In the end, Naoki returned to the ranch with a basket full of wild ginger, apricots, and mountain mushrooms on his back.
The apricots were found by a Butterfree, and there were many growing on that tree. Naoki only picked a few to taste, leaving the rest for the wild Pokemon in the forest.
As for the mountain mushrooms, they were almost everywhere on the back mountain and easy to find.
The load was too much, and Naoki found it a bit strenuous.
Seeing this, Koraidon and a group of Pokemon playing in the ranch quickly came over, wanting to help Naoki with the basket of wild goods.
Naoki said with a smile, "I'll make something delicious for you all for lunch today!"
Koraidon, helping him take down the basket, couldn't help but be curious when hearing this: "Ah gah ss?"
"Stewed chicken with mushrooms, have you heard of it?" Naoki asked.
"Ah gah ss!" Koraidon's eyes lit up, nodding repeatedly, looking very eager.
"Oh? Where did you hear about this?" Naoki was somewhat surprised, although there are many Chinese restaurants in the Paldea Region, Koraidon was in the Paldea Giant Pit the whole time before.
Could it be that Professor Sada and Professor Turo made it?
Unable to figure it out, Naoki assumed Koraidon was just talking nonsense and didn't think much of it.
He asked Koraidon to help take the basket to the kitchen, so he could wash the vegetables later.
Koraidon obediently went to do it.
Meanwhile, Pawmo, upon hearing Naoki intended to use the chickens under its care for cooking, couldn't help but show a sad expression.
"Ba mo…"
Seeing Pawmo's expression, Naoki was slightly taken aback, then understood its thoughts.
Naoki asked, "Pawmo, are you worried that I will use the hens from the Chicken House for cooking?"
"Ba mo…" Pawmo nodded its head.
Cyclizar on the side was a bit puzzled: "Gah ow?"
In its understanding, hens were meant to be eaten.
Naoki explained with a smile to the group of Pokemon: "Pawmo is reluctant to see them being eaten because it spends time with the hens every day, which is a very normal thing."
Cyclizar nodded adorably: "Gah ow…"
To avoid leaving psychological shadows on the kids, Naoki thought for a while, then continued to ask:
"Rest assured, these hens are kept for laying eggs. You should know, Dragonite and others can eat up to a hundred eggs every day."
"Ow woo!" Dragonite hurried to defend itself, saying it didn't eat that many eggs! It still preferred fish the most!
Naoki explained carefully: "Egg pudding is also made with eggs, you can eat two baskets every day, and sandwiches also have fried eggs. I usually put egg sauce in cooking, all of these require eggs."
Dragonite thought carefully and realized it might really eat a hundred eggs? It scratched its head embarrassedly.
Seeing Pawmo put its mind at ease, Naoki asked again: "What if I buy other chickens?"
Pawmo seriously considered it and then nodded slightly: "Ba mo!"
"Good kid." Naoki rubbed its head and then went inside to grab his wallet. Riding on Cyclizar, he said to the group of Pokemon, "I'm going to town to buy an old hen, and I'll be back soon."
Hearing this, the group of Pokemon obediently waited at home.
By now, it was almost noon, and most of the vendors in Porto Marinada Town Market had already packed up to go home for lunch.
Naoki wandered around several times before finding a meat shop that hadn't closed yet and bought a freshly slaughtered three-yellow chicken.
This type of chicken has firm and rich meat, and after being simmered, the broth is fresh and the meat tender, harmonizing perfectly with the aroma of mountain mushrooms.
After paying, Naoki realized there were too many Pokemon on the ranch, and one might not be enough, so he bought a few more and conveniently bought two clay pots.
After returning to the ranch, he sent Cyclizar out to play and began preparing lunch.
Although he planned to make stewed chicken with mountain mushrooms, this dish takes a long time to make. It needs to be simmered on low heat for four hours to be ready.
So for today's lunch, Naoki prepared the usual: rice, tomatoes and eggs, fried meat patties, sandwiches, Berry Juice, and MooMoo Milk.
After finishing lunch, Naoki started preparing the ingredients and put them in the clay pots for slow cooking.
Several Pokemon were eagerly watching the stove.
Seeing them like this, Naoki found it somewhat amusing and waved his hand, saying: "You guys go play outside; it'll take a long time to be ready. You'll be able to eat it at dinner."
The group of Pokemon had no choice but to give up.
They only craved it because Koraidon had said how delicious it is; otherwise, they wouldn't be so eager now.
But since Naoki said it would take a long while, they all left the house and went to play on the grass outside.
Naoki, reading in his room, glanced up briefly and saw Koraidon leading Cyclizar and Dragonite to the riverside.
The soil there, softened by the river's flow, plus the jumping Psyduck, resulted in several mud pits.
Naoki, afraid they would dirty themselves, shouted from afar: "Don't roll in the mud pits! Koraidon, bring Cyclizar and the others back to play on the grass!"
Koraidon, hearing Naoki's voice from afar, looked disdainfully at the mud pits not far away.
It responded loudly: "Ah gah ss!"
It wouldn't roll in the mud pits! It hadn't even touched the mud!
However, just after saying this, Koraidon saw Cyclizar stepping into a mud pit, running to the river's edge, and lowering its head to drink some water.
Koraidon: "..."
It couldn't help but feel exasperated and pulled Cyclizar to a clean patch of grass.
Using a Berry it fumbled from somewhere, it made a trade with the Psyduck across the way.
Soon, a Psyduck approached, using Water Gun on Cyclizar to wash off the mud.
Koraidon was satisfied, thinking that as long as Naoki didn't see, it hadn't rolled in the mud pit.
"Ow woo..."
Dragonite watched this scene, thinking Koraidon was quite nice to Cyclizar! It even used Berry to get Psyduck to wash it.
Koraidon gave the Berry to the Psyduck.
The Psyduck made a happy sound and ran away holding the Berry.
Koraidon, watching the Psyduck across the way, suddenly recalled the event in the not-so-distant future.
The crops in the field matured, attracting the Psyduck to come and steal the produce to eat, only to be caught by Naoki and brought into the ranch.
Since then, these Psyduck took on the role of harvesters in the ranch.
They would pick all the fruits when the crops matured and put them into large baskets prepared by Naoki. Some would be sold, and some would be kept to make delicious treats for them.
Since they're companions, it didn't care anymore!
Koraidon brought Cyclizar and Dragonite back to the grass in front and, like an adult, started guiding Cyclizar and Dragonite.
Naoki, who was reading, took a moment to glance over, seeing they were getting along quite harmoniously, and continued reading.
This book was given to him by Mayor Thomas back then, containing a wealth of knowledge about ranch life, and Naoki would occasionally take it out to read a bit.