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Oreburgh City, Oreburgh Mine.
When Wayne arrived in Oreburgh City again from Hearthome City, the rare Pokémon he had previously scanned for had disappeared.
It had been a Shiny Pokémon—either caught by someone or it had left the area yesterday.
The fact that it was gone in just one day meant that Wayne and this Shiny Pokémon simply weren't meant to meet.
He'd had a competition to attend yesterday, so he couldn't stay, and he didn't feel it was a shame.
Wayne didn't excessively pursue Shiny Pokémon. He simply liked Shiny Metagross in particular.
Especially Shiny Grumpig—it was better not to even mention it.
Wayne wasn't entirely without gains, though. He'd found a meteorite, discovered by Lucario.
If it were just an ordinary meteorite, Wayne wouldn't care too much about it.
But this was no ordinary meteorite.
The appraisal result was: [A meteorite emitting a seven-colored light from within]
This meteorite felt warm to the touch, and some patterns could be seen on its surface.
However, Wayne couldn't make out what they were.
Perhaps he could ask Steven? He believed Steven would definitely be interested in this kind of stone.
"Good luck—you actually dug up a meteorite!" A cheerful male voice caught Wayne's attention.
Wearing glasses, a safety helmet, and work clothes, with a shovel slung over his shoulder, he was the picture of a working miner.
Steven and this guy would probably have a lot in common.
As Wayne pondered this, the young man laughed heartily. "Don't worry, I'm not a bad guy. I'm Roark, the Gym Leader of Oreburgh City."
Saying that, Roark even showed off the Gym badge pinned to his sleeve.
"Actually, I came over because I saw the Lucario next to you, and then I noticed you had dug up a meteorite."
From a distance, Roark had spotted this excellently trained Lucario and unconsciously walked over to strike up a conversation.
Hearing his self-introduction, Wayne looked more closely, and this young man with the smudged face indeed looked very much like Roark.
Like Brock, Roark was also a Rock-type Gym Leader.
Wayne extended his hand. "Wayne. I didn't dig it up—I just picked it up."
Roark quickly pulled off his gloves, shook Wayne's hand, and laughed. "That means you have good luck."
Wayne thought for a moment about arriving in this longed-for Pokémon world, living alongside Pokémon, and then the system appearing.
Everything that had happened so far... could be called a miracle, with an element of luck as well.
"My luck is pretty good," Wayne agreed.
...
"Is your family in the Breeding House business?"
Roark rarely watched video sites. He was either stationed at the Gym or working in the Oreburgh Mine, so he didn't recognize Wayne.
"My sister is an ancient history researcher, though."
As Wayne and Roark chatted idly, someone in the distance shouted, "Roark, come quickly! There's a discovery!"
"Sorry, I have to go help. Let's chat another time."
Roark and Wayne added each other on Line.
Then Roark ran toward his companion.
Wayne had no intention of joining the excitement.
It was nothing more than ancient fossils or ores anyway.
Could they possibly dig out a Ting-Lu?
"Metagross, let's go!"
The Shiny Metagross was simply too dazzling in the sunlight.
Watching Wayne ride off on Metagross, Roark blinked, momentarily stunned.
"A Shiny Metagross?! I feel like I just met someone incredible. Well, I'll find out more later."
...
Ever since he'd gotten the system, Wayne had lost interest in games, shopping, and other pastimes.
His only social interaction was probably in Red's chat group, where he would occasionally join in the fun.
Watching the competition yesterday and going to the drive-in theater in the early morning were some of Wayne's few leisure activities.
Wayne landed safely at the Breeding Center.
"Boss!"
"Brother Wayne!"
Everything at the Breeding Center was running normally. It wouldn't stop functioning just because Wayne was away.
"You guys go train on your own."
"Lucario!"
Wayne had learned a particularly important lesson from Blue: let Pokémon train themselves.
Blue was even more extreme about it. He directly let Alakazam act as a Trainer to run the Viridian Gym and battle challengers.
Blue, meanwhile, could happily go battle Red or conduct research with Professor Oak.
He lived a very comfortable life.
This was all part of Blue's advanced methodology.
As for whether Pokémon could truly train independently and become stronger through self-training, Wayne didn't particularly care.
Even if they couldn't get stronger, Wayne would still raise them.
As of today, Lucario and the others had already become part of Wayne's family.
Passing by the warehouse, Wayne glanced inside.
The old man was studying a batch of newly arrived materials, while Wayne's father was holding a handful and sniffing it.
"Grandpa, Dad."
The old man glanced at him, nodded, and continued studying the materials.
His father was much more enthusiastic. "Son, you're back? Perfect timing—it's time to groom and bathe the Eevee. You can handle it."
Heh, typical.
"Alright."
His father's face was full of the expression "I want to slack off," clearly excited about passing this major task to Wayne.
Not only did Wayne want to complain, but the old man also gave Leon a sharp glare, his face showing clear disappointment.
Fortunately, Wayne wasn't a disappointment after all.
The old man set aside the thought of disciplining his son.
Spring had arrived, and everything was coming back to life.
After the weather warmed up, it wasn't only the breeding season for Pokémon but also the shedding season.
Eevee would start shedding as well, so it was time to groom their fur.
The Eevee couldn't do it alone.
Although Eevee could lick their own fur, they couldn't completely solve the problem.
If Eevee's fur became messy, it not only affected their appearance but also wasn't conducive to breeding.
Especially since all eight Eevee in Wayne's care were free-range, it was inevitable that sand and dirt would get hidden in their fur.
This was going to be a major project.
Fortunately, with his intermediate affinity ability, the Eevee were relatively comfortable around Wayne.
Watching Wayne easily pick up an Eevee, Eden looked bewildered. "What's going on?! Little Eevee, you usually don't let me hold you!"
Eden also participated in the daily management of the Eevee.
The particular Eevee Wayne had picked up was relatively proud and never let anyone hold it.
Looking at the Eevee now, it was softly leaning against Wayne's chest, its ears twitching gently.
"Vui~"
Even its cry had changed.
Eden cried out to the Eevee, "Eevee, you've changed!"
Wayne couldn't help but laugh. "Eden, I'll leave the Eevee grooming supplies to you."
"Leave it to me!"
Wayne put on an apron and began bathing the Eevee.
The general process was the same as bathing Glameow, though the shampoo used was different.
However, Eevee preferred a higher water temperature, requiring water at 43 degrees Celsius.
A steady stream of water wet the Eevee's fur, and Wayne's palm gently supported Eevee's chin, stroking it softly.
The Eevee squinted its eyes, purring comfortably.
Watching this scene, Eden sighed. "Wayne, you're really amazing! We can't even bathe Little Eevee properly."
Eden felt that as soon as Wayne got involved, this Eevee's proud nature completely changed.