July 22, under a blazing sun.
What should have been an ordinary and peaceful day suddenly produced a small accident. Or rather, it would be more accurate to call it a pleasant surprise.
Dolliv had unexpectedly evolved.
It happened very suddenly, and Silas had no time to prepare at all.
Dolliv had evolved into Arboliva.
Silas raised his head and looked up at the large figure in front of him, letting out a heartfelt sigh.
"That was really sudden. Arboliva, you are very big now."
"Arbo~"
Arboliva spread its olive branch like arms and gently embraced Silas. The tender leaves on the branches brushed softly across his cheeks, carrying a faint and refreshing fragrance of grass and wood.
There was absolutely none of the oppressive feeling that usually came from large Pokémon. On the contrary, Arboliva gave off a sense of solemn grace and compassion, almost like a gentle priestess.
"Cin!"
"Morpe!"
"Lioo!"
"Cream~"
The little Pokémon saw Arboliva's completely changed appearance and all ran over from the distance, surrounding it curiously.
Cinccino even made a little comparison gesture. The height difference was now far too big. She realized she could no longer be the big sister of the group and immediately looked deflated like a punctured ball.
Arboliva stretched out its arm lovingly and lifted Cinccino high into the air.
Now Cinccino was higher than everyone else again, which meant she was still the big sister.
Watching the interaction between the little Pokémon, Silas could not help but smile warmly.
Arboliva's body size had changed enormously after evolution.
It had directly transformed from a small childlike body into a graceful, maidenlike figure.
According to the Pokémon League's research on Arboliva, their size was usually related to their years of growth. In the wild there had even been cases where Arboliva grew as large as trees.
Arboliva's body was mainly composed of different shades of green. Layers upon layers of leaves wrapped around its body like a naturally woven long skirt that draped down elegantly.
When it moved, the leafy layers swayed gently, occasionally revealing the inner body that carried a faint milky white sheen.
What made its identity instantly recognizable were the clusters of fully ripened olives hanging from its arms. These fruits had turned a deep blackish purple color, indicating complete maturity. Inside them was stored a rich and fragrant olive oil.
Being the greedy little mouse that it was, Morpeko quietly crept closer to one of the olives.
With its shining front teeth exposed, it bit down directly on the fruit.
"Morpe?" (Why is this happening? Why can't I bite through it?)
Its big incisors sank into the olive, causing the fruit to dent inward, yet it still did not break open.
Morpeko refused to believe it and kept trying again and again.
Soon it was panting heavily from exhaustion, yet the olive remained intact.
For a moment Morpeko even began doubting its own abilities.
Seeing this scene, Silas helplessly picked Morpeko up.
"You can't break it like that."
The mature olives on Arboliva's body were not hard. On the contrary, they had a flexible toughness similar to leather. When squeezed by hand they had a slight elasticity.
For Morpeko to try and violently bite them open was extremely difficult. The correct method was something else.
"Arboliva, could you give me some oil?"
"Arbo~"
Hearing his request, Arboliva lowered its arm slightly. From one of the glossy dark fruits, a stream of fragrant olive oil began to flow out.
Silas collected a full jug and handed it to his younger sister Indeedee, then casually checked the item description on the system panel.
[Olive Oil (Top Quality): Produced by Arboliva. The quality has reached the highest level. Using an appropriate amount of this olive oil in cooking can slightly improve the quality of the dish.]
Compared with the olive oil produced when Dolliv had been unevolved, the effect had increased significantly.
Silas dipped a finger into the oil and tasted it.
The flavor was excellent.
"Gulp."
An ill timed sound came from nearby, followed by a pair of eyes staring eagerly.
Silas had no choice but to feed a little to Morpeko.
"Well? Is it tasty?"
"Morpeko!" (Tasty! Very tasty!)
Morpeko nodded vigorously, looking as if it was completely enchanted by the aroma.
Silas chuckled and lightly flicked its forehead.
"In that case, I will fry fish for you all at noon."
"Draa?!" (Fried fish? Where is the fried fish?!)
Giant Dragonite suddenly appeared from nowhere, its big head looking left and right excitedly. Fried small fish was Giant Dragonite's absolute favorite food.
"I will cook it for you at noon. Dragonite, you need to help. Go call Litten and the others to catch fish."
"Dra~!"
Giant Dragonite immediately accepted the order and rushed off at top speed to find Litten.
Cinccino and the others also ran away, bringing the newly evolved Arboliva with them to the garden.
"Indee~" (Master Silas, we are ready.)
The male Indeedee walked over and reported to him.
"Alright then, let's go."
Three Meowth along with Cyclizar followed beside him as they headed together toward the cranberry field.
Today was the day for harvesting cranberries. The purchase price on Gario's side had finally stabilized.
Looking up, they saw rows upon rows of neatly planted cranberry bushes. Between the lush green leaves hung ruby like fruits.
Each one was a bright red cranberry.
There were two methods for harvesting cranberries, wet harvesting and dry harvesting.
The former was also called the cranberry ocean. Water was poured into the fields and machines were used to shake the branches.
The cranberries would fall off the bushes, but because they contained air pockets inside, they would float on the surface of the water. Workers could simply surround them with nets and collect everything at once.
This method was suitable for large scale plantations and required prior preparation.
Silas's ranch had planted less than a single acre, so dry harvesting was perfectly sufficient.
"Meowth, make sure to pull the cloth tight."
"Meow." "Meow." "Meow."
Silas directed the three Meowth as they began working. They spread out a large piece of cloth flat on the ground, covering about one quarter of the field.
"Cyclizar, use a light tackle. Kangaskhan, just shake the branches."
Cyclizar received the order and slammed its head firmly against the trunk.
The force was controlled perfectly. The branches were not broken, but the entire bush began shaking violently.
In the next moment, bright red cranberries began falling like rain, pattering loudly onto the cloth spread below.
Soon a thick layer piled up on the ground, the vivid red color looking especially pleasing.
Kangaskhan was also helping. It grasped the branches and shook them, causing another rain of cranberries to fall.
"Kang~~!"
Below, baby Kangaskhan was reaching up to grab the falling fruit.
Its mother immediately smacked it away.
At the same time, the cranberries continued raining down like small stones, hitting the little one on the head. It panicked and covered its head with its tiny arms before scrambling quickly back into its mother's pouch to hide.
Kangaskhan did not even glance down.
Boys were tough. Getting hit by fruit was nothing serious.
Sure enough, baby Kangaskhan soon poked its head back out of the pouch again as if nothing had happened.
It followed beside its mother, holding several cranberries between its tiny claws and stuffing them directly into its mouth.
Sour.
Extremely sour.
There was also a strong astringent taste.
Baby Kangaskhan immediately spat the fruit out with several loud noises. Its small face twisted into a miserable expression as it made up its mind never to eat this kind of thing again.
Seeing this scene, Silas shook his head with an amused smile.
Fresh cranberries tasted similar to unripe plums. There was no way they would taste very good.
If they actually tasted delicious, that greedy little glutton Morpeko would definitely have come over to help harvest them.
Although fresh cranberries were not particularly tasty, once dried into cranberry raisins they became quite delicious.
They were a must have snack during winter. The sweet and sour flavor made them extremely popular.
The entire morning was spent harvesting cranberries.
After the harvesting was finished, they still had to sort them.
A small portion was taken by Silas to the ranch drying area, while the majority were packed into bags and placed into the collection crates, waiting for Gario to come and transport them away.
In preparation for winter, Silas had made many arrangements.
The portion he kept would be more than enough for the ranch to eat.
Besides, Silas suspected that the little Pokémon would probably grow tired of cranberries eventually.
After all, with the greenhouse they could eat fresh fruits anytime they wanted.
If fresh fruit was available, why would anyone bother eating dried ones?
(End of Chapter)