"Far!" Farfetch'd suddenly pointed a wing at something. Heath looked curiously at the lunch box. If he remembered correctly, that lunch box contained...
[Step Three of Pokémon Chef: Teach Farfetch'd to make a serving of Beijing roast duck independently. Upon completion, you will receive a mystery reward.]
The corner of Heath's mouth twitched. So it really was that one?
Since some of the prisoners might be particular about eating meat, Heath had specifically bought a few ducks that day and prepared several servings of Beijing roast duck, chopping them into pieces before packing them into lunch boxes.
He had also included shredded scallions, cucumber strips, sweet bean sauce, and a small stack of thin pancakes he had rolled out himself.
But out of all the food Heath had made that day, he really hadn't expected Farfetch'd to set its sights on the Beijing roast duck at first glance.
That discovery left Heath feeling a little bewildered. As he recalled, Farfetch'd was a duck Pokémon. Wouldn't teaching a duck how to make roast duck be a little too cruel?
"Far! Far!" But looking at the very excited Farfetch'd and the quest that had already triggered, Heath could only sigh. It seemed he really had no choice but to teach it.
"Wait until we've delivered the lunch boxes, and I'll buy some more ducks for you to practice with. How does that sound?" Heath asked Farfetch'd softly.
"Far!" Farfetch'd immediately nodded without the slightest hesitation.
Seeing that, Heath didn't quite know what to say. He looked Farfetch'd over. Between its appearance and the leek it carried, he thought it might actually have been based on Beijing roast duck.
After all, Beijing roast duck had been a very famous Chinese dish back then, and it really did taste wonderful. Duck meat wrapped in a thin pancake with shredded scallions and sweet bean sauce was sheer bliss.
Just imagining putting that rich, succulent duck meat into his mouth, the distinctive fragrant crunch of the skin, and the fat slowly releasing as he chewed, with the sweet bean sauce and scallions cutting through the richness, made Heath swallow involuntarily.
Heath recalled Farfetch'd, then pushed his food cart to Viridian City Prison with the lunch boxes. After he called Sister Feng, someone soon came out to inspect the food he had prepared.
Only after confirming that everything was fine did they take all the lunch boxes inside. Heath, however, wasn't given permission to enter.
Security around Viridian City seemed to have tightened considerably lately. He wondered whether it had anything to do with the Team Plasma member he had served before.
"I wonder how this quest is judged. I did explain things to the staff, but... sigh." Heath pushed his food cart along, glancing back at Viridian City Prison.
Since he couldn't go inside, Heath had only been able to explain the differences between the lunch boxes to the staff. Without seeing the prisoners, he couldn't get immediate feedback either.
Viridian City Prison wasn't within the city itself, so by the time Heath pushed his cart back to Viridian City, the lunch rush was already over. He felt he had lost out a little; after all, he could have earned some money during that time.
"Hey, did you hear? Apparently Viridian Forest's been haunted lately. I saw that the League even sent Lookers in!" Just as Heath was wondering whether to ask Sister Feng for a little more money to make up for his losses, two men came over to buy Jianbing Guozi and started chatting.
"Heh, of course I know. Isn't that what Officer Jenny and the others went to deal with?" The other man nodded. It seemed gossip really was something everyone enjoyed.
Heath concentrated on making the Jianbing Guozi, but he also listened to the men's conversation.
Naturally, he knew about Viridian Forest. There seemed to be a strange, very powerful Pokémon in there, but Heath still didn't know exactly what kind it was.
But what had previously sounded like an urban legend had now become serious enough for the League to intervene. Heath was curious. Just what was that Pokémon?
"Not that it's done any good. Viridian Forest's so big, the League's been searching since last night and still hasn't found anything." The men kept chatting as Heath handed them their two finished Jianbing Guozi.
"Heh, all they've done is put out a notice telling us to be careful..." The men walked away, still talking, while Heath began pondering the situation in Viridian Forest.
Heath thought the little girl he had seen last time was more likely to be a Gastly. After all, hadn't there been a Gastly in the anime that could take on a human appearance?
But he had no solid evidence yet, and figuring out how to communicate with the Pokémon was another problem.
[You have completed the prison meal delivery quest. Forty-three prisoners were satisfied with your food.] [You have obtained one important clue (targeted) and the Ingredient Identifier.]
Heath raised an eyebrow. Forty-three satisfied customers-he was quite pleased with that number. It also proved that he had made good choices that day, though he lacked more specific information.
Otherwise, Heath felt he could have pushed that number a little higher. He was curious: if everyone had been satisfied, what would he have received?
For now, though, Heath intended to check his rewards and see exactly what he had obtained.
[Important clue (targeted): You may designate an area and obtain one random important clue about it.]
Heath pursed his lips, feeling that it wasn't particularly useful. Then he remembered Viridian Forest. Thinking of it that way, this reward had arrived at just the right time.
Heath promptly selected Viridian Forest, and a new clue popped up a second later.
[She likes sweet-and-sour flavors. It would be best not to bring Poké Balls.]
Heath studied the clue thoughtfully. It was simple and easy to understand. Apparently, the Pokémon was female, liked sweet-and-sour flavors, and disliked Poké Balls.
With that information, combined with the Golden Perfume he had obtained earlier, Heath formed a preliminary plan. He would still need to visit Viridian Forest and take a look, though.
Then Heath turned his attention to the other thing he had received, an object that looked like a magnifying glass.
[Ingredient Identifier: Can be used once per day to identify general information about one ingredient.]
The description was vague, but Heath still intended to give it a try. He looked at Farfetch'd beside him, waving its leek around as though practicing swordplay, and smiled.
Heath was very curious. If he used the Ingredient Identifier on a Pokémon like Farfetch'd, what information would he get?
Before you continue