Wayne and Cynthia were on the phone.
Wayne had indeed mentioned to Cynthia that he would be participating in the 24th Youth Breeder Competition, but he hadn't expected Cynthia to remember.
Wayne nodded and said, "That's right. It's being held in Hearthome City, starting at 9 AM."
The competition Wayne was participating in was indeed a grand event for Breeders, but it was only the preliminary round.
In fact, multiple regions were holding competitions simultaneously.
At that time, advancement slots would be allocated based on the number of participants in each competition area, and only when it reached the top 32 would the competition become truly intense.
Live broadcasts would begin from the top 16, and the final venue was also set in Hearthome City.
"My fifth match is also in Hearthome City, on the afternoon of the same day. Do you want to come and watch?"
"Yes."
Wayne didn't even hesitate. It would be a good opportunity to bring Lucario, Metagross, and the others to join the fun and cheer for Cynthia.
Ever since the Master League began, Cynthia had to fly around once every two weeks.
This meant that since the last incident where the Rainbow Biker Gang attacked the Breeding Center, Wayne hadn't seen Cynthia again.
"There's one problem—I couldn't get tickets."
Wayne had actually tried to get tickets, but they were all snatched up in less than a second.
Wayne seriously suspected someone was cheating.
"You don't need a ticket. See you then."
"Okay."
Cynthia's next match was a strong versus strong confrontation. Her opponent was Wallace, the Champion from the Hoenn region.
This was the charm of the Master League.
The weakest participants were Gym Leaders, every match was 6v6, and every match was a peak-level battle.
There were rarely any bizarre, unpredictable matches.
The Pokémon World Championships were indeed competitive, but in terms of match quality, they were slightly inferior to the Master League.
Since the Master League began in early February, the discussion surrounding it had remained consistently high.
"Do you need Milotic sent over to you?"
Cynthia shook her head slightly. "Not for now. It's fine to keep it at your place."
Currently, Cynthia's Braviary and Milotic were both with Wayne, treated completely like his own backyard.
...
The next day.
The Breeding House welcomed an exciting moment.
"We are here to deliver Poké Balls."
After showing their credentials, a small car drove into the Breeding Center.
The staff took out a three-tiered box from the back seat of the car, with eight Poké Balls placed on each tier.
"Eight Turtwig, eight Piplup, and eight Eevee. Please count them."
Among them, Turtwig and Piplup were sold at Alliance cost, but Eevee was not.
Although they were all in their initial forms, these Pokémon were already mature.
As the saying goes, "When well-fed, lust arises," and it's the same for Pokémon.
As long as the Breeding Center could provide them with a suitable living environment, they would naturally breed.
Of course, there would inevitably be some twists and turns in this process, and at this time, the Breeder's ability would be tested.
"Son, Alan, Claire, look!"
Leon and Fumie were to handle the handover with the staff, while Wayne and the others were responsible for counting.
"Okay."
Since he didn't understand their personalities, Wayne released them one by one.
"Come out, Piplup."
"Piplup!"
This was a confident Piplup. Upon seeing Wayne, it put its flippers on its hips and puffed out its chest.
This was because most Piplup had strong self-esteem, which reminded Wayne of Dawn's Piplup.
One Aura Sphere would make it behave.
A precise Aura Sphere!
It had a round head, a round body, and a round belly, with deep blue on its back and the top of its head, and a deep yellow beak.
Piplup with long downy feathers were very resistant to cold, and the fluff around their necks looked like a scarf.
The Intermediate Appraisal provided Piplup's information.
Name: Piplup
Type: Water
Ability: Torrent (When its HP is low, the power of its Water-type moves increases)
Moves: Water Gun, Pound, Growl
Strength Rating: Normal Intermediate
Overall, it was just an unremarkable Piplup, except for its confidence.
However, confidence was a sign of Piplup's good health.
Piplup was an unusually proud Pokémon.
Most Piplup were unwilling to accept handouts from humans and preferred to obtain food themselves.
Of course, that was most.
Even within the same species of Pokémon, personalities could be completely opposite.
Watching Alan lift the Turtwig high, making its limbs flail in the air...
Wayne said helplessly, "Alan, the main thing is to observe their physique, fur color, and level of vitality."
"Alright."
Alan quickly put down the Turtwig he couldn't bear to part with.
Claire, who was inspecting nearby, was very professional. She had already prepared a form and was checking off each item.
Unlike Wayne, she released them two by two, observing the Eevee's interaction status.
For a time, the sounds of Eevee were incessant.
Occasionally, he could also hear praises from female customers.
"Such a cute Eevee!"
"I want one too!"
The female customers' voices were relatively high-pitched, but the released Eevee were not startled and continued to eat the Pokémon food in Claire's hand.
"Very good temperament."
Claire checked the temperament column.
Not far away, customers were observing, and some customers curiously asked, "What are you planning to do?"
Kinsley smiled faintly. "Our Breeding Center is going to start breeding Pokémon, but for now, we only have Eevee."
The customer nodded. "Eevee, huh."
His companion said, "Eevee aren't cheap. Aren't you planning to breed Cherubi, Sunkern, or similar Pokémon?"
The Cherubi and Sunkern mentioned by this customer had very affordable market prices, and indeed, some Breeding Houses would breed these.
Kinsley said softly, "I'm very sorry, these two Pokémon are not currently in our plans, but I will relay your esteemed request to the boss."
Because their Breeding Center leaned towards the mid-to-high end overall, they would not breed Pokémon like Sunkern or Cherubi.
These Pokémon were abundant in the wild, so there was no need to purchase them from a Breeding House.
However, purchasing from a Breeding House had an advantage: the Pokémon were screened.
They were docile, healthy, and had good aptitudes, screened from the Pokémon's parents.
Provided it was a legitimate Breeding House.
This was also the meaning behind the Alliance providing Pokémon to some novice Trainers.
After all, how many children who started traveling at ten years old truly understood how to breed Pokémon?
Not everyone was Red or Green.
Wayne gave his dad an OK sign.
"No problem."
"You've worked hard."
Leon smiled and signed the list, and the transaction was completed.
This meant that these twenty-four Pokémon now belonged to their Breeding Center.
Piplup, Eevee, and Turtwig all needed to be free-roaming, but they couldn't truly be free-roaming, as they might run away.
So, they had designated activity areas for them in the Safari Zone.
"Alright, now we need to guide them to their respective habitats."