Chapter 24 - 24: Return to the Exchange Center
Through the long entrance, as Cain entered the base, his view gradually widened.
Compared to when he left, there were almost no significant changes to the entire base. The only difference was that the crowd seemed a bit thinner, and the empty base gave off a sense of desolation.
It was possible that some people who had left had not yet returned, after all, tomorrow was when the real test would take place.
If it weren't for the need to get rid of the valuable Pokémon egg he carried on his back, Cain wouldn't have returned so early.
Compared to life in the wild, the base seemed more comfortable and safe.
A person who was training their Pokémon in a corner saw Cain enter and showed an expression of joy. He quickly stopped his training and disappeared from the plaza with his small Pokémon.
Cain also noticed that person out of the corner of his eye but didn't pay much attention; he was just a weakling who depended on others to survive.
He headed straight to the Exchange Center, occasionally passing by a few people in small groups. When they saw him, they always showed slight confusion, a hint of surprise, and a touch of malicious satisfaction.
In the accommodation area reserved for the testers of the base, in a room clearly larger than the others, a young man was sitting in the center of the room, smiling as he stroked the scales of an Ekans coiled beside him.
On either side of him, there were about eight people, all accompanied by their Pokémon, but none dared make the slightest sound, or even look directly into the eyes of the young man sitting in the center.
"Xander, Boss Xander, that boy has returned." A shadow quickly rushed from the door toward the young man, but upon reaching him, all the words he had in mind got stuck in his throat, and he finally managed to say only that one sentence.