web browsing functionality.
The computer was installed in the study on the second floor. Naoki turned it on, tested the functions, and, satisfied, left it there for the time being.
Then, carrying the treasure chest, he made his way to the Pokemon Tavern.
The Mimikyu, in its treasure chest form, looked exactly like an ordinary chest from the outside. It sat quietly on the beverage shelf, serving as a decorative piece for the tavern.
Naoki knocked on the chest and said, "Mimikyu, I've collected more coins. Do you want to come out and take a look?"
The Mimikyu inside the chest heard these words clearly.
Its heart skipped a beat, and it nudged the lid of the chest open with its head, peering out through the narrow gap.
As Naoki turned around, their eyes met.
Just when he thought Mimikyu would hide like it did the first time, the little Pokemon didn't shy away or try to escape. Instead, it looked at him with excited and expectant eyes.
"Well then!" Naoki smiled and asked, "You're not scared of me anymore?"
Mimikyu let out a sound, its voice resembling the clinking of coins, a unique and strange sound.
During this time, it had been staying in the tavern, hearing the voices of Pokemon customers every night.
Gradually, it had become bolder.
Moreover, the human named Naoki hadn't harmed it; instead, he had helped it collect coins and brought it food.
Mimikyu was deeply grateful, and over time, it became less afraid of this human. Seeing him no longer triggered the urge to run away or hide.
"Alright, then come over here and take a look at these coins!" Naoki walked over and picked up the treasure chest-shaped Mimikyu, placing it on the bar counter.
As soon as Mimikyu saw the chest filled with shiny gold coins, its eyes turned into stars, and it looked like a little money enthusiast.
"There are a total of twenty-eight coins here. Together with the three on you, we now have thirty-one ancient coins."
Naoki did a quick calculation and continued, "You still need nine hundred and sixty-nine more coins to evolve into a Bewear, but don't worry, I'll help you collect them!"
"Ding-a-ling~!"
Mimikyu let out a crisp and pleasant cry, expressing its joy.
Naoki smiled and began to put the coins into the treasure chest where Mimikyu lived.
Once he finished, Naoki waved goodbye, saying, "Alright, I'll see you later!"
"Ding-a-ling~!" Mimikyu returned to its spot on the shelf, once again becoming a decorative treasure chest in the tavern.
Naoki, on the other hand, went upstairs to the study, turned on the computer, and typed in the web address the antique shop owner had given him.
Soon, a forum called "Secret Garden" loaded on the screen.
Despite its name, the content had nothing to do with flowers.
Naoki scanned the forum and found that most of the posts were about tomb raiding, exploring ancient ruins, and selling artifacts.
For example:
"King Henry III's crown from the ancient Padia Kingdom is looking for a buyer!"
Naoki clicked on the post and found that the item in question wasn't a crown at all but looked more like a cooking pot.
Scrolling through the comments, he saw that many netizens had pointed out the original poster's mistake.
"What the heck, a crown?" Naoki muttered to himself.
He felt that this person would probably have a lot to talk about with the Yamask that wore a trophy on its head and refused to take it off.
After browsing for a while, Naoki registered an account with the name "Winged King" and, following the example of others, posted a thread.
"Winged King: Buying ancient Padia gold coins in large quantities at high prices! Contact me if you're interested!"
(End of Chapter)
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