“Sorry, sir, I’m temporarily out of stock.
Please check back in a few months after I’ve had time to restock.”
“Yes, I made them myself.
Crafting takes time, so it’ll be difficult to replenish the stock in the short term.”
“All right, sir.
I’ll post a notice when they’re available again.”
“Sigh…
Who on earth is helping advertise this place?
I really can’t keep up.”
After hanging up the phone yet again, Blake let out a helpless sigh.
This was far from the first call he had received today.
Plenty of people had been asking whether the charms were still for sale, and Blake was starting to feel that the job he had chosen specifically because he wanted something relaxing had somehow become unbelievably tiring.
“Gastly, Gastly!
(´・ω・)ノ(._.)”
Gastly floated over and patted Blake’s shoulder with his tongue, trying to comfort him.
“I’m fine, Gastly.
I’m just a little tired.
Still, I guess this means the charms I make are pretty popular, doesn’t it?”
Blake smiled as he spoke.
In truth, the charms he had brought out to sell were not anything high-grade—at least, not in his eyes.
The finest pieces made by his ancestors were top-tier family heirlooms.
Some of those charms did not even lose their effectiveness with time.
Compared to them, Blake’s work could only be considered flawed goods.
His father had once told him that if those true heirlooms were ever put up for sale, high-level Trainers would fight over them until heads rolled.
But because Blake had grown up seeing those superior items, and because in his previous life these things had simply been items he picked up by the roadside in a game, he did not really understand that the charms he made already counted as fine work.
If his family’s heirlooms were actually brought out into the world, even members of the Elite Four or a Champion might be tempted enough to fight for them.
“Gastly.”
Seeing that Blake really was all right, Gastly let out a relieved breath.
“Still, I really am tired.
Maybe I should contact Uncle Sam and head to Rat Reef tomorrow or the day after to deal with that wreck.
I’ll just treat it as a vacation.”
Blake looked at the phone as it started ringing again and spoke helplessly.
“Gastly!
(= ゚ω ゚)ノ”
Gastly immediately perked up.
He liked pranks, and he liked battling even more—especially battles that felt like pranks!
“Whew…
I’m done.
Your turn.”
After Blake hung up the phone again, Nessa came out of the bathroom while wiping her wet hair.
Just as she had said yesterday, she had come over to stay the night again.
Fresh out of the bath, Nessa still had a faint mist of warmth around her, softened by the steam drifting out from the bathroom.
She was wrapped in a towel and walked over with a light, casual stride before half-sitting, half-collapsing onto the sofa as if this were the most natural thing in the world.
The towel shifted a little when she sat down, and she tugged it back into place without seeming to care, then grabbed the remote and started changing channels.
Can you at least pay a little attention?”
Seeing how casually Nessa acted, Blake helplessly covered his face.
“Gastly, Gastly.” ヽ(ー_ー)ノ
Gastly voiced his agreement.
“You’re talking like you’ve never seen me before.
What, did all those times we played together as kids not count?
Besides, it’s not the first time.
Your parents aren’t home either, so what are you worried about?
You’re the one getting the advantage here.
Or what, is someone blushing?”
Nessa rolled her eyes at Blake, then gave him a teasing look.
“Tch—”
Blake rolled his eyes right back.
‘How is back then the same as now?
What was there to look at when we were little kids?
But now?
Girls develop faster to begin with, and on top of that, I’ve been single from my previous life all the way to this one for almost forty years!
What kind of kid could handle this?
No, I need a cold shower.’
With that thought, Blake grabbed a change of clothes and practically flew into the bathroom, turning on the cold water as soon as he got inside.
He absolutely needed to cool himself down.
“Oh yeah!
That method really works!”
Seeing Blake’s reaction, Nessa excitedly clenched her fist.
Only ghosts knew how nervous she had been just now.
Gastly: I don’t know.
Only ghosts knew how much preparation it had taken for her to act that casually.
Gastly: I really don’t know!
Judging from the result, though, it had worked very well.
She had never seen Blake’s face turn that red before.
What Nessa did not know was that her own face was bright red too; it was just less obvious because of her complexion.
“Gastly…” (￣.￣)
“Chewtle.” (￣.￣)
Watching Blake and Nessa’s reactions, Gastly and Chewtle looked at each other and sighed helplessly.
Humans really did say one thing while feeling another.
Da-ding!
Nessa’s phone rang.
Lying on the sofa, she reached lazily toward the phone on the coffee table without wanting to move.
She could not quite reach it, so she stretched harder, still stubbornly refusing to sit up.
After finally managing to grab it, she checked the screen and saw that it was a message from her friend, Little Yamper.
“Help, help!
Do you recognize this place?
Which way are we supposed to go?”
A photo came with the message.
It was very dim, seemingly taken inside a cave.
Several branching paths could be seen ahead.
Nessa stared at the picture in confusion for a while before replying.
“Galar Mine.”
Little Yamper replied instantly.
“Huh?
The mine?
Aren’t you supposed to just follow the lights in there?
How did you end up somewhere like this?” Nessa asked in confusion.
Galar Mine produced minerals that were important resources for power generation in the Galar region.
It should have had a mature route system inside, and the paths should have been lined with lights.
It was not supposed to be that easy to get lost.
“How would I know?!
My idiot childhood friend dragged me all over the place, and I think we ended up in an old mine tunnel.
Now we’re lost!”
Little Yamper sent several crying stickers in a row.
“I can’t help you with that!
Instead of asking me, shouldn’t you hurry up and call emergency services?”
Nessa truly had no idea what this online friend of hers was thinking.
In a situation like this, asking her was pointless.
It was not as if Nessa could fly over there to help.
“You’re right!
I’ll call them now!”
Little Yamper sent a sticker of someone crying at their own stupidity, then hurriedly went offline.
“Sigh…
That girl.
Well, I guess there’s not much she can do when she’s stuck with such an unreliable childhood friend.”
Nessa sighed helplessly, closed her phone, and went back to watching television.
Meowth in Boots, which she had not managed to finish yesterday, was being rebroadcast today.
…
“Whew…
That feels better.”
Blake pushed open the bathroom door, wiping droplets from his messy hair.
He was wearing a loose pair of cropped pants, with his shirt draped over one shoulder as he walked out.
His skin still glistened faintly with water, and although he was lean, the light training he had been doing had clearly left some definition across his stomach.
Gulp!
Nessa snapped back to herself at the sound of her own swallow and immediately turned her head away.
She suddenly felt like her nose was in danger.
This guy still had the nerve to lecture her?
He was clearly the more excessive one!
“Hm?
Nessa?
Are you okay?”
Blake finished drying his hair and casually tossed the towel into the washing machine before looking at her in confusion.
“I-I-I’m fine!”
Nessa did not dare lift her head at all.
She was afraid that if she looked one more time, her nosebleed would burst out, and then she would truly have no face left to show anyone.