Chapter 18

"Congratulations to all ten of you!!"

With the grand announcement, the assessment for this session was completed perfectly. The certificate was being awarded by the officials from the Breeder Headquarters to the ten people who passed the assessment, and the first to receive it was Wallace, who had the highest overall score.

The assessment was over at exactly 5:00 PM and the results spread immediately. The certificate award ceremony would take place at this time.

The Junior Breeder Certificate.

The sky-blue booklet symbolizes the identity of a breeder, and Darren finally obtained it.

Taking it with both hands, he opened the certificate. His own photo was pasted on it, followed by the date and year of passing the assessment.

At this moment, the camera equipment below the stage clicked and snapped. Whether it was Willow the ten-year-old Junior Breeder or Wallace, they were all very popular topics, and they couldn't be missed.

"Hehe, well done."

Master Shozo smiled at the two little guys. Even in his eyes, their performance was outstanding.

"Master, you haven't forgotten about the reward you promised, have you? We both got second and third place." Not only Darren, but even Willow did not forget the reward promised by Master Shozo.

"Absolutely not, I would never lie to you. However, I must prepare it meticulously for you," Master Shozo said quickly, with a smile on his face.

Darren was also looking forward to it, wondering what he would get...

Now, looking back, he was really fortunate to have met Willow and Master Shozo, otherwise, he might not even have been able to qualify for the assessment.

It seems that luck is quite important.

The news of Wallace and Willow becoming breeders rapidly circulated and created a buzz in the community. Wallace had already gained popularity in the training circles, and now he was making a bold move into the world of breeding. Whether he was preparing for something or not, some people immediately paid attention to this young man.

As for Willow, becoming a breeder at the age of ten was a remarkable achievement that had not been seen in many years.

However, under the halo of the Willow's family and Master Shozo, it did not cause much shock. Besides praise, there was also some sense of inevitability, as well as natural expectations for future achievements.

But even so, Willow's achievement at this age is currently one of the best in the Joy family.

Darren also saw the news report, which almost exclusively focused on Wallace and Willow's stories. He and other contestants were only mentioned briefly, and their names did not even appear.

Although he doesn't know the reason, Darren doesn't care. Even if his age can be widely publicized, he can't become a big shot overnight. At most, he will receive a little more attention from some important people.

But now, the big shot is right beside him. Why care about all that?

...

"Master Shozo, did you call for me?" Darren looked at the old man in front of him and respectfully asked.

"You're here, Darren. Yes, I came to find you because of yesterday's matter." Master Shozo smiled.

Yesterday's matter?

"Are you talking about the reward?" Darren asked happily.

"That's right. Since I promised to give you two little kids a reward, I won't go back on my word." Sitting down, Master Shozo did not show any sense of superiority, just like when Darren first met him.

At Master Shozo's request, Darren also sat down.

"What about Willow?" At this point, Darren asked, if there is a promised reward, Willow should have a share too.

"Willow? Her situation is different from yours, so the reward is naturally different too." Master Shozo smiled and answered Darren's question.

Hearing this, Darren didn't say anything more.

"Darren, are you an orphan?" After a moment of silence, Master Shozo suddenly spoke.

This made Darren startled. How did he know? Did he investigate him? With Master Shozo's status, it's not hard to know these things.

Since it was the truth, Darren didn't need to conceal it and nodded.

"Your background is much worse than Willow's. Have you thought about your future?" Seeing Darren nod, Master Shozo continued.

"Future?..." Darren has his own goals, but he is really at a loss about how to achieve them.

He has become a Junior Breeder, what's next? Continue to take assessments and become a Pokemon coordinator? How much time and effort will he need to spend on that?

"My goal is to become an outstanding Pokemon Coordinator, while also pursuing a career as a breeder," Darren declared after taking a moment to think.

Master Shozo was taken aback. He had thought about Darren's response and envisioned top breeders, coordinators, and trainers. Darren's words, however sounded a bit arrogant.

"Reaching any of those achievements is not an easy task. It takes a person their whole life to achieve even one of the things you mentioned, which alone would be incredible" the old man said with great emphasis.

Shaking his head, Darren said, "I've made my choice."

Being a Pokemon Coordinator was a dream that he and the children of the old orphanage had held since the beginning.

Being a top breeder was a promise he had made to himself to support the future of the orphanage. He had vowed to become a top breeder, earn a lot of money, and give everyone a bright future.

Although the two professions seemed conflicting, each contained Darren's own philosophy.

"Do you really think you can achieve that level? A ten-year-old breeder may be impressive, but they are still only a novice breeder. Perhaps, after you work hard and gain experience, you can become an intermediate or advanced breeder, but how long will that take? Each of the goals you mentioned cannot be achieved by being distracted," Master Shozo's words struck a chord in Darren.

The knowledge of a novice breeder was relatively shallow, but the knowledge required to become an intermediate or advanced breeder was not something that could be learned from books on the market. With his status, he would have to spend a lot of effort to obtain it.

It took him four years to achieve the accomplishment of being a novice breeder, most of which he wasted looking for books. Will it be as smooth sailing in the future?

Becoming a top breeder or even a successful coordinator is not something that can be achieved by just talking.

Finally, Darren looked at Master Shozo, wanting to see what he would say.

"So, I want to give you an opportunity, but it will not be for free."

"There are two choices here, which can be considered as your reward."

Master Shozo saw potential in Darren but did not want him to have an easy journey. Only after experiencing hardships could a diamond in the rough emit its rightful radiance.

Therefore, he decided to let Darren choose for himself.