"Alright, let's go. Time to introduce you all to my grandparents. Little Dreepy already ran off somewhere."
"Raa-chii~!"
"Flaaah~"
"Buiii~"
All the Pokémon chirped joyfully—except Togepi, whose tiny eyes darted suspiciously, clearly plotting something mischievous.
"If we go now, we might even catch them while they're feeding the other Pokémon. Who knows—maybe we'll get something delicious."
"My grandpa and grandma cook way better than I do!"
Leafeon and Togepi froze mid-step.
Better than Chen Shi?
Before meeting him, the two had lived like stray children—most days, getting anything to eat was a blessing. The idea of taste didn't even exist to them.
Then they met Chen Shi.
They learned what delicious food was.
They learned what custom Pokéblocks were.
And now he said his grandparents cooked even better?
A grass fox and a round egg Pokémon immediately lost all composure, anxiously nudging Chen Shi to hurry up.
Even Swampert was growing impatient—it had grown up here after all. It knew for a fact that Chen Shi wasn't lying. No fish deception involved.
Only Florges remained composed, trimming her petals gracefully as she walked.
Chen Shi chuckled and changed the subject.
"Florges, this farm is huge. How about I set aside an entire area for you to grow your own garden?"
"Fla—!!!"
"Flaaaah~"
Elegance evaporated instantly.
She had always wanted her own flower garden, but travel made that impossible. Now that Chen Shi brought it up—how could she possibly remain calm?
"Of course it's true. When have I ever lied to you? Tomorrow I'll find the perfect spot."
"Flaaaah~"
Florges bowed gracefully in gratitude.
Chen Shi reached out to pat her head—
—but before he could touch her, two enormous hands grabbed him and tossed him onto a broad shoulder.
"What—Swampert! Easy! Why are you in such a hurry?!"
Swampert rolled its eyes and dashed forward even faster.
It had been waiting all year to return to this food paradise—but its Trainer just kept talking nonsense. Didn't he understand that eating was the most important thing under the heavens?
Whatever he wanted to say could wait until after dinner!
"Chakki-doyii~!"
Togepi cheered from Chen Shi's arms as Florges and Leafeon exchanged a look before hurrying after the group.
High in the back mountain of the farm, elderly voices echoed softly.
"Old man, look at this batch—the Combee honey just keeps getting better. Let's save some for Shi'er. He and Little Dreepy love this stuff."
Today was harvest day for the large Vespiquen and Combee colony that lived here.
Grandpa Chen nodded.
"Save the highest quality ones. The rest can go to making medicine and Pokémon food."
"That little Junsha girl came by recently—her Arcanine got seriously hurt during a mission. She asked me to make a top-grade Revival Elixir, and I'm short just a bit of A-grade Combee honey."
Grandma Chen's expression tightened.
"That child from the Junsha family… she's almost at Elite Four level now, isn't she? And her main Arcanine still got heavily injured on a mission… I worry about Shi'er too. I hope he hasn't run into any danger."
Grandpa Chen chuckled.
"Didn't Shi'er call us a while back? Boys need to go out and see the world. It'll help him later. We can't protect him forever."
Grandma sighed softly.
"You're right… we can't shield him his whole life."
Grandpa was about to say something comforting—
When a familiar excited cry cut through the air.
"Duo~ duoduo~!"
Both elders froze, then turned.
A Shiny Dreepy zoomed toward them, throwing itself onto Grandma's head.
"Duo~ duoduo~!"
"Oh! It's Little Dreepy!"
Grandma quickly grabbed the dragonlet off her head.
"You came back with Shi'er?"
Dreepy nodded vigorously, rubbing affectionately against her shoulder.
Grandpa's face lit with joy.
"Good, good! You're back! Let's head home then—I'll get the old guys to carry the honey later."
At the word "honey."
Little Dreepy's eyes sparkled. It shot toward the jars and began scratching desperately at the lids.
"Duo~ duo~!"
Seeing it couldn't open them, Dreepy panicked and yelled pitifully.
Grandma laughed.
"Don't worry, don't worry! These are all for you and Shi'er. Come home first—Grandma will make delicious food for you tonight."
Dreepy's eyes shone with stars. Drool leaked down its chin as it nodded furiously before plopping back onto Grandma's head.
The two elders shared a knowing smile, waved goodbye to Vespiquen, and headed back.
As they walked, Grandma teased:
"Little Dreepy, it's been a year. How come you still haven't evolved yet? Can you at least beat a Wurmple now?"
Dreepy froze.
Its tiny claws slapped Grandma's head in indignation.
Wurmple was a lifelong trauma.
A wound that would never fade.
Grandpa added fuel to the fire:
"Didn't you and Shi'er say you'd one day 'rule the world' or something like that? After all this time, don't tell me you still can't even rule over a Wurmple?"
"Duo! Duo-duo!"
Dreepy puffed up its tiny chest, refusing to accept this slander.
"Oh? Is that so?" Grandpa chuckled.
"Then what about Mudkip—well, Swampert now. Can you beat him?"
"You're Shi'er's first partner, the team's eldest. You're not telling me you can't even beat the second-in-command, right?"
Dreepy opened its mouth… and slowly closed it again.
Could it beat Swampert?
Absolutely not.
That big blue monster could pancake it into Dreepy jelly with a single punch.
Right now, it could barely beat Togepi.
The thought made the little dragon wobble unsteadily, drifting in circles atop Grandma's head as it questioned the meaning of life.
Grandma patted it gently.
"Don't worry, Little Dreepy."
"You're close to evolving—I can feel it. Once you evolve, you'll be strong. Then you can go rule the world all you like."
Her last sentence was teasing, but Dreepy's eyes lit with pure determination.
Shi'er had said the same thing.
Grandma said the same thing.
They wouldn't lie to a dragon.
Little Dreepy believed it wholeheartedly.
One day… it would be strong.
One day… it would rule the world.