Get Stronger by Pleasing Pokémon? Who Needs to Be a Trainer!

Noon.

The rain had lightened a little, but it still poured down like a storm.

Thankfully, the wheat fields in Wutong Town’s Prosper Valley had already been harvested in advance. Otherwise, such heavy rainfall would have flooded the fields and ruined the crops.

In the garden of the plantation, an invisible psychic barrier kept the rain at bay, forming a massive unseen umbrella.

Inside this ”umbrella,” Lin Feng stood with his Pokémon, introducing a new companion.

”This is Eevee. I just found it out in the storm, and from now on it might be living with us. Everyone, please welcome it.”

”Fwoom fwoom~”

The first to greet Eevee were the Alcremie. They had been staying in the breeding house, so they weren’t too surprised by Eevee’s arrival. In fact, they had pitied the poor little thing for being soaked by the rain earlier.

Now that Eevee had dried off and recovered, the Alcremie happily welcomed it.

”Fwoom fwoom~” (Do you want to try our cream? Lin Feng says it has special effects~)

”Fwoom fwoom~”

”Cha!” (Finally! Someone weaker than me showed up...)

Combustken was practically overjoyed.

It felt that, at last, someone in the plantation seemed weaker than it was.

As for the Pidgey and Pidgeotto perched in the pine trees, along with the Alcremie, Steenee, and Brionne, Combustken didn’t even bother to compare.

To it, those weren’t real ”partners in hardship.” They were either food providers for Lin Feng or creatures it couldn’t match up against.

”Shuu...”

Serperior barely reacted, only giving a cool reply to acknowledge Eevee’s presence. But its slightly swaying tail betrayed an inner restlessness as it sneaked glances at the newcomer.

Deep down, Serperior thought,

”So, he still prefers the kind of Pokémon he can hold in his arms, doesn’t he?”

”Bui...”

Facing so many curious gazes, Eevee looked shy and awkward. It stood stiffly on the round table, unsure how to respond.

Dragonite, ever gentle, wanted to come closer to greet it. But its massive size frightened Eevee, who quickly stepped back with fur standing on end.

Seeing Dragonite’s embarrassed face, Eevee immediately felt guilty.

Having grown up in a human-run breeding house, Eevee had been taught that trainers usually kept all kinds of Pokémon. So seeing Lin Feng with so many partners wasn’t shocking.

But this big one... was just a bit too much to take in all at once.

”Bui?”

Gardevoir, ever perceptive, instantly picked up on Eevee’s discomfort. She gestured with her hand and looked toward Lin Feng.

”Gard.” (Alright, Lin Feng, why don’t you go prepare the food first?)

Lin Feng nodded.

Using his psychic power, he levitated some energy cubes from his storage capsule, distributing them evenly to the Pokémon. Then he went into the kitchen.

Since it was raining, he decided to make something warm. He cooked a pot of noodle soup and fried some pork cutlets.

Once the food was prepared, he didn’t immediately bring it to the garden. Instead, he headed to the cowshed.

Inside, Miltank were lazily enjoying the rainy scenery while munching on honey-grass dumplings. They rarely ate anything else, so they preferred to stay in the barn for meals.

Because of the rain, the Combee finally had the day off and were resting quietly in their hive. Still, they had reported to Lin Feng as if afraid their ”queen” would scold them for slacking off.

Lin Feng couldn’t help but laugh. Of course he wouldn’t blame them.

After all, they had already produced plenty of honey, and its quality was steadily improving.

But today, Lin Feng’s focus wasn’t on them.

In the corner of the barn sat several sealed oak barrels. Despite being sealed tight, the fragrance of wine had already spread throughout the barn.

The honey grape wine was ready.

Excited, Lin Feng pulled the stopper from one of the barrels, releasing a rich, intoxicating aroma.

He eagerly leaned forward to inspect the finished brew.

[Grade A Honey Grape Wine – Carefully crafted from pure honey-grapes, peeled, fermented, and brewed to perfection. Its aroma calms the heart and brings comfort to Pokémon.]

Effect 1: With long-term consumption, psychic power develops 30% faster. For the brewer, this effect increases to 75%.

Effect 2: Heart’s Ease – When shared among Pokémon, it deepens their bonds in a short time.

”Hm?”

Lin Feng’s eyes lit up as he read the effects.

Recently, he had been experimenting with ways to hone his psychic power. For example, he tried using telekinesis for heavy lifting or delicate tasks in daily life.

But he noticed the progress was slow, so he hadn’t been practicing much.

Now, with this wine’s effect especially the boosted benefit for the brewer it was too good to pass up.

”Looks like I’ll need to save some for myself.”

He smiled.

”And with that Heart’s Ease effect, it can help the Pokémon get along even better...”

The thought made him feel relieved. Building harmony among his partners had always been one of his biggest concerns.

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