Lucas looked at the steady young man with spiky reddish-brown hair in front of him, feeling a bit surprised.
You're already in the Sinnoh region, so does that mean Ash will be arriving soon?
Lucas thought this to himself.
After all, Ash's journey to the Sinnoh region was because his Pikachu lost to the Electivire of the young man in front of him, and then he went to Sinnoh because of a remark from the young man.
His strength could be said to be Ash's rival; in the early stages, he was the one who constantly spurred Ash's growth.
"Hello, my name is Gary Oak."
Gary politely greeted him.
"Lucas."
Lucas stated his name, then asked Gary.
"So, is there anything you need?"
Hearing Lucas's words, Gary hesitated for a moment, then spoke:
"I am a Pokémon researcher. After traveling through the Sinnoh region, I went to Professor Rowan's lab in Sandgem Town, planning to say goodbye to him before returning to the Kanto region. Later, Professor Rowan suggested that if possible, I should come to the Breeding House to learn."
Gary was exceptionally polite when facing the young man in front of him.
"I wonder if I could—"
Before he could finish, he saw a Gengar float through the wall.
"Gengar?"
A customer?
"Wait a moment."
Lucas said to the Gengar beside him, then turned to Gary and asked:
"Excuse me, what was the last thing you said? I didn't quite catch it."
Gary repeated himself.
"I was wondering if I could visit the Breeding House. Please."
The powerful energy he felt from Gengar and the photo of Lucas with Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion, displayed on the counter, made Gary unconsciously feel that Lucas was a powerful trainer.
"I see—"
Lucas paused, then nodded.
"Of course."
"Thank you very much."
Gary bowed.
It seemed that ever since he became a Pokémon researcher, Gary had become much more reserved and composed.
Looking at the exceptionally polite Gary in front of him, Lucas couldn't help but think to himself.
"Shopkeeper Lucas, may I ask what region this Pokémon is from? It's not in the Sinnoh region's Pokédex."
Hearing Gary's words, Lucas came back to his senses, looked at the Petilil on the counter, smiled, and then picked her up.
"Her? She's a Petilil from the Unova region. Isn't she adorable?"
Lucas gently stroked the trimmed leaves on her head, asking with a smile.
Petilil let out a sweet Growl, as she loved it when Lucas stroked the leaves on her head.
Then Lucas looked at the Umbreon at Gary's feet, observing its moves.
"Umbreon? What impressive strength."
Lucas couldn't help but exclaim.
As expected of Ash's rival, Umbreon's moves are so magnificent.
Hearing Lucas praise his Umbreon, Gary couldn't help but smile.
"Eevee~"
"Let's go, I'll take you on a tour of my Breeding House."
After Lucas finished speaking, he carried Petilil and turned to enter the door behind the counter, leading Gary through the kitchen to the backyard.
As soon as Gary passed through the kitchen and arrived in the backyard, he saw many Pokémon playing and frolicking with each other.
"Are all these Pokémon from the Breeding House?"
Gary looked at the group of Pokémon in front of him and asked curiously, "Most of them are forest Pokémon, not from the Breeding House. They just come to the Breeding House to play."
Lucas explained.
"Forest Pokémon? Aren't you afraid that Gary's family lab also stores many trainers' Pokémon, and dealing with the problems caused by these Pokémon's temperaments every day is incredibly troublesome? Even his Grandpa, Professor Oak, with the help of many assistants, still gets headaches."
Now, this Breeding House actually lets wild Pokémon in. Isn't it afraid of causing any damage?
Lucas knew what Gary wanted to express. He walked forward while answering Gary's words.
"The Breeding House and the forest are friends, so there's no need to worry about the Breeding House suffering any damage."
"Friends?"
Lucas stopped, then shouted loudly.
"Everyone!"
The Pokémon in the Breeding House all looked over, then all ran towards him. Under Gengar's resentful expression, they took the Poké Blocks from Gengar's hand and distributed them one by one.
Looking at the orderly Pokémon, Gary was a bit surprised.
If they were captured Pokémon, it wouldn't be so surprising, but these were all wild Pokémon.
Then Lucas looked at the few Pokémon whose hearts had been hurt. They saw a stranger with Lucas and were hesitant to approach.
Lucas walked towards them, holding Petilil.
Gary followed behind with Umbreon.
Lucas came to Roselia's side.
He put Petilil down, then whispered something to Roselia.
Gary stood not far away; he heard Lucas's voice and also observed Roselia's condition.
Then he followed Lucas to find several other Pokémon in the same situation.
After Lucas finished, Gary followed him away from those Pokémon, then spoke:
"These are—"
"They came to the Breeding House a few days ago. We rescued them from Pokémon Hunters."
Lucas gently recounted their story, then paused.
He continued:
"So, we let them stay in the Breeding House, let other Pokémon play with them, and slowly heal their hearts."
"At the same time, I also hope they can recover in the Breeding House and then choose the life they want."
"This is also the hope of all members of our Breeding House."
Gary did not respond to Lucas's words.
As Professor Oak's grandson, he was very familiar with Pokémon, and he was also a Pokémon trainer, though he later chose to become a Pokémon researcher.
Therefore, he could feel the resistance the emotionally hurt Pokémon had towards him, and their acceptance of Lucas.
So, Lucas's words just now were not unfounded.
"Uncle."
Shauna ran over with Chingling and the others.
"Is this big brother here to board his Pokémon?"
Shauna looked at Gary beside Lucas and asked in a clear voice. Lucas shook his head, "No, he's just here to visit our Breeding House."
Shauna said "Oh," then cautiously asked Gary, "Big brother, can we play with her for a while? She's so pretty."
Gary followed the direction of Shauna's finger, looked at his Umbreon, then looked at Shauna, who had silver bun-like hair and was wearing a cute princess dress, and nodded with a smile.
"Of course."
After getting permission, Shauna took Umbreon back to the big tree with the swing and started playing together.
Lucas looked at Shauna's back, then quietly told Gary about Shauna and Petilil.
Finally, Lucas said, "Actually, I originally opened this Breeding House just to fulfill my Grandma's last wish, but unconsciously, I have become a reliance for many people. Without me, they might take a long time to get better, and if I didn't have her and Gengar, this Breeding House might not have been open for so long. So, the relationship between humans and Pokémon is by no means merely a superior-subordinate one."
Lucas said this to Gary with a hint of meaning.
Because, as far as he knew, this period was precisely when Gary was changing his view on the relationship with Pokémon, which is why he said that.
It could also be considered a small prank of his, a form of guidance that wasn't really guidance for Ash's rival.
Gary looked at the Gengar beside Lucas, then at Shauna, then at Petilil, and finally at the entire Breeding House, remaining silent for a long time.
....
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