Chapter 84:

Whitney's eyes widened with amazement as she heard Cain's words. "You made them yourself?!" she exclaimed, her voice a little too loud. She quickly covered her mouth, realizing her mistake.

With delicate steps, she approached Cain, her heart racing with excitement. "You made these Pokéblocks yourself?" she asked with care, her eyes shining with admiration. "Are you an advanced breeder?"

Cain winced as he slapped his forehead. His head throbbed, but he replied nonetheless, "No, I can't make advanced Pokéblocks at my age. I only made the intermediate ones for Miltank myself. The Slowpoke ones, I bought somewhere else."

Whitney's eyes continued to glow with admiration, not dimming one bit. "You're around the same age as me, but you're already an intermediate breeder," she said, a tinge of disappointment in her voice. "I'm still not qualified to inherit my family's gym. Ugh."

Cain was taken aback by her words. Was being an intermediate breeder really on the same level as owning a gym?

But considering Cain's age, it would be quite the achievement if he was indeed an intermediate breeder. After all, most intermediate breeders registered with the Association were around 25 years old, while Cain was only 15.

He pondered this for a moment, but his thoughts were interrupted by Whitney's next statement.

"Don't worry. You'll become an advanced breeder in no time," Whitney said, giving him a quick reassurance.

Making advanced Pokéblocks was a tedious process and Cain don't look like someone who could make them.

Cain remained silent, allowing Whitney to comfort him.

But then, she hesitated. The carefree and happy expression on her face had vanished. She seemed troubled.

Cain couldn't help but ask, despite regretting it as soon as the words left his mouth. "What's wrong?"

Whitney fidgeted with her hands, her voice hesitant. "Cain, can I order Pokéblocks for my Miltank?" she asked. "You don't have to worry about the price. I'll pay you fairly."

Whitney observed with a smile as her Miltank gobbled up the food in front of her. She refrained from taking out the advanced Pokéblocks that she had prepared earlier. As effective as they were, they might not compare to Cain's intermediate Pokéblocks in terms of taste and other special aspects.

Hearing Whitney's words, Cain was slightly stunned. But a moment later, a smile crept onto his face. "No problem," he replied. "I may not have that many all at once and you might have to wait a while."

Whitney's grin widened, pleased with Cain's affirmative answer. "Good! Time won't be a problem," she said, her eyes gleaming with determination. "According to the market price of an Intermediate Pokéblock, the average price is between 50 to 80 Pokédollars. This one of yours is more special. It's specially made for Miltanks. How about 100 Pokédollars for one?"

The price was steep, but Cain didn't mind making a profit. He wouldn't be one to turn down an opportunity to earn some extra cash.

Despite her careless demeanor, Whitney was a direct member of the Association and understood the importance of trust. She promised Cain that she wouldn't tell anyone about his ability to make Pokéblocks without his permission.

Cain was cautious as well, refraining from mentioning his ability to make advanced Pokéblocks. If anyone were to find out, he wouldn't be able to hide his true identity.

Although Intermediate breeders were a rare breed within the Association, it was not enough to attract the attention of the higher-ups. But if a fifteen-year-old boy like Cain could make Advanced Pokéblocks, even without the title of an Advanced breeder, it would cause a stir of massive proportions.

"How many do you want?" Cain asked directly, now that they had agreed to keep it a secret.

Whitney took a moment to ponder, then started counting on her fingers. "One for Little Red, one for Little White, one for Little Pink, one for Honghong, one for Nao Nao…" Her finger count kept growing until she had run out of digits. Cain couldn't help but sweat at the sight.

Was she planning on buying a Pokéblock for every Miltank in the farm?

Finally, Whitney gave up counting and waved her hand. "How about a hundred thousand for now?"

Cain wiped the sweat off his forehead and refused. "A hundred thousand is too much. I don't have that much time right now."

Although the production of Intermediate Pokéblocks was simple with the right tools and system, producing a hundred thousand would still take a considerable amount of time. And time was something Cain was short on.

Whitney paused, taking the hint. "Oh, is that so? Then let's order ten thousand Intermediate Pokéblocks first," she said after some thought.

To Whitney, the amount of ten thousand Intermediate Pokéblocks seemed like a perfectly normal order. After all, her family often sent people out to buy Pokéblocks in units of a hundred thousand, aside from the advanced ones. She didn't consider that Cain would be too busy to fulfill her order on his own.

The ten-thousand Pokéblock order would cost a hundred Pokédollars each, for a grand total of a million Pokédollars. The production cost might only be ten Pokédollars each, making it a lucrative business.

"I can accept the order, but you'll have to wait for a while," Cain said, his eyes glinting with excitement at the thought of the profit he would earn. "I'm making them all by myself and I don't have enough ingredients."

Whitney nodded, understanding the situation. "Okay! No problem. When we reach Goldenrod City, you can stay at my house for a few days. I'll get someone to help you collect the ingredients. You can also have fun in Goldenrod City for a few days. I'm not in a hurry."

Cain considered the offer for a moment before nodding in agreement. The prospect of earning some extra cash wasn't the only reason he was doing this. He wanted to help Miltank, hoping that by getting her to interact with more of her kind, she would overcome her shy personality.

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A/N:

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