Truly Adorable
The venue for the Day Care Exchange Conference this time was Goldenrod City Gym.
Goldenrod City is a famous city in Johto region, especially in the field of technology. It is renowned in the entire Pokémon world along with Mauville City of Hoenn, Castelia City of Unova, and Lumiose City of Kalos.
Thus, Goldenrod City Gym is not just a large venue but also a building exuding a scientific atmosphere.
However, upon disembarking, Yuga and the others weren't heading to Goldenrod City Gym. Instead, they were going to Goldenrod City Grand Hotel, which was the designated accommodation for all participants of the conference appointed by the Breeder Association.
Furthermore, the hotel had been completely reserved by the Day Care Association for the duration of the conference. All the members of the various major Day Cares attending the conference could stay for free. One couldn't help but marvel at the Day Care Association's financial strength.
Goldenrod City Grand Hotel truly lived up to its reputation as the most luxurious hotel in the city. Even the most basic room where Yuga and the others were staying appeared exceptionally lavish.
Both Yuga's "YoYo Day Care" and Reggie's grandfather's Day Care were relatively small-scale. Especially Yuga's Day Care, which most people had never even heard of, so they were assigned the standard rooms for their stay.
However, because Yuga and Reggie had registered together, their rooms were arranged next to each other, providing a small but comforting consolation.
But just as Yuga and the group were settling in and heading to the dining hall, they encountered that eccentric middle-aged man, Edward, again.
Before Yuga and the others could say anything, Edward, with his peculiar tone, exclaimed, "Tsk tsk tsk, so you guys are here for the Day Care Exchange Conference too? I really couldn't tell. Bringing even kids along, are you playing house or something?"
As he spoke, he casually gestured towards Rand.
Upon being pointed at by him, Rand's face immediately turned red. He was both angered by Edward's attitude and embarrassed for causing Yuga to lose face.
Seeing this, Yuga patted Rand's head to comfort him.
Reggie's grandfather, unaware of the situation, asked Reggie, "What's going on? Do you have a history with him?"
Reggie shook his head and replied, "No, it's just that this guy always finds trouble for no reason."
Although Reggie's voice was quiet, it was still heard by the entourage next to Edward.
The entourage immediately raised their voices, "What do you mean by 'finding trouble for no reason'? How dare you talk like that! Who do you think you're talking to? Do you even know the identity of our boss?"
Upon hearing the entourage's words, Yuga casually inquired, "So, who is your boss? I'm curious to know."
As Yuga followed up with her question, the entourage, with an air of pride, said, "Our boss is none other than the famous Truly Adorable Day Care's owner, Mr. Edward."
Upon hearing the name "Truly Adorable," not only did Yuga burst into laughter, but many others in the dining hall also joined in.
"Why are you laughing? What's so funny!"
Unhappy with Yuga's laughter, the entourage shouted at her again.
Yuga quickly waved her hand, her tone strange as if he were suppressing something. He said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. You see, it's not just me laughing, everyone is."
The entourage was about to say something else, but Edward immediately slapped him, scolding, "Shut up, you idiot."
At this moment, Edward not only regretted letting this entourage accompany him but also started blaming his father for giving the Day Care such a name as "Truly Adorable."
"Why on earth did you give the Day Care such a name? If the boss were a cute girl, it wouldn't be a problem, but the boss is a middle-aged guy like myself, and I'm not even good-looking. This is just embarrassing."
One had to admit that Edward had a clear sense of self-awareness, especially about his own rather unattractive appearance. He had long given up hope.
His family's Day Care had been in business for decades. Changing the name now was impossible. Otherwise, who knows how many loyal customers they would lose? It was all due to branding; you could say that the name was both a blessing and a curse.
In fact, people from other regions might not have heard of the Truly Adorable Day Care, but in the Hoenn region, quite a few people knew about it, including Yuga.
This Day Care excelled in breeding Water-type Pokémon, and their flagship Pokémon were all Water-types. Among them, the most famous was their Clampearl.
The Clampearl was a unique species of Pokémon found in the Hoenn region. It had a gray-blue shell on the outside and a pink body on the inside, appearing incredibly adorable. It was said that when it evolved, it would produce a magical pearl.
Thanks to the Clampearl, the Truly Adorable Day Care had gained some reputation in the Hoenn region.
However, it should be noted that the Truly Adorable Day Care hadn't been established for a long time. It had only gone through two generations, and even Yuga's "YoYo Day Care" was older than it.
The breeding industry required a solid foundation. To cultivate Pokémon with their own distinct characteristics, a significant amount of time was needed to select outstanding genes of the same species. Then, through multiple generations of breeding, those selected genes would be stabilized.
Only in this way could a large number of high-potential Pokémon be cultivated. Both the League and many major Day Cares had developed in this manner.
This was why many Trainers preferred to spend money at Day Cares to buy Pokémon rather than capturing wild ones.
Most wild Pokémon had gone through several generations of interbreeding, which often resulted in less stable genetics compared to the carefully cultivated Pokémon from major Day Cares.
Of course, this was the choice of most Trainers. There were still many exceptional wild Pokémon, which was also why Pokémon poacher remained prevalent.
Yuga's ability to obtain so many high-potential Gligar and Trapinch was thanks to the favor of the King of the Arus Empire. He had received support, otherwise, even with the help of the system, it might have taken a long time for the YoYo Day Care to develop.
But the Truly Adorable Day Care reportedly had some backing within the League, which allowed them to develop smoothly and build a good reputation in the Hoenn region.
"Mr. Edward, while it's Truly that our Day Care may not be as famous as your Truly Adorable," Yuga deliberately emphasized the words "Truly Adorable," "I have to say, having your underling causing such a scene in a public place like this really doesn't suit your status."
Upon hearing Yuga's sarcasm, Edward's face turned pale, and he shot a fierce glare at his subordinate, who was already trembling in fear.
"Hmph, let's see how things go!"
After giving his subordinate a glare, Edward then shot a fierce glance at Yuga before walking away angrily.
"What a lunatic!"
Reggie muttered discontentedly.
Seeing the tension in the air, Reggie's grandfather quickly intervened, "Alright, alright, let's go eat. I think everyone must be hungry by now."
Seeing that Rand was still a bit upset, Yuga patted his shoulder and said, "Yeah, don't let those insignificant people ruin your mood. We should go eat. We've been on the ship for several days. Today, let's enjoy a good meal."