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There was still plenty of time before the Azalea Conference, so Ash and his group decided to wait with Luther for the results of Mai's evaluation.
Luther kept petting Pikachu. For him, petting Pikachu once wasn't a loss; petting him twice was pure profit.
Meanwhile, Ash was carefully observing Espurr. He was curious why Espurr's ears always drooped. They didn't appear injured; surely they would look great if they stood upright.
As he rubbed Espurr's cheeks, Ash couldn't help but gently push Espurr's ears upward. Espurr was still enjoying the comfortable sensation on her cheeks and didn't notice her ears being pushed straight up.
Holding Pikachu, Luther only heard a startled cry. Suddenly, Ash was blasted backward, knocked flat onto the ground, and rolled once before coming to a stop.
Brock, who was holding Milcery, and Dawn, who was holding Marill, both froze. They only realized what had happened when they saw Espurr panic and rush over to check on Ash.
After all, Ash was tough as steel. Even after being blasted away by Espurr's unleashed psychic power, he was only dazed for a moment before getting back up on his own without a scratch.
"Espurr's ears are used to suppress her psychic power. If you mess with them recklessly, this is what happens," Luther quickly explained.
Pikachu squatted on the ground, sniffing Espurr's scent and staring curiously at her drooping ears. Imitating her, he folded his own ears down, looking utterly ridiculous.
"Is there anything we need to be careful about with Milcery?"
Brock asked nervously. He had teased Milcery quite a bit and definitely didn't want to end up like Ash.
"Nothing in particular, but…" Luther smiled and reached out to poke Milcery. "You don't need to suppress your fragrance anymore. Let it out."
Because they were in an open area, the scent wasn't noticeable at first. But after nearly half a minute, everyone noticed a strong, rich scent of cream in the air.
Even though Luther had licked it many times before, the scent still made him want to stick out his tongue.
Honestly, Milcery mostly suppressed her scent to stop Luther from constantly wanting to lick her. He felt that his self-control was useless when it came to her.
Brock, the most mature of the three, really wanted to ask if she tasted as good as she smelled but ultimately held his tongue.
The Pokémon belonging to the trio all lifted their heads at the same time, sniffing the milky aroma and staring at Milcery.
Meanwhile, Milcery recalled the scene from when she had just hatched, surrounded by predators on all sides.
Piplup hopped down Brock's arm to Milcery's side. Just as he was about to lick her, he realized a figure had stepped between them.
Seeing Espurr, Piplup scratched his head awkwardly and scurried back into Dawn's arms.
Brock set Milcery down and let her play with the other Pokémon. Ash and Luther sat down with smiles, watching Pikachu lead Espurr around.
After chatting for a while, Ash grew a little wistful when Luther brought up the White Wind Gym.
While traveling to Snowpoint City, they had heard people mention Hakuya, but they had missed him entirely because Brock's travel route had gone off course due to getting lost.
"He's a Normal-type Gym Leader, and his ability to control battle rhythm is incredibly strong. I really want to fight him," Ash said.
After all, he was a battle fanatic, it was that simple.
Luther froze for a moment, then thought of something and looked straight at Ash.
"Hakuya taught me his techniques for controlling the rhythm of a battle. I can't say that I have his level of control, but I can definitely create pressure."
Ash's eyes lit up. "A match?"
"Of cour—"
Luther's "of course" was cut off by another voice.
A huge chime rang out across the area near the Breeders' Association.
Luther raised his head and looked toward a nearby electronic display. Large characters announcing the end of the examination appeared on the screen. At the same time, the results of the first written section were released.
Luther quickly stood up and squeezed his way to the screen to scan it. Ash and the others helped him search for Mai's name across several displays.
Finally, in an inconspicuous corner, Luther spotted Mai's full name followed by the two characters: Qualified.
The Breeder Exam consisted of three parts: written, practical, and oral response. As long as all three were passed, one would succeed. The results for the latter two parts were announced on the spot.
Luther turned to look at the entrance of the Breeders' Association, where examinees began pouring out.
It reminded him of when he used to take final exams.
Some looked lost, sighing endlessly with their heads down and ignoring anyone who tried to talk to them as they trudged along.
Others were overjoyed. After finding their names on the electronic screen, they ran back into the Association against the flow of people to collect their Breeder qualification certificates.
Others tried to appear calm, telling those around them that the exam was "a piece of cake," while constantly rubbing their hands and nervously scanning the screen for their names.
Luther felt that if just one person shouted, "I passed!" the atmosphere would be perfect.
Carrying Chikorita, Mai squeezed out of the crowd. When she saw Ash and the others standing with Luther, she froze for a moment. The arms that had been open toward Luther pulled back.
There was no need to ask, Mai's expression already revealed the answer.
The Breeder badge and certificate were briefly shown to Luther. When he saw her name on the certificate, he pulled her into a hug.
Mai's hands hovered awkwardly for a moment, unsure where to put them, before finally letting them hang down.
Chikorita ran excitedly around Luther and Mai, full of energy.
Ash watched for a bit and sighed, "This kind of friendship is really enviable."
Dawn and Brock shot Ash a sideways glance and said in unison, "Obviously, that's completely different from what you're thinking."
Pikachu spread his hands and looked at Ash helplessly. Being this dense was a terminal condition, there really was no cure.
"Since Mai passed the exam, we're planning to have a proper feast. We prepared plenty of ingredients in advance. How about joining us?" Luther suggested.
His proposal was warmly received, and Ash's group followed him to the park where he was camping.
Mai's heart was still pounding wildly. Even after they returned to the park, she couldn't calm down. After all this time, her face was still burning red.
Only when she saw the Pokémon around them getting busy did she finally snap out of it and throw herself into the camping preparations.
Of course, there were also Pokémon with nothing to do, like Piplup.
Unable to help, Piplup circled around Marill, trying eagerly to win her favor.
From the moment he saw Marill, he had been captivated by her quiet and elegant demeanor. It felt as if an arrow had struck straight through the bullseye. Now he was running around at her beck and call, trying to figure out what Marill liked.
Marill, however, remained indifferent. Faced with Piplup's enthusiasm, her response was simple, leave him hanging.
Unwilling to give up, Piplup turned to ask Luther's other Pokémon as to what Marill liked.
"Food," Espurr replied plainly.
"Lots of food," Kirlia added. After saying that, she shook her head and sighed, making Piplup feel as if… he was being pitied?
"Who told you Marill is quiet and elegant? Don't fool yourself."
Piplup didn't know where the voice had come from. He looked around for quite a while, then angrily shouted, "You're not allowed to talk about Marill like that!"
After Piplup left, Darkrai finally emerged from the shadows and sighed.
Why was it that no one ever believed the truth?
"Anyway, once it's time to eat, that silly kid will understand what's really going on."
(End of Chapter)