Psyduck's humorous wisdom

"Pokéblocks? What are those?"

"They're processed Berry products. They're not popular in Kanto.

They originated in Hoenn, and other regions gradually made improvements to them. They're little snacks that help with raising Pokémon."

Setting the glass jar on the ground beside him, Xin Mu gave a brief introduction to Pokéblocks.

"I'm not sure what flavors your Pokémon like, but Water-types... should probably like this one."

Besides individual differences in taste, Pokémon also had general flavor preferences based on their species and types.

Those preferences were encoded in their DNA, passed down for who knew how many generations.

Xin Mu picked through the loose Pokéblocks, then held a water-blue cube up to Psyduck's bill.

"Want to try it?"

"Quack!"

Psyduck swallowed the Pokéblock in one gulp. A concentrated fruity fragrance burst across its tongue. That ordinary little cube seemed to hold an enormous amount of juice, making Psyduck feel as though it were clutching a giant Berry and sucking out its juices.

Before long, a pink flush appeared on Psyduck's face, and it began dancing around as though it were drunk.

"That shouldn't happen. I didn't put any alcohol in the recipe. How did Psyduck get drunk?"

"You've got the wrong idea, Mr. Xin Mu. Psyduck isn't drunk. It's always like that..."

"Oh, I see. Would you like to try some? They're made for Pokémon, but people can eat them too.

I mixed them all together after making them, though, so I'm not sure which flavors are which. You might get something really strange."

"I want to try!"

"Pika-pi!"

People sometimes had a contrary streak. Tell them how delicious something was, and they might not be interested.

But tell them it tasted strange, and they would feel compelled to give it a try.

Everyone gathered around, including Pikachu on Ash's shoulder, and picked a color they liked.

"Yuzu flavor."

"Mine's melon. It's pretty tasty."

"Pika, pi-pikachu~"

Everyone except Ash had already chosen a flavor. Ash, meanwhile, seemed to have become paralyzed by indecision, agonizing over which one to pick.

"Hmm... I'll go with this one. It looks like it should be strawberry."

After some deliberation, Ash finally chose a half-red, half-white Pokéblock, the same colors as a regular Poké Ball.

"...Whoa!"

Unfortunately, Ash wasn't very lucky. The moment the Pokéblock melted, he turned into a "Charizard," nearly breathing actual flames.

In the end, he plunged headfirst into the nearby fountain.

"Uh... that one was probably made with Cheri Berries. It's a little spicy. But its effect is more pronounced-it can cure paralysis."

"That's not fair! Why am I the only one who got a nasty flavor? Let me try again!"

Once he recovered, Ash made another choice. His luck seemed particularly bad that day, though, and he ended up tasting two more flavors: one extremely astringent, the other extremely bitter.

Only certain Pokémon could tolerate those flavors. With his taste buds thoroughly assaulted, Ash crouched off to the side in a dilemma, apparently wondering whether to try another one.

Brock, however, noticed something else. Psyduck's feathers seemed to have grown a little glossier after it ate the Pokéblock.

"Is that an effect of the Pokéblocks too?"

"More or less. Pokéblocks originally came from Pokémon Contests, a stage where Pokémon show off their beauty. In human terms, these are beauty supplements."

"Well, I'm actually traveling to become a better Pokémon Breeder. Could I learn a little more about Pokéblocks?"

"It's no trouble. There are ready-made Berry Blenders for this. Just put the ingredients into the machine according to the recipe and blend them.

You can take a look when you pass a department store. The ones I make might be a little different, but that's just a matter of personal recipes.

You can have that jar. It's not worth much anyway."

"Oh, we couldn't possibly..."

In the end, Brock took out a packet of homemade Pokémon food as a trade, and Xin Mu gained two new contacts in his email address book.

After Xin Mu left, Brock searched the map for a nearby place to camp. But once he settled on a location and went to pack their things, he discovered that the Pokéblocks Xin Mu had left were gone.

"Misty! Ash! Have you seen the Pokéblocks Mr. Xin Mu left us?"

"Aren't they right there on the table... Psyduck! What are you doing?!"

At that moment, Psyduck had an entire glass jar stuffed into its mouth.

After savoring that first Pokéblock, it had wanted more, but couldn't open the jar. Driven by its craving, it had shoved the whole jar into its mouth, only for it to get stuck.

Psyduck's behavior made Misty feel as though she were losing her mind. She punched it on the head, knocking the glass jar out of its mouth.

Then she took out a Pokéblock for Psyduck and recalled it to its ball.

Meanwhile, Xin Mu had reached the subway station and found himself in a predicament. The commotion Team Rocket had caused earlier had led to traffic restrictions in the area.

The road near the Pokémon Center was also a major thoroughfare, resulting in a huge traffic jam that still hadn't cleared.

With surface traffic at a standstill, plenty of people had switched to the subway. It also happened to be the evening rush hour, leaving the station packed with people.

Xin Mu watched two trains go by without even managing to get close to the doors.

As for taking a taxi home...

The nearby traffic jam and the fare estimated by the taxi app made him abandon that idea.

"Meownei, I don't think we're getting home anytime soon. Let's have dinner nearby."

"Meow? (Wouldn't eating out cost more?)"

"I can accept that expense, but I can't accept paying that much for a trip that normally costs just a few bucks... Food is different. There's a place nearby offering grand-opening specials. Let's check it out."

Xin Mu pulled Meownei through the packed crowd and made his way to a nearby shopping complex.

The advertising screen outside showed a Chikorita wearing an apron, alongside a promotional tie-in featuring a Special Grade Chef from Cooking Master Boy.

According to the accompanying ad copy, this was the head chef of the restaurant Xin Mu had spotted.

"Pokémon are allowed inside, right?"

Even in the world of Pokémon, some establishments only served humans. There were always people who couldn't accept sharing a dining table with Pokémon.

As a result, quite a few restaurants barred both Pokémon and pets. Xin Mu had no objection to that. If they weren't welcome, he simply wouldn't go.

Places catering exclusively to pets were hard to find, but there were plenty of restaurants that served Pokémon as well.

Of course, there were restrictions on which kinds of Pokémon were allowed. Pokémon like Muk still couldn't enter.

"The Pokémon with you is welcome. Besides discounts for our grand opening, we're also having a Pokémon chef demonstrate its cooking skills. Would you like to dine with us?"