The Wizard fell silent for a moment and didn't reply, continuing to pour various miscellaneous things into the pot.
For the Wizard, he didn't care at all what the finished product tasted like. As long as it didn't poison him when he ate it and filled his stomach, that was enough.
The Wizard's reaction made Viola think he was being modest, which only made her even more expectant.
Just as Viola was thinking this, she saw the Wizard take out something resembling a wand and started stirring the pot with it.
Very quickly, an indescribable smell wafted out from the pot.
"..." The Wizard took out two bowls, ladled a serving, and handed it to Viola. "Want some?"
"No thanks, I brought a sandwich." Viola waved her hands repeatedly, then pulled a sandwich out of her backpack. She then watched as the Wizard let Caterpie out and handed the remaining bowl to it.
Then, Caterpie drank the bowl of food as if walking to its execution and collapsed on the spot.
Viola chewed her bread while watching the Wizard drink the soup expressionlessly. After a long while, she fell into deep thought.
Meanwhile, Ron.
Ron was currently busy placing dehydrators into the factory that had been expanded recently, to perform a round of drying on the fermented tea leaves.
The maturation time of the tea leaves was still uncertain for now. Because he didn't know if, like in Stardew Valley, tea leaves could only be harvested in the last seven days of each season, Ron specifically hired two workers to be responsible for the tea fermentation during this period, as well as the future tea harvesting.
Once everything was ready, Ron boarded the train to Lumiose City, preparing to head from Lumiose City to Santalune City.
"Indeedee, indee~" Indeedee sat obediently next to Ron. Probably because it was out of its familiar environment, Indeedee behaved much more shyly. At least it wasn't like before, enthusiastically jumping in front of every girl it met, whether it knew them or not.
Thinking about the camping trip after returning to Pelican Town, Ron let out a long sigh.
"Indeedee?"
"When we get back to Pelican Town, you're going to Ginger Island for a while first too."
"Indeedee?!"
On what grounds?
Indeedee widened its eyes in defiance.
"Rattata, Rattata~" Ribbon patted Indeedee kindly.
I can go to Ginger Island to keep you company~
"Indeedee!"
Indeedee shook its head vigorously, showing that it absolutely did not want to go to Ginger Island: "Indee, in!" What's the difference between this and exile?
Froakie, crouching on Ron's shoulder, couldn't help but sharpen its gaze.
"Froakie?" (Exile?)
Indeedee and Froakie quickly fell into an argument. The train sped past the forest, and in the blink of an eye, Ron dazedly thought he saw the Wizard, who had already set off on his adventure, and Viola standing nearby.
"I must be seeing things..." Ron thought, blinking his eyes.
This day was probably the most agonizing day for all Bug-type Pokémon enthusiasts active between Coumarine City and Lumiose City.
Because they heard that a Trainer with a magical Caterpie was active in the forest, and even the Bug-type Gym Leader Viola had been soundly defeated, a multitude of Bug-type enthusiasts sought out this trainer for a battle.
The result was seeing that blank-faced Caterpie effortlessly using moves that a Caterpie absolutely should not know. Including, but not limited to, Fire Spin, Solar Beam, Water Pulse, and Sheer Cold.
Ron got off the train. Because traveling from Lumiose City to Santalune City required crossing Santalune Forest, and there was no railway running through it, this leg of the journey had to be done either by renting a Gogoat or on foot.
After thinking it over, Ron decided to rest at the Pokémon Center for the night and rent a Gogoat to ride the next day.
With this in mind, Ron arrived at the Lumiose City Pokémon Center.
As soon as he walked in, Ron noticed something was wrong. The Pokémon Center was scattered with Bug-type Pokémon wrapped in bandages and hooked up to IV drips, along with their indignant trainers.
"That definitely can't be a Caterpie!"
"Exactly, it might be a Pokémon-shaped robot!" another person said, holding their fainted Beedrill. "That guy's Caterpie actually knows Flamethrower!"
"And it knows so many moves but still stays in the form of a Caterpie!"
Ron was confused for a moment. He walked up to Nurse Joy to check in, then turned his head, pointed at the chaotic hall, and asked, "What's going on here?"
"I heard there's a Trainer with a Caterpie in the forest," Joy said, gesturing to describe the person's appearance to Ron. "Wearing a huge hat, purple hair, and a cloak. The Caterpie they have seems to know every Pokémon move, and they don't refuse battle challenges. The only requirement is paying a challenge fee, about 500g."
"——" Ron then used Indeedee to pick up the images in everyone's minds. Realizing that the person causing the commotion was the Wizard, he fell into a brief silence.
"By the way, are you also planning to challenge this trainer?" Joy asked as she handed the room key to Ron.
"No plans for that," Ron shook his head. "I'm heading to Santalune City."
"I see, to challenge the Santalune Gym?"
"If it's on the way," Ron said. Although he had been to the Santalune Gym a few times before, he had been too busy with other things to challenge it. The timing was just right now.
"Then you'll also have to wait a bit; apparently that Gym Leader is also with this trainer," Joy continued.
The Wizard collected the final 500g from the last Bug Catcher boy, who ran away crying. He counted it and handed it to Viola beside him: "Plane ticket money."
"——" Viola gazed in the direction of Lumiose City, then took the money. "Actually, I could have treated you... for the sake of your Caterpie."
"No need," the Wizard replied.
Viola had gotten somewhat used to this strange, taciturn man, so she didn't try to make any more conversation. She just led the Wizard to Lumiose City and put him on a flight to the Sinnoh region.
"I wish you success in finding a Beldum."
"Thank you." The Wizard nodded and turned away.
Viola watched the Wizard's departing back, pondered for a moment, then turned and left.
At this very moment, in Pelican Town.
Having seen Haley off, Emily once again sat alone in her empty house.
She sat quietly on the sofa, blankly staring at the snacks on the table and the magazines Haley had flipped through.
——
After a long while, she took a deep breath and sat up from the sofa.
"Stop overthinking it... think about something happy... like..." Emily pondered for a long time, and finally remembered the camping trip with Ron. So she stood up and started looking for the camping gear she hadn't used in ages.
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