Chapter 103:
"This many?"
The moment she saw the photos, Inoue Shūko's face showed astonishment.
The photos were taken by Rotom flying high in the sky, mainly because the pasture behind the barn was too large, and only an aerial view could capture the full scene.
The same was true for the photos of the areas on either side of the Bluestone Trail.
"Ahem..." Hayashi Kaede coughed twice.
Because he really had planted quite a lot.
He hadn't thought too much about it when planting before; he just went ahead and planted.
Once all the flowers bloomed, he hadn't expected it to look like this.
"Phew... You could support an entire colony of Combee with this. I won't sell you that many, though. Five at most."
Hayashi Kaede's eyes lit up. "Great, I'll take five!"
The more of these honey-producing Pokémon, the better~
And besides, Combee are very automated Pokémon; they collect pollen to make honey and feed themselves.
They don't need their "Queen" to worry about them at all.
You only need to leave them honey during rainy weather and winter.
"Alright."
Inoue didn't say much more and led him towards the wooden house.
The boxes outside were just temporary resting places for the Combee; the real living quarters were inside.
Inside the wooden house, there were many triangular shelves, and on these shelves were bird's nest-like wooden rooms.
This was where the Combee actually lived.
Hayashi Kaede memorized the structure, planning to build one in his own barn later.
When they stopped in front of one room, Inoue motioned for him to wait, then went in alone. After five or six minutes, she came out holding five Poké Balls.
Handing them to Hayashi Kaede one by one, she said softly, "These five little ones are the newest Combee. They'll be able to gather honey for you once they're in a new place, so wait until you get home before letting them out."
"Is that so? Okay."
Hayashi Kaede looked at the five Poké Balls in his hand with great curiosity. His eagerness to see them was temporarily suppressed by her words.
But he still used his Veridian Power to sense the life inside.
Once he sensed the warm life within, he smiled contentedly.
This way,
his plantation would have a new species of Pokémon.
However, he didn't forget to ask about the price. "How much?"
Inoue: "Male Combee are very cheap, only six thousand PokéDollars each. For five, that's thirty thousand."
Hayashi Kaede nodded and immediately had Rotom transfer thirty thousand.
This price was very reasonable because raising a Combee, if properly fed and provided with flowers, was equivalent to having a Pokémon that permanently provided honey.
"Also, do you need a hive? I have spare hives here."
Shuifen pointed to the "nests" placed on the triangular shelves nearby.
Hayashi Kaede's eyes lit up. "Absolutely needed."
"Then I'll give you one as a gift."
Shuifen smiled and led him to one of the rooms.
Upon entering, Hayashi Kaede found it filled with hives.
So, with Shuifen's permission, he picked the largest hive and stored it in a Capsule.
"Alright, child. The afternoon challenge matches will be held in the town square. Before that, if you need to rest, there are guesthouses specifically for visitors at the foot of the mountain."
"Mmhmm."
Hayashi Kaede let Shuifen's advice go in one ear and out the other.
He then quickly bid her farewell and had Gardevoir Teleport him directly back to his own garden.
Was she kidding?
Have him wait in Budo Town for over two hours?
That was enough time for him to go home, set up the hive, and see what the Combee looked like~
Inside the barn.
"Miltank?"
The Miltank were startled by Hayashi Kaede's sudden appearance, then all gathered around, calling out happily, "Miltank~" (Dumplings, gone.. dumplings gone...)
"Miltank..." (All eaten, all eaten.)
"You guys?"
Seeing this, Hayashi Kaede was taken aback.
He remembered leaving enough Wild Grass Dumplings for the Miltank for the whole day before he left,
But it was only noon now, and the Wild Grass Dumplings were already finished.
Looking at their bellies, each Miltank's stomach was round and full. Clearly, they had already eaten the food meant for the afternoon.
Hayashi Kaede didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "I only left you for one day, and you ate this much."
"Miltank...."
One Miltank rubbed against Hayashi Kaede, its eyes full of longing.
It meant it still wanted to eat in the afternoon.
To this, Hayashi Kaede could only say helplessly, "Fine... wait a bit. Let me take care of something first, then I'll feed you."
For Miltank, eating a lot was actually quite good because the energy they consumed could turn into MooMoo Milk. As long as he milked them diligently, it wasn't a problem, and it could even improve the quality of the Miltank's milk faster.
"By the way, once the new partners start producing honey, we should be able to change your flavor." Hayashi Kaede added.
They could switch to a honey flavor.
"Miltank?"
"Miltank~!"
Hearing their Trainer say this, the three Miltank's eyes immediately lit up.
"Miltank...!" (Good, good....)
The Miltank immediately fell into fantasies about the delicious food.
Shaking his head, Hayashi Kaede stopped paying attention to them and quickly went to the junction between the garden and the barn. He placed two wooden planks on the barn's fence, set the hive on the planks, and finally took out those five Poké Balls.
He released the Combee one by one.
"Combee...."
"Combee..."
The Combee were a bit dazed at first upon emerging, then they saw Hayashi Kaede in front of them.
He tried his best to smile gently, pointing outside the barn. "See, that's where you'll gather honey from now on."
Then he lifted the windbreak curtain so they could follow him out.
The curious Combee followed. When they saw the scene outside, their tiny eyes widened enormously.
"Combee?" (So many...)
"Combee!!" (So many flowers...)