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Excluding the first three failed attempts and the eight Wisdom Seeds he had promised Alakazam as payment, Sato ultimately succeeded in producing ten bottles of Tranquilizing Tonic.
However, what surprised Sato was that after seeing him produce a Tranquilizing Tonic of higher quality than his own, Alakazam suddenly seemed distracted, his eyes fixed intently on the softly glowing pink potions on the table.
In the end, just as Sato was preparing to hand over the eight Wisdom Seeds, Alakazam seemed to make a great decision—he actually humbled himself and asked Sato to craft the potions for him.
Technology, after all, was the core and most valuable asset. Sato seized the opportunity to strike a hard bargain with Alakazam. He used the eight Wisdom Seeds meant as payment to make eight bottles of Tranquilizing Tonic—and kept four of them for himself.
Alakazam didn't object. On the contrary, he seemed quite satisfied, suspending the four bottles with Telekinesis around him before promptly drinking each one down.
Shortly after, Alakazam looked as though he were intoxicated—his yellow face flushed bright red, and beads of sweat began to trickle down his forehead.
Moments later, Alakazam collapsed as if overcome by alcohol, a blissful expression on his now-crimson face.
"Judging by that look of bliss, these Tranquilizing Tonics must be incredibly effective. I bet after drinking those four, most of his mental trauma will be healed."
Watching the willing guinea pig before him, Sato rested his chin in one hand, muttering as he took out a PokeBall and recalled Alakazam.
Sato had already heard plenty about Alakazam's mental trauma from Natu, the little gossip. In fact, even if Natu hadn't told him, he could still have guessed the reason a powerful Psychic-type like Alakazam had gone after the Wisdom Lotus.
After all, for Psychic-types as powerful as Alakazam—whose mental strength had long since surpassed 200 points—the Wisdom Lotus no longer served to raise their cap. Its only remaining value was in healing mental wounds.
Sato's Tranquilizing Tonic, with its superior healing effect on psychic trauma, clearly surpassed even the potions Alakazam had once made himself. That likely explained why Alakazam had willingly allowed himself to be taken advantage of.
"If I have extras, these potions could be extremely useful to win over Psychic-type Pokémon or psychics suffering from mental trauma. But for now, the priority is to use them to increase my own mental strength. 100 points is the threshold—once I cross it, I'll be able to use many psychic techniques."
Gazing at the fourteen neatly arranged Tranquilizing Tonics on the table, Sato smiled brightly at the thought.
Before drinking, however, he retrieved an exquisite glass box from his bag. Inside were many blue marbles the size of beans—Mind Beads, a tool used to measure the mental strength of psychics.
Previously, Sato had only been able to levitate ten Mind Beads using his psychic power, which meant his mental strength was at just 10 points. Now, he tried again—and could still levitate only ten.
"I really do need to rely on potions to get stronger."
Looking at the ten Mind Beads glowing blue before him, Sato sighed in resignation.
"Hee hee hee~~~"
Standing on the table, Natu burst into laughter upon seeing that Sato could only levitate ten beads. She lay down, kicking her stubby legs and clutching her belly with her tiny wings as she laughed uncontrollably.
Then, right in front of Sato, she casually used her psychic power to lift a whole handful of beads from the box and arranged them into various shapes, showing off with a smug expression.
"..."
Watching Natu effortlessly levitate over 200 Mind Beads and manipulate them into precise shapes, Sato felt a deep, indescribable sense of defeat—as if a stampede of Mudsdale were galloping through his soul.
Gwak gawk gwak~~
Seconds later, Sato, now calm again, picked up the nearest bottle of Tranquilizing Tonic and, without hesitation, uncapped and downed it in one gulp.
The taste was similar to a slightly sweet, ice-cold spring water. After finishing it, Sato felt his head swell slightly and his vision blur—just like Alakazam, he slipped into a tipsy state.
However, the dizziness came and went quickly. Soon, a wave of refreshing coolness surged through his brain, sending a shiver of delight through his whole body.
The sensation was even better than drinking a cold watermelon smoothie under the blazing sun—or the post-workout euphoria after intense aerobic exercise. For a moment, Sato closed his eyes in pleasure, his flushed face beaming with delight.
After about a minute or two, the slight throbbing and intense euphoria faded. Sato opened his eyes, and a flash of blue psychic light shone within them.
He could feel a distinct enhancement in his sensory perception. It almost felt as if he could sense movement around him without using his eyes at all.
"This is incredible… so this is what power feels like."
Fully adjusting to his strengthened mental state, Sato sighed in amazement. Then, he focused his mind again on the Mind Beads.
In the next moment, one by one, the blue-glowing beads flew out of the box and hovered around him, dancing at his command.
This time, he successfully levitated 25 beads—his first dose of Tranquilizing Tonic had increased his mental strength by 1.5 times.
"Huh~ This bad guy just got stronger... Those bottles are really something."
Sensing the change in his aura, Natu looked at Sato with astonishment, then turned her gaze toward the remaining pink-glowing bottles, her eyes filled with wonder.
Now that Sato had tasted the benefits, his eyes burned with desire as he glanced at the remaining thirteen bottles. Without much hesitation, he grabbed another and drank it down.
In an instant, the same sensation as before returned.
Ten minutes later, only two bottles remained on the table.
At that point, Sato was seated comfortably in his wooden chair, wearing a blissful expression. Around him, 108 Mind Beads floated in midair, glowing blue as they spun and formed various shapes under his mental/psychic control.
"What a wonderful feeling... So this is the perception of a Beginner Psychic. With subtle mental projection, I can sense everything in this secret space. No wonder psychics like Maya always act so aloof in front of normal people—because ordinary folks can't hide anything from them."
Sato slowly opened his eyes, which were glowing with a soft blue hue, and murmured softly.
At this point, he had successfully surpassed 100 mental strength points and officially advanced to the level of a Beginner psychic.
With a single thought, the 108 Mind Beads surrounding him instantly formed a perfect ring, then rearranged themselves into a towering spire in the palm of his hand.