Chapter 38: Promoting Pokémon

June 24th.

The rain from the past few days arrived just in time. The herb gardens and fields are now a lush, vibrant green; the new sprouts are greedily soaking up the warm early summer air, growing sturdily upward.

Having mastered the "Sunny Day" move, the Petilil continues her work in the fields. Her instinct as a Grass-type Pokémon gives her an innate knack for tending to medicinal herbs and crops. These plants usually only take ten days to a month to reach maturity, but in this soil, they ripen even faster.

Sounds of carving drift from the workshop. Petilil knows that the human is once again crafting some magical item. Since her strengthening two days ago, she feels filled with power; every so often, she curls up the tiny hands on her leaf-skirt and unleashes a "Struggle" toward the grass ahead.

She feels very secure on this land. She even worries that if she stays too long, she might forget how to battle. At times, the thought of simply living here instead of reclaiming her habitat crosses her mind, but whenever that happens, she thinks of her former, cowardly companions and their leader.

The leader is a standard-form Lilligant. Before this, Petilil had assumed she would evolve into that same form. Now, however, knowing there is another evolutionary path open to her, she cannot help but feel a sense of anticipation for her future.

If she reclaims her habitat and evolves into that other form, how would the leader view her? Would her companions be happy to see their home restored? Or have they already taken root in new places, unwilling to return?

"Petil..."

If she reclaimed their home only to find her companions would not return, all her efforts would seem meaningless. But Petilil had already considered this. Even if she had to live there alone, it would be fine. The former companions might have left, but Pokémon are social creatures with migratory habits. Surely—surely new Petilil would appear, and eventually, they would settle in this ancestral home once again.

Thinking this, she gazes toward the distant forest. Beyond the rolling hills, the rocks, and the woodlands lies the outer forest that leads directly to the Ruins of Alph. Perhaps the leader had also migrated to this forest from somewhere else, which is why her form differs from the one the human spoke of. The leader’s form is the standard one; only in harsh environments can one evolve into a new shape.

To the leader, migrating from one land to another is likely a normal occurrence. She cannot understand why Petilil is so attached to this particular patch of earth, as fertile soil exists everywhere. The other Petilil probably think the same way.

"Petil~"

But I was born on that habitat...

Petilil pulls back her gaze, turning away from the forest to focus on tending to every single crop. In the soft soil, the Berries have also sprouted and begun to grow. The miraculous nature of these Berry trees is the greatest feature of this world; the fruit falls, rots on the ground, and soon sprouts anew. Unlike ordinary trees, they lack a long growth cycle, though... these trees still grow a bit too quickly.

Petilil reaches the patch where the Berries are planted; its color clearly distinguishes it from the rest of the land. Although the soil is soft, it seems to have been tilled many times. She has heard that this is the result of the Diglett and Dugtrio living far away—a display of the power of a group, rather than a single individual.

Companions... a group.

Petilil’s gaze drifts involuntarily toward the workshop. The sound of carving continues to echo out.

"ROAR—"

Suddenly, a distant roar echoes from the sky. Petilil jumps and looks up, seeing a massive black dot appearing beneath the clouds! The dot approaches rapidly, scattering the clouds around it as its silhouette becomes clear.

It is a giant... Pokémon!

The shadow descends rapidly. At first, Petilil panics; she gathers sunlight, thinking it is an invading wild Pokémon. But just as she is about to fire a Solar Beam, she sees it clearly: the Pokémon flying down from the sky is carrying a human's cargo box.

Huh?

The Pokémon seems to have spotted the glowing solar energy and dives straight toward the area where Petilil stands, landing with a tremendous thud at the edge of the field. Hearing the commotion, Litwick and Doublade emerge from the wooden hut.

"It’s the Charizard from Blackthorn City!"

Indeed, the courier this time is the same Charizard! Carrying the large box on its chest, it has arrived a day earlier than expected. Having been here before, it was familiar with the route and flew faster.

Charizard glances at Petilil, staring with a bit of curiosity since it has never seen this type of Pokémon before, but it quickly shifts its attention back. It lets out a "roar," and as it did last time, it pulls a Rage Candy Bar from the box and begins to munch on it.

Then, Charizard starts pulling items out of the box: a large amount of fertilizer and Honey!

"Speedy Mulch," for use on soft soil. It accelerates the drying of the soil but also speeds up Berry growth.
"Damp Mulch," for use on soft soil. It slows the drying of the soil but also slows Berry growth.
"Gooey Mulch," for use on soft soil. It extends the time before Berries fall.
"Stable Mulch," for use on soft soil. It increases the number of times a new sprout grows after the plant withers.

These fertilizers are meant for cultivating Berries, so in addition to these, there are also common fertilizers for medicinal herbs and crops.

The Honey is amber-colored and glitters. It is a favorite food for Bug and Fairy-type Pokémon, capable of attracting them to wherever it is spread. Since Combee produce it, it isn't a rare material. If one were to speak of truly rare materials, it would be the "Scary Honey" produced by Vespiquen.

"Roar!"

Charizard scratches its head, indicating that these fertilizers and honey were so heavy that the flight took a bit longer than last time.

"Sorry to trouble you; we are quite remote out here."

Litwick smiles as he places the packed shipments into the box. One is addressed to Pallet Town, one to Ecruteak City, and one to the Hoenn region.

Charizard looks at the packages. When it spots the one bound for Hoenn, its expression shifts, and it lets out a series of roars.

Doublade translates promptly: "Charizard says your workshop looks like a dump, yet you’ve managed to expand your business all the way to Hoenn!"

"Looks like a dump... well, it’s true that I haven’t done much maintenance. As long as it doesn't leak when it rains, it’s fine," Litwick says, feeling a bit embarrassed. His run-down workshop can hardly compare to a Pokémon Center!

"Roar... roar..."

Charizard puts its claws on its hips, seemingly complaining: The courier service for the Hoenn region requires a transfer in Olivine City. If its speed weren't lacking, it could have delivered this package to Olivine itself instead of having to take it back to Blackthorn City.

Speed not fast enough? Litwick recalls that Charizard’s base speed stat is 100, isn't it? That’s already quite fast.

Charizard: "Roar..."

The Pokémon responsible for urgent deliveries across Johto is Dragonite.

Litwick suddenly realizes. Oh, it’s a Dragonite with a base speed of 80! But then again, it knows Extreme Speed. No wonder you can't compete with it!

Charizard also explains that it handles all the transport in the snowy mountain regions because it has no Dragon-typing, so it isn't afraid of ice or snow. As for rainy weather, a quick "Sunny Day" solves it—it’s not a problem at all. If it’s foggy, it just uses Defog. It’s far more adaptable to different climates than Dragonite! That guy is actually afraid of icy weather!

"Is that so? Then take this as a gift."

Litwick produces a wooden carving shaped like a Charizard.

"Roar?"

Charizard is puzzled, wondering what this carving is for. Is it just a common handicraft?

"No, when you return, pray to this carving. It will reveal the power you desire." Litwick smiles as he explains, "You crave more speed, don't you? Yes, it can make you faster. I am an item artisan; I sell objects with strange abilities. If you don't mind, give it a try."

He adds, "You might have to come here to pick up and drop off packages often, so being faster is convenient for me, too."

When long-term effort meets the recognition of talent, it unleashes astonishing power.

Charizard accepts the carving with some hesitation and lets out a roar that sounds slightly more friendly, indicating that if it finds anything good on the road next time, it will be sure to drop it off for him!

*Relationship with Charizard has improved!*

Charizard spreads its wings and takes off, performing a mysterious dance in the sky. Clearly, it is using "Dragon Dance" to boost its speed. Moments later, it disappears at the edge of the sky.

"I suppose that counts as a sales pitch..." Litwick murmurs to himself.

Petilil watches the departing Charizard. A powerful Pokémon that can cross mountains and rivers to reach such a remote place. If she evolves, could she travel the world like that too?

"Yo?"

Doublade suddenly leans over to Petilil. She tilts her head in confusion. Doublade’s red ribbons sway, and its eyes convey a sense of speechlessness.

"Yo... ┓（⊙）┏"

No, no, no! That Charizard isn't traveling! It’s just working as a courier; if it’s late, it might even get its snacks deducted!

"Wah..."

"Petil?"

Suddenly, Petilil seems to sense something. She looks left and right. When she looked up just now, she thought she caught a glimpse of a shadow flashing by.

"Petil?"

Petilil tilts her head. Is it just her imagination?

"What’s wrong?" Litwick notices Petilil seems distracted. She hops over and says she saw a strange shadow.

"A strange shadow? It’s daytime, and Ghost-type Pokémon shouldn't be out, should they?" Litwick strokes his chin and looks at Doublade, who is translating for him. "Did you two feel anything?"

"Yo-woo?"

"Yo-pu..."

Doublade’s eyes reveal nothing but confusion. Seeing this, Litwick understands immediately. "As expected, I can't count on Pokémon with a 'Relaxed' nature to have sharp observation skills."

"It was probably just a leaf or some weeds blowing over from the forest; that’s normal enough. Or, perhaps because we made the Unown Tablets, we’ve attracted some Unown!"

"It’s said that Unown have a hobby of spying on others! Anyway, don't overthink it. If it is an Unown, it doesn't mean any harm." Litwick holds up a finger, giving the two Pokémon a little lecture on how Unown are just like the characters on the stone tablets!

"Petil..." Petilil looks around again. (Ծ‸Ծ)?

Is it really just her imagination? Or is it an Unown? If it were a friend, why wouldn't it show itself?

Litwick has already returned to the cabin, and after lingering in the field for a while, Petilil follows him inside.

By the window of the workshop, the small, green, winged Pokémon appears again, giggling. But before she can laugh for long, she spots an Unown E.

"Shi?"

The three eyes lock onto each other. The Unown lets out an awkward sound:

"Ann-own..."

Haha, what a coincidence! You’re spying on people too, huh!