Tetsuya was worrying about finding a suitable house.
A burst of firecrackers sounded from the town. Following the noise, he discovered that a new Pokémon Daycare had just opened.
The crowd was buzzing with discussion, all of them praising the owner for his "remarkable achievements". In just a few years, he had expanded the old Pokémon Daycare that had originally been near the coal mine to this location.
This information might prove useful to him, so Tetsuya stayed a little longer.
"I'm afraid this Pokémon Daycare opening here is going to take away most of the business from the other Pokémon Daycare."
"Yeah. After all, it used to be the best Pokémon Daycare in Eggseter. It was even well-known in Ecruteak City. If it hadn't been for the mining accident three years ago that destroyed the environment for raising Pokémon, it wouldn't have had to shut down for three years."
"Hee~ What a pity. That old Pokémon Daycare was just left abandoned."
"I heard the mining accident killed dozens of miners down there. Their restless spirits still linger. Ugh… just thinking about it is frightening. Who would dare go anywhere near that place!?"
Tetsuya seemed to have heard some useful information. It looked like he needed to investigate the major events that had taken place around Ecruteak City over the past few years.
He found a fairly decent hotel. At last, he no longer had to sneak around looking for shady inns.
He turned on the computer and began searching through the major events that had occurred around Ecruteak over the past few years.
The top headline was the coal mine explosion from three years earlier.
At the border between the outskirts of Ecruteak City and Eggseter, there had been a coal mine. Three years earlier, a gas explosion had trapped dozens of workers underground. By the time the rescue teams brought them out, every one of them had died. As a result, the coal mine had been permanently sealed.
The closest building to the mine had been the predecessor of the Pokémon Daycare that had just reopened. The explosion had completely destroyed the Daycare's grassy fields. The area had now become virtually a forbidden zone, and hardly anyone would go near it. The Pokémon Daycare had been forced to close because of it.
'This… this was the place!'
What he needed was a place where few people ever went. He might even be able to buy a place like that outright.
Property prices in the city were very high because public security and safety were well guaranteed. In contrast, homes in rural areas had far weaker protection for both property and personal safety, making them vastly cheaper than those in the city.
A place where such an accident had occurred would certainly be discounted even further. It also happened to be exactly the kind of place he needed for raising Pokémon…
Most importantly, the Pokémon Daycare's outdoor grazing grounds provided more than enough space.
It was truly a case of killing two Pidgey with one Rock Throw!
Having made up his mind, it was time to pay a visit to the owner of the newly opened Pokémon Daycare.
Since the Daycare had just opened and was offering a series of promotional discounts, business was booming, and a long line had formed outside.
Tetsuya walked straight to the front of the line.
"Chotto! What do you think you're doing? Cutting in line!?"
"That's right! Get to the back of the line! Have you no manners?"
Tetsuya was soon drowned out by the complaints.
The Pokémon Daycare's lobby manager walked over with a smile and said, "Excuse me, sir. Could you please wait in line?"
"I'm here to see your boss. Tell him I want to buy your old abandoned Daycare," Tetsuya said.
The lobby manager looked surprised, wondering who could be foolish enough to buy such a haunted place. Then another thought crossed his mind. If the "man" really intended to buy it, it would at least bring in some income for the owner.
"Hai hai! Come with me."
Faced with such a good opportunity, the manager did not even bother reporting it first. He led Tetsuya directly to the Pokémon Daycare owner's office.
---◓---
After the manager explained the situation, even the Daycare owner found it hard to believe. Half doubtful, he asked, "…You really want to buy that Pokémon Daycare?"
"As long as the price is reasonable, I'll definitely buy it, along with the outdoor grounds," Tetsuya said.
"Mm, the grazing and activity grounds are certainly spacious enough. It's just that they've been abandoned ever since the mining accident…" The Pokémon Daycare owner said.
"Alright. There's no point talking about it. Let's go take a look at the place. If it's suitable, I'll buy it right away," Tetsuya said.
"Of course, of course! No problem. I'll make the arrangements immediately." The owner naturally could not wait to get rid of it. On top of that, the newly reopened Daycare was in urgent need of working capital. If this deal went through, it would truly be timely assistance.
The owner drove Tetsuya to the location of the abandoned Daycare.
He opened one room after another. A cloud of dust rushed out each time. All the equipment had already been removed, leaving nothing but empty rooms, and the owner introduced each room to Tetsuya one by one.
The large room in the center had originally been the main hall. Its tempered glass doors were still completely intact.
The three rooms on the left had been the egg room, the medical room, and the care room.
The three rooms on the right had been where the Pokémon ate and slept.
Behind them were three more large rooms that had been used for Pokémon training. They had originally contained a great deal of training equipment, but all of it had since been moved away.
Beyond that lay a vast field, now completely overgrown with weeds. Past the fence at the edge of the grounds was the mine where the accident had occurred. A large portion of this field had originally been damaged by the explosion, and afterward, the Pokémon Daycare owner had simply restored the fence.
The property consisted of ten buildings occupying a total area of four thousand square meters, with an activity field covering another six thousand square meters. A Pokémon Daycare of this size was considered medium-sized. Under normal circumstances, its market value would have been around 1.5 million Pokédollars.
What was truly valuable in this world was land, especially land in cities. The cost of constructing buildings themselves was actually very low. With the help of various Pokémon, construction efficiency far surpassed that of humans, making labor costs minimal.
In short, Pokémon, as an enormous productive force, made many things much easier. However, the land here was not particularly valuable, so the overall cost was also quite limited.
If it had really been worth 1.5 million Pokédollars, Tetsuya certainly would not have bought it. That was merely the market price. This place obviously could not be valued at market price anymore. Moreover, all the buildings were empty, had been abandoned for a long time, and no one had cleaned them. Overall, the first impression they gave was terrible.
Seeing the look of distaste on Tetsuya's face, the owner could only force an awkward smile.
"Name your price," Tetsuya said.
"You can see for yourself that the property covers ten thousand square meters or one hectare. Here's the Property Certificate, with all the details clearly recorded. At market price, it's definitely worth 1.5 million Pokédollars. But if you really want it… how about, eh, one million…?" The Pokémon Daycare owner said.
Tetsuya rolled his eyes dramatically and said, "If you could sell it for one million, you would have listed it with a real estate agency long ago! Why let it sit abandoned all this time? I'll pay the full amount upfront: 700,000 Pokédollars. Take it or leave it."
The owner clicked his tongue. Naturally, he wanted to get rid of this hot Topo Berry as quickly as possible, but the price really was too low…
After hesitating again and again, he considered that it was a full cash payment and that he urgently needed the funds, so he had no choice but to agree!
That very day, Tetsuya and the Pokémon Daycare owner completed the property transfer procedures. The Pokémon Daycare officially became property under Tetsuya's name, and the 700,000 Pokédollars was transferred to the owner as soon as Tetsuya received the Property Certificate. Everything went very smoothly.