Bright lights swept across the stage as the auction got underway. One item after another was brought out for display: Pokémon and Pokémon Eggs of exceptional quality, rare and valuable held items, and other goods that Jacob chose not to think too hard about.
Dragon Ridge sat in a border region, which gave its Underground Black Market a reach that drew in people from across several nearby countries. The annual auction was treated accordingly, and it was not unusual for Four Heavenly Kings or even Champions from smaller neighbouring nations to attend in disguise.
Jacob settled into the sofa and glanced over at Erick. "What's the plan?"
"We wait," Erick said. He was watching the crowd below with a calm expression that did not quite reach his eyes. "After the auction closes, the five families will move to settle the dividends. That's when they'll try something. They'll want me to hand over my shares."
Jacob nodded and turned his attention back to the stage.
The auctioneer was a tall woman in a red dress, composed and practiced in the way people become when they have run hundreds of these events. Her voice carried easily across the room as she described the current lot: a Magikarp Egg with quasi-King-level aptitude.
Jacob watched without much interest.
"Anything catching your eye?" Erick asked.
"Not yet." Jacob paused. "I'd heard Dragon Ridge had the biggest Underground Black Market in the whole Southwest region. Figured the annual auction would have something worth seeing."
He had been watching for half an hour. A few of the lots had been genuinely rare, but nothing had made him sit forward.
Erick seemed to read the mild disappointment on his face. "This is only the first half," he said, with a slight smile. "It's open to general attendees, so the quality is middle of the road. The second half is the real auction. Private rooms only, VIP guests. That's where the serious items come out."
He paused, then added, more deliberately: "If there's something you want to bid on, tell me. The Qi family can cover the cost up front."
"I appreciate that," Jacob said. "I'll take you up on it if something comes up."
The auction continued. Erick's description proved accurate. The remaining first-half lots were rare enough in their own right, but none of them made Jacob feel anything in particular.
When the last lot of the first half was sold and the auctioneer's gavel came down, the staff began clearing the main hall. The general attendees were escorted out politely but efficiently. They were not what most would call ordinary people, most were well-established trainers and businesspeople of considerable means, but there was a clear tier above them, and tonight's second half was reserved for that tier.
Once the hall was empty, the auction house doors were pulled shut.
Nearly everyone left in the private rooms had the backing of a King-level trainer at minimum. Several had Four Heavenly Kings or Champions behind them.
The auctioneer returned to the stage.
"Distinguished guests, the second half of our annual auction now begins."
A staff member wheeled a curtained box onto the stage. From inside came muffled sounds, a low growl, the occasional thump of something shifting its weight. A live Pokémon, clearly.
Jacob leaned slightly forward.
"The first lot of the second half," the auctioneer announced, letting the anticipation build for a moment before she reached for the curtain. "I believe it will not disappoint."
She pulled the cover back.
A Cyndaquil sat in the box, blinking under the lights.
A murmur went through the room, quiet and not entirely impressed. Several people frowned. A Cyndaquil was a decent enough Pokémon, but as the headline item for the second half of the largest annual auction in the Southwest region, it was underwhelming, to put it generously.
Jacob, however, had gone very still.
He could see what the others could not. The Pokémon in the box was not a Cyndaquil at all. It was a Zorua.
Zorua was among the rarest Pokémon a trainer could hope to encounter. Its ability, Illusion, allowed it to perfectly copy the appearance of people, Pokémon, or even inanimate objects, and it would not drop the disguise unless struck. Most trainers who encountered one in the wild never realized what they had found. Jacob himself had never seen one before, not in person.
Its evolved form, Zoroark, was a strong offensive Pokémon: high Speed, solid Attack and Special Attack, though its HP and defenses were on the lower side. But most people who wanted a Zoroark were not thinking about its battle stats. They wanted the Illusion ability. A well-used Zoroark could cause serious disruption in both competitive battles and real-world situations. Erick's associate Ares had a quasi-King-level Zoroark, and despite rarely using it offensively, it had already given the Pokémon Association considerable trouble simply through misdirection.
Jacob kept his expression neutral.
The auctioneer, meanwhile, stepped to the side of the box and pressed a small button. A brief electric shock made the Pokémon flinch, and the Illusion collapsed. The Cyndaquil was gone. A Zorua looked out at the room instead.
The murmur in the room shifted immediately.
"Distinguished guests," the auctioneer said, "this is the first lot of the second half: a Zorua with quasi-King-level aptitude. I'll spare the lengthy explanation — you all know what this Pokémon is worth. The starting bid is zero, with a minimum increment of five hundred thousand per raise. Bidding begins now."
"Ten million."
The bid came before she had finished speaking. Others followed quickly. A Zorua at this level of aptitude was genuinely difficult to come by. It could play a meaningful disruptive role in King-level battles and an even more critical one in real combat. People who had been waiting for an opportunity like this were not about to let it pass.
Jacob watched the bidding with quiet interest.
He was tempted, more than he expected to be. A Zorua with Illusion was exactly the kind of Pokémon that could reshape how a team operated. The only thing holding him back was the aptitude. Quasi-King-level was good, but not exceptional, and Jacob had one Sacred Ash he had been saving for Greninja. Spending it on Zorua instead would be hard to justify, no matter how appealing the thought was.
He leaned back into the sofa and let the bidding continue without him.