"Deal." Yushu was very happy with the price.
"That's the spirit! By the way, Yushu, what's your ranch called? I need to register it."
Kurokawa took out a ledger, opened it to a page, and picked up a pen.
Yushu froze for a moment.
A name? I really haven't thought about that.
He had spent the past two days busy planting trees and making Pokéblocks and cheese. He hadn't had any time to think of a name.
"Uh... I haven't named it yet."
"Then come up with one now. You'll have to sooner or later anyway."
Kurokawa put down his pen and waited for an answer.
Yushu pondered for a moment.
What should I call it? Many names flashed through his mind.
Leisure Ranch, Qingmu Ranch, Solaceon Ranch, Lake Acuity Ranch...
Finally, two words surfaced in his mind.
Free will.
The freedom to do as he pleased. The freedom to follow his heart.
He had chosen to return to Solaceon Town, to run a ranch, and to do what he enjoyed.
All of it had been done of his own free will.
"Freewill Ranch."
Yushu blurted it out.
"Hmm?" Kurokawa looked up.
"I'll call it Freewill Ranch."
Yushu repeated himself, a note of certainty in his voice.
"Freewill Ranch... That's a lovely name!"
Kaixin spoke softly from beside him.
The name sounded pleasant, with a sense of freedom and ease.
"All right, settled, then."
Kurokawa wrote it down in his ledger. "From now on, I'll send someone to your place every morning to collect the goods. Just leave the prepared cheese by the entrance."
"Sure, no problem."
Yushu nodded.
The two discussed the details a little longer, confirming the delivery time and payment arrangements.
The whole process went smoothly. There was no haggling, no wrangling or passing the buck. Everything was clean and straightforward.
Before he left, Kurokawa stopped Yushu.
"Oh, and if you have any spare Pokéblocks, you can bring those in to sell too. Quite a few of my customers have been asking about high-quality Pokéblocks."
"Sure, I'll think about it."
Yushu readily agreed.
It seemed word about his Pokéblocks had already spread. That was a good sign.
When he stepped out of the shop, the setting sun was spilling over the street, bathing everything in a warm golden glow.
Yushu stood by the roadside and took a deep breath. Even the air felt sweet.
"Congratulations, Yushu. That's a big long-term order."
Kaixin stood beside him and said with a smile, "Thank you, Kaixin. I owe you a lot for today."
Yushu spoke from the heart.
Without Kaixin's introduction, he might have had to spend more time looking for a buyer.
If she hadn't been there, Kurokawa might not have offered a price ten percent higher so readily.
"You're welcome. Just remember to give me first priority for your Pokéblocks from now on." Kaixin winked.
"Of course, of course."
Yushu agreed with a smile.
They parted at the street corner. Kaixin returned to the Pokémon Day Care, while Yushu headed back to the ranch.
Yushu retraced his steps, feeling especially lighthearted.
His cheese now had a steady buyer, his Pokéblocks had orders, his Berry trees were flourishing, and the Pokémon's health was gradually improving.
Everything was moving in a good direction.
A month later.
Freewill Ranch had completely transformed.
If someone had told Yushu at the start of the month that a patch of wasteland could become like this in a month, he would have thought they were crazy.
But now, standing at the entrance to his own ranch and looking at everything before him, he felt as though he were dreaming too.
In the Berry orchard, the first batch of Pecha Berries, Oran Berries, and Wepear Berries had fully ripened, their branches laden with plump fruit.
The Chesto Berries and Razz Berries planted later had also grown to half a person's height, with lush branches and leaves, thriving beautifully.
Yushu casually picked a Pecha Berry, rubbed it against his clothes, and took a bite.
Juice burst in his mouth, with just the right amount of sweetness.
"Not bad. The quality is even better than I expected."
Uxie floated beside him, also holding a Pecha Berry and nibbling at it.
It now fully considered itself a member of the ranch, following Yushu around every day and sneaking a bite of this and that from time to time.
Life was damn good.
What kind of miserable life was I living at Lake Acuity before this?
"Mmm, this isn't as tasty as a Pokéblock."
Uxie licked its lips, looking rather unimpressed.
"Fresh Berries have their own advantages. They're juicy and quench your thirst."
Yushu rolled his eyes at it.
Ever since this fellow had eaten his Pokéblocks, its palate had become so picky that ordinary Berries no longer satisfied it.
Uxie tilted its head and thought about it. Deciding he had a point, it lowered its head and went back to nibbling its Berry.
Berries of this quality would definitely be top-grade goods on the market.
Unfortunately, Yushu had no intention of selling them. They were all going to be made into Pokéblocks.
Seriously, how much money could selling Berries bring in?
For one thing, making them into Pokéblocks doubled the profits, while the costs were only the price of the Berries themselves, plus a little electricity and labor.
He had worked those numbers out very clearly.
For another, there were more and more Pokémon on his ranch, and the demand for Pokéblocks was growing too.
The six veteran employees, along with the thirty Miltank and Mareep, already consumed a considerable amount every day.
With Uxie and its increasingly picky palate added to the mix, his Berry production was barely enough. There was simply no surplus to sell.
Besides the Berry orchard, the ranch had another important new facility.
A large beehive.
It was a small, square wooden house with a triangular roof, supported by four posts underneath, about a meter off the ground.
A square opening in the front let Combee come and go, making it look like an exquisite little villa.
Yushu had prepared it especially for Vespiquen.
According to basic Pokémon ecology, as long as a Vespiquen was near a flower field, she would attract wild Combee to join her.
Most of these Combee were male. They usually served as worker bees, constantly collecting nectar, making honey, and guarding the nest for their colony's queen.
As their leader, Vespiquen was responsible for assigning tasks, managing the colony, and providing these Combee with a safe living environment.
But since Vespiquen herself had a Trainer, Yushu took care of their food as well.
They didn't need to forage in the wild. Every day, they only needed to focus on collecting nectar and making honey.
The Combee were ecstatic.
A life protected by a queen, with someone to care for them, and no need to worry about going hungry.
Every morning, they flew out of the hive on time, flitting back and forth through the flower fields, busy and happy.
At dusk, they returned fully laden and handed the nectar they had collected to Vespiquen, who then distributed it among the individual honeycombs.
The entire colony operated efficiently and in an orderly fashion, like a finely tuned machine.
Simply perfect!
Vespiquen herself wasn't idle either. By directing the Combee's movements, she practiced her Order moves.
This kind of training in command ability was crucial for Bug-type Pokémon.