Rock And Steel

Of course, the League's adoption system couldn't guarantee that everything would always be clean within the system. One of the most famous incidents was the orphanage massacre that shocked the world twelve years ago.

The incident occurred in the Rainbow City of the Kanto region.

At the time, the director and high-ranking members of a large orphanage in Rainbow City colluded with an illegal organization. They used their positions to secretly sell the orphanage's children to the illegal organization.

These children suffered inhumane treatment within the illegal organization.

This matter came to light when one of the children who had been sold to the illegal organization managed to climb the ranks of the organization through great effort and, with others, killed all the high-ranking members of the orphanage, including the director.

After the killings, this child voluntarily turned himself in. Before doing so, he recorded his experiences as a video and posted it online, providing clear evidence of the orphanage director's collusion with the illegal organization. This revelation gained worldwide attention.

Evidently, at the time, this child didn't trust the League. The purpose of exposing this matter was to pressure the League to take action against the illegal organization.

In the end, the organization was indeed dismantled by the League, but the child managed to escape from the League's prison. To be precise, he was rescued by someone.

This incident led to the downfall of many League personnel at the time.

The fact that the orphanage had been able to collaborate with the illegal organization for so many years without being discovered was impossible without assistance from within the League.

This child later became one of the Team Rocket' Executive, which is the current known as Proton.

This incident from twelve years ago was very well-known, and it greatly damaged the League's reputation at the time.

While many people might not be aware that the child from this incident later became Proton, one of the Team Rocket' famous Executive, they did know about the case itself.

Yuga only learned about this incident after encountering Ariana and specifically investigating the background of the Team Rocket' Executive.

The Executive of the Team Rocket were significant figures on the League's wanted list, so obtaining information related to them wasn't particularly difficult.

It had to be said that, despite being an illegal organization, the Team Rocket' Bosses, Giovanni, had a charismatic personality and great vision. Otherwise, the Team Rocket wouldn't have been able to hold its own against the League for so many years.

At the time, Proton was still quite young, but Giovanni recognized his potential and invested the effort to rescue him from the League's prison, ultimately grooming him into one of the Team Rocket' Executive. This showed how shrewd Giovanni's judgment was.

Despite incidents like this one, the existence of orphanages indeed had more benefits than drawbacks. They solved the survival problems of many orphans. That's why, even after this incident, orphanages continued to exist for an important reason.

Furthermore, over the years, the League had implemented various effective reforms in orphanages. The current orphanages were significantly different from those twelve years ago.

After listening to Steven's suggestion, Yuga found it reasonable. Recruiting incense makers' apprentices from orphanages would not only reduce conflicts of interest but also help orphans find employment, making it a win-win solution.

"You didn't come here today just to tell me where to recruit apprentices, did you?" Yuga asked Steven as he accepted a doll-like teapot and placed it in front of Steven and his subordinates.

"That's not it. I was passing by and thought I'd ask if you've decided on the rewards you want for this case," Steven replied.

In this current case, Yuga would receive rewards beyond just merit points. However, Yuga hadn't decided on what he wanted yet, so he left it aside.

"Well... if possible, I'd like a batch of Rock-type and Steel-type Pokémon," Yuga said after some thought.

He had been given the task of capturing Rock-type and Steel-type Pokémon for a while now, and the Mine Sub-Ecopark had been empty. That's why he mentioned it now.

Yuga, as the owner of a Pokémon Day Care, truly didn't have the time to travel around capturing Rock and Steel types. The Hoenn region had few Pokémon of these types, so it was challenging to find suitable ones.

"Rock and Steel-type Pokémon? These types are challenging to raise, you know. Are you sure about this?" Steven looked surprised. He personally had many Steel-type Pokémon and knew how expensive it was to raise them.

Yuga owned a Pokémon Day Care and likely intended to breed these Pokémon. If that was the case, a significant number of Pokémon would be required for breeding, and it will be expensive to raise them.

Even the League rarely breeds Pokémon of these two types, especially Steel-types.

Yuga: "Is there a problem?"

Steven: "Not really, but if you truly want Rock-type and Steel-type Pokémon, there happens to be a group of such Pokémon that need relocation."

"Tell me more," Yuga said, growing interested.

Steven continued, "You know about Dewford Town, right?"

Yuga nodded, "I do."

Brawly, who became a Gym Leader at the same time as Yuga, was currently working as a Gym Leader on that town. Yuga had a good relationship with Brawly, and they occasionally stayed in touch.

"There's a gathering place for Aron, Lairon, and Aggron there. However, over the years, the numbers of Aron and Lairon have been increasing annually, and they have hefty appetites. So, the ecological balance on Dewford Town is becoming strained. The League is looking to relocate some of the Aron and Lairon."

Steven took a sip of tea, feeling a bit parched. He found the tea's taste quite enjoyable and couldn't resist taking another sip before continuing.

"However, you know that these Pokémon have a significant impact on the environment. The League currently can't find a place to relocate them to, and even the League Pokémon Day Care Centers in various regions are reluctant to take them in. So, they're quite troubled by this.

If you're truly willing to take over, it would indeed be a great help to them. However, you need to think it through carefully. Aron and Lairon are not easy to raise, and one misstep could lead to bankruptcy. Otherwise, the League's Pokémon Day Care Center wouldn't hesitate to take them in, as there are still many high potential Pokémon there."

Steven was concerned that Yuga might not have experience in raising these Pokémon, so he gave Yuga a heads-up.

Yuga thought for a moment and replied, "I can take care of it on my end. However, I want this batch of Pokémon to serve as breeding stock, so I don't want low potential Pokémon. Are there not many high potential Aron and Lairon among them?"

Steven realized that Yuga had a point. While there were high potential Pokémon among these Pokémon, the quantity wouldn't be significant. He thought for a moment before continuing.

"How about this? You can consider taking some low potential Pokémon. I'll instruct them to select the best ones for you, including the high potential ones."

Since this was a reward for Yuga anyway, Steven had the authority to make this decision. Originally, the League intended to distribute the high potential Aron and Lairon from this batch as rewards to the Trainers below. However, since Yuga was willing to take on some of the trouble, these high potential Pokémon would be an extra benefit for him.

Yuga considered for a moment and said, "That's acceptable. However, even the lowest potential should be at least yellow in terms of potential. I have my standards; I don't want to break them."

YoYo Day Care was currently involved in dealing with low potential Pokémon, and having a minimum yellow potential was a rule set when Yuga's parents were still alive. Yuga didn't want to deviate from that.

Steven nodded in agreement, "Alright, I'll make the arrangements accordingly."

"Great, I'll be waiting for your good news," Yuga said with a smile.

"I'll get it sorted out as soon as possible. It's getting late, and I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now. The Pokémon will be sent to you through the Trade Machine when the time comes. Rest assured."

With that, Steven left the YoYo Day Care. He had been quite busy lately, so he departed with hurried steps.

After Steven left, Yuga went to find Windy and asked him to look into the situation regarding the orphanages. After gaining a better understanding of the specific circumstances, Yuga would decide whether to recruit new apprentices from the orphanages.