Get Stronger by Pleasing Pokémon? Who Needs to Be a Trainer!

Lin Feng stood nearby and, for once, chose not to interrupt.

In fact, he even let Leafeon continue embarrassing itself a little longer.

He wanted to see how Serperior would respond.

Because he had suddenly realized something.

Among everyone in the house, Serperior seemed to have become the loneliest one.

Back when Alolan Ninetales was still an Alolan Vulpix, Snivy would take it around everywhere, either for walks or training.

But as Alolan Vulpix gradually grew up, evolved into Alolan Ninetales, and made more friends, it naturally began spending more time playing with the Eevees instead.

Among the newer Pokémon in the plantation, only Steenee spoke with Serperior frequently.

That was because Serperior needed to teach it how to use Grassy Terrain.

And Serperior had always taken that responsibility seriously.

Now even Milotic had Primarina as a companion.

Lin Feng often saw the two of them together.

Thinking about it carefully, Serperior had practically been the very first Pokémon to stay by his side.

”Serperior…”

Serperior clearly had not expected this situation, but it did not panic.

After staring silently at Leafeon’s sparkling eyes for a moment, it gently nodded and calmly encouraged her.

”Serperior.” (Then work hard.)

It had no idea what exactly about itself had attracted Leafeon.

But it did not really matter.

And honestly, it did not care much either.

”Leafeon… Leafeon…”

…

March 2nd.

The sunlight was warm, and the spring breeze soft.

Spring was the most comfortable season in the village.

Golden sunlight spread across the plantation, illuminating the lush berry orchards. At this time of year, nearly every berry tree was heavy with fruit, and the sweet fragrance drifting through the air could be smelled from several kilometers away.

Naturally, this attracted greedy wild Pokémon.

Groups of them gathered in the nearby forest, staring longingly at the flourishing orchard in the distance.

The berries there looked huge and bright red.

They had never seen berries that large in the wild before.

Many Pokémon had already considered sneaking over, but whenever they saw Pidgeot circling overhead, they lost their nerve.

Still…

Delicious food was right in front of them.

As the saying goes, fortune favors the bold.

There would always be Pokémon unable to resist temptation, hoping to rely on luck.

For example, the group currently hiding beside the river near the forest edge.

The group consisted of Lechonk, Skwovet, Meowth, and Ponyta.

This was already their fifth visit.

Yet every time they saw the berry orchard across the river, they still did not dare make a move.

”Meowth…” (I really want to go pick some berries…)

Meowth drooled as it clung to the tree trunk, staring at the berries across the river.

Beside it, Skwovet looked even more eager.

It desperately wanted to rush over immediately.

But Pidgeot circling in the sky remained a terrifying obstacle.

It had never seen such an enormous bird Pokémon before.

Every time it looked up at Pidgeot, it felt like one swipe of those claws would send it straight to meet its ancestors.

Meanwhile, below them, Lechonk was casually rooting around near a fallen tree, searching for mushrooms.

Spring was the perfect season for mushrooms and truffles to grow.

Those were its favorite foods.

Truthfully, the berries across the river did not tempt it all that much.

The only reason it stayed here was because Meowth had convinced it earlier:

”Stop digging dirt all day. Those berry trees over there are huge, so the fallen logs nearby must have giant mushrooms too!”

As a result, Lechonk had also become interested in the other side.

As for Ponyta, it had only recently arrived in this forest.

None of the others had seen it before.

The four Pokémon stared at the orchard, then at the shallow river between them.

The river itself was neither wide nor fast.

They could easily swim across it.

And yet, at this moment, that tiny river felt like a bottomless chasm blocking their path.

No one knew how much time passed.

Finally, Skwovet’s eyes sharpened with determination.

”Skwovet!” (I’m going!)

Meowth looked shocked.

”Meowth!?” (Aren’t you afraid of getting caught!?)

”Skwovet!” (There are so many trees over there. If I hide among them, that big bird definitely won’t find me!)

Skwovet spoke confidently.

”Skwovet!” (And I’ve already noticed that the big bird only circles for a while each time. As long as we move while it’s gone, we can make it inside!)

”Skwovet!” (Come with me?)

It looked toward Meowth hopefully.

Meowth immediately shook its head.

”Meow…” (Nope.)

”Skwovet!” (Then I’ll go alone!)

At this point, Skwovet stopped caring what Meowth thought.

It felt like sooner or later, it had to make the trip.

With so many berries sitting right there, if it resisted today, could it really resist tomorrow?

Faced with such a gigantic treasure trove, eventually the temptation would become unbearable.

”Neigh!”

Under the tree, Ponyta enthusiastically agreed.

”Neigh!” (I’m really fast! If you get caught, I’ll rush over and help you escape!)

”Skwovet…”

Skwovet glanced back once before decisively setting off.

It waited for the perfect moment when Pidgeot disappeared from sight, then jumped into the river.

Splash!

After paddling awkwardly across, it reached the opposite bank and carefully searched along the thorn-covered outer wall of the orchard.

Soon, its eyes lit up.

There was a small hole hidden among the brambles.

It looked almost perfectly sized for Skwovet.

Carefully, it squeezed through.

The fragrance of fruit instantly grew far stronger.

When it looked up, all it saw was an endless forest of Oran Berry trees.

Although Oran Berries were the most common berries in the wild, most trees in the forest were guarded by powerful Pokémon, making them difficult to gather.

Usually, it could only collect leftovers abandoned by stronger Pokémon and store them away.

But here…

Oran Berries everywhere.

Everywhere!

And these berries were almost twice the size of the ones outside.

They looked unbelievably delicious!

Excitement filled Skwovet’s face.

It quickly scampered up a berry tree and began biting Oran Berries one after another, stuffing them into its cheeks.

Soon, its mouth was completely packed full.

But just as it prepared to leave, it turned around—

And discovered that Pidgeot had silently landed behind it at some point, staring directly at it.

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