Chapter 453:
The next morning,
It was only 7 a.m., but the sunlight in Alola was already abundant.
Stepping out of his room and into the yard, the first thing Kaede saw was Mallow watering the vegetable garden. The plentiful sunlight gave plants in Alola more intense photosynthesis, but it also meant they needed more moisture.
"Alola, good morning, Mr. Kaede!"
"Alola, morning, Mallow."
Kaede returned the greeting, feeling a bit puzzled. "Don't you need someone to look after your mom at the hospital?"
"Yes, yes, but it's still early, and the hospital said yesterday that Mom is much better now. She doesn't need someone watching over her every moment anymore," Mallow said excitedly. "It's all thanks to you, Mr. Kaede."
"That's really great. I'll go take another look later."
"Mhm, mhm! Dad is preparing breakfast for you and your Pokémon. Let's go after eating, though I'm not sure if it'll suit your Pokémon's tastes."
"Okay..."
Kaede didn't refuse.
When traveling, one couldn't be too picky. Having a warm meal was already pretty good.
After breakfast, Mallow's father stayed behind to prepare ingredients for the day at the restaurant, so only the two of them headed to the hospital.
At the hospital, Kaede's first priority was to check on Mallow's mother's condition.
When his fingers left the woman's wrist, he was met with their expectant and anxious gazes.
"She's recovering very well. Looking from yesterday to today, her vitality is already returning. It seems she'll be able to be discharged in a few days."
From the two examinations, Kaede had a pretty good grasp of the "Purge Disease" effect of the Pecha Berry wine.
Without a doubt, Mallow's mother's illness, even by the medical standards of the Pokémon world, was considered a serious condition.
But by his estimate, this disease would require at most 1500ml–2500ml of Pecha Berry wine to achieve full recovery.
As for common minor illnesses, like colds or fevers, he reckoned just a sip—about 100ml—would likely cure it.
Knowing this, Kaede felt the Pecha Berry wine's efficacy was even more incredible.
It was practically essential travel medicine!
"Really? Then thank you so much!"
"Is that true? That's wonderful!"
The two voices came from the two women, their eyes flashing with various emotions—surprise, lingering fear, the joy of being given a second chance at life after a brush with death, and the simple happiness of seeing the light in their lives again.
Mallow excitedly hugged her mother, tears welling in her eyes. Her mother patted her daughter's back, looking at her with tender affection..
Kaede understood, yet didn't fully understand, this emotional outburst, and watched quietly from the side.
After a while, their emotions settled down.
The woman wiped Mallow's tears, composed herself, and looked at Kaede. "Dr. Kaede, what are the treatment fees?"
"Fees?" Kaede was taken aback, instinctively glancing at Mallow.
He was here because Mallow asked for help. Honestly, he hadn't even thought about treatment fees.
Back in the Eastova region, he wasn't short on money. The savings he had now, though he hadn't calculated precisely, probably amounted to a small fortune?
"Hmm... I'm not sure how the currency works here. How about this: give me a portion of what you've spent on hospital treatment so far," Kaede said, not refusing outright.
Well, he wasn't short on money in Eastova, but here, he was a little short.
The woman let out a sigh of relief, her gratitude growing. "Thank you so much, Dr. Kaede. Mallow, take Mr. Kaede back home to get the money. Ask Dad how much we've spent in total. The doctors here said you don't need to stay with me anymore."
Her family in Alola wasn't wealthy, just an ordinary one. The hospitalization and treatment these past days had already cost quite a bit.
"Mhm, okay, Mom."
Mallow didn't refuse her mother's suggestion. Leading Kaede back home and explaining the situation to her father, she soon returned with a stack of banknotes and handed it to him.
"How much is it?"
Curious, Kaede counted. Alolan currency was only connected to the Kalos region and not linked to any other League.
Based on the denominations, it came to over a hundred thousand.
This number surprised Kaede for a moment, making him subconsciously think this hundred thousand had the purchasing power of Eastova League currency.
But then he suddenly remembered that in many regions, currency purchasing power wasn't as strong as in Eastova, sometimes only one-tenth or less.
Looked at that way, a hundred thousand wasn't actually that much.
"Mr. Kaede, are you going to buy a house next?" Mallow asked, interrupting his thoughts as he took the money.
"Yes. Any recommendations? Preferably a big one, with a yard, and open space," Kaede nodded.
He definitely planned to renovate whatever house he bought.
"Yes, yes! I remember there's an abandoned old mansion near our school that hasn't been lived in for a long time," Mallow said quickly.
"Really? Then I'll trouble you to take me to see it. But before that, I need to find your Alolan... authorities, to exchange some currency."
"No problem, no problem! I'll take you to find everything. You're definitely not familiar with Alola," Moff said with her characteristic helpfulness.
"Thanks..."
Then began the running-around mode.
After being led by Mallow here and there, Kaede quickly completed the currency exchange procedures.
Thinking he might need to spend money here in the future, Kaede directly exchanged ten million Eastova units.
Here, that ten million became nearly a hundred million, stored across several storage capsules.
But this didn't mean money here was worthless. On the contrary, spending levels here were actually just a bit higher than in Eastova.
Then they ran to the old mansion Mallow mentioned.
Well, the place was quite large and looked long abandoned. But Alola's climate was hot and dry all year round meant the building hadn't collapsed yet.
Seeing this scene, the first thought Kaede had was whether he could ask his previous contacted construction team to come over and build another set according to his villa template.
But as soon as the idea appeared, he found it amusing himself.
Traveling this far just to help him renovate a house? That would be something.
Still, he should go back and ask, maybe offer more money to see if they'd help.
Otherwise, finding a construction crew in an unfamiliar place would be too difficult.
Around noon, with Mallow's help, the property and land rights were successfully transferred.
"Whew... all done."
In the hot weather, after finishing everything, Kaede bought two chilled Berry beverages and handed one to Mallow.
Mallow, who had been running around, took the drink, said thanks, and then asked, "So, Mr. Kaede, are you going back now?"
"Pretty much."
Casually tossing the empty cup into a trash bin, Kaede called out Dragonite. This trip, though busy, had been handled faster than he imagined.
"Then you'll come back in winter, right, Mr. Kaede?" Mallow asked again.
"Huh? Yes, of course. Why?" Kaede was a bit curious.
Wasn't that the whole point of buying a house—to spend winter here?
Mallow smiled. "Good. Then goodbye, Mr. Kaede. See you in winter! I need to go bring lunch to Mom now."
She then turned and ran off towards home.
"...Alright then."
Kaede nodded, got on Dragonite, and soared into the sky.