Chapter 92:
After all, letting it play around might increase its Happiness and even bring unexpected rewards.
Exposing its little tricks would only upset it—and that just wouldn't be worth it.
"Gardevoir …"
Gardevoir quietly put away its Energy Cube, sighing inwardly.
Just one sentence from its Trainer had increased its workload by one-twentieth…
"Hehe~ Come with me for a moment, Gardevoir~"
Instead of having it train Mew right away, Hayashi Kaede beckoned Gardevoir into the breeding house.
"Gardevoir ?"
Gardevoir tilted its head slightly in confusion.
"That newly appeared Pidgeotto might 'disappear' during training—or take a really long time to finish a session. If that happens, don't worry. It's not an ordinary Pidgeotto."
Hayashi Kaede used his Veridian Power to communicate directly, to prevent Mew from possibly eavesdropping through some unknown method.
"Gardevoir?" Gardevoir looked even more curious.
Over the past two days, some Pidgey had occasionally gone missing during training, and whenever that happened, Hayashi Kaede would take Pidgeot and Gardevoir to track them down immediately.
Even clever Pokémon like Pidgeotto could sometimes get lost.
"It's fine" Hayashi Kaede added. "It won't get lost. It's just… a little playful. Please be patient with it."
"Gardevoir…" (Alright then.)
Gardevoir didn't ask further. When it returned to the Berry Plantation, Pidgeotto had already finished eating and begun training for the day.
Meanwhile, Hayashi Kaede took Torchic out for their usual morning run.
As always, he dangled the same carrot: if it could outrun him, it would earn a delicious barbecue feast.
"Come on, Torchic! The barbecue feast is right there! Outrun me, and it's all yours!"
"Torchic~!" (Barbecue… barbecue…)
"Torchic…" (I can't go on anymore…)
"How can you say that? You've only been using Quick Attack for a few minutes! Come on, activate it again! Don't tarnish the reputation of 'Speed Boost' ability!
There's a Blaziken in the Kalos region who became the hero of an entire city. Don't you want to be a hero too—protect Popplio and Bounsweet someday, and see their admiring gazes?"
"Torchic!" (Charge, charge, charge!)
By the afternoon, Gardevoir returned with the day's report. Most Pidgeotto could now retrieve Energy Cubes accurately four out of five times. The Pidgey still needed a little more time.
Hayashi Kaede wasn't disappointed. He asked instead about that "special" Pidgeotto.
"Gardevoir …" (Just like you said.)
Gardevoir looked at him with curiosity.
"Gardevoir …" (After it went out the first time, we couldn't find any trace of it. Then, during the last session, it suddenly came back.)
"Alright then~ No problem. It's probably not here for the training anyway. Just let it be."
"Gardevoir ~" (Okay…)
...
Mew's arrival didn't change Hayashi Kaede's daily routine much. The only noticeable difference was that Energy Cubes sometimes went missing from the breeding house during the day—only for rare items to appear on the counter the next morning.
And whenever Hayashi Kaede brought those mysterious items to the Berry Plantation, the "Pidgeotto" perched in the pine tree would chirp happily, clearly amused that he hadn't figured it out yet.
Still, Hayashi Kaede couldn't be upset—because among those items, he'd received another Rare Candy and three packs of Super Fertilizer.
In the meantime, he had also been secretly studying what flavors Mew preferred, hoping to keep the mischievous little "hairless cat" in a good mood—however long it decided to "play."
Time passed quickly, and before long, it was August 20th.
This day was somewhat special.
While out running with Torchic that morning, the little fire-type finally evolved in a flash of white light.
Newly evolved, the young Combusken brimmed with confidence, thinking it could finally outrun its Trainer. But after one run through the forest, it was soon reduced to a panting, wilted eggplant, following obediently behind.
Only then did it realize—the problem wasn't its lack of effort. Its Trainer was simply a monster who hadn't even been running seriously before.
That realization left the newly evolved Combusken feeling frustrated.
[Pokémon: Combusken]
[Gender: Male]
[Ability: Speed Boost]
[Aptitude: Red]
[Individual Values: HP (20) / Attack (31) / Sp. Atk (31) / Defense (14) / Sp. Def (13) / Speed (31)]
[Level: 21–25]
[Moves: Ember, Peck, Quick Attack, Flame Charge, Sand Attack, Aerial Ace, Night Slash, Brick Break, Dig, Agility, Detect, Flamethrower.]
[Happiness: 80]
[Emotional Note: 10 (Tricked… can't outrun him… just can't… my barbecue feast… don't leave me…)]
"Alright, alright, don't be angry" Hayashi Kaede said with a laugh, looking at Combusken's sulky face.
It was quite the unique Pokémon. Most of his partners became noticeably larger than average after evolving, but Combusken was an exception.
Perhaps its Speed Boost ability—and all those daily morning runs—had kept its frame lean. Standing at about 1.1 meters tall, it was only slightly bigger than an average Combusken, but its body was compact and muscular, especially the well-toned muscles along its thighs.
"Combusken…"
Combusken gave its Trainer a resentful glare, still sulking over the lost feast.
And honestly, Hayashi Kaede couldn't blame it. After all, it had been looking forward to that barbecue for so long.
Leading it out of the forest, Hayashi Kaede spotted the harvest of rice grains and suddenly had an idea.
"Combusken, see that harvest over there? Once all the grains are gathered, I'll use the rice grain to brew some Rice Wine—and then we'll have a barbecue feast. How's that sound?"
"Combusken?" (Really, Trainer?)
Combusken's eyes instantly brightened, and its Happiness shot up.
"Of course~" Hayashi Kaede said, rubbing the three feathers on its head with a grin. "Consider it a reward for all your hard work these past days."
"And also…" He smiled slyly. "It's about time I introduced a new drink~ Maybe I'll even let Mew have a taste."
"Combusken~!"
Hearing that, Combusken immediately beamed with joy.
After all, its Trainer had never once broken a promise.