"He doesn't have any physical injuries, just unconscious?"
Ignoring the skeptical looks around him, Aven had already noticed what was wrong with Baron Ruize.
Sleep status… Drawing from knowledge of his previous life, he made a judgment. The concept of abnormal conditions hadn't yet emerged in this world.
If it were just normal sleep, it would be an easy fix—a single Chesto Berry would suffice.
However, the fact that all these apothecaries had tried various methods and still failed to awaken Baron Ruize meant that this wasn't an ordinary sleep condition.
It might have been caused by a sleep-inducing move, though whether it was Sleep Powder or Hypnosis was uncertain.
"Young apothecary, have you managed to figure out anything?"
Sir Berrin looked at Aven, who had fallen into deep thought, and deliberately asked him in front of everyone.
He intended to use the apothecaries present to expose Aven as a fraud and get him kicked out as soon as possible.
Aven glanced at Sir Berrin and quickly guessed his intention. He let out a cold snort inwardly.
After a moment's thought, he turned to the lord, who was also watching him attentively, and said:
"Baron Ruize appears to be under the influence of a magical beast."
"For instance, some Grass-type magical beasts carry spores or powders with sleep-inducing effects."
"Others, with strong spiritual energy—um, psychic power—can use their mental abilities to cast hypnosis."
Aven calmly explained. At this point in time, concepts like Pokémon typing and elemental attributes were still vague in this world.
In the world he came from, Pokémon could have one or two types. For example, Petilil was Grass-type, while Rhyhorn was both Ground- and Rock-type.
Each Pokémon and its moves had designated types. When a move of a certain type hits a Pokémon with another type, depending on type matchups, it could be super effective, not very effective, or even completely ineffective.
"Magical beast influence… we thought the same."
Several elder apothecaries nodded in agreement, acknowledging his point.
Extracting Sleep Powder from Grass-type magical beasts wasn't particularly difficult for them.
But the baron's condition was so unusual that their methods had failed to wake him up, which made them doubt their own diagnosis.
Heh, as if anyone couldn't guess that… Apothecary Harlan was unimpressed and interjected, "Then do you know the treatment?"
Originally, they had asked casually, not expecting any real answer. But to their surprise, Aven actually nodded.
At that moment, he captured the attention of everyone in the room, even the apothecaries who had been working on the so-called universal remedy.
"It's actually quite simple. Just combine an Oran Berry with a Chesto Berry to create a potion that can awaken the baron," Aven stated outright.
Given his current standing, if he didn't present a concrete solution, the people here would never believe him.
"You know that formula too?" one of the younger apothecaries said, clearly surprised. He looked Aven up and down, starting to believe the young man might really have some skill.
After all, every potion formula was a closely guarded secret among apothecaries. Unless someone was a direct disciple, they were rarely shared with outsiders.
However, this particular formula had already been tried—and it didn't work.
"It didn't work?"
Aven paused for a moment and then added, "But my potion might."
Hearing this, everyone turned their eyes to him once again.
He was saying that his potion—using the same formula—would be more effective than those made by the best apothecaries in town?
That was quite a claim. After all, this room was filled with the finest apothecaries Aspiration City had to offer, including Master Olai and Master Johann!
Could a commoner apothecary really surpass even the master apothecaries?
"I hope you're not joking," Sir Berrin said in a low voice. At this point, he was starting to suspect that Aven had come to make trouble.
Aven looked back at him calmly. "You seem to have some bias against me?"
That made many in the room want to laugh—Berrin certainly wasn't the only one who held such bias.
"Are you really willing to give up this opportunity? Or are you just that confident in your so-called 'universal remedy'?" Aven glanced around at everyone, then added, "After all, legends are just that—legends."
This time, no one refuted his words. Like he said, the so-called universal remedy was merely a desperate attempt.
Before Sir Berrin could say anything else, Aven added indifferently, "If I manage to cure the baron, return Petilil to me. Deal?"
Everyone in the room was taken aback for a second, unable to react right away.
Wasn't that Petilil supposed to belong to Sir Berrin? What did he mean by 'return' it?
However, many of them quickly caught on—Lady Mira among them. She furrowed her brow and looked over at Berrin, whose expression had turned rather stormy.
That damn brat. Sir Berrin was fuming inside.
Although Aven hadn't said it outright, his meaning was very clear—that Petilil didn't belong to Berrin in the first place!
He wanted to explode on the spot, but Aven hadn't technically said anything wrong. Plus, he could feel the Lady's sharp gaze, and he had to forcefully swallow his anger.
"You're quite the character."
"If you can really wake my father, I'll gladly give you Petilil," Berrin said with forced calm, trying to save face.
Aven shook his head slightly, unfazed by the noble's self-deception. Since the deal had been made, his objective was already achieved.
"Little one, I'll take you home soon."
Hearing his words, everyone in the room looked at Aven in surprise again. So, he came here to save that Petilil?
"Lil…"
Inside the cage, Petilil looked at Aven blankly. It couldn't believe it—Aven had actually come to rescue it!
Looking at the confident smile on his face, Petilil felt a strange warmth in its heart. For the first time in a while, it felt a glimmer of hope.
He's unexpectedly gentle… I hope he really can awaken Uncle Ruize…
Lady Mira thought silently. She didn't want Petilil to die either.
(End of Chapter)