Brian moved the tool into the Pokémon breeding room, which was now filled with his family's Pokémon.
It was nearing dinner time, and the place was quiet. No one else was around, so Brian set the tool down.
He thought about selling eggs to earn money for an incubator. Selling Pokémon could also yield rewards—either a higher-quality Pokémon or a talent booster for one.
The next morning, as he was heading to breakfast—
"Bro, is the breeding place for hatching eggs now?" Jeremy asked as he stepped in from outside.
"An egg incubator? When did you buy that?" his mother chimed in.
"Yesterday. I saw an ad online saying there was a discount, so I bought it," Brian replied. As long as he could lie, he would keep his golden finger a secret.
"What did you buy it for?" his father asked.
"I know, I know!" Ann suddenly jumped in. "Yesterday, Brother Brian sold Pokémon eggs, so maybe he's planning to sell Pokémon too."
"Selling Pokémon eggs?" Brian's father looked confused.
"Yeah, Dad. Our shop can sell Pokémon eggs too. Three days ago, Uncle Bross asked if we had any. He also said it was strange for a Pokémon food shop not to have Pokémon. So I thought—why not sell eggs and Pokémon together?" Brian explained.
"Well, if that's what you're thinking, then go ahead. It's your shop too," his father said.
After breakfast, Brian took two Pokémon eggs—a yellow one and an orange one—from the talent shop and placed them in the hatchery.
The eggs would hatch in three days, so Brian continued with his routine: waking up at 5 a.m., training with Eevee until 8 a.m., running the shop until 3 p.m., and training again until 6 p.m.
Three days later, Brian headed eagerly to the hatchery. There were only five minutes left before hatching. Everyone had gathered to watch—they had never seen Pokémon hatch before.
Ye Yan, Song Ye, and Otto were the most excited, since they didn't have Pokémon yet.
"Ten more seconds! Weedle and Paras are about to hatch!" Nova exclaimed.
The countdown ended, and the two eggs glowed brightly. The sound of cracking shells filled the room. As the light faded, two baby Pokémon let out adorable cries, looking around happily.
"Ooh, looks like they're hungry," Mrs. Brian said, carrying a container of Miltank milk. The milk came from Brian's own Miltank farm. After construction was completed, he had bought twenty Miltanks with his remaining funds, and his father took care of them.
Seeing the milk in her hands, the baby Pokémon eagerly waddled over to drink.
"Mom, I want to drink some too!" Ann said.
"Me too, Mom!" Nova added.
Fiona chuckled, giving each of them a little milk to feed to the Pokémon. After finishing, the baby Pokémon snuggled up against Ann and Nova, then fell asleep.
"Heeey, Weedle's asleep," Nova whispered.
"Same with Paras," Ann added.
"They're still babies. Babies sleep a lot," Brian said, standing nearby.
"Brother, why did this incubator hatch them so fast? From the book I read, eggs usually take one or two weeks," Alan asked, puzzled.
"I don't know either—maybe it's the latest technology," Brian answered.
"Whatever it is, if it hatches eggs quickly, it's a good tool. Anyway, let's go have breakfast. We came here early for once. And you three—Ye Yan, Song Ye, and Otto—still have school," Mother reminded them.
"Yes, Ma'am," the four replied.
After breakfast, Brian returned to work at the shop. Even though his rare candy stock was full, it wouldn't grow any further unless he used it. He also listed the two newborn Pokémon on the shop's website for sale.
In a small house elsewhere, an eighteen-year-old man, a former classmate of Brian's, browsed the Pokémon shop's site.
"This shop sells Pokémon now? Yesterday it only had food. Weedle—Senior Trainer potential—for 35,000 coins… Paras for 15,000 coins, Junior potential…"
"If this is legit, I'll buy that Weedle," he muttered.
His name was Lube. He hadn't gone to high school. At fifteen, he had gone straight into the forest to catch Pokémon. He now owned two, but their talents were poor—only capable of reaching Junior Trainer level. If this Weedle was the real deal, he could finally grow stronger.
Without hesitating much longer, he headed straight to Brian's shop.
Meanwhile, at the police station—
"Any leads on the killer?" a policewoman asked.
"Not yet, Sergeant Brielle. But when we investigated the victim, we discovered he was a gangster who exploited children," the officer replied, speaking with respect and a hint of awe. Sergeant Brielle was a Senior-level trainer.
"Oh? If he's a gangster who preys on kids, why was he free to roam around?" Brielle asked coldly.
The officer hesitated, nervous under her gaze. But frustration and helplessness pushed him to speak.
"That's because he's connected to Corporal Taylor. Whenever there's trouble, Taylor protects him, so his crimes never get punished. Before you arrived, Taylor was the highest-ranking officer here, so we could only stay quiet."
Brielle's eyes narrowed. The idea that a mere corporal had such influence was troubling. "Why didn't you report it to headquarters?"
"We didn't dare. Behind Taylor is the Lee family. She's married into them," the officer explained.
Hearing this, Brielle understood the problem. With the Lee family's backing, Taylor could do whatever she wanted.
"Call Taylor to my office. And keep searching for the killer," Brielle ordered.
"Yes, Sergeant."
Brielle entered her office and dialed a number.
"Hello, please help me—"
"Oh, my dear sister! The one who begged to be stationed in the smallest backwater… now can't take it anymore and wants help?"
Brielle hung up immediately. Two seconds later, her phone rang again.
"Hey, my cold sister, why'd you hang up so fast?"
"Do you want to help or not?"
"Hahaha, alright. What's going on?"
Brielle told the person everything.
"So that's it. If you want to get rid of that bastard Taylor, go ahead. As for the Lee family—just drop our family name, Mikhail. If they still push back, I, Mikhail Sonya, will handle it personally."
"Alright."
"Brielle, even though it's only been a month since you left, Mom's worried. When are you coming back? Take a week off," Sonya urged.
"I still have work. I'm hanging up."
Brielle ended the call and waited for Taylor to arrive.
In another office, a beautiful blonde woman in a police uniform sighed. Across from her sat a middle-aged man with a scarred, seasoned face, his chest covered in medals. This was Mikhail Volkov, head of the Mikhail family and the highest-ranking officer in the police force.
"She hung up again," Sonya muttered.
"What can you do? Your sister's always compared to you. You were a Master-level trainer at eighteen, and she's still at Senior level now. And at twenty-four, you've already reached King level," Volkov said.
"I'm sure it's not her talent that's the problem—it's her Pokémon's. Why don't you find her a new one?" Sonya suggested.
"I've tried, but she insists on raising her Boltund to Gym level, like you did with your Manectric."
"I know, but Boltund's been with her for six years. I'm sure its talent isn't that high. Let's test it. She won't be so stubborn after that," Sonya sighed.
"Test its talent? Professor Jackob and Professor Chiaki have been researching that for the past ten years. Your cousin Dimitriv is head of security, and from what I've heard, the research will conclude in a week," Volkov explained.
"Huh? This research exists? Why didn't I know about it?" Sonya was shocked.
"Because it's top secret, known only to the Alliance's highest ranks. But since it's nearly complete, I'm telling you now."
"Ahaha, then once Brielle sees Boltund's talent, she won't be so stubborn," Sonya said happily. She loved her sister dearly and didn't want Brielle to grow cold just because she was always compared to her.