Ange dug up the soil with his shovel, while Diancie used a pickaxe to break the large clumps of dirt.
After digging a small patch, Ange propped himself up on the shovel, straightening his back. "Looks like not everyone can handle this kind of work." He felt his waist and back aching after just a short while.
Diancie laughed at him, "Ange, you're no good!"
"You say I'm no good?" Ange immediately bristled. "You dare say that?" He stomped the shovel into the ground hard. "I'll show you what I can do today!"
But ten minutes later, Ange was again propping himself up on the shovel, holding his back. "Ouch… I really can't do this."
Diancie burst into laughter.
"What are you laughing at!" Ange glared at Diancie.
"Ha ha ha~~" Diancie laughed even harder.
Rubbing his sore waist, Ange looked at Komala. "Komala, don't you want to help? Families share blessings and burdens together!"
He had asked casually, but Komala actually rolled over.
It lifted the tree pillow in its hands. A green glow appeared, and it smashed it into the ground with force. The earth shook, chunks of soil flew up, and a patch of land was cleared in an instant.
"A Wood Hammer!" Ange exclaimed.
Komala had just used the Grass-type physical move Wood Hammer.
"You're amazing, Komala, unlike some people," Diancie said, glancing at Ange.
Ange: …
"No personal attacks, huh!"
Diancie played dumb. "I didn't say anything about you, so why are you taking it personally?"
Angrily, Ange said, "Just wait, I'll do more missions, earn more stats, and see who'll end up on top!"
Diancie shrugged, "I'll be waiting then."
Growing flowers didn't need a large area. The patch Komala cleared was enough, so Ange dropped the hoe and squatted, picking out the weeds.
If the weeds weren't removed, they would grow back and compete with the flowers for nutrients.
Komala didn't stay idle either. It rolled in the dirt, helping Diancie break the soil with its tree pillow.
It got covered in mud and would need a good wash afterward.
Watching Diancie and Komala busy at work, Ange couldn't help but smile.
He really enjoyed this life, with cute companions and a not-too-busy work routine. Life was calm and peaceful.
Suddenly, Ange heard rustling from nearby grass. He asked, puzzled, "Who's there?"
The grass moved again, and after several seconds, a Litwick bounced out.
Mmph~ mmph~~
Seeing Ange, Litwick looked uneasy. It called back to the grass twice, and one by one, other Pokémon jumped out: Pancham, Helioptile, Skitty, Stunky, and finally, Gulpin, which Ange recognized.
Ange smiled and greeted it, "Oh, it's you. Are these your friends?"
Gulpin nodded slightly.
"Hello, my name is Ange. I just moved to Nebel Plateau." Ange knew the Pokémon were afraid but greeted them openly.
Several Pokémon shrank back a little.
Diancie quickly stepped forward, "Did you come here for something? To eat?"
Litwick, braver, shook its head and explained.
They had learned humans were giving them food. Even though scared, they wanted to express their gratitude. They would not ignore Ange's kindness just because they disliked humans.
After Diancie relayed this, Ange asked, "You want to repay me?"
Mmph~
Litwick nodded.
"I see…" Ange thought for a few seconds, then said, "Alright, I'm planning to plant some flowers. You can help me!"
Building trust with Pokémon takes time, so he decided to create opportunities for interaction.
Litwick hesitated but finally nodded.
"Good, let's get started."
Ange assigned tasks.
Planting flowers required fertilizer. He didn't have any. He could buy it in the system, but he had few Happiness Points, so he decided to make it himself.
He sent Pancham, Scrafty, Helioptile, and Bunnelby to gather dead leaves, branches, compost, and Pokémon droppings.
The flowerbed needed stones around it. He asked Litleo, Skitty, Stunky, Spritzee, Zigzagoon, and Gulpin to bring stones.
Stones couldn't be too small or too heavy. He told Gulpin to use its poison to dissolve large stones into smaller pieces if needed.
As for Litwick…
He had cleared the weeds, but roots and seeds remained. Litwick used fire to lightly bake the soil, killing weeds and sterilizing it.
Once tasks were assigned, the Pokémon got busy.
Soon, piles of leaves, compost, droppings, and stones were brought back.
Bunnelby, usually clean, had to carry droppings. It wrapped them in leaves, showing a disgusted expression, making everyone laugh.
Luckily, the droppings had dried in the wind, or Bunnelby might have scratched Ange's face.
The soil needed to cool after Litwick's fire.
Meanwhile, Ange and Pancham prepared the fertilizer, and Diancie and the others arranged the stones.
Ange dug a deep pit, Litwick burned the leaves and branches, then they mixed the ashes, compost, and droppings into the pit, covering it with unburned leaves for fermentation.
By the time Ange finished, Diancie had set up the stone border. The patch looked like a real flowerbed.
"Thanks for all your hard work! You're amazing!" Ange praised them.
The Pokémon were both afraid and happy, sneaking glances at Ange.
Spritzee and Zigzagoon thought: Humans aren't as scary as everyone says.
They were native to the Nebel Plateau, never harmed by humans. Their fear was based on local tales.
Seeing their bold looks, Ange smiled broadly, showing his white teeth.
(ω)
Spritzee and Zigzagoon turned away awkwardly, pretending nothing happened.
When the soil cooled, Ange and the Pokémon dug small holes and planted the flowers.
"The last step is watering." Ange brought out small buckets.
Spritzee suddenly flew up.
Whoop~ whoop~~
Ange asked Diancie, puzzled, "What does Spritzee mean?"
Diancie explained, "Spritzee wants to handle the watering."
"Really?" Ange asked Spritzee. "Can you do it?"
Spritzee confidently tapped its chest with its wings, then shyly hid behind Zigzagoon.
Ange said gently, "Alright, I'll leave it to you."
Spritzee nodded and flew off.
Ange was curious how it would water the flowers.
A short while later, Spritzee returned with another Pokémon, a Castform.
Castform could control the weather, changing form with sun, rain, or snow. Though small, it had powerful weather abilities.
Spritzee had told Castform about humans, so it wasn't surprised to see Ange, just shy behind its friend.
Ange learned from Spritzee that Castform was a good friend, hence it came to help.
"Thanks, Castform," Ange said.
Castform nodded and flew above the flowerbed. A small dark cloud formed, and soon light rain fell.
At the first drop, it transformed into its Rain form, looking like a water droplet with legs.
Castform's type changed from Normal to Water, and it would switch to Fire or Ice forms when under harsh sunlight or hail.
It could control the rain to fall precisely over the flowerbed without affecting other places.
Ange observed for a few seconds. "Castform, can you make the rain a bit lighter? Too much will flood the flowers."
Ptoo~
Castform nodded, and the rain lessened.
Ange gave it a thumbs-up. "You're amazing."
Castform blushed slightly.
After watering the flowerbed, Castform tried to leave but Ange called it, "Wait a minute, I'll give you some food."
Hearing of food, Castform paused, unsure whether to stay or go.
Ange told the others, "Don't leave. I'll feed you all."
Mmph~ mmph~~
Litwick shook its flame, signaling it didn't want to stay. It was here to repay kindness, not for a meal.
The other Pokémon nodded, but memories of yesterday's food made them salivate.
Ange dramatically said, "Oh no, I accidentally prepared too much food. There are only Diancie, Komala, and me. We can't finish it all just by ourselves. I'd be so sad to waste it…"
Even simple Pokémon worried about wasting food.
"Yes, it would be great if someone helped us," Diancie said knowingly, supporting Ange.
"Will you help me?" Ange asked Litwick and the others.
Diancie picked up Litwick, "Stay, stay."
Seeing Ange and Diancie's hopeful faces, Litwick nodded.
"Great." Diancie looked at the other Pokémon, "You'll stay too, right?"
With Litwick agreeing, the others naturally nodded.
"Then it's decided. Let's wash up first, then we eat." Ange said loudly.
The Pokémon looked at each other, realizing they were all covered in mud.
"Ha ha ha~~"
Yacha~ yacha~~
Mmph~ mmph~
Everyone laughed together, and the Pokémon seemed to forget their fear of Ange.