Austin pondered over the Smoked Oran Berry Juice recipe in his special recipe compendium.
System Notice:
Friendly reminder: The difficulty of this special dish slightly exceeds the player's current cooking level. Probability of failure: high.
Austin sighed. "So… another Schrödinger recipe."
On the market, Berry Juice—made from ordinary oran berries—was already known to restore stamina effectively.
But Smoked Oran Berry Juice? That was something Austin had never heard of before.
He tapped on the Video Details option, and his surroundings shifted instantly.
A woman appeared in the scene, spreading fresh oran berries over a bamboo mat before smoking them with pine branches.
From sunrise to sunset, she carefully turned them every half-day during a three-day process, until their skins turned black and the insides were mushy and fragrant.
Then came the soaking, the slow simmering—high heat to low heat—pouring out, refilling, simmering again with sweet honey, rock sugar, roses, osmanthus petals, and others. It was then chilled.
When the video ended, Austin took detailed notes, jotting down simmering times and smoking durations.
"Alright," he muttered. "I'll buy the oran berries tomorrow and start the smoking process."
Even though the system warned of possible failure, he knew—no practice, no progress.
...
Half a month passed in steady, uneventful training.
A new year arrived.
Austin's parents, Uncle Hanson, and his Aunt-in-law Anabella returned to Celestic Town.
Only his cousin, Vera, couldn't make it back due to work commitments.
Unlike the carefree Leon, Uncle Hanson wore a crisp suit and tie, the picture of a sophisticated bachelor—though his thinning hair betrayed his battles with stress and late nights. Being a renowned designer and tailor came with its price.
Seeing that Vera hadn't come home, Leon frowned.
"What's up with her? Still stuck at work?"
Hanson adjusted his glasses. "She's in Eterna City—at the Ancient Ruins. I heard they unearthed a new batch of inscriptions. Even Cynthia's gone to take a look."
Leon scoffed. "Ancient Ruins? We've got those right here in Celestic Town."
Amanda Black shot him a glare. "The ruins in Celestic Town and those in Eterna aren't the same. Don't talk nonsense."
Austin stayed quiet, thoughtful.
Ancient Ruins in Eterna City…
He remembered that was where either the Lustrous Orb or the Adamant Orb was kept—but which one exactly, he couldn't recall. Both were tied to Dialga and Palkia—the gods of time and space in Sinnoh.
Speaking of them reminded him of Team Galactic.
The Energy Company had once looked so legitimate—polished offices in Veilstone and Eterna, smiling executives on TV, but behind the facade had been one of the most dangerous criminal syndicates in history.
After their downfall, Cyrus vanished completely.
Then—Ding.
The familiar chime of the system startled Austin out of his thoughts.
No way… Team Galactic again?
Thankfully, no.
Side Quest: [Meeting Across Time and Space] (Optional)
The Sinnoh region, steeped in ancient ruins, holds treasures lost to the flow of time.
The people of Celestic Town must seek the truth of the ruins and uncover traces of the Legendary Pokémon.
Phase One Objective: Encounter one of the following — Dialga, Palkia, Azelf, Uxie, or Mesprit.
Reward: Information on one capturable Mythical Pokémon trace.
Austin froze.
The quest wanted him to meet a member of the Space-Time Duo or the Lake Trio… and the reward was data on a Mythical Pokémon's whereabouts.
Coming to this world, he'd always dreamed of meeting one of them—Darkrai, Diancie, Zeraora, Victini, Jirachi...
All of them fascinated him, and he even had a Diancite ready.
He'd fantasized about forming friendships with Mythical Pokémon like Ash once did.
Now, that dream was dangling right in front of him.
A grin spread across his face.
Such a discovery would skyrocket his Breeding House's reputation.
"Accept," Austin said without hesitation.
Even a second of doubt would've been disrespectful to destiny itself.
.
The adults' conversation bounced around unpredictably, and soon it shifted from his cousin Vera to Austin.
Looking at the Shiny Metang that hovered into view, Uncle Hanson exclaimed:
"Austin has even caught a Shiny Metang! I remember the former Hoenn Champion, Steven, had a Shiny Metagross."
Steven had long given up his Champion title and gone back to mining.
Leon slammed his fist into his palm, eyes lighting up.
"I get it, I get it! My son equals Steven! Which means my son has Champion potential."
Austin, who was quietly observing from the side, nearly spat out his rawst berry juice.
Dad is way too good at making random equations.
Aunt Ana patted his shoulder affectionately.
"Exactly, our Austin's height and looks are no worse than Steven's."
Austin's passive skill—Center of Attention (Master)—was working overtime with the glaze.
Uncle Hanson nodded in agreement, wearing a very serious face.
"Speaking of which, I've actually met Steven."
"?"
Everyone turned to look at him.
Their expressions screamed collective disbelief—
You can't just make things up, you know.
Hanson blinked innocently.
"Haven't I told you before?"
"No!" everyone replied in unison.
He rubbed his chin and explained,
"The current Hoenn Champion, Wallace, once came to me to design Contest outfits. Steven too. I made designs for both of them, and they were quite satisfied."
Aunt Ana gritted her teeth.
"And you never put up a sign saying you designed clothes for them! The boost to the business would have been immense."
Hanson rubbed his thinning hair, looking like he was about to cry.
"Sigh. That's too tiring. I barely have hair left—I'm already giving them names instead."
"...."
Looking at her husband's sparse hair…
Ana could only sigh in silence.
...
His uncle was a busy man. After just two days back home, he had to rush back to work at his tailoring studio.
Apparently, he'd received a major order—worth five million Pokédollars.
The client? A royal—Princess Salvia, from some distant kingdom, requesting a custom-designed dress.
Before leaving, he firmly supported Austin's plans to study Pokémon breeding and cooking.
"Austin, you have to study hard! Don't forget your grandfather's teachings—finally, pops can stop nagging me."
He exaggeratedly wiped his tears, covering his face dramatically.
"...."
You and Dad are definitely brothers—same over-the-top energy.
Right then, Grandpa Alex happened to walk by—and glared at his son so sharply it could cut steel.
In an instant, Hanson scrambled into the car, starting it up in under ten seconds.
"I haven't even gotten in the car yet!!!"
Ana yelled, half-laughing, half-crying, before entering.
Austin smiled at the scene.
No matter how quirky this family is, I will never trade it for anything.
[IMAGES]
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