vncnus Chapter 17 The Pokémon Kidnapping Incident
Chapter 17 The Pokémon Kidnapping Incident
“This detective is utterly useless,” Azure couldn’t help but say.
“Right, that’s exactly how it feels!” Douzi nodded with his arms crossed, as if he had been there before. “When I first heard the whole story at the rich man’s house, that’s what I thought too. After the ransom disappeared, the detective felt guilty and returned all the commission fees to the rich man.”
"This approach is perfectly reasonable. After all, the whole incident is a complete failure on the part of the detective, who actually let the criminal escape right before his eyes."
Azure couldn't help but think of the burning Feather Residence. He couldn't even manage three such well-behaved beginner Pokémon. He really was a useless man.
"But that pit is quite intriguing," the chestnut-haired girl said to her junior after taking a sip of her scalding coffee.
"In that instant, the culprit didn't appear, and the box vanished. This could very well be a magic trick using a Pokémon. Let me think... it might be the effect of the 'Dig' move. Perhaps a Ground-type Pokémon had already dug a tunnel under the bench, and when the time came, it would immediately emerge to retrieve the box, then fill in the tunnel as it ran away."
"As expected of Sister Xiao Lan! She came to the same conclusion as the detective in an instant!" Douzi clapped and cheered, then added his explanation.
"The detective did tell the rich man this reasoning before ending the case, but by then the criminal had already escaped, and even the most reasonable reasoning could not undo the loss. The rich man had originally intended to accept the commission fee as a reward for Hugo's hard work in monitoring for most of the day, but the detective insisted on returning the money to the rich man."
Little Blue's opinion of the detective remained unchanged. She continued, "Ultimately, when the detective discovered the crater, he should have sent out a Pokémon and used 'Earthquake' in the park. With double damage, the kidnapper's Pokémon would definitely have immediately escaped from the ground."
As expected of Azure from Pallet Town, her impressive battle skills led her to analyze the situation from a professional perspective. She pointed out that Blastoise happens to know the "Earthquake" move, and if she were the detective, she would have caught the kidnapper long ago.
Douzi shook his head. "That detective probably will never use such a method, after all, he and Pokémon are incompatible."
Bilan didn't understand what "incompatible birth charts" meant, but seeing Douzi's "there's more to the story" expression, she didn't press him for details and quietly waited for him to continue recounting this boring kidnapping case.
"The case wasn't over yet. The millionaire's Pokémon was still missing, and the kidnappers hadn't returned it. Just then, a second ransom note arrived at the millionaire's house," Touko recounted.
"Greed knows no bounds," Azure shook her head. "But that's normal, if criminals weren't greedy, they wouldn't commit crimes."
"This time, the kidnappers demanded ten million yuan in cash in the ransom note, ten times the amount of the previous ones. Unlike before, this time the kidnappers asked the wealthy man to bury a large box containing the money—also ten times larger than the previous briefcase—under the ground in a remote forest. At that time, the kidnappers would release the wealthy man's spirit."
“The millionaire certainly didn’t agree, did he?” Azure asked. “Burning the box underground would make it even harder for the millionaire to track the kidnappers. That Pokémon that can only 'dig' can steal the ransom at any time without anyone noticing. And no one can guarantee that the criminals won’t go back on their word a second time.”
“Of course, the rich man was furious. He even considered paying to kill the criminal on the black market, but ultimately gave up because the kidnapper’s identity was unknown,” Douzi replied.
"So this tycoon is quite a ruthless character..." Azure clicked her tongue in amazement. "The world of the rich is terrifying."
"That's when I came to the millionaire's residence to inquire about the acquisition of the Feathered Residence," the Unova girl, who was also a millionaire, said casually.
"This is such bad timing. The level of disruption is equivalent to barging into the Executive Yuan at six o'clock in the afternoon. The staff who are about to leave work will definitely treat you like you're dead."
"So that's why I got glared at so fiercely at the office back then," Douzi said, clapping his hands as if suddenly realizing something.
Azure covered her forehead with one hand: "You actually did something like that?"
"The world is really complicated. It seems there's still a lot I need to learn from Sister Xiaolan." Douzi swayed her ponytail and grinned at her senior.
The girl's topics of conversation were ever-changing, and before she knew it, the detective's story had been forgotten.
“Speaking of which, let’s go shopping together this afternoon! It’s a rare opportunity to come to Flying Cloud City, so you should probably like to visit the Flying Cloud City Art Museum, Fashion Street, and Battle Company, right?” Touko, the local guide from Unova, suggested to Azure, who was traveling there.
Azure readily agreed, as this was originally part of her itinerary: "Alright. But let me make it clear beforehand, I'm only bringing one unevolved Eevee with me this time. If you're planning to earn prize money through doubles matches, don't blame me for holding you back."
Upon hearing the words "competition company," she understood the intention of the bounty hunter on the other side.
Douzi smiled awkwardly and stuck out his tongue: "I've been found out... but I believe in Xiaolan's strength. Even Eevee can definitely win."
"So it really is for the prize money. What are you planning to do with all that money you're earning by participating in so many matches?"
"I want to be a Pokémon director!" the Unova girl said with bright eyes. "I want to raise the funds to make a movie and then become the strongest Pokémon director!"
"Then why did you buy Yuqi Mansion? Buying a villa isn't a prerequisite for becoming a director, is it?"
"To be honest, I fell in love with Featherwood the moment I saw it." The girl who wanted to be a director made a surprising statement. "A villa in the city surrounded by skyscrapers, a luxurious yet picturesque paradise—the moment I saw that house, I vowed that one day I would definitely use this building as the location to shoot an amazing Pokémon movie! It has to be Featherwood!"
"That's quite ambitious," Azure sighed, somewhat envious of the younger generation before her. The girl's eyes shone with a bright light, sparkling with dreams.
As a senior, Azure was very familiar with this gaze. It often appeared in the eyes of her Pallet Town companions. When she met their gaze, she always felt that the other person was not just looking at her, but chasing something more distant—the pinnacle of the world.
Unable to see the distant scenery, Azure felt lost and decided to embark on a journey again.
"So, Little Blue, you absolutely have to participate in the doubles match I signed up for! My Emboar will do everything in its power to keep up with Eevee's pace!"
Making Enmusubi his henchman? There's no such thing as a powerful Eevee in the world!
"You've already registered?!" Azure was startled. "And you're way too blindly trusting of my abilities. What did I do that you admire so much?"
"Doesn't Little Blue have any self-awareness at all? Last time I met you in the Whirlpool Islands, you... well, you just..."
"Hmm...it was a tough battle back then, and I was using my main Pokémon." Azure recalled their previous encounter, then shook her head. "This kind of record isn't anything special among the Pallet Town trainers of our generation."
“Your peers are Blue and Red!” This time it was Douzi’s turn to complain. “One is a gym leader with experience in successfully defeating champions, and the other is the current champion of the Kanto region, a living legend of battles. Being able to be compared with the two of them is already very impressive.”
“That’s why I love traveling,” the girl from Pallet Town sighed. “Everyone in Kanto and Johto says the same thing to me. By the way, what happened to that kidnapping case earlier?”
What is the truth behind the theft of the millionaire's Pokémon? Was the criminal truly driven by insatiable greed to repeatedly extort ransom? And what gave the detective the confidence to approach the millionaire a second time?
The topic eventually circled back to the detective.
"This..." Douzi closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, as if trying to recall where the story had left off before changing the subject.
"I remember now, after receiving the wealthy man's commission, the detective lay in ambush near the park bench..."
"You've gone too far with the timeline!" Azure exclaimed loudly. Was this junior an idiot? "You mentioned earlier that the millionaire was furious because of the second extortion letter."
"Oh!" Douzi realized. "The rest of the story is entirely what I witnessed with my own eyes."
"Did you mention the first time you met the detective at the beginning?"
"Yes, the detective who had slunk away from the rich man before has returned uninvited. This time, after reading the second blackmail letter the rich man received, he smiled slightly and said—"
Douzi spread his arms and pointed the unused straw straight at the azure blue, striking a pose reminiscent of a famous director.
"The case has been completely resolved, and the real culprit has received the punishment he deserves." As if possessed by a detective, Douzi declared.
This time, it was Azure's turn to be completely puzzled.