After concluding negotiations with Kyogre, Ange finally stopped restricting it from healing itself.
Leaving Kyogre sprawled on the ground, Ange and the Pokémon went their separate ways.
Everyone had been busy all night and felt somewhat exhausted at that moment, so they planned to rest for a while.
As soon as Ange stepped inside, he ran straight into Inteleon, so he asked, "How is the situation over at the pigpen? Have all the pigs been found?"
Sobb sobb~ Inteleon nodded, indicating that the situation there was alright.
Aside from the collapsed pigpen, the sheepfold, chicken coop, and cattle shed were completely fine. With the help of Gogoat and Miltanks, the pigs had all been found, without a single one missing.
Pigs were relatively large, making them easy to spot across the open Nebel Plateau.
Seeing Inteleon's tired expression, Ange said with tender concern, "Since everything is fine, go get some rest quickly. Today, Munchlax Home will be closed."
Sobb sobb~ Inteleon looked a bit unhappy upon hearing this.
Ange said helplessly, "Do you really love working that much?"
Sobb sobb~ Inteleon nodded with a solemn expression.
Strictly speaking, it didn't love working so much as it loved culinary arts.
Seeing the customers in the shop happily starting a new day because of the food it made brought a profound sense of fulfillment to its heart.
However, Ange still insisted, "Listen to me, we're taking a day off today. Closing for a single day won't have any impact!"
Unable to win against its master, Inteleon had no choice but to return to its room to rest with a resigned look.
Because Gengar didn't have to work in the morning, it had already returned to its room to catch up on sleep.
Unlike Inteleon, however, it had much more stamina, especially at night, so it wasn't particularly tired.
It simply figured that since it had work in the evening, it was better to rest and recharge its energy.
Watching Inteleon head to its room, Ange went alone to the Royal Capital and placed a closed sign at the entrance of Munchlax Home.
In reality, because of the heavy rain in the Royal Capital the previous night, very few people came out for breakfast today, and everyone understood the restaurant's closure.
After returning from the Royal Capital, Ange washed up briefly and dove straight under the covers for a deep sleep.
Once Ange fell asleep, Diancie came over to check on him, and seeing the exhaustion on his face, a flicker of tenderness washed over its eyes.
While Ange slept, the other Pokémon went to work.
Chesnaught led the Weepinbells toward the orchard.
Florges accompanied them as well.
The previous night's torrential rain had left the fruit grove in utter ruins, knocking many unripe, tender fruits to the ground in a devastating loss.
It was no wonder Ange had been angry.
Chesnaught led the Weepinbells to clear away the branches broken by the heavy rain, and then Florges deployed Grassy Field to restore vitality to the fruit trees.
Unfortunately, the knocked-down fruits could not be grown back.
Two Combees buzzed out of the house, followed closely by Mareep.
The Combees had spent the previous night resting in Diancie's room, sleeping alongside Mareep, Spinarak, and Munna.
The Combees flew all the way to the flower garden, only to find the flowers beaten to a tattered mess without a single intact bloom left, filling them with heartbreak.
Though Mareep maintained a blank expression, a rare trace of sorrow flickered in its gaze.
The colorful flowers in the garden were its favorite subjects to draw, and now they were completely gone, with even the plant stalks severely damaged.
Behind the house at the pond, Drizzle, Mudkip, and two Woopers were hard at work.
After a night of heavy rain, the pond's water level had surged dramatically, snapping the stems and leaves of the lotuses and guaranteeing a negative impact on future lotus root harvests.
Drizzle and the others piled all the broken lotus leaves onto the bank to prevent them from rotting and ruining the water quality.
The Woopers were tiny, making the task of clearing lotus leaves extremely laborious.
Wooper Wooper The two Woopers chanted in unison while straining to drag a massive lotus leaf toward the bank.
Right at that moment, however, a gigantic tail suddenly cleaved through the water surface, violently whipping across their faces and sending both Woopers tumbling through the water several times.
Wooper~~ It's a big fish!
One of the Woopers shrieked in alarm.
As it turned out, several large fish that had escaped from the fishery had accidentally followed the connecting channel from Lake Nebel into the pond.
Thus, Wooper, Drizzle, and Mudkip hurriedly began scrambling to catch the fish. Those fish were enormous; aside from Drizzle, Mudkip and the two Woopers were completely outmatched in size.
Trying to catch those large fish turned out to be quite an ordeal for the Woopers.
Over at the vegetable plot beside the pond, two Farfetch'd and the Diglett brothers were tidying up the crops.
Many vegetables had been ruined by the storm, and crops like cucumbers, eggplants, tomatoes, winter melons, and pumpkins had many of their immature vine-hanging or branch-hanging fruits knocked down.
Looking out over the ruined garden, the Diglett brothers felt absolute anguish. They had painstakingly tended the vegetable patch to such a thriving state, only for a single storm to destroy more than half of it.
After the Diglett brothers and the two Farfetch'd worked for a while, two Dollivs arrived to help out.
The two Farfetch'd were responsible for gathering the damaged vegetables into baskets.
Even though the vegetables were battered, they were still edible.
The Diglett brothers dug trenches to drain the accumulated water from the garden, preventing the surviving vegetables from rotting at the roots due to excess moisture.
The Dolliv sisters used Grassy Field to help the wilted vegetables recover their vitality.
Meanwhile, Metagross controlled Robert 2 to repair the pigpen while inspecting and reinforcing the sheepfold, chicken coop, and cattle shed.
In short, the heavy rain kept the plateau's Pokémon occupied with endless chores.
Ange slept all the way until noon, waking up to the sound of an alarm clock.
He had promised to cook a good meal for everyone, so he made sure to set an alarm before sleeping, terrified of oversleeping.
After washing up, Ange headed downstairs.
The moment he reached the ground floor, however, a rich aroma drifted out from the kitchen.
Munchlax and Gengar were already cooking, with Lucario, Riolu, and Doublade helping out.
As for Inteleon, it was still fast asleep.
Clearly, it had been truly exhausted last night.
The moment Ange entered the kitchen, Munchlax, Doublade, and the others cheerfully greeted him.
What caught Ange's attention, however, were the baskets piled high with battered vegetables inside the kitchen.
"Are these all harvested from the vegetable garden?" he asked.
Munch Munch~ Munchlax nodded, its face instantly twisting into an angry expression as it complained bitterly about Kyogre.
While speaking, it continued handling the fish that the Woopers had caught from the pond.
Ange laughed and said, "Alright, alright. I'm treating everyone to a big meal this noon, and these vegetables will come in handy."
Pokémon didn't usually eat at Ange's place at noon, but today was an exception since Ange had already made the promise.
Immediately after, Ange dove into the kitchen to work alongside his two apprentices, while Diancie, Magearna, Pawmo, and Claydol also stepped into the kitchen to help prep and wash vegetables.
As everyone worked and grumbled about Kyogre, their sullen moods gradually lifted.
As time passed, basin after basin of fragrant dishes were completed.
Midway through, Inteleon woke up. It wanted to pitch in, but Ange stopped it.
"Most of the cooking is already done, so don't worry about it. Go help me notify everyone and tell them it's time to eat!"
Sobb sobb~ Inteleon nodded, turning around to head out of the kitchen.
Prompted by Inteleon, the finished-working Pokémon returned one by one. Upon seeing Kyogre still sprawled across the plaza, none of them gave it a pleasant look.
If Inteleon hadn't held them back, they would have rushed forward to beat Kyogre up.
Inteleon intervened not out of sympathy or pity for Kyogre, but because it feared provoking the creature.
No matter how severely injured it was, Kyogre remained a deity, and angering it was unwise.
The Pokémon didn't have to wait long before Gardevoir and Gallade emerged carrying large basins of food. Seeing this, everyone cheered, took their seats, and began digging in with gusto.
Kyogre had been dozing to heal its wounds, but the aroma drifting through the air was simply too rich and prominent. Unable to resist, it opened its eyes and looked at the happily feasting Pokémon.
Really, is it that delicious? Kyogre couldn't help swallowing hard.
Right then, Ange walked over to its side and placed a large basin of food right in front of it.
"Here, eat up. Replenishing your stamina will help your injuries heal!"
Kyogre looked suspiciously at Ange, thinking: Why has this human suddenly turned so kind?
Noticing its weird gaze, Ange snapped irritably, "What? Don't want it? Then I'm taking it back!"
With that, he reached out as if to retrieve the food.
In truth, Ange was feeding Kyogre not out of sudden benevolence, but for system achievements.
When he had hosted Yveltal and Xerneas previously, he had received extremely generous achievement rewards, prompting him to wonder:
Would hosting Kyogre yield achievement rewards as well?
That was why Ange had brought the food over.
Wu~~ Don't, I'll eat!
Kyogre quickly spoke up. The aroma lingering in the air was far too tempting, and it had been eager to taste just how good Ange's cooking really was.
Since Ange had brought it over, it certainly wouldn't refuse.
Ange didn't actually want to take the food back, so the moment Kyogre spoke, he left the basin where it was and turned away.
As soon as Ange left, Kyogre eagerly dug in, and the moment the food hit its palate, it was utterly blown away.
No wonder those Pokémon looked so happy eating it.
Good taste aside, the most important part was that the food faintly contained a special energy that seemed capable of marginally enhancing its innate talent.
Who was Kyogre? The God of the Sea, the Pokémon that created the oceans! For something to boost its talent—even if imperceptibly—was a first in Kyogre's long life.
As it ate, it cast a profound look toward the house. Unfortunately, since Ange was currently inside the kitchen, it couldn't see him.
Yet, a deep curiosity toward Ange began to bloom within it.
What on earth was the background of this human?
Eating along, Kyogre suddenly felt like it understood why Yveltal and Xerneas chose to follow that human!
Pity that, despite being a deity, Kyogre could never quite grasp the bond between humans and Pokémon.
While Yveltal and Xerneas followed Ange partly because of his abilities, it was largely due to their genuine fondness and respect for Ange as a person.
As Kyogre savored the food, Ange happily heard the system chime ring out, causing a bright smile to spread across his face.
After lunch, the Pokémon cheerfully retired to rest, but Ange called the Poliwhirls over.
The Poliwhirls looked at Ange with puzzled expressions.
Ange smiled and explained, "I just acquired a batch of Water Stones. Do you guys want to evolve?"
Hearing this, the eyes of every single Poliwhirl lit up. Was it finally their turn to evolve?
The Poliwraths and Politoed who had stayed behind were also thrilled.
Seeing the joy on the Poliwhirls' faces, Ange retrieved the Water Stones and placed them in front of them.
The Water Stones obtained from Kyogre were more than enough for every single Poliwhirl to evolve.
Ange continued, "If any of you don't want to use Water Stones to evolve into Poliwrath, I can save them and give you King's Rocks when I get the chance."
Poliwhirl evolved into Politoed with the help of a King's Rock.
However, King's Rocks were rare items and not easily acquired.
As it turned out, Ange's concerns were completely unnecessary because every single Poliwhirl chose to use the Water Stone.
Naturally, Politoed served as the king of the Poliwag, Poliwhirl, and Poliwrath lineage, and only one Politoed was permitted per community.
Therefore, with a Politoed already present, no second Poliwhirl would ever choose that evolutionary path.
It was identical to Slowking's situation within Slowpoke communities.
With a Slowking already existing, no Slowpoke would ever choose to evolve into a second Slowking; they would always choose the alternative route, Slowbro!
The Poliwhirls gripped the Water Stones tightly, and the next instant, a brilliant blue-and-white light of evolution burst from their bodies.
Enveloped in the glow, their bodies grew taller and increasingly robust.
When the light faded, a row of sturdy Poliwraths stood before Ange.
Because they were well-fed and meticulously raised by Ange, his group of Poliwhirls was significantly stronger and bulkier than ordinary ones, and the resulting Poliwraths were naturally exceptionally robust.
To be honest, the physical differences between Poliwrath and Poliwhirl weren't massive.
Both stood on two legs, possessed round bodies, deep blue skin and white bellies, and featured a black swirl pattern on their stomachs alongside white gloves.
The greatest change was their build.
Poliwraths possessed solid muscles that Poliwhirls lacked, bulging all over and exuding an overwhelming sense of safety.
With evolution concluded, the Poliwraths cheered happily before enthusiastically swarming Ange, hugging him one after another in a display of boundless warmth.
They were expressing their heartfelt gratitude to him.
Ange said helplessly, "Alright, I know you're happy, but if you keep hugging me like this, I'm going to run out of air!"
Chuckling, the Poliwraths released Ange.
After a brief celebration, the Poliwraths and Politoed departed together, while Ange called out to Inteleon.