The next morning, after finishing the morning training with his Pokémon in the Ecopark, Yuga turned to Suzuki Koen, who had already arrived at the shop, and said, "I have something to do in Lavaridge Town today. I'll leave the shop to you."
Suzuki Koen nodded and reassured Yuga, "Don't worry, I'll take care of the shop."
Yuga sneakily glanced at Audino, who was busy making breakfast in the kitchen, and whispered to Suzuki Koen, "Especially keep an eye on Audino. Don't let it make a mess while I'm gone."
Understanding what Yuga meant, Suzuki Koen suppressed a smile and replied in a low voice, "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on it." After a pause, she added, "Including Windy."
Yuga gave Suzuki Koen a playful "You understand" look.
After breakfast, Yuga set out with his Pokémon, riding on the back of the Great Flygon, to Lavaridge Town.
For this rare occasion, Yuga didn't bring Florges, Absol, or Vivillon. Instead, he brought Ninetales, Houndoom, Honchkrow, and Chimecho.
Lavaridge Town used to be the home of these four Pokémon, and Yuga wanted to take them back to visit, allowing their former companions to see how they had grown.
Of course, the main focus was on Houndoom and Ninetales. Honchkrow and Chimecho had always lived on their own in the wild, so the concept of companions didn't really apply to them.
In addition, Yuga also brought Budew, since its friendship task was not yet complete.
Lavaridge Town was very close to Verdanturf Town, and with the speed of the Great Flygon, it didn't take long for Yuga to arrive.
Rather than stopping within Lavaridge Town, Yuga continued to fly to the outskirts, where the Lavaridge Town Day Care Center was located.
As Yuga descended from the Great Flygon in the open air, the staff member of the Day Care Center, Kerry, appeared at the entrance.
Upon seeing Yuga, Kerry waved and greeted, "Long time no see. Didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."
disembarking from the Great Flygon, Yuga smiled and greeted Kerry, "Long time no see. I didn't have much to do at home, so I came early. By the way, is Director Mond here?"
Upon hearing Yuga mention Director Mond, Kerry immediately nodded and said, "Yes, he's here. Follow me, I'll take you to him. He told us that when you arrived, we should take you to him right away."
Accompanied by Kerry, Yuga arrived in the garden of the Day Care Center and found Director Mond. When they arrived, Director Mond was inspecting the health of a Shroomish.
"Director, Mr. Shimizu is here!" Kerry called out to Director Mond from behind.
Upon hearing Kerry's voice, Director Mond turned around and upon seeing Yuga, he smiled and said, "So, Little Yuga is here. I didn't expect you to come so quickly. I thought you wouldn't arrive until at least this afternoon."
Yuga smiled and replied, "When you have something to do, it's better to get it done early."
Hearing Yuga's words, Director Mond laughed heartily and agreed, "You're right, you're right. Just give me a moment. After I finish treating this Shroomish's injuries, I'll take you to select the Pokémon Eggs."
As Director Mond began carefully treating the injured Shroomish, Yuga observed him and noted that although Director Mond had a rough appearance and a bold way of speaking, he was actually very gentle and considerate.
Yuga watched him tend to the Shroomish's injuries with tenderness and precision. The Shroomish didn't show any signs of pain, and its expression remained relaxed.
After finishing treating the Shroomish, Director Mond stood up and said to Yuga, "Come, let's go take a look at the Pokémon Eggs."
Yuga followed Director Mond to the same place where he had previously selected the eggs. There, he found the genetically flawed Pokémon Eggs that were still placed in the corner.
Director Mond pointed to those eggs and said to Yuga, "Those Pokémon Eggs are all here. After you selected the last batch, apart from a few that were sold, the rest hatched and were sent away."
Yuga nodded, then activated his "Insight" skill to examine the Pokémon Eggs. Instantly, the view before him became colorful and vibrant.
Yuga carefully selected the Pokémon Eggs with green or higher qualities, though the quantity this time was not as much as the previous batch.
In the last batch, Yuga had selected a total of 32 Pokémon Eggs with green or higher qualities, including several with blue potential. However, this time he only managed to pick out 20, with just one having a blue potential. The disparity was quite significant.
It seemed that his luck last time had been quite good.
After choosing the Pokémon Eggs, Yuga bid farewell to Director Mond and didn't linger at the Day Care Center.
"Director Mond, when the next batch of Pokémon Eggs arrives, could you please let me know?" Before leaving, Yuga asked Director Mond.
Director Mond chuckled and said, "Don't worry, I won't forget about you. But do you really not need us to help deliver your Pokémon Eggs?"
"No need, it's only 20 Pokémon Eggs. It's not cost-effective for you to make a special trip to Verdanturf Town. I'll take them back myself," Yuga declined Director Mond's offer.
With his system backpack, Yuga could simply toss the Pokémon Eggs into it once he left the confines of the Day Care Center. It was very convenient.
Under the watchful gaze of Director Mond and Kerry, Yuga released Chimecho. Using its psychic abilities, Chimecho carried the Pokémon Eggs and boarded the back of the Great Flygon.
The Pokémon Eggs were all protected by incubators and wouldn't be easily damaged. In this way, Yuga left the outskirts of Lavaridge Town and flew in the direction of Mt. Chimey.
Yuga's next objective was to bring Ninetales and Houndoom to visit their former companions.
Once out of sight of Director Mond and the others, Yuga directly had Chimecho use its psychic powers to carry the 20 eggs. They were easily stored in his system backpack.
"Chimecho, Chimecho..."
With the burden of the eggs lifted, Chimecho let out a relaxed sigh of contentment. Using its psychic powers to control the 20 eggs without damaging them was still quite a challenge for Chimecho.
After stowing away the eggs, Yuga took out Chimecho's Poké Ball and recalled it. In the instant it was recalled, Chimecho couldn't help but think, "What a jerk, he just uses me and then tosses me away!"
After recalling Chimecho, Yuga released Budew and cradled it in his arms. If Chimecho could express its thoughts, it would probably be cursing Yuga for being fickle—loving something new and discarding the old!
"Budew, Budew, Budew!"
From Yuga's embrace, Budew had a novel experience looking downward. It happily waved the two petals on top of its head, and then a white light emanated from its body.