When Yun chose Eevee, his parents didn't say much—They simply respected his decision.
Truth be told, they'd rarely interfered with his choices unless he made some really terrible mistake.
That alone was probably enough to make a lot of people jealous.
Back to the point—Eevee itself wasn't expensive,
But evolution stones were.
Add the two together, and the total cost would actually surpass what they'd planned to spend on some of the rarer Pokémon.
Still smiling, the breeder house staff member, Baishi, looked quite pleased.
From his perspective, this was another big transaction.
The commission wasn't huge, but hey—money's money.
"Eevee it is," Yun said. "But—I'd like to hold off on buying the evolution stone. I haven't decided which form I want Eevee to evolve into yet."
He glanced at Baishi, who kept his smile—but Yun could practically read the guy's mind.
Commission?
Sorry, not happening.
"You've got a point," said Yun's dad, nodding.
"This does need to be carefully thought through."
Truth be told, even if they had wanted to buy the stone right away, they probably couldn't afford it just now. They'd just been talking big earlier—if it really came down to it, they'd have to take out a loan. And once that happened…
Well, things would be tight around the house for quite a while.
The only comforting part was: evolution stones might be expensive,
but hey—at least they were cheaper than real estate.
In recent years, the government had made efforts to nurture Pokémon Trainers,
so the prices of related goods had become much more accessible.
Back in the last century, evolution stones weren't even available on the market—
even if you had the money, you couldn't buy one.
"No worries," said Baishi, his salesman smile unwavering.
"As long as you pay a deposit, we'll always have stock. You can choose the evolution stone later and pay the remaining balance accordingly. And of course, you'll still get the 5% discount."
The second Yun's mom and dad heard that, their hearts skipped a beat. That… actually sounded like a great deal?
But Yun froze.
Ah. So this was how the game worked in the city…
Now how was he supposed to explain to his parents that he didn't need an evolution stone at all?
And a 5% discount meant saving a decent chunk of money. Normal people wouldn't pass that up.
But if you paid the deposit and didn't end up buying the stone—yeah, you could kiss that deposit goodbye.
The air went tense. Yun quickly tugged his dad's sleeve.
"Why don't you take a bit of time to think it over?" Baishi chimed in, sensing their hesitation.
"Or you could go ahead and start the registration process first."
He added, "After the paperwork's done, you'll receive a Trainer's guidebook. It contains detailed information on Eevee and its hatching requirements. Be sure to keep it safe. If you run into any issues during the hatching process, feel free to come back here or give us a call."
"No problem at all," Yun nodded.
With Eevee selected, Baishi led the family to apply for a Pokémon Breeding Certificate.
This certificate was important—
They'd need to bring it to the Pokémon Center to complete the next step: registering Yun's identity as a Trainer and paying the associated fees.
That fee would cover both the cost of the egg and the Trainer tax.
Only after all that could they return to the breeder house to collect the Pokémon egg.
On the way to the Pokémon Center, Yun's dad asked curiously,
"Why'd you stop me earlier? We should've let Mr. Baishi prepare the deposit form.
We could've just paid at the Partner Shop while we were there."
"No need to buy it here," Yun said smoothly.
"Don't forget—my psychology club's faculty advisor is a Breeder too.
He's got his own connections. We'll get a better price through him."
"Really?" Yun's dad looked surprised.
"Yeah. Teacher Li and I are on good terms, but don't go telling anyone, alright?
When we go back to the breeder house later, we'll just quietly let the evolution stone thing drop."
"Kid's got some skills, huh? Knew you weren't mixing in that club for nothing!"
Yun's dad gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder, grinning.
Yun's mom nodded in agreement.
Yun just gave a dry laugh. If only that were actually true…
Still, if he could dodge the deposit for one day, that was already a win.
He wouldn't be needing an evolution stone anytime soon,
and he could always come up with another excuse later.
Deposit? What deposit? Never heard of it.
Getting the Pokémon egg and registering as a Trainer meant running back and forth between the breeder house and the Pokémon Center.
Buying an evolution stone involved similar legwork—between the Partner Shop and the breeder house.
All three—public breeder houses, Pokémon Centers, and Partner Shops—
were affiliated with the Trainer Association and worked together.
Breeder houses didn't usually sell related products directly—
you'd pay at the Partner Shop, and pick things up afterward.
Interestingly, the Pokémon Center (which served both administrative and medical purposes) and the Partner Shop (a commercial outlet)
were located inside the same building:
Pingcheng Tower—
the tallest and largest building in the city.
It also served as the Pingcheng branch of the Trainer Association.
The idea was to keep all three key institutions in one place for better security—
and in this world, where Pokémon existed,
crime rates were consistently high.
Not long after, they arrived.
Today was a peak day for Trainer registrations.
The Pokémon Center was a bit crowded,
but the staff worked efficiently.
Within an hour, Yun and his family had completed all the formalities.
Now, they could finally return to pick up the egg.
"So… I'm a real Trainer now?" Yun asked, standing outside Pingcheng Tower.
His heart still hadn't settled down.
He'd been telling himself to stay calm and wait until he actually had the egg in hand,
but he couldn't help getting a little excited.
There was just one thing that disappointed him:
For ordinary Trainers, your ID just linked up with your national ID card.
You didn't get anything cool to show off.
What Yun really wanted—
was the professional Trainer's license.
Back at the breeder house, it was still Baishi who greeted them.
But this time, neither Yun's dad nor mom brought up the evolution stone again,
and that made Baishi's smile… falter just a bit.
Despite his subtle prodding, Yun's dad politely and awkwardly brushed him off,
making it clear: this deal wasn't happening.
"Mission complete."
Yun gave himself a silent thumbs-up.
Evolution stones? Luxury goods.
He wouldn't touch them even if you paid him.
Even the Moss Rock used to evolve Eevee into Leafeon? Nope.
Unless he could get it for free.
At last, Yun had officially received his beginner Pokémon…
Well—egg.
Cradling the clear, secure incubator that Baishi had prepared,
Yun gripped it tightly, terrified of dropping it.
Inside, the egg—with a white base and brown markings—
floated gently in a thick, nutrient-rich liquid…
"This is your guidebook for hatching Pokémon eggs," Baishi explained.
"Pokémon are much more resilient than normal animals,
so there's no need to worry too much.
Just follow the instructions."
Most Pokémon, even newborns, could scrap with tigers and leopards.
Unlike ordinary animals, they weren't fragile when born.
"Got it," Yun nodded.
Then he, his mom, and his dad all thanked Baishi for his help and explanations.
"No need to be so formal," Baishi replied with a smile,
no longer trying to push the evolution stone sale,
as he escorted them out of the breeder house.
Right now, Yun had only one thought:
Go home. Hatch the egg.
Until Eevee hatched,
every second would feel like torment.
According to Baishi, the egg should hatch within a week of removing it from the nutrient solution—
but there was no way to predict the exact timing.
Which made Yun even more anxious.
"Come to think of it…" he muttered to himself,
"This glue-like nutrient solution is incredible.
It can delay hatching and strengthen the baby Pokémon's constitution.
Who the heck figured that out?"
He paused, briefly amazed.
Then shook it off.
Whatever. First, make a wish for instant hatching.
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