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"Why is Misty going shopping at this time? I'm about to challenge the Gym!" Ash complained, somewhat displeased, on his way to Cerulean Gym.
At such an important moment, when he was challenging the Gym, it was one thing that Misty didn't cheer him on or offer advice, but why did she run off?!
If she wanted to buy things, couldn't she just wait until after his Gym challenge was over?
"Hehe, you might know the reason soon," Brock said with a chuckle, but his words were like a riddle, and Ash didn't understand them at all.
Before long, Ash and Brock arrived at Cerulean Gym. Unlike Pewter Gym, Cerulean Gym's exterior decoration was already very luxurious and grand. From the outside, the two Gyms were clearly not on the same level.
One was like a thatched cottage in the countryside, while the other was a well-decorated city mansion.
Ash glanced at Brock, his eyes seemingly asking, "Why is your Pewter Gym so simple?"
Brock's mouth twitched, and he said somewhat helplessly, "What can I do? All the public funds from Pewter Gym go towards raising my younger siblings, plus the usual expenses of the Gym, and the cost of raising Pokémon. If I didn't have a side business, Pewter Gym would probably have gone bankrupt."
"Is it that bad? Cerulean Gym looks so luxurious, like it has plenty of funds. They should also have to raise Pokémon and such, so their expenses shouldn't be much less than yours," Ash said, scratching his head.
There are two types of consumption in the Pokémon World: one related to Pokémon, and the other for everything else.
The former is incredibly expensive; evolution items like moon stone can easily cost tens or hundreds of thousands, and a Pokémon's daily food can be hundreds or even thousands a day.
But expenses other than Pokémon are actually quite cheap. Even a family of three's daily food money only costs around one to two hundred, which is less than one Pokémon's daily food money.
Therefore, raising Pokémon is the biggest expense. Even if Brock has nine younger siblings to support, the actual cost is not as much as raising two more Pokémon.
So, the difference between Cerulean Gym and Pewter Gym shouldn't be that great.
"Because Cerulean Gym has extra income. Look over there," Brock said, pointing to a poster at the entrance of Cerulean Gym, which read in large letters: 'Cerulean Water Ballet'.
When Ash and Brock arrived at the entrance of Cerulean Gym and asked a staff member if they could enter, the staff member said that a water ballet performance was still ongoing, and they would need to purchase tickets to enter.
The price of one ticket was one hundred and fifty. Compared to Pokémon expenses, it wasn't expensive, but if it was just for a ticket, then it was outrageously expensive.
This was what Brock meant by Cerulean Gym's extra income.
"This is too expensive... Having to buy a ticket to challenge a Gym, this is the first time I've heard of it," Ash grumbled softly as he reluctantly pulled out one hundred and fifty to buy a ticket.
"Come on, you've only challenged one Gym so far. Cerulean Gym is your second, so it's normal that this is the first time you've heard of it. In fact, besides Cerulean Gym, many Gyms throughout Kanto have their own side businesses."
"And strictly speaking, the ticket you bought isn't for challenging the Gym, but for watching the water ballet. There's no such thing as buying a ticket to challenge a Gym," Brock explained to Ash while paying.
"There's such a thing?" Brock's words truly surprised Ash. So, Gym Leaders' salaries are that low? Why do they all have to run side businesses?
After buying tickets, the two entered Cerulean Gym, where the water ballet performance had already reached its climax.
As soon as they arrived, they saw three pairs of fair, long legs swaying on the stage.
Three beautiful women, each with a distinct image, danced gracefully in the pool. Their one-piece swimsuits showcased their fair, tender arms, like lotus roots, and their long, shapely legs.
Their fair skin, illuminated by the lights, seemed to be draped in a soft halo, exuding a faint, gentle warmth.
"La-ru La-ru~~" The Ralts on Ash's shoulder cheered along, its large eyes beneath its aqua-blue hair glowing with a gentle light, seemingly very interested in the water ballet performance.
Brock, meanwhile, was completely captivated. In a rural city like Pewter City, where could one see beauties of this caliber, let alone a graceful and splendid performance like water ballet in swimsuits?
For a moment, Brock felt that the one hundred and fifty ticket was incredibly worth it! If he had known the content of the performance, he would have gladly paid fifteen hundred!
Ash also felt that the three beautiful women on stage performed quite well, but he hadn't forgotten that his purpose was to challenge Cerulean Gym. So, he asked a person sitting in a nearby seat, "How much longer until this ends?"
The man in the seat looked at Ash with a strange expression. Ninety-five percent of the people who came here to watch the water ballet were men, and they wished the performance would never end. Why would someone ask when it would end?
However, the man still answered Ash's question: "It should end in about twenty minutes or so."
Hearing this, Ash and Brock also found a random seat and sat down. Since they arrived relatively late, most of the good seats were taken. However, Ash wasn't there to watch the performance anyway, while Brock watched intently and with great interest—though his eyes couldn't be seen.
The Ralts, held in Ash's arms, also stared intently at the three women performing the water ballet, its eyes, hidden by its hair, filled with curiosity and longing. Would she, in the future, also be able to dance gracefully like those people on stage?
Twenty minutes later, the performance ended, and the audience began to leave in an orderly fashion under the guidance of the staff. Some people wanted to ask the Cerulean Three Sisters for autographs, but they were directly turned away.
When Ash walked against the flow of people towards the Cerulean Sisters, he was also spotted by a staff member. Just as the staff member was about to stop Ash and explain that the Cerulean Three Sisters were not accepting autographs or photos at the moment, Ash took out his Pokédex, proving his identity as a Trainer, and stated that he wanted to challenge the Gym.
Seeing this, the staff member allowed Ash and Brock to pass. This action was noticed by many audience members, who all wondered why Ash and Brock could enter, but they could not.
The staff member remained silent, simply pushing them out of the venue.
Under the guidance of a staff member named Xiao Hua, the two headed towards the back of the Gym. Along the way, Xiao Hua also explained some information about Cerulean Gym to Ash and the others... As for whether letting Ralts out would attract covetous eyes, it can only be said that very few people in Kanto recognize Ralts~
Even if someone truly took a liking to Ralts, they would have to contend with Ash's fists.