As the fastest and safest land transportation available, maglev trains were naturally expensive.
Even the cheapest third-class ticketcost over a thousand PokéDollars, something many ordinary people couldn't easily afford.
However, for Pokémon Trainers, earning a few thousand PokéDollars wasn't difficult. Being able to reach their destination faster was absolutely worth the price.
The luxury seat ticket in Silas's hand alone cost tens of thousands of PokéDollars. After all, there would always be wealthy individuals or successful trainers willing to pay for a more comfortable journey.
"Welcome aboard the Spring Source Line."
A uniformed train attendant bowed politely and reached out to help Silas remove the backpack from his shoulders.
Silas waved his hand with a smile, politely declining the offer.
In the Hoenn region, there were fewer than ten maglev train routes like this.
Because Hoenn contained vast ocean areas, most transportation still relied on ships and cruise liners.
Interestingly, nearly all maglev train lines were named with words related to water, such as spring, sea, or stream, reflecting the region's geography.
...
The luxury seat was less like a seat and more like a small private room.
The chairs could extend into beds, and the interior space was large enough to comfortably release three or four small Pokémon.
"Excuse me, sir. Would you like a drink?"
A beautiful train attendant gently knocked on the door and asked softly.
Silas declined again.
He was always extremely cautious about food and drinks offered by strangers. Besides, he already had enough supplies in his backpack.
After locking the compartment door, Silas finally relaxed.
The past few days of intense research and training had left him mentally and physically exhausted.
This train ride was the perfect chance to rest.
.....
"I wonder what Team Rocket is planning this time…"
In truth, Silas had no desire to involve himself in whatever was about to happen. But if he ignored the summons and disappeared for too long, it would inevitably raise suspicion.
At that point, Team Rocket would begin investigating him.
Compared to that, it was better to face the situation directly.
After all, Team Rocket was a powerful underground organization spanning several regions, capable of directly confronting the Pokémon League.
If Silas could maintain a connection with them, it could serve both as a future opportunity and as a backup path if things went wrong.
"Fortunately, that psychic Rocket member didn't know anyone in the Hoenn region."
Over the past few days, Silas had searched through the identity records left behind by the man whose identity he had taken.
The psychic Rocket he replaced had originally been a member of Team Rocket's Saffron City base.
His position was Squad Leader, commanding dozens of unofficial agents and around ten standard Rocket grunts.
However, after receiving an emergency transfer order to the Hoenn region, he had been killed by Silas before even reporting to headquarters.
"What strange fate…"
Silas chuckled softly.
"A psychic from Saffron City… it's hard not to suspect some connection to the Saffron Gym… and Sabrina."
.....
Thinking this, Silas released several of his Pokémon.
Of course, Crawdaunt and Sharpedo stayed inside their Poké Balls since they were far too large for the train compartment.
"Sandile, no baring your teeth at other Pokémon or people."
Silas looked at the fierce little crocodile whose scales were puffed up and whose eyes were filled with hostility.
Sandile's childhood had been filled with brutal survival battles.
Because of that, it remained extremely wary of any creature other than Silas.
Sandile would instinctively bare his teeth at strangers.
Even Crawdaunt, another aggressive Pokémon, only tolerated Sandile thanks to Silas constantly mediating between them.
Silas pulled out a special chewing stick from his backpack and stuffed it into Sandile's mouth.
Without it, the little crocodile probably wouldn't stay quiet for the entire trip.
...
Just as Silas prepared to connect the seats together and lie down for a short rest, his Pokédex suddenly chimed.
It was a payment notification.
"Two million PokéDollars… just for the custom breeding plan."
"And the future batches of Verdant Bloom Pokeblock Cubes will bring even more income."
Silas couldn't help but sigh.
No wonder experienced Intermediate Breeders rarely bothered selling Pokeblock Cubes.
A full customized breeding program could easily bring in over five million PokéDollars before a Pokémon even reached the Elite level.
Suddenly, Silas understood why even members of the Joy family often chose the breeder profession.
It was incredibly profitable.
And that wasn't even counting the follow-up work.
Take Selene's Chikorita training plan for example.
Once Chikorita eventually reached Level 40 and entered the Elite class, would its training simply stop?
Of course not.
At that time, Selene would likely return to Silas to design the next stage of the breeding program.
Using another breeder could create conflicting philosophies or incompatible training methods, which might harm the Pokémon's development.
The long-term value of these commissions could easily reach tens of millions of PokéDollars.
That was the real profit.
No wonder only a handful of people could afford customized breeder services.
Even some small noble families might hesitate before spending that kind of money on their heirs.
.....
Silas's train journey remained peaceful.
The trip lasted less than six hours, and it was already halfway over.
The train was currently passing the junction between Route 113 and Route 111.
From there, it would simply travel south to reach its destination-Mauville City.
"According to the Pokédex, Route 113 is home to large populations of Surskit."
Surskit was quite an interesting Pokémon.
It was a Bug/Water-type that typically lived in ponds and swamps covered with aquatic plants.
Its Swift Swim ability and hidden ability Rain Dish made it ideal for rain teams.
However, the reason Silas found it interesting wasn't because of its battle strength.
The top of a Surskit's body secretes a sweet, syrup-like liquid, which many dessert shops use as a natural sweetener.
The liquid secreted from the top of Surskit's body was incredibly sweet,almost like malt syrup.
Because of this, many dessert shops used it to produce a special syrup that could be found in almost every store.
"Umbreon really likes sweets…"
Silas stroked the lazy Umbreon resting in his arms.
"It's a pity the maglev train won't stop along the way. Otherwise I might have caught one."
Outside the window, the scenery flashed by rapidly.
For the moment, Silas felt an unusual sense of calm.
Because once he arrived in Mauville City, he would face the unknown situation surrounding Team Rocket.
People feared darkness not because it was dangerous But because it was unknown.
"I hope everything goes smoothly."
Silas sighed quietly.
At the same time, he pulled out a small note.
Written on it were the contact details of Gym Leader Norman and Selene Solans.
If something went wrong and he couldn't escape…
Those two connections would be his last line of retreat and the greatest support that allowed him to walk safely within the shadows of the black market.
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(End of chapter)