At the farm gate.
After leaving the City of Ambition, Aiven headed straight back to the farm with the Ironclad Rhinoceros.
"Come on, let's go home."
Aiven patted the Ironclad Rhinoceros on the back and carried Petilil into the farm.
Moo, moo, moo.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros glanced back toward the City of Ambition, then turned resolutely to face its new home.
Meow~
But they had barely taken a few steps when Luxray appeared, with Uncle Daby following behind.
Apparently, Luxray had sensed a Monster entering the farm and hurried over to check things out.
"Aiven?"
Uncle Daby glanced at Aiven, then looked at the Ironclad Rhinoceros behind him.
This was... Daby let out a quiet exclamation. The more he looked, the more familiar it seemed...
"Isn't that the Ironclad Rhinoceros that pulls Viscount Daly's carriage?"
Recognizing the Ironclad Rhinoceros, Daby cried out in surprise. He had no idea how it had ended up here!
"From now on, the Ironclad Rhinoceros is the farm's Monster," Aiven said with a grin.
His words left Daby even more dumbfounded. For a long moment, he couldn't react. The Ironclad Rhinoceros would belong to the farm from now on?
The Ironclad Rhinoceros was worth several hundred gold coins on the market. Its Beast Gear was worth several hundred more.
When Aiven told him that the Ironclad Rhinoceros now belonged to the farm, it was no different from saying, I just made the farm nearly a thousand gold coins!
How could anyone earn several hundred gold coins in just half a day?!
"Ironclad Rhinoceros, this is my Uncle Daby."
After introducing the Ironclad Rhinoceros, Aiven introduced the farm's owner to it.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros gave a friendly moo and rubbed its head against Daby to show its goodwill.
It looked as if Aiven had completely won the Ironclad Rhinoceros over. He hadn't just stolen it, had he...? Uncle Daby had come up with another theory.
Ignoring Daby's complicated expression, Aiven led the Ironclad Rhinoceros across the open space in front of the farm gate and up to the farmhouse.
Hearing the commotion outside, lively little Andy immediately ran out and circled the Ironclad Rhinoceros, looking it over.
"Big Brother Aiven, where did this Ironclad Rhinoceros come from?" the little boy asked without a hint of hesitation.
Daby immediately perked up his ears.
Aiven answered casually, "I cured the Viscount's Luxray, so they gave me the Ironclad Rhinoceros."
At Aiven's explanation, little Andy's eyes lit up. In his heart, Apothecaries had just shot up several notches in status.
Uncle Daby, standing nearby, was taken aback. If the Ironclad Rhinoceros really was payment for Aiven's treatment, wasn't that an absurdly high fee?
"Oh, my goodness, little Aiven. You're already an outstanding Apothecary!"
Aunt Irene, who was very sensitive to money, stared in astonishment. If Apothecaries really made that much, perhaps she should consider having little Andy study pharmacy too.
Under the astonished gaze of his family, Aiven introduced the Ironclad Rhinoceros to everyone. After a warm welcome, it officially became a member of the farm.
"Ironclad Rhinoceros, this is Luxray, the guardian of our farm." Aiven then introduced the farm's Pokémon to it.
Petilil and Luxray already knew the Ironclad Rhinoceros. Next, he would take it to the Fruit Grove to meet Mukkuru and the Cherubi.
"Aiven, let's have dinner first." They had returned just in time for dinner. Aiven, tired after a busy day, didn't refuse and suggested moving the table outside.
It was late summer, and the weather was still rather hot. Moving the dining table beneath the trees outside made for a pleasant change of scenery.
More importantly, the Ironclad Rhinoceros couldn't fit inside the house. Since it had only just arrived at the farm, Aiven wanted it to experience the warmth of family and settle in as soon as possible.
As the family finished dinner, Uncle Daby asked Aiven's permission, then went to the farmhouse storage room and brought out the apples they had just picked.
Although the farm's business in Berries and potions was now running smoothly, Uncle Daby hadn't given up on the ordinary fruit trees, even if they didn't bring in much profit.
Moo, moo, moo.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros stared at the apples before it and mooed uncertainly a couple of times. It usually ate grass.
Even the Viscount's household wouldn't waste apples on the Ironclad Rhinoceros. They only needed to make sure it was full; giving it a treat was out of the question.
Crunch, crunch.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros chewed the apple, deeply moved.
Nearby, Aunt Irene watched with a troubled look, as if she wanted to say something. The Ironclad Rhinoceros ate so much that feeding it apples at every meal would be too much for the farm to afford.
I'll have to hurry up and make nutritious food suitable for Pokémon... Watching the scene, Aiven pondered, then sighed. Raising and training Pokémon really did cost a fortune.
This was also the main reason Sir Enzo had been so worried about Luxray. Every Monster that had been raised was the result of a family investing enormous resources.
That night, the Ironclad Rhinoceros rested in the yard. As it ambled around, it felt a freedom it had never known before. It loved the feeling.
Early the next morning, Aiven got up and carried Petilil into the yard to check on the Ironclad Rhinoceros.
To his surprise, the Ironclad Rhinoceros wasn't in the yard.
As he wondered where it could be, he saw it slowly approaching from the direction of the Fruit Grove, pulling the farm's berry cart.
When the Ironclad Rhinoceros saw Aiven, it happily hurried over with the cart, its eyes narrowing as it rubbed against his arm.
"Aiven..." Uncle Daby followed behind the cart. When he saw Aiven, he scratched his head and said sheepishly, "Well, the Ironclad Rhinoceros came over on its own and asked to help..."
At Uncle Daby's words, Aiven's heart stirred. He glanced at the Ironclad Rhinoceros, which looked delighted, and smiled as he patted and praised it.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros must have wanted to become part of this family as soon as possible... That was its choice, and he wouldn't stop it.
Aunt Irene came out of the house to help. Seeing the scene, she sighed as well. She had gained a little more respect for this hardworking beast.
After a cheerful breakfast, Aiven took the Ironclad Rhinoceros to the Fruit Grove.
Petilil sat on the Ironclad Rhinoceros's head, happily kicking her little legs. She had already missed a day of training, and she couldn't wait to get back to it!
They had only just approached when they spotted Mukkuru, the guardian of the orchard.
In just one day, thanks to a Pokémon's incredible natural recovery and the help of Healing Potions, Mukkuru could already fly on its own.
As soon as it could fly again, Mukkuru wriggled out of little Andy's warm embrace, much to his regret.
"Mukkuru, this is the Ironclad Rhinoceros. It's our new partner!" Aiven introduced them to each other.
Mukkuru nodded, flew a circle around the Ironclad Rhinoceros, then landed back in a tree and gave a couple of quiet chirps.
Aiven had no idea what the two Pokémon were saying, but seeing the Ironclad Rhinoceros nod so seriously, he guessed Mukkuru was telling it the rules of the Fruit Grove.
Naturally, that included not hurting any of the Pokémon there.
Just then, the sun came out, and the Cherubi emerged from the woods to bask in its light.
Aiven led the Ironclad Rhinoceros over. After the introductions, his gaze fell on the shriveled fruit on one of the Cherubi.
It'll probably evolve in the next couple of days... Aiven thought, anticipation in his eyes.
Next came the Pokémon's training. During his trip to the Viscount's home, he had used Tongtong Fruit to make a new Deadly Poison Potion.
With the new Deadly Poison Potion, Petilil could make her Deadly Poison Technique even more potent.
Taking out the Deadly Poison Potion and the antidote, Aiven applied the potion to the leftmost leaf on Petilil.
As he watched Petilil absorb the potion, Aiven brought some Growth Fertilizer nutrient solution out of the woods. It had fermented, and he mixed it into Growth Fertilizer.
He dug a hole, and all three Cherubi happily burrowed into it, absorbing the Growth Fertilizer in the soil. The fruit on their bodies gradually plumped up.
When he was done, Aiven clapped his hands and looked at Mukkuru and the Ironclad Rhinoceros, who were watching him.
"Do you two want to give it a try?"
Aiven smiled at the two Pokémon. If he could train them, they would be quite formidable in battle.
Chirp, chirp, chirp.
Mukkuru hesitated, then hopped away.
The stubborn little Pokémon believed that only its own Trainer could train it, and Aiven wasn't its Trainer.
The Ironclad Rhinoceros, however, had no such reservations. It nodded without hesitation. It wanted to grow stronger, too, so it could do more for Aiven!
"All right, Mukkuru. If you don't want to, that's fine."
"But I have a suggestion. You could work more on your Tackle and see if you can learn Ramming Attack."
"I think the move suits your personality. It could greatly increase your fighting strength." Aiven patted the Ironclad Rhinoceros on the head, then turned to Mukkuru.
At Aiven's words, Mukkuru looked thoughtful. It flapped its wings and flew into the woods.
Before long, the sound of something crashing into trees rang out from the woods. Mukkuru was clearly practicing Tackle in secret.
So stubborn... Aiven smiled helplessly, then murmured, "I wonder if Mukkuru's ability is Keen Eye or Reckless."
A Pokémon's ability could affect its personality to a great extent. Judging by Mukkuru's personality, there was an eighty percent chance it had the Reckless ability.
The Reckless ability increased the power of moves that hurt the user through recoil. That was why Aiven had suggested Mukkuru learn Ramming Attack.
Making up for yesterday's update. There'll be two more today.
I'm typing with one hand. Please vote!
Before you continue