Pokémon Breeder's Story

Chapter 35: Exp. Share, You Can Get Strong Just by Lying Down?!

Not only are Clefairy incredibly cute in appearance, but their mannerisms and cries are also adorable. Because of this, they are very popular as pets. However, Clefairy do not have a fixed habitat; no one knows where they come from, and their numbers are extremely small. Even a family as influential as Steven's Stone family would not be able to gather so many Clefairy in a short period.

"You mean the Clefairy?" Kenji asked.

Steven nodded.

Kenji smiled and shook his head. "Not exactly, no. For now, the Clefairy are just working at my breeding center. You could say we have an employment relationship."

"...Employment?" Steven was taken aback.

"It's a bit hard to explain in a short time. In short, I provide the Clefairy with food and shelter and help them with a small matter, and in return, the Clefairy work for me, helping me manage the breeding center," Kenji said.

Steven nodded calmly. How fascinating.

"The food will be ready in a little while. If you don't mind, you can rest on the sofa over there first," Kenji said.

Steven nodded and politely thanked him. He sat on the sofa and took out his Poké Balls.

There were two Poké Balls in total. With a flash of white light, a Lairon and a Skarmory appeared before everyone. Combined with the Metang from before, it was clear that these three Pokémon made up Steven's current team.

It seems Steven's training style is quality over quantity, Kenji thought to himself. This "elite system" meant not catching a large number of Pokémon, but focusing only on raising the few on one's team.

Soon, dinner was ready. The two Chef Clefairy and the Waiter Clefairy brought out ramen and several cups of milk to the dining area. Steven gave Kenji a nod and then led his three Pokémon to the dining area to eat.

"If you need anything, just let me know," Kenji said after a moment.

"Thank you very much," Steven replied, ever polite.

The two did not speak further after that. Steven ate his meal, while Kenji continued to read his book. Perhaps due to a full day of travel, Steven returned to his guest room to rest early after finishing his dinner. Kenji didn't disturb him. He read until ten o'clock at night, and after confirming that no more guests would be arriving, he closed the breeding center's door and returned to his room with Growlithe and Bewear, who had been keeping him company. As for the Clefairy... they had already returned to their spaceship, cuddling together to sleep.

The next morning, Steven woke up on time. He had eaten his fill and had a comfortable night's sleep. Steven lay on the soft, cozy bed, looking at the lush green scenery outside the window. He got up, opened the window, and a breeze filled with the scent of nature washed over his face, feeling wonderfully pleasant. Steven felt completely refreshed, and even the gloomy mood that had built up from days of training in the wild had improved significantly.

At the same time, a line of text appeared before Kenji's eyes.

[Steven's mood has improved. Joy Value +80. Received Steven's gift: "Exp. Share".]

[Exp. Share: The latest research and development product from the Devon Corporation. A Pokémon wearing this device can learn from other Pokémon training within a 100-meter radius, automatically gaining the effects of the training and their experience. Steven was very satisfied with your hospitality last night and has decided to give this precious device to you as a gift.]

Looking at the strange, helmet-like device that had abruptly appeared before him, Kenji froze on the spot.

The Exp. Share... Wasn't this the gift that Mr. Stone, the president of Devon Corp., gave to the player in the games? Kenji remembered that in the games, this device's effect was to allow other Pokémon in the party to gain experience points. Now, this device had actually appeared in the real world...

And looking at its effect, it seemed that as long as a Pokémon wore it, it could automatically gain the effects of training and experience from any Pokémon within a certain range? Wasn't this purely getting stronger just by lying down?

Right now, there weren't many Pokémon at the breeding center that were undergoing serious training. The Clefairy were keen on playing, Swampert and Quagsire were keen on their romance and reproducing, and Bewear didn't need to train. As for Oddish and Growlithe... both of them were very suitable candidates for the Exp. Share.

"No matter what, I'll have Growlithe try it on first."

Kenji got out of bed and placed the Exp. Share in his hands onto Growlithe's head. At a glance, it looked as if it was wearing a helmet.

"Woof... whim..."

Growlithe was originally a bit awkward and not used to it, but when it heard Kenji say that it could get stronger just by wearing this strange helmet, it immediately fell silent.

Kenji: "..."

Getting out of bed, Kenji began to prepare breakfast. Steven was also already up. He bought a sandwich and a cup of milk, and after finishing, prepared to take his Metang to the open area for some special training.

Learning of Steven's plan, Kenji thought to himself that this was a good opportunity to test the Exp. Share.

"Through that small door is the breeding center's open area. Currently, there are only two Pokémon fostered by a client inside. There's a lot of empty space, so you can train there," Kenji said.

"Thank you very much. I won't be a bother, then," Steven said with a word of thanks.

"You're welcome." Curious about the effect of the Exp. Share, Kenji finished the work at hand and then took Growlithe with him to the backyard. The two of them pretended to be feeding Swampert and Quagsire, but were actually secretly staying near Steven and Metang to leech experience.

Steven immediately noticed the device on Growlithe's head. He looked puzzled and asked, "That thing on Growlithe's head is...?"

Steven didn't recognize it? Kenji was taken aback, but he quickly understood. This Exp. Share was most likely a game item, so it was normal that the real-world Steven didn't recognize it.

"This is a special training device I made for Growlithe," Kenji explained.

This concerned someone's privacy, so Steven just nodded and didn't ask further. He turned his attention back to training his Metang.

"Metang, use Gravity."

A special energy field immediately rippled out from Metang's body. At first glance, nothing seemed to have changed, but in reality, the force field in that area had been distorted by psychic power.

Gravity: A Psychic-type move. Its effect is to increase gravity. For a certain period, Pokémon with the Levitate ability and Flying-type Pokémon will be hit by Ground-type moves. If the power gap with the user is too large, Pokémon will be pinned to the ground by gravity, unable to fly. This move could be considered a hard counter to Flying-type Pokémon and could produce unexpected results in certain situations.

And not only that, but Gravity could also be used to train other Pokémon nearby, using the gravity field to have them undergo weight training. Steven's purpose in having Metang use Gravity today was precisely to have his Skarmory and Lairon train in it.

Growlithe sat on the grass, watching intently as the two Pokémon sparred in the gravity field. A light flowed in its eyes, and the small bulbs on the Exp. Share on its head lit up in response.

Growlithe had begun to learn!