"Looks like you're not hungry anymore—then let's go buy some daily necessities."
Picking up Minccino, whose little belly was visibly round from eating its fill, Silas walked out of the Pokémon Center.
Minccino, Chatot, and Mudbray were all small Pokémon, so there was no need to keep them inside Poké Balls. Silas simply let them follow along behind him.
It was their first time in a city, seeing so many humans and Pokémon at once. The three little ones' eyes practically weren't enough—they kept looking left and right, curious about absolutely everything.
Silas patiently explained things to them one by one, and it took a full half hour before they finally arrived at the daily necessities department store.
Starting from the first floor, Silas swept through each level, shopping his way upward.
Rice, flour, grains, cooking oil, soy sauce, vinegar, honey—nothing could be missing.
Fresh vegetables and a small amount of meat were also necessary, though Silas only bought enough for a few days.
The weather was getting hotter day by day, and without a refrigerator in the ranch, meat simply couldn't be stored for long.
Thinking of refrigerators, Silas went to check the price of generators.
The wheel-type generators used by small Pokémon like Pikachu, Dedenne, and Pachirisu were priced at over five thousand League Coins.
Too expensive. Too expensive.
Abort, abort.
Mm! The fireplace was still very practical—lighting and warmth in one.
Silas knew clearly that, for now, the fireplace was only a stopgap solution.
Once he harvested the first batch of spring crops and had some income coming in, it wouldn't be too late to buy one then.
Summer without air conditioning would be unbearable.
The Pokémon also needed ways to cool down.
In the end, Silas bought some pasture grass seeds, concluding today's major shopping trip with a total expenditure of 2,000 League Coins.
"Mudbray, are you sure this is really okay?"
The packs hanging on both sides of Mudbray were stuffed full of goods, sagging slightly under the weight.
"Mud~"
Mudbray shook its head, indicating that this amount of weight was nothing to it.
"Alright! But if you can't take it anymore, you have to say so—don't force yourself."
On the way back, Silas chose to walk.
Chatot circled at low altitude ahead, acting as a scout, while Silas carried Minccino and followed closely behind.
Mudbray carried a large load of supplies yet still looked relaxed, its steps light and brisk, as if the wind followed wherever it went.
At the ranch gate, Kangaskhan, who had been lying there out of boredom—suddenly pricked up its ears, stood up, and stared straight down the road.
Spotting the familiar figures, Kangaskhan let out an excited cry and sprinted forward.
It scooped Silas up in a tight hug, clinging to him and acting spoiled in his arms, pouring out all its pent-up longing.
"Alright, alright—you're already a big girl now. Why are you still the same as ever?"
Silas helplessly patted Kangaskhan, signaling for it to put him down.
After calming Kangaskhan, Silas let the Pokémon go play, while he himself unloaded the items from Mudbray's back and neatly stored them on the shelves inside the house.
At the same time, he recorded today's expenses and confirmed tomorrow's tasks.
The wasteland he had reclaimed not long ago was finally ready to be planted.
Besides the strawberry seedlings obtained from the Belmond couple's ranch, Silas had also purchased some other seeds this time—all of them popular varieties.
They had high economic value, though they were comparatively more troublesome to care for.
In contrast, pasture grass seeds could simply be scattered and left alone.
Fortunately, the ranch now had the Mudbray trio. Otherwise, Silas wouldn't have dared to take the risk—one careless mistake and all his effort might go down the drain.
The high proficiency of their move Rototiller was the confidence behind Silas's attempt.
The Mudbray were effectively three experienced veteran farmers.
After planning out the next week's schedule, Silas also prepared dinner along the way.
…
The next day dawned bright and clear, a rare stretch of consecutive sunny weather.
Silas and the Pokémon got up early, ate breakfast, and began working in the fields.
First came the strawberries.
Normally, seedlings would need to be raised in advance, but what Silas had were already young plants, saving him that step.
Strawberries couldn't be planted too sparsely or too densely.
Before placing the seedlings into the holes, a handful of fertilizer had to be sprinkled in first. Silas chose Rapid-Growth Fertilizer, which could accelerate crop growth.
It shortened the growth cycle by ten percent, allowing crops to mature earlier and reducing uncertainties during the process.
Since this was his first time planting, Silas's expectations weren't high—so long as the plants didn't die, it would be a victory.
Working together with the Pokémon, the strawberry seedlings were planted one by one, neatly arranged in rows that were pleasing to the eye just to look at.
After the strawberries came cabbage—commonly known as round cabbage.
The seeds were sown by hand, watered, and then the Mudbray were asked to use Till once more.
Strawberries and cabbages each occupied one-third of the newly reclaimed land. For the remaining third, Silas chose to plant an ornamental crop.
Tulips—an ornamental flower extremely popular in Shalour City. By planting them in this first batch, Silas could sell them for a good price.
He transplanted the pre-treated bulb seeds into the field, watering and fertilizing each one carefully to ensure proper nutrition.
After a long while, the work was finally complete.
Standing with hands on his hips atop the field ridge, Silas gazed at the lush green expanse of seedlings before him.
Before long, these would turn into gleaming gold coins.
With the day's work finished, Silas found himself with nothing to do for the moment.
It was especially hot today, and he didn't feel like going fishing.
His gaze swept across the Pokémon one by one, finally landing on the pile of ingredients he had bought yesterday.
Since he was idle anyway, maybe he could try researching Pokémon-exclusive cuisine.
With that thought, Silas immediately sprang into action.
The diets of different Pokémon were truly bizarre and varied. Beyond normal meat, eggs, milk, and vegetables, some Pokémon consumed soil, rocks, metal, sunlight, life force, or even emotions.
A whole array of edible and inedible things could potentially be food for some Pokémon.
In the end, Silas chose to create a dish exclusive for the Mudbrays—a cuisine made primarily from mud.
Even if it failed, it wouldn't be heartbreaking. He could experiment freely.
So the question was—what kind of food could mud become?
For a moment, Silas was stumped, a sense of not knowing where to start lingering in his mind.
Could he imitate children playing house?
Mud had extremely strong plasticity—it could be shaped into almost anything.
Practice was the source of true knowledge. Silas immediately went to the lakeside and dug up some clean mud.
He sat down cross-legged under the shade of a tree and began kneading the mud.
"Mud?"
The three Mudbray soaking in the mud pool looked over, tilting its head in curiosity.
Did their Trainer also like playing with mud?
Should they invite him in to play together?
But didn't Sister Minccino say they weren't allowed to get their bodies dirty?
The three Mudbray stared at each other with wide eyes, falling into a dilemma.
They really wanted to play in the mud together with the human they liked.
Focused entirely on the task at hand, Silas didn't notice the three heads poking out nearby at all.
He first kneaded the mud into a smooth, dough-like consistency and divided it into three equal portions.
Picking up one piece, he imagined the shape of a cake base and pinched the edges little by little, shaping it into a round form.
While the cake base dried, Silas didn't waste any time and began making the "cream" and decorations for the cake.
After about thirty minutes, a three-tier cake made entirely of mud appeared before his eyes.
The mud cake not only had "cream" but also various decorations, with berries cut and placed on top as embellishments.
If it were made of actual dough, it would have been nothing short of a perfect cake.
Silas nodded lightly at his own craftsmanship, and information about the mud cake surfaced before his eyes.
(End of Chapter)