[Exp. Share: Devon Corporation's latest research product. Pokémon wearing this device can learn when Pokémon within a 100-meter radius train and practice, automatically gaining training effects and practice experience. Your hospitality last night greatly satisfied Steven, so he decided to give you this precious device as a gift.]
Carver removed the Exp. Share from Growlithe's head and carefully examined this device that looked like an alien helmet.
"Automatically gains experience within a 100-meter range..."
The 100-meter range limitation crushed Carver's dreams of watching matches for easy leveling.
But still, this was more than enough.
This effect was so much stronger than in the games!
In the early generations of the games, Pokémon carrying the Exp. Share could only gain experience from a single battle.
But this effect clearly meant that as long as they were within a 100-meter radius, no matter how many Pokémon battles occurred, Growlithe could gain experience from all of them.
This meant that with enough battles, Growlithe's "level" would skyrocket at an incredible pace.
There was also an unspoken rule—the stronger the battling Pokémon were, the more experience Growlithe would gain.
If you asked where Pokémon battles happened most frequently in the Pokémon world...
Several names floated through Carver's mind.
Gyms, battle facilities in cities, League Conference venues.
But there was still one problem.
He couldn't really leave the breeding house and camp next to a gym with his Pokémon to grind levels.
Besides, Autumn Leaf Town didn't even have a gym...
And he certainly couldn't switch careers mid-stream to open a fighting dojo, could he?
After thinking for a moment, Carver quickly came up with a solution.
In that case, he'd just have to attract trainers to come battle at the breeding house!
So the next morning, trainers leaving Meteor Falls for Autumn Leaf Town saw that the roadside breeding house had put up a banner.
The text on the banner drew quite a few people to stop and stare.
[Carver's Breeding House will soon host the "King's Tournament!" The trainer who wins and successfully defends the title will receive an extremely rare Pokémon egg with exceptional talent!]
[No entry fee required—anyone with Pokémon can participate! In addition to the egg, you can also receive a mysterious grand prize from the shop owner! Those interested can register with Bewear!]
The deliberately exaggerated text quickly caught these trainers' attention.
In an instant, everyone's eyes locked onto the eight words: "extremely rare, exceptional talent."
If there was anything that could attract these trainers, it was definitely rare and uncommon Pokémon!
Initially, only two or three people came in to inquire about the situation.
But soon, the number rose to over a dozen.
Since Autumn Leaf Town was the venue for Pokémon Contests, plus its proximity to famous adventure spots like Mt. Chimney and Meteor Falls, the town gathered large numbers of Pokémon trainers almost every day.
And just like in the anime, they stayed at Autumn Leaf Town's Pokémon Center.
Word spread quickly from person to person.
Soon, almost every trainer in the Pokémon Center knew that a nearby breeding house was about to hold a tournament, with the grand prize being an incredibly rare Pokémon egg.
Trainers were naturally drawn to excitement.
Before long, Carver's breeding house was packed to capacity.
When these trainers saw the scene inside the breeding house, they were even more shocked, their mouths hanging open.
"It's Clefairy!"
"So... so many Clefairy!"
"Those are really hard to encounter!"
"They're eating cream cake—wow! So cute!"
"That Pokémon is one I've never seen before!" someone said, pointing at Bewear.
"Idiot! That's a Pokémon from the Alola region—of course you haven't seen it!"
The trainers gathered in the main hall, chattering away.
Carver watched this scene with a smile.
In fact, the "no entry fee" was just a gimmick.
His place was also an inn, and with so many people gathered together chatting, what would happen if they got thirsty or hungry while talking?
They'd have to buy drinks and food from the shop.
Under the amazed gazes of these trainers, the Clefairy waitstaff brought fruit juice to each of them.
In just one morning, the breeding house had earned quite a substantial income.
Some trainers, wanting to conveniently participate in the tournament, directly stayed at the shop—all six guest rooms were fully booked.
Not only that, but this tournament even directly boosted the breeding house's business.
Quite a few people left their Pokémon in daycare here, wanting them to learn certain moves.
Carver accepted them all—after all, for him, it was just a matter of thought.
On the day the tournament began, looking at the hundred or so trainers before him, Carver couldn't help but smile.
Not a huge number, but it was enough.
Growlithe sat nearby wearing the Exp. Share, excitedly watching the scene.
"Watch carefully and learn well," Carver told it.
"Growl!" Growlithe wagged its tail in response.
Carver stepped forward and addressed the crowd: "Welcome everyone to the first King's Tournament at Carver's Breeding House. I'm the shop owner, Carver."
"The tournament is about to begin, but before that, let me explain the competition rules."
"The competition is divided into defenders and challengers. Each person can use up to six Pokémon. Of course, if you're confident enough and think you can take on six with one, you can also have just one Pokémon battle."
"Challengers need to defeat all six of the defender's Pokémon to take their place. After each match, the defender can use any method to restore their Pokémon's stamina."
"Everyone, prove your strength to all! Fight one against a hundred, become the strongest king of this tournament, and win the ultimate prize!"
As his words fell, the blood of every trainer present was ignited.
Although some knew that appearing later in this type of tournament would be more advantageous, there were still those who couldn't resist the heroic achievement of "fighting one against a hundred" and stepped forward first.
"I'll go first!"
The speaker was a boy around fifteen or sixteen years old. He swept his domineering gaze across the entire venue, flipped his right hand, and a beam of white light shot out from his Poké Ball.
From the white light, a majestic, strong, and handsome Blaziken appeared before everyone.
The boy's face showed an expression of certain victory—his Blaziken had the Speed Boost ability, and would only get stronger in this kind of continuous battle!
"Hmph, don't get too excited too early!" A blue-haired girl stepped forward from the crowd, standing opposite the boy. "Come out, my partner!"
The girl threw a Poké Ball, and the Pokémon that emerged from the light was actually a Slaking!
Watching this scene, Carver narrowed his eyes.
He took Growlithe, Chingling, Bewear, and a group of Clefairy holding popcorn to play the role of audience, watching this scene with great interest.
Blaziken vs. Slaking—was the first match going to be this intense right off the bat?
Well, the more intense the better—that way, Growlithe could gain more experience.