So many festivals, it sounds really exciting!
Naoki felt moved by what he heard.
Allen glanced around and said, "It seems like you don't have a Horse-type Pokemon! Without a Horse-type Pokemon, you won't be able to participate in next month's horse racing event."
Naoki: "..."
It's not like he could just conjure one up!
There aren't many kinds of Horse-type Pokemon, let alone Rapidash or Zebstrika, which inhabit vast grasslands, terrains Porto Marinada Town doesn't have.
The only Mudsdale also lives in hillside areas, which are hard to come by in this environment.
As for other horses, there's only Calyrex's Glastrier and Spectrier left.
He can't just ride Koraidon to the neighboring Galar region to compete with Calyrex for a rideable horse, can he?
Allen, realizing this as well, smiled sheepishly, "If there are no horses, we can just watch the competition from the stands together!"
Naoki shrugged: "We'll see when the time comes!"
Who knows, maybe one day he'll be lucky enough to encounter a horse in the back hills?
"Hmm!" Allen nodded, said goodbye to Naoki as he had work to do, and turned to leave the ranch.
Watching him leave, Naoki fell into deep thought.
Today is February 21st, only two days left before the cattle and sheep judging contest.
The ranch only has Gogoat and Miltank among its cattle and sheep Pokemon.
Miltank is newly raised and hasn't been here for long, so its coat hasn't become Oily and Slippery yet,
Thinking of this, Naoki turned to the sheepfold to observe the wool on three reclining Gogoats.
In comparison, Gogoat's wool is much nicer.
Maintaining a leisurely mood and having sufficient nutrition long-term made their mental state and wool reach an excellent state.
Their wool is soft and smooth, feeling fluffy to touch.
Clearly, they are the most suitable Pokemon to participate in this judging contest.
In that case, it's decided!
Naoki smiled at the three Gogoats and said, "Do your best and bring me a first prize back later!"
It wouldn't have been in vain that he painstakingly made veggie cakes for them every day.
The Gogoats looked bewildered: "Baa?"
And Naoki had already turned away, going to check on Miltank's milking.
Currently, the ranch has three Miltank, two of which Naoki brought back from the town later on.
Once they arrived, the solitary Miltank finally had company and wasn't lonely anymore.
These three Miltanks could provide him with lots of milk every day, and coupled with the goat milk from Gogoat and Rock Salt from Nacli, it brought in a substantial income for the ranch daily.
Naoki planned to use this money to install air conditioners in the Salt House, Chicken House, Pokemon House, and home.
That way, when the scorching summer arrives, he can enjoy a cool, relaxing time at home with his Pokemon, eating watermelon on summer vacation.
And the Miltanks wouldn't have to worry about suffering from the oppressive heat, comfortably staying in their nests eating feed.
The ranch's economic crisis was temporarily alleviated, leaving Naoki with ample time to create new dishes.
That afternoon, he went into town to buy a bunch of new ingredients and kitchen utensils, such as an oven and skillet, and then went home to show off his cooking skills.
Today, he plans to use the oven to make a new dish.
In the kitchen, Naoki prepared all the tools and ingredients he needed.
Egg beater, oven, eggs, strong flour, sugar, milk, butter, honey…
The eggs were laid by his chickens, the milk was produced by Miltank, and the honey was diligently made by Combee.
With everything ready, Naoki started working.
At this moment, Alcremie came over, looking at Naoki's actions and made a cheerful growl, "Maa!"
"Do you want to help too?" Naoki asked.
"Maa!"
Alcremie nodded enthusiastically, loving to make desserts the most.
"Then let's do it together!" Naoki nodded with a smile.
Just right, he was planning to make a cake base. With Alcremie's cream, it would become a delicious caramel cream cake.
But before that, he had to finish the dessert he originally planned to make.
Mix the strong flour, eggs, milk, and sugar evenly, then add yeast to form a dough, cover with cling film, and let it rise for thirty minutes.
After thirty minutes, take the rested dough out, place it on the countertop, and start kneading, incorporating softened butter during the process.
Once it's about right, shape the dough into small buns, spread a layer of Honey on top, and place them in the oven to bake.
Soon, with a "ding," a line of neat honey buns was freshly baked.
When the oven door opened, a rich milky aroma mixed with honey scent wafted out.
Naoki couldn't help but swallow.
The honey buns had a golden, crispy crust, and when bitten into, they were soft and stretchy inside, with a fluffy texture, allowing one to taste the sweet fragrance of honey.
"Mmm, perfect!"
Naoki shared one with Alcremie beside him, and after finishing one himself, he started to examine this bun's details.
[Honey Bun (A-): A bun made with honey, MooMoo Milk, and other ingredients, its rich honey fragrance can attract some Bear-type Pokemon's attention.
Effect: Bear Boom, upon consumption by Bear-type Pokemon, induces a state of inspiration surge, enhancing comprehension, exclusive to Bear-type Pokemon.
Additional Effect: Greatly increases Bear-type Pokemon's affection.
Review: A delicious little bun spread thickly with Honey, perfectly fusing the flavors of honey, eggs, flour, and milk, an excellent type of bread.]
"Not a bad effect." Naoki thought to himself as he observed the bun's information.
Luckily, he knew a Bear-type Pokemon.
Naoki's mind pictured the cunning silhouette of Teddiursa.
But speaking of which, he hadn't seen Teddiursa in several days.
It's been almost five days since it last visited the ranch.
"Could it have encountered some danger?"
Naoki felt a hint of worry as he walked out of the room, gazing toward the back hills from under the eaves.
Not far away, Butterfree was gathering nectar, eating, and Naoki, remembering how Butterfree flew around the ranch daily, called it over to ask:
"Butterfree, have you seen Teddiursa these past days? Did it come to the ranch?"
"Mmm…"
Butterfree shook its head gently, not having seen Teddiursa.
"Alright."
In that moment, countless possibilities flashed through Naoki's mind.
Trapped by a Trainer passing by, fell down a cliff and couldn't get back up, encountered danger…