Chapter 777: The Orphan
The League rewarded Yuga with more Merit Points this time than before, partly because of his significant contributions and also as a sign of their appreciation for him.
All these Merit Points were exchanged by Yuga for a large number of Fairy Gems and a small quantity of Dragon Gems and Fire Gems.
The Fairy Gems were intended for Florges. While the ones he exchanged for last time were not entirely used up, their supply was running low, and Florges had a considerable demand for them at the moment.
The Dragon Gems and Fire Gems were for his Dragonite and Charizard.
Although the Flying Gems delivered by the Pidgey Express had solved an immediate problem for Yuga, the optimal growth for Dragonite and Charizard required a combination of Dragon Gems, Fire Gems, and some Flying Gems.
Ideally, they needed a significant amount of Dragon Gems and Fire Gems to develop to their full potential, but Yuga's current resources fell short of that, so he had to make do.
Dragonite was in a slightly better position as it had inherited Dragon Gems from its father, Salamence, and had a good supply of Dragon Gems for the near future. Charizard, on the other hand, would have to rely more on Flying Gems.
What made Yuga's life easier in this regard were Gengar and Mismagius. Thanks to the presence of the Ghost World Origin Stone, they could continue to grow steadily without relying on Ghost Gems.
However, despite his substantial contributions, Yuga's title remained unchanged; he was still a Senior Trainer.
Within the League's hierarchy for Trainers, the titles ranged from Regular Trainer, Elite Trainer, Senior Trainer, Honor Trainer, to Hall of Fame Trainer. Yuga was currently at the third tier.
This title already surpassed the majority of Gym Leaders in terms of recognition.
The ranking of titles had nothing to do with a Trainer's position within the League or their strength. It solely depended on a Trainer's contributions to the League. The Elite Four member like Phoebe and the others were Hall of Fame Trainers.
The "Elite Four" title was derived from this system.
Becoming an Elite Four wasn't solely about strength; it required achieving the proper title rank. In other words, if your title rank didn't reach Hall of Fame Trainer, you weren't eligible to compete for the title of Elite Four..
While the number of Elite Trainers in the entire Pokémon world wasn't large, the number of Trainers forming the base was substantial.
Not to mention the hidden ones, just considering the prominent League Trainers, the total number of Elite level across the seven regions approached three digits. (Note: The book does not include the new region Galar.)
Don't be frightened by the nearly a hundred Elite level Trainers; think about how many League Trainers there are across the seven regions, far exceeding millions. So having that many Elite level Trainers wasn't unusual.
Of course, among these Elite level Trainer were some with only one or two Elite level Pokémon, and even though they achieved the rank of Hall of Fame Trainer, they still weren't eligible to compete for the title of Elite Four.
Having six Elite level Pokémon was the basic requirement for the tittle of Elite Four.
The League Elite Four served as the face of the League and held great influence within it.
So, becoming an Elite Four was no easy task. Just having the strength to participate in the Elite Four Tournament wasn't enough; you also needed the qualifications.
Why did Steven join the Prosecutor Bureau? It wasn't just for the power; it was for the "title." Similar to him, Lance, who was about as strong as Steven, followed a similar path in the Investigation Bureau.
However, Lance joined the Investigation Bureau, and while he had already achieved the title of Elite Four, he still held the position of Chief Inspector in the Kanto Investigation Bureau, on par with Joyna's position as Chief Inspector of Sinnoh Investigation Bureau.
Earning Merit Points from the League wasn't easy. For Yuga to progress from Senior Trainer to Honor Trainer, he would need an enormous amount of Merit Points. To reach Hall of Fame Trainer, an even more substantial contribution would be necessary.
It could be said that the higher you aimed in title progression, the more challenging it became.
Regarding the aftermath of the Miyuki incident, Yuga, who was a Gym Leader, wasn't responsible for handling it. The League had fully entrusted the case to Steven, the second person with knowledge of it.
In principle, handling tasks related to illegal organizations fell under the jurisdiction of the Investigation Bureau, not the Prosecutor Bureau. However, the Investigation Bureau in the Hoenn region was somewhat lacking and didn't have the same level of capability as Lance and Joyna.
Yuga remembered that in his previous life, when he watched the original animated series, it was Steven who assisted in dealing with Team Magma and Team Aqua, not a Investigation Bureau member. Now it made sense why.
Yuga didn't personally know anyone from the Investigation Bureau, so when faced with a situation like this, he naturally thought of Steven from the Prosecutor Bureau. Following the principle of "one thing at a time," the League ultimately handed over the Miyuki incident to Steven.
The Hoenn League was aware of the Investigation Bureau's capabilities and thus felt justified in entrusting the matter to Steven of the Prosecutor Bureau.
While the Investigation Bureau typically handled external affairs for the League and the Prosecutor Bureau managed internal matters, there were often overlaps in their responsibilities. They frequently collaborated on cases, so having the Prosecutor Bureau handle this incident didn't seem out of place.
"Do you want to recruit apprentices for the Incense Maker?" Yuga was in the process of posting a notice at the door when suddenly a voice came from behind, startling him.
Yuga turned around to see Steven wearing the Prosecutor Bureau's uniform, accompanied by two subordinates standing behind him. However, Steven's expression appeared fatigued, possibly due to the recent increase in responsibilities.
"It's you. You walk so quietly. Do you have something to discuss?" Yuga greeted Steven and his two subordinates, ushering them into the shop.
Steven's current position within the Prosecutor Bureau was quite high, and Yuga speculated that it wouldn't be long before he participated in the League's Elite Four competition.
"If you're looking to recruit apprentices, you could visit the League's orphanage," Steven suggested after settling into the shop.
"Orphanage?" Yuga was taken aback; he wasn't familiar with the League's orphanages.
"That's right. Every year, various organizations visit the League's orphanages to select some of the older orphans for training. The League collaborates with many reputable companies for this purpose. The goal is to provide these orphans, who are about to leave the orphanage, with opportunities for a livelihood. These orphans have no attachments, and they are trained by the League itself, so their loyalty is quite high."
With Steven's explanation, Yuga finally understood what the League's orphanages were like.
In the Pokémon world, the human mortality rate was much higher than in Yuga's previous life, thanks in part to the presence of Pokémon, which increased the risk of crime and consequently deaths. This led to a significant number of orphans.
Of course, besides criminal incidents, various accidents also contributed to the orphan population.
League orphanages would take in homeless orphans who lacked the means to support themselves and didn't possess any particular abilities. These orphans were typically under ten years old.
In the Pokémon world, children over ten years old were considered to have basic survival skills. Orphanages didn't accept them for this reason, which was why Akihito and others who were over ten weren't initially accepted.
Orphanages would care for these children until they reached the age of ten and provide them with basic knowledge. Afterward, the children could choose their specialties based on their interests, such as becoming Trainers, Breeders, or pursuing general education.
Once they turned ten, the orphanages encouraged them to venture out and make a living on their own. However, they weren't forced to leave the orphanage.
In order to provide children with a place to make a living, the League will cooperate with some companies or forces and hand over children to them for training. In the future, these children will join these companies or forces.
This is also not mandatory and the children can decide their own future path or remain in the orphanage.
Staying at the orphanage had a time limit.
Once the children reached adulthood, meaning sixteen years old, and if they hadn't found a path for themselves, the orphanage would no longer support them. They would be required to fend for themselves, and the orphanage wouldn't provide employment opportunities. Their future development would depend entirely on their own efforts.
The League had done well in caring for orphans, providing the necessary help. However, what these children would make of their lives in the future was up to them.
Companies like Steven's Devon Corporation visited the League's orphanages every year to select children and train them for specialized positions.
In essence, this process was similar to a job interview and recruitment. Both parties, the organizations, and the children had a say in the selection. Companies could choose suitable children for training, and children could decide which organization they wanted to join. Once mutual consent was reached, the selection was finalized.
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Regarding the Galar region, it won't be included in this book because the story had already progressed significantly when the eighth generation was introduced. Suddenly introducing a region like Galar, which hadn't been mentioned previously, would feel abrupt, so I hope you understand.
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