"Looks like your orchard's harvest is pretty good this year!"
Naoki: "It's a pity the berries are so cheap. The entire orchard's berries aren't worth more than a few barrels of my milk."
"Then why not make them into Poffins and sell them at your Pokemon Tavern!" Keri had just seen a group of Dragonair happily eating Poffins.
These days, her Machamp comes to the tavern for a drink almost every day.
As Machamp's Trainer, she felt a bit guilty for letting Machamp freeload off Naoki, so afterwards, she always gave a few League coins to the two Machamps to hand over to the tavern owner.
"That's a good idea too." Naoki thought about it, but in the end, he didn't go for it.
Because Poffins are Dragonite's salary, and the amount he and his sister Indeedee make in a day is limited, selling them at the tavern wouldn't cover Dragonite's wages.
Anyway, Keri was just making a suggestion.
After confirming the location for the Glass Greenhouse, she moved a bunch of construction materials there and started the work.
Seeing that he wasn't needed there, Naoki turned around and went back to the living room.
In the living room, Cyclizar was wrapped in a blanket, looking very warm.
And next to it was a large group of concerned Pokemon.
Alcremie, Pawmot, Dragonite, Glaceon...
Cyclizar looked bewildered. It didn't know what was happening, and it felt quite embarrassed under everyone's gaze.
Seeing Naoki coming over, Cyclizar immediately looked at him with pleading eyes.
Seeing this, Naoki laughed, "Alright, Cyclizar is fine. Don't crowd around it; let it rest for a bit!"
The group of Pokemon obediently backed off.
Naoki checked Cyclizar's condition and, seeing it hadn't been feverish again, finally relaxed.
But in the next moment, he heard a sneeze from Alcremie.
Naoki: "..."
"You can't ride Naclstack around the ranch these days! You're swallowing cold wind into your belly!" Naoki admonished, "If you want to play, go to the Underground Cave where there's no wind."
"M'ma~" Alcremie stuck out its tongue, a bit embarrassed.
Then, it sneezed again.
Naoki couldn't help but facepalm.
He sighed and said to the smaller Pokemon:
"Just stay at home for the next couple of days, don't run around. Pawmot, you don't need to go to the chicken coop; I'll handle it."
Dragonite quickly asked, "Awwo awo?" What about it?
Naoki looked at its huge frame and chubby body, "…You wouldn't get sick even if you slept outside, right?"
For the past few days, Dragonite had been sleeping on the grass outside.
But Dragonite didn't like hearing this.
It immediately started chirping, insisting that it could indeed get sick!
Naoki: "..."
Alright!
He knew Dragonite just wanted some attention, so he went along with it, "Dragonite, take good care of yourself too, don't get sick later."
Only then was Dragonite satisfied, promising to be obedient.
Koraidon: "…" Too childish.
Next in line was Glaceon.
Looking at the Ice Type Glaceon, Naoki fell silent.
"Glaceon, you shouldn't be afraid of the cold, right?"
"Bu-y…"
"Alright, you can play inside too, no Pokemon will fight you for the Ice Stone over there."
With that, Naoki turned to the two Indeedees:
"I'll leave them to you. You can let them watch TV or play hide and seek; I'll go see if Dolliv wants to come over."
Saying this, Naoki went out to ask Dolliv.
But Dolliv gently shook its head to refuse, clearly happy with Naoki's concern, and then said that it sleeps beside Gogoat every night.
Gogoat is fluffy, with thick wool that blocks the wind, making it very cozy.
"Alright then."
Naoki felt a bit frustrated. Smoliv used to be so clingy, but after evolving, its personality changed.
This truly fits the saying—children grow up and become independent.
Even though Dolliv is a girl, and he's not its mother.
But no matter what, as long as Dolliv is happy.
Naoki sighed.
He stood in the pasture, listening to the sounds of construction in the distance, when an autumn breeze blew by. He shook his head and suddenly thought of ginger tea with brown sugar, which dispels cold and warms the body.
Maybe drinking this, the Pokemon on the ranch would feel much better.
There was no ginger at home; Naoki rarely cooked, so he hadn't bought any.
But he remembered there was a place up in the back hills where wild ginger grew.
With a little thought, Naoki put on a backpack and rode a Gogoat into the back hills.