Tobias no longer displayed the arrogance he had shown initially and restrained his temper in front of Manager Melody. After all, to serve as a manager in the Flame Realm, one needed to possess at least Gym Leader-level strength and have formidable connections.
He might have dared to confront a young guide like Aria, but he could only behave respectfully before Manager Melody. His background and strength weren't comparable to others, so he had no choice but to conduct himself properly. He would grovel and beg for mercy before his superiors while being harsh and ruthless toward his subordinates.
Manager Melody had already guessed what had transpired. Aria must have been wronged. As her supervisor, she had to stand up for her at this moment; otherwise, her team would lose faith, and no one would be willing to follow her in the future. "Mr. Zhao, Aria is correct. If you engage in confrontations within the collection room, the Flame Realm is indeed authorized to revoke your selection privileges."
Of course, Manager Melody's warning was merely to maintain the Flame Realm's authority. It would be impossible to actually cancel the Zhao family's quota. Aria was just an intern without connections, after all. Manager Melody couldn't completely alienate the Zhao family for her sake. "Let's overlook it this time. Since Mr. Zhao and you have selected your Pokémon eggs, please exit the collection room. Zia, please package this egg for Mr. Tobias and his companion."
When Tobias heard Manager Melody's order to leave, his face flushed red, but he didn't dare challenge Manager Melody, so he could only depart in embarrassment.
After Tobias left, Manager Melody put on a smile and addressed Asher apologetically, "Gym Leader Asher, I apologize. There isn't actually a strict 'first come, first served' policy in the Realm. It ultimately depends on one's personal conduct and training. We can't do much about individuals like Tobias who lack proper etiquette. I'm truly sorry. I notice that Aria is holding the Pokémon eggs you purchased outside, so I'll provide you with the maximum discount within my authority—40% off."
It was evident why Manager Melody had reached her position—not only because of her strength but also due to her thoughtful approach to people. She had stood up for her subordinate while cleverly resolving the dispute between Asher and Tobias, allowing Tobias to take the egg and leave while also offering Asher compensation.
"Gym Leader Asher, please continue with your selection. I won't disturb you further. Aria, would you like to take a break?"
"It's fine, Manager Melody. I'm okay," Aria replied quickly.
"Very well. I'll attend to other matters. Work diligently, and you can rest after you've finished assisting Gym Leader Asher. I'll give you the afternoon off."
"Thank you, Manager Melody."
"Brother, don't be upset. I just think that Pokémon egg's potential wasn't particularly good, and we weren't interested in it anyway," Jacob said to comfort his brother. "Now that they're gone, we can choose at our own pace and definitely find an egg with better potential than that Growlithe."
"I'm not upset." Asher suddenly sighed. If the Xia family were still in its former glory, Tobias would never have treated him this way. Now that his strength had diminished considerably, all sorts of difficult people had emerged. "Let's continue looking."
The brothers resumed their search. The entire collection room wasn't very large, and it took them just a few minutes to examine the dozens of Pokémon eggs inside.
To his surprise, Jacob discovered two Pokémon with King-level potential or above. One was a Charmander, and the other was a Shiny Charmander with the Solar Power ability!
Between the two, Jacob would undoubtedly choose the Charmander, as it was the only Pokémon in the entire room with Champion-level potential.
Honestly, this Charmander's potential was so impressive that even Jacob himself felt excited.
[Pokémon Egg]
Charmander
Gender: Female
Type: Fire
Potential: Champion
Ability: Solar Power
Moves: ? ? ?
The Solar Power characteristic undoubtedly made this Charmander more suitable for a special attack strategy. On a sunny day, a Charizard with Solar Power could be extremely lethal.
Moreover, Charizard could Mega Evolve. Whether it evolved into Mega Charizard X or Mega Charizard Y, its strength would be formidable.
If it evolved into Mega Charizard X, its ability would transform from Solar Power to Tough Claws, converting the special-attacking Charizard into a physical attacker—an unexpected and difficult strategy to counter.
When evolving into Mega Charizard Y, its ability would change to Drought. The value of weather-influencing abilities was extremely high, with weather-focused trainers forming the core of competitive teams.
"Brother, come look at this egg!" Jacob called out.
"A Charmander egg?" Asher still trusted Jacob's identification ability and immediately examined it more closely. He didn't notice anything special about this egg, and since he already had a Charizard, he wasn't particularly interested. "I already have a Charizard. Do I need to train another one?"
"Your Charizard doesn't have enough potential. Its strength has reached its ceiling. Gym Leader level is its limit." Jacob had admittedly become somewhat arrogant. His own Pokémon hadn't even reached Gym Leader level yet. Just a month ago, he had been a novice without a single Pokémon. Now, though still developing as a trainer, he possessed two high-potential Pokémon. It would take time for him to truly mature.
"You're so young, yet so confident. 'My Charizard doesn't have enough potential,'" Asher teased, ruffling Jacob's hair. "My Charizard is Gym Leader level. Wait until you reach Gym Leader strength before making such claims."
Asher couldn't see what was so special about this egg. It appeared quite ordinary among the collection of high-quality Pokémon eggs. "Are you certain this egg is exceptional? I honestly think it's average. Here, look at what I found."
"..."
Jacob was speechless at his brother's reaction. He wanted to shout that this was a Champion-level Charmander egg!
But Jacob couldn't convince Asher and was pulled to another section to examine a different egg.
"Jacob, I think this Charmeleon egg looks promising. First, it's larger in size, and second, its pattern is vividly colored with abundant fire energy. Although it's not as impressive as the Growlithe egg we saw earlier, it's still quite good." Asher spoke confidently, analyzing it thoroughly. Jacob checked its potential and found it was at Gym Leader level—not even as good as the Growlithe from before.
It seemed wasteful to use such a valuable selection opportunity on a Gym Leader-level Pokémon.
"Brother, this egg really isn't as good as the one I chose. Trust me on this—there's absolutely nothing wrong with that Charmander egg." Jacob promised solemnly.
"Really?" Asher still looked doubtful.
"Come on, brother, when have I ever lied to you?" Jacob asked.
"When you were in junior high, you created a female profile on PokéChat, pretended to be a girl, chatted with me online for a month, and scammed me out of a month's allowance," Asher reminded him.
"Pfft." Aria couldn't help laughing out loud, which embarrassed Jacob. "Ahem, that was an exception—let's focus on the matter at hand. Seriously, I believe this egg is excellent. Trust me."
"Are you certain?" Asher questioned.
"Absolutely positive," Jacob confirmed.
"Then we'll take this one." Seeing Jacob's confidence, Asher made his decision without hesitation. This demonstrated the trust between family members. Since Jacob was so sure, Asher naturally supported his choice without question. "If its potential turns out to be disappointing, I'll choose the next one myself. But if you're right about its potential, how about I give you the second selection?"
Jacob was tempted to ask for this Charmander egg for himself but realized it might be the key to his brother advancing to King trainer status.
With the system's assistance, Jacob would undoubtedly encounter more powerful Pokémon in the future. However, he secretly resolved to obtain a Charizard someday and Mega Evolve it into Mega Charizard X. The black Charizard would astonish everyone, especially if he could make it Gigantamax as well.
"All right, let's go with this egg."