"Berry Blender, activate!"
Crafting Pokéblocks proved harder than Su Feng expected. It required constant attention to the blocks' state, the blender's temperature, and rotation speed. One misstep could ruin the batch.
Su Feng finally understood the stress of alchemists in fantasy novels.
Ten minutes later, his first attempt failed. The Berries had turned into an inedible paste.
"Hmm… too much heat, but the rotation was fine," Su Feng noted, dumping the failed batch into his garden as fertilizer.
The second attempt failed during the final stage due to impatience.
By the third try, Su Feng succeeded in producing a handful of low-grade Pokéblocks.
Holding the translucent white blocks, Su Feng felt a surge of pride.
"One small step for me, one giant leap for Pokémon cuisine!"
In high spirits, Su Feng decided to explore the city. He hadn't truly experienced this world since arriving.
Opting for a taxi over driving, Su Feng left Combusken—who'd been meditating since witnessing Hitmonlee's kicks—to guard the house.
As expected, the driver noticed Haunter perched on Su Feng's head.
"Hey, kid, that's a Pokémon, right?" The driver, with a northern accent, was friendly and chatty.
"You know about Pokémon?"
"Of course! They're everywhere now. Who doesn't know about them?"
"You don't mind me bringing one in your car?" Su Feng probed, curious about public perception.
"Pfft, Pokémon aren't just animals. They're smart, almost like people! My son found a little rat Pokémon—so clever! His mom wasn't keen at first, but it won her over."
"A rat Pokémon?"
The driver pulled up the Pokédex app, showing a Rattata. "This one. Called 'Rattata.'"
Su Feng chuckled. The photo was of the very Rattata he'd first encountered.
He then thought of Greninja and Tyrogue, still in the forest. I should visit them soon.
The driver's fondness for Pokémon reassured Su Feng.
Arriving at the city center, Su Feng was stunned. Every tenth person had a Pokémon companion!
Though most were common species, he spotted a few Pikachu and Slowpoke—rarer in urban areas. These Pokémon shared a trait: they were simple-hearted and trusting of humans.
The sight was so normal that no one batted an eye.
At a café, two Rattata nibbled cake while their owners shared care tips.
In a salon, a Pikachu enjoyed a massage, occasionally zapping the stylist with stray sparks.
A wealthy woman's Machoke carried her shopping bags, treating the task as training.
Su Feng smiled, feeling like he was the one out of touch.
Entering an ice cream shop, he found an unexpected staff member: a small Pokémon.
"Welcome~"
"Munna~"
A young employee explained, "That's our assistant manager. Don't worry, it won't affect your ice cream."
"A Pokémon as assistant manager?" Su Feng raised an eyebrow.
Noticing Haunter, the employee warmed up. "Our owner found it in H City. It loves ice cream, so we adopted it. We call it 'Munna' since it always says 'munna.'"
Munna floated over, sniffing Su Feng. It sensed something even tastier than ice cream.
Su Feng patted its head. "Munna, can you bring me two of your favorite flavors?"
"Munna~"