Chapter 418:
Even if they guessed right, Kaede wasn't about to admit it.
But still, Team Rocket's influence was pretty vast.
Even here in the Eastova region, news about them could spread.
He wondered if Blue would end up telling Red about his involvement.
Shaking his head, Kaede just smiled at the teasing customers, casually handled a few greetings, and then left the Breeding House.
He originally planned to head straight for Nagisuna City from the door, but that didn't seem appropriate now.
After a roundabout walk, he ended up back at the plantation.
Even though it was early morning, some Pokémon had already gotten up and had breakfast, like Serperior, the Pidgeot flock, and Blaziken who went for a morning run. But a fair number were still sound asleep.
Like Miltank, Butterfree, Dragonite, Goodra, Salamence...
And one just waking up... Meowscarada?
It was clearly not yet time, so it was still in its "shrunk" state from the Size Shifting Energy Cube effects.
Only about fifty or sixty centimeters tall.
But soon, as it slowly walked over from the barn area, it grew taller.
Yep, time's up.
Every day was like this—sleeping shrunken, then growing back upon waking.
"Meowscarada?"
Meowscarada looked at Kaede approaching the plantation and used a paw to scratch its head.
"Going for training again today?"
Kaede greeted it with a smile.
But honestly, after evolving, Meowscarada didn't feel much like a feline Pokémon anymore. It seemed more like a humanoid Pokémon, similar to Gardevoir.
And in some aspects, even more so than Gardevoir.
After all, Gardevoir's legs were usually hidden under its dress.
Seeing it walk outside... well, you couldn't really see them. It usually moved as if floating.
Hmm, good thing its hair is blue. Otherwise, at night, you'd see a white shadow floating around with a pair of blood-red eyes.
But Meowscarada's legs were quite obvious.
Sleek fur covered them, almost shining, making it seem like it was wearing something... like human legs?
It usually walked on two legs, but during battles, it would go on all fours, its fur bristling all over, no different from a cat with its hackles raised.
(´･ω･`)?: "Meowscarada~"
Meowscarada nodded, then ran to Kaede's side, blinking its eyes expectantly at him.
It was asking if he would come along.
These past few days, busy with wine-making and Energy Cubes, Kaede hadn't accompanied it.
Or rather, he hadn't spent much time with most of his Pokémon.
His Pokémon seemed to have gotten some kind of stimulus.
For some reason, after he returned, their desire to get stronger had grown. They were training harder every day than before.
Now they were even waking up earlier.
Even Serperior would dive into Aogiri Forest after finishing its daily tasks.
Maybe it was because he didn't take them on the last trip?
Meowscarada often followed along at times like this.
"Later, later. I'll go with you after I get back."
This morning's plan was already set: go to Nagisuna City and find Rosalie.
Don't ask how he suddenly remembered her name.
Because last night, thinking about going to Nagisuna City today, it would be pretty awkward if he got there and couldn't recall her name, right?
So, he specifically found the past Junior Cup battle video footage and dug up her name.
"Meowscarada?"
The light in Meowscarada's eyes dimmed noticeably, but soon brightened again. "Meowscarada~" (Then I'll go too. I'll go too.)
"Huh? I didn't even say where... I'm going to Nagisuna City to meet someone about the promised Happiny egg. I'll be back soon... Fine, fine, you can come."
Kaede was about to explain further, but seeing Meowscarada's hopeful eyes, he figured this small request wasn't worth denying.
ヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ: "Meowscarada~"
Meowscarada's face lit up with excitement instantly. It opened its paws and gave Kaede a big hug.
While it preferred the old days when it was small and could curl up in its Trainer's arms, now that it had evolved and grown up, that wasn't possible anymore. So hugging its Trainer would have to do.
"Alright, alright. Even if you're this happy, you might still have to go into a Poké Ball once we get there."
Kaede felt a bit helpless.
"Meowscarada~" (I don't care about that...)
Meowscarada let go and looked at Kaede.
It didn't care about the details. Opportunities to be alone with its Trainer weren't that common.
"Fine, fine. Wait here while I go get your Poké Ball."
Kaede had no choice. He was about to head back to the house to get Meowscarada's Poké Ball.
But turning around, he saw Serperior at the barn entrance, quietly watching him.
"Good morning, Serperior?"
"Serperior?"
Serperior gave him a look, then with a twist of its serpentine body, it slithered straight into the plantation.
"Huh?"
That turn of its head left him baffled.
He thought about chasing after to ask what was up, but Serperior had already vanished into the orchard area of the plantation.
"Forget it, I'll ask when I get back."
Kaede didn't pursue it further. He went back inside, grabbed Meowscarada's Poké Ball, and noticed Dragonite and Salamence still weren't awake.
For something like this, it wasn't worth bothering Giratina through the Distortion World.
So, Pidgeot it was.
Leading Meowscarada to the Pidgeot gathering spot under the pine tree, Kaede looked up at the tree full of Pidgeot. He couldn't shake the feeling this big pine tree might buckle one day.
The largest among them, the Pidgeot leader, couldn't actually perch in the tree anymore these days.
Because its height had increased even more recently.
It was now 3.6 meters tall.
Unless it ate a Shape Shifting Energy Cube.
To avoid scaring people now, it rarely went out, mostly staying in the Berry Plantation.
On the rare occasions it did go out, it would shrink down first.
Kaede thought this couldn't go on forever. What if it really grew as big as that giant Dragonite one day?
A single wing spread would probably blot out the sky.
He needed to conduct more experiments with that mutated Size Shifting Pecha Berry tree, see if he could develop a food item that would allow Pidgeot to change size at will.
Of course, no rush.
Because currently, that Pecha Berry tree's yield was still low.
It only produced five Pecha Berries each time.
Every time he went to pick them, Kaede wondered: this mutated plant was essentially a new variety now. So, after mutation, could it undergo further mutation under the influence of Serperior's Grassy Terrain?
That was a question worth pondering...