Chapter 51

[Rare Material: Micle Berry]

[Description: This berry stores beneficial components within itself for Pokémon, requiring a long time to mature.]

[Effect: When held by a Pokémon, it can cure all status conditions.]

[Crafting Obtained: 1]

[Rare Candy Crafting (B): Can be used to create Rare Candy that enhances a Pokémon's abilities, requiring Micle Berries as the core material.]

Hikaru looked in surprise at the newly refreshed berry, while the other Pokémon also showed astonished expressions, eagerly crowding around. Only Celebi sat on the newly restored shrine, looking pleased.

"A miraculous berry, the Micle Berry, huh? Now that we have it, we can plant its tree and achieve Micle Berry self-sufficiency! And finally, we can craft Rare Candy!"

However, it would take some time for the berry tree to grow—probably about a month?

Since it was already getting late, Hikaru took out some Pokémon food and instant meals, and after a simple meal, he prepared to head back.

During this time, Celebi remained still. Hikaru seemed to sense something and asked with some reluctance,

"Are you leaving?"

"Bi~! Bi!"

Celebi nodded affirmatively. Now that the shrine was restored, it could perform time jumps again! The next time it returned, it wouldn't have to worry about not having a landing point.

But honestly, the forest was quite boring—Hikaru's workshop was far more interesting!

"Bi!"

Celebi spread its arms, giving high-fives to Doublade and Petilil before finally landing on Hikaru's head.

It liked Doublade, Petilil, and Hikaru. It loved everyone at the workshop!

Even if it left now, it would always remember them. For a Pokémon that could travel through time, this parting wasn't truly a farewell—it would return again someday in the future, just like the blink of an eye!

By then, everyone would have evolved, right?

Of course, there was also the sneaky Turtwig that secretly burrowed into the soil. Celebi had thought about revealing its little secret but decided against it, not wanting to betray its trust.

Well, it wouldn't be long before Turtwig became their companion too! Celebi firmly believed this.

"Labi!"

It would travel to the past and future, gathering wonderful things and bringing them back for everyone!

"Be sure to visit the shrine from time to time!"

"Is that so? Then thank you! If the shrine ever gets damaged again, come find me—I'll fix it for you."

Hikaru smiled and watched Celebi vanish as it traveled through time.

Gentle ripples spread through the space around them before gradually fading.

"Wait a second—without psychic assistance, my backpack suddenly feels so heavy! Doublade, help me out here!"

After Hikaru and his two Pokémon left, perhaps an hour or maybe three passed as dusk settled over the forest.

Suddenly, there was movement in the woods.

A tall Scyther appeared near Celebi's shrine. It circled the structure for a long time, recalling the human and Pokémon it had seen earlier.

That human… the one with the strange twin swords—so they were here to repair the Forest Guardian's shrine?

Wait, if they had the recognition of the Forest Guardian, wouldn't that make them dominant in the outer forest?

What a troublesome person. But no matter—Scyther was determined to defeat that human!

Just then, a second sound echoed!

Scyther spun around sharply but, upon seeing the source, turned and fled in frustration.

Boom… Boom—

Heavy footsteps reverberated through the ancient forest. A massive, oppressive black figure emerged near Celebi's shrine. Its face was marked with an "H"-shaped light pattern, emitting a strange, static-laden buzzing sound, characteristic of the Regi species.

It carefully observed the newly restored shrine.

Had Hikaru still been there, he would have recognized its true identity immediately.

The Legendary Giant—Regirock!

Leaving the forest, bidding farewell to a new friend.

But life always finds a way to reunite.

When Hikaru, Doublade, and Petilil returned to the workshop, they noticed another small hole in the ground outside.

Hikaru paused in thought.

Come to think of it, these little holes kept appearing every day, only to be refilled later.

Was this Celebi's doing?

Or was it the work of Diglett?

Finding no missing herbs nearby, Hikaru decided to let it go for now.

Back inside, he carefully arranged the newly obtained materials and took out the Evolution Stone, immediately beginning the polishing process.

Before long, the Evolution Stone was fully polished, revealing its unique properties.

"It draws out a Pokémon's inner potential, functioning similarly to slow EV growth. And Doublade… in battle, it's actually a very powerful Pokémon."

Hikaru handed the polished Evolution Stone to Doublade, which immediately grabbed hold of it—but…

"Gyooo~! ゞ（⊙）╯╬!"

"Puuu~! ゞ（⊙）╯╬!"

The right sword: I am the main body! The Evolution Stone should go on my hilt!

The left sword: No, I am the main body! The Evolution Stone should be placed on me!

The two swords unsheathed themselves, their blades shimmering with metallic light!

It was Iron Defense!

Just as they were about to fight, Hikaru was about to intervene when Petilil shook its head, as if to say, How silly.

Petilil jumped into Hikaru's hand, took the Evolution Stone, and happily hopped behind Doublade.

There, a small, undeveloped shield was forming.

Petilil tapped on the tiny shield.

Doublade's two swords paused.

Oh, right! They had a shield now!

If they put the stone on the shield, they wouldn't have to fight over it!

"Gyuuu (Puuu)~!"

"Thank you, Petilil!"

"Petiii~()~"

"You did great." Hikaru patted Petilil's head and leaves, and the little Pokémon swayed happily.

"Gyuuu~"

At that moment, Doublade floated over, feeling slightly troubled. Both of its eyes on the sword hilts stared at Hikaru, asking:

When will we become a single consciousness again?

"That'll have to wait until we find a Dusk Stone," Hikaru answered. "There's no other way. After all, both you and Petilil need stones to evolve."

"Puuu~"

Doublade looked a bit dejected. Its current form was certainly cool, but having two separate minds was a bit strange!

Hikaru hadn't expected that, despite their constant "internal battles," Doublade still found its form impressive.

Impressive? Of course! Even Hikaru had to admit it!

If he strapped Doublade to his back, wouldn't he look like one of those legendary swordmasters? And with two blades, he could pull off the dual-wielding swordsman style!

"For now, let's plant the Micle Berries and then rest. Petilil, I'll leave taking care of the berries to you."

"Petiii~!"

Petilil lifted its tiny leaf-like skirt.

Leave it to me! You can count on it!

Just like Celebi, it wanted to stand tall with pride and use its abilities to accomplish amazing things!

The Micle Berries were important, and it was determined to nurture them well!

...

The Next Day

The first batch of herbs and crops had been harvested, so it was time to plant the next batch quickly.

Fortunately, they had just acquired new fertilizer, so soil fertility wouldn't be an issue.

Petilil continued working diligently, fully focused on cultivating the Micle Berries.

"Petii~ Petii~"

A miraculous berry! A miraculous berry ()~!

Yesterday, it had carefully polished the shrine. Hikaru had given it a surprised look—he had noticed its effort! That's right, sculpting and polishing work… it could handle that too!

Petilil glanced toward the workshop.

Inside, the fourth empty room now had a large pickling jar, seemingly meant for making some kind of special food item—something called "Double Pickles"?

Well, everything Hikaru made was amazing! As long as it remembered that, everything would be fine!

Tilting its head, it peeked over to the other side of the hill, where wisps of smoke were rising.

Petilil's leaves swayed as it curiously watched Hikaru and Doublade working from the edge of the field.

At the moment, Hikaru was digging a kiln for charcoal production.

Charcoal kilns could be underground pit kilns or simple earth kilns. Hikaru had chosen a gentle slope and started digging out the kiln pit.

If only we had a Pokémon that could dig, this would be so much easier…

Meanwhile, Doublade was busy trimming and chopping a pile of wood.

After quite some time, the earthen kiln was finally completed, with a smoke vent and air inlet left open. Hikaru took the neatly prepared logs from Doublade and stacked them inside the kiln. Then, he sealed the top with a mixture of mud and straw.

The air vent also served as the ignition point. As Hikaru lit the kiln, wisps of blue smoke began rising from the chimney.

During the charcoal-making process, the kiln needed to be frequently checked for cracks or leaks.

He also had to monitor the smoke's density and color to estimate the moisture content of the wood. The final step involved sealing the kiln and letting it smolder in a low-oxygen environment until the charcoal naturally cooled. This part would take a long time.

To aid the process, Hikaru placed a Charizard statue next to the kiln.

It was supposed to enhance the flames, but since charcoal-making mainly relied on slow-burning, its effectiveness was uncertain.

What kind of unique transformation will this oak charcoal undergo after this special process?

Hikaru was already looking forward to it. Another new product for the workshop's store!

"Herbal juices… will anyone buy them? Maybe after we make glass containers for bottling…"

"Medicine herbs, Energy Roots, Revival Herbs, berries, Luminous Moss, Double Pickles… Am I running a pharmacy or something?"

As for Light Clay, Hikaru figured he'd ask the Diglett in the village to help dig some up next time. In exchange, he could offer them berries and vegetables.

If they could find some, that would be great.

The feeling of being busy was truly fulfilling. It seemed like the workshop's reputation was growing more and more!

(End of Chapter)

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