The Breeder Certification Exam

After seeing Xia Lan and the others out, Fang Yan returned to his bedroom bathroom and took a shower. Once he was done, he lay down on the bed, took his phone from Gengar, and glanced at it. Nurse Joy had sent him the questions from the previous breeder certification exam.

Fang Yan opened the file, only to see Gengar sit down beside him, looking as though it wanted to read them too.

"Can you even understand this, you goof?"

He teased it with a smile, then shifted the phone toward Gengar.

"Gengar~"

The questions were likewise divided into multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and written-response sections.

"This really is... a familiar feeling."

Fang Yan looked over the layout of the questions and couldn't help commenting.

"Gengar?"

"Nothing. Let's look at the questions."

"Gengar."

The first question:

[Which of the following Berries cannot cure a status condition?]

[A. Sitrus Berry]

[B. Persim Berry]

[C. Cheri Berry]

[D. Pecha Berry]

A at a glance. Next question.

[Which of the following Pokémon cannot breed with Machamp?]

[A. Gardevoir]

[B. Gallade]

[C. Azumarill]

[D. Buneary]

"Huh... humans aren't even an option?"

The question reminded Fang Yan of shiny female Machamp... He forced his thoughts back on track and continued reading the questions below.

The questions covered some basic Pokémon Egg groups, methods of using Berries and herbs, and the types and habits of some common Pokémon.

Simply put, Fang Yan knew all of it. The short-answer section that followed usually required answering questions based on Pokémon on-site-in other words, an interview.

With a sigh, Fang Yan sprawled on the bed. "And here I thought it'd be hard..."

"Gengar, let's finish the exam early tomorrow and come back early to clean up the Pokémon Day Care. We need to get it open and making money soon."

Fang Yan spoke with both hands behind his head and his eyes on the ceiling, having handed his phone to Gengar.

"Gengar~"

Tilting his head to look at Gengar and finding it absorbed in the phone, Fang Yan said helplessly, "I really don't know whether this is good or bad for you. Remember to sleep early tonight. We have to get up early tomorrow to clean up the grounds."

At that, Gengar looked up at him, then turned off the phone, floated to the other side of the bed, and plugged in the charging cable.

"Good night, Gengar."

"Gen... Gengar~"

"Remember to turn off the light."

"Gengar!"

The room went dark, with only a scarlet gaze and the white glow from the bedside table visible.

Fang Yan sighed inwardly, then closed his eyes and soon fell asleep.

When Fang Yan got up in the morning, he opened the balcony door. A thin mist hung over the grounds out back.

"Morning, Gengar."

Greeting Gengar as it floated up through the floor, Fang Yan dragged it into the bathroom to wash up.

After washing up, Fang Yan made a simple breakfast for himself and Gengar. Once they had eaten, he went to the storeroom and brought out the newly purchased lawn mower.

"I wonder if this thing works well."

When he reached the grounds out back, dew still clung to the weeds. The air was a little chilly too, making Fang Yan shiver, especially with a Gengar behind him.

The difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures in the Sinnoh Region was far too great.

He then fiddled with the mower according to the manual. Once he had it set up, he pressed a button, and the mower roared to life.

Wherever the mower passed, it left a carpet of weed corpses and the fragrance of cut grass.

"Gengar, come help me for a moment. Move those big rocks away for me."

There were so many scattered rocks that the mower kept jolting, leaving Fang Yan no choice but to call Gengar over to help.

"Gengar-"

Hearing Fang Yan, Gengar put down the broom it had been using to sweep up weeds and floated over, then used its psychic power to move all the scattered rocks to one side.

With Gengar's help, he soon finished clearing the grassy area. They then went to the lake, where he had Gengar clear away all the fallen leaves on the surface and take them to the planting area for fertilizer. Since the lake had flowing water, there was no need to drain and refill it.

They worked until noon. Looking at the much tidier grounds, Fang Yan kept feeling that he had forgotten something.

After taking a look, he ran back to the house with Gengar, set up a large sun umbrella, and brought out several lounge chairs and a small table.

The little afternoon tea spot was ready.

"Sure enough, you can't skip the ritual."

He looked over the area they had finally finished working on. A few details still needed attention, but those could be tidied up gradually later.

Once he returned from the breeder certification exam that afternoon, he could consider opening for business. He now had somewhere for trainers to board their Pokémon.

"Let's go, Gengar. Time to eat. What do you want?"

Fang Yan asked as he picked the weeds off his trouser cuffs.

"Gengar~٩(º﹃º٩)"

Anything was fine~

After lunch, Fang Yan sat with Gengar on the chairs in front of the counter, waiting for Officer Jenny to arrive. He held a large wooden board, writing out the Pokémon Day Care's services.

A rumbling came from outside, and Officer Jenny pulled up at the entrance on her police motorcycle.

"Xiaoye."

Fang Yan handed the wooden board to Gengar and walked outside.

"Let's go. I'll take you to the exam. How's your preparation coming along?"

Officer Jenny turned her motorcycle around as she asked.

"Pretty well."

"Sounds like you're confident. Come on, hop on."

Fang Yan climbed onto the back seat, told Gengar to look after the house, and headed to Twinleaf Town with Officer Jenny to take the breeder certification exam.

After arriving at the Pokémon Center and greeting Nurse Joy, he followed Officer Jenny to the Breeders Association next door.

He pushed open the door to find the room filled with people. Some were his age, some were older, and there were even children.

Looking at the children who appeared to be around ten, Fang Yan finally remembered that people here could set off on a journey with their starter Pokémon at ten years old. Some even became League Champions in their teens.

Fang Yan went to his seat, sat down, and quietly waited for the exam to begin.

When the papers were handed out, Fang Yan skimmed his. It was very easy.

That made sense. An entry-level breeder certification exam certainly wouldn't be that difficult.

He soon finished writing his answers, handed in his paper early, and left the exam room.

Since there was still a second exam, Fang Yan couldn't leave. Bored, he wandered around.

Someone tapped him. He turned around and found Officer Jenny.

"Xiaoye, you're allowed in here?"

Fang Yan wondered how Officer Jenny had come to be here.

"I'm a police officer. What's wrong with me being allowed in?"

Officer Jenny flashed her police ID and said with a smile.

That makes perfect sense.

Even his eligibility to take the exam had been secured with Officer Jenny's help, so it all made sense.

I got in through the back door.

"Judging by your expression, the first exam went pretty well?"

Officer Jenny asked.

"No major problems."

"That's good, then."