The streets of Fallarbor Town bustled with people, and trainers came and went in a constant stream. In just a single day, Bewear's tavern welcomed a steady flow of business.
Kawaki and the Clefairy were kept so busy they barely had a moment to rest. It wasn't until late afternoon that the last of the customers trickled out.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Kawaki finally learned that the town was about to host a grand Contest Festival, and most of the trainers passing through were there for the competition.
"No wonder…"
At sunset, after seeing off the final guest, Kawaki began inventorying the remaining supplies in the daycare alongside the Pokémon.
"One crate of berries, half a bag of flour, five bottles of Moomoo Milk, three packs of ramen…"
"Woof woof!"
Growlithe trotted over from under the cupboard with a box of eggs in its mouth.
"And a box of eggs," Kawaki added, accepting the carton.
"Clefairy?" The two chef Clefairy each emerged from beneath the stove, carrying bundles of cabbage.
"And two bundles of cabbage."
Kawaki looked over the supplies and muttered, "Not much left…"
Today, the daycare side of things had been fairly quiet, but the inn had been booming.
With such an influx of guests, the pantry had nearly been emptied. At most, they could last until the day after tomorrow—then he'd have to make another large supply run to town.
But riding on Bewear Airlines wasn't exactly a comfortable experience, and the journey was long. If possible, Kawaki really wanted to avoid that.
"If only the daycare could become self-sufficient…"
He stood up and walked alone to the rear garden. Looking out over the thriving crops, he realized it was time to act on his plan to expand the cultivation area.
Currently, the backyard was divided into three sections:
One field for medicinal herbs, another for vegetables, and an orchard for berry trees.
Thanks to Oddish's diligent care, both the herbs and vegetables were growing beautifully. In another week or two, the first harvest would be ready.
But with the number of Pokémon in the daycare increasing, these crops were far from enough to support everyone.
Which meant it was time to expand the garden.
Grow crops, raise some Torchic and Psyduck, maybe even bring in a few Miltank… that way, they wouldn't have to make constant trips into town.
Expanding the cultivation area would cost money, but thankfully, Kawaki had sold all the Pokémon eggs gifted by the Hoenn League, and combined with earnings from inn guests and battle tutoring, they now had a substantial savings.
Enough to fund the expansion comfortably.
If possible, Kawaki even wanted to go all-in and import two Miltank from Johto to provide fresh Moomoo Milk right at the daycare.
Unfortunately, there were no wild Miltank in Hoenn—if he wanted them, he'd have to bring them over from Johto.
The next morning, Kawaki closed up shop and, with Bewear, made another trip to Fallarbor Town.
They sought out the same Machamp construction crew as before, and once Kawaki explained what he needed, the workers and their Machamp returned to the daycare with the necessary materials.
Kawaki hitched a ride in their truck.
The expansion was fairly simple—install some new fences, clear unused land, and bring it under cultivation. They also added a small barn to serve as a shelter for the future Miltank.
Just like Whitney's Moomoo Farm in Goldenrod City.
Thanks to the Pokémon's help, a project that normally would've taken several days was completed in just one afternoon.
When Kawaki returned, the garden had been completely transformed.
The Machamp crew even provided an extra service—plowing and clearing multiple new plots for him to plant more vegetables, herbs, and most importantly, berries.
The upgraded garden now had two distinct areas.
One was the expanded planting zone.
The other was a livestock zone, featuring the newly built barn.
In front of the barn stretched a wide patch of open land. Kawaki already had plans—once they had Miltank, he'd sow it with grass seed for grazing.
As for the rest…
It would be used exclusively to grow crops and berry trees.
He had already purchased the seeds and saplings needed. That day, he closed the daycare and led the entire team of Pokémon into a mass planting session.
Bewear, Growlithe, the Clefairy, Oddish, Chingling, and Castform—every Pokémon in the daycare joined in to help.
Kawaki placed the seeds and saplings, Bewear followed with a shovel to cover them with soil.
The Clefairy, after observing for a moment, eagerly copied the process.
As expected of highly social Pokémon—within ten minutes, they had completely mastered the planting technique.
Oddish followed along, infusing the soil with Grass-type energy to nourish the seeds.
Kawaki checked Oddish's status and noticed it had learned several new moves since last time.
Clearly, caring for the garden had enhanced its command over Grass-type energy.
It was growing stronger.
In addition to the seasonal vegetables, Kawaki also designated a section as a dedicated orchard.
This time, he planted 36 berry saplings. Including the previous 6, the daycare now had 42 trees in total.
Based on average growth cycles, as long as the daycare didn't exceed 200 Pokémon, this orchard could fully sustain them.
Once everything was planted, it was time for Castform to shine.
Using a Wailmer watering can, Kawaki simulated rainfall and prompted Castform to shift into Rainy Form.
Hovering above the garden, it used its newly learned move—Rain Dance.
In the blink of an eye, clouds rolled in and gentle rain began to fall.
Kawaki and the Pokémon huddled under the eaves, watching the peaceful scene unfold. Their expressions were filled with joy and hope.
Under the nourishment of this rain, the seeds they had planted together would one day sprout, grow, and flourish.
"Clefairy~!"
Even the Clefairy felt something special.
They didn't quite know what the feeling was…
But it filled them with wonder and anticipation.