Chapter 222:
After the award ceremony, Kondō Satoshi flew over on his Aegislash. "After seeing the battles of each of your Pokémon, everyone's incredibly curious about you. May I interview you on their behalf?"
Hayashi Kaede thought for a moment, then smiled. "Of course."
Kondō Satoshi glanced at the list of audience-submitted questions displayed on the Rotom device.
"Alright, first question: Some viewers believe that with so many powerful Pokémon, you must have traveled extensively. How long have you been journeying as a trainer?"
"Traveling?" Hayashi Kaede shook his head lightly. "Actually, I'm not a professional trainer. I'm a professional Pokémon Breeder—I run my own Breeding House. Some people here might know of it; it's located in Aogiri Town, within the Nagisuna City area."
Since he'd already taken the championship, he figured he might as well slip in a little promotion for his Breeding House.
His words sent a ripple through the crowd.
Some spectators, unfamiliar with the concept of a Breeding House, were stunned.
A trainer this strong was also a Breeder—with his own facility?
But those who knew couldn't help but start spreading the word.
"See? You didn't know, huh? Young Master Kaede's a real Breeder."
"My cousin from Aogiri Town once brought back some Energy Cubes from his Breeding House. Even my picky Riolu started eating properly after that!"
As the crowd buzzed with excitement, Kondō Satoshi quickly pressed on. "Second question: Some people have spotted you with a Serperior. Why didn't we see you use it during the tournament?"
He knew this Serperior was less than a year old—yet its size was far beyond normal.
Hard to believe that just over three months ago, it had been a Snivy.
The question electrified the audience.
That's right!
Since the tournament began, everyone had seen Hayashi Kaede accompanied by a Serperior, waiting eagerly for it to appear in battle—yet the matches ended without it ever taking the field.
"Uh…"
Caught under their collective gaze, Hayashi Kaede hesitated, looking slightly troubled. "Well… that's a bit hard to explain."
"Oh? Why's that?" Kondō Satoshi leaned in curiously.
As Hayashi Kaede hesitated, the audience began to call out.
"Tell us! Why didn't you use Serperior? I've been dying to see it!"
"Why does it have such a cool, aloof aura?"
"It's so handsome!"
"Whyyy—"
Seeing the eager crowd, Hayashi Kaede sighed inwardly.
Then he released Serperior and had it demonstrate Grassy Terrain.
Grass erupted instantly.
The arena, which had endured countless fierce battles, was blanketed in a carpet of lush greenery within seconds.
The sheer density of Grass-type energy was overwhelming—a living, breathing field of green vitality.
Silence fell across the stadium.
The grass stood over a meter tall, the vibrant life energy so palpable it made the air hum.
Was this… another Elite Four-level Pokémon?
And still less than a year old?
The crowd was already reeling, but Kondō Satoshi—standing right beside Hayashi Kaede—was the most stunned of all.
He swallowed hard.
If they had been shocked by the earlier reveal of Goodra…
Then this…
Just three months ago, this Serperior had still needed to evolve into Servine just to stand a chance against a Lapras—and now, it was at Elite Four level?
For a moment, Kondō Satoshi was speechless, forgetting even his next question.
Then, after a brief silence, the stands erupted.
"He runs a Breeding House, you said? WOW! I'm taking my Pokémon there!"
"This is insane! I can feel the Grass-type energy from here in the audience!"
Even the Elite Four member Kaito, watching from the VIP seats above, couldn't help but show visible interest in the Serperior's display below.
Just as he suspected— This Serperior was far beyond what a rookie trainer should have.
Now, he was even more intrigued by this so-called Breeding House.
...
The crowd's reaction far exceeded Hayashi Kaede's expectations. After answering a few more questions, he left the stadium with an excited Takagi Megumi.
"300,000 Pokedollar! The prize money is 300,000 Pokedollar!"
The moment they stepped outside, Takagi Megumi couldn't help but stare at the number on her phone, counting the digits as her eyes sparkled.
It was the first time she had ever seen so much money.
"Jirachi?"
Jirachi floated beside her, peeking curiously. "Jirachi?" (How many claw machine plays can 300,000 Pokedollar buy?)
It understood that money bought things—but not how much things cost.
Still giggling, Takagi Megumi thought to herself that she probably wouldn't have to ask her parents for travel money anymore.
Hearing Jirachi's question, she replied, "One play on the claw machine costs one coin. You guys played over a hundred times yesterday and won more than twenty plushies… so, calculating it that way, 300,000 Pokedollar could buy… could buy…"
"Sixty thousand" Hayashi Kaede interrupted with a sigh.
"Yes! Sixty thousand!"
"Wow…" Jirachi's eyes widened, sparkling. "Jirachi?" (Then… can Big Brother Kaede's 1,000,000 Pokedollar buy even more plushies?)
Jirachi looked at Hayashi Kaede with a hopeful glimmer.
Hayashi Kaede: "…"
Do you want to fill my house with plushies?
"No, no, it's different~" Takagi Megumi said cheerfully. "Big Brother Kaede's really rich. He can raise lots of Pokémon."
"Alright, alright, enough chatting. Let's head back first. Where are your parents?"
They stood by the stadium entrance, and if they didn't leave soon, they'd be swept away by the departing crowd.
"They went back earlier. They said they didn't want to bother you." The girl pouted.
She understood her parents' intentions, but couldn't help inwardly grumbling—they'd just agreed to head home together yesterday.
Hayashi Kaede nodded. "What about you? Will you go home for a few days to spend time with them?"
"Mmhmm~"
Though she muttered inwardly, she had already decided.
Traveling could wait—family came first.
She wanted her parents to meet Sprigatito, Wartortle, and Jirachi.
She also missed her mother's Chansey—the Pokémon that had cared for her since childhood. She'd grown up on Chansey's eggs, after all. Now that her mom was on holiday, she wanted to see it again properly.
Hayashi Kaede didn't say more. He hailed a taxi to an open area outside the city, then released Dragonite, and they took off toward the Breeding House.
And so, the two-and-a-half-day Junior Cup—more like a joyful adventure than a competition—came to an end.
But Hayashi Kaede knew full well that with the tournament over, the real busy days were just about to begin.