Trader In The World Of Pirates!!!

"Trade? How do we trade?" Ace inquired with great interest, his eyes shining like searchlights.

Leo thought secretly, 'It works!' 

But he still maintained a friendly smile and spoke the words he had prepared in his mind, "It's very simple. I currently have a batch of goods from my previous world..."

"It's from a world of Pokémon, full of magical creatures coexisting peacefully," 

Leo explained more. "People rely on Pokémon with mysterious powers to improve their lives or engage in battles. It's a world filled with vibrant colours."

"And I happen to have some Pokémon here. Some are incredibly powerful, some are stunningly beautiful, and some possess unique abilities that can do things beyond human imaginations," Leo continued. "As long as you can offer the corresponding price, you can own them all!"

"Wow~" Ace's excitement only grew upon hearing Leo's description. He pounced on the opportunity like a hungry tiger chasing prey. "Please, let me trade!"

Leo resisted Ace's enthusiastic request, and with an air of indifference, he smiled "politely," saying, "No problem, as long as you can provide something valuable, I can exchange it with you for a Pokémon of equal value."

"Of course, the higher the value of the item, the more powerful the Pokémon you'll receive."

"Do you have anything valuable?" 

Ace impatiently rolled his eyes, immediately thinking of something. He exclaimed, "Wait for me a moment," and rushed out of the room.

For something this intriguing, Ace had no intention of waiting even a second longer.

"Hello? Ace!" At this point, Deus grabbed Ace's arm and spoke helplessly, "You don't seriously believe his lies, do you? Pokémon from another world? That's impossible!"

"He's just a scammer with a messed-up head. We should find a way to get rid of him as soon as possible!" Deus insisted.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Before Leo could respond, Ace jumped to Leo's defence. "Brother Leo is so cool; he can't be a liar!"

Ace was firmly convinced of this. In addition to genuinely believing that Leo was telling the truth, he was more enticed by the notion of items from another world. For such a thrilling prospect, even if there was a 99% chance it was a hoax, Ace was willing to take the risk for that 1%. This was the essence of being a pirate, the romance of it all! 

"..." 

Leo continued to smile, saying nothing. At this point, no matter what he said, he couldn't change Deus's mind. It was impossible to awaken someone as stubborn as a bullhead.

As expected, when Ace believed in someone or something, there was no changing his mind. After all, he was the captain of the ship.

Seeing Ace discussing him with others, Deus rubbed his temples in exasperation and sighed with despair, "I'm starting to regret getting on this ship."

"Hahaha, it's too late to say anything now!" Ace laughed heartily and rushed back into the room, holding a treasure box. "Sorry, sorry! I forgot I stashed it under the bed. I spent a long time searching for it!"

With that, he handed the treasure box to Leo and asked eagerly, "Brother Leo, can I trade with this?"

Ace slowly opened the box, revealing a peculiar fruit with countless small flame-shaped spiral patterns on its surface, resting serenely inside.

"T-This is!?" Leo's eyes widened in astonishment upon seeing the fruit in the box.

Ace assumed that Leo, being an outsider, didn't recognize the fruit and immediately explained, "This is a special fruit in our world called a Devil Fruit. Anyone who consumes it gains a unique supernatural ability."

He continued, smiling, "My little brother is a Devil Fruit user. Initially, I intended to eat this fruit and become like him, but then I unexpectedly encountered a dimensional merchant like you. It's such an intriguing opportunity; of course, I must make the most of it!"

"Oh? This is really something." Leo accepted the box and examined the Devil Fruit inside with a surprised expression.

He was far more familiar with this fruit than Ace was. This particular one was a Logia-type Devil Fruit known as the Mera Mera no Mi, which granted its consumer the ability to control, transform into, and generate fire. It was an incredibly powerful fruit.

However, in Leo's memory, this fruit had been consumed by the other party that's why he was surprised to see it. 

"It's an interesting item indeed," Leo commented, still examining the Devil Fruit. "Let's go ahead with the trade."

"Hey! Ace, you're not seriously going to give this Devil Fruit to that liar, are you?" Deus, who had been observing the situation, finally voiced his concerns. His eyelids were twitching uncontrollably.

"What an unlucky captain!" he thought. Even if he didn't understand what kind of fruit it was, he knew that even the weakest Devil Fruit was worth more than 100 million Berries.

But Ace replied with a smile, "Of course! We'll definitely encounter more Devil Fruits in the future. But Items from another world... just like Pokémon is unheard of!"

Deus sighed and shook his head in resignation. "I hope he didn't lie to us..."

"Alas," he muttered. "Another world? Haha..."

Seeing such an obstinate captain, Deus could only pray for their future.

Leo, on the other hand, took the Flame Flame fruit out of the box, turned it in his hand, and wore a satisfied smile.

"I have to say, you really surprised me."

"But judging from your expressions, you probably don't know the value of this fruit very well, right?"

Ace was stunned and asked in confusion, "What's so special about this fruit?"

"It turns out that you really don't know..."

Leo looked helpless, shook his head, and explained, "I've been in business for many years, and I've never deceived customers. So, I think you should reconsider."

"Because the value of this fruit is actually greater than you think..."

Leo didn't intend to hide the true worth of the fruit. Although he had never been in business, he understood the importance of honesty in business dealings.

Instead of waiting for Ace and the others to find out about the Flame Fruit's true value in the future, why not reveal it now and establish himself as an honest businessman?

Leo gently stroked the Devil Fruit as he explained. "I can feel the terrifying fire element power contained in this fruit. Based on what you said before, eating this fruit would grant you incredible fire powers."

"You can keep such a rare ability for yourself; there's no need to trade it." Leo displayed a sincere expression as he looked at Ace.

However, he had no intention of stopping the transaction. After all, he was in it for the profit.

But he understood one thing: when someone begs you to buy something for nothing, you're less likely to make the purchase. However, when someone presents it as something you can't afford to miss out on, you'll go to great lengths to acquire it.

Even if you have to use credit or loans, you'll make the purchase. Leo understood this well.

Sure enough, after hearing Leo's sincere advice, even Deus, who had doubted him before, began to believe.

Were there really other worlds?

"Powerful Fire power? I didn't expect this fruit to be powerful..." Ace said, looking at the devil fruit in Leo's hand without any nostalgia. Then he spoke with anticipation, "Brother Leo, did you say that the more valuable something is, the better it is for trading?"

"I believe you! Let's go ahead with the trade. I can't wait to see Pokémon from another world!"

"In that case..." Leo smiled and said, "Your wish is my command~"

In an instant, the devil fruit in Leo's hand disappeared under the watchful eyes of the two.

At the same time, Leo's system suddenly gained more than 10,000 points.

"Damn, I didn't expect this fruit to be so valuable!"

Looking at the substantial increase in his system, Leo was overjoyed and quickly searched for a Pokémon suitable for Ace in the system.

"Well... Ace is my first customer, and he made me get a great profit from our first transaction. So I will be generous this time!" Leo thought to himself.

The process flashed through Leo's mind.

In the blink of an eye, a strange red and white ball appeared in Leo's hand after the devil fruit disappeared - it was a Poke Ball from the Pokémon world.

"Here, this is your Pokémon." Leo handed the Pokémon ball to Ace.

Before he could continue speaking, Deus beside him suddenly became angry. "You're a fraud! I was foolish to believe you earlier! We gave you devil fruit in exchange for a ball?!"

"Don't get upset! Young man, calm down," Leo explained without changing his expression. "This is a Poke Ball, a magical device used to release Pokémon. The room here is too small; you need to go outside to let your Pokémon shine."

"Oh, by the way, I'm giving you this Poké Ball for free, so there's no additional charge~" Leo smiled, opened the door, and walked out of the cabin.

Ace and Deus looked at each other, then quickly followed.

...

...

Stepping outside the cabin and seeing the vast blue sea, Leo realised that he had truly entered the world of pirates.

Seeing Ace and the two following him, he turned back and guided Ace with a smile. "Ace, try pressing the button in the middle of the Poké Ball."

"Button? Oh, I see!" Ace quickly located the button and pressed it.

In an instant, a red light shot out from the Poké Ball, gradually forming a dinosaur-like monster with orange wings on the deck.

This was the Pokémon Leo had specifically chosen for Ace: a Fire/Flying-type Pokemon, Charizard!

Since Ace no longer possessed the fire ability of flame fruit, Leo decided to grant Ace the power of fire with Charizard!

"Roar!" The fire-breathing dragon woke up from the Poké Ball and let out a deafening roar, excitement evident in its demeanour. It spread its wings and soared into the sky, its fiery tail blazing even brighter.

Leo understood that Charizard was here to protect Ace and be his loyal companion.

Then, Charizard walked over to Ace, who was holding the Poké Ball. The 2-metre-tall creature stretched out its sharp claws and patted Ace's shoulder lightly, emitting a dry and hoarse call, as if to convey, "Don't worry, boy. I'll protect you from now on!"