[Pokémon: Mawile]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Intimidate]
[Moves: Growl, Astonish, Taunt, Iron Head, Play Rough, Bite]
[Status: Weakened]
[Mood: Unhappy]
[Joy Value: -10]
[Friendship: 0 (You don't know each other yet)]
[Description: What a terrible day—Mawile.]
As his gaze swept over, Mawile's information appeared in Kawaki's mind.
"Mawile, huh..."
Mawile had a yellow, doll-like body, but what was most eye-catching was the enormous mouth behind it, filled with sharp, razor-like teeth.
From what Kawaki knew, Mawile was a cunning and terrifying Pokémon. They would use their docile appearance to make opponents let their guard down, then suddenly turn around and bite with their massive jaws. Once they bit down, they'd never let go, capable of even crushing steel.
However, the Mawile in front of him didn't seem particularly fierce.
Its face was expressionless as it stood quietly in place, lifting its head to look at Kawaki with its eyes.
"Alright, the test begins!" Yoshiki announced.
Hearing this, all the examinees began to move.
Yoshiki's gaze turned to Kawaki, wanting to see what he would do.
But Kawaki simply crouched down, making himself appear less imposing from above.
He looked directly at Mawile and said, "Hello, Mawile. I'm Kawaki. I'm going to examine your body and then help treat you."
Mawile looked at the human before it, hesitated for a moment, then gently nodded.
Watching this scene, Yoshiki nodded approvingly.
Showing affinity to an unfamiliar Pokémon and building rapport with it—this would earn the Pokémon's cooperation.
Being able to make Pokémon feel comfortable and draw close was an essential ability any Breeder must possess.
None of the other kids had noticed this!
Yoshiki turned to look at the others. Most of them had started directly observing their Pokémon's conditions.
Although this test didn't explicitly require such an approach, a Breeder who understood how to build relationships with Pokémon was a true Breeder.
Kawaki didn't know what Yoshiki was thinking as he observed Mawile's physical condition.
Mawile was very cooperative, extending its arms and turning around to let the human examine it thoroughly.
After all, this was a beginner Breeder exam, so the difficulty wouldn't be too high.
Kawaki quickly discovered a burn mark in an inconspicuous corner behind Mawile.
Clearly, this was a trace left by some kind of Fire-type move attack. The wound wasn't large—likely from an Ember attack.
Unfortunately, Ember had triggered its additional effect, causing Mawile to suffer from the burn status condition.
Other than that, the rest of Mawile's body seemed pretty healthy. Hmm? Wait, that's not right.
Kawaki suddenly noticed something off about some of the fangs in Mawile's large jaw.
Normally, Mawile took great care of their jaws, keeping their teeth bright white.
But this Mawile's teeth not only showed white-brown stains but also had cavities. When Kawaki touched them, some fangs were even starting to loosen.
"This Mawile has a calcium deficiency!"
Without a doubt, the cause was malnutrition.
This couldn't be solved in the short term. After confirming there were no other issues with Mawile, Kawaki stood up and reported all his findings to Yoshiki.
"...Mawile has burn marks on its back. The marks aren't large—likely caused by a move called Ember. Not only that, but Mawile's teeth aren't very healthy either. The teeth are loose with cavities, so it'll need proper nutritional supplements going forward."
Yoshiki nodded continuously as he listened.
Good—he'd even noticed the bonus points.
His gaze toward Kawaki became even more satisfied.
"Did you learn all this from books?" he asked.
Kawaki was somewhat puzzled but answered anyway: "When I was bored with nothing to do, I'd read books about Pokémon."
"I see." Yoshiki's face broke into a smile. "Well then, go find something that can treat Mawile!"
Kawaki nodded and went to the pile of herbs and berries behind them. He quickly found a Pecha Berry that could cure burns.
After feeding this berry to Mawile, the burn marks behind it healed at a visibly rapid pace.
"Kuru~"
No longer in pain, Mawile made a grateful sound.
"Alright, you've passed your exam." Yoshiki had come here specifically for Kawaki.
Perfect scores on both written and practical exams—this meant the young man before him undoubtedly had the qualifications to become a beginner Breeder!
What made Yoshiki even more interested was this age, this talent—this kid was a tremendous genius!
He followed Kawaki out to where Officer Jenny was waiting.
Officer Jenny looked at Kawaki, then glanced at the excited Yoshiki behind him, and asked:
"Mr. Yoshiki, how did Kawaki's test go?"
"Perfect score! Both the written exam and practical test—perfect scores across the board!" Yoshiki's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Little Kawaki, would you be willing to study under me? I'll teach you everything I know. As long as you're willing to work hard, even becoming a top-tier Breeder wouldn't be impossible!"
Hearing this, before Kawaki could react, Officer Jenny stood there stunned.
Kawaki was... actually this amazing?
A genius... She'd heard that the Officer Jenny who left the family was also a genius when it came to Pokémon breeding.
Kawaki shook his head and politely declined: "I'm very sorry, Mr. Yoshiki, but I'm currently running a Daycare, and there are many Pokémon there waiting for me to care for them. I can't leave right now."
"A Daycare?" Yoshiki was stunned.
"Kawaki inherited his mother's legacy and decided to continue operating that abandoned Daycare," Officer Jenny helped explain.
Hearing this, Yoshiki immediately understood.
So this kid came to take the Breeder exam just to get the qualifications to operate a Daycare!
What a waste of talent!
With this kind of gift... not continuing to train in breeding but instead running a Daycare—this was such a waste of talent!
However, after obtaining his beginner Breeder certification, Kawaki was ready to leave.
He and Officer Jenny thanked Yoshiki, then left the Breeder Association.
Watching their retreating figures, Yoshiki felt somewhat frantic. He could almost see a rising star in the breeding world, but that star didn't want to rise.
No way!
Yoshiki didn't want to give up. He made up his mind to visit that kid's Daycare later and try to persuade him properly.
On the road.
Once again, Officer Jenny rode her motorcycle with Kawaki returning to the Daycare.
Officer Jenny sighed: "Looks like you inherited your mother's talent!"
Kawaki didn't know what to say. He was silent for a moment, then said: "Thank you for this time, Officer Jenny."
"Don't mention it. After all, you're part of the Jenny family too. We share blood relations, so helping you is what I should do!" Officer Jenny shook her head, then suddenly glanced at Kawaki. "If possible, I'd actually prefer if you could call me sister."
Kawaki: "..." What if I can't bring myself to say it?
Officer Jenny didn't insist either. She turned to business matters instead.
"Now that you've obtained your beginner Breeder certification, I'll submit it to the Hoenn League. They should be able to deliver that batch of Pokémon Eggs tomorrow."