Chapter 484:

Kaede didn’t believe for a second that this mischievous girl would call him just because she missed him.

If she really missed him, she wouldn’t have called from deep within a wilderness area like this.

"Fine, send me your location. I’ll have a Pidgeot make a delivery."

"Yay, thanks bro~"

"Is there anything else?" Ignoring her thanks, Kaede continued.

"Nope."

"Then I’m hanging up?"

"Okay."

"...Take good care of that Gible. Don’t let your guard down too much at the beginning."

"Okay, okay..."

Then, Megumi on the other end proactively hung up the call.

Leaving Kaede feeling a bit unsettled.

He couldn’t help but complain internally, "Damn, feels like she’s gotten way more cunning after this trip."

Then he shook his head, thinking it was probably a good thing.

After all, traveling out in the world required some street smarts; being too naive wouldn’t do.

***

Meanwhile, in the Titan Mountains.

The "Megumi" here had just put down the phone, the smile fading from her lips as she let out a long sigh.

"Such a formidable human. Even through a screen, he gave me a sense of being seen through."

Then, the surrounding scene began to shift.

The Meowscarada, Blastoise, Noivern, Gabite, and Farfetch’d that had been there moments ago all vanished like ink dissolving in water.

All that remained on the spot was an unconscious girl and a Pokémon with wild, flowing fur in stark red and white, looking like a vengeful spirit.

Its eyes were a deep crimson, the kind that could silence a crying child.

The girl’s appearance was identical to the "Megumi" who had been on the call.

The Zoroark looked at the sleeping girl on the ground, then thought of the human on the phone.

It couldn’t help but feel another wave of palpitations.

It was certain the human hadn’t noticed anything.

That was thanks to the screen.

And because it had drawn from this girl’s memories, it was already highly cautious of the phone-bound human’s capabilities. The scenes it used were all based on real events, ensuring he couldn’t spot any inconsistencies.

Yet, even so, it felt that intense unease.

That’s why it ended the call so quickly.

If it were a face-to-face meeting in reality... that would be a different story.

But even so, it had to try.

It needed to go back. It didn’t belong to this era...

***

Back at the plantation.

Putting away his phone, Kaede continued towards the shed and went straight to the wine barrels.

He pulled out the stopper.

A fresh, fruity aroma mixed with the scent of alcohol wafted straight into his nose, making his eyes light up.

"It’s ready~"

He didn’t check immediately. Instead, he looked at the other barrel next to it—the Petaya Berry Wine infused with Rayquaza’s Scale. Opening it revealed a faint fruity scent, but it wasn’t strong yet.

According to the [Eye of Exploration] description, it was still fermenting.

He turned back to the first barrel.

Sure enough, its description had changed.

[Legendary Dish — Antler Pecha Berry Wine]

Crafted using dozens of Berries and Xerneas’s Antler, this berry wine possesses various exclusive effects for Fairy-type Pokémon. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Effect 1: Fairy Aura — Exclusive to Fairy-type Pokémon. The first Fairy-type Pokémon to consume this gains the Fairy Aura ability.

Effect 2: Fountain of Life — This dish contains potent life energy. Long-term consumption can extend lifespan.

Effect 3: Critical Strike — When facing a type it is super effective against, the critical-hit ratio increases by 30%.

Effect 4: Fairy Affinity — After consumption, a Fairy-type Pokémon’s affinity increases by 30%.

Effect 5: Toxin Resistance...

Effect 6: ...

...

Perhaps because he used so many types of Berries, the resulting dish effects were numerous.

Kaede counted a full ten effects at a glance.

Actually, many effects were similar or overlapping, so he didn’t pay them too much mind.

But the strength of the effects varied.

For example, Toxin Resistance. Wine made with ordinary Pecha Berries only raised resistance by 10%. Wine made with Pecha Berries from the central tree boosted that to 25%.

A pretty awesome effect.

Besides that, what particularly surprised Kaede were Effects 1 and 2.

Fairy Aura — that was Xerneas’s signature ability.

It effectively boosted the power of Fairy-type moves.

Combined with Critical Strike, Kaede didn’t even dare imagine how much damage a move would do to a Dragon-type Pokémon.

These two effects gave Kaede a strange feeling.

It almost felt like... everything was targeting Rayquaza?

Could it be that in the future, Rayquaza would truly face a calamity at their hands?

Thinking this, he couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

Then he quickly shook his head, dismissing the thought.

He began pondering who should get the first sip of this wine.

Because its first effect was very clear: only the first Fairy-type Pokémon to drink it would gain the Fairy Aura ability.

And his Breeding House had quite a few Fairy-type Pokémon.

Gardevoir, Alolan Ninetales, Sylveon... and Flabébé and its evolutions too.

But obviously, Flabébé could be ruled out.

That left Gardevoir, Alolan Ninetales, and Sylveon.

Actually, giving it to Gardevoir was the best choice because its level was highest.

But Gardevoir didn’t harbor any grand ambitions of defeating Rayquaza.

So the main contenders were Alolan Ninetales and Sylveon.

Alolan Ninetales had weather-summoning abilities, but weather was hard-countered by Rayquaza.

Ah, forget it, don’t overthink it.

Sylveon was the pure, bona fide Fairy-type. Alolan Ninetales should focus on its Ice-type mastery. Trying to do too much leads to mastering none.

Having made his decision, Kaede headed back to the kitchen.

He had a busy day ahead.

Not only did he need to prepare special dishes for the four little ones, but he also had to make Energy Cubes for Megumi’s Pokémon far away.

This busyness lasted until after lunch, around 3 PM, when he finally finished everything.

"Phew..."

Looking at the fully packed storage capsule, Kaede let out a long sigh.

Because of the additional Gible, he had prepared an extra portion in the capsule.

But he was quite eager to see that Gible, after evolving into Garchomp and learning Dragon Dance, shine brightly in various competitions.

Originally, Kaede planned to just send any Pidgeot.

But on second thought, the distance was quite far, and the Pidgeot had never been to that area. Coincidentally, Dragonite had just flown back from the Alola region, so he entrusted this honorable task to it.

"Boo hoo hoo..." Dragonite, having just returned without even resting its feet, was assigned another delivery. Its expression clearly turned miserable.

Kaede hugged its big belly, comforting it, "There, there, I know you’re tired. But you’re the best at navigation, so I have to ask you."

Only then did it take the storage capsule and fly off into the sky.