Wally had left in quite a hurry.
In truth, he had simply been sticking his nose into someone else’s business.
The main reason was that most of the potions the girl had prepared involved knowledge at the level of a Junior Pokémon Breeder, which had piqued Wally’s interest.
If his guess was correct, those potions had all been made by the girl herself.
She wasn’t very old, yet she already possessed the skills of a Junior Pokémon Breeder.
This left Wally somewhat stunned, and any sense of superiority he had felt before vanished.
He had casually encountered a girl at a small market stall who possessed abilities no weaker than his own.
The Hoenn Region was vast, and there were certainly many people with exceptional talent.
Perhaps the knowledge he possessed really wasn’t all that impressive.
There had been several potions at the girl’s stall whose underlying principles he couldn’t even figure out.
As for the flaw in that bottle of powder, Wally had only managed to spot it by chance.
He happened to know about that particular mistake and understood the difference between the correct and incorrect combinations.
It wasn’t that the girl was inferior to him.
Rather, different people specialized in different fields.
Wally had simply happened to learn about that particular piece of knowledge by coincidence.
Even a top-level Pokémon Breeder wouldn’t dare claim to know everything.
“Better to just wait patiently.”
Looking at the darkening sky, Wally decided to quietly wait for tomorrow.
The efforts he’d put in over the past four years needed to be validated through the Junior Pokémon Breeder examination.
Only after becoming a Junior Pokémon Breeder would he have the confidence to travel independently.
Wally found a relatively open area and set up his tent.
He released Beautifly as well.
Pokémon were more alert than humans, and having the two of them stay outside together would at least give them someone to watch over each other and help prevent any accidents.
Another night passed, quiet and peaceful.
Wally’s final night in Slateport City passed without incident.
The next morning.
The sky was still dim when Wingull flew over the ocean, gliding through the air on the sea breeze.
Beautifly woke up early as well.
It flapped its wings beside Wally and roused him from sleep.
Wally glanced at the time.
Six o’clock.
There was still an hour before the Po Lang departed, so there was no need to hurry.
Beautifly kept a remarkably regular schedule.
With it waking him up, Wally didn’t have to worry about missing the departure time.
After packing his belongings, Wally folded up his tent and found a source of water where he washed his face before setting off for the harbor.
Although it was still early, there were already plenty of people waiting to board.
By the time Wally arrived, a sizable crowd had gathered outside the harbor.
“There are so many people.”
Wally complained under his breath.
The harbor was filled with a constant stream of passengers.
Even though the staff were continually trying to maintain order, it was difficult to keep the crowd under control.
After who knew how much time had been wasted, Wally finally managed to board the Po Lang.
“That wasn’t easy.
There are way too many people.”
Other passengers who had squeezed aboard alongside him voiced similar complaints.
Next came the task of finding his room.
In truth, the room wasn’t particularly useful.
The journey from Slateport City to Verdanturf Town took less than a day, so the so-called rooms were extremely basic—little more than places to rest one’s feet.
After all, the Po Lang wasn’t a luxury cruise ship.
Since Wally was traveling alone, he simply stayed quietly in his room.
After some time, however, someone knocked on his door.
“Hello!
It’s lunchtime.
Would you like to head to the dining hall?”
It was a member of the Po Lang’s crew, going around to remind passengers about lunch.
As for whether Wally would go?
He rubbed his empty pockets and smiled bitterly.
He’d better continue eating his snacks.
The food aboard the Po Lang wasn’t something he could afford either.
It was already noon.
Since he’d just eaten something, Wally had nothing else to do, so he lay down on the small bed and took a nap.
After sleeping for about an hour, Wally woke up feeling somewhat dizzy.
He immediately regretted sleeping aboard the ship.
Wanting to clear his head, Wally left his room and went to the railing to feel the sea breeze.
Sure enough, after standing there for a few minutes, he felt considerably better.
“Beautifly, you should come and experience it too.”
Like Wally, this was Beautifly’s first time aboard a ship, and it seemed quite curious.
It flew around, inspecting its surroundings.
“Don’t get lost,” Wally reminded it.
Afterward, Wally leaned alone against the railing on the deck, facing the sea breeze as he gazed out at the vast blue ocean ahead.
No one knew what he was thinking.
“Is that your Pokémon?”
An elderly but powerful voice suddenly sounded beside him.
The voice interrupted Wally’s thoughts, and he turned his head.
Standing before him was an elderly man with graying hair.
He looked to be about the same age as Grandma Agatha.
At that moment, he was studying the Beautifly flying above Wally’s head with considerable interest.
“That’s right.
Is there something you need?”
Wally answered without much warmth.
Seeing his indifferent attitude, the old man merely smiled and didn’t seem to mind.
“It’s been raised very well.
Are you a Trainer?”
Wally looked only a little over ten years old.
“No.”
Wally shook his head and recalled Beautifly.
With a graceful spin, Beautifly descended and landed elegantly on his shoulder.
“Oh?
Then are you a Pokémon Coordinator?”
Seeing the graceful way Beautifly settled onto Wally’s shoulder, the old man became even more curious.
“No.”
After answering the old man’s question again, Wally didn’t want to give him an opportunity to continue asking questions indefinitely, so he added,
“I’m on my way to Verdanturf Town to take the Junior Pokémon Breeder examination.”
“You’re saying you’re a Pokémon Breeder?!”
The old man laughed heartily.
Wally’s answer seemed to amuse and surprise him.
“Not yet.”
With that, Wally turned around and prepared to leave.
He instinctively interpreted the old man’s laughter as mockery.
A ten-year-old Pokémon Breeder really did sound like a joke to many people.
Unlike Trainers and Coordinators, Pokémon Breeders had to meet professional requirements.
Because of the rigorous nature of the profession, one had to receive certification from the Breeder headquarters before being able to call oneself a Pokémon Breeder.
The profession involved a vast amount of complicated knowledge, requiring years of study before one could reach the necessary level.
For a ten-year-old like Wally to be heading to the Breeder headquarters to take the examination was indeed difficult for most people to imagine.
After all, children around that age had usually only just obtained their Trainer qualifications and were still inexperienced.
Most of them couldn’t even distinguish Pokémon species and Types properly, though that was also simply a consequence of their age.
Not to mention complicated medicinal theory or the more detailed habits and characteristics of Pokémon.
So although the old man’s laughter seemed rude to Wally, he could understand it.
After all, Wally himself knew how difficult it was to become a Pokémon Breeder.
After four years of study, he was no longer an ignorant beginner who knew nothing about the field.
“You’ve misunderstood me.
My name is Birch.
I wasn’t laughing at you.”
Seeing Wally walk away, the old man hurriedly called out to him.
Wally stopped when the old man called him back.
He wasn’t annoyed.
Instead, he continued the conversation.
“I understand.
Is there something else you need, sir?”