Cole had already made an appointment online with the Sproutling Haven Nursery, and upon arrival, the staff warmly welcomed him after he gave his name.
Though the staff member found it unusual to see a child customer, they maintained their professional, attentive demeanor.
The staff member led Cole to their planting area, where he discovered an operation far larger than his modest garden. Fruit trees stretched as far as the eye could see — mostly young saplings, as expected from a nursery specializing in selling young trees.
The staff member provided thorough service, carefully explaining each sapling variety's characteristics and planting requirements.
Cole's garden currently housed three types of Berry trees: Pecha, Oran, and Rawst. These typically ripened in April-May, with a second fruiting period in September-October due to Coumarine City's unique climate.
To ensure year-round fruit availability, Cole wanted to purchase Berry trees that would fruit during different seasons. This would create a staggered harvest schedule.
He selected four varieties: Cheri Berry, Chesto Berry, Persim Berry, and Leppa Berry.
Cheri Berry trees produced fruit from January to March and again from July to September, offering higher yields and longer bearing periods than his existing trees — making them particularly cost-effective.
Chesto Berry trees were unique, bearing fruit only from January to April despite Coumarine City's climate. However, their fruits' premium prices made up for the shorter season.
Persim Berry trees fruited from September through January. While they had just one fruiting period, their extended five-month harvest made them financially worthwhile.
Leppa Berry trees stood out by producing fruit year-round with exceptional yields, though this abundance meant their fruits fetched the lowest market prices.
Cole knew that once he enhanced the trees' energy levels through cultivation, even common varieties could command premium prices.
For now, though, he lacked the resources. His ultimate goal was to build an ecological park where he could control the climate directly, eliminating the need to consider seasonal constraints.
Ramos's garden was such an ecological park. Inside, temperature, humidity, and sunlight could be precisely controlled, allowing him to grow flowers and trees from any season and region.
In the end, it all came down to finances.
Cole ordered 200 trees of each variety. The low-grade saplings were affordable, ranging from P$20 to P$50 each: Cheri Berry at P$25, Chesto Berry at P$40, Persim Berry at P$28, and Leppa Berry — the most economical — at P$21.
To expand his previous small-scale cultivation, he also purchased 200 more trees each of Pecha Berry (P$28), Oran Berry (P$31), and Rawst Berry (P$27).
The total investment for all trees came to P$40,000.
With the trees selected and deposit paid, all that remained was to await delivery.
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The Sproutling Haven Nursery proved remarkably efficient. Being nearby, they delivered all the trees to Ascendant Mountain that very afternoon, bringing them in trucks.
Their service was comprehensive. Along with the drivers came several powerful Machoke who transported the trees to their designated locations following Cole's instructions.
Cole waited at the mountain's base after receiving their call. Upon arrival, he coordinated his Fletchinder and the Machoke to move the trees uphill, and soon everything was in position.
After paying the remaining balance, Cole bid farewell to the satisfied nursery staff.
The Diggersby family had been preparing since yesterday, digging holes across the mountain. Their efficiency was remarkable — they could complete a hole in seconds. Through the night, the family of three had excavated over a thousand holes, each meeting Cole's exact specifications for size, depth, and spacing.
Impressed by their capability and thoroughness, Cole considered offering them permanent positions.
With the trees delivered, the next phase began: planting over a thousand trees — no small undertaking.
Cole planned to arrange the seven varieties in circular layers from summit to base. Persim Berry trees, preferring cooler temperatures, would crown the mountain, followed by Cheri, Chesto, Pecha, Oran, Rawst, and finally Leppa Berry at the lowest level.
After briefing the Pokémon on his requirements, Cole enthusiastically led everyone to begin the work.
The Diggersby couple proved themselves invaluable workers. Their exceptional strength and agility made tasks like moving trees and filling soil effortless, earning them MVP status during the planting operation.
Diggersby: We're working extra hard to prove ourselves worthy of permanent positions!
Cole and his Pokémon labored from dawn till dusk for nearly five days until all trees were planted.
Throughout this period, he provided morning and evening massages to ease the Pokémon's fatigue. Unexpectedly, he noticed his Special Ability energy had grown substantially.
Had it evolved?
Testing this development, he attempted to split his Special Ability energy into dual streams, channeling them through both palms to massage two Pokémon at once — and succeeded.
This new ability to massage two Pokémon simultaneously, while mentally demanding and requiring deep focus, served as excellent willpower training.
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With the planting complete, Cole extended a formal employment offer to the Diggersby family.
"Would you like to stay here with me, Diggersby?"
Though he'd previously had to let Mother Diggersby go due to financial constraints, his situation had improved. Despite remaining in debt, he could now support a few employees.
These were the words they'd been hoping to hear!
The Diggersby family had no reason to refuse — this was precisely what they wanted!
Having long envied the Guard Company's permanent positions, they eagerly embraced this opportunity.
Both parties agreed to terms: the Diggersby family would work for Cole in exchange for room, board, and regular massages.
The new staff required quarters, so Cole and his Pokémon used the mountain's abundant trees to construct a wooden cabin suitable for the family of three.
The Diggersby family moved to Ascendant Mountain with joy.
Father Diggersby even returned to their former home to transplant his cherished Oran Berry tree — which he'd nurtured for years — placing it beside their new cabin.
Cole viewed these wooden cabins as temporary accommodations, planning to build better facilities once his finances allowed.
After completing the planting, he assigned Popplio to water the thousand-plus trees.
Beyond watering duties, Popplio was to engage in battle training with Fletchinder and little Bunnelby. Only through regular use of its skills in daily life and combat could the little Sea Lion return to normal.
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One day when Cole returned home, Lily ran over to him, "Brother Cole, aren't you coming back to school tomorrow? There are exams in a few days, and your teacher asked me to tell you that you must come back for them."
Ugh... he had been so busy lately that he'd almost forgotten he was still a student.
"Alright, I got it. I'll go back to school tomorrow."
The next day, Cole went to school with Lily and Charlie. His classmates were used to his frequent absences by now.
After two classes, he was summoned to his homeroom teacher's office.
"Cole, haven't you been absent for far too long this time?" Teacher Boris said, clearly displeased.
He had mixed feelings about this student — Cole's grades were excellent, no doubt, but he was too independent-minded. Not paying attention in class was one thing, but now he was missing four or five days at a time.
This was completely unacceptable — what kind of student behavior was this?
"If you keep this up, do you still want to graduate? You're already a year older than your classmates — do you want to spend two more years in junior school?"
Cole asked, genuinely puzzled, "But if I learn everything I need to know, isn't that enough? Why do I have to come to school?"
Boris... was speechless.
It was true — this kid was always at the top of his class, never falling below third place in his grade.
"Fine, if that's how you want to put it — if you can't maintain your usual performance in this exam, then you'll have to attend classes properly from now on!" Boris said, his eyes stern.
"So if I can maintain my grades without declining, does that mean I won't have to come to class?" Cole countered, truly feeling pressed for time.
Boris was stumped again but gritted his teeth and said, "If you can get first place this time, I'll agree to your request!"
"Really?"
"Really!"
"Can you make that decision?"
"I... yes! As long as you get first place, I'll allow you to skip school!"
"Well... I'll do my best then."
After the kid left, the teacher suddenly regretted making that promise — what if Cole actually got first place?
"Ah~" Boris sighed helplessly.
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The exam time arrived as scheduled, and Cole completed all the papers with ease.
During the two days before the results came out, he attended school punctually and stopped reading extracurricular books during class, which made his teachers curious about this unusual behavior.
After school each day, Talonflame — being the speedster — would pick him up right on time and take him to Ascendant Mountain. There, he would work on the trees one by one, organizing their internal diagrams while purifying and compressing their energy.
All thousand-plus fruit trees needed this treatment, and it wasn't just a one-time thing — it had to be done in continuous cycles. This was an enormous project that couldn't be completed in just a day or two.
But that's just how cultivation works — only with enough patience can you cultivate truly excellent fruit trees. Every high-energy fruit tree was cultivated bit by bit by master cultivators. Time, effort, and money — none could be lacking.
On the day the exam results came out, Boris checked Cole's scores first thing and was dumbfounded.
He really had gotten first place, with perfect scores in all subjects, far ahead of second place.
Boris: ᇂ_ᇂ
He lay lifelessly in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling.
At this time, other teachers noticed his half-dead expression and asked curiously, "Teacher Boris, what's wrong? Did your class not do well?"
His eyes gradually regained focus as he shook his head and replied, "No, they did fine."
"Then why do you look like that?" That teacher curiously leaned over, happened to see Cole's grade ranking, and remarked unsurprisingly, "Ah~ Cole from your class got first place again? That's great, this kid is still as amazing as ever!"
'Great... what's so great about it!' Boris wanted to cry.
After getting his report card, Cole went straight to Teacher Boris's office.
"I got first place, so I don't have to come to school anymore, right?"
"Yes, that's right." The man nodded reluctantly.
He wanted to say no but couldn't bring himself to — he was completely helpless against this student.
"Good then."
Just as he turned to leave, Boris quickly called out, "Hey, wait, I'm not finished!"
Cole turned back with an expression that said 'say what you need to say quickly.'
Boris said helplessly, "Let me make this clear — even if you don't come to school, you can't slack off. You still have to come back for exams, and I'll have your brother and sister notify you of the exam dates. If you ever fall out of the top three in any exam, this agreement between us is void!"
Cole hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded, "Fine, is that all?"
Boris covered his head and waved his hand dismissively, signaling him to leave quickly.
After leaving the teacher's office, Cole went straight back to the classroom, packed his bag and left, while his classmates silently watched him.
Top students are really something — they can come and go from school as they please.
He didn't have a close relationship with any of his classmates, so no one said anything when he left.
Just as Cole walked out of the classroom, his wrist communicator displayed a bank account notification: P$100,000 had been deposited.
While he was wondering about the source of the money, his phone rang. Seeing Officer Jenny's name, he understood immediately.
[Cole, did you receive the money? P$100,000.]
Officer Jenny's voice came through the phone.
"I did." Cole replied, "Is this the reward for helping capture the smuggling ring?"
[That's right. The smuggling ring case was quite complicated, so the reward money only came through today.]
"100,000—isn't that a bit much?" Cole asked, puzzled.
[Not at all. You don't know how many terrible things this gang did. They were constantly on the move, and the police tried to catch them many times but couldn't arrest them all. Besides, thanks to your help, we recovered a huge amount of stolen money. Compared to that, P$100,000 is just a drop in the bucket.]
"I see... then I'll accept the money." Cole said, "Thank you for helping me apply for this reward."
[No need to thank me, you earned it. Besides, aren't you busy managing your orchard now? Though P$100,000 isn't much, I hope it helps you a bit.]
After ending the call with Officer Jenny, Cole went straight to the Ascendant Mountain.
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In the days that followed, Cole settled into a routine between the orphanage and Ascendant Mountain.
During the day, he would stay at the mountain, using his "special touch" to cultivate fruit trees and supervise Popplio and Daisy's training. Each evening, Talonflame would take him home.
These days were lonely and isolated from the world, but having lived on an uninhabited island for eight years, he adapted well.
While Cole focused on cultivating fruit trees, he was unaware that others were looking out for his farming business.
Large-scale fruit production requires a steady customer base, especially for high energy-grade fruits. Unlike E-grade and F-grade fruits that could be sold at farmers' markets, these premium fruits needed reliable buyers to prevent spoilage.
Cole wasn't worried — he believed his high energy-grade fruits would attract customers easily. His plan was to focus on raising the trees' energy levels first and find buyers once the trees bore fruit.
Alfred, however, saw things differently. He worried that Cole's large-scale planting could be risky without guaranteed buyers.
While Cole tended to his trees, Alfred was busy networking with Breeders through his friends Kian and Jaiden.
These two came from privileged backgrounds. Though they hadn't joined the Pokémon Department like Jaiden's sister Emely, their wealthy status gave them connections most people lacked.
Through them, Alfred connected with Pokémon Department breeding students, learning the ins and outs of the Berry market. He even established contact with a breeding house heir.
Major breeding houses were known for their high Berry consumption. They needed large quantities for raising Pokémon and producing Pokéblocks, Poké Puffs, and other Pokémon foods.
A partnership with a breeding house would secure a reliable market for Cole's fruits.
Alfred proved to have a natural talent for networking. Though he seemed cold at first glance, those who knew him discovered his genuine charm — sincere, attentive, and gentle.
His recent late hours were spent meeting with the breeding house heir, and they had begun forming a friendship.
Years ago, Alfred had shared Paul's dream — to become an Elite Four-level trainer.
But school taught him a harsh lesson: people start from different places in life. As an orphan without extraordinary opportunities, becoming a powerful trainer seemed beyond reach.
Being practical by nature, he chose not to pursue an impossible dream and decisively abandoned his aspirations of becoming a trainer.
After finishing elementary school, he opted for regular classes instead of joining the Pokémon Department.
His sole focus became earning money — enough to give the orphanage children better lives, to ease Meili's burden, and to provide little Claire with top medical care.
Yet he realized that achieving this through his efforts alone could take decades.
Then Cole revealed his extraordinary farming abilities.
When Cole showed Alfred those fruit test results, more than just amazement struck him — he glimpsed a new path, one that could help him reach his goals faster.
He reasoned: if making money was the objective, why work for strangers when he could work alongside Cole? The potential in his Berry cultivation seemed limitless!
From then on, Alfred worked behind the scenes with one goal: to prove to Cole that he could be the perfect Berry sales agent.
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