"Aven! Aven!"
At that moment, Aven suddenly heard someone calling out.
Looking over, he saw Peter, Uncle Texi's son, holding a rope. The other end of the rope was tied around the leaf on a Oddish's head.
'Speak of the devil…' Aven chuckled to himself and quickly walked over.
"Here, this is the Oddish you wanted," Peter said, handing the Pokémon over with a puzzled expression. "Aven, are you really going to use Oddish to make potions?"
In his mind, Oddish—being a magic beast that absorbed nutrients from the soil—was like a pest, something to be cleared from the orchard.
Hearing this, Aven gave a helpless smile. "Not exactly. I'm collecting Oddish to raise and train them so they can help protect the farm."
"Train them?"
Little Andy, who had run over after spotting someone arrive, heard their conversation and his eyes immediately lit up.
Over time, he'd come to know that big brother Aven had been training both Petilil and Cherubi, and he'd been incredibly envious.
"Yeah, it's something I'm experimenting with," Aven said with a smile.
Little Andy immediately looked eager. "Then… can I train a Oddish too?"
Aven paused for a moment. After thinking it over and deciding a Oddish likely wouldn't be dangerous for Andy, he nodded. "But you'll have to earn its trust on your own."
The boy cheered loudly and ran off toward the grassy area, heading straight for the timid Oddish he had seen several times before.
As for the one in Peter's hands, he felt it wasn't really part of the farm, so it wouldn't be right to try and claim it.
"How about you? Want to give it a shot?" Aven asked the boy in front of him, who had fallen into thought. Peter was one of the few young people in the village, and Aven thought he had potential—maybe even the makings of the village's first Pokémon trainer.
Peter hesitated but still shook his head. It wasn't that he had no interest in becoming a trainer. He just didn't really think Oddish counted as a "real" magic beast. In his imagination, a proper magic beast had to be tall, mighty, and powerful—like Uncle Mike's Luxray.
As he thought that, his eyes happened to fall on the Rhyhorn in the field, and he couldn't look away. That was the kind of Pokémon he'd imagined!
Taking the Oddish from Peter's hands, Aven didn't push the matter. He simply thanked him and handed over a bottle of healing potion with a smile. "Thanks."
Peter blinked at the gift and quickly tried to refuse it. He knew very well how much Aven had done for the village lately. Catching a Oddish was hardly worth payment, especially something as valuable as a healing potion.
"It's fine. Take it."
"If you come across any more Oddish, I'd really appreciate it if you could help me catch them."
Aven smiled. To him, the value of a Oddish was far greater than that of a single potion.
After some back and forth, Peter finally accepted it reluctantly. He also promised that if he saw another Oddish, he'd try to catch it for Aven.
After Peter left, Aven began to think. Maybe he could post a bounty on Oddish sightings—that way, he could quickly gather a large number of them.
"Odd-Odd…"
While Aven was deep in thought, the Oddish in his hands started to struggle violently. The little guy looked exhausted—clearly, it hadn't stopped resisting while in Peter's care.
"Alright, alright, calm down. I'll let you go in just a second."
As he spoke, Aven gently placed Oddish on the ground. Just then, the other Oddish from the grassy area ran over to check on it.
Trailing behind them, a panting Little Andy followed with a disappointed look on his face. The Oddish he approached had completely ignored his attempts at conversation.
"Okay, Oddish. You're free now."
"You can leave if you want. Or, if you'd prefer to stay here in the orchard, you're welcome to. No one will chase you away again."
Repeating the same words he'd once said to his own Oddish, Aven untied the rope.
Upon hearing this, the resident Oddish began trying to persuade its newly-freed companion to stay.
A moment later, both Oddish started walking toward the grassy field.
The newly released one still looked a little hesitant, but as soon as it entered the grass and felt the abundant life energy in the soil, it was completely won over.
'Two Oddish now...' Aven thought joyfully. 'Looks like the plan to train them for Stun Spore production needs to be moved up.'
Off to the side, Little Andy once again set his sights on the new Oddish, his face full of warmth and kindness. He planned to build a good relationship with it so it would choose to be his partner willingly.
After playing for a while, Petilil returned to Aven's side. Even in the midst of fun, the little guy hadn't forgotten its goal of becoming stronger.
Aven was quite pleased with its self-discipline. To become stronger, dedicated training was a must—and if they wanted to protect all of this, they'd need the strength to do so.
Since it was still morning, Petilil began with Toxic training, followed by Absorb and Leech Seed.
Thanks to the long period of training, Petilil could now release Absorb externally as a beam to attack enemies and siphon their stamina.
As for Leech Seed, after watching Aven make potions, it had gained some insights. With the mantra "concentrate to find the essence" in mind, it learned to compress Grass-type energy into a single seed.
Next, it would have to control the seed—to make it take root and grow, turning it into a proper Leech Seed.
With the vitality imbued in the cultivated soil and the training buffs from the Grass Terrain, controlling the seed was becoming easier. It wouldn't be long before Petilil fully mastered the move.
"Next, we'll need to focus on how to cast it effectively."
"For that, Starly can be a great live target."
"And maybe during battle, I can also give that stubborn bird a special lesson. Its current method of smashing into trees won't help it learn Take Down anytime soon."
Aven mentally mapped out Petilil's next steps. As someone from the modern world, he fully understood the value of a powerful Pokémon.
(End of Chapter)