Blue seas, seas of trees, and the light rail—these are all the calling cards of Coumarine City.
Together with Shalour City, it is known as one of the twin stars of tourism and vacation along Kalos's western coast.
The entire city is built around a deep-water bay, with the light rail running through it, connecting the northern and southern shores from end to end. At this moment, aboard one of the light rail trains, Silas was holding his Minccino as they toured the whole city.
"Isn't it beautiful, Minccino?"
"Min~"
Pressed up against the window, Minccino stretched out its tiny paws, its large eyes filled to the brim with amazement.
Coumarine City is divided into two parts: one spread along both sides of the coast, and the other perched high atop towering cliffs.
Right now, they were perfectly positioned between the two, with the entirety of Coumarine City laid out before them in full view.
"Min~!"
All of a sudden, Minccino cried out loudly. One paw grabbed onto Silas's collar while the other pointed urgently out the window.
Just moments ago, a Gogoat had raced past the light rail, and behind it followed a large herd of Skiddo.
To these fellows, sheer cliffs and steep precipices were no obstacle at all.
"Don't worry, Gogoat are experts on cliffs," Silas said soothingly, calming the timid Minccino and motioning for it to take another look.
Minccino cautiously opened its eyes, only to find itself staring straight at a Skiddo on the other side of the glass, the two of them separated by a single transparent pane.
"Ski~?"
The Skiddo tilted its head curiously, thinking to itself just how adorable the little one opposite it was.
And so, the light rail continued forward alongside the herd of goats, while Minccino and the Skiddo stared at each other wide-eyed through the window.
Before long, a whole crowd of Skiddo had gathered outside the window.
All of them had been drawn over by Minccino.
"Oh my, my, what an adorable Pokémon."
Turning around, Silas saw a kind-looking elderly man.
His appearance and attire were no different from the last time they had met.
Even his posture was exactly the same.
His back was slightly hunched, one hand clasped behind him, while the other held a pair of enormous scissors.
"Gym Leader Ramos~"
Silas bowed slightly as he greeted him.
He had a Grass Badge from this very man—the final badge he obtained at the end of his journey.
Even Silas's decision to stop along Route 12 and purchase a ranch had been made after listening to this elder's advice.
Ramos narrowed his eyes into thin slits, a smile never leaving his face. "Well, if it isn't you! Young Silas."
"How's it going? Have you run into any difficulties managing the ranch? No need to be shy!"
Ramos was exactly this kind of Gym Leader—someone who used his abundant experience and life wisdom to answer the questions and troubles of young Trainers.
He was deeply loved by the younger generation of Trainers and was fondly known as "the old tree that is still in bloom."
Whether it was about daily life or anything else, he always had just the right piece of advice to offer.
"Thanks to you, I was able to buy that ranch. It's already running smoothly now," Silas said with a smile, then pointed to the Minccino in his arms. "This is a Pokémon I caught at the ranch—an adorable and very capable little one."
Without realizing it, his tone carried a hint of pride.
"Min!"
Hearing this, Minccino shyly buried its head into Silas's chest. A faint blush crept onto its little face, though its long ears stood straight up high.
"Hahaha~" Ramos laughed heartily, his gaze carefully observing every move of both Trainer and Pokémon. "I can tell, Minccino is very popular. In the future, your ranch will probably be managed by her."
On the light rail, the two continued chatting.
Their conversation revolved around ranch management and Pokémon training, with Ramos doing most of the talking while Silas asked questions.
From Ramos, Silas learned quite a bit of valuable knowledge, all of which would be a great help in running his ranch.
Before they parted, Gym Leader Ramos gave him a bag of seeds and reminded him to visit the Coumarine Gym when he had time.
Silas agreed wholeheartedly, saying he would bring along produce grown on the ranch.
Watching Ramos head toward the Gym, Silas saw him mount a Gogoat, with a group of Skiddo following closely behind.
So it turned out that the herd they had encountered earlier were Pokémon raised by Gym Leader Ramos himself.
Leaving the station and moving along with the endless flow of people, Silas and Minccino arrived at Coumarine Plaza.
People and Pokémon wove through the space together, and one could see Pokémon unique to many different regions.
Minccino clutched Silas tightly, its gaze darting around in curiosity.
This was the first time the little one had ever seen such a lively place, with Pokémon as numerous as grains of rice.
At the center of the plaza stood a towering giant tree, and beneath it a crowd had gathered.
From time to time, voices drifted over, discussing things like moves and "free" giveaways.
"Free eggs?"
Driven by curiosity, Silas moved closer.
After all, it was human nature to join in the excitement—especially when something was being given away for free.
After listening for a bit, he realized it wasn't free eggs, but Technical Machines.
The organizer would pose riddles, and anyone who guessed correctly would receive a TM.
"Everyone, quiet down. Now, listen to the first question."
The crowd fell silent, all ears perked up.
Whether they were Trainers or not, everyone wanted to join in.
"Listen carefully. Which move am I describing?"
"It causes the opponent to lose focus and lowers their Special Attack."
"Growl!"
A child shouted out eagerly, his face full of anticipation.
"That's not correct, little one."
"Astonish!"
"Roar!"
"..."
Answers came one after another, yet not a single person found the correct one.
For nearby ordinary people and novice Trainers who weren't professionals, guessing a move based solely on its description was extremely difficult.
As far as Silas knew, there were already over 900 known moves.
It took a full five minutes before a rookie Trainer with an Impidimp finally found the right answer.
That Trainer received a TM for Confide.
The first round successfully warmed up the atmosphere, and before the second round even began, the crowd started urging the host on.
"Alright then, please listen to the next question. Which move am I describing?"
"It emits an enchanting cry that deals mental damage to the opponent. The attack never misses."
One second…
"Disarming Voice."
"Congratulations, young man, that's correct."
"Here is the Disarming Voice TM. Please take it."
The round ended so quickly that the crowd stared at Silas in shock.
For a moment, people were beating their chests and stamping their feet—turns out it had been that simple.
With two TMs given out in succession, the atmosphere had already reached its peak.
After offering his thanks, Silas led Minccino away from the crowd.
With his level of knowledge, it was essentially a dimensionality-reduction strike.
If he stayed there, no one else would get anything.
Besides, he still had proper business to take care of in Coumarine City—he couldn't just keep playing around.
Getting a Disarming Voice TM that Minccino could learn was more than enough.
"Minccino, do you want to learn it?"
He waved the TM in front of Minccino's eyes. "It's a move that sounds really nice. Paired with Minccino's cuteness, even I would get addicted to it!"
Thinking about how Silas would hold her and refuse to let go, Minccino grew shy and softly replied, "Min!" If that's what Trainer wants, then I'll learn it… just a little.
Yes! From now on, there would be a lullaby to listen to when sleeping.
First learn Disarming Voice, then have Minccino learn Sing—plan successful!
And then add Baby-Doll Eyes.
Just imagining it was enough to make Silas feel his dad heart melting.
With that, Silas began explaining the essentials of learning Disarming Voice to Minccino as they made their way to the shop in Coumarine City that sold ranch Pokémon.
Only here could one find ranch Pokémon imported from the Paldea region.
(End of Chapter)