Meanwhile, following Greninja's suggestion, Floette purchased a box of incense. Using incense could not only relax the spirit and aid sleep but also leave a pleasant fragrance on the body. This multi-purpose item was very cost-effective and perfectly suited Floette. After completing the payment, Floette left happily, cradling the incense.
Gre gre~ Keep your card safe; you can leave it in your room when you aren't using it.
Greninja shouted this reminder. Both Greninja and Delphox gave this exact advice to every Pokémon that came to make a purchase, as Ange had instructed them to do.
Just as Floette left, Cinccino arrived.
Min min~ I want something to maintain my fur.
Cinccino hopped nimbly onto the counter and spoke to Greninja with a clear purpose. Greninja understood immediately and pulled a bottle of shampoo from the shelf behind it.
Gre gre~ Use this for your daily bath, and I guarantee your fur will be smooth and glossy.
Cinccino's eyes lit up.
Min min~ I'll take it!
With that, it handed over its card. Greninja smiled as the payment was processed and watched Cinccino dash back to its room clutching the shampoo.
After Cinccino left, other Pokémon crowded forward. Greninja hurriedly said, Gre gre~ Line up, everyone, line up! You can't buy anything if you don't stay in line.
Hearing this, the Pokémon obediently formed a queue.
Two Watchog stood side-by-side at the counter, grinning to show off their large front teeth.
Milly milly~ Is there anything that can maintain our teeth?
Gre~ Wait a moment.
Greninja smiled and pulled two tubes of toothpaste from behind the counter.
Gre gre~ This is Alolan imported sea salt toothpaste. Brush once every morning and evening, and your teeth are guaranteed to be shiny and white.
Milly milly~ We want that! We want that!
The two Watchog took an immediate liking to it. Greninja handed them the toothpaste and even provided each with a new toothbrush, electric ones at that.
As soon as the Watchog left, Swablu landed impatiently on the counter. It lifted its wings and said:
Blu blu~ It's a hassle taking care of my wings every day. Do you have any recommendations?
Without hesitation, Greninja took out a wash-and-dry grooming set to show Swablu. Swablu hated getting its wings wet; with a hair dryer, it would never have to worry about soggy wings again. Furthermore, the feather care products included in the set would keep its wings dry and fluffy all day long.
Gre gre~ Not only can you use it, but your mom and dad can too. It's a very good deal.
Swablu felt a surge of excitement at Greninja's words.
Blu blu~ Buy! Buy!
With a sweep of its wing, it slapped its card down in front of Greninja, acting like a real big spender.
When Ange arrived, he happened to overhear Greninja's non-stop sales pitch and couldn't help but give it a thumbs-up.
Impressive! Truly impressive! It's a natural-born salesperson! Keeping it only as a guardian of the Nebel Plateau was a waste of talent.
Greninja felt a bit embarrassed under its boss's gaze, but the next Pokémon coming to shop quickly diverted its attention.
Not only was business booming for Greninja, but Delphox's side was just as busy. In fact, the line for the snack bar was even longer than the line for the daily necessities store.
Poliwrath lifted a Poliwag onto the counter. In a crisp voice, the Poliwag asked:
Poli poli~ I want to buy a toy.
Delphox began to think about what toy to recommend. Suddenly, it had an idea and pulled out a Psyduck that was slightly larger than the Poliwag's body. Of course, this wasn't a real Psyduck, but a toy—specifically, a floating water toy. There was a hollowed-out section on its back where small Pokémon could lie down. Once the toy was placed in the water, the Pokémon could drift leisurely across the surface.
Poliwag usually liked to lie on lotus leaves to sunbathe, but lotus leaves didn't move. How could they be as fun as this? After hearing Delphox's introduction, Poliwag began hopping and jumping, pulling at Poliwrath. It imagined itself lying on the toy, drifting along with the current... the feeling would surely be wonderful.
Poliwrath made a grand gesture and slapped its card on the counter.
Poli poli~ Sold!
As Poliwrath left carrying the Poliwag and the Psyduck toy, the other Poliwag behind them burst into excitement.
Poli poli~ I want one too.
Poli poli~ Me too.
Similar toys shaped like Squirtle, Lotad, Lapras, Pelipper, and Wailmer were sold one after another. Before long, these types of toys were completely sold out. After all, the Poliwag line was a large clan on the Nebel Plateau.
Woop woop~ I want one too.
Woop woop~ Me too.
Two Wooper blinked their watery little eyes, looking at Delphox with adorable expressions. Like Poliwag, they enjoyed sleeping on lotus leaves. Delphox was nearly overwhelmed by their cuteness, but since the toys were gone, it had to say helplessly, Del del~ Would you like to buy something else? I'll notify you next time we have stock of those.
The two Wooper looked crestfallen. At that moment, Delphox pulled out a ball and said, "Why don't you buy this? You can play ball on the water! You saw the Poké-Soccer match Volcanion and the others played earlier, right? With this, you can play on the water too!"
The Wooper's eyes lit up, and they immediately agreed to take it. After paying, the two Wooper left happily, balancing the ball on their heads.
The two Wooper didn't know it yet, but because of this ball, they would become the most popular among their peers. In order to play together, other Water-type Pokémon would bring their treasures to please the Wooper, hoping to join the game.
After the Wooper left, several Murkrow landed on the counter.
Murk murk~
Due to their habits, both Honchkrow and Murkrow loved shiny objects, so they stated their needs immediately upon arrival. Not only did they want shiny things for themselves, but Honchkrow wanted some too. After hearing their request, Delphox placed a bag of glass marbles in front of them.
Del del~ How about these?
The Murkrow were instantly captivated by the sparkling, multi-colored glass marbles.
Murk murk~ We'll take them all! We'll take them all!
Next, Delphox brought out several pendants and told the Murkrow with a smile, "These even glow at night~"
The Murkrow widened their eyes in pleasant surprise.
Murk murk~ We want these too!
After paying, the Murkrow flew away excitedly, clutching the glass marbles and glowing pendants in their beaks. They had to hurry back and share the treasure with the boss!
Just as the Murkrow flew off, Capsakid was lifted onto the counter by Scovillain.
Cap cap~ I want those too.
One of the Capsakid pointed at the glass marbles. Unlike the Murkrow who liked shiny things, the Capsakid were simply interested in marbles as toys.
Del del~ No problem.
Delphox brought a bag of glass marbles to the three Capsakid. The trio excitedly grabbed the bag and hopped off the counter, eager to play, leaving the two Scovillain to pay the bill helplessly.
Because the snack bar and daily necessities store had opened, the lives of the Pokémon were greatly enriched, so everyone was in a very good mood today. Almost every Pokémon visited the stores to spend some money, and even Volcanion was no exception; it bought a bottle of essential oil for scale care and maintenance. As for why the jobless Volcanion had a salary? Is the spring-like weather of Nebel not thanks to it? Consequently, it received wages even without working.
Ten days passed in a flash. The snack bar and the daily necessities store had become the favorite places for the Pokémon to visit. Their popularity far exceeded Ange's expectations, to the point where he had to ask Jeremy to restock the inventory once.
One afternoon, Ange, having nothing else to do, moved a lounge chair outside the wall. He lay there holding Munchlax, leisurely watching Volcanion lead the Pokémon in a soccer match. Suddenly, he received a system notification. He subconsciously clicked it, and the system immediately displayed a message.
[Food Ingredient Cultivation Mission 1] Grow Rolling Beans successfully—Completed, reward pending.
Huh? Ange was stunned. How was it suddenly completed?
Previously, he had been very confused. Logically, his Rolling Beans were growing very well, so the mission should have been completed long ago. Why did the system keep showing it as unfinished? Later, since the mission status never changed, he simply set it aside. He didn't expect it to be completed today.
Could something have changed in the bean field?
Thinking of this, Ange quickly patted Munchlax's cheek.
"Munchlax, wake up!"
At this time, Munchlax had its head pillowed on Ange's thigh and was already fast asleep. Seeing that Munchlax showed no signs of waking, Ange simply stood up, carried Munchlax to the lounge chair, and adjusted it into a comfortable position so it could keep sleeping. With his current strength, lifting the two-hundred-pound Munchlax was easy. Looking at Munchlax's sleeping face, Ange shook his head with a smile and walked toward the vegetable garden.
When he arrived, he saw the Dolliv sisters sitting side-by-side on the ridge of the field, with the Dugtrio brothers next to them. The Dolliv sisters had just applied Grassy Terrain to the bean field and were now sharing some snacks they had recently bought with the Dugtrio brothers. The sisters took a bite themselves and then gave a bite to the Dugtrio brothers, occasionally taking a sip of fruit soda. They couldn't have been happier.
Seeing Ange arrive, the four Pokémon ran to his side. Ange patted them one by one and said, "You guys keep playing; I'm just here to check the bean field."
The four Pokémon nodded and sat back down on the ridge. Ange walked into the bean field and quickly realized why the system mission was marked as complete.
The Rolling Beans were ripe and ready to eat! By ripe, it didn't mean they were fully matured and dry, but that the tender green beans were ready!
Looking at the emerald-green pods hanging from the vines, Ange was incredibly excited. Various ways to eat green beans flashed through his mind. Stir-fried eggs with beans, braised chicken with beans, green beans with chili, bean paste with noodles, pickled vegetables with beans... Before he knew it, he was drooling.
Subsequently, he began picking the pods.
"We're eating beans tonight!"
Seeing this, the Dolliv on the ridge ran into the field to help Ange pick.
Ange smiled and said, "Thank you! We're having beans tonight. You've worked hard cultivating them for so long, and finally, we can eat them."
One Dolliv picked a pod and held it up to ask Ange, Dolliv~ Is this tasty?
Ange replied, "You'll know once you eat them tonight."
Dolliv looked forward to it. Meanwhile, the other Dolliv, out of curiosity, stuffed a freshly picked pod into its mouth.
Ptooey ptooey ptooey~
After chewing twice, the Dolliv wrinkled its face and hurriedly spat the pod out. The pod was tough and covered in fuzz; of course it tasted bad!
Ange burst into laughter. "Dolliv, you can't eat the pod!" He took another pod, peeled it open, and revealed the tender, emerald beans inside. "Look, we eat the beans inside."
The two Dolliv's eyes lit up. Following Ange's example, they peeled a pod and stuffed two beans into their mouths.
Dolliv~ Tasty!
Dolliv~ It's tasty!
This time, the two Dolliv wore surprised smiles.
Ange shook his head. "What's so good about raw beans?"
Soon, Ange and the Dolliv had picked a large basket of beans, and he brought the two sisters home.
Diancie saw Ange placing the beans at the door and asked in confusion, "These are..."
Ange smiled and said, "Rolling Beans. They're ready to eat, and we're having them tonight."
He then called toward the house, "Drizzile, Gengar, Magearna, come out and help with the work!"
As Ange's voice fell, Drizzile and the others walked out of the house. Thus, the family each took a small stool and sat in a circle by the door peeling beans. Everyone chatted while they worked, and the scene was filled with harmony and laughter.
As the day grew late and the sun began to set, Volcanion returned from playing soccer. Seeing everyone working, it lay down quietly nearby. Occasionally, it would chime in as the others chatted. Not long after, Munchlax came running back carrying the lounge chair.
Munch munch~
Ange asked with a smile, "Munchlax, did you have a good sleep?"
Munchlax couldn't help but complain to its master, Munch munch~ Master, why didn't you wake me when you left?
With that, it squeezed into the circle and began peeling beans with everyone else.
"I saw you were sleeping so soundly that I didn't have the heart to wake you," Ange said.
By the time they finished peeling the beans, the Pokémon that had been working or playing outside began returning one after another. Seeing this, Ange hurried into the kitchen with his three apprentices to cook, while the Pokémon sat around tables in groups of two or three, waiting expectantly for tonight's dinner.
The sky grew dark, and Diancie switched on the outdoor lights, casting a warm glow over all the Pokémon. Afterward, Diancie and Magearna went inside, chatting and laughing. Volcanion lay at the door, watching the light spilling from the house and listening to the faint sound of Magearna's laughter and the lively conversations of the Pokémon nearby... It gave a slight yawn, then closed its eyes and rested its head on its front paws.
What kind of delicious things will be for dinner today?