At first, the students were extremely excited.
Every day, crowds gathered outside the classroom, craning their necks just to catch a glimpse of Oliver.
But as time passed, they gradually realized something—
Oliver wasn't constantly buried in books.
He didn't have three heads or six arms.
He looked… just like any other student.
Once their curiosity was satisfied, the frenzy naturally faded.
Oliver's popularity within the school slowly cooled down. At most, students would mention him in casual conversation, but no one went out of their way to come and watch him anymore.
The campus finally returned to its usual calm.
Outside the school, however, it was a completely different story.
The news that the author of the Milotic evolution paper was an 18-year-old high school student detonated the internet like a bomb.
Every single day, reporters gathered at the school gates, trying to interview Oliver.
Some even waited along the route he took to go home.
At Oliver's request, the principal firmly refused to let any reporters enter the campus.
This surprised Oliver a little.
After all, this was a perfect opportunity to promote the school's reputation—useful for enrollment numbers and even for securing funding from higher authorities.
The principal had simply said:
"What you've achieved is something many people will never reach in their entire lives.
And yet, you're still able to keep a calm heart. That's admirable.
Even though this could increase our school's influence, I respect your decision."
The principal could block people from entering the school—but he couldn't stop them from waiting outside.
Soon enough, reporters and brand representatives hoping to hire Oliver for advertisements started camping near the school gate… and even near his home.
It became unbearable.
Even after returning home, people would knock on the door nonstop, asking to see Oliver.
If this were the past, Oliver might have accepted some endorsements for money.
But now?
He was sitting on a small fortune.
Why exhaust himself filming an advertisement for thirty or fifty thousand Alliance Coins, when selling energy blocks alone would earn far more than that?
Even Oliver's mother, though proud of her son's achievements, found daily life increasingly difficult under this pressure.
So Oliver made a decisive call.
"What? Move?"
His mother looked at him in surprise. "Do we have enough money?"
"Don't worry, Mom," Oliver said calmly.
"The Alliance rewards just came in. We'll sell this place and buy a villa with a pool—Milotic needs space too. Leave it to me."
Oliver's maturity—something he'd shown since childhood—worked its magic again.
In the end, his mother agreed.
Of course, 150,000 Alliance Coins wasn't nearly enough to buy a good villa.
Even selling their old apartment wouldn't cut it—especially since the Water Stone hadn't been sold yet.
But now that the Alliance rewards were in, Oliver could finally start doing business with energy blocks.
And not just any energy blocks—
Top-tier energy blocks.
How many top-tier breeders were there in the entire world?
This market was so starved that even a hundred Olivers wouldn't be enough to fill the gap.
As for mass-produced energy blocks?
Sorry.
Top-tier energy blocks could only be handmade. Machines could produce at most high-grade ones.
The Pokémon Alliance had established the Trainer Exchange Forum, a platform similar to the Academic Forum—but focused on resources and trading rather than research.
Official resources were sold there, and trainers could also list items obtained from secret realms.
Over time, the forum grew chaotic and lively.
You could list a random stone and still find someone willing to buy it.
Registration on the Trainer Forum was far stricter than on the Academic Forum.
Only officially registered trainers with a Trainer License could log in fully.
Visitors without licenses could only browse—no posting, no buying, no selling.
Oliver logged in using his Advanced Trainer credentials.
Since it was his first login, he had to choose a username.
He typed in a single name:
"Red."
In his previous life, that name held legendary weight among Pokémon fans.
Choosing it was Oliver's way of reminding himself—who he was chasing, and where he wanted to stand.
After filling in the necessary information, Oliver first listed the Water Stone for sale.
Officially, the Alliance priced premium Water Stones at 500,000 Alliance Coins, but since only one was released per month, most people couldn't get one at all.
Private transactions almost always came with inflated prices.
The moment Oliver listed it, attention exploded.
Within seconds, private messages flooded in.
RainyDay:
"600,000 Alliance Coins."
MyPsyduckIsSoCute:
"Handsome, can you sell it to me for 500,000? We can meet in person~"
(With photos attached.)
Oliver didn't even open them.
Was her face studded with diamonds or something? Worth tens of thousands?
FutureWaterMaster:
"700,000 Alliance Coins.
No one will offer higher. I need it urgently."
That made the decision easy.
Highest bidder wins.
Oliver accepted the offer from FutureWaterMaster.
Moments later, tapping sounds came from the window.
Opening it, Oliver saw a Pidgeot, with an Alliance-uniformed courier riding on its back.
These couriers were officially trained and operated by the Alliance—fast, secure, and reliable.
Even Alliance rewards were delivered this way.
Oliver handed over the Water Stone, confirmed the transfer, and watched as Pidgeot vanished into the sky.
Once the item was delivered, the funds would automatically transfer into Oliver's forum account.
Next, Oliver ordered a large batch of energy-block ingredients online.
Unlike Alliance stores, civilian sellers offered cheaper prices—since berries and raw materials weren't rare resources.
Finally, while the heat from his post was still high, Oliver added another message under the same thread:
"Tomorrow afternoon, I will be auctioning top-tier Water-type energy blocks.
Quality guaranteed.
Interested parties, please follow this thread."
He even attached photos of the energy blocks he had personally crafted.
The moment this update went live—
The forum exploded.
Top-tier energy blocks were on an entirely different level compared to a Water Stone.
While a single block might be cheaper, having access to a stable source of top-tier energy blocks represented something far more significant.
Globally, the number of known top-tier breeders could be counted on two hands.
Their products were usually reserved for partners first, then purchased in bulk by the Alliance.
Only leftovers—if any—ever reached the public market.
Every time top-tier energy blocks appeared, it was absolute chaos.
And now—
A new name had entered the market.
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read 60 chapter ahead on P@treon if you're interested: patreon.com/SwipeSage