Twins from One Egg

That very night, Kageyama Jun organized a team to surround the old mayor's mansion, led by none other than the Slateport City Gym Leader, Arashi Jenny, and the city's police chief.

The only person authorized to arrest the mayor was Arashi Jenny, as she held the position of Gym Leader for the city.

It was evident that Kageyama Jun and Arashi Jenny had coordinated beforehand; otherwise, this operation couldn't have been arranged so quickly.

Since Yuga had been involved in the earlier events, Kageyama Jun once again pulled him in as backup for the night's mission.

Their task was to infiltrate the secret cell again and rescue Kageyama Jun's colleague, preventing the old mayor from using him as a hostage during his arrest.

The old mayor was extremely vigilant. Not long after his mansion was surrounded, he sensed something was wrong.

Connecting the dots with the captured undercover agent, he quickly deduced what was happening and immediately attempted to flee.

Unfortunately for him, the entire mansion was tightly surrounded by Arashi Jenny, the police force, and their reinforcements, leaving him no room for escape. His attempt failed, and he fiercely resisted capture.

Although the old mayor himself wasn't a trainer, some of his subordinates were desperate outlaws who had been secretly sheltered by him. They caused significant trouble for Arashi Jenny and the police force.

Fortunately, the operation ended successfully, and everyone inside the mansion was apprehended.

Since the old mayor was busy trying to escape, Yuga and Kageyama Jun didn't face much resistance while rescuing the captured colleague.

After freeing their comrade, the trio passed by the kitchen, where Yuga noticed that the Slowpoke were still confined in cages. Acting on impulse, he decided to free them as well.

At that moment, the chef was in the kitchen. When he saw Yuga and Kageyama Jun, he was stunned. He immediately released a Scyther to attack them.

At Yuga's side was his Breloom. Upon seeing the aggressive Scyther, it didn't hesitate to deliver a punch, knocking it out instantly.

The chef might have been a significant figure outside, but against Yuga's Breloom, he couldn't last a single move.

Besides the chef, Yuga managed to capture another person.

As they were preparing to retreat with their rescued colleague, they passed through a courtyard and spotted a man sneaking around suspiciously. Without hesitation, Yuga directed Breloom to knock him unconscious.

By sheer coincidence, Yuga later discovered that this man was none other than the breeder friend of the two bounty hunters they had encountered earlier.

The Slowpoke delivered to the mayor's mansion had been provided by this breeder.

This man had secretly built an ecopark where he bred a large number of Pokémon, not for companionship or training, but to be raised as food.

He had covert ties with numerous officials and wealthy elites, selling these Pokémon as high-priced delicacies to make exorbitant profits.

Because of his wealth, he had established a notable presence within the League and gained some influence in the Breeder Association.

His visit to the old mayor's mansion was purely coincidental. In addition to delivering Slowpoke as ingredients, he intended to use this opportunity to network through the mayor's connections, develop new clients, and expand his market.

Little did he know that the Slateport City investigation into the old mayor had long been underway. His involvement became an unintended casualty of the operation.

After the operation ended, Arashi Jenny and Kageyama Jun both expressed their gratitude to Yuga for his assistance. Noticing Yuga's interest in the Slowpoke, they decided to gift them to him as a token of appreciation.

Although the Slowpoke were technically stolen property, the situation allowed for some flexibility. Neither Kageyama Jun nor Arashi Jenny lacked the social tact to make this decision.

Besides, the haul from the old mayor's mansion was enormous, and a few Slowpoke were inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

After staying another day in Slateport City, Yuga realized that the agreed meeting time with Fostor was approaching, so he hurried back to the ranch at the Wild Bull Club.

Unlike the last time, this time the club's young boss, Ryo, was not there to greet him—only Fostor welcomed him.

After a round of pleasantries, Yuga asked, "So, after I left, have there been any further problems with the Tauros at the ranch?"

Smiling, Fostor shook his head and said, "None at all. We owe you a great deal for helping us pinpoint the problem."

Yuga humbly replied, "It was a mutually beneficial arrangement. No need for thanks. As long as you don't forget our agreement, I'm content."

"Haha, of course, I won't forget. Let's go discuss the details of our collaboration now!"

Half a day later, their negotiations concluded. To show their gratitude and the importance they placed on the partnership, Fostor and the YoYo Day Care finalized a long-term agreement. From now on, YoYo Day Care would provide the Wild Bull Club with fifty high potential young Tauros every two years.

Because the Wild Bull Club required a certain standard for Tauros appearances, YoYo Day Care set a price significantly higher than the market rate for regular Tauros.

After finalizing the deal, Yuga and Fostor shared a meal before Yuga returned to Verdanturf Town.

Once home, Yuga headed straight to the Ecopark, where he placed the Metagross and Beldum in the Mine Sub-Ecopark.

"You're free to eat any of the minerals here," Yuga told the Metagross and Beldum. "I'll also create a special potion to help you recover and strengthen your bodies as quickly as possible."

After spending a few days with Yuga, the simple-minded Beldum had become a little livelier. They responded cheerfully before starting to sample the minerals, while the two Metagross remained much more composed.

The arrival of the new residents drew the attention of the longtime inhabitants. The Tyranitars took one look and immediately turned away. The Steelix who is leading the Onix, briefly made an appearance but didn't linger. In contrast, the Aggrons seemed eager for a fight and looked like they might challenge the Metagross at any moment.

The Lunatone and Solrock, being fellow Psychic-type Pokémon, were very welcoming to the newcomers. Not only did they introduce them to the basics of their new home, but they also thoughtfully comforted the Beldum and helped them settle in.

As for the Rhydon, it took one glance at the two powerful Metagross and, without a word, returned home to train with its Drilbur squad.

"What is going on here? Why is everyone stronger than me?!" it grumbled in frustration as it ramped up its training efforts.

Meanwhile, the Mawile were also placed in the mine Sub-Ecopark. Having been saved by the Metagross, they had developed a strong sense of loyalty toward them. Even in the Ecopark, they chose to stick with the Metagross and Beldum.

Although the combined number of Metagross and Beldum wasn't particularly large, the addition of the Mawile suddenly made the new residents a considerable group. This left the Rhydon watching enviously, with a mix of frustration and admiration in its heart.

In the following days, Yuga spent his time at home either practicing making Pokéblocks or working on small genetic serums.

After a few days of care, while their physical health was improving, the mental state of the Beldum had also undergone significant positive changes. As a result, treating their genetic diseases became a priority.

One day, after returning from inspecting his new store, Yuga received a call from Steven. Steven informed him that the League had recently confiscated a batch of Slowpoke and asked if Yuga was interested in taking them.

These Slowpoke were seized from the evil breeder's Ecopark. While the other Pokémon from there had already been rehomed, the Slowpoke, being the most numerous, were still unallocated, which prompted Steven to ask Yuga.

If Yuga was interested, Steve promised to select the best potential Slowpoke from the batch and send them to him.

Of course, Yuga was interested. Adding more would perfectly complement the Slowpoke he had received earlier.

Slowpoke, despite their often sluggish demeanor, were Psychic-types and quite powerful when trained properly. Among Pokémon, they were reasonably popular.

From Stev n, Yuga also learned that the evil breeder's arrest had implicated a considerable number of people.

A list was found at the evil breeder's home, detailing the officials and wealthy individuals he had traded with, leading to many arrests. It was a classic case of one pull exposing many.

Meanwhile, the old mayor's sentence had been announced: death penalty.

Since his imprisonment, not a single person had visited him. While his son and daughter were no longer alive, he still had a granddaughter. Unfortunately, upon learning of his crimes, his son-in-law and granddaughter severed ties with him entirely, refusing even to see him.

After Yuga gave Steven his confirmation, the Slowpoke were quickly transported to him—50 in total, including three with green potential and the rest is yellow potential.

It turned out that the evil breeder who raised the Slowpoke was quite peculiar.

To fetch high prices for their tails, he selected Slowpoke with relatively high potential for breeding, under the belief that better potential made their tails tastier.

In reality, whether a Slowpoke's potential was high or low made little difference to the flavor of its tail. Factors like their living environment, diet, and care played a far more significant role in determining taste.

However, many people bought into the idea. To display their wealth and status, officials and rich clients would compete to eat only the best, opting for tails from high potential Slowpoke. This belief kept the breeder's business thriving.

After administering innovation potion to the Slowpoke, Yuga sent those with successfully enhanced potential to the shallow sea beach Sub-Ecopark to be managed by Slowbro and Slowking. The rest were moved to the new Ecopark.

Slowbro and Slowking had been living a carefree life on the shallow sea beach Sub-Ecopark. When Yuga suddenly delivered the Slowpoke, they were initially reluctant to take responsibility.

But faced with the dazed expressions of their kin, they couldn't bear to leave them unattended and eventually accepted Yuga's arrangements.

Speaking of the shallow sea beach Sub-Ecopark, a joyous event recently occurred.

Not long after Greninja and Wartortle became a pair, Wartortle removed its Everstone to evolve into Blastoise in preparation for reproduction. Shortly afterward, it laid an egg.

The egg was much larger than a typical Pokémon egg, with strange patterns on its surface. Yuga couldn't immediately determine whether it belonged to Froakie or Squirtle.

Even more unusual was the fact that the egg took an exceptionally long time to hatch, making Yuga almost believe it was a dead egg.

Blastoise, however, was deeply attached to the egg, taking great care in incubating it. Finally, just a few days ago, the egg hatched.

To everyone's amazement, the egg produced both a Froakie and a Squirtle simultaneously—a phenomenon never before seen or heard of.

It's not unheard of for a single Pokémon egg to hatch two Pokémon. Species like Meowstic and Binacle are especially prone to producing twin Pokémon from a single egg. However, those cases always result in two Pokémon of the same species.

For Yuga, seeing two different Pokémon hatch from the same egg was not only a first-time experience but something he had never even heard of.

The newly hatched Froakie and Squirtle had identical potential, both rated at the green level. Even the brightness of their potential halos was indistinguishable.

However, compared to Pokémon hatched under normal circumstances, these twins were slightly weaker physically and much smaller than others of their kind.

In recent days, aside from helping the Beldum recover, Yuga also dedicated significant effort to strengthening and nurturing the Froakie and Squirtle.

Fortunately, Yuga's place was well-stocked with various items suitable for boosting Pokémon health, such as Moomoo Milk, Gogoat Milk, Rainbow Nectar, Pollen Puffs, and Sweet Honey, all perfect for newborns.

To ensure the babies had a healthy diet without overburdening their systems, Yuga followed a nutritional plan specifically designed by Joyka to supplement their meals.

One day, Yuga brought the two little ones to the Pokémon Center for another health check.

After the examination, Joyka and her Blissey wheeled out the Froakie and Squirtle, smiling as she said to Yuga, "Their health has improved a lot compared to before, and they haven't been getting sick as often. It looks like you've been taking good care of them."

Accepting the two little ones, Yuga replied, "I owe it all to you. Without your regular checkups and nutrition plans, I wouldn't have been able to care for them properly."

"That's true!" Joyka tilted her chin up proudly. "You better thank me properly!"

"Blissey~ Blissey~"

Blissey, hearing this, tugged on Joyka's sleeve and pointed at itself. Seeing this, Joyka laughed and said, "Right, and our dear Blissey too!"

"Blissey~"

Blissey closed its eyes happily at the acknowledgment.

"Alright, alright, I'll make sure to thank both of you properly!"

"Oh, by the way, do you still have any of those berries?" Joyka asked.

"I have a few left. Why? Do you need some?" Yuga responded.

The berries Joykareferred to weren't ordinary ones—they were the special fruits grown on the sacred tree on Torterra's back.

These berries had a unique effect: they could raise a Pokémon's level, but only when the Pokémon's level was relatively low.

Yuga had always believed that Pokémon should not rely on such berries for level growth, so he rarely used them. Every time Torterra's tree bore fruit, Yuga would pick and store them.

When Joyka learned about the existence of these berries, she had asked Yuga for a few to study.

Unexpectedly, the more she researched them, the more fascinated she became, and she ended up taking quite a few more from Yuga.

However, due to the berries' complex composition, fully understanding them proved challenging.

"I've recently made some progress," Joyka said. "I'm trying to create a potion using the berries. If it works, it might solve Froakie and Squirtle's physical weakness issues."

"Really?" Yuga asked excitedly.

"Really, but it's still just a prototype. The actual effects are yet to be confirmed, so don't get your hopes up too high," Joyka added cautiously after some thought.

"It's fine. I trust you! Go ahead and give it your all. I'll send you all the berries I've got stored," Yuga said confidently, even more optimistic than Joyka.

"Well… since you're so enthusiastic, I'll do my best…" Joyka replied, slightly exasperated.