A Small Profit

After securing Luo Mu's agreement, the burly man took a strawberry from the basket and held it beneath his nose, inhaling its scent. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly. "Such a fresh, fruity aroma. Just smelling it, I can imagine how sweet and tangy it must taste."

"And it's obvious you haven't used any of those questionable pesticides."

The burly man passed the strawberry to Infernape. Infernape held it beneath its nose and sniffed carefully too. A moment later, its furry face, usually marked by a constant scowl, suddenly took on a look of pure bliss.

Seeing Infernape like that, the burly man looked astonished. He glanced at Luo Mu and said with a smile, "Infernape has a very keen nose. Even it looks blissful because of that fruity aroma. I'm curious how you managed to grow such a successful crop on your very first try."

"That's all thanks to the Pokémon."

Luo Mu answered with a smile. He didn't think there was any need to keep this secret. If anything, it could become a selling point for the crops from his future farm.

"I see." The burly man wasn't surprised by that answer. Only the power of Pokémon could produce such a miraculous effect. The strawberries were high-quality and looked appealing; it was clear they'd been cared for by Pokémon.

Unfortunately, many farms couldn't ensure all their crops were cared for by Pokémon, due to limitations in their Pokémon's energy, strength, and other factors.

That was also why Arven's Farm had earned such widespread praise around the world. Much of it was thanks to the farm's owner, who also served as a Gym Leader.

The burly man inspected the crops in the other baskets in turn. After concluding that the quality was excellent, even if there wasn't much of it, he grew even more enthusiastic.

He reached out and briefly shook Luo Mu's hand before introducing himself. "My name is Sean. As you can see, I buy goods from farms and resell them. That said, I believe the prices I offer aren't much lower than what you'd get by selling them yourself at the market. If that sounds all right to you, I'd like to buy this batch of crops."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Sean." Luo Mu withdrew his hand and nodded, accepting Sean's offer.

He'd contacted Sean through Peter in the first place to sell this batch of crops.

"I like farmers who get straight to the point." Sean grinned and immediately fetched professional weighing equipment from his box truck. He and Infernape worked together to weigh the crops.

Since the crops came in small batches, and the man and Pokémon worked efficiently together, Sean soon gave Luo Mu his offer.

"Cabbage, eggplant, tomatoes, and cucumbers, along with the strawberries. The quantity isn't large, but the quality's good. That comes to 6,351 League currency."

"Not bad." Luo Mu's eyes brightened. He'd spent only 600 League currency on seeds. Even after factoring in fertilizer and the time he'd put in, his very first harvest had brought in a considerable return.

And some of the crops could keep flowering and fruiting after a period of growth. Though he'd worked hard for half a month and earned only a little over six thousand League currency, Luo Mu knew that the steady returns would add up to the real profit.

Sean smiled. "I'm offering you a better price than I would for ordinary crops from other farms. Wealthy people love high-quality produce like this."

Sean took a stack of bills from his shoulder bag, counted them several times, and handed them to Luo Mu.

This was the first money he'd truly earned since setting up the farm. Luo Mu took it and counted it carefully, a simple smile spreading across his face.

After slipping the small stack of bills into his pocket, Luo Mu asked, "Mr. Sean, do you also buy things besides crops?"

"Oh? Tell me more!" Sean's eyes lit up. Did Luo Mu have something else valuable?

Luo Mu brought over a small box from beneath a nearby fence. Inside lay several soft, beautiful tufts of cotton.

"What's this?!" Sean's eyes went wide, and his mouth fell slightly open as if the sight had left him stunned.

Luo Mu smiled. "This is the cotton shed by the Whimsicott on our farm. I heard it's in high demand. We don't have much use for it, so we thought we'd sell it for some extra money."

Sean took a deep breath, rubbed his suddenly throbbing temples, and tilted his head back to steady himself. Then he said regretfully, "I never imagined you had something so valuable here. Unfortunately, I don't have the means to buy it."

Luo Mu looked puzzled. "Hmm?"

Sean gave a wry smile. "Even in the Galar region, Whimsicott aren't very common. Only Arven's Farm and a handful of top farms have large Whimsicott populations that can produce cotton steadily."

"The cotton Whimsicott produce is exquisite and beautiful, whether it's spun into thread or woven with other materials into fabric. I never expected to see it in the Paldea region."

"Judging by eye, you have only about fifty to a hundred grams here. It sells for as much as six thousand League currency per pound. Rather than sell it to me, I'd recommend saving up a decent amount and taking it to the market in Ziqin Town."

Sean knew that if he bought the cotton, he could certainly make some money reselling it.

But his work was limited to Pingdie Town, and the small town didn't need such high-grade material. He couldn't abandon his work and spend the time and effort traveling to Ziqin Town to sell such a small amount of cotton.

The effort wouldn't be worth the return.

Sean's words left Luo Mu lost in thought. He hadn't realized the cotton shed by Whimsicott was so valuable.

The cotton he had now had been shed earlier that day, after the Hoppip evolved into Whimsicott. Most of the time, Whimsicott used their cotton as a medium to share nutrients with the crops.

In other words, he'd been burning money to farm all this time!

Suddenly, the more than six thousand League currency he'd just earned didn't seem so appealing.

That was what Luo Mu thought to himself, though his face gave no sign of the wandering thoughts behind it. He nodded and thanked Sean for the advice.

Since Sean wasn't willing to buy the cotton, Luo Mu would collect more first, then take it all to the market in Ziqin Town to sell.

He seemed to remember that the market there sold goods through auctions?

With money exchanged for goods, Sean and Infernape transferred the five baskets of crops to the baskets in his truck.

"Call me when you have another harvest!"

Sean said goodbye to Luo Mu, left him his phone number, and had Infernape drive the box truck away from the farm.

Rubbing the new bills in his pocket and thinking of the thriving pasture in the Ranch Area, Luo Mu murmured, "It's about time I made plans for the Ranch Area."