Chapter 316: The Rare Berries Ripen

The next day, Rex Farm welcomed two unexpected visitors: Seria's mother and Hiro's parents.

They had come to pay for the Taillow eggs—a surprise to Rex, who hadn't expected both families to approve of their children raising a Pokémon.

As it turned out, Seria's mom was quite open-minded. After Remi, the kindergarten director, explained the situation, she quickly agreed to let her daughter raise a Taillow.

She understood Seria's desire to see her father more often and promised to speak with her husband about possibly transferring to a job closer to home. While Seria's dream of flying to Fallarbor City atop a Swellow wasn't something she took too seriously, she didn't discourage her daughter. Instead, she hoped Seria would channel her energy into raising her Pokémon well.

She was also genuinely thankful that Rex had trusted her daughter enough to give her the egg early.

Hiro's parents, however, were a different story.

While not outright rude, they wore frosty expressions and left without much conversation, clearly keeping Rex at arm's length. Their coldness prompted Rex to ask Remi about it afterward.

He learned that both of Hiro's parents had experienced Pokémon attacks in the past. Since then, they'd viewed all Pokémon as dangerous creatures to be avoided at all costs. They lived a life completely detached from the world of Pokémon and wanted the same for their son.

They hoped Hiro would grow up safely, settle down, and live a quiet, ordinary life. The idea of him becoming a trainer was terrifying to them. After all, many trainers went missing in the wild every year—and they had personally witnessed the pain it brought grieving families.

What they didn't expect was Hiro's deep love for Pokémon. Even at such a young age, he had already envisioned his future as a Pokémon Trainer.

When he brought the egg home, their first instinct had been to throw it away. But reason prevailed, and after confirming the story with Remi, they prepared to return the egg to Rex.

What stopped them was Hiro's reaction.

Their normally cheerful, food-loving son threatened to go on a hunger strike—shocking his parents so much that they had no choice but to take him seriously. With Remi's help, they reluctantly agreed to let him keep the egg.

Still, they held some resentment toward Rex. Their cold attitude had been a passive protest, silently pleading with him not to get involved with their son again.

Rex, however, wasn't fazed.

Whether Hiro could stay true to his dreams was his own responsibility. Everyone must choose their own path—and live with that choice.

Despite the quiet routine of farm life, time flew by. In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.

During that time, Rex made a quick trip to Littledale Town to retrieve his Salamence Mega Stone from Professor Birch's lab.

Of all the rare treasures Rex had acquired, this Mega Stone held the highest value—possibly priceless. After all, Mega Stones for pseudo-legendary Pokémon were unimaginably rare. Obtaining one had been an unbelievable stroke of luck.

"Politoed, something up?"

Rex was training Chimchar and Bagon when Politoed came hopping over, looking absolutely delighted. It pointed eagerly toward the artificial lake.

"Wait... could it be? Have the rare berries ripened?"

Politoed nodded excitedly.

Rex had promised the Politoed clan a share of the rare berries if they cared for them well, so their enthusiasm made perfect sense.

"Alright, alright! No need to push—I'm coming!"

Under Politoed's urging, Rex was led to the rare berry grove. The area was far from calm: the ripening berries had released such a strong aroma that flocks of wild Flying-types were trying to breach the dual-layer defense of the Swellow and Politoed clans.

Rex immediately knew he had to move fast.

He called on Politoed and the Poliwhirl to help harvest the berries. On his own, it would've taken hours, but with help, it went quickly.

Politoed took the lead, leaping from tree to tree with practiced grace. It had clearly rehearsed for this day countless times.

Soon, a mountain of berries had piled up before Rex. Just the sight of them brought a smile to his face—these were nearly impossible to obtain in quantity without special channels.

To thank the Politoed clan for their care and effort, Rex decided to set aside one-fifth of the resulting Pokéblocks for them.

Politoed was so moved it teared up and hugged Rex tight.

"Alright, alright," Rex said with a laugh, patting its back. "Let's store these before more wild Pokémon catch wind of the scent."

With Politoed's nod of approval, Rex stored the entire harvest in his spatial backpack, packing it to the brim. It was a staggering haul.

Once the scent was gone, the wild Pokémon calmed down and retreated from the farm.

Of course, Rex didn't forget the Swellow clan's contribution either. He planned to reserve a share of Pokéblocks for them as well, to honor the sweat and blood they had shed protecting Rex Farm.

(End of Chapter)