On the way back, Cole eagerly asked the old man, "Old Ra, how did the discussion go?"
"It's done!" Ramos replied, "Just bring the materials over whenever you have time. He's home every day, so you can deliver them anytime."
"Old Ra, you're like a real grandfather to me!" Cole exclaimed excitedly, then asked with confusion, "Did Mr. Bryan know how to make Pokéblocks before? How come I never heard about this?"
Ramos snorted and said, "There's still a lot you don't know."
Since it was getting late, the two parted ways midway — Cole returned to Mt. Ascendant, while Ramos went back to the Coumarine Gym.
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After returning home, Cole released eight Gyarados and seven Clauncher, introduced them to the other Pokémon, and asked everyone to get along well.
The Gyarados had a joyful reunion with Daisy, and with mother and son present, they settled comfortably into their new environment.
The seven Clauncher, however, struggled to adapt to life on land and appeared nervous among the many Pokémon. The three ghost-type Pokémon, understanding their situation best, took the initiative to comfort them until they settled down.
To welcome the new members, Cole treated all the Pokémon to another spa session that evening, which made everyone cheer with joy. They began hoping for more new arrivals, since newcomers meant spa treatment rewards for all.
The Gyarados, experiencing the spa treatment for the first time in years, became completely absorbed in the sensation.
Since they were old friends who had traveled so far to find him, Cole thoughtfully extended their spa time, leaving them thoroughly satisfied.
The Clauncher, experiencing their first spa treatment, were absolutely enchanted, though Cole didn't extend their session time as he had for the others.
He advised them, "As long as you work hard in the future, you can experience the spa treatment anytime."
The Clauncher immediately burst into excited chatter, all promising they would be well-behaved and work hard!
Cole nodded with satisfaction.
Early the next morning, as he stepped out of his courtyard to breathe in Mt. Ascendant's fresh air, he saw several Gyarados floating above the berry grove, spraying streams of water onto the trees below.
Being their first time at this kind of work, their movements were clumsy — quite different from their graceful swimming in the sea. Yet under Vaporeon's guidance, despite their stumbling, they were managing well enough.
As flying-type Pokémon, they could naturally fly, though not very high or fast — nowhere near as swift and fierce as when swimming. Still, their slow, steady pace was perfect for watering the berry grove from above.
"Working so hard already this morning?" Cole asked the Gyarados, surprised.
The Clauncher he had spoken to the night before were equally industrious, working diligently in another berry grove under Brionne's leadership.
Brionne, typically an early riser for training, had woken even earlier today. With new subordinates to manage, it was determined to train them into a fully disciplined team.
After breakfast, the orchard bustled with activity. Pokémon picked ripe berries from trees, carefully arranged them in baskets, and had Nidoking and others carry them down the mountain for customer pickup.
After handling the berries for sale, Cole had them gather Grade A berries to deliver to Bryan for Pokéblock making — the Pokémon were eagerly awaiting their treats!
With the morning's work arranged, he headed to Coumarine's western district to find a construction team. He wanted to build a reservoir, both for water storage and to create a proper habitat for the Gyarados and Clauncher.
These water-type Pokémon, having lived in water all their lives, couldn't stay on land indefinitely — that wouldn't be right.
Besides, the reservoir would help regulate the surrounding environment. He hadn't built one before due to lack of funds, but now, flush with recent earnings, he was eager to invest.
His berry sales weren't even complete yet, and he anticipated another substantial income soon.
Cole chose the valley between Mt. Ascendant and Mt. Olympus for the reservoir. The valley, which he'd acquired along with Mt. Olympus, hadn't been expensive but had remained unused until now. It would make an ideal reservoir location.
While there were several similar valleys among his mountains, formed by connecting peaks, the one between Olympus and Ascendant offered the best conditions due to its proximity to a water source.
Behind them stretched an endless mountain range with an uninhabited area deeper within.
The largest river in Coumarine originated from this uninhabited region, flowing westward to the sea. One of its many tributaries conveniently ran between Cole's mountains.
This tributary was precisely why Cole had chosen Mt. Ascendant and Mt. Olympus among all the small mountains in the area — perfect for his planned reservoir.
Finding a construction team proved straightforward. Through a recommendation from the team that had built his house, Cole connected with specialists in reservoir construction.
After reaching an agreement, they visited the site that same day.
Cole guided them through the valley, where they conducted an environmental survey. The team then developed a construction plan that would protect the surrounding geology while maximizing the reservoir's benefits.
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A month flew by. While autumn crept into other regions, Coumarine stayed vibrant and green.
Cole's berry stock had nearly sold out, bringing in substantial profits. His finances were secure for now.
The Coumarine berry market had stabilized under the League's regulations. The crisis had created both winners and losers — Cole fortunately counted himself among the former.
Throughout the month, he'd maintained steady deliveries of Grade A berries to Bryan for Pokéblock production.
Initially concerned about overwhelming the old man with frequent deliveries, Cole voiced his worries. Bryan simply laughed it off, assuring him he could deliver anytime.
Cole soon discovered why — Bryan wasn't working alone. He had trained an Octillery and a Slowking who could craft Pokéblocks with equal skill.
Octillery, with its multiple tentacles working in concert, achieved efficiency that surpassed both Bryan and Slowking.
Though Slowking worked more slowly than its companions, its patience and meticulousness produced the finest quality Pokéblocks of the three.
Cole was quite impressed the first time he saw the three of them working together. He hadn't expected Bryan's Pokémon to be so capable — it showed that Pokémon truly had limitless potential.
This gave him an idea: while he didn't have time to learn Pokéblock-making himself, he could have his Pokémon learn instead!
However, making Pokéblocks wasn't simple; most Pokémon couldn't do it. After considering all his Pokémon and employees, he couldn't think of any that might have the talent.
Still, he decided to explore the possibility further once he got home.
Once decided, he purchased a specialized Pokéblock-making machine. At nearly P$100,000, it was quite expensive — something most people couldn't afford.
After bringing the machine home, he found an online tutorial about making Pokémon food and played it on TV for his Pokémon. The tutorial required payment, but after spending P$100,000 on the machine, this was just a drop in the bucket.
The tutorial covered the basics of making Pokémon food, and after watching it, Cole felt confident he could make it himself.
After his Pokémon finished watching, he had each of them try making some Pokémon food.
The results were predictably awful, with only Daisy and Buneary's attempts being somewhat presentable.
However, when Cole asked if they wanted to learn how to make Pokéblocks, Daisy immediately refused.
She was perfectly content with her current life as her son's head butler and occasional sparring partner to Talonflame and the others. As for Pokéblocks, she was happy just consuming them.
Though Daisy used to dislike fighting, after witnessing the majesty of Legendary Pokémon and growing stronger herself, she had come to appreciate the benefits of strength. She never slacked off in training.
Currently, she was undisputedly the strongest on Mt. Ascendant, and no one could challenge her position.
Of course, this was partly due to Cole's favoritism.
Since Daisy hadn't been raised by him from birth, much of her potential had been wasted, which he greatly regretted. To prevent his mom from falling behind, he often gave her extra spa treatments in secret.
With Daisy's refusal, Cole turned to Buneary.
Buneary had no objections — its regular housework duties were completed quickly and efficiently, leaving it with free time. Learning to make Pokéblocks seemed like a good idea.
And so it was decided that Buneary would learn to make Pokéblocks.
When Cole next delivered berries to Bryan, he brought Buneary along, hoping the old man might agree to teach it.
To his surprise, Bryan readily agreed, saying, "Your Buneary can watch while we make Pokéblocks. How much it learns will depend on its talent."
Bryan wasn't doing this for profit, and as long as he didn't have to teach personally, he didn't mind Buneary watching — trade secrets weren't a concern.
If Buneary could learn something, that would be its good fortune.
As it turned out, Bryan had underestimated the little bunny's talent. Within just a few days, Buneary could independently make Pokéblocks. Though the quality wasn't perfect at first, this was remarkable — even Octillery and Slowking hadn't progressed so quickly.
Bryan marveled at this, telling Cole how fortunate he was.
From then on, Buneary would ride a Talonflame to Bryan's house daily. Cole bought it a small, elegant space backpack specifically for carrying berries and Pokéblock-making equipment.
Brionne complained for days about this, insisting that Cole must favor Buneary more since he gave it gifts but not others.
Cole found himself helpless in this situation.
The frequent visits to Bryan's house led to more interactions with Siebold, and they gradually became friends. Even Buneary developed a good relationship with him.
Cole later learned from Buneary that Siebold always took good care of it when he wasn't around.
Since Buneary's daily training meant it couldn't handle its usual household duties, he temporarily assigned Leavanny to help.
However, Leavanny already had extensive duties in the orchard. Though it claimed not to mind the extra work, Cole was reluctant to burden it further — employees needed their rest and recreation time.
This led Cole to consider hiring another Pokémon as a housekeeper. Once Buneary completed its training, the new hire could be reassigned to the staff dormitory.
The staff dormitory needed a housekeeper anyway — expecting employees to maintain their living spaces properly was proving challenging.
The Diggersby, for instance, weren't particularly hygienic and often left their quarters in disarray. Cole had repeatedly needed to intervene and force them to clean thoroughly.
However, this matter would have to wait, as the reservoir construction was nearing completion and demanded his attention.
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Time flew by until finally, the reservoir was complete.
Thanks to the advanced technology of the Pokémon world and these magical creatures' abilities, building the reservoir had been relatively quick.
If not for Cole's specific requirements, it would have been finished even sooner.
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