After Bu Ni finalized her order with Su Yu, she immediately went off to make arrangements, moving with the efficiency of someone who had done this countless times before. Su Yu didn't interfere—there was no need. Instead, he headed straight to the breeding house. Inside, a group of children from the orphanage were busy cleaning, while some of the hired workers carried packaged components inside and others finished dealing with the last bits of installation. All the machines had already been unloaded and were waiting to be fully set up.
Chen Xier was nearby, taking care of her Ralts and Su Yu's Pikachu. Both Pokémon looked utterly exhausted, slumped over with lifeless expressions, their condition making it painfully obvious what had happened. There was no need to guess—this was clearly the handiwork of the overly energetic children. Chen Xier was patiently massaging the two Pokémon, trying to help them recover. When Su Yu walked over, she looked up and asked, "Su Yu Senior, are you done talking with Sister Bu Ni? How did it go?"
Su Yu nodded. "It's settled. I can make all the energy cubes she wants. She's already booked a full month's supply, so I'm going to be extremely busy next." As he said this, his tone carried a hint of helplessness. Producing that many top-tier energy cubes wasn't easy—it was tedious, time-consuming work, and the coming days were guaranteed to be exhausting. Chen Xier smiled and congratulated him. "Congratulations, Su Yu Senior. Business is booming right after opening." Su Yu, however, could only laugh wryly. "That's the problem. Everything isn't fully ready yet. The next few days are going to be chaos. Luckily, Bu Ni helped a lot—she even arranged the machines I needed."
Chen Xier nodded knowingly. "Sister Bu Ni is very anxious right now. She wants to strengthen her Pokémon as soon as possible, compete in the next national competition, and then challenge the Elite." Su Yu understood this perfectly. This year's national competition was bound to be packed with monsters—trainers who were all aiming for that same narrow path upward.
Nearby, Pikachu suddenly lifted its head, ears twitching as it caught the words "national competition." Its eyes were full of curiosity. What was that? Ralts glanced over, confused by Pikachu's sudden attention. Pikachu casually asked, and Ralts, who had heard Chen Xier talk about it before, patiently explained. As Ralts continued, Pikachu's eyes gradually began to shine. A competition broadcast nationwide, where strength was displayed in front of everyone? Just imagining it made Pikachu's heart race. If possible, it wanted to stand on that stage too. It decided then and there—it would definitely find a chance to convince its Trainer.
Unable to contain its excitement, Pikachu voiced its thoughts outright. Ralts immediately rolled its eyes in disdain. Was it dreaming? Su Yu only had two Pokémon and didn't even have a Gym Badge yet. Participating in a national competition was pure fantasy. The two Pokémon quickly began bickering, sparks of emotion flying between them. Hearing the noise, Su Yu and Chen Xier turned their heads and were instantly rendered speechless.
"Enough," Su Yu said, glaring at Pikachu. "Ralts is a guest. Behave yourself." Pikachu froze. In contrast, Ralts looked delighted, teleporting straight into Su Yu's arms and rubbing against him affectionately. Pikachu was furious, letting out an indignant cry before storming off. Su Yu didn't bother stopping it—at worst, it would just run to the back mountain, where his Pidgeot was staying. It would be back by dinner.
Not long after, Bu Ni returned. "Everything's been arranged," she said briskly. "The equipment will be delivered soon. I've already contacted Xi'er's family and ordered the materials. They'll arrive together later—you can sign for them then." Su Yu nodded calmly. "Alright. Once everything's here, come back in three days to collect the energy cubes."
"Deal," Bu Ni replied. "I'll come back then." She turned to Chen Xier. "Xi'er, are you coming with me?" Chen Xier nodded. "Yes. Su Yu Senior, I'll leave Ralts with you. I have things to handle this afternoon." She paused, looked at Ralts clinging to Su Yu, and sighed. "Be obedient… actually, forget it."
Ralts cheerfully waved her off, completely unbothered. Chen Xier rolled her eyes at the sight, though she understood why Ralts liked Su Yu so much—his Psychic power was incredibly attractive to Psychic-type Pokémon. Bu Ni observed the scene with interest. Even she had been rejected when she tried to hold Ralts before, yet here it was glued to Su Yu's side. After a few amused glances, she said her goodbyes and left with Chen Xier.
Su Yu stayed behind, overseeing the final machine installations while holding Ralts. Once everything was tested and confirmed to be working, the workers didn't leave—they were waiting for another batch of machines to arrive. Su Yu, meanwhile, began moving his belongings from his old room into the breeding house. From today on, this would be his main base. The children would remain at the orphanage for now, though if nothing unexpected happened, they would probably be visiting—and maybe even living here—very soon.