Eevee's Pokémon Egg

Fang Yuan's parents did not say much about his choice of Eevee and respected his decision.

In fact, they had rarely interfered with his choices, unless he made a truly serious mistake.

Many people would probably envy that.

Back to the matter at hand, Eevee was not expensive, but Evolution Stones were...

The two combined would cost more than reserving those rare Pokémon.

Baishi, an employee of the Breeding House, wore a smile. In his eyes, this was another big sale. Though the commission would not be much, he would never complain about having too much money.

"We'll take Eevee, but I don't want to buy an Evolution Stone yet. I haven't decided what I want Eevee to evolve into."

Fang Yuan suddenly spoke.

Looking at Baishi's smile, Fang Yuan guessed what he was thinking.

Commission?

Sorry, not happening.

"Mm, that makes sense. It does require careful consideration." Father Fang nodded. If they bought one now, they would not be able to come up with that much money right away.

Though he had acted tough earlier, if they really bought it, they would most likely have to take out a bank loan. After that... the family would probably be strapped for cash for a long time.

Fortunately, while Evolution Stones were expensive, they were still cheaper than housing.

In recent years, the country had made Pokémon-related items quite affordable in order to cultivate Trainers. Back in the last century, things like Evolution Stones would never have made it onto the market. They had been priceless and unavailable...

"Don't worry about that. As long as you pay a certain deposit first, we'll always have them in stock. You can pay the remaining balance later depending on which Evolution Stone you choose, and you'll still get a five percent discount." Baishi's smile did not change.

Father Fang and Mother Fang were instantly tempted by the offer. It sounded pretty good, did it not?

But Fang Yuan froze.

City folk sure knew how to play their tricks.

How was he supposed to explain to his parents that he did not need an Evolution Stone...

A five percent discount could save quite a bit of money. Ordinary people would never pass that up.

But if they paid the deposit and ultimately did not buy an Evolution Stone, the deposit definitely would not be refunded.

The atmosphere immediately turned awkward. Fang Yuan quickly tugged on his father's clothes.

"How about... you take some time to think it over first? You can also go complete the paperwork." Seeing the three hesitate, Baishi stopped pressing them and added, "Oh, right. Once you finish the procedures and return, we'll give you an Instruction Manual. It records information about Eevee, as well as key points for incubating this type of Pokémon. Make sure you keep it safe. If you encounter any difficulties during incubation, you can come to this Breeding House and find me, or call me."

"No problem, no problem." Fang Yuan nodded.

Having chosen Eevee, Baishi led Fang Yuan and his parents to obtain a Breeding Certificate. This certificate was very important. They would need to take it to the Pokémon Center for the next procedure: registering Fang Yuan as a Trainer and paying the fees. The payment included the price of the Pokémon Egg and the Trainer tax. Only after completing all that could they return to the Breeding House and collect the Pokémon Egg.

On the way to the Pokémon Center, Father Fang asked in confusion, "Why did you tug on me just now? We could have had Mr. Baishi write up the deposit slip for the Evolution Stone and paid it at the Friendship Store while we were there."

"We don't need to buy it here. Did you forget? The instructor for my Psychology Club is also a Breeder. He has connections too, and we can get it cheaper through him." Fang Yuan lied through his teeth.

"Really?" Father Fang was stunned.

"Teacher Li and I are close, but don't tell anyone else. When we get back to the Breeding House, just turn down the offer directly." Fang Yuan said seriously.

"Ha, look at you, kid. All that networking wasn't for nothing." Father Fang gave Fang Yuan's shoulder a hard slap, thoroughly satisfied.

Mother Fang agreed as well.

"Heh..." Black lines formed on Fang Yuan's forehead. It would be nice if that were true. Oh well, I'll hide it for as long as I can. We won't need an Evolution Stone anytime soon anyway. I'll come up with another excuse by then.

Paying a deposit? Not a chance.

If buying a Pokémon Egg and registering as a Trainer required running back and forth between the Pokémon Center and the Breeding House...

Then purchasing an Evolution Stone also required going between two places: the Friendship Store and the Breeding House.

The public Breeding House, Pokémon Center, and Friendship Store were all businesses under the Trainer Association and worked in partnership. When the Breeding House sold related Pokémon items, customers often paid and collected the goods at the Friendship Store.

It was worth mentioning that the Pokémon Center, an administrative and medical institution, and the Friendship Store, a commercial establishment, were both located in the same building.

Pingcheng Building, the largest and tallest building in Flat City.

At the same time, it was also the office location of the Flat City branch of the Trainer Association.

With the three important institutions gathered in one place, security was much easier to manage. After all, due to the existence of Pokémon, crime rates in this world had always remained high.

Before long, Fang Yuan and his parents arrived.

Today was a peak day for Trainer registration, and the Pokémon Center was somewhat crowded. However, the staff worked efficiently. It took only an hour for Fang Yuan and his parents to complete all the procedures. They could now return to collect the Pokémon Egg.

"From today onward, I'm a Trainer too?"

Even after leaving Pingcheng Building, Fang Yuan's emotions had yet to settle.

He had told himself not to get too excited and to wait until he had collected the Pokémon Egg, but he still could not help feeling a little thrilled.

What Fang Yuan found regrettable, however, was that an Ordinary Trainer's information was directly linked to their ID card. It was only registered online, with no other form of identification issued.

What Fang Yuan wanted was the license held by Professional Trainers.

When they returned to the Breeding House, Baishi was still the one receiving Fang Yuan and his parents. This time, however, Father Fang and Mother Fang never mentioned the Evolution Stone, causing Baishi's smile to stiffen slightly.

Under Baishi's subtle prompting, Father Fang awkwardly but politely brushed the matter aside, making it clear that the deal would not happen.

"Just as planned."

Fang Yuan secretly gave a thumbs-up.

He would not touch a luxury item like an Evolution Stone even if it killed him. Mm... that included the Moss Rock that would evolve Eevee into Leafeon.

Unless he could get it for free.

At last, Fang Yuan had finally obtained his own Beginner Pokémon... Egg.

Holding the transparent Incubation Device that Mr. Baishi had prepared to secure the Pokémon Egg, Fang Yuan tightened his grip, afraid he might drop it.

Inside, the white egg with brown markings bobbed up and down in the thick nutrient solution...

"This is the Instruction Manual for incubating Pokémon Eggs. Pokémon have far greater vitality than Ordinary Animals, so you don't need to worry too much about incubation. Just follow the instructions." Baishi said.

Most Pokémon could fight tigers and leopards right after birth, unlike Ordinary Animals, which were so fragile when newly born.

"Understood." Fang Yuan nodded.

Then Fang Yuan, Father Fang, and Mother Fang all thanked Baishi for explaining everything along the way.

"Don't mention it." Baishi did not dwell on the Evolution Stone matter either and smilingly saw them out of the Breeding House.

Fang Yuan had only one thought now: get home and incubate the Pokémon Egg.

Every second before Eevee hatched would be agonizing for Fang Yuan.

However, according to Mr. Baishi's introduction, the Pokémon Egg should hatch within a week after the nutrient solution was drained, though no one could say exactly when. That made Fang Yuan feel miserable.

"Come to think of it, this paste-like nutrient solution can actually delay the hatching of a Pokémon Egg and strengthen a newborn Pokémon's resistance... That's really amazing. I wonder who developed it." Fang Yuan paused slightly.

Forget it. No point thinking about it. First, I'll wish for it to hatch instantly.