Running a ranch meant that there was never a shortage of work to be done; the tasks were endless no matter what.
Silas didn't want to exhaust himself too much, but the first thing he did after waking up was still to make a round of inspections around the ranch, checking on the condition of the Pokémon and the crops he had planted.
"Cyclizar~"
"Cyc!"
Cyclizar sprang up with a carp-like flip and quickly followed after Silas.
He headed to the orchard first, and the moment he arrived, he noticed something was wrong.
There were fresh signs of leaves being gnawed on again. During the time they had been asleep, some reckless Bug-type Pokémon had sneaked in once more.
He lifted his head and glanced at the still-scorching sun overhead. Considering the movement speed of Bug-type Pokémon, Silas was left speechless.
With that level of perseverance, how could they possibly not succeed in life? Yet they just had to keep obsessing over his few berry trees.
With no other choice, he called Litten over from the ranch house and asked it to help catch the Bug-type Pokémon.
Litten agreed eagerly and, in a flash, darted into the orchard and vanished from sight.
When Silas arrived at the farmland where wheat and corn were planted, Mudsdale had just finished using the move Rototiller on the field.
It was obvious that the crops looked much more vigorous now—emerald-green leaves stretched energetically, actively carrying out photosynthesis.
"Good afternoon, you three!"
He stepped forward and patted Mudsdale's sturdy body, reminding them not to stay under the sun for too long.
Mudsdale nudged Silas gently, as if telling him they understood and wouldn't make him worry.
Turning toward the stables, Silas felt relieved when he saw that the five little Mareep were all inside, cooling off.
Then he headed toward the cave.
Noivern yawned boredly. When it saw Silas and the Pokémon arrive, it forced itself to perk up a little.
With summer arriving, the days had grown longer, which meant that Noivern, who preferred the night, had less and less time to be active each day.
"Noi~"
Noivern rubbed against Silas, its fierce-looking draconic face breaking into a smile as it tried to lick him, only to be gently stopped by Silas.
"Where are the Noibat? Why don't I see them?"
"Noi…"
(I heard from the Carbink that signs of Sableye activity were discovered nearby. They're searching inside the caves right now.)
Noivern lazily scratched its chin, the friction between its scales and the rock producing a faint scrrrt sound.
"Alright then."
Silas rubbed his forehead helplessly. Those two little guys had already made defeating Sableye a prerequisite for their evolution.
In xianxia terms, it had become a kind of inner demon.
If they didn't overcome it, they would never be able to make progress.
"Have the Carbink found the Carbink Minister yet?"
TN: This is thing I still don't get.
Silas asked another question.
"Noi~"
(No.)
"Okay, then just rest properly."
After patting Noivern, Silas called Cyclizar and left the pitch-dark cave.
He went straight to the greenhouse. The tulip bulbs planted two days ago were growing rapidly!
They had already reached the second stage and were starting to sprout.
This was all thanks to the care of the Flabébé. Their abilities could accelerate the growth rate of flowers.
Combined with Mudsdale and the others using the move Rototiller once every day without fail, this created the miracle of visible growth day by day.
He didn't forget to check on the Silver Chalice Tulip planted in the center. It was growing even faster than the other plants. However, within a 3×3 area centered on it, it was the only plant present—having absorbed all the nutrients for itself.
Before long, the greenhouse would be filled with a sea of blooming flowers.
This was all thanks to the Flabébé!
After playing around with them for a while longer, Silas finally left and headed to the lake.
Among the vast stretches of lotus leaves, a few scattered flower buds had already appeared. It wouldn't be long before beautiful lotus flowers bloomed.
After confirming that the conditions of the Veluza and Relicanth were normal, Silas called Cyclizar and returned to the house.
This entire round of inspections had taken him over an hour.
This was the daily routine of a ranch owner—every single day, he had to make at least one round.
As soon as he got back, Minccino and Phione rushed over one after the other and hugged his legs.
One kept crying "Min min," while the other kept chanting "Phion, phion," clearly wanting to go out and play.
After patting them one by one, Silas said, "Wait a little longer. It's still a bit hot outside."
Rest time always passed quickly, and just like that, the entire afternoon was gone.
After dinner, Silas sat on the sofa, planning to watch some TV before going to bed, with Morpeko cradled in his arms.
He had just switched to a channel analyzing battle strategies when the broadcast suddenly cut away, and a calm, heavy announcer's voice came through.
"Breaking news: At 8:13 p.m., Lumiose City was struck by a large-scale attack from wild Pokémon. Currently, Dragon Master Elite Drasna has led League Trainers to take charge of Lumiose City."
This was followed by a series of images and videos showing wild Pokémon assaulting the city, as well as Trainers driving them back and defeating them.
Drasna's powerful Noivern was prominently featured, one casual move from it sent entire groups of wild Pokémon retreating.
"According to the latest frontline reports, the cause of the wild Pokémon assault was an attack on wild Pokémon living in the Lumiose Badlands. The Kalos Power Plant was also damaged in the incident."
"It has been confirmed that Coumarine City and Shalour City are experiencing a massive power outage. The time of power restoration is currently unknown. The Kalos League will eliminate the danger and restore operations at the Kalos Power Plant as quickly as possible. Citizens are asked to remain calm and minimize unnecessary outings…"
"A massive power outage?"
Silas blinked hard. Then he remembered—his ranch wasn't connected to the main power grid at all. He generated his own electricity using generators.
The cause of the large-scale blackout was most likely the wild Pokémon from the Lumiose Badlands—some of them had attacked the Kalos Power Plant.
Turning off the television, Silas prepared to head out.
He planned to ask the John and Penny nearby about the specific situation.
They welcomed Silas and told him that their ranch hadn't come to a standstill because of the outage.
Their ranch also had a small generator, enough to guarantee basic electricity usage.
"The Fishing Festival is in just a couple of days. With such a major blackout, it'll definitely be postponed by several days," one of them said.
Through casual conversation, Silas learned some useful information before returning to his own ranch.
Before going to bed that night, he specifically called Rowlet and the Noibat over, telling them to stay alert and be extra vigilant.
The next couple of days might not be peaceful. Between the Lumiose Badlands and Route 12 lay Coumarine City.
If wild Pokémon had already attacked the Kalos Power Plant and Lumiose City, there was no guarantee they wouldn't also move toward Coumarine City.
A large-scale rush all the way to Route 12 was unlikely, but small groups wandering over was perfectly normal.
Understanding the seriousness of the situation, the little ones all nodded in agreement.
That night, they didn't train at all. Every half hour, they would patrol around the ranch, ensuring safety.
In the middle of the night, Silas woke up several times. Seeing that the Noibat and the others were dutifully doing their jobs and that nothing had gone wrong, he returned to sleep each time.
And just like that, he slept until the next day, when the sky outside was only just beginning to brighten.
Silas was shaken awake. He saw Noibat, Rowlet, Kangaskhan, Minccino, and many other Pokémon gathered around his bed, as if they had something important to say.
"What's wrong?"
Rubbing his sleepy eyes and patting his face, Silas forced himself to wake up properly.
Kangaskhan said, "Kang Kang!"
"Officer Jenny and Gym Leader Gurkinn are here at the ranch, looking for me about something urgent?"
(End of Chapter)