Seeing Ange approach, a group of Poliwag and a few Poliwhirl immediately gathered around.
Ange could faintly see a few Poliwrath and a Politoed in the grass.
The Politoed was resting in the aquatic grass. When it saw Ange arrive, it simply peeled open its eyelids to glance at him, then immediately closed its eyes again.
Ange tried to use the Eye of Observation to check Politoed's data, but the Eye of Observation was ineffective.
This situation could only mean one thing: Politoed's level exceeded Diancie's.
Ange actually did not know that the Politoed before him was also one of the Nebel Plateau's guardians.
When Volcanion was absent, Delphox, Greninja, and Chesnaught were responsible for guarding the land, while the vast water area was Politoed's territory.
It was safe to say that Politoed was the most powerful Pokémon on the Nebel Plateau after Volcanion.
Of course, Ange did not know this.
He guessed that Politoed was likely the parent of the Poliwag and Poliwhirl. He had been wondering whether to go up and say hello, but the Poliwag were already surrounding Lapras, leading him to swim in another direction. Before long, Politoed vanished from his sight.
***
Bypassing the lush aquatic grass, Ange arrived at an area of clear water. The water was deep here, but Ange could still clearly see the bottom. The swaying Asire Seaweed, the swimming Magikarp, Goldeen, and Seaking; the area was full of life.
"Poli~ Poli~"
A Poliwag cried out to Ange, then quickly dove into the water. In a short time, it emerged with a long strand of Asire Seaweed in its mouth.
"Poli Poli~"
It swam over to Ange, presenting the long Asire Seaweed to him.
Ange took the seaweed and thanked it, "Thank you, Poliwag."
"Poli Poli~"
Poliwag's round eyes immediately curved into crescent moons. It then dove into the water again. Next, the other Poliwag followed, one after another, diving into the water.
"Munch Munch~~"
Watching one strand of Asire Seaweed after another being gathered by the Poliwag and handed to Ange, Munchlax clapped its hands happily from the side.
Poliwag did not have hands, so they could only collect Asire Seaweed one strand at a time. The speed was a bit slow, so Munchlax, who was just watching, grew impatient, and while Ange was not paying attention, it plunged into the water.
Splash~
Ange was startled by the sudden burst of water. Seeing that Munchlax had already dove into the water, he quietly retracted the hand he had reached out.
Munchlax was truly a Pokémon with a maximum speed individual value. It was incredibly agile even in the water. Before long, it surfaced, holding a handful of Asire Seaweed.
"Munch~~"
Munchlax looked smug as it presented the Asire Seaweed it gathered to Ange.
"You can swim too, huh~" Ange asked helplessly.
"Munch~~" I'm amazing, right!
Munchlax was beaming, its face full of a smug expression.
"Amazing!" Ange gave it a thumbs-up, praising it, "My Munchlax is the most amazing in the world."
Ange's words made Munchlax so proud that it forgot itself. It shoved the Asire Seaweed into Ange's hand, then began showing off its swimming techniques.
It demonstrated the backstroke, the dog paddle, the butterfly stroke; it was swimming with such joy.
Ange sometimes could not help but wonder, was his Pokémon a Munchlax or a dog? It was clingy, loved to be spoiled, and knew how to please its Master. It was simply too cute.
"Munchlax is amazing!"
"Wow, that move is so cool."
"Wow, Munchlax, you swim so fast. Even Water-type Pokémon can't keep up with you."
***
Ange was very supportive of Munchlax's performance, complimenting it again and again. Munchlax grew more and more excited as it swam.
Seeing Munchlax have so much fun, Ange wanted to go down and play with it. However, even on the Nebel Plateau, the autumn water was a bit chilly. Given his physical condition, he did not want to risk getting sick again.
So, he could only think about it.
In addition to Munchlax and the Poliwag, the Marill family also helped gather with the Azurill. Although Fletchling and the others wanted to help, they could not go into the water.
***
Soon, the sun began to set, and Ange saw that he had enough Asire Seaweed, so he called out to Munchlax, Marill, Azurill, and the Poliwag.
"Alright, that's enough. Let's go home."
Hearing this, Munchlax, the Poliwag, and the Marill family gathered around Ange.
"Munchlax, come!" Ange reached out a hand to Munchlax, then pulled hard, hauling it onto Lapras's back, "Goodness, you really aren't light."
Munchlax's soft, thick fur, once wet, made it almost too heavy for Ange to pull.
"Are you tired? Are you cold?" Ange asked with concern.
"Munch Munch~~"
Munchlax patted its chest and shook its head.
Ange thought for a moment, spent a few Happiness Points to buy a disposable towel from the System Store, and handed it to Munchlax, "Hurry up and wipe off."
"Munch Munch~"
Munchlax took the towel and chuckled.
"Alright, let's head back," Ange said.
Subsequently, everyone swam back together.
***
As they passed a certain spot, a cluster of aquatic plants suddenly caught Ange's attention.
That is...
He stared at it for a few seconds, then suddenly slapped his head. That's wild rice shoots! He quickly pointed to the cluster of grass and eagerly said to Lapras, "Lapras, take me over there."
Lapras was confused but quickly swam over according to Ange's instructions. The Poliwag looked at each other, confused, so they followed along with the Marill family.
It really was wild rice shoots!
Ange walked closer, his heart filled with surprise. He had not expected such a pleasant surprise.
He reached out and peeled back the aquatic leaves, revealing the swollen stem inside. It was white and tender; this was the wild rice shoot.
"Fle Fle~ Ange, why are you pulling out this grass?"
Fletchling flapped its wings and landed on Ange's shoulder, asking in confusion.
Swablu and Spritzee squeezed onto Ange's other shoulder, also looking curious.
Lapras was also puzzled. This kind of grass was common in the Nebel Plateau waters. It had eaten it before, but it was incredibly rough on the throat, impossible to swallow, and totally unappetizing.
Ange peeled off the green leaves wrapped around the wild rice shoot, revealing the white and tender part inside. He gently pinched it with his hand, and a fingernail mark instantly appeared.
It's so tender!
He smiled and showed the peeled wild rice shoot to the Pokémon, "This is a good thing, you know. It's delicious."
Lapras, the Poliwag, the Marill family, and the Azurill all shook their heads, showing disbelief.
However, Munchlax, Fletchling, Spritzee, and Swablu trusted Ange's words completely.
Munchlax took the wild rice shoot from Ange's hand, looking at it like a precious treasure.
Heh heh, something delicious.
Munchlax's drool was already flowing uncontrollably, even before knowing how to eat it.
"Lapras, please swim further in. I want to pick some more," Ange said to Lapras.
"La~~"
Lapras nodded, carrying Ange a little deeper into the aquatic grass.
Ange reached out, peeling out one wild rice shoot after another. Munchlax, the Marill family, and the Azurill also came forward to help. Before long, they had peeled a large pile.
Seeing they had peeled enough, Ange did not delay any longer. He said to everyone, "That's enough. Let's head back quickly. It's getting dark."
So, the group of Pokémon continued swimming back.
***
After dropping Ange off at the shore, the Poliwag, the Marill family, the Azurill, and Lapras all bid farewell to Ange.
Ange waved and said to them, "Thank you all today. You must come to my house for a meal tomorrow!"
The Pokémon swam away, looking back at every step.
***
When Ange and Munchlax were almost home, Fletchling, Spritzee, and Swablu also parted ways with them.
"Fletchling, Spritzee, Swablu, I had a great time today. Let's play together again next time!"
"Munch Munch~ I had fun too, let's play together!"
Ange and Munchlax shouted to the three Pokémon, who were gradually flying away.
"Fle~~"
"Zee~~"
"Blu~~"
The three Pokémon's responses came from the distant sunset.
***
As he approached the front door, Ange saw Komala rolling home from afar. He walked over, bent down, and picked it up.
"Welcome home."
"Munch~ Welcome, welcome!"
Munchlax imitated Ange.
The human and the two Pokémon walked to the door. Diancie stood on the doorstep, smiling as she said to them, "You came back a little late."
"Munch Munch~~ Not late, not late."
Munchlax, wrapped in the towel, scampered into the house, a perfect little chubby fellow.
"Hahaha~~" Ange could not help but laugh at Munchlax's comical actions.
Accompanied by Ange's laughter, the family of four entered the house, chatting and laughing. Before long, a warm light turned on inside, bringing a touch of life to the empty Nebel Plateau.
***
In the evening, Ange and Munchlax cooked together in the kitchen.
"Munchlax, you steam the Mantou, and I'll make the dishes," Ange said.
Their staple food for the night was still Mantou.
"Munch~~"
Munchlax responded. Standing on a small stool, it skillfully kneaded the dough on its tiptoes.
Then Ange also got busy.
He started by processing the Asire Seaweed.
Last time he made a cold salad with Asire Seaweed. This time, Ange made a dish of Asire Seaweed with scallion oil. It was just as delicious, but with a different flavor.
After making the Asire Seaweed dish, Ange made a cold-toss radish salad, cooked a tomato soup, and stir-fried a plate of green beans.
The green beans in Ange's garden had just matured. They were fresh and tender and very delicious. The whole family loved them.
As the dishes came out of the pot, a rich aroma filled the kitchen. Even Diancie could not help but poke her head in from outside to ask,
"What delicious food is there today? It smells so good!"
Ange pretended to be mysterious, "You'll find out at dinnertime."
Diancie said with dissatisfaction, "Playing coy." She then retracted her head.
Ange smiled and looked back at the stove. Only the last dish remained: the wild rice shoots they had peeled today.
After much thought, Ange decided to make braised wild rice shoots with soy sauce and sugar (Oil-Braised Wild Rice Shoots).
He cut the peeled and washed wild rice shoots into rolling chunks and prepared oil, salt, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, and garlic for seasoning.
Next, he heated the wok and oil. Once the oil was hot, he added the ginger and garlic to sauté until it became fragrant, then poured in the cut wild rice shoots to stir-fry.
When the wild rice shoots softened, he added the soy sauce, sugar, and salt one by one.
Finally, he poured in an appropriate amount of water, covered it, and simmered.
After reducing the sauce over high heat and stirring until the liquid was thick, the dish was ready to serve.
Seeing Munchlax staring intently at the freshly made braised wild rice shoots, Ange asked with a chuckle, "Does it smell good?"
"Munch Munch~~ It smells good!"
Munchlax wiped the corner of its mouth and replied, its eyes fixed on the dish.
Ange laughed and patted its forehead, "It smells good, huh? Then why don't you hurry and prepare the bowls and chopsticks for dinner?"
"Munch~~"
Munchlax cheered, immediately grabbing a stack of bowls and chopsticks and running towards the dining room.
As expected, the family of four all ate until they were stuffed that night.
Munchlax lay back in its chair, rubbing its belly, which looked like it was six months pregnant, but its face was full of satisfaction.
"Munch Munch~~ Master, let's eat this again tomorrow."
Munchlax said. It knew its Master had not cooked all the wild rice shoots.
"You like it that much?" Ange teased it.
"Munch Munch~ Yes, I do."
Munchlax nodded.
"You, what don't you like?" Diancie grumbled at it.
Munchlax angrily turned its head away from Diancie.
Seeing this, Ange said to Diancie, "Don't bully him so much."
Diancie said sourly, "With you, his Master, protecting him, how would I dare?"
Ange scratched his head and did not respond.
After dinner, the family of four chatted together for a while. When it was time, they went to the Cooking Training Room for training.
Ange had missed a day of training last night because he drove Gardevoir and Kirlia to the Pokémon Center, causing him to miss out on the full reward for yesterday's daily mission.
***
The next day, Ange woke up early. He had not been able to set up his stall yesterday, so he could not be lazy today. If he did not earn more money now, he would not have any if he needed it later.
Ange had just finished washing up and came out of his room when Diancie approached him.
"Ange, a new System Mission has arrived. Should we accept it?" Diancie said.
"I knew it would probably arrive today," Ange laughed, "Show it to me quickly."
Diancie nodded. She walked up to Ange and displayed the mission acceptance pop-up window for him to see.
After Ange saw the missions on the pop-up, he was stunned. There was more than one mission.
[Temporary Mission: Acquire your own shop in the Azoth Royal Capital. Accept?]
[Yes/No]
[Ingredient Acquisition Mission: Establish a partnership with the Gogoat on the Nebel Plateau to obtain Grass Nanny Milk. Accept?]
[Yes/No]
[Recipe Upgrade Mission: Upgrade Mantou to Milky Mantou, using the ingredient Grass Nanny Milk. Accept?]
[Yes/No]
Ange had not expected the System to issue three missions simultaneously.
Issuing three missions is fine, but what is the first mission about?
Acquire his own shop in the Azoth Royal Capital? Can you just get a shop in the Royal Capital? Does he look like someone who can afford to buy property? Besides, is there even a need for that?
Forget it, forget it. I'll accept it first. Maybe one day I'll save up enough money. After all, the mission doesn't have a time limit, and there is no penalty for failure.
Thinking this, Ange accepted all three missions in one go.
Looking at the latter two missions, Ange thought, It looks like I'll have to go establish a good relationship with the Gogoat later.