As 2,000 points were deducted from Kalifa's account, a red and white Poké Ball suddenly appeared in her hand.
"From now on, I'm a trainer too…" Kalifa murmured with a soft smile, fully embracing her new identity.
With the acquisition of Mareep, she began plotting how to report to the World Government to reap even greater benefits. For now, no one but the dimensional merchants knew of her betrayal… perhaps she could use this to her advantage! Who would ever suspect that a top agent, meticulously trained by the World Government, would suddenly turn against them?
Time passed slowly.
After discussing some final details of the transaction, Leo simply waved his hand and sent Kalifa back to Robin's villa.
Although Kalifa still had 200 points left, Leo had changed. He no longer minded traders holding onto some points.
After all, the current pirate world had many value-added services that required points.
A few points here or there might not seem significant, but once people got used to making purchases with just a swipe, reverting to cash transactions wouldn't be easy.
As the world of pirates saw a massive conversion of currency into world power, Leo had to devise numerous programs that required points in daily life, ensuring the stability of the pirate world's currency system and allowing for sustainable growth.
For instance, the Rotom-controlled cafeteria, movie theater, and shopping mall—these facilities had already been established on nuS Island.
Since ordinary resources within the system appeared to be free, meals and ingredients, frozen and immune to spoilage, could be redeemed with a few points—enough to sustain nuS Island for thousands of years or more.
Leo's foresight in maintaining the currency stability of the pirate world, ensuring he could continue to "harvest wool," was truly admirable.
"I'm so clever, hehe!" Leo chuckled to himself before teleporting back to Robin's player lounge using his telekinesis.
By this time, both Robin and Olvia had come to terms with Olvia's resurrection. After a brief conversation, mother and daughter had begun to settle down.
Although Robin had much to discuss with Olvia, more pressing matters occupied her mind.
…
Leo reappeared before Robin as her vision blurred. With a soft smile, he asked, "Miss Robin, do you need any assistance?"
Though Leo had already read Robin's thoughts, he feigned ignorance, having just received her transaction request.
Robin nodded, stepped forward, and bowed deeply to Leo.
"Thank you so much, Sir Leo!"
"I will never forget your great kindness! If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask. I'll do everything in my power to assist you!"
Robin's gratitude was sincere. The pain of losing a loved one is something only those who have experienced it can understand—the emptiness, as if the connection to the world has been severed.
But now, thanks to the dimensional transaction, Robin had regained the courage to live, reestablishing her connection to the world.
Robin would never forget this kindness.
However, in response to Robin's gratitude, Leo simply smiled softly.
"Miss Robin, there's no need for such formalities. This was just a fair transaction."
Despite the temptation of the alluring sight before him, Leo waved his hand and used telekinesis to lift Robin back to her feet.
A transaction is just that—a transaction. Feelings? Unless he wanted to recruit someone as a subordinate like Enel, Leo always kept a certain distance in his relationships with traders.
After all, if the relationship became too deep, it would be awkward when it came time to make money.
Robin, unfazed by Leo's seemingly friendly but detached attitude, felt that this was exactly how a dimensional merchant should behave.
After collecting her thoughts, Robin got straight to the point.
"I'm sorry to trouble you, Sir Leo, to come all this way."
"I was wondering if I could purchase another Ho-Oh Feather?"
"Oh?" Leo asked, a slight smile on his lips. "Is there someone else you wish to resurrect?"
Robin nodded resolutely, a determined glint in her eyes. She spoke with conviction:
"I have a dream…"
"If I have the ability, I want to resurrect all the victims of O'Hara Island who were once wiped out by the Navy!"
"Although my abilities are limited now, I will use all my efforts to bring those innocent people who died under gunfire back to this world and let their voices be heard again and uncover the true face of the World Government to the world!!!"
Robin's voice was firm and powerful. Clearly, this idea had been in her mind for quite some time. Her mother's successful resurrection had only strengthened her resolve.
"All the victims of O'Hara…"
When Robin said these words, it meant she would resurrect everyone, including the children who had bullied her and the family of the aunt who had exploited her.
No matter how unsatisfactory her life on O'Hara had been, it didn't justify the Navy's indiscriminate slaughter!
Despite living in darkness, Robin's character remained as pure and bright as an angel.
Even Leo, who had just sensed Robin's thoughts, couldn't help but admire her resolve.
However, O'Hara was still home to thousands of people. One could only wonder if Ho-Oh would be so enraged upon hearing Robin's dream that he'd break free from the system.
If that happened, Leo wouldn't need to exchange the Ho-oH's feathers from the system—he could have Ho-Oh produce them directly, selling them at a premium without the system taking a cut!
But alas… while demand for resurrection is high, so is its price. Only a select few could afford the privilege.
A mass production line of [Ho-Oh Feathers] wouldn't be viable for just a few customers.
After these thoughts crossed his mind, Leo put on a warm smile and responded approvingly:
"That's truly a noble dream…"
"Based on Miss Robin's current points balance, you should be able to resurrect two people. Who would you like to resurrect this time?"
"I want to resurrect Vice Admiral Saul, who died in O'Hara, and Doctor Clover, the chief librarian of O'Hara's Tree of Knowledge!" Robin declared without hesitation.
[TL/n: Yes, this chapter was made before the egghead arc.]
In an instant, two Ho-oH's feathers appeared in Leo's hands. Since the time of death wasn't much different from Olvia's, the points required to retrieve their souls from the underworld were the same—7,000 points were instantly deducted from Robin's account.
In a flash, two mysterious lights, radiating life energy, filled the player lounge.
Before the two could be fully resurrected, Leo waved his hand, summoning two sets of clothes and dressing them.
For a beauty like Olvia, he might take his time before materializing her clothes. But for a foot-scratching giant and an old man, he didn't hesitate.
In the blink of an eye, former Vice Admiral Saul and O'Hara's chief scholar, Dr. Clover, were resurrected.
Like Olvia, the two had just been resurrected and felt somewhat disoriented in the real world.
Leo knew without much thought that this would soon lead to another emotional reunion. Uninterested in the traders' private lives, Leo subtly nodded to Robin before teleporting out of the players' lounge.
He decided to leave the rest of the time to them.
...
Meanwhile, in Robin's villa, Kalifa, who had returned earlier than the others, quickly retrieved a well-hidden box from her belongings. Inside the box was a special den-den mushi.
This den-den mushi was a rare and specialized variant, one that the World Government had provided her with for this mission. Due to its rarity, the World Government only issues such den-den mushis to agents on particularly critical assignments.
Before anyone else could return, Kalifa swiftly dialed the number.
Suddenly, a sharp, unpleasant voice came through the receiver:
"Hello?"
In the Tower of Justice, in the commander's office, Spandam eagerly grabbed the phone, trying to contain his excitement. As the long-time intelligence chief, he knew that the ringing of this particular den-den mushi meant one of two things: either Kalifa had made a breakthrough in her mission, or she had failed, and the den-den mushi had been compromised.
When Kalifa's voice came through the line, a wide grin spread across Spandam's face.
"Sir, I have obtained information about the dimensional merchant!"
Kalifa's cold voice emanated from the den-den mushi:
"The dimensional merchant is currently on nuS Island, observing the Pokémon Contest."
"I have now joined Jabra and the others, and I'm working undercover as Nico Robin's assistant..."
"You can report those minor details later!"
Spandam cut her off abruptly, his impatience palpable as he demanded:
"Now! Immediately! Tell me everything about the dimensional merchant!"
The prospect of being the first officer in all espionage divisions to gain information on the dimensional merchant had Spandam fantasizing about his impending promotion within the World Government.
As for his demeanor towards his subordinates?
With his anticipated promotion, there was no need to coddle those who aspired for power but lacked ability.
He had long been dissatisfied with the CP9 members' attitudes, and now his irritation had only grown. His very breath seemed to exude greed as he spoke into the den-den mushi.
What Spandam didn't realize was that upon hearing his voice, Kalifa on the other end of the line let out a sneer.
However, as a skilled agent, she quickly composed herself, controlling her tone and demeanor. Kalifa immediately expressed her discontent, speaking even more coldly into the den-den mushi:
"After the contest, the dimensional merchant asked if I was willing to become a trader."
"I took the opportunity to propose a deal with him, but..."
"But what?"
Spandam's breath caught in his throat, as if the difference between heaven and hell hung on Kalifa's next words.
Kalifa continued:
"The dimensional merchant said that after learning of certain actions by several Celestial Dragons, he has no intention of trading with the World Government at this time."
"But it's clear he hasn't completely ruled out the possibility."
"The dimensional merchant indicated that he might select a few individuals from the World Government to trade with first, as a test or investigation."
"He plans to evaluate our actions before deciding when to initiate direct trade with the World Government."
At this point, Kalifa paused, allowing Spandam a moment to digest the information, before she continued:
"In order to maintain this lead on the dimensional merchant, I made a trade with him without authorization. I've already obtained a Pokémon."
"Based on my observation, although the dimensional merchant is wary of the Celestial Dragons' behavior, he clearly values the outcomes of the transactions more."
"Through consistent trading, it's likely that the merchant will gain benefits we can't yet understand."
"So, I wonder if the dimensional merchant is signaling that we need to engage in more transactions and show genuine intent before he's willing to conduct direct trade with the World Government."
In just a few sentences, Kalifa delivered an embellished version of the truth to Spandam.
After hearing Kalifa's report, Spandam fell into deep thought.
Aside from the contact with the dimensional merchant, two key points stood out to him in her report:
First, the actions of the Celestial Dragons had disgusted the dimensional merchant, making him reluctant to trade with the World Government.
Spandam didn't doubt the reasoning Kalifa provided. Even he, a devoted sycophant of the Celestial Dragons, occasionally found some of their behaviors repugnant.
So, he could understand why the dimensional merchant might be hesitant to engage with the World Government.
But the second point...
Kalifa suggested that the dimensional merchant could derive some kind of benefit from these trades, so conducting more transactions could potentially strengthen their relationship with him.
Spandam had no reason to doubt this.
Nothing in the world is truly free.
The World Government had debated for a long time, trying to understand what the dimensional merchant stood to gain from these transactions.
Unfortunately, no matter how hard they racked their brains, they couldn't fathom that everything Leo exchanged for points vanished completely from their knowledge.
How could they imagine something that didn't exist in their reality?
After several fruitless meetings, and with the Revolutionary Army defeating the Navy, the urgency of time became apparent.
Now was clearly not the time to ponder these matters.
In the current world, trading was paramount!
If you didn't trade, you'd fall behind, and falling behind meant being defeated!
Therefore, dimensional transactions were of utmost importance to the World Government.
And this was especially true for Spandam at this moment.
However, he couldn't present a half-completed task to the World Government.
"We need to find a way to persuade the dimensional merchant to agree to trade with the World Government..."
Spandam muttered to himself.
(End of this chapter)