Chapter 245:
"It's snowing? Venusaur?"
In Magnolia Village, Genmu—who had been feeding his Venusaur some Energy Cubes—paused as snowflakes drifted down onto his neck.
In front of him stood his partner Pokémon: a large, quadrupedal creature with a sturdy frame, wise eyes, and a massive flower blooming atop its back beneath palm-like leaves.
"Venusaur..."
A few snowflakes landed on Venusaur's body, and it shook itself, clearly uncomfortable. It sensed something strange about this snowfall but couldn't pinpoint the reason.
It felt… deliberate. As if some Ice-type Pokémon had created it.
When it conveyed this feeling to its Trainer, Genmu frowned.
"Weather caused by Pokemon? Impossible. Judging by how far this snowfall has spread—it's reaching as far as the Aogiri City area—it would take a Pokémon nearly at Champion level to generate weather on this scale."
He shook his head. "A Champion-level Ice-type Pokémon, here in Shoshu Province? That's unlikely. We're not far from the sea, but still..."
He hesitated, then muttered, "Unless... the Legendary Pokémon Articuno appeared."
That thought wasn't entirely far-fetched. After all, the Eastova League's Chief Champion's ace Pokémon was Moltres. It wouldn't be strange for its counterpart to appear nearby.
But still—today's forecast had clearly said it would be sunny.
So how did it suddenly start snowing?
Unable to figure it out, Genmu stopped overthinking it. Gazing at the white landscape, he suddenly remembered something.
"Speaking of snow… I wonder how that kid is doing with the Miltank. It's his first time raising one. With winter coming, he might've overlooked something."
Feeling uneasy, Genmu stood up. "Let's go take a look."
Without further hesitation, he headed toward the barn. Since it had begun snowing, he'd need to prepare extra feed for the Miltank. Once the pasture grass stopped growing, things would get difficult if they weren't ready.
Meanwhile, the sudden snowfall in Aogiri City quickly caught the attention of the local Pokémon League branch.
In the Pokémon world, an abnormal weather event was rarely natural. It usually meant one of two things: either a detection system error or a Pokémon using a large-scale weather move.
Detection errors, however, were extremely rare.
So the League immediately began investigating the cause.
When they traced the abnormal energy readings back to Aogiri Town, the senior officer in charge frowned deeply.
"Aogiri Town again? With a snowfall range this wide... could another Legendary Pokémon be there?"
"This energy fluctuation feels like a Champion-level Ice-type using Snowscape..."
"Did the Ice-type Elite Four member return early? But wasn't she on vacation in Kanto?"
"..."
The officers exchanged looks. The last major incident had also originated from Aogiri Town.
And even the League Champion had personally visited that place multiple times.
Before they could file their report, a notice arrived from headquarters:
"Don't worry. The snow will stop soon."
That message was enough to make everyone breathe easier, though they still issued a brief advisory to city residents just in case.
Back at the breeding house.
Hayashi Kaede exhaled deeply after reading the sweating emoji Mr. Kazephyr had sent him.
He had just finished explaining the situation to Champion Kazephyr, claiming that the strange weather had been caused by Mew "experimenting" with climate control.
It was a convenient excuse. After all, if he told the Champion an Alolan Vulpix had caused it, who would believe him?
Finally, Champion Kazephyr replied, "Approximately when will the snow stop?"
Hayashi Kaede answered quickly: "Five minutes. It'll stop within five minutes!"
A single "Okay." came back. Then silence.
Hayashi Kaede sighed in relief. Thankfully, he'd gotten Kazephyr's contact information last time—otherwise, the Champion might have rushed over personally every time something strange happened.
╰（‵□′）╯:"Vulpix!" (I'm amazing!)
Alolan Vulpix, sitting on the table, looked up at the sky in astonishment. It could hardly believe it had somehow affected the weather over such a massive area.
Hayashi Kaede, meanwhile, checked its data panel.
[Pokémon: Alolan Vulpix]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Snow Warning (+)]
[Potential: Gold]
[Level: 52 → 54]
[Moves: Hypnosis, Moonblast, Tail Whip, Powder Snow, Ice Shard, Icy Wind, Disable…]
[Friendship: 100 (It sees you as its source of trust.)]
[Happiness: 80 (I'm so strong! I feel like I can defeat Rayquaza!)]
Its energy level had jumped by nearly ten times—and it was still an Alolan Vulpix! (TSL note: it is shocking as it got stronger but haven't evolved)
Hayashi Kaede inhaled sharply. No wonder it suddenly had the confidence to challenge Rayquaza.
But the most astonishing part was its newfound Climate Control effect.
That massive Snowscape meant that whenever Alolan Vulpix used its weather ability in the future, it would gain an overwhelming home-field advantage.
It reminded Hayashi Kaede of the three Legendary Birds from Shamouti Island—each maintaining balance in the world's climate.
Still, there was one problem…
Rayquaza's Air Lock completely nullified weather effects.
So if Vulpix truly wanted to challenge the Sky High Pokémon one day, it still had a long way to go.
"Alright, alright" Hayashi Kaede chuckled, picking up the still-excited Vulpix. "Let's stop the snow now, okay? We don't want to trouble everyone."
The Combee must have already thought winter had come and retreated into their hive.
"Vulpix..."
Alolan Vulpix looked up at the sky and reluctantly drew back its power.
The clouds above Aogiri Town rapidly contracted toward the plantation until the sky cleared completely, sunlight breaking through again.
Only the thin white layer covering the ground remained as proof of how heavy the snowfall had been.
But the commotion had drawn the attention of the other Pokémon. Soon, many gathered around.
"Eevee..."
The group of Eevees stared at their "captain" in disbelief.
Blaziken looked equally confused.
What on earth had it eaten to become so strong all of a sudden?
The Pokémon surrounded Alolan Vulpix, gazing in awe. Its six tails swayed proudly, unable to stop, a satisfied smile spreading across its face.
Fortunately, Hayashi Kaede quickly shifted everyone's attention.
"Alright, everyone—time to eat!"
During his two hours in the kitchen, Hayashi Kaede hadn't only made the special dishes.
He'd also prepared food for the rest of his Pokémon: honey-glazed steak, honey-fried eggs, cream puff bread, and small cookies paired with fresh vegetables.
With Gardevoir's help, he had also ground Moltres' feathers into powder—the perfect barbecue seasoning for Blaziken's meal that night.
As for the Zapdos feather, he decided to save it since he didn't yet have an Electric-type Pokémon.
Then there was the incomplete Silver Wing from Lugia.
When he held it, a buoyant breeze seemed to swirl around him—pure Flying-type energy.
Speaking of Flying-types, there were plenty in his plantation: twenty Pidgey and Pidgeotto, plus Dragonite.
It was a big flock, so turning Lugia's energy into Energy Cubes would be ideal—but only after the Pidgetto had evolved.
Otherwise, it might overwhelm them.
And judging by their training, that day wasn't far off.
Soon, everyone gathered in the garden for the meal.
Alolan Vulpix wasn't hungry, happily munching on raw cabbage instead. The Eevees clustered nearby, chatting softly.
Goodra huddled close to Blaziken, trembling slightly from the cold. Noticing this, Blaziken let its fiery energy flare, becoming as warm as a furnace and melting the snow around them.
"Goodra..." (Thank you…) murmured Goodra, eyes shining.
Blaziken rubbed the back of its head shyly and smiled.
Dragonite, well-insulated and unbothered by the cold, stood behind Steenee, letting her lean against its soft belly like a living cushion.
Milotic guided Brionne through the water channel to the plantation, while Serperior slithered in with faint traces of snow on its sleek body, looking distinctly displeased.
Snow, after all, was bad for its crops.
With a flick of its vine, it pointed accusingly at the white patches over the garden's flowers.
"Serperior!"
"Vulpix?"
At first, Alolan Vulpix tilted its head in confusion. Then, realizing what Serperior meant, its ears drooped.
But Vulpix only knew how to create Snowscape, not clear it with Sunny Day.
It began to panic.
At that moment, the male Indeedee arrived from the breeding house with Alcremie, wearing a grave expression.
"Indeedee..." (It snowed. The vegetables in the plantation are covered, and the outside too.)
"Vulpix…"
Alolan Vulpix scurried to Hayashi Kaede's side, eyes welling up.
┭┮﹏┭┮: "Vulpix..." (I didn't mean to… I didn't know it would be like this…)
Its heart sank.
Had it ruined the plantation?
If so, the trainer wouldn't be able to sell anything—or feed everyone.
It remembered what Blaziken once said: the trainer spent a lot of money keeping them all fed.
Would Hayashi Kaede… abandon it too?
Seeing its trembling body, Hayashi Kaede quickly picked it up.
"It's okay, it's okay" he said softly. "We'll ask Mew to use Sunny Day later. Everything will be fine."
The untimely snow had indeed caused minor trouble, but most of their crops were cold-resistant—daikon, napa cabbage, carrots, lettuce. A brief snow cover wouldn't harm them.
Still, Indeedee's reminder made Kaede realize that other areas might need help clearing snow too.
He closed his eyes and used his Aura to locate Mew, who hadn't returned yet.
His awareness spread outward—and soon found Mew, along with Jirachi and Victini, at the training field.
Mew was pushing a snowball nearly larger than itself, the snow crunching beneath it.
Behind it, Jirachi and Victini happily packed smaller snowballs onto the big one, patting it into shape.
"Jirachi!" (Such a big, big snowball!)
It was Jirachi's first time seeing snow—cold, soft, melting instantly in its hands.
The three were having the time of their lives.
Then Mew froze, sensing Hayashi Kaede's Aura. It sighed, looking reluctant.
But when it caught the meaning of Kaede's thoughts, its eyes lit up.
Hovering into the air, it quickly spread its psychic power, forming a transparent barrier over the field to isolate the temperature.
Then, with a flick of its tiny paw, it cast Sunny Day—and the snow began to melt.
As warmth returned to the land, Hayashi Kaede exhaled and hugged the trembling Vulpix closer.
"There, see? It's all fine now."
"Vulpix..."
Alolan Vulpix buried its face into his chest, feeling the steady warmth of his heartbeat.
In that moment, it understood something clearly:
A real Trainer would never abandon their Pokémon.
And this warmth—this comfort—was proof of that.