-032- Eevee's Evolution?

Back at JOJO’s Breeding House, Tong Si released both Eevee and Elekid from their Poké Balls.

“Eevee, eevee!”

Eevee was furious—Tong Si had kept it inside the Poké Ball all day. It had almost suffocated from boredom; there was nothing in there, and the monotony drove it mad.

“Alright, Eevee, here’s a bell for you. Don’t be angry anymore.”

Tong Si pulled out a soothing bell from his pocket. It was a reward gifted by the system, so it surely wouldn’t be anything subpar. On the market, a soothing bell was worth two or three hundred thousand. Even redeeming it in the system’s shop would cost several hundred thousand points.

“Eevee?”

Eevee grasped the bell in its paw and gave it a gentle shake. To its surprise, the bell was rather amusing—it didn’t take long before Eevee was engrossed in play, completely forgetting Tong Si had confined it for the entire day.

“Should I expand the breeding house?”

Tong Si wandered around, surveying the place. It had only recently been renovated, and expanding it further didn’t seem like an easy task. Horizontal expansion was out of the question, as both sides were occupied by other businesses. Vertical expansion was the only viable option.

The breeding house faced south, so development could only proceed northwards. To the north was a stretch of lawn, beyond which lay a small bamboo grove; to the left of the grove stood an abandoned mountain range. That was where Elekid’s rocks had been hauled from, and every time Elekid had to take the long route, it was a good test of its endurance.

The trio of escapee Pokémon in the yard had all become fans of Elekid, following it around and helping to carry stones during the recent landscaping of the rock garden. Yet, even combined, the three couldn’t move as many rocks as Elekid could in a single trip.

“Well, I can start by expanding the pond!”

After pacing around the yard for a while, Tong Si decided to begin with the water feature. There was a vacant plot of land that had gone unused; he resolved to dig a pit there, which would create a second pond. The two ponds could even be connected, with one higher than the other, forming a scenic cascade where water flowed downward.

The pair of Magikarp were splashing about wildly, unaware that Tong Si was planning to remodel their watery domain. Magikarp were the most humble of all water-type Pokémon—able to eat anything and survive even in foul ditches.

Tong Si’s plan was to raise a batch of Lotad first. Lotad could purify the water and were gentle, easy to care for. Most importantly, Lotad, along with Lombre and Ludicolo, could produce lotus seeds. These seeds had medicinal uses and fetched a good price on the market.

Selling them alongside Magikarp scales would create a lucrative supply chain. Once the business was profitable, he could move the northern wall further out, widen the pond, and raise even more Lotad and Magikarp.

Besides that, Tong Si intended to raise a Barboach as well. Like Magikarp, Barboach could thrive even in dirty water, and crucially, it could burrow in the pond, cleaning out all kinds of filth. With Lotad and Barboach working in tandem, the pond’s water quality would remain pristine.

If this enterprise truly took off, Tong Si was even considering starting a ranch and a farm—but that was for the future. For now, expanding the pond was the priority.

…

After sketching out his plans, Tong Si called in the contractors that afternoon. They dug a new pit in the yard, connecting it to the original pond, creating a tiered effect: water would cascade from the upper pond into the lower, which had a waterline. Once the lower pond reached its limit, the water would overflow, trickling along a path back up to the upper pond, forming an endless cycle.

Tong Si was delighted with the renovation, paying the workers eight thousand Alliance coins for their labor and tipping them another two thousand. Once the pond was filled, the perpetual water feature began its cycle, and the two Magikarp frolicked in their new environment, one above and one below.

Eevee watched anxiously, wishing it were a water-type Pokémon so it could join in the fun.

“Eevee!”

Eevee pointed at the pond with its paw, as if telling Tong Si it wanted to become a water-type Pokémon.

Tong Si was speechless. Wake up, Eevee! You’re only level six! Already thinking about evolving? Not so fast!

Suddenly, the Thunder Stone resting beside Tong Si’s backpack fell to the ground.

“Eevee?”

Eevee’s gaze sparkled as it spotted the yellow crystal.

“No, Eevee, absolutely not!”

Tong Si hurried to stop Eevee, reaching for the Thunder Stone, but Eevee was quicker. Drawn by its love for shiny objects, Eevee snatched up the Thunder Stone.

In the next moment, Eevee’s body was enveloped in a brilliant white light.

“What? Eevee is evolving?”

Tong Si stared in astonishment at the glowing figure. He hadn’t even decided which form Eevee should evolve into. There were eight known Eevee evolutions, and every trainer who bred Eevee faced this dilemma.

Tong Si thought that evolving into Sylveon would be best, since his dream was to shine on the stage of the Grand Festival, becoming a dazzling performer.

Sylveon was relatively popular, being the most recently discovered Eevee evolution and a rare fairy type.

But now it was too late—Eevee had already touched the Thunder Stone and begun to evolve. What’s done is done; this was Eevee’s own choice.

“Jolteon???”

When the white light faded, a golden Jolteon stood before Tong Si.

“Congratulations, Eevee. You’ve evolved into Jolteon.”

Tong Si congratulated it, though perhaps Jolteon was a more fitting name now.

“Elekid!”

Elekid was delighted to see Eevee evolve into a Pokémon of the same type.

“Jolteon!”

Jolteon’s voice was a little raspy. When it approached the pond and caught sight of its new form, it was shocked!

“Jolteon???”

(Who is this ugly creature?)

Jolteon hurried back to Tong Si, its fur bristling like a thousand needles. It seemed to be furiously complaining about its appearance—how could it be so ugly?

“Jolteon, do you not like your new look?”

Tong Si was puzzled.

“Jolteon!!!”

Jolteon nodded frantically, then looked at Tong Si with a plaintive, innocent expression, as if asking if it could return to the way it was.

Tong Si understood Jolteon's feelings, but revert after evolution? Was this a joke? That only happened in novels, didn't it?

[Beep—boop]

[Congratulations, host: Spirit Restoration Ability unlocked]

[Spirit Restoration Ability: Allows an evolved Pokémon to return to its original state, while retaining the abilities gained through evolution]

“???”

Tong Si was dumbfounded by the system’s message. Reverting after evolution? This was unheard of!

… (To be continued)