Pokémon: I’m Really Not a Team Rocket Spy

Beep~

Pressing his ID card against the scanner outside the room, the device emitted a brief red glow, and the door unlocked with a soft click.

Turning on the lights, Maki surveyed the room. It was the size of an average hotel single, far from the luxury of his accommodations during his time with Team Rocket. Back then, his father's wealth had ensured he lived in style.

Still, since this room was free, there wasn't much to complain about.

Maki threw himself onto the bed, causing the mattress to creak and bounce slightly under his weight.

"Ahh, so tired," he muttered.

The journey from Pallet Town to Viridian City had been long, and without any transportation, both Maki and his Charmander had traveled the entire way on foot. Even with his better-than-average physical fitness, fatigue was inevitable.

Charmander, watching Maki face-plant onto the bed, curiously glanced around the room before mimicking his trainer, leaping onto the bed beside him.

"Char!"

Fortunately, Charmander had no trouble controlling the flame on its tail. While newly hatched Charmanders might accidentally burn themselves, those in the normal growth phase could regulate their tail flame without issue.

Otherwise, a Charmander's tail fire would be a hazard wherever it went.

Maki turned to look at his partner, who was copying his every move, and chuckled.

Charmander turned its gaze to Maki, and their eyes met.

Its blue eyes shimmered like sapphires. Although Maki had read about this in books, it was his first time seeing it up close.

Reaching out, Maki gently patted Charmander's head before sitting up on the bed.

"Wanna join me for a bath?" he asked, pointing toward the bathroom.

Charmander glanced nervously at the bathroom and quickly shook its head.

"Char~"

Maki laughed. "Makes sense. You're a Fire-type Pokémon, after all—water's not exactly your thing."

He wasn't surprised. Water was a natural weakness for Fire-types, and Charmander's aversion was expected. However, Maki knew this was something they'd need to work on during training. Even if Charmander couldn't achieve an ability like Water Absorb, it would at least need to get used to water to some extent.

After all, as Charmander grew stronger, it was inevitable that they'd face Water-type specialists. Trainers like Wallace were a prime example.

Charmander's final evolution, Charizard, was vulnerable to Water, Rock, and Electric types—especially Rock, with its four-times weakness. Overcoming these types would require careful strategy, such as raising a Grass-type Pokémon for balance.

Considering Charizard's potential Solar Power ability, partnering it with a Venusaur under sunny conditions would create a seamless synergy.

But that was a matter for the future. For now, raising this Charmander properly was the priority.

"Charmander, let's go find some food. You must be hungry after walking all day," Maki said.

Charmander's eyes lit up as it followed Maki out of the room.

…

"Char~"

Charmander glanced back at the Pokémon Center, where it had seen other Pokémon eating lunch earlier, wondering why they were heading farther away.

"Sure, the Pokémon Center food is fine," Maki said, noticing its gaze, "but it's just that—fine. Since we've got money to spare, we might as well go for something more premium."

Maki pulled a bank card out of his pocket—the one Giovanni had given him. It had a substantial balance, but Maki knew that raising Pokémon was an expensive endeavor.

While Charmander wasn't as demanding as a Larvitar, which required premium minerals daily, standard Pokémon food would suffice for its growth.

However, there was a significant difference between a Charmander raised on basic food and one raised on high-quality Pokéblocks. Maki was determined not to let his partner miss out on its potential due to inadequate nutrition.

For Pokémon, nothing surpassed the value of Pokéblocks.

At the department store, Maki spent 20,000 League coins on a Pokéblock-making device.

It was a reasonably priced model since the quality of Pokéblocks depended more on the user than the machine. Fully automated machines were available, but they were far more expensive and could only produce lower-quality Pokéblocks.

As someone trained by Giovanni to be a well-rounded specialist, Maki was, of course, skilled in Pokéblock creation.

He also bought berries, focusing on Occa Berries, which were ideal for crafting Fire-type Pokéblocks. After some thought, he added some Haban Berries, given Charmander's dragon-like traits—especially since this Charmander knew Dragon Dance.

Additionally, he purchased other berries as supplementary ingredients.

These berries alone cost over 10,000 League coins, but Maki estimated they'd last Charmander about a month.

If he'd bought premium Pokéblocks directly, the cost would have been several times higher.

"Damn, this stuff is expensive," Maki muttered, glancing at the shelves of Pokéblocks. He nearly cursed aloud but held back, mindful of the pretty clerk at the counter.

Having experience with making Pokéblocks, Maki could roughly estimate their production cost at a glance. It was no wonder the business was so lucrative.

The berries he bought, which cost over 10,000 League coins, could be turned into mid-tier Pokéblocks with a significant profit margin.

High-tier Pokéblocks were within his capability to make, but they required rarer ingredients. For now, mid-tier blocks would suffice for Charmander's small frame. Feeding it high-tier Pokéblocks daily would be like giving ginseng to a toddler—overkill that could cause more harm than good.

Back at the Pokémon Center, Maki immediately set up the Pokéblock machine in his room.

"It's different from the one at home," he noted, stroking his chin. "Feels like it's missing some features…"

But given the difference in quality between this basic model and the high-end one at his family's house, it wasn't surprising.

Shrugging it off, he prepped the berries, tossing them into the machine.

"One Occa Berry… one Haban Berry…"

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