League Calendar, Year 198, Spring, January 18th to January 24th.
Income: 15,467 League Coins.
Total funds: 35,500 League Coins.
For an entire week, Silas left early and returned late every single day, heading into the mountains with Chatot to gather mushrooms.
Although the daily harvest was no longer as abundant as on the first day, when everything was added together, the total amount was not reduced in the slightest. He was already carrying close to thirty thousand League Coins on him, leaving only seventy percent of his original goal yet to be completed.
Of course, while Silas was out picking mushrooms, he did not neglect the crops planted on the ranch.
With the diligent efforts of the three Mudbray, the growth time of the crops was reduced by more than half. The repeated use of Rototiller had not harmed the crops in any way; instead, they grew exceptionally well—full, glossy, and beautiful—so pleasing to the eye that simply looking at them lifted one's spirits.
Lush green branches were bent low under the weight of bright red, fist-sized tomatoes. If wooden supports had not been tied around the roots, these tomatoes would have fallen to the ground long ago and quickly rotted, never reaching their current quality. Naturally, the contributions of the other Pokémon were equally indispensable.
Day after day, the Mudbray nourished the soil with their Rototiller, while Chatot and Minccino patrolled the fields daily, weeding and catching pests. Missing even one of them, today's bumper harvest would never have been possible.
Before long, Silas's bamboo basket was filled to the brim with tomatoes. A Mudbray that had been waiting for quite some time trotted over, letting out two low calls to signal him to place the basket on its back.
"Alright, then I'll leave it to you," Silas said as he gently patted its head and carefully secured the basket.
That Mudbray carried the full load away from the fields, and the next Mudbray quickly stepped in to take over. Without a moment's pause, the harvesting continued. The goal was to finish everything today, weed and turn the soil tomorrow, and plant another batch the day after that.
Moreover, Silas had already made arrangements with Gario yesterday; the other party's truck was waiting by the roadside, ready to transport the fresh produce.
Just imagining the small but satisfying income soon to be in his hands filled Silas with boundless motivation. The other Pokémon were just as busy, each helping however they could. Kangaskhan and Minccino formed a team to harvest cabbages. One after another, glossy, dew-covered cabbages were carried out of the field and placed to the side, quickly piling up into small hills.
After several days of targeted training, Kangaskhan had completely mastered control over its rapidly increased strength, reaching a point where it could restrain or unleash it at will. Though it had not battled in quite some time, Silas was confident that Kangaskhan was now stronger than ever. If it were to challenge the Shalour Gym again, even against a Lucario capable of Mega Evolution, the odds of victory would be around thirty percent.
On the opposite side of the cabbage field, Chatot led a large flock of bird Pokémon, harvesting green bean pods as they darted back and forth across the fields. As for Chatot itself, it stood off to the side, aloof and dignified. Even just standing there like that was enough to keep the other bird Pokémon bursting with enthusiasm.
Among all the Pokémon that had consumed the food with Century Soup Flavor effect, Chatot had undergone the greatest change. This was no longer just a Chatot—it was practically a bird succubus, the kind that lived comfortably off others while still acting high and mighty.
With everyone working together, the harvesting progressed smoothly. Vast quantities of vegetables were gathered, ready to be shipped out and sold at any moment. After picking the last ripe tomato, Silas walked to the edge of the field and waved to the Pokémon. "Everyone take a break for a bit and have some mung bean soup."
Kangaskhan returned carrying more than a dozen cabbages in its arms, while Minccino stood on its shoulder, struggling to drag a single one along. Silas hurried over to take it, worried that such a small body might get crushed. The mung bean soup had already been prepared earlier, and it was at the perfect temperature to drink now.
Kangaskhan gulped down an entire bowl in a few loud swallows, leaving Silas no choice but to refill it another. Minccino and the three Mudbray were much more refined, sipping slowly and occasionally sharing bits of their harvest with one another.
At the mung bean field, Silas arranged the small bowls he had prepared in advance in neat rows and poured the soup into them before calling Chatot over with its "friends of the opposite sex." These bird Pokémon had also worked hard today and certainly deserved to be treated well. Leaving Chatot to host them, Silas drank a bowl himself to restore some energy.
He planned to transport part of the harvest first, not too much—both to ease the load and to let the three Mudbray familiarize themselves with the route. He fastened the saddles onto their backs and hung a crate of produce on each side.
"How is it? Can you still handle the weight?" he asked.
"Mud-mud~"
The Mudbray proudly shook their heads, signaling him to load more if he wanted—this amount was nothing to them. Silas, however, refused, running his hand over their coarse fur. "We'll start with just this much. Safety comes first on the first trip."
The other two Mudbray were loaded in the same way, their backs carrying not just produce but the hopes of the ranch's future. For the very first delivery, Silas insisted on accompanying them himself to feel at ease. After instructing Kangaskhan to stay behind and keep harvesting, Silas set off with the Mudbray.
There was only one rugged, steep dirt road connecting the ranch to Route 12—vehicles couldn't pass through at all, making the Mudbray the best possible choice. Once he had more money, Silas fully intended to build a proper road, which would make travel far more convenient.
In truth, for large-scale transportation of agricultural products, he preferred using waterways. Building a small dock near the beach and using a wooden boat pulled by large Water-type Pokémon could deliver everything to Shalour City in a single trip, taking only half the time of land travel.
Well, that could wait until he was richer. For now, after passing through a small forest, Silas spotted the small truck parked by the roadside, along with Gario's partner—a Digging Pokémon, a Diggersby, that could actually drive. From afar, it waved hello by flapping its powerful ears.
"Diggersby, sorry to keep you waiting," Silas said with a smile as he approached.
"Dig-dig~"
Diggersby indicated that this was simply part of its job. Using its ears, which were as strong as an excavator, it unloaded the produce, placed it on an electronic scale for weighing, and then transferred it into the back of the truck.
Before long, the numbers for this shipment were tallied—it was undoubtedly a bountiful harvest.
Tomatoes: 1,000 kilos. Cabbage: 500 kilos. The potatoes had not yet been harvested, but their expected yield would likely be the highest of all. After recording the quantities and telling Diggersby that the next shipment would arrive shortly, Silas and the Mudbray returned to the ranch.
Upon entering the ranch, Silas was greeted by rows of harvested cabbages piled into countless small mounds. He scanned the area but saw no sign of Kangaskhan or Minccino. Letting the Mudbrays rest for a bit, he went searching through the fields. The cabbage patch had been completely cleared, yet there was still no trace of them. He then headed toward the potato fields instead.
Sure enough, Kangaskhan and the others were there—and even Chatot had joined them. They were gathered in a circle, chirping and murmuring excitedly, seemingly discussing something. Driven by curiosity, Silas stepped closer to take a look. The moment he leaned in, a flash of golden light caught his eye, making his heart skip a beat.
For a split second, he thought they had dug up gold while harvesting potatoes, his heart pounding uncontrollably.
Upon closer inspection, however, it wasn't gold at all—it was a strange, mutated plant. A potato no larger than a quail egg lay before him, its surface an unusual golden hue that actually gleamed under the sunlight.
"This is… a mutated crop!!"
(End of Chapter)