After eating hot pot with Mark, they both went home.
Before going home, John stopped by Emerald Fields, the breeding house nearby. They'd planned to get dedicated Pokémon rations for Torchic and Zigzagoon, and now he wanted to add Froakie.
The closest breeding house was called Emerald Fields.
Sounds inviting enough, John thought. I'd like to see their Mareep and Houndour too.
"Hello, what would you like to order?" a sweet-looking girl greeted John, wearing a white turban and an apron with the breeding house's logo.
"I'm looking to buy some Pokémon rations. What prices do you have here?"
The girl smiled as she explained. "Our Pokémon rations come in three levels: low, medium, and high."
"Low-end Pokémon rations are made based on your Pokémon's attributes and are priced at 200 Pokedollars per serving."
"Mid-range Pokémon rations are customized by species, priced at 1,000 Pokedollars per serving."
"For high-end rations, our intermediate breeders conduct individual tests to create custom-tailored rations. These range from 5,000 to 30,000 Pokedollars."
Whoa, John thought, this is a bit outrageous. At four servings a month, mid-range rations alone would be 4,000 Pokedollars—a whole month's salary for a regular worker. No wonder Trainers can barely afford Pokémon!
"If I go for premium rations for a whole team of six Pokémon…" I'd need a small fortune!
"Alright, let's go with high-end rations for both of my Pokémon," John finally said, deciding to splurge a little.
Good thing my family does have some mines, he reminded himself. Zigzagoon's item-finding skills are priceless!
However, this treatment was only for his main Pokémon. He planned to buy some low-end rations for Zigzagoon when he left.
Zigzagoon: ???
"Please wait a moment; I'll call the breeder right away." The girl's eyes brightened at the high-end order, and she quickly left, offering John tea, coffee, or water.
Two minutes later, a young woman around John's age came from the breeding house, bringing him a cup of green tea.
"Hello, sir! My name is Lily, and I'm a junior breeder here. I'll be working on the Pokémon rations for you. Could you please release your Pokémon for me to check?"
John quickly released Torchic and Froakie.
"Jeep! o(^▽^)o" Torchic chirped happily, bouncing with energy.
"Kalu!! ←_←"
Froakie, who'd just been captured, was calmer. He simply observed Torchic's movements, arms crossed, looking serious.
"Your Pokémon are so cute!" Lily's eyes sparkled as she assessed them. "Torchic's fur is soft, with a healthy color, and its muscles are firm—it radiates vitality. You must have worked hard on its training, sir."
'Good, I've been trying to do right by my Pokémon. I hope it shows!'
"To customize the rations, we'll need to consider your training goals: speed, strength, or move power?"
Lily then turned her attention to Froakie. "This Froakie seems recently caught. Though strong, it has several small wounds, likely from its time in the wild. Its hind limbs are powerful, giving it impressive speed."
'Looks like Froakie had a rough time in the wild', John thought. 'I should give it the care it deserves.'
"If you want rations for it, I'd suggest focusing on nutrition first, then adjusting its diet for training," Lily advised confidently.
She knows her stuff. I wish I'd thought through Torchic's training more, John reflected, grateful for Miss Joy at the Pokémon Center, who'd taken good care of him.
"Let's go with your suggestions for Froakie. For Torchic, let's prioritize strength first," John said thoughtfully.
'This strategy should make the most of their strengths and IVs.' he reasoned. 'Start with strength and adjust as needed.'
"I just hope I can afford this…"
"For pricing, Torchic's rations will be 22,000 Pokedollars since they use some rare berries."
"Froakie's rations will cost about 10,000 Pokedollars. The ingredients are pure and nutritious, and prices are stable right now."
'It's not as bad as I feared.' John thought, relieved.
"If you choose to proceed, I can offer a discount: a total of 30,000 Pokedollars," Lily added.
'That's still a big hit to my wallet.' John considered, but manageable.
"Alright, please prepare those rations. I'll take two of each and ten low-end Normal-type rations as well."
"Sure! Please wait about half an hour while I prepare today's food." Lily got to work promptly.
The receptionist came by to process his payment, also taking down his address for future deliveries.
Half an hour later, John received two large meals based on berries, supplemented with meat and herbs.
'This doesn't look all that fancy. I could probably make something similar myself.' he thought, inspecting the meals. 'The 20,000 Pokedollars for Torchic's food seemed high, given the ingredients were worth maybe half that.'
'Still, half must go toward the breeder's "consultation fee" and "matching fee." '
With a new sense of purpose, John realized that becoming a breeder might be a promising career.
'If junior breeders are charging these prices, intermediate, advanced, or master breeders must earn a fortune!'