On February 15, an income of 30,000 was recorded—the strawberries had ushered in yet another bumper harvest.
From February 16 to 22, the income reached 80,000, coming from high-quality clay, tulip nectar, and grass dumplings.
The ranch was growing larger and larger. Now it had three hot-selling agricultural products, and money was flowing in every single day.
After about a week, Silas had once again saved up over one hundred thousand League Coins.
Without waiting until the next day, right after breakfast, Silas called Cyclizar over from the chicken coop.
One man and one Pokémon hurried straight to Shalour City. With a clear objective in mind, they entered the department store and headed directly for the home appliances section.
"This one here. I'll take this color TV that can receive channels from all regions."
Silas waved his hand boldly, radiating confidence as he pulled out the bank card from his wallet.
"Cyc~"
Cyclizar stood up straight and mimicked the same gesture, even blinking at Silas with its small eyes.
The sales assistant was extremely enthusiastic. She first invited Silas to sit down, then took out a brochure to introduce the product, along with the available accessories and service options.
About an hour later, Cyclizar was carrying a brand-new television, following behind Silas with its head held high, afraid that others might not notice.
They were about to have a TV to watch too—hehehe!
However, Silas didn't rush back. Instead, he turned toward the area selling air conditioners.
Pointing at a central air-conditioning unit, he asked, "How much does this one cost?"
The sales assistant, smiling warmly as ever, replied enthusiastically, "Only 30,000 League Coins. It can cool an entire house. We're currently running a promotion, and there's a chance to get a fifty-percent discount. Would you like to try your luck, sir?"
Silas observed it for a moment before asking, "Can the discounts be stacked?"
After receiving a positive answer, Silas called Cyclizar over and left first. If he'd known earlier, he would've brought Minccino along—what a mistake.
But it wasn't too late to go back and fetch Minccino now. Fifty percent off, plus his elite trainer's additional twenty-percent discount—how was that any different from getting it for free?
He hurried back to the ranch without stopping to catch his breath.
Silas scooped up Minccino, who was still in a daze, and the two of them headed back again. On the way, Silas gave Minccino a simple explanation.
When Minccino learned that it could "freeload" a whole air conditioner, its little eyes lit up as well.
Clenching its tiny fists, it silently cheered itself on. Minccino, you can do it. You'll definitely draw the lowest discount.
Seeing Silas return, the sales assistant proactively handed over the lottery box.
Silas signaled to Minccino with his eyes…
"Min~" (Bastard, don't underestimate the bond we share in our desire to freeload!)
Minccino, the legendary one-draw god.
"Min?"
Minccino drooped its ears, covering its eyes, not daring to look and signaling for Silas to check instead.
Taking the bright red, festive discount coupon from Minccino's hands, Silas saw several exciting words written in bold red letters: 50%.
"Smooch!"
He lifted Minccino up and kissed its little face. "Minccino is amazing! It's the lowest discount!"
Minccino cautiously opened a slit of its eyes and looked over. Its little face flushed red—it was thrilled too.
It burrowed its head into Silas's chest, clearly liking him a lot.
While calling the sales assistant over to swipe the card, Silas didn't forget to ask Minccino, "Is there any food you want to eat, Minccino?"
Enjoying Silas's gentle stroking, Minccino comfortably squinted its eyes.
Hearing the question, Minccino twisted its little paws together, its tiny brain spinning rapidly. One delicacy after another surfaced in its mind, making it unable to stop swallowing.
Red date glutinous rice cake, honey pancakes, mung bean cake, biscuits, sweet little egg tarts…
It wanted to eat every single one. For a moment, it fell into indecision.
After instructing Cyclizar to carry the central air conditioner, Silas noticed Minccino's conflicted state.
He reached out and scratched under its chin, making Minccino giggle.
"How about I make you a brand-new dessert? Do you want to try it?"
With the mention of a new treat, Minccino immediately stopped agonizing. It let out a delighted cry and hugged Silas tightly, its little face filled with anticipation.
"Min!"
Cyclizar carried the air conditioner while Silas and Minccino walked ahead.
After more than an hour, they returned to the ranch.
The moment their figures appeared, Kangaskhan, who had been guarding the gate, was the first to spot them.
Leading a group of Pokémon, it happily ran over, surrounding the air conditioner Cyclizar was carrying, reaching out with little hands to touch it, eyes full of curiosity.
Humans were truly amazing—not only could they make televisions that displayed moving images, but also iron contraptions that blew cold air.
Surrounded by so many Pokémon that he could barely move, Silas had no choice but to explain first. Only then did he walk into the ranch cottage under their escort.
"Kangaskhan, let's place the air conditioner here for now."
Silas pointed to a corner of the living room. Placing it there wouldn't get in the way, and the airflow could be adjusted in multiple directions.
As soon as Cyclizar set down the central air conditioner, Minccino whoosh—leapt onto it and patted it with its little hands.
Confused. Why wasn't it starting?
Minccino looked at Silas with puzzled little eyes.
Gesturing for Minccino not to stand on it, Silas said, "It's not plugged in yet. Don't rush."
After asking Kangaskhan to bring over the toolbox, Silas pulled a power cable from the side.
Once he plugged in the air conditioner, all the Pokémon stood right in front of it, craning their heads and watching expectantly.
"Ding-dong~"
The air conditioner started up, and Silas adjusted the temperature.
In an instant, waves of cool air blew out, washing over Minccino and the others, dispersing the heat.
Minccino, Smoliv, and the Flabébé all revealed expressions of bliss.
"Min! Min~!" (So cool! With this iron thing around, we won't be afraid of the heat anymore.)
"Smo!"
"Bébé~" (The power of technology is truly great.)
Beside them, Cyclizar shoved its big head in, occupying the coolest spot. No matter how Minccino puffed up angrily and slapped at it, Cyclizar didn't budge at all, treating it as a massage.
Silas reminded them not to keep blowing directly on themselves.
Soon, the entire house would cool down.
The central air conditioner Silas bought was not only powerful but also energy-efficient, rated as top-tier cooling. Even if it ran 24 hours a day, it wouldn't consume more than a few units of electricity.
With the air conditioner installed, Silas's gaze then fell on the color television at his feet.
He looked around the living room—it still felt a bit empty.
After saving up for a few more days, he would buy a sofa set.
In summer, during idle moments…
Lying on the sofa, blowing cool air, holding Minccino in his arms while watching TV—what a wonderful thing that would be.
The Pokémon could also stay indoors. Summer weather was simply too hot for playing outside.
After circling the TV once, Silas picked up the instruction manual.
The installation was very simple; there was no need to set up an antenna.
He only needed to place it properly and plug it in. The internal wireless modem would automatically receive signals from television stations in all regions.
As for the principle behind it, Silas didn't need to understand.
In the Pokémon world, even black-tech like spatial backpacks existed. One couldn't judge technological development with normal standards.
Of course, uneven development also existed.
For example, humans still hadn't managed to launch their first satellite, leaving the extraterrestrial world a complete blank.
Following the steps to tune it, after quite a while the snow-filled static screen disappeared, and an image finally appeared on the display.
"Huh? It's Diantha."
(End of Chapter)