Chapter 358:
Kaede wasn't holding on tightly, so Alolan Ninetales quickly broke free from his right hand. But just as it was about to protest his evil idea, it noticed that Kaede's attention had shifted to the Alcremie over there.
Because just moments before, Alcremie had been gazing at the screen.
Its eyes held a hint of hidden anticipation and envy.
Kaede had caught Alcremie's expression in a sudden glance.
So, he put Alolan Ninetales down and went over to Alcremie, picking it up.
"Do you want to take the field too, Alcremie?"
"Alcremie?"
Suddenly being picked up by Kaede, Alcremie wasn't flustered. It just looked up, then poked its little hands together and nodded.
"Alright, we'll give it a try in the next match. But we have to agree, we just need to defeat the opponent's Pokémon; we can't think about taking them all out..."
His Alcremie were so numerous, and actually, each Alcremie's personality was different.
Some Alcremie were more active and bolder, which seemed somewhat linked to their flavor. For example, Matcha Cream Alcremie were comparatively bolder and would actively stick to him.
Salt Cream Alcremie were more outgoing, usually speaking a bit more bluntly.
Usually, it was the Salt Cream Alcremie who handled greeting guests.
But this particular Alcremie was actually somewhat timid, evident from that time when Victini suddenly got in its face, and it immediately used Phantom Force.
However, this little one seemed to have the best luck.
That Metronome move almost granted its every wish.
So, before going on the field, Kaede needed to mentally prepare it.
"Alcremie! Alcremie!" (Mhmm! Mhmm!)
Hearing Kaede say this, Alcremie nodded very seriously.
These past few days, it had been practicing hard on that move that allowed it to use any skill.
"Okay~"
After comforting Alcremie, the aftereffects of his earlier playfulness with Alolan Ninetales had faded. Rotom, still at the breeding house far away, sent a "OK" emoji, indicating it had received the video and would edit and upload it to the video channel shortly.
To be honest, Kaede actually felt it wouldn't matter if he didn't post it himself.
Because today's battle was truly shocking. By the end of the day, or after the matches concluded, his video channel would inevitably be found.
By then, the Neighborhood Breeding House would surely become truly viral across the Eastova League?
"Looks like it's going to be a busy year."
Thinking this, Kaede couldn't help but sigh.
Expanding production would definitely mean being even busier.
Here, he also needed to consider how to manage and sell the daily output of Energy Cubes from the breeding house.
Because currently, most of the Berries and vegetables grown on his plantation ended up in his own Pokémon's stomachs.
So, the output hadn't been able to increase much.
But that newly expanded Berry orchard was planted entirely with Berries, specifically large-producing Oran Berries and Bluk Berries.
The yield would definitely be huge!
In the new year, he was full of drive, planning to earn big money!
Otherwise, it would be awkward if he ended up with a Pokémon that was a huge money sink and couldn't afford to raise it!
Holding this thought, Kaede started watching the matches....
....
In fact, it was just as he had imagined.
Even before the day was over, while the second round was still ongoing,
Several videos began spreading like wildfire across the Eastova Region.
One was of Dragonite versus Magneton.
The videographer had chosen a perfect angle: the two Pokémon.
Magneton, positioned low, and Dragonite flying high above it, looking down. At that moment, Dragonite was just nice under the lights, its huge shadow—perhaps edited—falling over Magneton, looking terrifying.
It had a distinct feeling of a giant beast's oppression.
The video was only a few seconds long, but the finishing touch was Magneton turning its head to look at its trainer.
The second video was Blaziken versus Venusaur, also resolved in a few seconds.
This video wasn't particularly outstanding; it was mainly part of a compilation since it was from the same battle.
The third was Alolan Ninetales summoning a Blizzard that nearly covered the entire battlefield, defeating Nidoqueen in one move.
This video focused on the sense of feeling of oppression Alolan Ninetales brought within the snowstorm and Nidoqueen's panic at not even being able to see its opponent.
Once these videos were edited and posted, they were shared one after another.
By the time Kaede saw them, it was already afternoon, and the most popular video already had several hundred thousand likes!
Don't underestimate several hundred thousand likes; that meant at least tens of millions of views.
Furthermore, various other videos made by others were also circulating.
"Is this from this year's Pokémon League Conference?"
"Whoa, is this Dragonite for real? It's so big? Poor Magneton looks so pitiful."
"This Blizzard? Looks so heavy? And it defeated the opponent in just a few seconds?"
"Who is this trainer?"
"Brother Kaede!?"
"Wait, is that the Alolan Ninetales that always plays house with the Eevees at Brother Kaede's door? You've got to be kidding me?"
"Who's Brother Kaede? What are you talking about, person above?"
"Hey, if you don't know Brother Kaede, just search for him..."
...
By evening, when Kaede checked the videos again, the likes had surpassed a million. While exclaiming how terrifying that was, he also noticed many people, guided by the smart engine in the comments section, had found the Neighborhood Breeding House's video channel.
In one day, Kaede's follower count jumped from over a million to nearly two million, an increase of over three hundred thousand. Moreover, as night fell, the growth rate accelerated rapidly.
Watching the private messages hit 99+ per second and seeing all the new fans @ him, Kaede clicked his tongue in amazement.
Because the second round had far fewer matches than the first, it concluded before evening.
Coupled with the extended schedule for this year's Conference, the third round was simply scheduled for the third day.
Kaede's night was peaceful and quiet.
But online, developments were happening as dramatically as heaven and earth flipping.
Back in Aogiri Town at this moment.
The battle Kaede fought in the morning was being talked about with great relish by Megumi, who was lying in bed, well into the night.
These past two days, apart from eating, she had been stationed in front of the TV. Firstly, to watch the Pokémon League Conference and learn from the skilled trainers' battles,
And secondly, to wait for Brother Kaede's matches.
She genuinely wanted to see how strong Brother Kaede's Pokémon were, and even more, what kind of commands he would use during the battles.