Chapter 306: If Hard Work Were Enough, What Would We Need Geniuses For?

The scene changed again.

Once Hina became fully capable of handling everything on her own, Asher and Dawn completely handed the Day Care over to her and officially embarked on their "honeymoon trip."

Dawn had filled half the living room with luggage.

Asher silently began taking the things she’d packed out one by one.

"Hubby! We need the binoculars! We can watch Wingull at the beach!"

"We need this travel flask too!"

"Oh, and this! I bought this sunscreen especially for you! We absolutely have to bring it!"

Asher stared at the pile of equipment on the floor—enough to stock an entire outdoor-supply store.

He remained silent for three seconds.

Then he picked out the largest suitcase, lifted Dawn into his arms, and placed her inside it.

"Wifey, I think bringing you is enough. We don’t need anything else."

Dawn sat inside the suitcase with both legs dangling over the edge.

Her face turned as red as a ripe tomato.

"Th-Then..."

"At least bring two changes of clothes..."

[VIP Chat Group]

[Shauntal]: I’m putting this straight into my new novel! It’ll be called Pack Up Your Wife and Take Her With You.

[Diantha]: Dawn, are you blushing after seeing this?

[Dawn]: ...(///)

[Kenny]: Waaaaah... So this day finally came after all...

[Brock]: Kenny, don’t cry. One failure doesn’t mean anything. There’s always another chance to start over. This time, I’ll help you.

[Kenny]: !!! Really?! You’ll help me?!

[Brock]: Of course! I’ll teach you every secret I’ve learned for quickly recovering after being rejected by beautiful older women!

[Kenny]: ...

[Croagunk]: Croag. (Poison Jab ready.)

The video continued playing.

Several years passed.

Hina stood beneath the sign for Dawsher House.

She was noticeably taller than she’d been at ten years old.

Her light-blue hair now reached her waist, loosely tied back with a black ribbon.

She wore a long white dress, giving her a quiet and gentle appearance.

But the most eye-catching thing was the enormous building behind her.

Dawsher House had been completely renovated.

The small Day Care from years ago had become a five-story white building.

The wall to the left of the entrance was covered with plaques and awards.

SINNOH REGION CERTIFIED STAR-RATED POKéMON BREEDING FACILITY

OFFICIAL PARTNER OF THE POKéMON BREEDERS’ ASSOCIATION

INTERNATIONAL EGG RESEARCH ORGANIZATION — SPECIAL CONTRIBUTION AWARD

QUAXMEN GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS

The final plaque had been carried up personally by Quaquaval in its beak.

Even the words QUAXMEN GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS had been written by Quaquaval itself, dipping the tip of one wing into ink.

Hina stood at the entrance and stared at the sign.

"Ducky..."

"Isn’t this..."

"A little too much?"

Quaquaval stood beside her and pushed up its sunglasses, which now had frames made of solid gold.

"Quax." (Not at all. This is the foundation befitting a great sect.)

"All right, then..."

Hina turned toward Alexa, who was frantically taking photographs nearby.

"Miss Alexa, when should we start?"

Alexa had come specifically to interview Hina that day.

"We can start right now. Hina, don’t be nervous. Just treat it like a normal conversation."

Alexa set down her recorder, then gestured for Viola to adjust the camera.

"O-Okay."

Hina placed one hand against her chest and took three deep breaths.

The interview officially began.

Alexa raised the microphone.

"First question, Master Hina. What do you believe is the most important thing when raising Pokémon?"

Hina thought carefully.

Then she answered with complete seriousness.

"You just..."

"Listen to what they’re saying."

Alexa blinked.

"Listen to them?"

"When you say ’talking,’ you mean...?"

"Exactly what it sounds like."

Hina tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Pokémon are all very straightforward."

"As long as you listen carefully to what they’re saying, you can take good care of them."

Alexa fell silent for five full seconds.

Then she slowly turned toward the camera.

"Viewers, I believe everyone can already tell that Master Hina truly possesses a uniquely profound understanding of Pokémon breeding."

"Now, let’s move on to our next question."

Alexa flipped to the next page of her notebook.

"Miss Hina, during the very first year of your career, you successfully earned two prestigious titles—Top Coordinator and Pokémon Contest Master."

"Could you tell us about your training methods?"

Hina lowered her head.

"Um..."

"There really wasn’t anything special."

"Dad and Mom trained pretty often, so I mostly just watched them from the side."

Alexa fell silent again.

"...So what you’re saying is..."

"You watched your parents train, and then more or less happened to become a Pokémon Contest Master along the way?"

Hina hurriedly waved both hands.

"N-No! It wasn’t just something that happened!"

"I trained for a really long time too!"

"Every afternoon..."

"I practiced for twenty minutes..."

Alexa could feel her professional composure as a journalist beginning to crumble.

"Every day..."

"Twenty minutes?"

Hina took another small step backward.

"Because I needed to spend most of my time studying Pokémon breeding..."

"Um..."

"Is something wrong?"

Alexa lowered the microphone.

She took a deep breath.

"No, no."

"Thank you for sharing your experience."

"You’ve helped me gain a much clearer understanding of approximately where my own level of talent lies."

[VIP Chat Group]

[Zoey]: Only twenty minutes a day... twenty minutes...

[May]: I’m jealous. I’m genuinely jealous. Sometimes I’ll stay up through several nights just to perfect a single performance, and Hina became a Top Coordinator by practicing twenty minutes a day?!

[Steven]: Sigh. There’s nothing we can do about it. Brother Asher’s genes speaks for itself. Every child he has is basically born with maxed-out talent. How are hardworking types like us supposed to compete?

[Wallace]: Do the words "hardworking type" have anything to do with you?

[Steven]: Of course they do! If I’m searching for a top-quality Moon Stone, I can spend three days and three nights digging through a mine without stopping. And you’re saying I’m not hardworking?

[Wallace]: ...That’s not hard work. That’s an addiction.

[Dawn]: But Hina really does work hard! Besides training, she reads tons of books about Pokémon breeding every day, and she’s always helping take care of the Pokémon at the Day Care! That’s how she became both a Pokémon Contest Master and a Master Pokémon Breeder!

[Lorelei]: Dawn, the more you explain, the more painfully obvious the word "talent" becomes.

[Iono]: Right now, the people I most want to interview are Hina’s parents. Mr. Asher, what do you think about the fact that every single one of your daughters is a complete talent monster?

[Asher]: If hard work were enough, what would we need geniuses for?

[Falkner]: Somehow, what Asher just said hurts even more than anything Hina said.

[Steven]: Every word Brother Asher speaks is the truth! Take me, for example. Genius plus hard work created the Steven Stone you see today!

[Wallace]: Genius plus hard work?! You’re skin is as thick as rocks!!

The scene changed again.

Late at night—

Hina returned to her room.

After taking a shower, she changed into a pale-yellow cotton pajama set and sat down at her desk with her hair still half-dry.

She opened a thick Pokémon breeding journal.

Several small lines were written on the inside cover.

Words she’d written the very first time she’d ever cared for a Pokémon Egg.

I hope that one day, I can become someone who makes Pokémon feel safe, just like Dad.

Now she had done exactly that.

And she would continue doing so.

At that moment, the image on the giant screen froze.

The System notification sounded once again.

...