At the same time, Sinnoh Region, Eterna Gym.
"Hey, hey, hey, everyone! We agreed to head into the forest for an adventure and gather resources today. Why are you all sitting around the Gym eating the snacks Ye Lan sent?"
"Especially you, Roserade! Your legs are a whole size thicker than before!"
Gardenia's angry voice rang out. Seeing that the Pokémon gathered around the television did not react in the slightest, she stomped her feet in fury.
It was New Year's Day. Early that morning, she had received all kinds of snacks Ye Lan had sent from the Huaxia Region, all of them favorites of her Pokémon.
For Gardenia, whose finances were in dire straits and who now had to diligently complete Gym challenges and teach challengers in order to keep the Sinnoh Pokémon League running, this was nine parts benefit out of ten.
After all, she had long known about Ye Lan's cooking skills. Although he had yet to take a Pokémon nutritionist assessment, the Pokémon food he made not only had a unique flavor for Grass-type Pokémon, but also carried considerable nutritional value.
It was still somewhat inadequate for Champion-level Pokémon, but it could serve as an after-meal dessert, and was far more filling than other foods of the same grade.
But that remaining "one part" was that her Pokémon had already been eating poorly every day lately, and they had not had Ye Lan's food in a long time. After their first bite, they were like monks who had cultivated in the mountains for years before suddenly coming down and breaking their vows. They ate with such relish that they licked the seasoning clean, and had already begun to completely ignore her, their Trainer!
*Could Ye Lan have put something in this Pokémon food? No, that can't