Chapter 15: The New Pokémon Center

After leaving Cerulean City, Klein continued assessing the remaining Gyms. Compared to Cerulean, the conditions of these other Gyms were truly disastrous—either the Gym Leaders lacked proper qualifications, or they were frequently absent from their duties.

Once Agatha also completed her round of assessments, the two of them reviewed the overall evaluation results for the day and finalized the decisions regarding Gym qualifications.

In the end, only Cerulean Gym and Cinnabar Gym retained their official status, while the rest were demoted. These Gyms had their qualifications revoked, and all badges they had distributed were declared invalid in the League's records.

With the Indigo League Tournament just days away, this decision caused an uproar throughout Kanto. In this round of assessments, six Gyms were flagged for poor performance, three were disqualified outright without assessment, and one required an urgent evaluation due to the passing of its previous Leader.

That meant that of the seven Gyms Klein and Agatha assessed, only two—Cerulean and Cinnabar—remained, while the other eight lost their status.

As a result, many trainers who had earned eight badges suddenly found themselves ineligible for the Indigo League, causing widespread outcry.

Criticism flooded the internet, but Klein, using his verified League account, silenced them all with a single post:

"Every season, the League publicly releases Gym evaluation results. If you deliberately sought out these eight underperforming Gyms for an easy path to eight badges, then you were simply trying to take shortcuts. Trainers like that don't deserve to compete in the Indigo League."

His statement was firm and unwavering. To reinforce his point, Klein posted his own previous Indigo League badge collection and the scores from the Gym evaluations.

Not stopping there, he also listed his badges from the Unova and Hoenn regions, along with the respective League scoring criteria for those Gyms.

This "showing off my report card" move was like something a top student would do, leaving many speechless. Some netizens even joked that Klein must have been holding a grudge from being criticized too much and was now fighting back.

After posting, Klein logged off. As a newly appointed Elite Four, his workload was overwhelming. With the Gym assessments completed, he now had to head over to Lorelei's area to attend the opening ceremony of a new Pokémon Center.

The Elite Four headquarters was located within the Indigo Plateau, the same venue as the Indigo League Tournament. Their office building housed not just the four Elites and the Champion but also hundreds of League staff members handling various administrative duties.

Beyond the mountain range lay Johto's Silver Conference grounds, where the Johto Elite Four also conducted their work.

As the Kanto-Johto League Headquarters, this region was unique in having a single Champion overseeing two regions, supported by a total of eight Elite Four members—four from each region.

Unlike Agatha's office, Lorelei's workspace was far busier, filled with League personnel—many of whom were actively browsing the internet. It was no secret that Lorelei had a dedicated group of online defenders, often engaging in heated debates to protect the League's image.

When Klein entered, several staff members looked at him with admiration. His recent social media post, flaunting his Gym assessment results, had gone viral, pushing him into the spotlight once again.

It was no surprise—Klein had a reputation for stirring things up online.

Lorelei greeted him warmly and led him into her office, handing over several documents. "There are two new Pokémon Centers opening in the next few days. Since they're on the same day, you and I will each attend one."

Klein glanced at the files and raised an eyebrow. "Old Shore Wharf City? I thought they already had two Pokémon Centers—one on the north side and one on the south?"

"A storm recently completely destroyed the Old Shore Wharf Pokémon Center, and even the local Nurse Joy went missing. With no other choice, the city decided to build a brand-new, upgraded Pokémon Center. Unfortunately, funding was tight, so they negotiated with the League to secure the necessary resources."

This new Pokémon Center model differed from traditional ones. In addition to the usual healing, lodging, and training facilities, it introduced several new functions, focusing on eco-recycling and Pokémon welfare.

"Over the past few years, the number of abandoned Pokémon has been increasing at an alarming rate. Some trainers even release their Pokémon in locations far from where they were originally caught."

A responsible trainer would evaluate their Pokémon's suitability using the Pokédex and release them immediately if they weren't a good match. However, some trainers would travel with a Pokémon for a long time before deciding to abandon it.

The fate of these Pokémon was often tragic—some were captured by criminal organizations like Team Rocket, while others fell into the hands of illegal traders and ended up as exotic dishes in restaurants.

Because the League couldn't monitor every release, they started implementing new Pokémon Centers with a regulated release program.

"Under this system, trainers looking to release their Pokémon can sell them to the Pokémon Center for a fixed price equivalent to ten Poké Balls. This encourages trainers to go through proper channels instead of abandoning their Pokémon in the wild."

With the number of new trainers increasing each year, Pokémon Centers also offered incentives—in addition to receiving a starter Pokémon from Professor Oak in Pallet Town, new trainers could receive an additional Pokémon from the local Pokémon Center.

New trainers, compared to veterans, were more accepting of less powerful Pokémon and tended to form stronger emotional bonds with them, reducing the likelihood of abandonment.

Lorelei sighed, flipping through the reports. "Not long ago, a trainer from Sinnoh captured a dozen rare Dragon-type hatchlings, hoping to raise a single exceptionally strong one. Afraid of getting in trouble for catching too many, they bought a plane ticket to Kanto and sold the rest to a restaurant in Fuchsia City."

Her voice was tinged with sorrow. "The restaurant staff had no idea how rare those Dragon Pokémon were. They simply cooked and served them to customers. By the time the League investigated, it was too late—the trainer had already returned to Sinnoh."

The addition of a Pokémon release program in Pokémon Centers had faced heavy backlash from critics, who accused the League of encouraging abandonment and treating Pokémon as commodities.

Online, protests against these new Centers were common, and many trainers even refused to stay in them out of principle.

"So my job at the opening ceremony is to handle potential protestors and troublemakers?" Klein asked.

Lorelei smirked. "Exactly. Your reputation alone should be enough to scare off most of them."

She adjusted her glasses and chuckled. Klein, unfazed by her teasing, flipped through the documents. However, as he skimmed the details of Old Shore Wharf City, something caught his eye.

"New Island? Dangerous zone?"

On the northwestern side of the Old Shore Wharf City map, a small island was marked as a hazardous area, piquing Klein's curiosity.

Lorelei thought for a moment before responding, "That island is known for its unusual magnetic field and extreme weather conditions. To prevent inexperienced trainers from getting into trouble, the local authorities have classified it as a danger zone."

(End of Chapter)