Fruitvale Village.
When they realized Aven was missing, Uncle Mike and Aunt Erin were frantic.
They mobilized everyone in the village to search for him, but there was no sign of Aven anywhere.
"I heard there have been several disappearances in the slums recently."
"Aven, he couldn't have… he couldn't have…" Aunt Erin covered her mouth, afraid to speak the words out loud.
Uncle Mike 's expression froze. If Aven really had gone missing, how could he ever face his late older brother again?
Just then, they suddenly heard a Luxray's cry coming from the direction of the Berry Grove's entrance.
"Luxray must've found something…" Dabi's heart tightened. He grabbed Aunt Erin and rushed over.
At the entrance, they finally saw Aven—and the Rhyhorn-drawn wagon slowly departing from the Berry Grove.
Seeing Aven with his back to them, Aunt Erin let out a huge sigh of relief.
"It really is little Aven… thank goodness."
"Aven, where did you go?"
Hearing the voice behind him, Aven turned around. Seeing the worried expressions on his uncle and aunt's faces, a warmth spread through his heart.
Uncle Mike stepped forward and sighed. "Don't run off like that again. I already lost the Petilil—I can't lose you too…"
But just as he finished speaking, he suddenly froze, his eyes fixed on the Petilil cradled in Aven's arms.
"I went to rescue Petilil…" Aven said with a smile, gently stroking the top of Petilil's head.
Petilil's big, round eyes looked at the Berry Grove and then at its caretaker. Its eyes grew misty.
Although the caretaker was pretty terrible—always picking the leaves that took so long to grow on its head—at least… it was never in danger here.
"It really is Petilil. Oh, my goodness."
Aunt Erin came over as well, her hands covering her mouth in disbelief.
But how? Why was Petilil here? Oh, right—Aven said he went to rescue it. But how did he manage that?
"I cured Baron Ruize, so they agreed to release Petilil," Aven said casually, making his aunt and uncle even more confused.
Cured Baron Ruize? If it had been that easy, they wouldn't have taken Petilil to make a universal potion in the first place.
Now that they had Petilil back, both Dabi and Elin were overjoyed.
"All right, little one, we can go home now."
Aven smiled down at Petilil in his arms and started walking toward the grove.
Uncle Mike and Aunt Erin exchanged a glance, then followed.
The dark cloud hanging over them vanished in an instant.
They passed through the regular orchard and made their way toward the Berry Grove.
The Berry Grove… Petilil sighed in its heart. It really didn't like this place.
But now that it was back, it couldn't help but feel a strange sense of peace.
Compared to regular fruits, berries were like Pokémon compared to wild beasts—each berry had special effects.
Like the Oran Berry that helps restore stamina, the Pecha Berry that cures poison, and of course the Chesto Berry Aven had used earlier to brew the Awakening Potion.
All the unripe berries before them were Oran Berries, which looked like blue oranges and had a mix of flavors that made them unbelievably delicious.
Just then, a few Cherubi wandered into the sunlight to bask.
Aven quickly noticed that one of the Cherubi had already regrown the small fruit stalk on its head where the berry had been picked earlier.
The berries on Cherubi's heads were sweet, delicious, and a favorite food for many bird-type Pokémon. They were also rich in nutrients.
These berries were clearly harvested by humans. Just like with regular fruit trees, the fruit on Cherubi's heads would grow back over time.
Eating an entire Cherubi, even for a noble, would be an extreme luxury. But harvesting just the berries was much more common.
By raising Cherubi and repeatedly collecting the fruit they produced, berry farms could generate more income.
When the Cherubi saw Aven, Uncle Mike, and Aunt Erin approaching, their bodies visibly trembled.
"Chuu chuu chuu…"
Just then, a bird's cry echoed in the air.
Aven finally noticed a small gray bird perched on a nearby tree.
"Starly…" Aven muttered, memories of this Starly surfacing in his heart, warming him.
Loyal and dutiful—that was his strongest impression of Starly.
When Sir Berrin led his men into the Berry Grove, it was Starly who had stood up first to protect Petilil.
Because of that, it had been severely injured by the Pokémon brought by Sir Berrin.
Even now, its body was still wrapped in bandages.
Thinking about it made Aven clench his fists again.
That debt… he'd be sure to settle with the baron someday.
(End of Chapter)